Prepare

We have been in the Book of Leviticus, which is Latin and means "of the Levites (priests). In Hebrew, this third book of the Bible is called Va-yikra, or "And He called". We read last week of the glory and the privilege of the priesthood, and its ministry before God and the people. The priests made the atonement for the sins of the people, and the people were forgiven. The priests brought reconciliation between God and the people, who had been separated from each other by sin. This is a prophetic pattern of the ministry of Christ on our behalf. Last week we read that we also have been given, as priests of God, the ministry of reconciliation, reconciling all things back to God through the atonement and forgiveness of Jesus Christ. What a privilege and trusted responsibility we have been given by God! This week's Sabbath reading is titled Tzav, meaning "Command", and we will see the importance of the command of God regarding this priestly service. This week's reading portion includes Leviticus chapters 6 through 8. This Sabbath is also Shabbat Ha-Gadol, the Great Sabbath before Passover. What do these two topics, the priesthood and the Passover, have in common that they should be joined together in this week's reading? One answer is preparation. On the day when the Passover lamb was to be killed, Jesus commanded His disciples to prepare (hetomazo/hetomas/heteos - make ready, make necessary preparations, to level the road before the king's arrival, to prepare the minds of men to give Messiah a fit reception/prepare and make ready to receive one coming/fitness) for the Passover that they would share together (Lk. 22:7-13). Even the first Passover, during the slavery of the Israelites in Egypt, required a specific preparation (see Ex. 12). During the Passover meal observed by Jesus and His disciples referred to above, Jesus explained to the twelve the meaning of the Passover elements, the bread and the wine (see also Gen. 14:18-20), and how they applied to His coming sacrifice, and the new covenant that was being given to them because of this. He also revealed the presence at the Passover table of His betrayer, meaning Judas (Lk. 22:14-22). It is very revealing of the hearts of man that immediately after these very somber and tremendous revelations, the disciples began to argue regarding which one among them should be considered the greatest (Lk. 22:24). Does man have no shame, no humility, no reverence? The answer is no, they don't. Perhaps we consider ourselves to be exceptions to this sad condition? The chapters this week from Leviticus describe the solemn consecration and service of the priests, and the connection of these things to Christ. The priests put on priestly aleph-tav garments (Lev. 8:10), and were consecrated with the aleph-tav anointing oil (v. 12). The priests laid their aleph-tav hands (v. 14, 22) upon each offering brought to the aleph-tav tabernacle (v. 10): "Everyone who touches its flesh (of the offering) must/shall be holy..." (Lev. 6:27). These offerings were not to be prepared and handled lightly. Even the aleph-tav ashes (hadesen/dasen - fat ashes/to anoint, to smear) of the aleph-tav burnt offering (haola/ala - to go up, ascent, go up in smoke/raise, recover, restore, to go up, light, raised, arose, to lift oneself) were to be treated with reverence by the priests (Lev. 6:8-11). From the meaning of the Hebrew words used, we can see the promise of resurrection in the smoke of the burnt offering. How dangerous to treat them profanely, or with unclean hands and hearts! There are other interesting connections of the priests, the offerings, and the tabernacle itself to Christ. Aaron the high priest is written in Hebrew as aleph-tav Aaron. His sons were his aleph-tav sons. As mentioned in previous posts, aleph, tav are the first and last letters of the Hebrew alphabet, and Jesus used them to describe Himself in the Book of Revelation, as "the Alpha and the Omega (translated from Greek), the First and the Last, the Beginning and the End". So many details