Unchanging Power

This week has been exceptionally difficult in my little corner of the world. The pressures of job and family have been exacerbated by the constant pressure of the enemy through his many deceptions. The overreaction to the new flu, the political onslaught, and now the insane advertising of Easter. If you still hold to this practice stop immediately and repent. There is too much evidence to conclude any other opinion than Easter IS pagan!

Hebrews 12:2 Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith;……. who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God.

Hebrews 1:1-3 God, who at sundry times and in divers manners spake in time past unto the fathers by the prophets, Hath in these last days spoken unto us by his Son, whom he hath appointed heir of all things, by whom also he made the worlds; Who being the brightness of his glory, and the express image of his person,,,,,, and upholding all things by the word of his power, when he had by himself purged our sins, sat down on the right hand of the Majesty on high:”

Notice how both verses end with Jesus as the right hand…. that is a Hebrew Idiom…. funny how that gets expressed even in the Greco-Latin perversion of the Hebrew text…. AND it means the position of Authority

John 1:1 “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.”

This tells us specifically that God came to earth with His authority manifest in a human suit (same as creation, thus he is called the second Adam or second manifested flesh verses procreation)

Genesis 1:1 In the beginning* God created the heaven and the earth.

*H7225 רֵאשִׁית Be-re’shiyth (Bet ray-sheeth’) n-f. 1. the first, in place, time, order or rank.The word “beginning” or Be-re’shyit contains the Hebrew letters Bet, Resh, Aleph, Shin, Yod and Tav.

These were at first pictographic characters with each creating their own word. These words are often compared to our compound words like “goodhearted” or “soft-spoken” only a little more complex.

The word beginning here is translated by the individual Hebrew letters thusly; Bet is Tent/house, Resh is head/father, Aleph means leader, Shin is a set of fangs/teeth meaning piercing, Yod is a hand/arm and Tav is a set of Crossed sticks.

The full understanding of the word ‘beginning’ is now, “The head of the house of the Father, pierced by the hand, on a cross, to bring the covenant.”

This is explained to us in Isaiah 46:10 “Declaring the end from the beginning, and from ancient times the things that are not yet done, saying, My counsel shall stand, and I will do all my pleasure.”

God is telling us that He will send Yeshua Messiah to redeem the world from the very first word in Scripture as the words “In the” are implied.

Exodus 24:12 “And the Lord said unto Moses, Come up to me into the mount, and be there: and I will give thee tables of stone, and a law, and commandments which I have written;… that thou mayest teach them.”

Again, after the first set is broken … 34:1 “And the Lord said unto Moses, Hew thee two tables of stone like unto the first: and I will write upon these tables the words that were in the first tables, which thou brakest.”

God had them written down at the foundations of the world… This is how Noah knew the difference between clean and unclean animals…. its how Abraham knew how to build a proper altar and worship… it is why Cain killed Abel

…In the beginning was the WORD which was his Authority ….

Malachi 3:6 “For I am the Lord, I change not; ..… therefore ye sons of Israel are not consumed.”

Hebrews 13:8 “Jesus Christ the same yesterday,
and today, and forever.”

Easter and the holidays that are related to it are moveable feasts in that they do not fall on a fixed date in the Gregorian or Julian calendars which follow only the cycle of the sun. Theres your dictionary definition. Has no passion.

The controversy arose between those who argued for independent computations and those who argued for continued reliance on the Hebrew calendar. This was formally resolved by the Council of Nicea, which endorsed the independent procedure that had been in use for some time in Rome and Alexandria.

Easter was henceforward to be a Sunday in a lunar month chosen according to Roman Catholic criteria—not in the month of Nissan, and not the Passover as defined by Scriptures.

The feast of Passover and the subsequent feasts ordained by God were not the only power and authority usurped by the Church of Rome. Roman Catholics assert that the idea of Christ’s deity was ultimately confirmed by the Bishop of Rome, and that it was this confirmation that gave the council its influence and authority.

In support of this, they cite the position of early fathers and their expression of the need for all churches to agree with Rome. This stands in direct opposition to the Holy Bible and the direct words of Jesus Christ.

The First Council of Nicaea was a council of Catholic bishops convened in Nicaea in Bithynia by the Roman Emperor Constantine I in AD 325. This first ecumenical council was the first effort to attain consensus in the church through an assembly attempting to represent all of Christendom.

Constantine pursued a falsified religious system based on Mithraism, or a Babylonian mysteries religion, and subsequently cloaked them in the symbols of the followers of Jesus Christ. The idea was to replace the God given and Torah ordained feasts with the feasts, practices and traditions of the pagan religions and demon worship.

Derived from the Greek, “ecumenical”, means “worldwide” but generally is assumed to be limited to the known inhabited Earth, and at this time in history is synonymous with the Roman Empire.

The council stated: “We also send you the good news of the settlement concerning the holy pasch, namely that in answer to your prayers this question also has been resolved. All the brethren in the East who have hitherto followed the Hebrew practice will henceforth observe the custom of the Romans and of yourselves and of all of us who from ancient times have kept Easter together with you.”

In pagan cultures all celebrations and rituals are the direct worship of the sun gods Apollo, Zeus, Jupiter and many others. These names all represent Nimrod who is the embodiment of Satan.

The most widely accepted origin of the term “Easter” is that it is derived from the name of a goddess, Ēostre, in whose honor feasts were celebrated in the month of April. Ēostre is known as the ‘goddess of the dawn’ and is given additional linguistic support in that she is designated the ‘daughter of heaven’. Thus continues the Roman Catholic theme of ritualistic necromancy (worship of the dead) as religious liturgy.

The origin of the goddess Ēostre is found in the Akkadian goddess Ishtar. Ishtar was the goddess of love, war, fertility, and sexuality. Like Ishtar, the Greek Aphrodite and the Aramean Northwestern Semitic Astarte, likewise Inaana, Lillith, and Ashtaroth all were love goddesses and the pagan counterpart to Nimrod.

The goddess Ashtaroth is specifically denounced as evil by God in Judges 2:11-13

“And the children of Israel did evil in the sight of the Lord, and served Baalim: And they forsook the Lord God of their fathers, which brought them out of the land of Egypt, and followed other gods, of the gods of the people that were round about them, and bowed themselves unto them, and provoked the Lord to anger. And they forsook the Lord, and served Baal and Ashtaroth.”

Judges 2:11-13

These perversions of the truth began in Rome and continued to be reinforced by the global Romanization of civil and religious cities and states for more than 1200 years. The split from Roman Catholicism by Martin Luther was only a minute distraction from the depths of the distortion Roman culture had already promulgated upon those that professed the name of Jesus.

The 1200 years of conditioning and the extreme distance from the life of Jesus had already seeded deeply the maligned intent of Constantine and the Council of Nicea.

Their desire to elevate themselves, both in civic and religious life, had already been long forgotten while the pagan rituals they instilled in the followers of Christ had become a regular way of life.

It is time for all believers to seek out the truths of scripture and listen to the commands of God. God asks us to be a holy nation, separating ourselves from the ways of the wicked. God tells us we cannot serve God and man and yet that is exactly what we are doing when we follow the Roman/ Constantine/ Pagan ritual of Easter.

