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Scroll to Scroll: Todays Parsha #23: Pekudei (These are the expenses) PART 1: THE LAST AND CURRENT

TORAH PORTIONS ANSWERS TO LAST WEEKS STUDY QUESTIONS (Vayakhel): 1) Why is the specific commandment about the Shabbat given again in Exodus 35 when it has already been given three times previously to this same group of people? (This is in contrast with Deuteronomys passages on the same matter, which are given to the next generation after the Exodus.) The reason was this was in the wake of the Golden Calf debacle, and for those who survived the initial wrath of YHWH, their loyalties were still in question. Abba YHWH said He wanted to kill them all, but Moshe interceded which minimized those deaths. That fact, in turn, means that just because a person survived, didnt mean they were totally innocent. But if those survivors were going to make it through the next 40 years, they had to prove their worth, and so Abba YHWH reminds them of the Shabbat again, as He will remind them of other regulations for them to obey, to see if they will actually try to keep His covenant. 2) How are details in the construction of the Ark of the Covenant directly related to the name of its craftsman, Betzalel? One important detail is that the Ark of the Covenant and its poles are made of acacia wood on the inside (Exodus 25, 37 and Deuteronomy 10). This material is also used throughout the Tabernacle. In its natural state, acacia wood grows shaped like a kind of gnarled umbrella. Betzalels name literally means in the shadow of El and the wood used to build the Ark also creates a shadow from El in its natural state! 3) How is another design aspect of the Ark of the Covenant repeated during an important Gospel event?
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He made a mercy seat of pure gold, two and a half cubits long and one and a half cubits wide. 7 He made two cherubim of gold; he made them of hammered work at the two ends of the mercy seat; 8 one cherub at the one end and one cherub at the other end; he made the cherubim of one piece with the mercy seat at the two ends. 9 The cherubim had their wings spread upward, covering the mercy seat

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with their wings, with their faces toward each other; the faces of the cherubim were toward the mercy seat. (Exodus 37:6-9 NAU) (Joh 20:11) But Maryam was standing at the tomb and weeping, and while she wept she peeked in the grave. (Joh 20:12) And she saw two Messengers clothed in white who were sitting, one at his pillow and one at the foot of the bed, where the body of Y'shua had lain. (Joh 20:13) And they said to her, "Woman, why do you weep?" She said to them, "Because they have taken my Master and I do not know where they have laid him." (Joh 20:14) She said this and she turned her head around and saw Y'shua standing behind her. And she did not know that it was Y'shua. So these men/angels are laying at the head and foot of Yshuas burial bench. The bench and the angels are mimicking the mercy seat as through the EMPTY bench, the resurrection shows the ultimate mercy being dispended from Abba YHWH to the human race, if they will embrace both Torah and Messiah Yshua. 4) Why would Solomon contract work for building the Temple out to a pagan king? Because Hiram actually has Israelitish blood, descended partly from Napthali. There is no evidence of him bowing down to idols. In fact, the text suggests the opposite
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When Hiram heard what Solomon had said, he was delighted. 'Now blessed be Yahweh,' he said, 'who has given David a wise son to rule over this great people! (1Ki 5:21 NJB)
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King Solomon sent for Hiram of Tyre; 14 he was the son of a widow of the tribe of Naphtali, but his father had been a Tyrian, a bronze worker. He was a highly intelligent craftsman, skilled in all types of bronze work. He came to King Solomon and did all this work for him. (1 Kings 7:13-14 NJB) So this is a brother in the faith and almost a brother by blood. There could hardly have been a better nearby partner for Solomon to work with for building YHWHs Temple! 5) What does Hirams choice of worker that he sends to Solomon tell us about his contacts that is surprising? One would expect that Solomon, not Hiram, would have access to the best of Danite craftsmen. Instead, Hiram apparently has closer ties

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with the Danites and the crafsman comes to Solomon via Hirams orders.
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I am now sending you a skilled and intelligent man, Huram-Abi 13 the son of a Danite woman by a Tyrian father. He knows the arts of working in gold, silver, bronze, iron, stone, wood, scarlet, violet, fine linen and crimson materials, and is competent to carry out any kind of engraving and to execute any design which may be entrusted to him, in collaboration with your skilled men and those of my lord David, your father. (2 Chronicles 2:12-13 NJB) BONUS INFORMATION/Q&A NOT REFERRED TO ON THE FILM 1) How is all of Israel involved in this endeavor of the Tabernacle and not just the priests and craftsmen? Because they gave freely all the materials the craftsman could ever want. In fact, they gave more than was needed when the Ruach moved them. In so doing, they played an active role in making the Tabernacle rise. 2) What is the literal reading of the Hebrew in 1 Kings 7:46 and what symbolism does that suggest? Beeh maabeh ha-Adamah = In the thickness of the earth. So not cast in earthen molds but literally put in the heart of the earth to be resurrected later when needed! 3) What message do the names of Succoth and Zarethan spell out for us today? Succoth = tabernacle/dwelling place. Zarethan = great and lofty rock. This is obviously a remembrance of Mount Sinai, YHWHs dwelling place. AND NOW FOR THIS WEEKS PORTION 1) Meaning of this weeks Torah portion and summary of contents: Pekudei means these are the records/expenses and the portion opens with giving the pricing values for the materials that will be used in the Tabernacle. Many exacting physical (and spiritual) details are given for all the wondrous objects and the Tabernacle. But after all these long lists (from this portion and the previous ones) we finally get to the payoff in lovely chapter 40. It is in chapter 40the last of Exodusthat time literally begins again as the priests begin their official service for Israel.