surrounding the priests, their clothes, the anointing oil of their consecration, the tabernacle, and the offerings, were connected to the aleph-tav of Christ in this week's Sabbath portion. All of these things (aleph-tav dabar- *words matter, speech, say, talk, arranging in order, to lead flocks to pasture, to rule, subdue, to follow) were done at the command (Tzav) of the LORD (Lev. 8:36). The anointing (masiah/masah - anointed, specifically the Messiah/anoint, smear, spread a liquid, consecrate) of the priest (Lev. 4:3) is directly connected to the Messiah. We can see that the consecration, the atonement, forgiveness and reconciliation ministry of the priests in the tabernacle, which was a prophetic picture of Christ's ministry for the world, required a solemn pattern to be followed, according to the exact commands of the LORD. Other reading portions from this week's Sabbath reveal what happened when the priests and the people did not follow this aleph-tav pattern of the Messiah. The prophet Jeremiah was also from the line of the priesthood (see Jer. 1:1). Jeremiah is commanded by the LORD to stand in the gate of the LORD's house, and expose the iniquities of God's people, calling upon them to mend their ways. The word of the LORD to His people was: "Behold, you trust in lying words that cannot profit. Will you steal, murder, commit adultery, swear falsely, burn incense to Ba'al (a false god), and walk after other gods whom you do not know, and then come and stand before Me in this house which is called by My name, and say, 'We are delivered to do all these abominations'? Has this house, which is called by My name, become a den of thieves in your eyes? Behold, I, even I, have seen it, says the LORD." (Jer. 7:1-10, excerpt). I believe that this Word of the LORD is being addressed to the priests, because the activities being described, the burning of incense and standing before the LORD in His house, would involve the priests. The LORD said that His command to the forefathers when they first left Egypt wasn't concerning the burnt offerings and sacrifices, "But this (written in Hebrew as aleph-tav dabar - see above *meaning) is what I commanded them, saying, 'Obey My voice, and I will be Your God, and you shall be My people. And walk in all the ways that I have commanded you, that it may be well with you.' Yet they did not obey or incline their ear, but followed the counsels and dictates (serirut/serar - imagination, lust, stubbornness, twisted, hardness of heart/to be an enemy,to be a hostile opponent) of their evil hearts and went backward and not forward." (Jer. 7:22-24). If the priests and people of God continued to ignore this (aleph-tav dabar), God's voice, the LORD warned: "...they shall be like refuse on the face of the earth. Then death shall be chosen rather than life by all the residue of those who remain of this evil family..." (Jer. 8:2-3). More important than the sacrifices themselves, is the obedience to the voice of God. The sacrifice is only effective if it is the result of obedience to the voice of Him who commands us. Another portion from this week's Shabbat Ha-Gadol reading is: "So Samuel (the priest, prophet, judge of Israel) said: 'Has the LORD as great delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices as in obeying the voice of the LORD? Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, and to heed than the fat of rams. For rebellion is as the sin of witchcraft, and stubbornness as iniquity and idolatry. Because you (referring to King Saul) have rejected the word of the LORD, He also has rejected you from being king." (1 Sam. 15:22-23). Saul was very proud of the numerous sacrifices that he had offered to the LORD on this occasion, but he had not done it in accord with what the LORD had told him to do. Jesus' sacrifice was the fruit of His obedience to His Father, and in turn, that effective sacrifice produced much fruit (Phil. 2:5-11). His obedience brought glory to God His Father. Our own obedience results in the effective defeat of