Tazria ( תזריע) - Metzora (מצרע ) - Conceived and Affliction - Audio Podcast -April 22, 2023

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Leviticus 12:1-15:33

Review

TORAH GPS

We continue to use the Torah as our guide to do our portions

So far we have come from Genesis to now Leviticus, and God has been at work

We have talked about Vayikra in the last few weeks

So far we can summarize the book of Leviticus/ Vayikra like this:

VaYikra Adonai (and the Lord called) us to be holy, approaching Him with gifts and offerings.

He teaches us to bring the olah (ascent offering) exclusively for Him;

the minchah (tribute) as a gift to God and the priests;

and the sh’lamim (well-being offering) for God, the priests, and the worshippers, too.

God then tells Moshe, Tsav (command!) the priests to learn the rituals so they can keep the sanctuary holy.

Ba-yom ha-Sh’mini (on the eighth day), the service of the sanctuary will commence.

Scarcely is the first service completed when the Lord sends a pillar of fire to kindle offerings on both altars.

We talked about Nadab and Abihu -wanting to do it their own way

The people shout and fall on their faces in glorious worship!

All know, on that day, that the Lord has appeared in the midst of His people.

We talked about the circumcision of the heart

This is only possible by the Power of His Anointed One

Lastly we talked about number eight

Leviticus 9:1 NKJV

1 It came to pass on the eighth day that Moses called Aaron and his sons and the elders of Israel.

Our Torah Portion today also continues with the importance of that number 8

The sanctification we have been called to attain

To procure of the holiness of His righteousness

Leviticus 12:1–3 NKJV

1 Then the Lord spoke to Moses, saying,

2 “Speak to the children of Israel, saying: ‘If a woman has conceived, and borne a male child, then she shall be unclean seven days; as in the days of her customary impurity she shall be unclean.

3 And on the eighth day the flesh of his foreskin shall be circumcised.

In reference to the circumcision of the heart

Introduction

Tazria (תזריע) -Metzora (מצרע) - Conceived and Affliction

Leviticus 12:1-15:33

Last year we explained these two Torah portions by doing an expository analysis of the text, verse by verse

It is all about the conception of a seed and affliction of leprosy.

It’s all about the clean and unclean

If we leave it at this level only, we will never learn the heart of Adonai

We will never see His greater purpose

Thus, never learn His ways

So, we want to go deeper

The roadmap

We will define the terms: Tazria and Metzora

Explain how they correlate to each other

Explain the Hebrew Thought behind them

We will talk of the gravity of Tazria and Metzora from a spiritual perspective

We will describe how we think we can hide it

But in reality it is like the peak of a mountain filled with snow

Then we will bring it to a close with the combination of three characters in the Bible

With the relevance of the end times

First let us have an overall view of the portion

Tazria - sowing seed and Metzorah -affliction/ leprosy

First let us define some terms:

Leviticus 12:2 NKJV

2 “Speak to the children of Israel, saying: ‘If a woman has conceived, and borne a male child, then she shall be unclean seven days; as in the days of her customary impurity she shall be unclean.

[Sara] = conceived

SEED = זָרַע‎ (zā·rǎʿ) (zayin, resh, ayin)

2445 זָרַע‎ (zā·rǎʿ): v.; ≡ Str 2232; TWOT 582—1. (qal) sow seed, plant seed, i.e., scatter seed over tilled ground (Ge 26:12); (qal pass.) sown (Jer 2:2+); (nif) be sown, be planted (Lev 11:37; Dt 21:4; 29:22; Eze 36:9+); (pual) sown (Isa 40:24+); (hif) yield seed (Ge 1:11, 12+); 2. (qal) scatter, spread out, i.e., the linear motion of many objects or persons going to many different individual points (Jdg 9:45; Zec 10:9); 3. (qal pass.) shed, come upon, formally, sown, i.e., have an object cover another object as a happening (Ps 97:11); 4. LN 23.46–23.60 (nif) have children (Nu 5:28; Na 1:14+); (hif) become pregnant (Lev 12:2+)