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Eleh fekudey haMishkan Mishkan ha'edut asher pukad al-pi Moshe avodat haLevi'im beyad Itamar ben-Aharon hakohen.
2) Read Parsha (English-Exodus 38:21-40:38). Play by Play commentary where appropriate. 3) Point out key Hebrew words/terms. Color Commentary: Eleh fekudey haMishkan Mishkan ha'edut asher pukad al-pi Moshe avodat haLevi'im beyad Itamar ben-Aharon hakohen (38:21) = These are the accounting numbers of the Tabernaclethe Tabernacle of the Testimonywhich were calculated by the order of Moshe by the Levites under Ithamar, the son of Aaron the priest. Two things: First, the term PEKUDEY would be equivalent today to the modern idea of expense accounts, the record of materials and their cash value that are involved. Second, it is very significant in a mystical sense that we have HA MISHKAN MISHKAN, the doubling of the word for tabernacle. That doubling side by side is an amplifier in Hebrew, and hints at two Mishkanot, an earthly one and a heavenly one that gave the pattern to it! Kol-hazahav he'asuy lamelachah bechol melechet hakodesh vayehi zehav hatnufah teshah ve'esrim kikar usheva me'ot ushloshim shekel beshekel haKodesh (38:24) = All the gold was used in the work to complete the sacred task. The amount of gold donated as a wave offering was 29 talents and 730 shekels by the sanctuary standard. A talent equals 3000 shekels, so this is a total of 87,730 shekels, or 4386.5 pounds of gold. Beka lagulgolet machatsit hashekel beshekel hakodesh lechol ha'over al-hapkudim miben esrim shanah vamalah leshesh-me'ot elef ushloshet alafim vachamesh me'ot vachamishim (38:26) = This consisted of a beka, which was a half shekel by sanctuary standards, for each of the 603,550 men over 20 years old included in the census. So many modern scholars assume the text uses arbitrary or inflated figures, but they ignore stuff like this. Here we see exactly how many half shekels were collected which corresponds to exactly the right number of men 20 years and older! Vaya'as et-ha'efod zahav techelet ve'argaman vetola'at shani veshesh moshezar (39:2) = He made the ephod out of gold [thread], sky-blue, dark red and crimson wool, and twined linen. As we saw last week, it is HE MADE and not IT WAS MADE. This means either Moshe or Betzalel once again did this work personally.

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Ravua hayah kaful asu et-hachoshen zeret orko vezeret rochbo kaful (39:9) = The breastplate was made to be a square when folded over. It was a span long, and when folded over, a span wide. This is yet another detailthe 4th one in factthat was not included in the earlier reference to the same item, Exodus 28:16. The breastplate was folded over WIDTH-wise not length-wise! (3 extra details were given in the previous parsha of Vayakhel.) Vaya'as et-me'il ha'efod ma'aseh oreg kelil techelet (39:22) = He made the robe for the ephod, weaving it completely out of sky-blue wool. Once again, the TECHELET color for the ephod NOT mentioned before, in Exodus 28:31. Thats extra detail #5! Vaya'asu al-shuley hame'il rimoney tchelet ve'argaman vetola'at shani moshezar (39:24) = On the skirt of the robe, they made pomegranates out of twined sky-blue, dark red and crimson wool. Anyone care for extra detail #6 not given before? See Exodus 28:33! Vatechel kol-avodat Mishkan Ohel Mo'ed vaya'asu beney Yisra'el kechol asher tsivah YAHWEH et-Moshe ken asu (39:32) = All the work on the Communion Tent Tabernacle was thus completed. The Israelites did exactly as Yahweh had commanded Moses. I love the rabbinic tradition on this point! They say, through careful studying of the clues in the text, that the Tabernacle pieces were all finished on 25 Kislevthe future Hanukkah. Of course, we also know from Exodus 40:2 that the Tabernacle itself is not built until 1 Abib the next year, or Friday, March 28th, 1446 BCE. Vatechel kol-avodat Mishkan Ohel Mo'ed vaya'asu beney Yisra'el kechol asher tsivah YAHWEH et-Moshe ken asu (39:42) = The Israelites had done all the work exactly in the manner that Yahweh had commanded Moses. From which point it naturally follows that what the Israelites had produced was IDENTICAL to the pattern that Moshe saw on the mountain and therefore, a mirror image of what was in the mind of YHWH and present in the heavenly Tabernacle. Special Note on Exodus 40:1-2: Moshe is erecting the Tabernacle on Friday morning, March 28th, 1 Abib, 1446 BCE. Because YHWH is commanding a total of 8 days continuous service (Leviticus 8-9), including this Friday morning and afternoon (Exodus 40:13-15), the 8 day ordination of Aarons sons as priests will begins this day and will fill out that whole week until the next Shabbat as follows: Day 1morning of Abib 1 (Friday) Day 2morning of Abib 2 (Shabbat) Day 3morning of Abib 3 (Sunday) 5|Page

