Embed Size (px)
Citation preview
8th Day - SHEMINI
TORAH: Lev. 9:1-11:47
1
ON THE EIGHTH DAY• On the eighth day, … (Leviticus 9:1)
• Torah is referring to the day following the seven day inauguration of the Tabernacle in the desert. The first seven days were a dry run, a full dress rehearsal minus the presence of יהוה’s Indwelling, the Shechinah.
• On a deeper level, the eighth day referred to by Torah is not simply the day following the first seven.
• It is on what was made manifest that day, a brand new day in creation.
• The day that יהוה’s presence made itself manifest in our world was a day like no other day before. It was an entirely new reality.
• The first seven days weren't built for this. • So יהוה in a manner of speaking, had to necessarily create a new
day in order to accommodate this new reality in the world. This is the eighth day that parashat Shmini is referring to.
2
EIGHTH DAY • “eighth day” was the “First of Abib or Nissan”. The month Abib,
meaning (sprouting, budding, green ears) is the first month of the Biblical Year (Ex 12: 2; 13:4).
• For the previous seven days, Moshe, acting in the office of High Priest, began to “set-apart” (consecrate) Aharon and his sons, in preparation for this “eighth day”.
• Moshe erected the Mishkan, performed the service and disassembled it. However, on the Eighth Day, the first of Abib / Nissan and first day of the New Year, the Sanctuary was left standing and remained for as long as the Children of Israel stayed in the same wilderness encampment.
• The number eight, refers to an even higher level of holiness, the Godly light which transcends the limits of our world.
• Indeed, it eclipses the number seven to the extent that Rabbis state that "the number seven is always mundane, while the number eight is holy."
3
TEN CROWNS
1. The first day of creation; 2. First day of the first of the months of the year; 3. The first day of the priesthood; 4. The first day of the Sanctuary service; 5. The inauguration sacrifices of the princes of the twelve tribes; 6. First day for the descent of fire from heaven on the altar; 7. The first day that sacrifices were eaten; 8. The first day that all other altars (such as private altars) other
than the Sanctuary altar became forbidden; 9. The first day that the Divine Presence dwelled in Israel; 10. The first day on which the priests blessed the people.
4
INAUGURATION DAY• This inauguration day is so significant that Torah speaks of it in
several books: in Exodus, Leviticus and Numbers. • In Exodus 29: 43-45 יהוה speaks of the importance of what is
happening here:
“And there I shall meet with the children of Yisra’ĕl, and it shall be set apart by My esteem. “And I shall set apart the Tent of
Meeting and the altar. And Aharon and his sons I set apart to serve as priests to Me. “And I shall dwell in the midst of the
children of Yisra’ĕl and shall be their Elohim.
5
SEVEN & EIGHT• “Seven” is the number of completion of יהוה creation• “Eight” is the number of new beginnings and revelation. • First, we have the 6 days, or 6,000 years, of the creation. Then
we have the 7th day (Shabbat) or the Messianic 7th millennium. • Finally, the 8th day or 8th Millennium, when יהוה comes down
into the New Jerusalem to physically dwell with His people forever.
• On that “eighth day” Elohim moves all creation to bring the spiritual and physical worlds together, for those who follow His Word, into His Divine Presence.
But, beloved ones, let not this one matter be hidden from you: that with יהוה one day is as a thousand years, and a thousand years as
one day. (2 Peter 3:8)
6
PREVIEW OF Y’SHUA• Man alone is not able to mix the earthly (matter) and the
spiritual. Just as He breathed life (spiritual) into Adam (earthly), our Heavenly Father has His ways of joining the two.
• When a man follows יהוה’s commandments to perform a particular task, we witness an incredible fusion of the earthly with the spiritual.