evil spiritual powers in the heavenly realms (2 Cor. 10:3-6). As we see witchcraft, the occult, iniquity and idolatry begin to pervade this era, is it because God's people have refused to obey His voice? Passover was the deliverance from death. Jesus repeatedly declared that He, the Aleph-Tav, was the living bread of eternal life. (Jn. 6:32-51). When we leave out The Aleph-Tav, the Messiah Son of God, from any of these aleph-tav things, we walk in death rather than life. Finally the prophet Jeremiah mourns: "For the hurt of the daughter of my people I am hurt. I am mourning; Astonishment has taken hold of me. Is there no balm in Gilead, is no physician there? Why then is there no recovery for the health of the daughter of my people?" (Jer. 8:21-22). This is the heart of a true priest. Where were the cries of the other priests in the land? Jeremiah called on the Balm of Gilead (rare perfumed ointment produced in the Gilead region, and used medicinally), and the Physician who can heal his people. Both of these terms were associated with the Messiah, the Anointed One, who is Christ. Jeremiah was calling for the Aleph-Tav associated with the priestly service of atonement, forgiveness and the reconciliation between man and God. Another of this week's reading portions that is assigned to this Shabbat Ha-Gadol, the Great Sabbath before Passover, is from the prophet Malachi, whom tradition says was a Levite, the tribe of priests. Again, this portion deals with the priesthood and the people of God. It also speaks about a necessary preparation: "Behold, I send My messenger, and he will prepare the way before Me. And the LORD, whom you seek, will suddenly come to His temple, even the Messenger of the covenant, in whom you delight. Behold, He is coming,' says the LORD of hosts. But who can endure the (aleph-tav) day of His coming? And who can stand when He appears? For He is like a refiner's fire and like launderer's soap. He will sit as a refiner and a purifier of silver; He will purify the (aleph-tav) sons of Levi, and purge them as gold and silver, that they may offer to the LORD an offering in righteousness.' (Mal. 3:1-3). Part of the preparation for the arrival of the LORD is the purification of His aleph-tav priests. Only then will the offerings be restored to offerings of righteousness, as the LORD had intended them. As a result of this preparation and purging of the priests before the aleph-tav day of the LORD and His coming, much of the same wickedness that Jeremiah and Samuel noted, such as sorcerers, adulterers, perjurers, exploiters, and oppressors, will be judged (v. 4-5). We also are called to be the priests of God in Christ (1 Pet. 2:9-10, Rev. 1:5-6, 5:8-10). However, in this office, God is looking for aleph-tav priests, who are, in these aleph-tav dabar things, obedient to the voice of God. We saw above that Jesus' disciples did not understand what it meant when Jesus said: "Go and prepare the Passover for us, that we may eat." There is a preparation for Passover and its expression in Communion (see 1 Cor. 11:27-32). There is a preparation of consecration for the priesthood so that the hands that touch the offerings are holy, and there is a preparation of purifying, purging, cleansing and refining for the priests of the aleph-tav day of the LORD's coming. If you would like to know more about this important command (Tzav) to "prepare", you can join me in my prayer: "Heavenly Father of all, Your Son, Jesus, has commanded us to go and prepare a place for Your Passover, the Sacrificed Lamb given for life. You have commanded Your aleph-tav priests to lay their aleph-tav hands upon this precious Offering that You have sent for our sins. Help me by Your Holy Spirit to obey Your voice, because our obedience is even more precious to You than an empty sacrifice offered without the presence of Your Aleph-Tav Son, Jesus. If I have been slow to obey Your voice, forgive me Lord, and prepare me to offer righteous offerings of obedience to You. I ask these things in Jesus' name. AMEN."

