Parashah 48: Shoftim (Judges)

Parashah 48: Shof'tim (Judges); Deuteronomy 16:18 through 21:9.

Haftarah reading: Isaiah 51:12 through 53:12.
B'rit Hadasha suggested reading: Matthew 5:38-42; 18:15-20; Acts 3:13-26; 7:35-53; 1
Corinthians 5:9-13; 1 Timothy 5:17-22; Hebrews 10:28-31.

Summary & Overview

Torah
Deuteronomy 16:18 | Municipal Judges and Officers
Deuteronomy 16:21 | Forbidden Forms of Worship
Deuteronomy 17:8 | Legal Decisions by Priests and Judges
Deuteronomy 17:14 | Limitations of Royal Authority
Deuteronomy 18:1 | Privileges of Priests and Levites
Deuteronomy 18:9 | Child-Sacrifice, Divination, and Magic Prohibited
Deuteronomy 18:15 | A New Prophet Like Moses
Deuteronomy 19:1 | Laws concerning the Cities of Refuge
Deuteronomy 19:14 | Property Boundaries
Deuteronomy 19:15 | Law concerning Witnesses
Deuteronomy 20:1 | Rules of Warfare
Deuteronomy 21:1 | Law concerning Murder by Persons Unknown
Last week we looked at the difference between shema, to hear and obey, and re-eh,
to see and understand. We also looked at the revelation of the Winepress period prior to
entering the New Jerusalem and understanding YHVHs timeline.
This week we look at the Torah Portion called shoftim that means Judges, specifically
the Judges or Rulers that ruled YHVHs people associated with these timeframes.

Judges, Officers & Leaders

Deut 16:18,20 Appoint judges and
officers for each of your tribes in every
town YHVH your Elohim is giving you,
and they shall judge the people fairly.
20 Follow justice and justice alone, so

that you may live and possess the land

YHVH your Elohim is giving you.
Judges is the Hebrew word shoftim and is plural for the singular Hebrew word shapat
meaning to govern or to rule. Shaphat is first used in Scripture in Gen 16:5
where Sarai told Abram that YHVH had to be the judge between her and Hagar, since
Hagar, who carried the child of Abram, despised her for being barren. This reveals to us
the purpose of a Judge, someone who can intervene between two parties when there
are disputes or unrighteous acts committed and administer justice. What is evident here
is that both Abram and Sarais names had not been changed yet, meaning that they both
had not being anointed by the Holy Spirit (receiving a hey into their names). This
resulted in Abram and Sarai acting from their flesh and not out of faith, bringing a child
of the flesh into this world that had severe consequences later on.

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What we do see in the word shaphat is that it starts with the letter shin , which
means fire and represents the Spirit of YHVH (YHVHs anointing). This means that the
Judges YHVH appointed, are the anointed leaders He chose to govern His people.

Officer is the word shoter meaning leader, officer

and to write. There are two common letters in both
words; the shin on the right, which means fire and
represents YHVHs Holy Spirit and His anointing, and the
tet , which means staff and serpent, and
represents Moses staff that turned into a serpent as a
sign for Israel when he was appointed as leader. This
staff can symbolise a shepherds staff, when the leader
is righteous, or a serpent, when the leader is corrupt. This implies that leadership can
initially be righteous, but can, over time, become corrupted and then be used by the
serpent to mislead YHVHs people.

Shapat (judge) has a pey that differentiates it from shoter (official), and Pey
means mouth, speaking YHVHs Word to the people, and that is associated with the
word rhema (Greek for spoken or revealed Word). The pey or Rhema (Word) relates
to different kinds of leaders such as Prophets, Evangelists, Teachers, Shepherds and
Pastors. All these offices (Gifts) identify the different functions of a Judge or Shapat.
Shoter (leader) means to write, and is associated with the written Word or logos
(Greek for written word). Moses was both a shapat and a shoter because He received
the revelation of YHVHs Word (Rhema) and wrote it down (Logos). Aaron and the 70
Elders assisted Moses in being a shapat (Judge) because of his speech impediment.
This reveals that we still need leaders like Moses, Aaron and the 70 Elders in our
Assemblies today, as revealed by the prophetic time frame of Dvarim or Deuteronomy.
These Leaders are necessary to govern YHVHs people during the time, similar to that in
the Book of Judges, when there was no King and the people did whatever they thought
was right.
Jdg 21:25 In those days there was no king in Israel. Every man did
the right in his own eyes.
In this Study, we will focus on a few of these Leaders and Judges to see what attributes
are required to govern YHVHs people through the timeframe of the Last Generation. A
"judge" (shaphat) was primarily a military leader of a particular tribe, although they could
serve the role of both military and legal administrator. The book of Judges presents quite
a different picture of Israel. As the book opens, at the beginning, the tribes are not at all
unified, are barely holding onto small pieces of land independently of other tribes, and
are continually at risk from surrounding people.

