flame-carved commandments

Disclaimer: I apologize for the meandering nature of this post. But as G-d is so uncontainable, I found it difficult to condense and contain these ideas into a neat package but hope this wandering is thought-provoking...

I know the verse:
Deuteronomy 9:10 Then the LORD delivered to me two tablets of stone written with the finger of God, and on them were all the words which the LORD had spoken to you on the mountain from the midst of the fire in the day of the assembly. (NKJV)

and so I assumed that literally the 10 Commandments were "written by the finger of G-d." But Ad-nai is a consuming Fire...

Deuteronomy 5:24-25 And you said: ‘Surely the LORD our God has shown us His glory and His greatness, and we have heard His voice from the midst of the fire. We have seen this day that God speaks with man; yet he still lives. Now therefore, why should we die? For this great fire will consume us; if we hear the voice of the LORD our God anymore, then we shall die. (NKJV)

Hebrews 12:28-29 Therefore, since we are receiving a kingdom which cannot be shaken, let us have grace, by which we may serve God acceptably with reverence and godly fear. For our God is a consuming fire. (NKJV)

and the Hebrews literally saw that fire many times:

Exodus 20:18-19 And all the people are seeing the voices, and the flames, and the sound of the trumpet, and the mount smoking; and the people see, and move, and stand afar off, and say unto Moses, 'Speak thou with us, and we hear, and let not God speak with us, lest we die.'(JPS)

Did you ever notice that the people are "seeing voices"? Here's a more literal translation:

Exodus 20:18-19 And all the people saw⁶ the thunderings, and the lightnings, and the noise of the trumpet, and the mountain smoking: and when the people saw⁴ [it], they removed,⁴ and stood⁴ afar off. (KJV with links to Hebrew words and meaning)

Thunderings = voices; lightning= flames. If we read this account as merely words talking about some historic event or even worse, if we question that this event actually happened, we are missing the awesomeness of G-d. If the Bible is Truth, the details of this event Truly happened, as impossible as they may seem. But back to fire...this verse amazed me:

Psalms 29:7 The voice of the LORD divides the flames of fire. (NKJV)

or a more closer translation...

Psalm 29:7 The voice of HaShem heweth out flames of fire. (JPS)

The word hew in Hebrew is chatsab חֹצֵב which means to cut, carve, hew...divide, which the KJV uses. Jewish tradition teaches that, one by one, the commandments were written by flame as the people said "yes we will obey." So could it be that Ad-nai wrote the Commandments with flames of fire, carving His Word into stone, preparing to lovingly sear His Word in our hearts (Jer 31:33),and He does so as we receive what He gives us? Makes G-d-sense to me!

Jeremiah 31:33 "'This is the covenant I will make with the house of Israel after that time,' declares the LORD. 'I will put my law in their minds and write it on their hearts. I will be their God, and they will be my people.'"

I wonder if the word division in Hebrews 4:12, had it been written in Hebrew, would be chatsab?

Hebrews 4:12 For the word of God is living and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the division of soul and spirit, and of joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart. (NKJV)

This Hebrew translation of the Brit Chadashah uses chatsab in Hebrews 4:12.

By the way, the 10 Commandments are just a shortened version of the Torah and the Torah is the Word and the Word is Yeshua, Jesus, the Messiah. So to really encapsulate the ideas in this post: Yeshua is a consuming fire that dwells in our hearts causing us to be like Him to show His Glory.

Empty Me

This is the prayer of my heart and it's a beautiful song. I don't recall Chris Sligh on American Idol Season 6 but I thought that was pretty cool. He has a great voice. Baruch Hashem!

Guitar Tabs for Empty Me--only one worth trying that I could find.

Chris' site, lyrics

Chodesh Tov!

G-d's appointed times: lost in translation

Because the meanings within the Hebrew language are multi-layered, familiarity with even a little Hebrew can deepen our understanding of G-d’s Word. Since we’ve just walked through a number of Ad-nai’s festivals, here’s a perfect example of G-d’s love, beauty and Truth inherent in the language that gets lost in English translation: “Then God said, “Let there be lights in the firmament of the heavens to divide the day from the night; and let them be for signs and seasons, and for days and years’” (Genesis 1:14 NKJV).
The Hebrew word for seasons is Moadim מוֹעֲדִים which means appointed or set times, as in “let us celebrate the moadim,” “let us celebrate the appointed times.” What’s the big deal? “Seasons” are equated with 12 months broken into 4 parts (summer, winter, spring, and fall), not specifically “set times,” which Ad-nai details in Leviticus 23 and all throughout Scripture.