LORD

This week's sabbath reading is titled Va-eira, meaning "and He appeared". Please bear with me, and I think that we will see that the readings for this week are very important, and reveal the power of the Name of the LORD behind the exodus, meaning "the way or the road out of". In this case, that exodus will involve the miraculous deliverance of the Israelites from their hard bondage in Egypt, which was under the rulership of the most powerful king on earth at the time, Pharaoh. To me, the truth revealed here, however, applies as a precedent to all bondages and deliverances by God. In last week's readings, God told Moses His Name, which Moses was to tell to the Israelites. That name was "I AM THAT I AM", or, as written in Hebrew, yod, hey, vaw, hey- YHWH using English equivalents. Each of these Hebrew letters have an individual pictographic meaning, and in this case, the four letters mean "Behold the hand, behold the nail". This name is pronounced as Yahway or JEHOVAH, and in English is translated in our Bibles as "LORD". This week's readings will begin with a greater revealing of that Name: "Then the LORD said to Moses, 'Now you shall see what I will do to Pharaoh. For with a strong (hazak - strong, impudent, stiff hearted, hard, obstinate) hand he will let them (the Israelites) go, and with a strong (hazak again) hand he will drive them out of his land'. And the LORD spoke to Moses and said to him: 'I am the LORD. I appeared to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob, as God Almighty (El Shaddai/saday), but by My name LORD I was not known (yada - known, revealed, understood, declared, taught, experienced, confessed) to them...And I have also heard the groaning of the children of Israel whom the Egyptians keep in bondage, and I have remembered My covenant. Therefore say to the children of Israel: 'I am the LORD; I will bring you out from under the burdens of the Egyptians, I will rescue you from their bondage, and I will redeem you with an outstretched arm and with great judgments. I will take you as My people, and I will be Your God. Then you shall know that I am the LORD your God who brings you out from under the burdens of the Egyptians. And I will bring you into the land which I swore to give to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob; and I will give it to you as a heritage: I am the LORD." (Ex. 6:1-8). As we can see, it was very important for Moses and the Israelites to understand the new revelation of this Name, "LORD". The "strong hand" of obstinance of Pharaoh will be made to serve the power of "the hand, the nail" of the LORD. The Name LORD would not only become "the way or road out of" (exodus) Egypt, but also the way or road to the LORD as their God and as His people, and the way or road into the land of inheritance promised by covenant to the forefathers of the Israelites. There is something important to note about the use of the word "swore" in the above verses. In the Hebrew writing, the phrase that is translated into the English word "swore" is: "a lifted up (nasa - lift up, raise up, endure, forgive, pardon, suffer to, swear) aleph-tav hand". Aleph-tav refers to the first and the last Hebrew letters of their alphabet, and by these same two letters, Jesus identified Himself in Revelation, translated from the Greek language, as "Alpha and Omega, the Beginning and the End, the First and the Last". Here, the LORD swore by His "lifted up aleph-tav hand". The LORD had also said to Pharaoh regarding the Israelites, "Let My (aleph-tav) son go...My son, My firstborn" (Ex. 4:23). We can also note that the "groaning" referred to above that the LORD heard from among His people, had moved Him to answer because it caused Him to remember His covenant with the fathers (Ex. 6:5, see also Ex. 2:24). The "groaning" as written was aleph-tav groaning , and the "covenant" as written in the Hebrew of the Torah was an aleph-tav covenant. Since the aleph-tav is physically connected to the words, could the LORD have been hearing the groaning of His prophesied, but yet-unborn Son, the Messiah, from within the Israelites? I know this is very detailed, but the aleph-tav is present in the written Hebrew, and it was specifically mentioned four times by Jesus as His identity (Rev. 1:8, 1:11, 21:6, 22:13). It must be something important for us to know, and it is a rich treasure waiting for our consideration. Imagine then how this is an example of the power of the groaning of intercession of the Son (and of the Holy Spirit: Rom. 8:26) before the Father (see Rom. 8:33-38), and what this means to our lives as, in His priestly intercession, Jesus the Son, is able to save us to the uttermost (see Heb. 7:24-27)! We saw above that this newly revealed Name, LORD, is composed of the Hebrew letters