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This is a picture of what we can expect when the King of Kings, Yshua, will reign after
His Second Coming. Prophetically, Judges is pointing to the timeframe between Yshuas
First and Second Coming, and is where we now find ourselves. We as believers, can
learn so much on how to live, especially as we draw near to the end of this time period.
Joshua brought Israel into Canaan, in the same way, Y'shua brought us into the spiritual
Promised Land of faith. We are not only awaiting His Second Coming and salvation, we
are also awaiting His Government with which He will rule over the earth forever.
Jos 24:26-27 And Joshua wrote these words in the book of the Torah of Elohim,
and took a great stone and set it up there under an oak by the sanctuary of YHVH.
(27) And Joshua said to all the people, Behold, this stone shall be a witness to us, for
it has heard all the Words of YHVH which He spoke to us. It shall therefore be a
witness to you, lest you deny your Elohim.
Joshua's last words and the warning was not to forsake the
Torah and His Commandments, but the people later fell back
and forsook YHVH's Word. During the history of the Judges
we see that, even when they fell away from YHVH's Ways,
they were more than half of the time blessed, following
YHVH's Commandments.
Jdg 21:25 In those days there was no king in Israel.
Every man did the right in his own eyes.
When there was no ruler, every man did what he thought was right in his own eyes, and
this is also true today. Throughout this Book we see the same Cycle of sin, Israel forgot
YHVH, He sent an Enemy to rule over them, they repented, He then sent a Judge to
deliver them. They lived in peace until they forgot Him again. This Cycle was repeated
six times with a total of 12 Judges who ruled YHVHs people. This pattern reveals
prophetically how YHVHs people, from Yshuas ascension, went through these cycles
that continue to this day. We are currently in the phase where the enemy oppresses us,
and we have to cry out to YHVH to release us from this bondage. Another point to note
is that we, as believers living now, need good Judges or appointed Leaders who YHVH
will send, to lead His people back to Him and back to the time of blessing.

Two Kings Two Messiahs

After the period of the Judges, YHVH allowed Israel to have a King for the first time in
their history. Saul was from the Tribe of Benyamin, and he started off well, but in the end,
he became an unrighteous King. Saul means desired, reflecting Israels desire to
have a King to rule over them like the pagan nations around them. Saul comes from the
root word sha-al meaning to beg, to consult, to seek.

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This sounds like the previous Torah Portion, Ve-et Chanan which means, I pleaded. In
that Parashah we looked at the unrighteous leaders who will plead to enter the Kingdom
(Matt 7:21-23) Leaders like King Saul are connected to the Sons of Belial, Benjaminites,
who are also known as the lawless ones, foreshadowing the ultimate unrighteous
leader, the Anti-Messiah.
Saul was replaced by the righteous King David, who foreshadows
the righteous King, the true Messiah. YHVH will allow these two
Kings to rule His people. First the Anti-Messiah, the unrighteous
King, will test the true nature of His people to see if they will
recognise him as a counterfeit King. These two Kings will bring
separation between the goats and the sheep, to gather the
righteous from among the tares. Then he will replace the first King
with the second righteous King, namely Yshua the real Messiah.
This study directly points to our righteous King Who is coming,
Yshua Ha Mashiach. We are longing to be governed by a righteous
Judge (Sapat) and Leader (Shoter), to rule and reign in our lives when we possess the
Land of Promise.

Revealing the 12 Judges

We will now look at the Judges as recorded in the Book of Judges to
give us insight regarding the timeline, their attributes and what we
need to know regarding the government of YHVH.