• The 613 commandments are the 613 bridge between “seven” and “eight”. Thus we can say that it is through the observance of His commandments that His Spiritual Presence will become visible within this physical world. This gives even more significant meaning to the description of Yeshua:
And the Word (Spiritual) became flesh and pitched His tent among us, and we saw His esteem, esteem as of an only brought-forth of a
father, complete in favour and truth. (John 1:14)
7
PREVIEW OF Y’SHUA• Through the keeping of the commandments, we also enter into
and reflect the spiritual realm. • This is why יהושע pointed us in the direction of obedience as an
expression of our love for Him:
“If you love Me, you shall guard My commands.(John 14:15)
8
GLORY OF ELOHIM• And Mosheh and Aharon went into the Tent of Meeting, and came out and blessed the people. And the esteem (glory) of יהוה appeared to all the people, (Leviticus 9:23)• On the 8th day, the “glory of Elohim” appeared to all the people. • When number eight is spoken in Scriptures, there is a spiritual connection“And a son of eight days is circumcised by you, every male child in your generations, he who is born in your house or bought with silver from any foreigner who is not of your seed. “He who is born in your house, and he who is bought with your silver, has to be circumcised. So shall My covenant be in your flesh, for an everlasting covenant. (Genesis 17:12-13)• The earthly picture of circumcision on the 8th day links a child to the everlasting (spiritual) covenant.
9
“Likewise you are to do with your oxen, with your sheep. It is to be with its mother seven days. On the eighth day you give it to Me. (Exodus 22:30)“And he (THE LEPER) who is to be cleansed shall wash his garments, and shall shave off all his hair and wash himself in water, and shall be clean. Then after that he comes into the camp, but shall stay outside his tent seven days. “And on the eighth day he … shall bring a sin offering and the other a burnt offering. “And he shall bring them to the priest on the eighth day for his cleansing, to the door of the Tent of Meeting, before יהוה. (Leviticus 14:8-23). • After 7 days of counting his purity, on the 8th day he is able to be cleansed and come before the presence of יהוה.
10
MORE on the – 8TH DAY
MORE on the – 8TH DAY‘Until the morrow after the seventh Sabbath you count fifty
days, then you shall bring a new grain offering to יהוה. (Leviticus 23:16).
• Shavuot (Pentecost) is the same day that יהוה’s glory was revealed on Mount Sinai and centuries later in the upper room.
11
And יהוה spoke to Mosheh, saying, “Speak to the children of Yisra’ĕl, saying, ‘On the fifteenth day of this seventh month is the
Festival of Booths for seven days to יהוה. …On the eighth day there shall be a set-apart gathering for you, and you shall bring
an offering made by fire to יהוה. It is a closing festival, you do no servile work. (Leviticus 23:33-36)
• The 8th day following seven days of Sukkot is called “Hashmini Atzeret.
• Since we know that a day is likened to a thousand years, Hashmini Atzeret”can be seen as a picture of the eternity that occurs after man’s 7,000 years on earth.
• It is the time of the New Heavens and the New Earth that we read about in Revelation 21 and 22.
12
MORE on the – 8TH DAY
• The 8th day represents a level of holiness that transcends normal time and space.
• It as a time of becoming “one with the Almighty” versus being “one with the world”. Exactly what יהושע prayed:
“And I am no more in the world, but these are in the world, and I come to You. Set-apart Father, guard them in Your Name which
You have given Me, so that they might be one, as We are. (John 17:11)
13
MORE on the – 8TH DAY
REVELATION 20-21• SATAN locked and sealed in the abyss for a 1000 years• Appointment of judges• The first resurrection of the just (cohanim)• Second battle with Gog and Magog against God’s
people and the city he loves. • Eternal judgement•White throne judgement• New heaven and a new earth• New Jerusalem - God's Sh'khinah gives it light, and its
lamp is the Lamb. • Nothing impure may enter it, nor anyone who does
shameful things or lies14
A NEW DISPENSATIONand fire came out from before יהוה and consumed the burnt
offering and the fat on the altar. And all the people saw and cried aloud and fell on their faces. (Leviticus 9:24)
• From this day: 1. The sacrifices could no longer be eaten anywhere, but only in
their prescribed locations.2. Private altars became forbidden, since now sacrifices could
be brought to the opening of the Appointed Tent. – Until this point, it was permissible to build an altar and
sacrifice to יהוה just about anywhere one wanted. However, once the Mishkan was operative, that was no longer so.