yod, hey, vaw, hey that identify the Messiah, Jesus Christ, whose hand was nailed to the cross, and in another portion from this week's sabbath reading, this connection of identity appears again as the LORD told His prophet: "Behold! My Servant whom I uphold, My Elect One in whom My soul delights! I have put My Spirit upon Him (see Lk. 3:21-22); He will bring forth judgment to the Gentiles (goyim - nations, heathen, Gentiles, people)...I, the LORD, have called You in righteousness...I will keep You and give You as a covenant to the people, as a light to the Gentiles, to open blind eyes, to bring out prisoners from the prison, those who sit in darkness from the prison house. I am the LORD, that is My name...Behold, the former things have come to pass, and new things I declare; before they spring forth I tell you of them...I will bring the blind by a way they did not know; I will lead them in paths they have not known. I will make darkness light before them, and crooked places straight. These things I will do for them, and not forsake them." (Isa. 42:1-9, 16). To me, the verses above from Isaiah, as well as the earlier verses, directly connect the identity of the Messiah that we know, Jesus, to this revealed Name of God: the LORD. Jesus also confirmed this as He told us: "I have come in My Father's name...For if you believed Moses, you would believe Me; for he wrote about Me." (Jn. 5:36-37, 43, 46). So we are seeing more in this week's sabbath readings about the importance that the Name of God, LORD (YHWH), and what it has to do with the exodus, "the way or road out of" slavery for His people. Let's look at some more clues to the principle of exodus. Pharaoh, like all mighty kings, believed that the reason he was born, and his purpose in life, was to rule. However, this was not his only purpose to God as we read in another part of this sabbath's reading. The LORD said to Pharaoh: "...for at this time, I will send all My plagues to your very heart...that you may know that there is none like Me in all the earth. Now if I had stretched out My hand and struck you and your people with pestilence, then you would have been cut off from the earth. But indeed for this purpose I have raised you up, that I may show My power in you, and that My name may be declared in all the earth." (Ex. 9:14-16). Pharaoh, and all of his people, could have been dealt with very quickly by death, but the LORD raised Pharaoh up for a different reason - so that he and God's people, and the whole world, would know that the LORD caused the release of the Israelites by forcing this stubborn, powerful king to bend his will to God's will. In fact, Pharaoh is just a small cog in a very large wheel, as we will see. The LORD was really dealing with evil spiritual powers, or monsters, that rule over geographical areas. We can see this very thing regarding Egypt in another portion from this week's sabbath reading in which the LORD pronounces His judgments to His prophet: "Son of man, set your face against Pharaoh king of Egypt and prophesy against him and all of Egypt...'Behold, I am against you, O Pharaoh king of Egypt, O great monster (gadol/tannin/tan - great, mighty/dragon, serpent, land, sea or river monster/monster as supernaturally formed) who lies in the midst of his rivers, who has said, 'My River (referring to the Nile) is my own; I have made it for myself.' But I will put hooks in your jaws...I will bring you up out of the midst of your rivers...I will leave you in the wilderness...Then all the inhabitants of Egypt shall know that I am the LORD...therefore I am against you and your rivers..." (Ezek. 29:2-6, 10). We learned last week that the Nile River played a large role in the ancient pagan religion of Egypt. Here in these verses, the LORD identified and prophetically judged the supernatural monster that inhabited that river, and all of the rivers that were in Egypt. He judged it as "the LORD", or YHWH (see also Ezek 28:22). Again, we see that the LORD didn't wish to destroy Egypt or its people, but to reduce its power and influence so that His people, Israel, would not keep turning to Egypt, to their harm, for help, instead of turning to the LORD (Ezek. 29:6-7, 12-16). Going to Egypt for help was not "the way or road out of", or (exodus), from trouble for God's people, yet His people preferred Egypt. Even after they were miraculously released from their slavery by the plagues that God had poured out upon Egypt, God's people wanted to return to Egypt several times! (see Ex. 16:2-3, Num. 11:4-5, Num. 14:3-4). There is only One who makes the way out, and that is the LORD, YHWH. He is the Waymaker (Isa. 43:16-19). These evil spiritual kingdoms and monsters that inhabit geographical locations over nations are defeated, judged, and will have their