In the beginning, G-d said…everything we need to know, but unfortunately so much Truth has been forgotten, hidden, or twisted by the world. But Ad-nai is revealing what has been hidden for so long that we would be prepared for this: “The hour is coming, and now is, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth; for the Father is seeking such to worship Him. God is Spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth” (John 4:23-24, NJKV).

Like the Torah, the Living Word, the Hebrew language is a living language, the only truly living language. And though Hebrew lay dormant for centuries when it was only spoken by a small number of religious Jews, it has re-emerged as a vibrant, breathing, powerful language that Ad-nai is drawing out from within His people to glorify Himself. Learning Hebrew is not just about words and letters. Like everything else Ad-nai has created, it’s really about His Amazing love and the little gifts He graces us with, some wrapped in jots & tittles (Matthew 5:18), gifts of Himself.

Here's a side by side Hebrew/Engish Bible site.

the Hebrew alephbet

The Hebrew Alephbet consists of 22 letters, all consonants. Most of these letters sound like the letter name. For example, the letter Mem מ is pronounced like an M, as in Moadim, which means appointed times. Of these 22 consonants, there are 2 silent letters that can take on different sounds, mainly for vowels. Vowel markers, small symbols near a letter, are also added for clarity in some Hebrew writing. Hebrew is read from right to left, which takes a little time to get used to. But when thinking about learning Hebrew, realize just like Torah, we are not in a race to acquire head knowledge; we are in a process of spiritual growth, allowing Ad-nai to birth within us what He has for each of us, each part of the body.

The name AlephBet comes from the first two letters of Hebrew: Aleph and Beit, similar to the English AlphaBet based on the first two Latin letters, Alpha and Beta. But that is one of the very few similarities to English because Hebrew has so many more levels of meaning compared to the English language. To some degree we can describe Hebrew much like we describe Ad-nai: simple yet amazingly and beautifully complex. For example, our letter B has no meaning aside from the fact that it sounds like “bee.” In Hebrew every letter has its own meaning(s), which then combines with other letters to make up the meaning of a word or phrase. Confusing? Here’s an example: El is a simple name for G-d. In Hebrew it is spelled אל - the letters Aleph Lamed. Ancient Hebrew letters were written as pictures based on the meaning of the letter. Aleph looks like the head of a bull - representing strength, and is often said to represent G-d. Lamed looks like a staff . And so when you say the “little” word El, realize you are saying something very “big” - The L-rd is my Shepherd!

Hebrew4Christians is a great site to begin to learn Hebrew.

Hebrew: the language within

I began to learn Hebrew around October 2007 and have been shocked at how much I've gotten out of the time I've spent. If Hebrew, (hearing it, speaking it or just seeing it in print) somehow stirs your spirit, give it a try. I truly believe that as we expectantly enter into this holy language, it’s not so much that we are “putting in” something new, but that which our spirit already knows is “rising up,” reviving that heavenly language from dormancy. Just as the Torah is being written on our hearts, (has already been written on our hearts in G-d’s time), this ancient language has been written on our hearts as well. So as the Torah, the written Word, becomes Flesh...the Hebrew letters of that Word can become Flesh within us and begin to enter our spiritual understanding.

Here's one example of the benefit of beginning to understand Hebrew: adam (אדָם - read from right to left) means man or mankind. It is spelled א (Ah) represents G-d and דָם (dam) means blood. So adam means G-d's blood...there's so much more to this but that's just a little taste of the treasures you will find if you begin to study this Holy language.

Sleeping unawares

I woke up at 5 am--which would be a fine time to get up if I hadn't been so tired lately--and instead of telling myself to fall back to sleep for an hour, I allowed my mind to wander...big mistake since I just laid there wandering through situations and plans...And that got me thinking that the only time we turn our thinking completely off is when we are asleep. In sleep, we are finally as G-d wants us to be: resting, at peace, trusting that He will awaken us and allow us to live another day. During sleep we are completely unaware of ourselves--just as He desires us to be.