2446 זֶרַע‎

(zě·rǎʿ): n.masc.; ≡ Str 2233; TWOT 582a—1. seed, i.e., a kernel part of a plant that propagates the species (Ge 1:11); 2. LN 8.70–8.77 semen, i.e., the product of the male genitals (Lev 15:16); 3. LN 9.41–9.45 child, i.e., one that is the direct offspring (Ge 15:3); 4. LN 10.14–10.48 offspring, descendant, posterity, i.e., one that is related more than one generation removed (Ge 3:15); 5. LN 11.90–11.95 family, clan, i.e., an extended family group based on a common ancestor (Ge 19:32, 34); 6. LN 11.12–11.54 race, i.e., a very extended family line based on many different criteria, with a focus on religious ties (Ezr 9:2); 7. LN 67.163–67.200 unit: יוֹם‎ (yôm) … זֶרַע‎ (zě·rǎʿ) planting time, i.e., a time seed is placed in the ground (Ge 8:22); 8. LN 1.95–1.98 unit: שָׂדֶה זֶרַע‎ (śā·ḏě(h) zě·rǎʿ) a fertile field, i.e., a cultivated field suitable for sowing (Eze 17:5), note: for MT text at Isa 9:19[EB 20], see 2432; 9. LN 23.61–23.65 unit: נָתַן שְׁכֹבֶת לְ־ זֶרַע‎ (nā·ṯǎn šeḵō·ḇěṯ l- zě·rǎʿ) have sexual relations (Lev 18:20); 10. LN 23.46–23.60 unit: שִׁכְבָה זֶרַע‎ (šiḵ·ḇā(h) zě·rǎʿ) have sexual relations (Lev 19:20; Nu 5:13); 11. LN 43 unit: מָשַׁךְ זֶרַע‎ (mā·šǎḵ zě·rǎʿ) planter, i.e., a farm worker that scatters the seed for sowing (Am 9:13)

Found in:

Genesis 1:11 NKJV

11 Then God said, “Let the earth bring forth grass, the herb that yields seed, and the fruit tree that yields fruit according to its kind, whose seed is in itself, on the earth”; and it was so.

Genesis 3:15 NKJV

15 And I will put enmity Between you and the woman, And between your seed and her Seed; He shall bruise your head, And you shall bruise His heel.”

Equally important found in:

Deuteronomy 28:38 NKJV

38 “You shall carry much seed out to the field but gather little in, for the locust shall consume it.

What kinds of seed are we sowing today: in word, deed, thought?

Every seed bears fruit, leading to

clean or uncleaned

to life or death

blessing or a curse

This Torah Portion

Leviticus 12:2 NKJV

2 “Speak to the children of Israel, saying: ‘If a woman has conceived, and borne a male child, then she shall be unclean seven days; as in the days of her customary impurity she shall be unclean.

Tazria - sowing seed

Immediately after speaking about clean and unclean the text takes us to a different kind of seed

the one full of negative speech

and of the consequences of negative speech

which are addressed by the supernatural disease called Tsara’at

Leprosy - Not like the Natural leprosy -not Hansen’s disease as we know it. It was considered a supernatural affliction

The root word of Metzorah (the leper afflicted) Tzara’at (the leprosy affliction)

is TZARA = זרע ( zayin, resh, ayin) = leper (afflicted) leprosy (affliction)

SEED

2 mayor things come with Tzara

Pride

Lashon Hara - evil tongue - as white as snow

Leviticus 13:1–3 NKJV

1 And the Lord spoke to Moses and Aaron, saying:

2 “When a man has on the skin of his body a swelling, a scab, or a bright spot, and it becomes on the skin of his body like a leprous sore, then he shall be brought to Aaron the priest or to one of his sons the priests.

3 The priest shall examine the sore on the skin of the body; and if the hair on the sore has turned white, and the sore appears to be deeper than the skin of his body, it is a leprous sore. Then the priest shall examine him, and pronounce him unclean.