sentences executed upon them. We shouldn't look to the monsters for help - they have no desire to help God's people, but to destroy them. We saw earlier in Isaiah that it is the LORD who was sending His righteous Servant to bring judgment, saying of His Servant: "...He will bring forth judgment (mispat/sapat - judgment, ordinance, lawful, order, sentence of judgment/judge, condemn, defend, avenge, deliver) for truth. He will not fail nor be discouraged (rasas - crushed, grievously oppressed, broken in pieces, treated violently), till He has established judgment in the earth; and the coastlands shall wait for His law." (Isa. 42:3-4). This righteous Servant connected with justice, judgment, and truth, and identified directly with the LORD in these verses from Isaiah, is revealed to us in scripture to be Jesus, as He said: "For the Father judges no one, but has committed all judgment to the Son....Most assuredly, I say to you, he who hears My word and believes in Him who sent Me has everlasting life, and shall not come into judgment, but has passed from death into life." (Jn. 5:22-24). Judgment has been given by the LORD into the hands of His Son, and an exodus has been created from death into life. Moses is the revered and honored deliverer of God's people in the account of the Exodus known world-wide, as he should be, but it is the name of the undefeatable LORD, YHWH, Who has sworn, and still swears, by His lifted up aleph-tav hand to appear and deliver His people. It is the name "LORD" that, as He told Pharaoh, would be declared in all the earth. If you would like to learn more about our awesome Deliverer and the Way of our exodus, you can join me in my prayer: "LORD of all, You have sent Your Son, Your Firstborn, Jesus, in Your own Name, to make the way for us. You have given Him all authority to judge, and those who believe in You by the Words of Your Son, have been passed from death to life. You have sworn by Your lifted up (aleph-tav) hand to bring Israel, and all others who believe in You through Your Son, into the inheritance You have promised, including the resurrection and eternal life of salvation. Fill me with Your Holy Spirit so that we can grow in the knowledge of the power, majesty and exodus found in Your Name, LORD. I ask and receive this with thanks in Jesus' Name. AMEN."

Preserved

This week's sabbath reading is titled Noach, or the name "Noah" to us. Noach in English means "rest, resting place, quiet". If we look at the individual Hebrew letters of the word and name Noach, which are nun and cheth, we will see an additional meaning : "the Son, the Heir to the throne, separates and protects in an inner chamber". These letters can also mean at the same time : "the faithful seed or offspring that are separated from, divided from, and protected". The story of Noah is well known. Children's stories and toys tell the story of Noah and the Ark. However, we can be sure that there are deep things to learn in this account in scripture. In fact, the warning that Noah brought to the world as he built the ark, according to God's specific instructions, is still crying out a warning for us today. Jesus told us that the account of Noah, the ark, and the flood that brought destruction to the earth will again have meaning in end time events, and the return of the Son of Man (Mt. 24:36-39). The Apostle Peter also referred to the flood of Noah, and its relationship to end time beliefs, unbeliefs and deception: "Scoffers will come in the last days...saying, 'Where is the promise of His coming? For since the fathers fell asleep, all things continue as they were from the beginning of creation.' For this they willfully forget: that by the word of God the heavens were of old, and the earth standing out of water and in the water, by which the world that then existed perished, being flooded with water." (2 Peter 3:3-6). This past event of the flood is to remind us that as others scoff, God will do what He needs to do to establish justice and righteousness, and to preserve His remnant of people. Not only that, but Peter also wrote that the same word that ultimately preserved the heavens and earth then, is still active, and has caused the heavens and earth to reserve fire "until the day of judgment and perdition of ungodly men." (v. 7). Peter tells us that as much as the flood was an act of judgment, as the coming fire will be, he also tells us here that the flood was an act of preservation for a remnant. It is through this obedience to God's instructions for preservation, which was the ark, that Noah became listed as one of our fathers of faith, and an heir of righteousness by faith (Heb. 11:7). This sabbath reading, Noach, deals with God's merciful preservation out of evil, violence, ungodliness and calamity, one man, his