Day 4morning of Abib 4 (Monday) Day 5morning of Abib 5 (Tuesday) Day 6morning of Abib 6 (Wednesday) Day 7morning of Abib 7 (Thursday) Day 8morning of Abib 8 (Friday) Friday night the priests are ready to serve as they will throughout the ages to come. However, Shabbat morning, Nadab and Abihu offer the unauthorized fire and die on 9 Abib. Sunset that day is the start of 10 Abib, the day the Israelites originally set aside the Pesach lamb for slaughter. Velakachta et-shemen hamishchah umashachta et-haMishkan ve'et-kol-asher-bo vekidashta oto ve'et-kol-kelav vehayah kodesh (40:9) = Take the anointing oil, and anoint the tabernacle and everything in it. You will thus sanctify it and all its equipment making it SetApart. This is a key detail because without this anointing process for all the items here as well as for the sons of Aaron themselves, no priestly service would be permitted by YHWH. This timing is not just is not just almost a year since the Exodusits the precise timing from the Exodus itself in SOLAR terms that YHWH acts as High Priest that first year, from the first day of spring in 1447 BCE to the first day of spring in 1446 BCE, at which point, the very next Shabbat, is 1 Abib. Similarly, many of Yshuas miracles coincide with these same alignments of the solar year. Vayiten et-hashulchan be'Ohel Mo'ed al-yerech haMishkan tsafonah michuts laparochet (40:22) = He placed the table in the Communion Tent, outside the cloth partition, on the north side of the Tabernacle. So we see here that the Communion Tent, a.k.a. Tent of Meeting (OHEL MOED), is just outside the Kadosh Kadoshim, the last outer area before we get to the inner sanctum of the Ark of the Covenant. Bonus Linguistics! a. tent of meeting (many places in this and other portions) actually is OHEL MOED, with the latter being the same word as appointed time or festival. So when we keep the appointed times of YHWH we get a meeting with Him as well at His Tent! b. The ark of the covenant (many places) is actually (technically speaking) ARON HA-AIDUTH, or ark of the TESTIMONY. Torah Question of the Week: How do we understand the notion of the sons of Aaron as perpetual priests in light of the language of Hebrews 7-9, that the old ways were disappearing? END PART 1 6|Page

PART 2: THE HAFTORAH Torah Question of the Week: How do we understand the notion of the sons of Aaron as perpetual priests in light of the language of Hebrews 7-9, that the old ways were disappearing? Because the need for a mediator is eternal. In the beginning, individuals were their own priests doing sacrifices to mediate with YHWH. Then we had Melchizedek as the first priestly line in Genesis followed by the sons of Aaron in Exodus. Prophetically speaking, these two priestly lineages are meant to toggle for power. In the end, through Yshua, the Milechizedek line is reinstated but the sons of Aaron get to do sacrifices in the New Temple as a remembrance. Hence, the role of the Levites never goes away. 1) Haftorah portion (English- 1 Kings 7:51-8:21) and discuss common themes with the Torah portion.

Vatishlom kol-hamelachah asher asah hamelech Shlomoh beyt Yahweh vayave Shlomoh et-kodshey David aviv et-hakesef ve'ethazahav ve'et-hakelim natan be'otserot beyt Yahweh.
2) Our linguistic commentary starts in 1 Kings 8:1. Recently we spoke of the meaning of Sinai (thorny) and how it related to so many things in the Israelite journey as well as in our Mashiyachs life. But there is another name for this mountain mentioned here that we should look at. Horeb actually means waste, another description of the harshness of its area but perhaps also a foreshadowing of the waste that happens there when, after Moshe comes down from the mount, the Israelites are worshipping the golden calf! Last week we saw one interesting phrase for innermost (penimi, from panim, face), now we have another very sweet play on words. 1 Kings 8:6 uses the phrase al devri ha baytliterally place of words or place of speaking! How appropriate! The question of course is, is it a place of words, in the sense of the tablets of the Ten Words being housed in the Ark and the Ark is brought there? Or is it a place of speaking because in that place the high priest can hear YHWH speak to him on the one day a year he is allowed in? Or is it both?