3. It was the first time since Torah was given that Rosh Chodesh Nissan, the New Year of the months, came around. – In Egypt, Moshe received the mitzvah to start counting
the months and the years (Exodus 12:1), and this Rosh Chodesh Nissan was the completion of the first cycle.
15
CIRCUMCISION OF THE HEART• The priests spent seven full days learning every minute detail
of יהוה’s Tabernacle and their role in the rituals that will be performed there.
• Now time of “circumcision of the heart” as they put away every fleshly inclination that will prevent them from properly performing their spiritual duties.
• As the Tabernacle is a picture of the perfected body of Messiah, the unity and the bonding that occurred there must have been incredible.
• They were prepared to be the vessels used by יהוה to draw all of Israel nearer to the Kingdom And Nadab and Abihu, the sons of Aharon, each took his fire holder and put fire in it, and put incense on it, and brought
strange fire before יהוה, which He had not commanded them. And fire came out from יהוה and consumed them, and they died
before יהוה. (Leviticus 10:1-2)
17
1ST DAY CREATION AND FIRE• On the 1st day of the creation week, Elohim said:• Genesis 1:3 … "Let there be light"; and there was light.• The light of the 1st day is the illumination the Almighty created. • The light of the 8th day is the illumination that He teaches US to make. Our oneness with the Messiah and with each other creates a Tabernacle that illuminates and gives light to the world! • Elohim began with light, and then He created the earth as a dwelling for mankind. • Now the Israelites have built the Tabernacle as a dwelling for יהוה. Then, on the 8th day, this dwelling will be filled with light and with the Presence, in the form of the fire that consumed the sacrifices, and the light of the Menorah!
18
1ST DAY CREATION AND FIRE
• This episode will repeat at the end of the 7th day – or the 7 thousand years, and it will usher us into the 8th:
And when the thousand years have ended, Satan shall be released from his prison, and he shall go out to lead the nations
astray which are in the four corners of the earth, Gog and Magog, to gather them together for battle, whose number is as
the sand of the sea. ..And fire came down from Elohim out of the heaven and consumed them. (Revelation 20:7-9)
19
A MATTER OF WHAT YOU "EIGHT"• This fusion of transcendence (A state of being or existence
above and beyond the limits of material experience) and immanence (The state of being within or not going beyond a given domain) is also alluded to by the name Shemini.
• Shemini shares a root with the Hebrew word shemen, meaning "oil." Oil has two tendencies. On one hand, it floats above other liquids, to the extent that if an impure person touches oil floating on another liquid, the lower liquid is not rendered impure, for the two are not considered to be joined.
• On the other hand, oil permeates the entities on which it is placed. Therefore, if a non-kosher substance which is fat or oily is roasted together with other food, it makes the entire quantity of food non-kosher, although ordinarily only the food actually touching the non-kosher substance would be tainted.
• Similarly, with regard to the subject at hand, the essential light associated with the eighth day transcends the limits of our material realm. Nevertheless, יהוה's intent is not that this light remain in a sublime state, but that it permeate the material world, endowing it with holiness.
20
I ST COMMAND• The first command that Elohim gave the first human was a
dietary law with a restriction:And יהוה Elohim commanded the man, saying, “Eat of every tree
of the garden, but do not eat of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, for in the day that you eat of it you shall certainly
die.” (Genesis 2:16-17)• We have been commanded from the beginning to sanctify the
activity of eating. • Chasidic thought explains that unclean foods are “spiritual
parasites” that target specifically those areas which are potential places of holiness.
• The food laws are about the hallowing of every day. They are about our minds and our stomachs. They teach us concerning the curbing of our appetites:
Their end is destruction, their mighty one is their stomach, and their esteem is in their shame – they mind the earthly.