Almost identical to the first century followers of Messiah, believers today are being marginalized in society, and the moral compass spins out of control as external influences push society away from its foundational roots. For the first century followers it was the Roman culture rooted in paganism, and to much chagrin of the modern church, it still is the biggest problem today. The Roman way was to incorporate every religion in to one big pile of lies and let the Republic be worshiped for its glory. Conquering peoples and nations made them rich and this was their reward for being obedient to the ‘gods’ (plural). Sound at all familiar?

Here is the culture in which (1) Jesus comes to the world, (2) Jesus is crucified, (3) in which Paul lives and writes, (4)and in which all the “new” testament was written. The four gospels, the Revelation, and the letters to the churches all agree with one another in both content and context. Still yet the modern church has been more and more divergent in its teachings to the point we have over 35,000 registered denominations! Sound Roman enough for you?

The rabbis, both then and now, claim that an Oral Torah was also received by Moses from God on Mount Sinai and carries as much authority as the written Torah. Seems a little sketchy to me. After all doesn’t YHVH say something about that? Oh yeah, Deuteronomy 12:32, “What thing soever I command you, observe to do it: thou shalt not add thereto, nor diminish from it.”

Anyway, this Torah was supposedly passed down through the Fourteen centuries by word of mouth rather than the written word. Eventually this oral material was written down, culminating in the “written oral Torah” called the Talmud (תַּלְמוּד, “learning”) which consists of the Mishnah (מִשְׁנָה, “repetition”) and its commentary called the Gemarah (גְּמָרָה, “study”). Note that the Talmud is 50 times the size of the written Torah we call the Pentateuch!

Because it derives from the discussions of the Mishnah, the Talmud is also traditionally called Shas (ש“ס), an acronym for shisha sedarim, the “six orders” of the Mishnah. There exist two versions of Talmud: the Jerusalem Talmud (or “Yerushalmi”) and the Babylonian Talmud, or “Bavli” (the most frequently used version!).

Within the Mishnah are two different types of literature. The first is known as halachah, or legal literature. Halachic (pronounce Ha la kick) literature interprets written Torah and seeks evidence to establish judicial laws, both civil and religious, that consist of codes of behavior and religious practice and procedures (for instance, the laws of marriage and divorce, the ethics of giving charity, etc.).

The second type of literature is know as Aggadah and is all material contained in the Talmud that is not halachah. It consists of the “wise sayings or tellings” of the sages. Aggadah includes stories, parables, theological or ethical statements, and homilies. *Note that within the Talmud itself, both aggadah and halachah may be found mixed together, often with aggadah used to teach a principle based upon a halachic text.

The only authorized instructions are those that YHVH has given to us in Scripture, the rest, are mans attempt to insert themselves into places of importance. This is the point Paul is making in Colossians and the ‘smack down Jesus delivers to the Pharisees.

Exodus 12:49 “One law [command] shall be to him that is homeborn, and unto the stranger that sojourneth among you.”
Mark 7:8 [Jesus speaking] “You leave the commandments of God and hold to the traditions of men.” ESV

And what is really insane, God knew it was going to happen and tells us about it Psalms verbatim!

It is time for thee, Lord, to work: for they have made void thy law.

PSALM 119:126

Does that seem rather ominous to anyone? The world rambles on about zombie apocalypse or the vaccines killing us all, while the reality is this: we have done it to ourselves in the blatant attempt to replace YHVH’s authority over man with our own set of rules. Recall we just heard that very thing from Jesus in Mark 7:8!

Maybe it makes more sense when you read it in the KJV… “For laying aside the commandment of God, ye hold the tradition of men, as to the washing of pots and cups: and many other such like things ye do.” The Pharisees had rules on how and when you could do dishes! AND they said that God wanted it that way! [heavy eye roll] It is this sort of divergence from scripture that got them booted from Jerusalem twice before Jesus arrived and will get them booted again in 70 CE.

It is with all of this in mind that I must conclude: my accusers couldn’t possibly be pointing towards my belief in Talmud or Mishnah as it does not exist. This would leave only the accusation of teaching the Torah, to which I reply: ABSOLUTELY!

PART 2 LAW OF ‘SIN EQUALS DEATH’ IN TORAH

Adam’s sin brought about this unchangeable law: When a man sins he is then subject to eternal death. Genesis 3:17-19 “And unto Adam he said, Because thou hast hearkened unto the voice of thy wife, and hast eaten of the tree, of which I commanded thee, saying, Thou shalt not eat of it: cursed is the ground for thy sake; in sorrow shalt thou eat of it all the days of thy life; Thorns also and thistles shall it bring forth to thee; and thou shalt eat the herb of the field; In the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread, till thou return unto the ground; for out of it wast thou taken: for dust thou art, and unto dust shalt thou return.”

Romans 5:12 “Wherefore, since the one man sin entered into the world, causing death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, because all have sinned.”

The concept of gravity, whereas an object with area, mass or weight, when thrown skyward will return to the earth by an unseen force, is an unavoidable fact, thereby rendering it a LAW. This platform is widely accepted and for some unforeseen reason never applied to Scripture. The law was already in effect, just like gravity, and could not be changed. Adam had to have been warned of this by God. I can’t imagine this result of his disobedience was a surprise to Adam, or something new, after-all he walked with God daily. This a relation based instruction process, or a covenant, or “law”.

Ezekiel 18:4 “Behold, all souls are mine …. the soul that sinneth, it shall die.”

We can see from the instructions presented to Adam he had a choice to follow them or to dismiss them. This came after the ‘apple’ incident. “And the Lord God said, Behold, the man is become as one of us, to know good and evil” Genesis 3:22. This is the definition of sin: 1 John 3:4 “Whosoever committeth sin, transgresseth also the law: for sin is the transgression of the law.”

Sin, or not to sin. That is the question. It is an individual relationship to YHWH, it is a choice to follow, or to not follow, the directions of YHWH.

1 John 5:2-3 “By this we know that we love the children of God, when we love God, and keep his commandments. For this is the love of God, that we keep his commandments: and his commandments are not grievous.”

Commandments – Instructions – Torah are all somewhat interchangeable when uttered by God. {the Scribes and Pharisees would argue}

Romans 1:18-25 “For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven (Revelation) against all ungodliness (un repented sinners) and unrighteousness of men (anti-Torah), who hold the truth (Torah) in unrighteousness;(disobedience) Because that which may be known of God is manifest in them; (written on their hearts) for God hath shewed it unto them. For the invisible things of him (laws like gravity) from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even his eternal power and Godhead; so that they are without excuse: Because that, when they knew God, they glorified him not as God, neither were thankful; but became vain in their imaginations, and their foolish heart was darkened. Professing themselves to be wise, they became fools, And changed the glory of the uncorruptible God into an image made like to corruptible man, [unsubstantiated rules] and to birds, and fourfooted beasts, and creeping things.[idolatry] Wherefore God also gave them up to uncleanness through the lusts of their own hearts, to dishonour their own bodies between themselves: Who changed the truth of God into a lie, and worshipped and served the creature more than the Creator, who is blessed for ever. Amen.”