1. Othniel - The Perfect Judge - Yshua

Passage: Judges 3:7-11 Othniel is an example of a good Judge
(leader) who ruled for 40 years, he was the son of Kenaz and brother
of Caleb. He defeated the Arameans, and the Spirit of YHVH was on
him.

Othniel means 'force or Lion of Elohim and he featured in chapter one where
he conquered the "City of the Scroll" and he received the waters above and the waters
below that means; spiritual revelation regarding YHVH and the Kingdom and Plan, and
he received revelation on how to apply and transfer the revealed Word to the people in a
practical way so they could apply it to their lives. During his life, he received a bride and
a field, the Bride, the Body of Messiah and the Field, the people in the world who needs
to be reached. He was a good Judge because he conquered the Word (City of the
Scroll), which made him competent to be a righteous Judge leading YHVHs people.
The Spirit of YHVH came upon him and anointed Him that resulted in a period of peace
for 40 years. The number 40 is very prominent in Scripture and means the Work of the
Messiah. This is a picture of the first true Judge, Yshua, Who was anointed by the
Father and trained in the Word to lead His Bride into His peace and rest. His aim is to
gather those who are still in the field and bring them into His Body so that they can
become part of His Bride.

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2. Ehud Bad Judge with Potential
Passage: Judges 3:12-30. Ehud was a bad Judge signified by the
fact that he was left-handed (fleshly) and he killed Eglon, king of
Moab through trickery.
Jdg 3:12 And the sons of Israel did evil again in the sight
of YHVH. And YHVH made Eglon the king of Moab
STRONG AGAINST Israel because they had done evil in the
sight of YHVH.
After the death of Othniel, the Righteous Judge, the children of
Israel did evil in the sight of YHVH and YHVH allowed the enemy,
Moab, to oppress them for 18 years. Eighteen has the following links through its
gematria:
1. chata meaning to miss the mark, sin.
2. ay-bah meaning enmity and hatred
3. yah-gah meaning to push away, to be removed, to afflict, grief & suffering.
4. doo-gah meaning to fishery, fishing hook.
5. doo'-ach meaning to cleanse, to wash away.
6. Abiah meaning YHVH is my Father.
7. chai meaning life.
Judges 3:12 together with the meanings of the number 18 gives us more detail about the
cycle of sin. First, the people sin and move away from the Ways of YHVH and move
out from under the protection of YHVHs blessings. That exposes them to the enemy
who will afflict them and cause suffering because they pushed YHVH away. Then
through His grace, YHVH sends His fishermen with the message of repentance to
hook them and fish them out from their oppressor if they obey and repent. Then they
must undergo a cleansing process, washing themselves clean from the things that
caused their distress in the first place. After the cleansing process, they will re-establish
their relationship with the Father and have the opportunity to enter His eternal life.
The enemy that oppressed them and caused their suffering, is revealed through their
king named Eglon. Eglon means to be calf-like and this shows that they
worshipped a calf-like god similar to the golden calf they had worshipped right after they
left Egypt. This is what makes the cleansing process so important because without it
you would end up worshipping YHVH with added on symbolism and traditions that come
from the enemy. This would push YHVH away and you would end up worshipping the
god of the enemy while thinking you worshipped YHVH. You would then be cursed and
exposed to the wrath of YHVHs displeasure.
The children of Israel cried out to YHVH, and He raised a Judge named Ehud, to rule
over them. Ehud means - 'united' or 'I will give thanks'. The Sages believed that
Ehud had a withered right hand or that he was left-handed and he made himself a knife.
So we have a Judge or Leader who is left handed (physically minded), and he made
himself a knife, not using the Sword of the Word. This is a picture of the False

