The Message In The Moedim A d'rashah for Sh'mini Atzeret By Rabbi Reuel Dillon In our parshah for Sh'mini Atzeret we read the following in D'varim (Deuteronomy) 16:16-17; "Three times a year all your men are to appear in the presence of HaShem your God in the place which he will choose - at the festival of matzah, at the festival of Shavu'ot and at the festival of Sukkot. They are not to show up before ADONAI empty-handed, but every man is to give what he can, in accordance with the blessing ADONAI your God has given you". All of the Moedim of Adonai, all of the Holy Days of God point to His plan of redemption and His plan to dwell with His people. They are His testimonies. In a literal version of D'varim (Deuteronomy) 6:17 we read, Keeping you shall keep the commands of HaShem your God, and His testimonies, and His statutes which He has commanded you. The Feasts of Adonai are certainly a part of His mitzvot (commandments), but even more so they point to His testimony and the Good News. The Hebrew for "testimony" in this passages comes from the word edah, which literally means witness. And, while the Hebrew word "mo'ed" refers to an appointment, meeting, a season, or something that is fixed...the core of the word "mo'ed" also is spelled as the Hebrew word for "witness" is spelled (ayin-dalet). In a way it is similar to a participle form of the Hebrew word "eid", which is a "witness". Therefore, another way we could possibly understand the Hebrew word "mo'ed" is as "something which witnesses". His Moedim and Festivals are His witnesses to Yisra'el and to all the Nations, which proclaim His truths and plans, both past and future. Pesach - Passover The observance of the season of Passover, known in Hebrew as "Pesach", is of great significance and meaning to all believers in Messiah. Whether we are Jewish and call upon his Hebrew name, "Yeshua", or are Gentile and know him as "Jesus", the story of Pesach (Passover) is a deeply intimate story of our personal salvation and redemption, a story that has been told and retold, l dor v dor (from generation to generation), without fail for thousands of years. It is an amazing story detailing the transitions of God s people And, all who know the God of Yisra el and His Messiah have a story of our own to tell. It is a story of going from slavery to freedom, from despair to hope, and from darkness to light.
One of Messiah s last acts on Earth before He died and rose to life was the celebration of a Pesach seder. He and all His talmidim (disciples) gathered in a room as Yeshua led them in a Pesach seder, much like what is observed to our day. In Luke 22:15 Yeshua states, I have eagerly desired to eat this Passover with you before I suffer. It was within the context of this special feast that Messiah revealed the mystery of God s plan of redemption. It was here that He spoke of His body and blood. And, it was here that He said, Do this in remembrance of me (Luke 22:19). His intent was that all of his followers would observe this special time each year in remembrance of him, in remembrance of what he did for us, to remember the great miracles that were done for us and for our forefathers, and to teach us what his purpose was for redeeming us with an outstretched arm from our own personal Mitzrayim (Egypt), our own personal experience of bondage to the cruel taskmaster of sin, with the result that we could live new lives unto him. Adonai did this through His son Yeshua The Messiah, the Lamb of God. It was through the lamb of God that Yisra'el was redeemed and saved. Sh'mot (Exodus) 12:27 tells us, And you shall say, 'It is the Lord's sacrifice of the Passover, because He passed over the houses of the children of Yisra'el in Egypt, when he smote the Egyptians, and delivered our houses.' And the people bowed their heads and worshipped. When the children of Yisra'el placed the blood of the lamb over their doorposts they were spared from The Destroyer, and as a result their enemies let them go free. During the same time that the lambs were being slaughtered on Pesach...Yeshua died on the execution stake for the sins of mankind so that death would pass over us and so we could be delivered from a life of bondage to sin. All we have to do is in faith, like the children of Yisra'el, apply the blood of the Lamb of God to the doorposts of our heart. 1st Day - Chag HaMatzot - The Feast Of Unleavened Bread After Pesach why do we have a seven day festival focused on the absence of chametz (leavened products)? What is wrong with chametz in our house during the days of Unleavened Bread? We see in D'varim (Deuteronomy) 16:3-4 the following You shall eat no leavened bread (chametz) with it; seven days shall you eat matzah therewith, even the bread of affliction; for you came forth out of the land of Egypt in haste: that you may remember the day when you came forth out of the land of Egypt all the days of your life. There shall be no yeast (se or) seen with you in all your borders seven days; neither shall any of the flesh, which you sacrifice the first day at even, remain all night until the morning. He wishes to teach us that the se or (leaven) in our households, if allowed to enter our soul, and enter into our flesh it will corrupt us and will indeed puff us up into something we were not intended to be. But, this lesson is not just isolated to these seven days alone. Indeed, our spiritual offerings are to be unleavened as we see with the minchah (Meal/grain) offerings offered up at the Mishkan (Temple / Dwelling place of God) Vayikra (Leviticus) 2:11 states, No meal offering, which you shall offer to HaShem, shall be made with yeast; for you shall burn no yeast, nor any honey, as an offering made by fire to HaShem.