Paul is warning the people of the divergence of the church from the truth of the Scriptures…. this is during the middle of the first century!

Sins that lead to death ….

1 John 5:16-17 “If any man see his brother sin a sin which is not unto death, he shall ask, and he shall give him life for them that sin not unto death. There is a sin unto death: I do not say that he shall pray for it. All unrighteousness is sin: and there is a sin not unto death.”

It would appear that “Sins unto death” as mentioned in 1 John 5:16-17 are clearly written about in Romans 1:19-32, 1 Corinthians 6:9-10, Galatians 5:19-21, Ephesians 5:3-5, Colossians 3:5.

These references show the attitude of adherence to the Torah by the people to be non-existent, even belligerent against YHVH. The bible teaches that eternal life is not a done deal.  That we must, in fact, put forth every effort, to endure, to run the race, to suffer hardship and to persevere to the end (Phil 3:13-14, Rom 2:7). This is as old as the Garden and the serpent….. did YHVH really say that? Let’s find out together.

Beginning with Paul, he opens the letter to the Romans introducing himself to the unknown, and more likely, non-Hebrew reader.

1:1 Paul, a servant (voluntary, full devoted, sense of subjection) of Jesus Christ, called to be an apostle (ambassador, messenger), separated (appointed) unto the gospel of God,

Paul or Paulos is the Greek name equal to Shaul or Saul the Hebrew name. There is not an official change to his name at conversion as many denominations teach. They use this misunderstanding to purposefully lead people into a doctrine of dispensationalism.

• Dispensationalism is a religious interpretive system for the Bible. It considers Biblical history as divided deliberately by God into defined periods or ages to each of which God has allotted distinctive administrative principles.

This letter to believers was written nearly 30 years after the resurrection during a period of heavy persecution by Nero. The ONLY “Bible” the people had was The TaNaKh, or what we call the “Old Testament”, i.e. Genesis to Malachi. The people Paul is writing to are a mix of:

1. Israelite descendants of the Northern tribes [Ephraim],
2. Roman and Greek citizens in the Roman Empire, of whom, some have intermarried with the Israelites and are already converting to the belief in YHVH via Messiah,
3. The Goyim [all nations, pagan] that are inhabitants of the Roman Empire who seeking to understand belief in Messiah.

Because of the previous Greek conquest by Alexander the Great, the primary language of the area is Greek and the common language of commerce is Greek. In Rome itself Latin is predominate yet they were commonly multi-lingual inhabitants like many European countries today.

The intent of this letter is to open the eyes of the people concerning the fulfilment of promises made by YHVH. How the life, death and resurrection of the Messiah has taken place right before their blinded eyes and how it was intended to bring them back into covenant. Notice it is BACK into covenant an existing covenant and not a complete reversal or replacement.

Here are some things that need to be well defined in this research. These are of epic importance to know, and refer to, when answering much of Paul’s writings.

Righteousness defined: Deuteronomy 6:25 “And it shall be our righteousness, if we observe to do all these commandments before YHWH our God, as he hath commanded us.”

• Luke 1:3-6 “It seemed good to me also, having had perfect understanding of all things from the very first, to write unto thee in order, most excellent Theophilus, That thou mightest know the certainty of those things, wherein thou hast been (past tense refers to Torah) instructed. There was in the days of Herod, the king of Judaea, a certain priest named Zacharias, of the course of Abia: and his wife was of the daughters of Aaron, and her name was Elisabeth. And they were both righteous before God, walking in all the commandments and ordinances of the Lord blameless.”
• Matthew 19:26 “But Jesus beheld them, and said unto them, With men this is impossible; but with God all things are possible.**”
• Psalm 119:172 “My tongue shall speak of thy word: for all thy commandments are righteousness.”

Sin defined: 1 John 3:4 “Whosoever committeth sin transgresseth also the law {Torah}: for sin is the transgression of the law.{Torah}”

** (emphatically: to absolutely know, to know without exception..i.e. knowing, but not merely to know based on personal observation or perception, but also based on actual rational truth; not merely that which is based on or bound only by sight and experience; such knowing comes from YHVH to completely grasp and have the comprehension of, as well as why and how, and to have the astuteness to apply it freely without error.)

Idols and idolatry, rituals for pagan deities and human sacrifice was a more than common practice among pagan religions including Rome [Mithras], Greece [Zeus], and Egypt [Osiris]. Likewise, these cultures practiced polytheism thus having a multitude of statues and idols. AND Jesus and Paul both expose this through the use of Torah!

Deuteronomy 4:15-19 “Take ye therefore good heed unto yourselves; for ye saw no manner of similitude on the day that the Lord spake unto you in Horeb out of the midst of the fire: Lest ye corrupt yourselves, and make you a graven image, the similitude of any figure, the likeness of male or female, The likeness of any beast that is on the earth, the likeness of any winged fowl that flieth in the air, The likeness of any thing that creepeth on the ground, the likeness of any fish that is in the waters beneath the earth: And lest thou lift up thine eyes unto heaven, and when thou seest the sun, and the moon, and the stars, even all the host of heaven, shouldest be driven to worship them, and serve them, which the Lord thy God hath divided unto all nations under the whole heaven.” [Romans 1 & Mark 7]

Saul/Paul delivers this same message to believers repeatedly throughout the then known world. To the Corinthians he says:
1 Corinthians 6:9-10 “Know ye not that the unrighteous [covenant breaking / devoid of Torah] shall not inherit the kingdom of God? Be not deceived: neither fornicators¹, nor idolaters², nor adulterers³, nor effeminate⁴, nor abusers of themselves with mankind⁵, Nor thieves⁶, nor covetous⁷, nor drunkards⁸, nor revilers⁹, nor extortioners¹⁰, shall inherit the kingdom of God.”

I can assure you… you will never see this “top 10” list on Letterman! What are these human propensities?

1. G4205 πόρνος pornos (por’-nos) n. A. a (male) prostitute (for hire). B. (by analogy) a sex addict, a debauchee, a pornographer. C. (by extension) one who is sexually or morally unrestrained. [from pernemi “to sell” (akin to the base of G4097)]

To the untrained eye this would lead people to believe this word to mean “B” a sex addict or purveyor of nudity. While that is a social issue that needs addressed, I believe this is the combination of root of the word and all the listed definitions. A morally unrestrained male, creating debauchery, or lawlessness and getting paid for it! The televangelist, the tent revival faith healer, the big book deal makers and God fakers. You know them and loath them.

G1496 εἰδωλολάτρης eidololatres (ei-d̮ō-lo-la’-trees) n. an image-servant or image-worshipper.

We can easily recognize the ‘religious’ groups that use these images. Buddha, Krishna, Vishnu, are all quick picks; yet harder to point out are the Valentines, St. Patrick’s, Queen Mother, Immaculate Hearts, Fathers/Mothers day and the thousands upon thousands of ‘holidays’ created by men.

Deuteronomy 5:7 “Thou shalt have none other gods before me.”