family, and some from all of the animals that breath. We will see other examples of this from this sabbath's reading as well. In our first sabbath portion out of Genesis 6, we find out that the men of the earth had become filled with wickedness, evil, violence and corruption (sahat - corrupt, destroy, destroyer, waster, ruin, decay, be rotted, pervert). Because of their evil, the decay of rotting death had entered living man and, consequently, creation (Gen. 6:5, 11-12). Romans 6:23 says that the wages of sin is death - even a living death, a living corruption. However, also according to Romans 6:23, there is a remedy to this living death, which is the gift (charisma/charizomai/charis/chairo - a gift, a favor one receives without any merit of his own, divine grace, faith, knowledge, holiness, virtue/give freely, bestow, to preserve a person in trouble, to pardon, rescue, forgive/grace, good will, loving-kindness, gift of grace/to rejoice, be glad, be well, thrive) of God, which is in Jesus Christ. We can't buy or earn this gift. It is freely bestowed by God for the asking, and even before we have the good sense to ask for it, so we can't even take the credit for having good sense! Anyone who has had the awesome experience of receiving the grace gift of the salvation of God has experienced this. It as a gift - you can't "earn" it, "deserve" it, or "buy/barter" it from God. It can't be done. The gift is given in Gen. 6: "But Noah found grace in the eyes of the LORD...Noah was a just (sadiq/sadaq - righteous, just as a judge or king is just, justified, to make one righteous, to speak truth) man, perfect (tamim/tamam - without blemish, without spot, complete, finished, shutting up, in accord with truth) in his generations. Noah walked with God." (v. 8-9). This gift of grace is not a one-time event. The gift continues to operate in us, making changes in our minds and hearts. The loving gift of grace will break our stony hearts, and build a new heart in us, if we will allow it to do so, leading and prompting us to righteous acts inspired by the Holy Spirit, and the Word of God. The gift of grace is a life-changer, and a life-definer. Just ask Noah. As Noah received the gift of grace from God, he was given the qualities of justness and perfection. As we can see, both of these qualities are connected with the speaking of and agreement with truth. Jesus said that the truth of the Word of God sanctifies us and sets us free (Jn. 17:17, Jn. 8:31-32). Believers are to walk in truth (Ps. 86:11, 2 Jn. 3-4, 3 Jn. 1-4). The truth is a Person, Jesus (Jn. 1:16-17, Jn. 14:6-7, Rev. 19:11). There may be many who make claims to truth, but there is only one who IS Truth. God connected Noah to this Person of Truth, Jesus, but how? In the verse above, we see the phrase "Noah walked with God". God, in this case is Elohim here in this verse. However, in the Hebrew writing of this phrase, something additional is connected to the word "Elohim". Two Hebrew letters, Aleph and Tav, are joined to "Elohim". In Rev. 22:13, Jesus says, "I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End, the First and the Last." "Alpha" and "Omega" are the first and last letters of the Greek alphabet. The Hebrew equivalent of first and last letters, which is what Jesus would have used, is "the Aleph" and "the Tav". Besides this example in Gen. 6, there are many other places in scripture where the "Aleph-Tav" is connected to significant words and phrases, but their presence does not get translated into English. In this case, Noah has been given the gift of grace from God, and caused him to walk with God Aleph-Tav that will separate him, and rescue him and his household, as well as representatives from the animal kingdom, from the coming disaster. God told Noah: "Make yourself an ark of gopherwood; make rooms in the ark, and cover it inside (bayit/bana - house, shelter, family, descendants, temple, palace) and outside ( hus- outward, whatever is without, to sever or separate by a wall) with pitch (kapar - atonement, reconcile, purge, forgive, cleanse, merciful, to cover, pardon)." (Gen. 6:14). Noah was to "flood-proof" the ark with mercy, forgiveness, cleansing, reconciliation and atonement. We also know that the kapar atonement of scripture is the blood of sacrifice, the Blood of the Lamb, Christ (1 Jn. 2:1-2, Heb. 9:11-14). There is another interesting reference to Jesus Christ in the account of Noah as God commanded Noah to build a window into the top of the ark, and a door into the side (Gen. 6:16). "Window" is the word sohar/sahar meaning "noon, nonday, suddenly, unexpectedly as an attack upon an enemy/to press out oil, to glisten, to shine, come forth, reveal oneself, light, splendor". We have a verse in 2 Thessalonians 2:8, which refers to the destruction