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Teachers and Prophets Yshua warned us about,. They are part of the curse that came
upon YHVHs people who refused to repent and turn back to follow righteous leaders as
portrayed by the example and attributes of the first Judge, Othniel.
The children of Israel made a gift for king Eglon and sent Ehud, their leader, to present it
to him. King Eglon was an extremely fat man, and Ehud took his knife, hidden on his
right side, and with his left hand, killed the fat king so that his knife disappeared in the fat
of his belly. This shows us that YHVH will destroy the watered-down messages (knife) of
the false teachers, which are part of the Fat King (Mainstream Religious System. At the
end, the Shophar (trumpet) will be blown when this enemy and their false teachings are
destroyed. Ehud blew the trumpet on Mount Ephraim (Christians), assembling the
people to fight against this false Religion (Whore of Babylon). The Shophar also
represents Unity, and it was blown to assemble and gather the people for war. They
killed the enemy and had peace for eighty years. Eight represents new beginnings and is
related to the eighth millennium, the time after the 1000-year Winepress. (See last
weeks teaching for details).

3. Deborah Perfect Judge - The Bride

Passage: Judges 4 Judges 5. Deborah was a good Judge
as well as a Prophetess and was filled with the Spirit of YHVH.
Jdg 4:5 And she lived under the palm tree of Deborah
between Ramah and Bethel in mount Ephraim. And the
sons of Israel came up to her for judgment.
This passage describes Deborah, sitting under a palm tree,
located in a hilly land known as Mount Ephraim, giving guidance to YHVHs people.
People came to her when they needed guidance and wisdom and to settle disputes.
Deborah means bee and comes from the root word dawbar meaning
word, to speak, to declare, appoint, to name, to teach. An interesting point to note is that
the first three meanings relate to how Othniel conquered the City of the Scroll (Word),
how Ehud made a knife or sword (Word), and Deborahs name means Word. This
confirms that a Judge or leaders role is based on the foundation of YHVHs Word.
Judges were required to free the people from their enemies therefore the people needed
someone who knew the Word, to teach YHVHs Ways in order to overcome the enemy
(sin) in their lives.
Palm tree is the word tomer meaning post and column. If you change the vowel
points it, makes the word tamar, who was the mother of Zerah (brightness) and Perez
(divided). These two brothers represent the First and Second Coming of Messiah.
Zerahs hand came out prior to his brothers birth, and they tied a red string on his hand.
Zerah means brightness and was only for a brief moment, similar to Yshuas First
Coming. After that Perez was born, and his name means divided. Yshuas First Coming
brought division (perez) amongst the Jews, because of His death (red/blood) and
resurrection, where some accepted Him as the Messiah and others did not. After the
division, Yshua will come for a second time, this time He will be revealed in His fullness
or His brightness (Zerah). The Judges like Deborah will reveal Yshua as the Messiah
to the divided House of Israel, which includes Judah. When will this happen on our
timescale? We discover this in the meaning of the following words, numbers and
symbols:

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Ramah, Bethel & Ephraim: Deborah lived between Ramah, meaning elevated and
raised up tplace, and Bethel, meaning the house of Elohim, which is in Mount Ephraim
(Believers in Messiah). Last week we looked at the Bride who will be elevated and
come back during the 1000 years to teach the nations. There was 20 years of
oppression before her rule that links to the 2000 years, depicting the Age of the Gentiles.
While she ruled, there were 40 years of peace. The number 40 means Work of the
Messiah as well as testing that relates to the Wilderness, before crossing the Jordan. It
also mentioned that Deborah was anointed by the Spirit of YHVH. This places Deborah
in the time after the First Coming of Yshua, in the time of the Wilderness, the Age of the
Gentiles, as well as in an elevated state, that happened during the Great Tribulation
and the 1000 year Winepress. At the end She will have access to the House of Elohim,
that is the New Jerusalem. (See last weeks study for background).

4. Gideon Judges During the Time of the

Tribulation
Scripture: Judges 6 Judges 7 Gideon was a good
Judge and ruled over Israel for 40 years after a 7 period
of oppression.
The angel of YHVH called Gideon when he was busy
threshing wheat at the winepress, hiding from the
Midianites, who were like locusts. Gideon was chosen
to be a Judge after 7 years of oppression by the enemy.
All symbolise the time of the Tribulation (total of 7 years), where there is a plague of
locusts coming from the Abyss. This passage mentioned Gideon during the time of the
Wheat Harvest at the place of the Winepress. This indicates the Judges who will rule
when the wheat harvest starts, symbolising the time of the Great Tribulation, up to the
time of the 1000-year Winepress. (See last weeks study for background).