Deuteronomy 5:8 “Thou shalt not make thee any graven image, or any likeness of any thing that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the waters beneath the earth:”

3. G3432 μοιχός moichos (moi-chos’) n. A. a (male) adulterer. B. (figuratively) apostate.

Again, we can see the duality of this definition. This certainly pertains to the apostate believer, but too, the apostate preacher.

Jeremiah 3:8 “And I saw, when for all the causes whereby backsliding Israel committed adultery I had put her away, and given her a bill of divorce; yet her treacherous sister Judah feared not, but went and played the harlot also.”

Ezekiel 22:26 “Her priests have violated my law, and have profaned mine holy things: they have put no difference between the holy and profane, neither have they shewed difference between the unclean and the clean, and have hid their eyes from my Sabbaths, and I am profaned among them.”

4. G3120 μαλακός malakos (ma-la-kos’) adj. A. soft, B. a catamite. A pubescent boy who was the intimate companion of a young man, as the passive or receiving partner in anal intercourse with a man.
5. G733 ἀρσενοκοίτης arsenokoites (ar-se-no-koi’-tees) n. a male homosexual, sodomite. A huge issue in the Greco-Roman world.

Leviticus 18:22 “Thou shalt not lie with mankind, as with womankind: it is abomination.”

6. G2812 κλέπτης kleptes (klep’-tees) n. a stealer, a thief.

Deuteronomy 5:19,21 “Neither shalt thou steal. Neither shalt thou desire thy neighbour’s wife, neither shalt thou covet thy neighbour’s house, his field, or his manservant, or his maidservant, his ox, or his ass, or any thing that is thy neighbour’s.”

7. G4123 πλεονέκτης pleonektes (ple-o-nek’-tees) n. holding (desiring) more, i.e. eager for gain (avaricious, hence a defrauder).

Deuteronomy 5:20 “Neither shalt thou bear false witness against thy neighbour.”

8. G3183 μέθυσος methusos (me-thï ’-sos) n. A. tipsy. B. (as noun) a sot. Sot is a somewhat old-fashioned word for a heavy drinker, also known as a lush or a wino. (vocabulary.com)

Here is a hot topic among “Christians” all across the denominational lines. From my own experience, I can attest to several different religious affiliations, there is much to fight about. The total abstinence promoted by my mother and her southern Baptist ways, naturally when I got a job and a car I got access to beer! Hello my Catholic buddies! All sarcasm aside, is there anything YHVH says about it?

Proverbs 20:1 “Wine is a mocker; beer a carouser. Those it leads astray won’t become wise.”

I don’t see anywhere that a cold beer after a hot day in the yard while doing chores is not allowed. It’s the frat party mentality where YHVH cannot get to your rational way of thinking. When the Creator cannot connect to the created there is always trouble.

9. G3060 λοίδορος loidoros (loi’-d̮o-ros) adj. abusive, i.e. a blackguard. [from loidos (mischief)]

This is the enticing to riot or the rebellion against YHVH and the commandments. We see again in Deuteronomy 5:6-7 “I am the Lord thy God, which brought thee out of the land of Egypt, from the house of bondage. Thou shalt have none other gods before me.”

The rebellion against YHVH began with the serpent in the Garden, was strengthened at the Tower by Nimrod, and defined in Egypt and then conquered the world via the Greeks and Romans.

Deuteronomy 5:9-10 “Thou shalt not bow down thyself unto them, nor serve them: for I the Lord thy God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth generation of them that hate me, And shewing mercy unto thousands of them that love me and keep my commandments.”

10. G727 ἅρπαξ harpax (har’-pax) adj. A. exceedingly and violently greedy, ravenously predatory, extortionate, rapacious. B. (thus) taking great pleasure in pursuing and successfully exploiting others (while thinking highly of themselves).

I find the root of this word very interesting … G726 ἁρπάζω harpazo (har-pa’-zō) v. to seize. This the same word used in the famous pretribulation rapture doctrine “caught up” in Thessalonians.  Here again Saul/Paul is addressing the fact that humans will use the position to persuade others to financial AND spiritual ruin.

Revelation 2:6 “But this thou hast, that thou hatest (hate, persecute) the deeds (work, actions) of the Nicolaitanes, which I also hate.”

Nicolaitans, a sect that adheres to subjugating (i.e. dominating and ruling over) a people while outwardly professing Christianity. possibly related or linked to the followers or practices of Balaam, getting people to worship Ba’al through deception.

*(Nikos = conquered / Laos = people/ Ton =the)*(The meaning is to have the leadership of the church gain a victory over the laity until they are compelled to submit to the dominion of men who have become that thing which God hates, false forms of worship. They lead lives of unrestrained indulgence professing that deeds done in the flesh had no bearing on the afterlife as men would not have fleshly bodies. Clement of Alexandria put forward a defense of Nicolas (in Stromata ii. 20, iii. 4) which Eusebius accepts and repeats (in Historia Ecclesiastica iii. 29).This is the origin of the canonized St. Nicholas.)

This same message is seen in Galatians and Ephesians, I won’t break them down as I did the passage in Romans, but suffice to say they are the same.

Galatians 5:19-21 “Now the works of the flesh are manifest, which are these; Adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lasciviousness, Idolatry, witchcraft, hatred, variance, emulations, wrath, strife, seditions, heresies, Envyings, murders, drunkenness, revellings, and such like: of the which I tell you before, as I have also told you in time past (in the letters to the Romans, Hebrews and Corinthians), that they which do such things shall not inherit the kingdom of God.”

Ephesians 5:3-5 “But fornication, and all uncleanness, or covetousness, let it not be once named among you, as becometh saints; Neither filthiness, nor foolish talking, nor jesting, which are not convenient: but rather giving of thanks. For this ye know, that no whoremonger, nor unclean person, nor covetous man, who is an idolater, hath any inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and of God.”

The prophet Isaiah told the Israelites to do deeds worthy of repentance and then, (because it was conditional upon their actions) God would forgive them – see Isaiah 1:16-20.

[16 Wash you, make you clean; put away the evil of your doings (stop doing these immoral actions) from before mine eyes; cease to do evil;

17 Learn to do well; seek judgment, relieve (H833 אָשַׁר ‘ashar (aw-shar’) v. to be straight) the oppressed (H2541 חָמוֹץ chamowts (chaw-motse’) n-m. the cruel man.), judge (H8199 שָׁפַט shaphat (shaw-fat’) v.avenge) the fatherless (orphans, the bereaved person), plead for the widow. (James 1:27 “Pure religion and undefiled before God and the Father is this, To visit the fatherless and widows in their affliction, and to keep himself unspotted from the world.”

18 Come now, and let us reason (H3198 יָכחַ yakach (yaw-kach’) v. to decide, justify or convict.) together, saith the LORD: though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they be red like crimson, they shall be as wool.

19 If ye be willing (H14 אָבָה ‘abah (aw-ɓaw’) v. to breathe after.) and obedient, ye shall eat the good of the land:

20 But if ye refuse and rebel (H4784 מָרָה marah (maw-raw’) v. to be bitter or unpleasant)., ye shall be devoured (consumed) with the sword:( H2719 חֶרֶב chereb (cheh’-reɓ) n-f. a cutting instrument from its destructive effect.) for the mouth of the LORD hath spoken it.