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BONUS TEACHING: Where is the Ark of the Covenant? And the temple of Elohim in heaven was opened; and the Ark of His Covenant was seen in His temple: and there were flashes of lightning and thunders, and voices and an earthquake, and great hail. (Revelation 11:19-AENT) The First Step It is the most sacred object ever mentioned in Scripture. In nearly 200 references, it is said to be able to level mountains, destroy vast armies and kill anyone who gets in its way. And then, almost without a whisper of a clue in Scripture, it suddenly disappears. For many of us, this is not merely the fodder for a summer blockbuster born in the mind of Hollywood. This is a real life quest to track down and unravel perhaps the greatest mystery in the entire Tanakh. But it is Tanakh that will also tell us when it must have left and, most importantly, WHY. This mystery has been the obsession of Jews, Christians and Hebrew Roots believers for centuries now. One of the more recent claims came from the late Ron Wyatt, who wrote a very compelling account of seeing the Arks ante-chamber under Jerusalem, but being told, You cannot continue. He never found it. Josephus says Moreover, did not Israel groan under the ravage the Assyrians made, when they carried away our sacred ark, as did their idol Dagon, and as also did that entire nation of those that carried it away, how they were smitten with a loathsome distemper in the secret parts of their bodies, when their very bowels came down together, with what they had eaten, till those hands that stole it away were obliged to bring it back again, and that with the sound of cymbals and timbrels, and other oblations, in order to appease the anger of God for their violation of his holy ark. (The Jewish War, 5:384385) Now this gets interesting of course because the Assyrians were famous for two major campaigns. First, the Assyrians took the entire Northern Kingdom into Captivity in 722 BCE, but they did NOT attack or invade the Southern Kingdom of Judah or Jerusalem. But in 700 BCE, the Assyrians turned their attention to King Hezekiah, and this would be the only chance to get the Ark if in fact they did. But the problem is Scripture tells us this Assyrian campaign ended rather badly for them: By the road by which he came, by that he will return; he will not enter this city, declares Yahweh. I shall protect this city and save it for my sake and my servant David's sake. That same night the angel of Yahweh went out and struck down 185,000 men in the Assyrian camp. In the early morning when it was time to get up, there they lay, so many corpses. Sennacherib struck camp and left; he returned home and stayed in Nineveh. One day when he was worshipping in the temple of his god Nisroch, his sons Adrammelech and Sharezer struck him down with the sword and

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escaped into the territory of Ararat. His son Esarhaddon succeeded him. (2 Kings 19:35-37 NJB) So, unless Josephus is somehow combining the Philistines and the Assyrians into the same people, this idea makes little sense. But of course, when Hollywood gets involved, it makes even less sense! Raiders of the Lost Truth The scene is iconic. Dr. Indiana Jones and Dr. Marcus Brody are in conference with men from Army intelligence. They talk of how the Nazis were obsessed with finding the Arkand this has a ring of truth as Hitler was looking for these kind of objectslike his search for the Spear of Destiny. And now Indys colleague Dr. Abner Ravenwood has disappeared. Then the adventure begins! But directors George Lucas and Steven Spielberg, along with screen writer Lawrence Kasdan, needed a credible story to explain where the Ark was. At the time, one theory that was floating around was about this guy: Shishak, Pharaoh of Egypt (926 BCE) And so it happened that in the fifth year of King Rehoboam, Shishak king of Egypt advanced on Jerusalem and carried off all the treasures of the Temple of Yahweh and the treasures of the royal palace; he took everything away, including all the golden shields which Solomon had made. (1 Kings 14:25-26 NJB) 1 Kings 14 and 2 Chronicles 12 both suggest that Shishak advanced on Jerusalem and carried off the treasures, which may mean to some he actually invaded. Shishaks account of his campaign mentions many places in the right area, including the Northern Kingdom of Israel. However, Jerusalem is not listed as a conquest. Therefore, for the Scripture to be correct, Shishak may have advanced on Jerusalem and carried off treasure, but he didnt sack or destroy the city. The only logical choice: The treasure was given to him by Rehoboam and in return Shishak left them alone. So if Rehoboam and/or his priests are choosing the treasure to give, there is no way they are choosing the Ark. And so there is no taking of the Ark to Tanis, Shishaks capital and no sandstorm wiping it out, wiped clean by the wrath of God, as Marcus Brody says in the film. But Tanakh does tell us when the Ark was still in Israel. Babylon and on Another popular theory is that the Babylonians took the Ark and melted it down. However this is impossible on multiple levels. Doesnt the Ark kill anyone other than priests who approach it? Didnt the Ark inflict plagues on the Philistines forcing them to return it? How then could Babylon do it? The Ark was carried by priests into the Jordan, where the waters instantly parted (Joshua 3). The Ark was carried around Jericho each day, and after a great shout was raised on 9|Page

the 7th day, the walls fell flat. (Joshua 6). Even Israels enemies were terrified of it (1 Samuel 4). The Philistines may have taken the Ark, but they certainly never attempted to destroy it. Therefore, neither could Babylon destroy it. And beyond this, there are detailed lists of the treasures the Babylonians took and later returnedthe Ark is not on either one! How could it possibly be forgotten? When Did it Go? The problem with all the other theories I have looked at is that they all seem to pay little attention to what Scripture says about WHEN the Ark was there and WHEN it had to be gone. To begin with, we should for clear references to rituals and prayers that were given when the Ark was clearly present So the troops sent to Shiloh and brought away the ark of Yahweh Sabaoth enthroned on the winged creatures the two sons of Eli, Hophni and Phinehas, came with the ark. (1 Samuel 4:4 NJB) The ark of God, who bears the title 'Yahweh Sabaoth, enthroned on the winged creatures'. (2 Samuel 6:2 NJB) David and all Israel then went up to Baalah, to Kiriath-Jearim in Judah, from there to bring up the ark of God, which bears the title 'Yahweh enthroned on the winged creatures'. (1 Chronicles 13:6 NJB) Yahweh is king, the peoples tremble; he is enthroned on the winged creatures, the earth shivers. (Psalm 99:1 NJB) This reference to Yahweh enthroned between the winged creatures or cherubim, is a direct reference to the mercy seat of the Ark which has two cherubim facing each other with outstretched wings that nearly touch. There is one reference to this phrase in a general prayer in Daniel 3:25 that is talking about the heavens but every other time it seems to be in close proximity to the Ark. In any case, Daniels time is well past any possible period that the Ark could have still been in Jerusalem. And there is one other time when a certain king says this key phrase in the right place and time for the Ark to be there Hezekiah took the letter from the messengers' hands and read it; he then went up to the Temple of Yahweh and spread it out before Yahweh. Hezekiah said this prayer in the presence of Yahweh, 'Yahweh Sabaoth, God of Israel, enthroned on the winged creatures, you alone are God of all the kingdoms of the world, you made heaven and earth. Give ear, Yahweh, and listen; open your eyes, Yahweh, and see! Hear the words of Sennacherib, who has sent to insult the living God. (Isaiah 37:1417 NJB)