Rav Sha ul (Paul) also has something to say about this.1corinthians 5:6-8 he states, Your boasting is not good. Don't you know that a little yeast leavens the whole lump? Purge out the old yeast (se or), that you may be a new lump, even as you are unleavened. For indeed Messiah, our Pesach, has been sacrificed in our place. Therefore let us keep the feast, not with old yeast, neither with the yeast of malice and wickedness, but with the matzah (unleavened bread) of sincerity and truth. There is a well know saying that goes something like this, This book will keep you from sin, or sin will keep you from this book, let not the latter part of this saying describe us. Yochanan Alef (1John) 3:1-5 teaches us, Behold, how great a love the Father has bestowed on us, that we should be called children of God! For this cause the world doesn't know us, because it didn't know him. Beloved, now we are children of God, and it is not yet revealed what we will be. But we know that, when he is revealed, we will be like him; for we will see him just as he is. Everyone who has this hope set on him purifies himself, even as he is pure. Everyone who sins also commits Torahlessness (lawlessness). Sin is Torahlessness. You know that he was revealed to take away our sins, and in him is no sin. As we remove the se or (leaven) and the sin out of our lives, let us purify ourselves as we draw closer and closer to our Heavenly Father s Torah. 7th Day - Chag HaMatzot - The Feast Of Unleavened Bread In our festival reading for the 7th Day of Chag HaMatzot (the Feast Of Unleavened Bread) we are reminded that we not only are to have a "mikra kodesh" (holy convocation) on the first day of Chag HaMatzot, but we are also commanded to have a "mikra kodesh" on the seventh day as well. In B'midbar (Numbers) 28:25 we read, "On the seventh day you are to have a holy convocation; do not do any kind of ordinary work". What is the meaning of these two meetings? The first "mikra kodesh" is directly connected to the Pesach seder (Passover) that occurs the evening before, which led to the deliverance of Am Yisra'el (The People of Yisra'el) from Mitzrayim (Egypt). In Sh'mot (Exodus) 12:17 we are told, "You are to observe the festival of matzah, for on this very day I brought your divisions out of the land of Egypt. Therefore, you are to observe this day from generation to generation by a perpetual regulation". After The Destroyer passed over Mitzrayim and took the lives of their firstborn, the Egyptians urged the people of Yisra'el to leave Mitzrayim. The tribes of Yisra'el therefore gathered together to leave in haste, in such haste that they didn't have time for their bread to rise, and thus only had unleavened bread for their journey. Therefore, the first mikra kodesh of Chag HaMatzah (Unleavened Bread) points to these events. But, what about yom hash'vi'i Chag HaMatzot (the seventh day of the Feast of Unleavened Bread)? Why do we also come together for a mikra kodesh (holy convocation) on this day? And, what happened on this day that Adonai wanted us to remember? In Sh'mot (Exodus) 13:20-22 we read about Yisra'el's journey from Mitzrayim. It says, "They traveled from Sukkot and set up camp in Etam, at the edge of the desert. HaShem went ahead of them in a column of cloud during the daytime to lead them on their way, and at night in a column of fire to give them light; thus they could travel both by day and by night. Neither the column of cloud by day nor the column of fire at night went away from in front of the people". And, after several days of journeying we read in Sh'mot (Exodus) 14:1-2, "HaShem said to Moshe,
"Tell the people of Yisra'el to turn around and set up camp in front of Pi-Hachirot, between Migdol and the sea, in front of Ba'al-Tz'fon; camp opposite it, by the sea". This Seventh Day of Chag HaMatzot commemorates the splitting of the Yom Suf (The Sea of Reeds), the final climax of their deliverance from Mitztrayim. It was on the seventh day of traveling from being delivered from their Egyptian masters that they reached Yom Suf, otherwise known as the "Red Sea". It was there that they encamped together and it was there that Am Yisra'el found themselves trapped between the Egyptian army and the cavalry that was pursuing them from behind and the waters of Yom Suf before them, and it was there on this day that Adonai would provide a final "nes" (miracle) that would lead to them