• Genesis 3:24 “So he drove out the man; and he placed at the east of the garden of Eden Cherubims, and a flaming sword which turned every way, to keep the way of the tree of life.”
• Hebrews 4:12 “For the word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any two edged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.”

The entirety of Chapter 18 in Ezekiel is a call to the Israelite (Bride of Christ) for repentance proven by their deeds (actions). Vs.9 “Hath walked in my statutes, and hath kept my judgments, to deal truly; he is just, he shall surely live, saith the Lord God.”

The bible is in perfect harmony on this point: For God to forgive sin there MUST be genuine repentance that is PROVEN by a change of mind (how we think) which leads to a change of lifestyle (how we live).

Genuine repentance leading to a change of life is taught in all the gospels and throughout the “New” Testament. The concept of “faith alone” has been preached for centuries and as such mention of any kind of ‘work’ or ‘deeds’ is frowned upon and seen as ‘trying to save yourself’.

Over and over again the bible tells us that we are going to be judged for our works/deeds.  John the Baptist taught this too: Luke 3:8 “Bring forth therefore fruits [deeds/actions] worthy of repentance, and begin not to say within yourselves, We have Abraham to our father: for I say unto you, That God is able of these stones to raise up children unto Abraham”.

As did Paul: Acts 26:20 “But shewed first unto them of Damascus, and at Jerusalem, and throughout all the coasts of Judaea, and then to the Gentiles, that they should repent and turn to God, and do works [deeds/actions] meet [worthy] for repentance”.

God is a rewarder of those who diligently seek him (Heb 11:6) and we are told to study and show ourselves approved (2 Tim 2:15).  This is essential if we are to follow the truth and abide in Jesus Christ.

1 Peter 1:9-12 “Receiving the end of your faith, even the salvation of your souls.  Of which salvation the prophets have enquired and searched diligently, who prophesied of the grace that should come unto you: Searching what, or what manner of time the Spirit of Christ which was in them did signify, when it testified beforehand the sufferings of Christ, and the glory that should follow. Unto whom it was revealed, that not unto themselves, but unto us they did minister the things, which are now reported unto you by them that have preached the gospel unto you with the Holy Ghost sent down from heaven; which things the angels desire to look into.”

1 Corinthians 5:5 “To deliver such an one unto Satan for the destruction of the flesh, that the spirit may be saved in the day of the Lord Jesus.”

Philippians 1:3-6 “I thank my God upon every remembrance of you, Always in every prayer of mine for you all making request with joy, For your fellowship in the gospel from the first day until now; Being confident of this very thing, that he which hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ:”

Proverbs 10:2 “Treasures of wickedness profit nothing: but righteousness delivereth from death.”

Proverbs 11:4 “Riches profit not in the day of wrath: but righteousness delivereth from death.”

Isaiah 64:5-6 “Thou meetest him that rejoiceth and worketh righteousness, those that remember thee in thy ways: behold, thou art wroth; for we have sinned: in those is continuance, and we shall be saved. But we are all as an unclean thing, and all our righteousnesses are as filthy rags; and we all do fade as a leaf; and our iniquities, like the wind, have taken us away.”

It is very evident that John is writing to us as a fellow sinner, being saved by grace, through faith. In the exact same manner as every follower of YHVH since Adam and continuing to the Last Great Day.

Romans 1:16-17… Nothing is impossible … including Torah!

16 For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to everyone that believeth; to the Jew (natural born Israelite) first, and also to the Greek. (those converting from paganism to belief in YHWH through Yeshua)

Paul is not saying God is going to show a preference in his grace to mankind, he is stating the fact that God had revealed His grace to the Israelite first, as a matter of chronology, and then to the rest of the world. This is not a transitional or dispensational theme.

In the Exodus we can see the truth of YHVH’s plan for mankind, ALL of mankind. Exodus 12:49 “One law shall be to him that is homeborn, and unto the stranger that sojourneth among you.”

We also see this in the gospel of John 1:11-12 “He came unto his own, and his own received him not. But (therefore) as many as received him, to them gave He power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name” God is giving us the power to live in accordance to His commands.

Verse 17 says, “For therein is the righteousness of God revealed from faith (belief) to faith (assurance): as it is written, The just (those set apart) shall live by faith.” That faith is not simply the fact that Jesus lived and died and was resurrected. Jesus didnt proclaim that to the people at all. This faith is that the One True God of creation will follow all that He has proclaimed.

Isaiah 46:10 Declaring the end from the beginning, and from ancient times the things that are not yet done, saying, My counsel shall stand, and I will do all my pleasure:“

• “Behold, his soul which is lifted up is not upright in him: but the just shall live by his faith.” Habakkuk 2:4

IT IS MY BELIEF “SINS LEADING TO DEATH”
ARE A BREAKING OF THE INSTRUCTIONS GIVEN BY YHVH . 

PART 3 TEMPTATION OF SIN AND THE LIFE OF YESHUA MESSIAH

Hebrews 4:15 “For we do not have a high priest who is unable to empathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in everyway, just as we are—yet he did not sin.”

Having already defined sin we know Jesus did not sin or violate any of the commandments in the TaNaKh or “Old Testament” or Torah. But we have not discerned the scripture to its fullest. Jesus is our High Priest? Why would I need a high priest and how was he tempted? It does say in every way… so…

As a carpenter and a businessman, how easy would it have been for the creator of the universe to ‘manifest’ a wooden item that was literally perfect. Something everyone wanted and then rake them for all they had to get it….. oh wait that is Satan. Or as brother, how easy would it have been to empower and elevate them to positions of authority? As a teen, that little gal down the street winking at him. Jesus saw it all with the physical eyes of a human and the spiritual eyes of the Master.

So this Jesus, this Hebrew human, raised in a Hebrew home in the Hebrew nation. The same, that learned the Hebrew history and how the Hebrew God saved a Hebrew nation for the oppression of the pagan world. It is that Jesus, that teaches the twelve in the Hebrew scriptures using Hebrew references that was crucified for being too Hebrew and not enough pagan.

Most know that Jesus was a descendent of King David and therefore a descendent of the kingly line, but few realize that he was also a descendent of the priestly line as well. There was in the days of Herod, king of Judaea, a certain priest named Zacharias, of the course of Abijah: and he had a wife of the daughters of Aaron, and her name was Elisabeth (Luke 1:5). Elisabeth was the sister of Mary, Jesus’ mother. While Jesus is descended from the Kingly line through his father, he is also descended from the priestly line through his mother.

So much of the world wants to call Jesus their savior yet few are willing to call Him their Lord or Master. To know Him is to know His character or “shem”. That word does mean ‘name’, and it is helpful to know that the Hebrew people named their children based on character. I have an entire book on names and their importance as well as a 9 part series on this blog. When YHVH destroys veil of the Temple, at the crucifixion of Christ, we have a change in the character of Jesus. He became the High Priest. This is the meaning of Romans 7….