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Yahweh though specifically said His presence was in the Most Holy Place, with the Ark Yahweh said to [Solomon], 'I have heard your prayer and the entreaty which you have before me. I consecrate this temple which you have built: I place my name there for ever; my eyes and my heart will be there always. (1 Kings 9:3 NJB) And the heart of the Temple, its most Set-Apart place, is where the Ark was placed. So when Hezekiah prays about Yahweh being enthroned between the winged creatures, in His presence, that means the Ark was still in Israel in the year 700 BCE. But just 82 years later, it is beyond clear that the Ark is gone by the time of King Josiah. The last time the Ark is mentioned it is clear it is gone Josiah then celebrated a Passover to Yahweh in JerusalemThen he said to the Levites, who had understanding for all Israel and were consecrated to Yahweh, 'Put the sacred ark in the Temple built by Solomon son of David, king of Israel. (2 Chronicles 35:1,3 NJB) Thats where the misdirection begins! Obviously Josiah believes the Ark is still there, but it is NOT in its rightful place. Josiah assumes the Levites know where it is, and he orders it brought up from some hiding place now that Israel is doing Torah again. This suggests that the Levites hid the Ark when it wasnt so safe before. Why would Josiah though assume these facts? Unless of course the Levites were hiding something. Then the rest of the chapter goes through emotional extremes. First, the joy of the Feast, and then it ends with Josiahs death. And in all that activity, one thing is ignored: The Levites never comply and return the Ark! Then, right after Josiah dies, the Ark simply disappears from Tanakh. It will only be mentioned figuratively or in a future sense in Hebrews and Revelation. We need to be diligent and see why the Scripture abandons the Ark when it does. It was there in 700 BCE and now it is gone in 618 BCE! Now that we have the window of time, lets ask the next obvious question: What happened in those 82 years that might explain the disappearance during that time? After Hezekiah, when the Ark was clearly still there, only two kings ruled after him during this window: Mannasseh and Amon. But, Amon only reigned for 2 years (2 Kings 21:19). But Amons father Manasseh reigned for 55 years and was perhaps the worst king of them all Manasseh shed innocent blood, too, in such great quantity that he flooded Jerusalem from one end to the other. (2 Kings 21:16 NJB) But there was one sin, above all others, that explains why the Ark had to leave Israel [Manasseh] rebuilt the high places which his father Hezekiah had demolished, he set up altars to Baal and made sacred poles, he worshipped the whole array of 11 | P a g e

heaven and served it. He built altars in the Temple of Yahweh, of which Yahweh had said, 'My name will be in Jerusalem for ever.' He built altars to the whole array of heaven in the two courts of the Temple of Yahweh. He caused his sons to pass through the fire of sacrifice in the Valley of Ben-Hinnom. He practiced soothsaying, divination and sorcery, and had dealings with mediums and He did very many more things displeasing to Yahweh, thus provoking his anger. He put a sculpted image, an idol which he had had made, inside the Temple of which God had said to David and his son Solomon, 'In this Temple and in Jerusalem, the city which I have chosen out of all the tribes of Israel, I shall put my name for ever. (2 Chronicles 33:3-7 NJB) So now imagine you are this wicked king, and you want to show the total victory of your idols over Yahweh. Where is the ONE place in the Temple you would put that idol to really send that message loud and clear? Well, how about this as a suggestionRIGHT HERE! What better way to show Yahweh is dead or non-existent than to stick it in His eye right there in the Holy of Holies? Now imagine youre one of the few priests still loyal to Yahweh, what are YOU going to think will happen? The Ark inflicted plagues on the Philistines. The Ark changed the flow of the Jordan river. The Ark clearly had some role in causing the walls of Jericho to fall and, since it was there when Assyria invaded, it could have easily wiped out 185,000 of them too! The Ark is the most fearsome weapon on the earth, and it can kill priests. Whats it going to do then if an idol is placed next to it in its FINAL resting place that Yahweh intended for it all along? I know one thing, if Im a priest in that situation, I dont want to hang around to find out. And yet the whole country is corrupt. Who can be trusted to hide it? If Im those priests, I cant trust anyone and yet I dont want the earth splitting in two when this thing happens to the Ark. In desperate times, there is only one answer, one way to stand between Israel and possible annihilation: Get the Ark out and get it out NOW before Manasseh does this! But as for where it may be NOWthats a story for later. 3) Renewed Covenant portion: (English) Acts 1:1-14, read straight through with all relevant footnotes. 4) Highlight common themes in Aramaic: Knyshim = assembled= Knesset = synagogue. They were assembling according to Jewish practice. Sholtana, rendered here as authority can also refer to power. This word would become sultan in Arabic. Notice the order of places they will witness to. First in Jerusalem, then all of Yehuda, then Samaria and then the ends of the earth. The Word is literally going forth from Zion!