completely being delivered and separated forever from their Egyptian masters. But, until Yisra'el witnessed the Egyptians dead on the seashore, they remained in dread of Egypt s military might. In fact, as they were fearing for their lives, many were even prepared to submit to slavery again rather than risk the severe consequences that they saw coming down upon them. These are lessons we can all learn from...after we have taken our first few steps to freedom, walking in the direction in accordance with Adonai's instructions (Torah), often we are faced with adversity from the world and from HaSatan, The Enemy of our souls. Faced with this fear and with the demands of our world, we often give into that fear and return to our former bondage and taskmasters in the hope to somehow preserve ourselves, instead of trusting Adonai and His instructions, which ultimately, in His timing, will lead to true deliverance. For those of us who have done this or perhaps for those of us who may do this in the future, out of our fear we may think to ourselves, "Adonai understands, and surely he wouldn't want me to perish or to suffer, so I will return to my former way of life and He will understand, and I will not be punished". But, Adonai doesn't condone our fear and lack of trusting Him for His instructions, especially after we have gotten a taste of His goodness and power, and have seen that He is capable of great miracles and deliverances. Chag Shavuot - The Feast Of Pentecost Shavuot (Pentecost) is the second major festival amongst the three pilgrimage festivals (Pesach/Passover being the first, and Sukkot/Tabernacles the third). Starting from the morrow after the high holy day Shabbat of the first day of Chag HaMatzot (Feast of Unleavened Bread) we are to count forty-nine days, seven groups of seven, with Shavuot occurring on the fiftieth day. This is why Shavuot (meaning weeks) is also known as the Feast of Weeks. The Greek name for this festival is Pentecost, which literally means fifty count. Shavuot is the day when we remember the giving of Adonai s Torah at Mount Sinai. For believers in Messiah the day of Shavuot has extra special significance as it commemorates the time when Adonai poured out His Spirit (as seen in Acts 2) in accordance with the Brit Chadashah (New Covenant), which was prophesied in Yirm'yahu (Jeremiah) 31:31-33. On this day of Shavuot we should also celebrate and remember our marriage to El Shaddai. It is the time where Adonai officially joined Himself to our people Yisra'el. In our Shavuot love story the Chatan (Groom) swept his Kallah (Bride) off her feet and carried her off in eagle's wings and brought her to His special place of betrothal under His chuppah, the large cloud that supernaturally covered Mt. Sinai. Throughout scripture Yisra'el and those in its
commonwealth have been described as Adonai s wife. On the first Shavuot Adonai (our husband) gave us a very special love letter His Torah. In it He described His covenant of love. He loved His bride so much that He revealed Himself in an intimate way. He revealed His desires and His needs and He showed us exactly how we could love Him. His Torah was an expression of His love for His bride, and also revealed how His bride was to love Him in return. As long as she stayed faithful as His wife He would make special provision through His Torah for her needs and desires. One of the aspects of a Jewish wedding is a special document called the k'tubah. It was the marriage contract that the Chatan (Groom) would give to his Kallah (Bride). In Hebrew K'tubah means that which is written. The words of God, His Torah, was His K'tubah and His special writing of love that was given to His bride. In Sh'mot (Exodus) chapter twenty, the Asarat HaD'varim (aka Ten Commandments) was officially given to Yisra'el as a nation. It was so intimate to Him that He wrote it with His own hand. Sh'mot (Exo.) 31:18 says the following about Adonai, When he had finished speaking with Moshe on Mount Sinai, Adonai gave him the two tablets of the testimony, tablets of stone inscribed by the finger of God. The Asarat HaD varim, The Ten Words, were simply the foundation of Adonai s K'tubah. He continued to share the rest of His Torah (as we have today) with Moshe on Mt. Sinai and throughout the rest of Moshe s life. Before Moshe died he wrote all the words of Adonai s Torah and K'tubah in a book that would go in the