We need to understand the connection between

Tsara’at / Leprosy and

Sara /the seed - or giving birth

Before all of our actions and words, there is a conception in our thoughts

James 1:14–15 NKJV

14 But each one is tempted when he is drawn away by his own desires and enticed.

15 Then, when desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, brings forth death.

It is important for us to have a clean and pure MIND

Philippians 4:8 NKJV

8 Finally, brethren, whatever things are true, whatever things are noble, whatever things are just, whatever things are pure, whatever things are lovely, whatever things are of good report, if there is any virtue and if there is anything praiseworthy—meditate on these things.

Tsara’at Leprosy and Sara the seed

At first glance seem to be in contradiction

Tsara’at is an unpleasant condition

requires total isolation from the tribes of Israel

In the Talmud it is comparable to a dead person.

When we speak negativity it is as if we were dead from within

Let’s look at one example for now and we will come back for more later

Numbers 12:1 NKJV

1 Then Miriam and Aaron spoke against Moses because of the Ethiopian woman whom he had married; for he had married an Ethiopian woman.

Numbers 12:9–11 NKJV

9 So the anger of the Lord was aroused against them, and He departed.

10 And when the cloud departed from above the tabernacle, suddenly Miriam became leprous, as white as snow. Then Aaron turned toward Miriam, and there she was, a leper.

11 So Aaron said to Moses, “Oh, my lord! Please do not lay this sin on us, in which we have done foolishly and in which we have sinned.

Why is Tsatria connected to conception?

A fundamental principle of Hebrew Thought

Punishments administered by the Torah

Never intended to harm a person in return for the harm that they caused

Rather the benefit is for the transgressor himself

Suffering caused by punishment cleanses the soul

Either in this world or the next

In most cases, the goodness within the punishment is not apparent to the person looking from outside or the transgressor himself

For the Tsara’at suffering person is clear that the punishment is for his benefit

By being declared impure - required isolation

He will soon learn not to speak gossip anymore

Since there is no one to speak to, or listen to

Torah’s punishments are aimed at helping the transgressor correct his ways

Begin a new life - corrected of his former faults

Corrections are intended to help a person have a spiritual rebirth in their lives

Tazria

deals with what is clean and unclean

Commandments about a woman giving birth and what to do about it

Rituals around birth

Metzora

has to do with how to deal with the sickness

What is to be done with those who have Tzara’at leprosy

How to determine someone has it - diagnostics

How to determine if someone is healed from it

Tzara’at is a spiritual disease manifested in the physical

Challenge

These things are not commonly talked about in religious cycles today

Anything that has to do with bodily functions is not discussed

Here is the West Leprosy is not very common so many seem to think that it is irrelevant

Even if we may not have Tzara’at in our physical bodies, we may still be lepers and need healing from the Lord

When times of natural uncleanness come we are commanded to avoid having contact with someone who is holy

We must see this from the spiritual implication this is teaching us today

if we can follow the format of what is being given here in this Torah Portion, we can come to a clearer understanding of what The Father expects from us.

Act of Love of the Father to bring us into repentance

Out of sin back to HIM

Stop, time consider our own tongue as the time for Messiah’s return draws near

Presentation

To begin, let us go back to the name of our Torah portion found in:

Leviticus 12:1–5 NKJV

1 Then the Lord spoke to Moses, saying,

2 “Speak to the children of Israel, saying: ‘If a woman has conceived, and borne a male child, then she shall be unclean seven days; as in the days of her customary impurity she shall be unclean.

3 And on the eighth day the flesh of his foreskin shall be circumcised.

4 She shall then continue in the blood of her purification thirty-three days. She shall not touch any hallowed thing, nor come into the sanctuary until the days of her purification are fulfilled.

5 ‘But if she bears a female child, then she shall be unclean two weeks, as in her customary impurity, and she shall continue in the blood of her purification sixty-six days.