Gideon - Leader of Diverse Believers

Jdg 6:11-14 And there came an angel of YHVH, and sat under an oak which
was in Ophrah, that pertained unto Joash the Abiezrite: and his son Gideon
threshed wheat by the winepress, to hide it from the Midianites. (12) And the
Angel of YHVH appeared to him, and said to him, YHVH is with you, mighty
warrior. (13) And Gideon said to Him, O, my Master, if YHVH is with us, why
then has all this happened to us? And where are all His miracles which our
fathers told us of, saying, did not YHVH bring us up from Egypt? But now YHVH
has forsaken us, and delivered us into the hands of the Midianites. (14) And
YHVH looked upon him and said, go in your might, and you shall save Israel
from the hand of the Midianites. Have I not sent you?

Midian means strive and contention. Midian was the son of Abrahams second
wife, Keturah, meaning it is contention between brethren (distant family members).
Keturah means incense and offering. This means that the contention is among believers
with different religious background and doctrines. Remember the timeframe is the Great
Tribulation and who will lead YHVHs people in a time like this? This is revealed to us
through the Judge called Gideon.

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 Jdg 7:1 And Jerubbaal (he is Gideon) and all the people that were with him,
rose up early and pitched beside the well of Harod, so that the army of the
Midianites was on the north side of them, by the hill of Moreh, in the valley.

Harod means terror and this is what the people

experienced during the time of the Great Tribulation.
Harod had a well and if you are terrified you can lose
ground by not believing, and drink from the well of
terror or fear. The well of terror or fear in the valley. It
sounds like the passage in Ps 23 where David wrote,
though I walk through the valley of the shadow of
death, I will fear no evil; for You are with me; Your
rod and Your staff, they comfort me. We know the
enemy is in the valley that causes us to fear, but if we
trust in YHVH, then we will overcome them at the hill of Moreh. Moreh means
teacher and you will always find yourself between terror and the Teacher when facing
a difficult situation. You can either turn towards fear and drink from its wells, or you can
turn to the Teacher, gaining faith to confront the enemy, facing your fears.
YHVH is the Teacher Who is in every terrifying situation, and He reveals Himself within
those situations. He allows trials and in this case, tribulation so that you can be
stretched and learn from that situation, becoming a Mighty Warrior like Gideon.
Rom 8:37-39 But in all these things we more than conquer through Him who
loved us. (38) For I am persuaded that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor
principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, (39) nor
height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the
love of Elohim which is in Messiah Yshua our Master.
1Jn 4:18-19 There is no fear in love, but perfect love casts out fear because fear
has torment. He who fears has not been perfected in love. (19) We love Him
because He first loved us.
Fear is the enemy of faith, and you must learn to trust that YHVH will carry you through
every bad situation because His love for us is perfect. The part you have to play is
related to obeying His Commandments in every situation, and that is the way you secure
the strong bond of love from your side.
The enemy knows the following principle; the thing or person you fear is the thing or
person you worship. The enemy will do everything is his power to cause you to fear and
take your eyes off YHVH and His Word, which will cause you to fear him within that
situation rather than fearing (respecting) and worshipping YHVH. The time of Tribulation
is the time of testing and separation, and YHVH allows the enemy to play a part in this
process. Why is that? Because many of YHVHs people are bound to the enemy in some
way, and this is the only means to release them from His power, by allowing a fair and
open playing field, with Faith and Fear challenging each other.
The one you choose is the authority you submit to, and that is how YHVH will show His
power, release those in bondage and cause them to wake up and have faith in Him
within that battlefield or terrifying situation. Remember, every time you face a
challenge and a terrifying situation, it is none other than a battle field where the enemy is
challenging YHVH for your soul.

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You decide which one you side with thourgh your reaction, to either have faith in the
Almighty Commander Yshua, or in the evil Warlord, the Serpent. The one ruled by love
and trust, the other by fear and dominance.
Prophetic Insight: I believe that Gideon represents the Leaders that will be called during
the time of the Great Tribulation, those are known as the 144,000 who will be sealed.
Rev 14:1 Then I looked, and there before me was the Lamb, standing on
Mount Zion, and with Him 144,000 who had His Name and His Fathers Name
written on their foreheads.