ark along with the tablets. D'varim (Deut.) 31:24-26 states, Moshe kept writing the words of this Torah in a book until he was done. When he had finished, Moshe gave these orders to the L'vi'im (Levites) who carried the ark with the covenant of Adonai: "Take this book of the Torah and put it next to the ark with the covenant of HaShem your God. Furthermore, he intentionally connects these things with the giving of The Ruach HaKodesh (Holy Spirit), which would shortly be given on Shavuot (Pentecost). We find all of this in Yochanan (John) 14:23-26 where Yeshua says, " If someone loves me, he will keep my word; and my Father will love him, and we will come to him and make our home with him. Someone who doesn't love me doesn't keep my words and the word you are hearing is not my own but that of the Father who sent me. I have told you these things while I am still with you. But the Counselor, the Ruach HaKodesh (Holy Spirit), whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you everything; that is, he will remind you of everything I have said to you. It is through our Shavuot experience and the giving of Adonai s Spirit (as seen in Acts 2) that we are enabled to be faithful and to honor Adonai s K'tubah. It is through Messiah Yeshua that we are able to re-establish our love connection with God and keep it. Yom T'ruah/Rosh HaShanah - The Day Of Trumpets On Rosh HaShannah (Yom T'ruah) chapter 22 of B'reishit (Genesis) has been selected as the parashah that is traditionally read in synagogues everywhere since the days of Yeshua. A few reasons have been supplied for this selection. One reason was that the Jewish sages have seen the great merit that Avraham gained before Adonai in what is called in Hebrew "the akidah", that is, the binding of Yitzchak (Isaac). We see this in B'reishit (Genesis) 22:16-18
where, "He said, "I have sworn by myself - says HaShem - that because you have done this, because you haven't withheld your son, your only son, I will most certainly bless you; and I will most certainly increase your descendants to as many as there are stars in the sky or grains of sand on the seashore. Your descendants will possess the cities of their enemies, and by your descendants all the nations of the earth will be blessed - because you obeyed my order". Because of Avraham's obedience, his merit would be applied to his descendents and Adonai's blessing would be upon the Jewish people. So, during Rosh HaShanah the Jewish people and the people of Yisra'el not only bring to remembrance any areas of our life that are inconsistent with Adonai's Torah and begin to seek t'shuvah, to turn from our sins and ask for forgiveness, but we ask that in accordance with the merit of Avraham and our forefathers that Adonai would forgive and remember His covenant that was made with them. This happens for ten days between Rosh HaShanah and Yom Kippur in what is called in Hebrew "Yomim Nora'im", or in English; "The Days Of Awe". While during the days of Yomim Nora'im we search our lives for sin, any transgressions of Adonai's Torah, and we ask Adonai for forgiveness and turn from those sins...that alone is not sufficient because a price must be paid for the sins to be absolved. But, because we don't have the necessary spiritual currency, and because we are so broke, we don't have the needed credit and we must rely on the merit of one who can satisfy the judgment of the great King. Because we have failed to perfectly maintain Adonai's covenant, we must rely on another to do so on our behalf. But, for this to happen we must be a part of the family of the one who has the spiritual credit to do so. In Avraham and Yitz'chak we see a Messianic model of the King Messiah and what he would come to accomplish for all those who would later be considered his seed. Often we understand Yom T'ruah to mean "The Day of Trumpets", or sometimes called "The Feast Of Trumpets", but it literally means "The Day of clamor", or "The Day Of Alarm", and that is how I really believe it should be understood. We are alerted to coming judgments, and are given ten days leading to the sealing of judgments or the absolving of our sins. The number ten is a Biblical symbol of Judgment throughout the TeNaKh (see the ten plagues of Mitzrayim/Egypt ect.). This is time that Adonai uses to heighten our awareness of our sins and the gravity of them. But, if we don't understand the heavy severity of our