Paul starts the letter “Know ye not, brethren, for I speak to them that know the law (those that were brought up in the instruction of the Torah), how that the law (Torah) hath dominion over a man as long as he liveth?” Paul is telling the reader: this is to those that know the Torah ALSO those that do not. If you do not know the Torah stop and learn it before you continue as you will not know what he is talking about otherwise. Why would he say this… because of the “property” of a law. The difference here, unlike gravity as discussed earlier, we have a KNOWN force making the change in actions or outcomes. That force is God.

Humanity and Christianity in specific, have been well focused on verse twelve from chapter seven. “For when the priesthood is changed, the law must be changed also.” Here we ask again WHAT LAW?

The law: Sin equals Death.

ROMANS 5:12, 6:16, 6:23, 8:2,

James 1:15 Then when lust (not just sex) hath conceived, it bringeth forth sin: and sin, when it is finished, bringeth forth death.

Everyone will agree, as a human, it is impossible to be 100% sinless. This is the need of the role of the High Priest both then and now. High priest, in Hebrew is kohen gadol, the chief religious functionary in the Temple of Jerusalem, whose unique privilege was to enter the Holy of Holies (inner sanctum) once a year on Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement, to burn incense and sprinkle sacrificial animal blood to expiate his own sins and those of the people of Israel.

Expiate means to atone for; make satisfaction or reparation for; endeavor to remove the moral guilt of (a crime or evil act), or counteract its evil effects, by suffering a penalty or doing some counterbalancing good. This is why Paul explains that we have a salvation “not of yourself” because we are not our own High Priest. For the ‘universal’ crowd the Romans usurped the law of God, invented penance, something they could control and monitor, as a replacement for the the role of the High Priest. This is a form of anti-christ theology.

Hebrews 4:14 “Seeing then that we have a great high priest, that is passed into the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold fast our profession.” I personally feel the scribes did not capitalize the letters, as a title should be, to lessen the authority of Messiah. Why? it was in conflict with their perceived authority within the Anglican church. (circa King James)

Mark 12:33 “To love YHVH with all your heart, with all your understanding and with all your strength, and to love your neighbor as yourself is more important than all burnt offerings and sacrifices.” The ‘law’ or instructions of YHVH are more important than the sacrifices and duty surrounding them. This behavior of external awareness over personal awareness, what people see versus what God sees because the center of Hebrew worship. This is one of many reasons Messiah came…. to refocus the people. Kingship to the people gives them someone to follow, but Lordship or Master is one in whom you have submitted fully. In this verse Jesus even announces the change in the priesthood and the sacrifices to the people.

Paul realized what Jesus said and tells us in Hebrews 10:8 First he said, “Sacrifices and offerings, burnt offerings and sin offerings you did not desire, nor were you pleased with them”—though they were offered in accordance with the law [Torah].

This ONLY comes after Paul’s explanation in detail in chapter nine.

Hebrews 9:11-26 But Christ being come an high priest of good things to come,[Kingdom of Heaven as proclaimed by Yeshua] by a greater and more perfect tabernacle, not made with hands, that is to say, not of this building;

¹² Neither by the blood of goats and calves, but by his own blood he entered in once into the holy place, having obtained eternal redemption for us.

¹³ For if the blood of bulls and of goats, and the ashes of an heifer sprinkling the unclean, sanctifieth to the purifying of the flesh:

¹⁴ How much more shall the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without spot to God, purge your conscience from dead works {sin} to serve the living God?

¹⁵ And for this cause he is the mediator of the new testament, that by means of death, for the redemption of the transgressions that were under the first testament, they which are called might receive the promise of eternal inheritance.

¹⁶ For where a testament [covenant or blood oath] is, there must also of necessity be the death of the testator.

¹⁷ For a testament is of force after men are dead: otherwise it is of no strength at all while the testator liveth.

¹⁸ Whereupon neither the first testament was dedicated without blood. [the blood of animals, while sinless was not enough]

¹⁹ For when Moses had spoken every precept to all the people according to the law, he took the blood of calves and of goats, with water, and scarlet wool, and hyssop, and sprinkled both the book, and all the people,

²⁰ Saying, This is the blood of the testament which God hath enjoined unto you.

²¹ Moreover he sprinkled with blood both the tabernacle, and all the vessels of the ministry.

²² And almost all things are by the law purged with blood; and without shedding of blood is no remission.

²³ It was therefore necessary that the patterns of things in the heavens should be purified with these; but the heavenly things themselves with better sacrifices than these. [we are destined for heaven as submitted followers of YHVH and he wants us without spot or blemish]

²⁴ For Christ is not entered into the holy places made with hands,[temple] which are the figures of the true;[suppose to look like] but into heaven [true presence of God] itself, now to appear in the presence of God for us:

²⁵ Nor yet that he should offer himself often, as the high priest entereth into the holy place every year with blood of others;

²⁶ For then must he often have suffered since the foundation of the world: but now once in the end of the world hath he appeared to put away sin by the sacrifice of himself.

This fulfill Isaiah 25:8 “He will swallow up death in victory; and the Lord God will wipe away tears from off all faces; and the rebuke of his people shall he take away from off all the earth: for the Lord hath spoken it.” and this is what Jesus is speaking about in Matthew 5:18 “For verily I say unto you, Till heaven and earth pass, one jot or one tittle shall in no wise pass from the law, till all be fulfilled.” The “new” blood covenant had to be established, replacing the requirement of innocent ANIMAL blood for the more perfect blood of the Messiah. The new Priesthood had to be established, removing the flawed human leaders with the perfect High Priest… God himself …in the form of Jesus. This makes Paul’s writing in Corinthians much clearer. “So when this corruptible shall have put on incorruption, and this mortal shall have put on immortality, then shall be brought to pass the saying that is written, Death is swallowed up in victory.”

The conclusion of Gods character is Husband. This is the “trinity” that the modern church refuses to acknowledge; High Priest, Sacrifice and Husband. Personally I would like to hear that said when baptizing people. “In the character of our High Priest, Perfect Sacrifice and Spiritual Husband, I baptize you…”, sounds odd after 40 years the other way…. but …. could it have more impact? A discussion for another time….maybe….

Here is a sequence of scripture that people should take note of closely. Luke 16:17-19.

¹⁷ But it is easier for heaven and earth to pass away than for one dot of the Law to become void.
Divorce and Remarriage
¹⁸ “Everyone who divorces his wife and marries another commits adultery, and he who marries a woman divorced from her husband commits adultery.
The Rich Man and Lazarus
¹⁹ “There was a rich man who was clothed in purple and fine linen and who feasted sumptuously every day.

KJV

The bold subtitles were placed there by the scribes, not I , and lend to something unique. We see the permanence of the Torah affirmed in these words of Jesus/Yeshua. (reminder here Yeshua is Hebrew and Jesus is the Greek name) Followed by the divorce clause taken directly from the the Torah. [Deuteronomy 24] Then He heads directly to a parable of the Kingdom of Heaven and the final judgement. This is the topic you have been reading about for the last (what feels like forever I am sure) few minutes. Here it is in a nutshell. If we are the bride of Christ is this a first marriage or a re-marriage?