(Philippians 3:19)21
WORSHIP• “Who sets our standard for what’s permissible in worship, יהוה or
man?” • Is it about what makes us feel good, what will bring in more
sheep? What we all need to ask ourselves is; “What does יהוה want?”
“All the words I am commanding you, guard to do it – do not add to it nor take away from it. (Deuteronomy 12:32)
• Nadab and Abihu added to the commands of יהוה;• David added to the commands in 2 Samuel 6 and Uzziyah paid;• Kain added to the commands and his sacrifice was not accepted.
so as to make a distinction between the set-apart and the profane, and between the unclean and the clean, (Leviticus 10:10)
• Avoiding unclean foods helps establish controls and boundaries in our lives. Not every appetite is worthy of being satiated.
• Controls and boundaries are sadly lacking in our world. We gravitate towards comfort, convenience, and gratification, but we should be focused on covenant, community, and being set apart.
23
• Many explanations have been given for the dietary laws. • Some see them as rules of hygiene. Potentially disease-ridden
animals should be avoided. • The greatest reason for keeping these commandments,
however, are purely for the reason that they were given by the Almighty.
‘For I am יהוה your Elohim… (Leviticus 11:44)
And He said, “If you diligently obey the voice of יהוה your Elohim and do what is right in His eyes, and shall listen to His commands
and shall guard all His laws, I shall bring on you none of the diseases I brought on the Mitsrites, for I am יהוה who heals you.”
(Exodus 15:26)• If we hearken to the voice of יהוה we will not receive the
diseases God places on our enemies (Deuteronomy 28)
24
• Modern day American Christianity (with a few exceptions), teaches that Yahshua of Nazareth came so we could ignore the Creator’s commands to not consume unclean foods, while picking a numbered sound byte out of the New Covenant called a “verse” to justify this teaching.
• Religious gurus love to bring up instances where Apostle Paul says “Let all meats be received with thanksgiving”
• The word for “meat” in the Greek is a specific Greek word which means “Clean according to Torah law”.
• G1033 broma From the base of G977; food (literally or figuratively), especially (ceremonial) articles allowed or forbiden by the Jewish law: - meat, victuals.
• Verses like this are translated in a very deceptive way to promote disobeying the Creator and conforming to church Dogma.
• Let us read this same verse correctly translated.“Let all meats that are clean according to the Torah, be received
with thanksgiving”.
25
THE LAW“Do not think that I came to destroy the Torah or the Prophets.1 I
did not come to destroy but to complete. • The Law and the Prophets is a term used for the pre-
Messianic Scriptures. “For truly, I say to you, till the heaven and the earth pass away,
one jot or one tittle shall by no means pass from the Torah till all be done.. “Whoever, then, breaks one of the least of these
commands, and teaches men so, shall be called least in the reign of the heavens; but whoever does and teaches them, he shall be
called great in the reign of the heavens. “For I say to you, that unless your righteousness exceeds that of the scribes and
Pharisees, you shall by no means enter into the reign of the heavens. (Matthew 5:17-20)
• Note: When Jesus said this the New Testament was not Written
PROHIBITION• Leviticus 11: God tells us which animals we are allowed to eat and
which animals are not acceptable as food for humans. – Many Christians believe that in the New Covenant God removed this
prohibition and all animals are now acceptable as food. • The list was not created as a new law just for the Hebrews.
Leviticus 11 only confirms a previously established situation. • 1000 years before Exodus God told Noah to take seven pairs of
clean animals and two pairs of unclean animals in the Ark. Gen 7:2 Take with you seven pairs of every kind of clean animal, a male
and its mate, and one pair of every kind of unclean animal, a male and its mate, mate, and also seven pairs of every kind of bird, male
and female,Gen 8:20 Then Noah built an altar to the Lord and, taking some of all
the clean animals and clean birds, he sacrificed burnt offerings on it. 21 The Lord smelled the pleasing aroma
27
• Unclean birds and unclean spirits are mentioned in Revelation showing that unclean animals will still be unclean even near the end of the coming Great Tribulation:
• The practice of unclean food links to unclean spirit connected with end time Babylon which God calls for His people to come out of.