sin we won't truly know how much we have been forgiven of, and we won't understand God's absolutely amazing and dumfounding grace that He demonstrates towards us. Yom Kippur - The Day Of Atonement As all of the moedim do, Yom Kippur (The Day Of Atonement) has much significance to believers in Messiah...I would even be so bold to say that it has more significance to believers in Messiah Yeshua than anyone else. During the season of Pesach (Passover) we were saved and redeemed with an outstretched arm and delivered from the slave masters of this world and were spared death so that we could come to a place to know God and learn how to serve Him through the keeping of His instructions, His Torah. But, once we were made aware of the knowledge that teaches what is good and evil, and we draw ever closer to the Father, we are even more responsible and accountable to do so according to His
instructions, or the blatant disregard of those holy instructions will end in the judgment of death. We cannot come before Him unclean and spiritually filthy. Before we do so, we must seek the Cohen to become purified. Because we have been found guilty of breaking Adonai's mitzvot we need atonement and cleansing so that we can continue to move forward with Adonai to our destination. And although Pesach resulted in our salvation and redemption, a final atonement, pictured by Yom Kippur, was to come. During Yom Kippur we not only focus on t'shuvah (repentance), but we meditate on the all sufficient atonement of HaMashiach, The Messiah Yeshua. The blood of Yeshua The Messiah's sacrifice acts like a perpetual powerhouse of manifold atonements purifying us and bringing atonement for those who would believe and obey him from things that, as I mentioned, the Torah could not provide a covering and cleansing for. Speaking of Yeshua, Ma'asim (Acts) 13:39 states; "...God clears everyone who puts his trust in this man, even in regard to all the things concerning which you could not be cleared by the Torah of Moshe". Yom Kippurim, literally translated as "Day Of Atonements", could also point to the multiple atonements that take place on this day, as pictured by the two goats in Vayikra (Lev.) chp.16. Messiah s sacrifice did something that the blood of bulls and goats could never do - cleanse the Heavenly Sanctuary, and bear all the sins of God's people. Only the blood of a perfectly righteous being, a being whom was perfectly pleasing in the sight of Adonai could accomplish this. And, because Messiah cleanses the Heavenly sanctuary in this manner, we are able to come to the Father and receive remission of sins through Messiah s sacrifice and live with Him for eternity. Chag HaSukkot - The Feast Of Tabernacles Vayikra (Leviticus) 23:40-41 states, You shall take on the first day the fruit of goodly trees, branches of palm trees, and boughs of thick trees, and willows of the brook; and you shall rejoice before HaShem your God seven days. You shall keep it a feast to HaShem seven days in the year: it is a statute forever throughout your generations; you shall keep it in the seventh month. There is another name given for this appointed time most know as Sukkot, or The Feast of Tabernacles. This season is also know as, Z'man Simchatenu (The Time Of Our Rejoicing). And, we are commanded to rejoice before Adonai. This is a time where we will and do remember what our Great King, Yeshua HaMashiach (Yeshua The Messiah), did for us as He came and fought for His people and will conquer the enemy and will forever dwell with His people thereafter. That is one mighty good leader! After this happens we see the prophecy in Yesha'yahu (Isaiah) 2:2-5 fulfilled. It says, It shall happen in the latter days, that the mountain of HaShem's house shall be established on the top of the mountains, and shall be raised above the hills; and all nations shall flow to it. Many peoples shall go and say, "Come, let's go up to the mountain of HaShem, to the house of the God of Ya`akov; and he will teach us of his ways, and we will walk in his paths." For out of Tziyon the Torah shall go forth, and the word of HaShem from Yerushalayim. He will judge between the nations, and will decide concerning many peoples; and they shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruning hooks. Nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war any more. House of Ya`akov, come, and let us walk in the light of HaShem.