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Since Galilee is from the word galil, meaning revelation it is interesting how in 1:9 these Galilean men get a revelation from their Galilean Master and then have their eyes HIDDEN after Yshua goes into a cloud. In Hebrew cloud is Shekinah, the Presence of YHWH. Furthermore the cloud receives him, with the word for receive QABELTEH, from where we get KABALLAHfor the Shekinah to take him to.

5) Apply these themes/issues to modern issues in the Netzari faith. (Every time I see mention of the half shekel tax I am reminded at how rich and poor must pay the same amount not because YHWH necessarily loves a flat tax but because no one should think their soul being ransomed is either less or more important than anyone elses . This is a good lesson to keep in mind in our modern world which increasingly wants to separate us from our common worth and into other categories that put one person over another. It was wrong for Pharaoh to enslave us; it is even worse for us to re-enslave ourselves through excessive timidity about our ultimate worthiness to YHWH and to each other.) 6) Relate to all or part of an Appendix portion of AENT or footnotes from a portion. (Judaizers, p. 887-892.) STUDY QUESTIONS TO BE ANSWERED NEXT WEEK 1) Does Abba YHWH have a soul? 2) If it turns out He does have a soul, what might be the only thing we can be certain of regarding it? If He does not have a soul, apply the same analysis to His one divine nature. 3) Close to where we read the Haftorah portion this week there is another clue about Abba YHWHs nature (or nefesh, or both) specifically stating that He is beyond all aspects of space and time. Where is that description? 4) How is the abject disaster of the Golden Calf incident compensated for via a family connection according to Torah and Rabbinic tradition? 5) How is commentary by Josephus helpful in determining what the Torah is referring to as techelet, or the blue thread used in tzit-tzit and other important clothing accessories for the priests? Torah Thought for the Week: The Teaching of the Colors In this Torah portion we see the one place where the order of blue, purple, crimson, fine twisted linen is altered. When we come to the ephod, the color gold is added to the beginning of this list. I have expanded on this teaching of the colors a few times and each 13 | P a g e

time a lot of you have told me you really like being reminded of this detail when it comes around. As a result of that, I considered doing a few possible things. One was to have two Torah Thoughts for the Weekthis original one and a new onebut try as I might I found myself drawn back to THIS idea for THIS portion. Theres just something about the Teaching of the Colors, as I have come to call it, and it goes to the same need for simplicity that the One Tree Three Branches metaphor we did last week was meant to address. What I ended up deciding though was also in part inspired by One Tree, Three Branches, in that it was a teaching I had for a while before, but it took on new meanings and layers of teaching as I went and re-told it. And so it was, that I have opted to expand on this original teaching rather than replace it. So lets get started then with my original observations and take it from there. Last week we saw that the color code of these materials spoke to Yshuas path of righteousness (blue-tekhelet), agraman (purple-royalty), crimson (shedding his blood on the stake) and fine twisted (white) linen (his purity and restoration at the resurrection). We also saw a parallel between the frankinsence and myrrh bought by the wise men to his birth, to that which he was anointed with for his death, with both of these tying together (pun intended) to the aromatic spices used by the priests. Whew! Thats a mouthful! But what about the other gift Yshua got as a baby? What about the gold? Well here we see the one place the gold is added to the colors of threads for the ephod that goes on the priests. This is meant to foreshadow the birth of our High Priest Yshua who also got the gift of gold and went in to the heavenly sanctuary to make atonement for us once and for all. Then in Exodus 39:6 we are told the gold frames are used to hold in place the stones representing the tribes of Israel. That gold is literally a kind of binding tie of all the tribes to their One King from Judah, our Mashiyach! And this is even more strongly attested to in the next line of 39:7, where it says, and they were set on the shoulder pieces of the ephod as stones of remembrance for the Israelites as YHWH had commanded Moshe. What a beautiful picture that the remembrance of the Israelite is tied to her future foreshadowing of who that gold thread of the ephod is ultimately meant to be! This is also demonstrated by the use of pomegranates from all these colored yarns. Pomegranates can come in a range of shades, including a naturally reddish-purple (royalty) to something approaching crimson in color (blood) and their leaves form a crown that when pressed in forms a Star of David! Right after that description, Exodus 39:27-29 brings us back to the fine twisted linen againso we start with gold or blue but end always in white, the color of purity, restoration and resurrection! But lets continue in this description a bit longer and see how it also applies to Yshua! 14 | P a g e