So if we can rest and be unware of ourselves while sleeping, in our waking hours we should strive for that same unwareness of self: not caring what people think, but only caring about what He thinks; not worrying about what we need to do, but trusting in Him to provide; not planning every move we will make, but listening to Him to direct our every step.

The more unaware of the self that we become, the more aware we will be of the awesomeness of Ad-nai and maybe we will be in a position to hear and obey what He is saying.

To be like G-d

When the serpent (which I doubt was a talking snake, which probably was an angelic being of some sort) said to Eve in Genesis 3:4-5: “You will not surely die. For G-d knows that in the day you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like G-d, knowing good and evil” (NKJV).

What convinced Eve to eat? The thought that she would be "like G-d." Somehow the serpent made the prospect to be "like G-d" more appealing to her than choosing to obey G-d's only command to not eat of that tree. Basically He said: I am giving you EVERYTHING: all the animals are under your control; the Garden is peaceful; I will walk with you and talk with you. But obey this ONE thing: do not eat the fruit of this one tree. He never told them not to touch it, as Eve tells the serpent; He simply says don't eat it...

Gen 1: 26-28 - Then G-d said, “Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness; let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, and over the cattle, over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.” So G-d created man in His own image; in the image of G-d He created him; male and female He created them. Then G-d blessed them, and G-d said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply; fill the earth and subdue it; have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, and over every living thing that moves on the earth” (NKJV). Read Genesis 1-3

But in Eve's pursuit, and then Adam's, to be like G-d ~ they ate. The irony is they were already like G-d; He created them in His image...but He created them to be close to Him, to choose Him instead of the only thing He forbade.

That idea is hummmmmmmmmmmming in my head: that we choose to want to be "like G-d" by trying to be in control, run our own lives, run other people's lives, fix people, fix situations, insanely trying to make things fit when they don't...all to our own liking, thinking we know better than G-d because we are "like Him" after all--not that we consciously think "I am like G-d so there"--but it's built-in to our thinking. But instead His desire is that we realize He is in control, He knows exactly what needs to be done and we don't always know best because our minds are clouded with what we "think" is best...and all He ever wants is for us to choose to be close to Him...

All Hail King Obama

If you doubt that Obama is being deified how do you explain the celebrations about his "victory" around the world?

Iran: Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad on Thursday congratulated Barack Obama on his election win — the first time an Iranian leader has offered such wishes to a U.S. president-elect since the 1979 Islamic Revolution...(full AP article)

Belgium: "An Obama win would mean the rebirth of the American dream," Belgian senate president Armand De Decker.

France: Le Monde proclaims "Obama’s victory ushers in a new American Dream..."

Kenya: President Kibaki has announced a public holiday tomorrow for Kenyans to celebrate the victory of Barack Obama as the new President elect of the United States of America.

Germany: "Good morning, Mr President! Make the world better," requests Germany’s Bild-Zeitung tabloid.

Syria: Ath Thawra, the official daily, opines: "If Obama wins, it would be a historic event and the signal for an extraordinary development for United States politics and society."

The photo to the right is from an excellent slide show: World reaction to Obama win

Barack Obama, come to save the world, Telegraph, UK

Kenya to take day off to celebrate Obama victory, The Standard

Europeans Cheer Obama Victory, Wall Street Journal

World reaction to Obama victory: Elation, Los Angeles Times

World press reaction to Barack Obama's victory, TimesOnline, UK

Many around the world cheer Obama victory, Seattle Times
The ending of this article is very interesting...
"Saudi journalist Samir Saadi said that Obama's election means "'the U.S. has won the war on terror.'"

"'Given Obama's name, his background, the doubts about his religion, Americans still voted for him and this proved that America is a democracy,'" he said. "'People here are starting to believe in the U.S. again.'"

I have no idea why Obama's win = the US has won the war on terror...but what struck me more was the assertion that over the years people have lost faith in the US and now they are "starting to believe in the US again"...do you see anything strange about that? A renewed Faith in the US...