And he cried with a mighty voice, saying, “Babel the great is fallen, is fallen, and has become a dwelling place of demons, a haunt for every unclean spirit, and a haunt for every unclean and hated bird, because all the nations have drunk of the wine of the wrath of her whoring, and the sovereigns of the earth have committed whoring with her, and the merchants of the earth have become rich through the power of her riotous living.” And I heard another voice from the heaven saying, “Come out of her, my people, lest you share in her sins, and lest you receive of her plagues. (Revelation 18:2-4)
28
. . .those who set themselves apart and cleanse themselves at the gardens after ‘One’ in the midst, eating flesh of pigs and the
abomination and the mouse, are snatched away, together,” declares יהוה. “And I, because of their works and their
imaginations, am coming to gather all nations and tongues. And they shall come and see My esteem. (Isaiah 66:17-18)
• The prophecy reveals some aspects of what true worship of God will be like at that time.
• But in the context of this article it demonstrates that God will destroy those eating swine and mouse, both unclean animals, and following pagan religions.
• Leviticus 11:11, 13, 20, etc show us that unclean animals are abominations.
• As Christ's Return is still future, this prophecy shows that God has not repealed His laws relating to unclean animals.
29
UNCLEAN ANIMALSCAMELS –
• The camel has no split or cloven hoof• this animal has a similar digestive system to the clean animals
but since it is made for desert environment, instead of sweating and losing its body water, the camel’s body temperature rises to higher levels
• This, unfortunately, allows the level of toxins in its body to rise to very high levels as well.
30
CONEYS –
• It is herbivorous, but has a poor thermo-regulator. • Its body temperature does not remain constant throughout the
changes in the weather during the year, and this causes its enzymes to be unstable, resulting in intestinal fermentation. This means that the coney’s meat is very acidic.
31
RABBITS –
• herbivorous, Leviticus 11:6 states that it is unclean. • The rabbit has a very enlarged caecum as it has to ferment the
plants it eats. • The rabbit does not have a pre-stomach, like the cow does, it
has to use its enlarged caecum. However, its caecum is sandwiched between its gut and rectum and most of the absorption of the nutrients takes place there.
• When the rabbit re-digests this material, it becomes coprophagous. In other words, it eats its own excrement.
• The level of toxins in its tissues is far higher than in other herbivores. Bile salts, fatty acids, gases, and ammonia levels are all at unacceptable levels for human consumption. All rodents, and even the horse, fall into the same category. 32
SWINE –
• Pigs have very high histamine levels. • The connective tissue is very rich in sulfur, leading to increased
blood acidity and osteoporosis because of the loss of calcium along with the sulfates.
• Research indicates that high sulfate levels, especially in meat-rich diets, are responsible for osteoporosis.
• Research has found that at the time when pigs leave the farms, 56% of all pork samples are contaminated with salmonella (Rod-shaped Gram-negative enterobacteria; cause typhoid fever and food poisoning; can be used as a bioweapon).
33
SWINE –
• When "clean" animals leave the farms, only 15% of the meat is contaminated. When the pig meat leaves the abattoir, 80% is contaminated, and when it reaches the butcher, the level of contamination is virtually 100%. The "clean" animals have only a 40% contamination level by this stage.
• The pig is certainly responsible for much of todays disease. • Pork has high histamine levels, and also encourages the
formation of excessive amounts of mucous in our bodies. • God warns us to not even touch the carcass of a pig.
34
FISH –
• Those fish that do not have fins and scales are either scavengers or pure carnivores.
• The common snoek has scales, but as it is taken out of the water the scales fall off, so it cannot be classified as clean.
• Each snoek is home to thousands of bladder worms, which are full of urea. This urea is what gives the snoek its distinctive tangy flavour that many people enjoy.