Psalm 119:160 says “Thy (implying YHVH) word [1] is true from the beginning [2]: and every one of thy righteous judgments [3] endureth forever.[4]”

1. H1697 דָּבָר dabar (daw-ɓaw’) n-m.  (royally) a sovereign or royal edict, a matter or a word spoken by a king which carries the innate force of a royal command. [Torah]
2. H7218 רֹאשׁ ro’sh (roshe) n-m. the head (as most easily shaken), whether literal or figurative.
3. Combination of 2 words H6664 צֶדֶק tsedeq (tseh’-dek) n-m.  the right (natural, moral or legal). & H4941 מִשׁפָּט mishpat (mish-pawt’) n-m. (properly) a verdict, decree, law, instruction.
4. H5769 עוֹלָם `owlam (o-lawm’) n-m. (properly) the vanishing point. (practically) eternity.

Using the Biblical Hebrew terms the sentence would read…. “YHVH’s sovereign or royal edict, is truth for the head; and every one of YHVH’s righteous decrees, or instructions will stand for eternity.” 

This is one of those statements that has the “Casual Christian” completely and utterly confused! Why? because the modern church teaches the entire Torah has been done away with!??? When posed a question like … “So its ok to murder then?” …the stuttering, stammering, and juxta-positioning begins. Quoting a modern day pastor, “no silly, of course we do not murder, envy and the likes as Paul tells us that, what has been done away with is all those other laws..”. Still confused because I would be, and in real life I was, still very confused.

As we learned in the previous section ‘that which must be changed’ was the blood covenant, but here, we are talking about the marriage covenant or ‘law’. This one falls in the realm of Torah and thus described by the Psalm 119:160 verse, that being, an everlasting ‘law’. Jesus reminds them of that very fact in Matthew 5:32 “But I say to you that everyone who divorces his wife, except on the ground of sexual immorality, makes her commit adultery, and whoever marries a divorced woman commits adultery.” A sin punishable by death.

In that line of thinking we approach Mt. Saini and the people have in front of them a contract or covenant in the Ten Commandments. In the 40 days and 40 nights Moses spends on the mount the end result are the instructions, the 10 Commandments, the “right ruling and judgements” the ‘laws’ God uses to teach us the way* to live. When the people respond “we will do all that YHVH says” Exodus 19:8 the marriage covenant is formed.

*Note the early believers in Yeshua called themselves ‘The Way’.

After that God divorces the people because of what? Not praying? No. Not going to Sunday night service? No. Not visiting the weak or old? No. For looking to the other nations and their gods. Unfaithful in their marriage contract. Jeremiah 3:8 And I saw, when for all the causes whereby backsliding Israel committed adultery I had put her away, and given her a bill of divorce; yet her treacherous sister Judah feared not, but went and played the harlot also.

These were the people of God and now they are without a husband. Without a protector. [Isaiah 61.10] The bigger problem, according to Torah, they cannot remarry.

Deuteronomy 24:2-4 “And when she is departed out of his house, she may go and be another man’s wife. (freedom of choice) And if the latter husband hate her, and write her a bill of divorcement, and giveth it in her hand, and sendeth her out of his house; or if the latter husband die, which took her to be his wife; (This is Satan) [Revelation 12:10] Her former husband, which sent her away, (God, ie. Jesus) may not take her again to be his wife, after that she is defiled; for that is abomination before the Lord: and thou shalt not cause the land to sin, which the Lord thy God giveth thee for an inheritance. (This scripture pours through my brain every time I hear someone try to justify their participation in modern holidays/pagan rituals the Romans dressed up as religious.)

The ancient wedding ceremony YHWH gave to the Israelite people was to teach us about the wedding of the Messiah and consisted of 12 steps.

1. The selection of the bride. The bride was usually chosen by the father of the bridegroom. The father would send his trusted servant, known as the agent of the father, to search out the bride. An excellent example of this can be seen in Genesis 24. Abraham wishes to secure a bride for Isaac and sends his servant Eliezer to do this task. Genesis 24:10 ” And the servant took ten camels of the camels of his master, and departed; for all the goods of his master were in his hand: and he arose, and went to Mesopotamia, unto the city of Nahor.” This is a 500 mile trip by camel through the desert. On average a camel can travel 20-25 miles per day, making this trip from 3 to 4 weeks long!

John 17:12 While I was with them in the world, I kept them in thy name: those that thou gavest me I have kept,
and none of them is lost, but the son of perdition; that the scripture might be fulfilled.

2. A bride price was established. A price would have to be paid for the bride. The agreed upon price was called a mohar in Hebrew. Genesis 24:51-53 “Behold, Rebekah is before thee, take her, and go, and let her be thy master’s son’s wife, as the Lord hath spoken. And it came to pass, that, when Abraham’s servant heard their words, he worshipped the Lord, bowing himself to the earth. And the servant brought forth jewels of silver, and jewels of gold, and raiment, and gave them to Rebekah: he gave also to her brother and to her mother precious things.” Jesus, being our bridegroom, paid a very high price for His bride, the body of believers. The price He paid was His life.

Acts 20:28 Take heed therefore unto yourselves, and to all the flock, over the which
the Holy Ghost hath made you overseers, to feed the church of God,
which he hath purchased with his own blood.

3. The bride and groom are betrothed to each other, unlike our modern day tradition of engagement, breaking a betrothal was shameful and costly. Betrothal legally binds the bride and the groom together in a marriage contract, except they do not physically live together. The betrothal was so binding that the couple would need a religious divorce or (get) in order to annul the contract (Deut. 24:1-4). The period is also called – kiddushim – meaning “sanctification” or “set apart.” This word really defines the purpose of the betrothal period; it is a time in which the couple are to set side to prepare themselves to enter into the covenant of marriage.

Ephesians 5:26 “That He might sanctify and cleanse us with the washing of water by the word,”
(water is a repetition like waves)

4. A written document is drawn up, this betrothal contract is called, in Hebrew, “ketubah” means “that which is written.” The groom promised to work for her, to honor, support, and maintain her in truth, to provide food, clothing, and necessities, and to live together with her as husband and wife. The ketubah was the unalienable right of the bride. The ketubah must be executed and signed prior to the wedding ceremony. The Bible is the believer’s ketubah. All the promises that YHVH provided for the believers in the Messiah are legally ours.

2 Corinthians 1:20, “For all the promises of God in Him are yea, and in Him Amen….”

YHVH established in his law (Torah or instructions) all of the components of a covenant relationship and as we are bound by these, so too, He is bound by these. YHVH has already made the commitment to work for, to honor, to support, and to maintain his bride in truth, to provide food, clothing, and necessities, and to prepare a place to live together forever!

5. The bride must give her consent, the personal application: For those who desire the marriage covenant, one has to accept His invitation, to do so, is by faith through grace. This is the believers “I do”, confessing with your mouth and having internal faith in the companion. [Romans 10:9-10] John affirms the “I do” commitment in 1^st John 1:9 the apostle tells us “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” You can then become a bride to Christ.