If a male is born = uncleaned for 40 days

If a female is born = uncleaned for 80 days

According to the commandments childbirth is a great and blessed event

According to the purpose of creation - to be multiplied

Torah teaches responsibilities for the child starts while he/ she still in the womb

The mother must be careful about what she eats

For a Hebrew woman preparation meant to be in prayer for her and her child and for the motherhood life to come

This creates bonding

Childbirth is a blessed event

The discharges associated with childbirth were to be treated as unclean

Uncleanness does not mean we are rejected by God

Nor does the sex of the child have anything to do with being accepted by the Lord

Why then, doe God tell us that a woman is unclean after having had a child?

1- Woman needs time with the recently born child- bonding

2- She needs to heal from the trauma - renewal

3- if no time to do these two, women will be obligated to continue wit the work expected of them in the Torah

4- regarding bonding: females need more time to bond with the mother but mature faster than boys - that is the reason for the 80 days rather than the 40 for boys

5- Suggest the woman is more susceptible to the effects of the curse

Genesis 3:16 NKJV

16 To the woman He said: “I will greatly multiply your sorrow and your conception; In pain you shall bring forth children; Your desire shall be for your husband, And he shall rule over you.”

This has nothing to do with men being better than women

But it relates more to the differences in their physical and emotional constitutions

Childbearing brings a promise:

1 Timothy 2:15 NKJV

15 Nevertheless she will be saved in childbearing if they continue in faith, love, and holiness, with self-control.

Psalm 51:5 NKJV

5 Behold, I was brought forth in iniquity, And in sin my mother conceived me.

Childbearing expresses the truth that a new born needs a Saviour

He as well and needs to learn how to walk in holiness as well

The Period that comes from birth requires a follow up with the walk

This is not different from Pesach to Tabernacles - we are born again but need to walk all the way to the end

Born impure the follow up process is to address both physical and spiritual cleanness

After childbearing the woman in rendered to be unclean to come into the temple

This is consistent with all the Torah regarding bodily emissions.

Body needs to be clean before being presented before the Lord

Spiritually birth has taken place under the curse that came from the disobedience of Eve in the garden - not her personal sin

But that she brings in another being who is prone to sin as the descendant of Adam

The same way we need to be cleaned, sanctified, made holy to be in the presence of the Lord

This is not about The Spirit of God living in us

This is about us living in the Kingdom of God, when Yeshua returns

Romans 5:12 NKJV

12 Therefore, just as through one man sin entered the world, and death through sin, and thus death spread to all men, because all sinned—

This is the reason she is required to offer a sin offering:

Leviticus 12:6 NKJV

6 ‘When the days of her purification are fulfilled, whether for a son or a daughter, she shall bring to the priest a lamb of the first year as a burnt offering, and a young pigeon or a turtledove as a sin offering, to the door of the tabernacle of meeting.

The offering is not to redeem the child’s soul but to atone for Adam’s curse

So that the blessings of the covenant can come upon him

Until he is of age to enter into the covenant by his own choice

Leviticus 12:6 NKJV

6 ‘When the days of her purification are fulfilled, whether for a son or a daughter, she shall bring to the priest a lamb of the first year as a burnt offering, and a young pigeon or a turtledove as a sin offering, to the door of the tabernacle of meeting.

The Lamb = Saviour to come the Lamb of God Yeshua

Dove = the Ruach of God’s presence - Holy Spirit that can transform a life from sin and death to everlasting life

A burn offering an aroma pleasing to God

This is what Mary did with Yeshua

Luke 2:21–22 NKJV

21 And when eight days were completed for the circumcision of the Child, His name was called Jesus, the name given by the angel before He was conceived in the womb.