• Urea: The chief solid component of mammalian urine; synthesized from ammonia and carbon dioxide and used as fertilizer and in animal feed and in plastics
35
THE BLOWFISH –
• The blowfish has fins but does not have scales. Thus, it would not have been edible under the Old Testament laws—fortunately for the Israelites.
• The blowfish can contain toxin in its ovaries, liver, and other organs that is highly potent and deadly. This toxin, called tetrodotoxin, is thought to be “1250 times more deadly than cyanide” and 160,000 times more potent than cocaine. A tiny amount of it can kill 30 grown adults
36
SHELLFISH –
• The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has produced a twelve-page tract warning people about the dangers of eating raw or partially cooked oysters (“Carlos’ Tragic...,” 2003).
• In the tract, the FDA warns that some raw oysters contain the bacteria Vibrio vulnificus.
• It is dangerous for those with pre-existing medical conditions such as liver disease, diabetes, hepatitis, cancer and HIV....
• 50 percent of people who are infected with Vibrio vulnificus as a result of eating raw contaminated oysters die (2003).
37
REPTILES –
• The large lizard, gecko, monitor lizard, sand reptile, sand lizard, and chameleon “Whoever touches them when they are dead shall be unclean until evening” (11:31).
• Reptiles have a much higher rate of carrying Salmonella bacteria than do most mammals,
• In summarizing the CDC’s 2003 report, over 70,000 cases of human Salmonella infection a year are related to the handling of reptiles and amphibians (2007).
• The CDC recommends that homes with children under five should not have reptiles as pets.
38
BATS AND RABIES -
• Moses specifically forbade the Israelites to eat bats (Leviticus 11:19). The wisdom of this instruction is demonstrated by the fact that bats often carry rabies.
• Rabies passed from bats caused 24 of the 26 human deaths from rabies in the United States (“Human Rabies...,” 2002).
• In the Science Daily article describing this research, Moses’ instruction to avoid bats coincides perfectly with modern research.
• Once again, the super-human wisdom imparted through Moses by God cannot be denied by the conscientious student of the Old Testament.
39
SALMONELLA
• Reptiles are natural carriers of Salmonella bacteria, harbouring strains specific to reptiles without any symptoms of disease in the reptile.
• Salmonella contamination can occur without even touching a reptile. If a person touches something that has touched a reptile the bacteria can spread.
• The ARAV (Association of Reptilian and Amphibian Veterinarians) made this statement: “Salmonella bacteria are easily spread from reptiles to humans. Humans may become infected when they place their hands on objects, including food items, that have been in contact with the stool of reptiles, in their mouths”
40
SALMONELLA
Leviticus 11:32-34 When one of them dies and falls on something, that article, whatever its use, will be unclean,
whether it is made of wood, cloth, hide or sackcloth. Put it in water; it will be unclean till evening, and then it will be clean. 33
If one of them falls into a clay pot, everything in it will be unclean, and you must break the pot. 34 Any food you are
allowed to eat that has come into contact with water from any such pot is unclean, and any liquid that is drunk from such a pot
is unclean.
41
BE HOLY• ‘For I am יהוה your Elohim, and you shall set yourselves apart. And
you shall be set-apart, for I am set-apart. And do not defile yourselves with any creeping creature that creeps on the earth. ‘For I am יהוה
who is bringing you up out of the land of Mitsrayim, to be your Elohim. And you shall be set-apart, for I am set-apart. (Leviticus 11:44-45)
• Or do you not know that your body is the Dwelling Place of the Set-apart Spirit who is in you, which you have from Elohim, and you are not your own? For you were bought with a price, therefore esteem
Elohim in your body and in your spirit, which are of Elohim. (1 Corinthians 6:19-20)
• If anyone destroys the Dwelling Place of Elohim, Elohim shall destroy him. For the Dwelling Place of Elohim is set-apart, which you are. (1
Corinthians 3:17)• Therefore, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the
esteem of Elohim. (1 Corinthians 10:31) 42