Ephesians 2:8 “For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God”

6. Gifts were given to the bride from the groom’s family and a cup called G4221 ποτήριον poterion or “the cup of the covenant” was shared between the bride and the groom. The definition of poterion is “the contents thereof, a lot or fate”. In a modern wedding ceremony the toast between the bride and groom is similar in nature. This is an outward display of an internal desire to be linked together in life and for life. The rite of betrothal (erusin) is completed when the groom gives something of value to the bride and she accepts it. There are a couple of very interesting ‘cups’ for us in scripture. This cup is the valuable promise of the blood of salvation for all who believe. Remember in part one when I said the breaking of this marriage covenant was harsh, in this case the harsh includes hell.

Luke 22:20 And likewise the cup after they had eaten, saying,
“This cup that is poured out for you is the new covenant in my blood.

7. The bride had a “mikvah” or (water immersion), which is a ritual of cleansing. Mikvah is a ceremonial act of purification by the immersion in water. It indicates a separation from a former way to a new way. In the case of marriage, it indicates leaving an old life for a new life with your spouse. We are called to the exact same behavior, to leave the worldly actions we have been taught, and move on to the instructions of the groom Jesus Christ. We take the contract which is the Bible and we learn from it and separate ourselves from the world and its sinful nature.

Romans 12:2 “And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind,
that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.”

8. The bridegroom departs: At this point, the bridegroom leaves for his father’s house to prepare the bridal chamber for his bride. It was understood to be the man’s duty to go away to be with his father, build a house, and prepare for the eventual wedding. The bridal chamber will be an extension to the grooms housing. This will their home and yet it is a special portion of the house designed and intended for the bride. This must pass the inspection of the father (and most likely mom will have a thing or two to comment on as well) this is a reflection of the groom’s family and their hospitality of the new family member.

 “I go to prepare a place for you; if I go, I will return again unto you.” John 14:1-3.

9. Consecration of the Bride and the acceptance of the bridal chamber. The bride was to wait eagerly for the return of the bridegroom and in that time she would make the needed adjustments in her life for the future, that being, the future of living with her husband and his family. The bride may have been from an agricultural family and the groom could be a herdsman. There were tent makers and fishermen we know from the gospel accounts, so she may have had to learn to sew, make nets or care for livestock. The point is, we too, have to prepare ourselves for living with the Fathers family. What are the customs and requirements to live in harmony with YHWH?  Consecration is the action of making or declaring something sacred.

In the mind of the bride, the bridegroom could come at any time, even in the middle of the night or at midnight. Therefore, she had to be ready at all times. Jesus tells us the parable of the Ten Virgins in Matthew 25:1-13 to example this very issue.

10. The time of the return of the bridegroom

When the bridegroom came, he came with a shout (Matthew 25:6) and with the blowing of the trumpet and then the marriage will have a sacred procession.
For the living: 1^st Thess. 4:15-17 “For this we say unto you by the word of the Lord, that we which are alive and remain unto the coming of the Lord shall not prevent them which are asleep (already died). For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout (trumpet blast), with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first: Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up (gathered NOT raptured) together with them in the clouds (this word in Greek is “nephelee” or cloudiness which is derived from “nephos” a large, dense number of people.), to meet the Lord in the air (Greek word “aer” which means ‘as naturally surrounding’): and so shall we ever be with the Lord.

For the deceased: This coincides with 1^st Corinthians 15:52 “In a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump: for the trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed.” This LAST trumpet is the 7^th and final trumpet of the tribulation. For further witness to this truth, and to the dismay of many teaching falsely a pretribulation “rapture”, we see the words of Jesus in the gospel of John.

John 6:44 “No man can come to me, except the Father which hath sent me draw him (chosen):
and I will raise him up at the last day.”  

11. The bridegroom would return and it was generally in the middle of the night. He would claim the bride and they would go to the bridal chamber where the marriage would be consummated. They will stay in that wedding chamber for seven days and at the end of the seven days, the bride and groom will come out from the wedding chamber. When the bride and the groom initially went into the wedding chamber, the friend of the bridegroom stood outside the door. All the assembled guests of the wedding gathered outside waiting on the friend of the bridegroom, our current day ‘best man’ to announce the consummation of the marriage which was relayed to him by the groom.

John 3:29 “The one who has the bride is the bridegroom. The friend of the bridegroom,
who stands by and listens for him, rejoices greatly when he hears the bridegroom’s voice.
This then is my joy, and it is complete.”

We have to stop looking at these as “laws” with penalties and start looking at them as instructions from a loving father to protect his children. Who would send their 10 year old out into the neighborhood without instructing them to get their shoes on, or put on sunscreen, or use the mosquito repellant before heading out. How about looking both ways before crossing the street, or, wearing your helmet while biking?

12. The Wedding Supper.

This was an incredible feast started at the announcement of the consummated marriage. This too would last for several days, after which the bride and groom would go to their forever home.

Isaiah 2:2 tells us where that home is, “And it shall come to pass in the last days, that the mountain of the Lord’s house shall be established in the top of the mountains and shall be exalted above the hills and all nations shall flow unto it.”

Also we find in Hebrews 12:22 “But you are come unto the Mount Zion, and unto the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, and to an innumerable company of angels.”

Lastly as a third witness we see Revelation 21:9-10 “Then one of the seven angels … saying, “Come, I will show you the bride, the wife of the Lamb!” So he took me away in the Spirit to a huge, majestic mountain and showed me the holy city, Jerusalem, descending out of heaven from God.”

Are you entering into your relationship to YHVH willing to separate yourself from the world? I am not talking about working for your salvation, I am saying, are you willing to follow the marriage covenant of YHVH? Saying yes to Yeshua for salvation is the engagement, walking out the commitment and living the rest of your life, in His house, that is the marriage. THAT is the promise of the Kingdom of Heaven which Messiah describes for us 31 times in Matthew.

1 Corinthians 7:3-5 “The husband should give to his wife her conjugal rights, and likewise the wife to her husband. [Intimacy] For the wife does not have authority over her own body, but the husband does. {Torah} Likewise the husband does not have authority over his own body, but the wife does. (she crucified him)  Do not deprive one another, except perhaps by agreement for a limited time, (this current age) that you may devote yourselves to prayer; (sanctify/set apart) but then come together again,[resurrection] so that Satan may not tempt you because of your lack of self-control. [paganism]

Summation.. Yes I teach ‘the Law’!

As we have confirmed Jesus, James , John and Paul taught ‘the Law”….Peter also taught ‘the Law’….  Peter 2:21 “For to this you have been called, because Christ also suffered for you, leaving you an example, so that you might follow in his steps.

John 17:17 “Sanctify them in the truth; your word* is truth. *Torah

Ephesians 5:12 “Let no man deceive you with vain words: for because of these things cometh the wrath of God upon the children of disobedience.” ~ disobedience to what? …yeah that is Torah

Romans 3:31 “Do we then make void the law* through faith? God forbid: yea, we establish** the law*.” *Torah **teach

There is one lawgiver, who is able to save and to destroy:
who art thou that judges another?

JAMES 4:12