of the lawless one, or antichrist: "And then the lawless one will be revealed, whom the Lord will consume with the breath of His mouth and destroy with the brightness of His coming." The word for "door" used above is the Hebrew word petah/patah, which means "door, gate, open, loose, grave, break forth, appear, open wide". We know that Jesus called Himself "the Door", and He broke open the grave for us all (see Jn. 10:7-10, Mt. 27:51-53, Mt. 28:2-6). There are many more details in the account of Noah that we could look at, but we will end this section from Genesis 6 with the promise of God to Noah: "And behold, I Myself am bringing floodwaters on the earth...everything that is on the earth shall die. But I will establish My covenant with you; and you shall go into the ark- you, your sons, your wife, and your sons' wives with you." (Gen. 6:17-18). Another example of preservation out of destruction from this week's sabbath reading titled Noach, or "Rest", is from Isaiah 54. God in His anger had turned His back on His people, Israel, like a wife rejected by her husband, like a woman made barren of children: "For a mere moment I have forsaken you, but with great mercies I will gather you. With a little wrath I hid My face from you for a moment; But with everlasting kindness I will have mercy on you, says the LORD your Redeemer. For this is like the waters of Noah to Me; for as I have sworn that the waters of Noah would no longer cover the earth, so have I sworn that I would not be angry with you, nor rebuke you...My kindness shall not depart from you, nor shall My covenant of peace be removed." (Isa. 54:1-10, excerpt). Under the same promise that God made to Noah, He would extend His undeserved mercy and kindness again to this remnant of Noah's descendants who had turned from Him. As we see these mercies of God once again extended here to Israel to serve as an example for us, it should cause our own hearts to soften with love and repentance towards Him as well. In Jeremiah 31, another portion from this week's sabbath reading, Israel had rebelled against God, had broken their covenant with Him, and brought destruction to their doors, as Jeremiah had prophesied would happen. However, Jeremiah also then brought this promise of undeserved mercy from the LORD: "Behold the days are coming, says the LORD, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah...But...after those days...I will put My law in their minds, and write it on their hearts; and I will be their God, and they shall be My people...For I will forgive their iniquity, and their sin I will remember no more." (Jer. 31:31-34). His people brought destruction on their own heads, but the LORD, as with Noah, would extend His gift of grace, change His people in their minds and hearts into righteousness, and forgive their sins. Again, a remnant shall be preserved by grace. In another sabbath reading portion, God's people have become corrupt, they have not trusted in, nor drawn near to the LORD. Because of this, the LORD will gather the nations. His wrath and fiery destruction will be poured out over all the earth. However, God will preserve a remnant, and restore "a pure language...and they shall trust in the name of the LORD. The remnant of Israel shall do no unrighteousness and speak no lies, nor shall a deceitful tongue be found in their mouth...Be glad and rejoice with all your heart...The LORD has taken away your judgments, He has cast out your enemy. The King of Israel, the LORD, is in your midst; You shall see disaster no more." (Zeph. 3:8-15). The undeserved grace, mercy, and kindness of God seems to be the recurring theme through this week's sabbath readings. There is a place of rest in the LORD, His ark of Christ, like the one He established with Noah, if we will abide in it as Noah did. God remembers His floodwaters, and has not forgotten that place where His people are preserved by His grace. There is no other place nor means by which we may be preserved. (Acts 4:10-12). If you would like to learn more about being preserved by grace, you can pray with me: "LORD Jesus, the Father gave His grace to us through You, and as You preserved Noah and his household, and even the animals of the earth, You desire to preserve me. I want to walk with You, Aleph Tav-Elohim, as Noah walked with You, and You called him just and perfect, speaking and in accord with truth. Fill me with Your Holy Spirit, as the dove returned to the ark with an olive leaf to give Noah sure knowledge and comfort that the waters had indeed receded for him. Father, Son, and Holy Spirit were with Noah, and also, I ask, be with me and my household always. I don't wish to search for my place of rest anywhere else but in You, and in your gift of grace. I ask these things in Your holy name. AMEN."