Now here's a comment about Obama's victory from Israel about their reality with a potential nuclear Iran: "Israeli Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni attacked U.S. president-elect Barack Obama on Thursday for declaring a willingness to talk with Iran about its nuclear program..." (full article)

I voted

I voted yesterday. For president I wrote in "Yeshua, the only King." A wasted vote? No. I live in RI and this state always chooses a democrat, so the winner here was certain in my mind. But even if that weren't the case, I would have voted the same way. The short answer: G-d is in control.

The longer answer: G-d wants to be our only King--the King of our hearts. When we give such power to anything but Him, the world will be shaken...as it is right now. G-d allowed Israel to have a king because they said "we need a king; we must have a king!" They always had one, the Only One, but they wanted a man, so G-d gave them one...Here's part of that story:

2 Samuel 8: "Now it came to pass when Samuel was old that he made his sons judges over Israel. The name of his firstborn was Joel, and the name of his second, Abijah; they were judges in Beersheba. But his sons did not walk in his ways; they turned aside after dishonest gain, took bribes, and perverted justice. Then all the elders of Israel gathered together and came to Samuel at Ramah, and said to him, “Look, you are old, and your sons do not walk in your ways. Now make us a king to judge us like all the nations.” But the thing displeased Samuel when they said, “Give us a king to judge us.” So Samuel prayed to the LORD. And the LORD said to Samuel, “Heed the voice of the people in all that they say to you; for they have not rejected you, but they have rejected Me, that I should not reign over them. According to all the works which they have done since the day that I brought them up out of Egypt, even to this day—with which they have forsaken Me and served other gods—so they are doing to you also. Now therefore, heed their voice. However, you shall solemnly forewarn them, and show them the behavior of the king who will reign over them.”

So Samuel told all the words of the LORD to the people who asked him for a king. And he said, “This will be the behavior of the king who will reign over you: He will take your sons and appoint them for his own chariots and to be his horsemen, and some will run before his chariots. He will appoint captains over his thousands and captains over his fifties, will set some to plow his ground and reap his harvest, and some to make his weapons of war and equipment for his chariots. He will take your daughters to be perfumers, cooks, and bakers. And he will take the best of your fields, your vineyards, and your olive groves, and give them to his servants. He will take a tenth of your grain and your vintage, and give it to his officers and servants. And he will take your male servants, your female servants, your finest young men, and your donkeys, and put them to his work. He will take a tenth of your sheep. And you will be his servants. And you will cry out in that day because of your king whom you have chosen for yourselves, and the LORD will not hear you in that day.” Nevertheless the people refused to obey the voice of Samuel; and they said, “No, but we will have a king over us, that we also may be like all the nations, and that our king may judge us and go out before us and fight our battles.” And Samuel heard all the words of the people, and he repeated them in the hearing of the LORD. So the LORD said to Samuel, “Heed their voice, and make them a king.” And Samuel said to the men of Israel, “Every man go to his city.” (NKJV)

The world is falling apart, which is evident most obviously by the failing economy. The failure we are reaping is because we relied on systems of the world instead of G-d for so many centuries. Whether you see it or not, all things are now stacking up seemingly against G-d and against Israel...and that's just where He is allowing the world system to get to: at the end of its frazzled rope but still thinking it can control its future. The United States has been such a huge player on the world stage with way too much control for way too long and the end is near...sound crazy? Remember: Truth is stranger than fiction.

There was no doubt in my mind that Obama would win this election. The person who will run this country is the exact person that G-d needs to fulfill His perfect plan, a plan that is very different from what the majority in this country or in the world expects and wants to happen next. And now many are de-ifying this president-elect, like he is THE savior on a white horse who is going to make everything better.

Fortunately there is ONE Savior who will return on a white horse and He truly will save the world and all will worship Him as their King: Revelation 13:8 "All who dwell on the earth will worship him, whose names have not been written in the Book of Life of the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world." (NKJV)

Zechariah 14:16 "And it shall come to pass that everyone who is left of all the nations which came against Jerusalem shall go up from year to year to worship the King, the LORD of hosts, and to keep the Feast of Tabernacles." (NKJV)

Baruch Hashem!