22 Now when the days of her purification according to the law of Moses were completed, they brought Him to Jerusalem to present Him to the Lord

Our Torah Portion

Again, It is not Hansen’s disease but supernatural affliction

Devine warning

Punishment to those guilty of secret thing

First come negative thinking against a person

Then Lashon Hara

Or our need to say something good about ourselves

Or to feel good about ourselves

When in the deep recesses of our mind mankind attempts to justify or cover up his sin nature

Similarities between the words

TZARA’AT

Picture: Word Study Leper

Leprosy because of PRIDE or EVIL SPEACH

Leviticus 13:1–3 NKJV

1 And the Lord spoke to Moses and Aaron, saying:

2 “When a man has on the skin of his body a swelling, a scab, or a bright spot, and it becomes on the skin of his body like a leprous sore, then he shall be brought to Aaron the priest or to one of his sons the priests.

3 The priest shall examine the sore on the skin of the body; and if the hair on the sore has turned white, and the sore appears to be deeper than the skin of his body, it is a leprous sore. Then the priest shall examine him, and pronounce him unclean.

Numbers 12:1 NKJV

1 Then Miriam and Aaron spoke against Moses because of the Ethiopian woman whom he had married; for he had married an Ethiopian woman.

Numbers 12:9 NKJV

9 So the anger of the Lord was aroused against them, and He departed.

Speaks of the beard of a man or a woman

Leviticus 13:29 NKJV

29 “If a man or woman has a sore on the head or the beard,

Around the mouth

Proverbs 6:12–19 NKJV

12 A worthless person, a wicked man, Walks with a perverse mouth;

13 He winks with his eyes, He shuffles his feet, He points with his fingers;

14 Perversity is in his heart, He devises evil continually, He sows discord.

15 Therefore his calamity shall come suddenly; Suddenly he shall be broken without remedy.

16 These six things the Lord hates, Yes, seven are an abomination to Him:

17 A proud look, A lying tongue, Hands that shed innocent blood,

18 A heart that devises wicked plans, Feet that are swift in running to evil,

19 A false witness who speaks lies, And one who sows discord among brethren.

Isaiah 29:13 NKJV

13 Therefore the Lord said: “Inasmuch as these people draw near with their mouths And honor Me with their lips, But have removed their hearts far from Me, And their fear toward Me is taught by the commandment of men,

Matthew 15:8 NKJV

8 ‘These people draw near to Me with their mouth, And honor Me with their lips, But their heart is far from Me.

LASHON HARA

Exodus 4:6–8 NKJV

6 Furthermore the Lord said to him, “Now put your hand in your bosom.” And he put his hand in his bosom, and when he took it out, behold, his hand was leprous, like snow.

7 And He said, “Put your hand in your bosom again.” So he put his hand in his bosom again, and drew it out of his bosom, and behold, it was restored like his other flesh.

8 “Then it will be, if they do not believe you, nor heed the message of the first sign, that they may believe the message of the latter sign.

Leprosy like snow = judgement

Pride and Lashon Hara

Numbers 12:10 NKJV

10 And when the cloud departed from above the tabernacle, suddenly Miriam became leprous, as white as snow. Then Aaron turned toward Miriam, and there she was, a leper.

The cloud pulled back up/ withdrew - pride and evil speech exposed

Pride and Lashon Hara

2 Kings 5:27 NKJV

27 Therefore the leprosy of Naaman shall cling to you and your descendants forever.” And he went out from his presence leprous, as white as snow.

Naaman (an Aramean)

The idea you start with Pride and start saying things- then lie about having said something else, or not have said anything

Or our need to say something good about ourselves

Or to feel good about ourselves

When in the deep recesses of our mind mankind attempts to justify or cover up his sin nature

James 3:6–8 NKJV

6 And the tongue is a fire, a world of iniquity. The tongue is so set among our members that it defiles the whole body, and sets on fire the course of nature; and it is set on fire by hell.

7 For every kind of beast and bird, of reptile and creature of the sea, is tamed and has been tamed by mankind.

8 But no man can tame the tongue. It is an unruly evil, full of deadly poison.

Matthew 15:8–11 NKJV

8 ‘These people draw near to Me with their mouth, And honor Me with their lips, But their heart is far from Me.