39:30 tells us the next itema diadem of gold literally fit for a king! And on that diadem is a Hebrew phrase: kadesh lYahwehSet-Apart unto YHWHas Yshua certainly is as King of Kings! The phrase is on what the text calls a frontlet which is similar to the prayer boxes pious Orthodox Jews today use to put on their forehead. This frontlet is attached by blue tekhelet cord to the mitre or turban. In the case of the high priest, that turban has the name of Yahweh inscribed on it as well. After these images, we get the Tabernacle and its items described. Tabernacle is mishkan which also means to live among us. Such is confirmed by the appearance of theThe Ark of the Covenant, reminding us of Yshua as Immanuel (El is with us). The Tent of Meeting is mentioned next, reminding us of the word MOED (meeting) and that Yshua kept the Moedim of the Shabbat and Great Feasts. Tanned ram skins come next, along with the bread of Presence (I am the Bread from heaven) and the Menorah (I am the light of the world) and the oil, which in another Hebrew word is for anointing, Mashiyach. In this Hebrew word SHEMEN it reminds us of a Place of Oil, GETH-SHEMEN-E (Gethsemenae)! Is it any wonder then that our next image, after Mashiyach is handed over at Gethsemanae would in fact be an altar of gold? From there the second set of witnesses come. Now we have the actual anointing oil (Mashiyach) mentioned by name, along with the aromatic incense which is related to his nativity gifts as we saw earlier. Then, after all that, we end up again in the Tent of Meeting where we keep the appointed times our Father has set and follow his Sons example. So much of Yshua is revealed here in what might seem to the uninformed to just be a laundry list of objects and furniture. It was at this point last year that I ended the original Torah Thought for the Week on this subject, but now the time has come to go even deeper into this truth. For one thing, we should recall the prophecy given by Amos For look, I shall give the command and shall shake out the House of Israel among all nations as a sieve is shaken out without one grain falling on the ground. All the sinners of my people will perish by the sword, who say, 'Disaster will never approach or overtake us.' On that Day, I shall rebuild the tottering hut [ruined/fallen tabernacleAGR] of David, make good the gaps in it, restore its ruins and rebuild it as it was in the days of old, for them to be master of what is left of Edom and of all the nations once called mine -Yahweh declares, and he will perform it. The days are coming- declares Yahweh- when the ploughman will tread on the heels of the reaper, and the treader of grapes on the heels of the sower of seed, and the mountains will run with new wine and the hills all flow with it. I shall restore the fortunes of my people Israel; they will rebuild the ruined 15 | P a g e

cities and live in them, they will plant vineyards and drink their wine, they will lay out gardens and eat their produce. And I shall plant them in their own soil and they will never be uprooted again from the country which I have given them, declares Yahweh, your God. (Amos 9:9-15 NJB) The tabernacle of David was for both kingdoms of Judah and Israel, but the Northern Tribes have not yet fully returned. The wider imagery of course is also that all Gentiles either return to their original Israelite tribe allotment if they were of that line originally even if they dont know it, YHWH does. Or, that they graft to Judah, taking hold of the tzit-tzit of the Judahite we call Yshua the Mashiyach. Either way, all will come under his rulethere is to be one king and one shepherd over all of them (Ezekiel 37:24-28). But this isnt the only place Amos ties his prophecy in with the Teaching of the Colors. Amos is one of those folks who may not get a lot of credit for tons of Messianic prophecy like Yeshayahu or Yiremyahu does, but the fact is, when Amos does talk about the Mashiyach, he does so with a level of detail and precision that other prophets would truly envy. Let me share this bombshell of a prophecy with you, one that I didnt even see myself until fairly recently Yahweh has sworn by the pride of Jacob, 'Never will I forget anything they have done.' Will not the earth tremble for this and all who live on it lament, as it all rises together like the Nile in Egypt, it swells and then subsides like the Egyptian Nile? 'On that Day- declares the Lord Yahweh- I shall make the sun go down at noon and darken the earth in broad daylight. I shall turn your festivals into mourning and all your singing into lamentation; I shall make you all wear sacking round your waists and have all your heads shaved. I shall make it like the mourning for an only child, and it will end like the bitterest of days. 'The days are coming- declares the Lord Yahweh- when I shall send a famine on the country, not hunger for food, not thirst for water, but famine for hearing Yahweh's word. People will stagger from sea to sea, will wander from the north to the east, searching for Yahweh's word, but will not find it. 'That Day, fine girls and stalwart youths will faint from thirst. The people who swear by the Sin of Samaria, who say, "Long live your god, Dan!" and "Hurrah for the pilgrimage to Beersheba!" will all fall, never to rise again.' (Amos 8:7-14 NJB) I think these linkages are obvious, but lets make them beyond clear anyway. I shall make the sun go down at noon and darken the earth in broad daylight. Now from the sixth hour [NOON] there was darkness over all the land until the ninth hour. (Matthew 27:45) I shall turn your festivals into mourning and all your singing into lamentation; I shall make you all wear sacking round your waists and have all your heads shaved.