Gideons First Task Clean Out the House

Gideon means one who bruises, one who
breaks or prunes, and the destroyer. These are the
attributes of a mighty warrior just like the Angel said
and this is what Gideon did; he went and destroyed
the altar of Baal at his fathers house, cut down the
pillar and used it as wood for a burnt offering unto
YHVH. Gideon did this during the night because he
feared his father, his family and the people of the
town. The next morning they found out that it was
Gideon and wanted to kill him. Gideons father
interceded and realised that if Baal was a real god, he would have killed Gideon. From
that day they called Gideon Jerubbaal, that means, let Baal defend his cause.
Personal Application: How many of us, as you become a new Believer in Yshua,
are afraid of what your family and friends will say, Gideon had the same challenge,
and he overcame the fear of man and still did what was right in the eyes of YHVH.
Gideon destroyed all pagan connections to his prior life and stood up for what he
believed in. You will be challenged yet again,when you will need to decide who do
you love and who do you fear?
YHVH expects us to do the same, and stand up against the enemy embedded in our
traditions, test everything against His Word, and cast down these altars, destroying
their existence within our midst. This is the passion you will need to survive the troubled
times that are coming, when you will be persecuted, especially by family members
within the Body of Messiah and family members outside the Body of Messiah.
2Ti 3:12 Yea, and all who desire to live godly in Messiah Yshua will be
persecuted.
Joh 15:20-21 Remember the word that I said to you, The servant is not greater
than his master. If they have persecuted Me, they will also persecute you. If they
have kept My saying, they will also keep yours. (21) But all these things they
will do to you for My name's sake, because they do not know Him who sent Me.
Note verse 21, they persecuted Yshuas followers for His Names sake, and Rev 14
reveals that the 144,000 leaders had His Name on their foreheads.
Q What does it mean to have His Name on your forehead?

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First, it can be interpreted in a physical sense where these anointed leaders will have a
physical mark on their foreheads that are associated with the Name of YHVH and
Yshua. The other explanation is in Hebrew, your name is your character. This means
that the character of the Father and Yshua is on the forehead, the area of your brain that
has to do with making decisions. This means that YHVHs anointing of these leaders will
enable them to think and act just like Yshua, in line with the Will of the Father. I think
that the second case is more plausible.

Gideons Second Task - Gathering the People and Calling on the

Father
Jdg 6:34-35 But the Spirit of YHVH came to Gideon, and he blew a ram's horn.
And he called the Abiezrites after him. (35) And he sent messengers throughout
all Manasseh, who also was gathered after him. And he sent messengers to
Asher, and to Zebulun, and to Naphtali. And they came up to meet them.
The Spirit of YHVH came upon Gideon, and he blew the Shophar to
gather and assemble the people for war. Abiezrites means help of
the Father and the blowing of the Shophar is not only for
assembling the people, but also to call on the Father for His
assistance. Have you ever thought about why we blow the Shophar
and how it draws the attention of the Father? That is why the
Shophar is a very powerful weapon that causes the enemy to flee
and the walls of Jericho to tumble.

Ram's horn is also known as a shophar ( translated as

trumpet) meaning beauty. The shophar is blown to gather the
people into Unity so they can stand up against the enemy and be
beautified as they come back into the original things of the Father.
(Father means Av or origin). Blowing of the Shophar is to assemble and unify the
people. The sin that is the worst of the seven sins is the one where the unity is broken
amongst the brothers through conflict and fighting. This gives the Shophar great spiritual
significance in bringing the people together as ONE (echad), which is beautiful
(shophar) and pleasing to YHVH. This is the reason we are supposed to blow the
Shophar on every new moon, Sabbath (appointed time) and every Feast day.
Psa 81:3 Blow the ram's horn in the new moon, in the time appointed, on our
solemn feast day.
Neh 4:20 In whatever place you hear the sound of the rams horn, join us there.
Our Elohim fights for us.
The blowing of the Shophar is the primary event for the Day of Blowing or Yom Teruah.
This is the day when the people are gathered, when the Fathers attention is drawn and
when the spiritual realm is shaken.

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