Both Jew and Gentile whom seek to live in our Heavenly Father s kingdom will be both living in unity under one God, and one King, and one Torah, one instruction from the Holy One, Blessed be He! This Season Of Our Joy looks forward to the time that we will fully enjoy the salvation that will be supplied through Messiah! For He is our Hoshana Rabbah, our Great Salvation. Therefore, this truly is a time of thanksgiving when our Heavenly Father will culminate the gathering of His fruit and produce, a time when He will finish gathering His people and, a time when He will complete the salvation of His people, and a time when He will one day dwell with us! During the later harvest of Sukkot, He will indeed harvest His people and rejoice with those whom want to dwell with Him in His Kingdom. This is one of the spiritual themes of this High Holy Day and the heart of Avinu Malkeinu, our Father and our King! Thus, the Biblical name of this moed is Sukkot or Tabernacles, because He will tabernacle (dwell) with his people in holiness, in shalom, and with rejoicing. Sh'mini Atzeret - The 8th Day Conclusion The seven days of Sukkot are followed by a final day, which in the Torah is called "Sh'mini Atzeret". In English this basically translates to mean, "The Eighth Day Assembly". During Sukkot we are instructed to dwell in sukkot (tabernacles) for seven days. But, the Torah speaks of an additional eighth day. The word "sh'mini" in Hebrew means "eighth". The Hebrew word "atzeret" can mean an "assembly", especially for a festival or holyday. When we look at the etymology of the word "atzeret" we find that it comes from the root "atzar", which carries the meaning "to hold back, to enclose, assemble, to detain, to restrain, or to stay". The sages of Yisra'el interpreted that the word "atzeret" teaches us that Adonai beckons those of Yisra'el who made the pilgrimage feast of Sukkot to stay with Him one more day. In the days that the Beit HaMikdash (Holy Temple) stood during the time of Sukkot seventy bulls were sacrificed as musaf (additional) offerings on the altar for the seventy nations of the Earth, but on Sh'mini Atzeret only one bull was offered, just for Yisra'el. In Bamidbar Rabbah 21, Sukkah 55b we read the sages describe it this way; "You may compare it to a king who had a festival for seven days and invited all the nations of the world to the seven days of feasting. When the seven days were over and the guests had gone, he said to his friend (Yisra'el), 'Let us now have a small meal together, just you and I'". After the thousand year reign of Mashiach on this Earth...unbelievably there would be a significant number of the Nations who would eventually rebel against HaShem, and against Yisra'el, resulting in a final judgment and deliverance of Yisra'el. I believe this is pictured at the conclusion of Sukkot towards the end of the seventh, known in Hebrew as "Hoshanah Rabbah", the "Great Salvation". This all leads to Sh'mini Atzeret...the Eighth Day Conclusion. We read about the fulfillment of this day in Revelation 20:7-10 were it says, "When the thousand years are over, the Adversary will be set free from his prison and will go out to deceive the nations in the four quarters of the earth, Gog and Magog, to gather them for the battle. Their number is countless as the sand on the seashore; and they came up over the breadth of the Land and surrounded the camp of God's people and the city he loves. But
fire came down from heaven and consumed them. The Adversary who had deceived them was hurled into the lake of fire and sulfur, where the beast and the false prophet were; and they will be tormented day and night forever and ever". It was on this day that Adonai forever delivered His people from their adversaries, never to return again. Truly it will be "Hoshanah Rabbah", the "Great Salvation". This period will lead directly into "Olam Haba", "Eternity", or "The World To Come", pictured by "Sh'mini Atzeret". In Revelation 21:1 we than read, "Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the old heaven and the old earth had passed away, and the sea was no longer there". Although, the sea was no longer there in the Earth, we see in the scriptures that the "sea", or a large collection of waters, can be symbolic of "the nations". Just as it was described by the sages of Yisra'el, this day of "Sh'mini Atzeret", this eighth day pictures an intimate time between Yisra'el and Adonai. For it is after the thousand year reign of The Messiah Yeshua, pictured by Sukkot, that the marriage between the God of Yisra'el and His bride had been consummated, and had reached completion, leading to a new life together. The number eight is symbolic of a new beginning, as it is what comes after the weekly seventh day, which begins a new week. On that note it also could be understood to represent eternity because it goes beyond, and is outside, the time of the normal seventh day of the week. As we meditate on these truths, may the day of Sh'mini Atzeret give us hope of these things to come. As we keep our eyes on Yeshua, may we look forward to an eternity of joy with our Lord. That truly is something to bring a smile to one's face. 1Thessalonians 5:8-11 exhorts us with the following words, "But since we belong to the day, let us stay sober, putting on trust and love as a breastplate and the hope of being delivered as a helmet. For God has not intended that we should experience his fury, but that we should gain deliverance through our Lord Yeshua the Messiah, who died on our behalf so that whether we are alive or dead, we may live along with him. Therefore, encourage each other, and build each other up - just as you are doing". V'im'ru amein, and all God's people said, "Amein!". Chag sameach! To read more messages like this visit: www.messianicspokane.com