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A multitude of people was coming after him, and women who were wailing and mourning for him. And Yshua turned and said to them, Daughters of Urishlim, do not cry for me but cry for yourselves and for your children. For behold the days are coming in which they say, Blessed are the barren and the wombs that have not given birth and the breasts that have not nursed. Then you will begin to say to the mountains, Fall upon us! and to the heights, Cover us! For if to the green wood they do these things, what will happen to the dry? (Luke 23:27-31AENT) I shall make it like the mourning for an only child, and it will end like the bitterest of days. Because Torah was given through Moshe, but truth and grace through Yshua who is the Mashiyach. Man has not ever seen Elohim. The Only Begotten of Elohim, he who is in the bosom of his Father, he has declared Him. (Yochanan 1:17-18-AENT) 'The days are coming- declares the Lord Yahweh- when I shall send a famine on the country, not hunger for food, not thirst for water, but famine for hearing Yahweh's word. People will stagger from sea to sea, will wander from the north to the east, searching for Yahweh's word, but will not find it. 'That Day, fine girls and stalwart youths will faint from thirst. And Yshua said, A little time again I am with you, and I will go to Him who sent me. And you will seek me and you will not find me, and where I am you are not able to come. And the Yehudeans said among themselves, Where is this man about to go that we cannot find him? Why indeed is he about to go to the countries of the Gentiles and teach the pagans? What is this teaching which he said that You will seek me and you will not find me, and where I am you are not able to come? Now on the great day which is the last of the feast, Yshua was standing, and he cried out and said, If a man thirsts, let him come to me and drink. Anyone who believes in me as the Scriptures have said, rivers of living water will flow from his belly. And this he said concerning the Spirit that they were about to receive, those who believe in him. For the Spirit was not yet given because Yshua was not yet glorified. (Yochanan 7:33-39-AENT) The people who swear by the Sin of Samaria, who say, "Long live your god, Dan!" and "Hurrah for the pilgrimage to Beersheba!" will all fall, never to rise again.' And he left Yehuda and arrived at Galeela again. 4. But he had to pass through Shamria. And he came to a city of Shamria, which is called Shekar on the side of a field that Yaakov had given to Yosip his son. And there was there a spring of water that had belonged to Yaakov, and Yshua was tired from the effort of the road. And he sat on the well, and it was the sixth hour.

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Then a woman came from Shamrin to draw water and Yshua said to her, Give to me water to drink. For his disciples had entered into the city to buy food for themselves. That Samaritan woman said to him, How is it you are a Yehudean, and you ask from me to drink, for I am a woman Samaritan? For Yehudeans do not have social dealings with the Samaritans. Yshua answered and said to her, If only you had known the gift of Elohim, and who this is who said to you, Give to me to drink, you would have asked him and he would have given you living waters. That woman said to him, My Master, you have no bucket and the well is deep. Where are your living waters? Why are you greater than our father Yaakov who gave us this well and from it drank his sons and his sheep? Yshua answered and said to her, All who drink from these waters will thirst again. But everyone who drinks from the waters that I give to him will not thirst forever. But those waters that I give to him will become in him a spring of water that will spring up into life that is eternal. That woman said to him, My Master, give to me from these waters that I will not thirst again, nor have to come and draw from here. Yshua said to her, Go call your husband and come here. She said to him, I have no husband. Yshua said to her, You have said well that I have no husband.. For you have had five husbands, you! And the one that you have now is not your husband. This you have spoken is true. That woman said to him, My Master, I see that you are a prophet. Our forefathers worshipped in this mountain, and you say that in Urishlim is the place that it is necessary to worship. Yshua said to her, Woman believe me, the hour is coming that not in this mountain nor in Urishlim will they worship the Father. You worship something that you do not know. But we worship what we know, for life is from the Yehudeans. But the hour is coming, and now is when the true worshippers will worship the Father in spirit and in truth, indeed. For the Father, He seeks worshippers as these. For Elohim is Spirit, and those who worship, they must worship Him in spirit and in truth. That woman said to him, I know that the Mashiyach is coming, and when he comes, he will teach us everything. Yshua said to her, I am the one speaking with you. (Yochanan 4:4-26-AENT) In short, Amos was fulfilled to the letter. Amos stands also roughly at the halfway point between Moshe and Yshua, learning from the imagery of the past and seeing clearly the glory of the futureour future!

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This what we are supposed to see and do as Bereans and believerssee the interconnected tapestry of YHWHs promises to us as they develop from the earliest to the latest parts of His Word, because in the end, we are going to have to decide truly whose side we are on Blessed are they who do His (Master YHWHs) Mitzvot, that they may have a right to the tree of life and may enter through the gates into the city. Without (will be) dogs and sorcerers, and whoremongers and manslayers and idolaters, and everyone that loves and does falsehood. I Yshua have sent my Messenger to testify to you these things before the assemblies. I am the root and offspring of Dawid: like the splendid star of the morning. And the Spirit and the bride say, You come. And let him that hears, say, You come. And let him who thirsts, come; and he that is inclined, let him take the living water freely. I testify to everyone who hears the words of the prophecy of this book, that if anyone will add to them, Elohim will add to him the plagues that are written in this book. And if anyone will take away from the words of the book of this prophecy, Elohim will take away his portion from the tree of life and from the Set Apart city, which are described in this book. He who testifies these things, says: Yes, I come quickly( suddenly). Amen. Come, Master Yshua!. The grace of our Master Yshua the Mashiyach (be) with all the Set Apart believers. Amen. (Revelation 22:14-21AENT) Im Andrew Gabriel Roth and thats your EXPANDED Torah Thought for the Week! Next week, we will be exploring the first portion of Leviticus or Vayikra, from 1:1-6:1. Our Haftorah portion will be the amazing testimony in Yeshayahu (Isaiah) 43:21 44:23, and our Renewed Covenant portion will be Romans 8:1-13 where what some may view as a scathing rebuke of the Torah ends up being one of the most eloquent defenses for it ever written! Stay tuned!

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