9 And in vain they worship Me, Teaching as doctrines the commandments of men.’ ”

10 When He had called the multitude to Himself, He said to them, “Hear and understand:

11 Not what goes into the mouth defiles a man; but what comes out of the mouth, this defiles a man.”

We will see what the consequences of Leshon Hara and Pride are in our closing, later

May be accountable to the Holy Spirit and others for our tongue

Let us ponder on the consequences for something we have sown

Time to come back to the Lord before He comes

Leviticus 13:45–46 NKJV

45 “Now the leper on whom the sore is, his clothes shall be torn and his head bare; and he shall cover his mustache, and cry, ‘Unclean! Unclean!’

46 He shall be unclean. All the days he has the sore he shall be unclean. He is unclean, and he shall dwell alone; his dwelling shall be outside the camp.

Unclean means defile

Remain alone because we are unclean

Lepers had no choice but to be alone

He was to declare himself unclean

The Lord has very specific commandments on how to get a leper our of the assembly

Sin is like Tsara’at - makes the person unclean

As true believers we must chose to separate from what the heavenly Father deems unclean

And because it is very difficult for us to separate and be righteous, He made it possible for us - but we must follow - walk - do what He says

Day of cleansing

Leviticus 14:2 NKJV

2 “This shall be the law of the leper for the day of his cleansing: He shall be brought to the priest.

We believe in Yeshua the Messiah our High Priest - look forward to the official cleansing

We still live in the world but are not of the world

Hebrews 7:20–27 NKJV

20 And inasmuch as He was not made priest without an oath

21 (for they have become priests without an oath, but He with an oath by Him who said to Him: “The Lord has sworn And will not relent, ‘You are a priest forever According to the order of Melchizedek’ ”),

22 by so much more Jesus has become a surety of a better covenant.

23 Also there were many priests, because they were prevented by death from continuing.

24 But He, because He continues forever, has an unchangeable priesthood.

25 Therefore He is also able to save to the uttermost those who come to God through Him, since He always lives to make intercession for them.

26 For such a High Priest was fitting for us, who is holy, harmless, undefiled, separate from sinners, and has become higher than the heavens;

27 who does not need daily, as those high priests, to offer up sacrifices, first for His own sins and then for the people’s, for this He did once for all when He offered up Himself.

We need the sprinkling of our High Priest. Just like Peter - do not wash only my feet but bathe me

John 13:9 NKJV

9 Simon Peter said to Him, “Lord, not my feet only, but also my hands and my head!”

Later after this event he denies Him three times

Idea of Preparation for return - we may have to face some tribulations

Tribulations will perfect us- there is healing through the challenge

James 1:2–4 NKJV

2 My brethren, count it all joy when you fall into various trials,

3 knowing that the testing of your faith produces patience.

4 But let patience have its perfect work, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking nothing.

But our mouths get ahead of us - we may say we are willing to do this for Yeshua

But when the day comes we may find out we need to suffer greatly, then we may back away.

Because we do not know what we are talking about

It is like being a contortionist: putting your boot in your mouth - putting putting the money where your mouth is - or maybe the water

Then you realize you fall short

What do we do?

Get up - repent - try again - become humble

First recognize and acknowledge your shortcoming:

Isaiah 64:6 NKJV

6 But we are all like an unclean thing, And all our righteousnesses are like filthy rags; We all fade as a leaf, And our iniquities, like the wind, Have taken us away.

Let us consider the path we are taking

Sin separate us from Him

Isaiah 59:2 NKJV

2 But your iniquities have separated you from your God; And your sins have hidden His face from you, So that He will not hear.

Pride and Leshon Harar separate us from the Lord

Romans 3:23 NKJV

23 for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,

1 John 1:8 NKJV

8 If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us.

The righteous are aware that they depend on continued Teshuva/repentance

Teshuva = To return

We return by turning away from sin /sicknesses

King David knew the power of Teshuva

Yeshua also gave us this call to repentance

Luke 5:31–32 NKJV

31 Jesus answered and said to them, “Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick.

32 I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners, to repentance.”

We need to make sure we understand we cannot justify ourselves

We need to come to the realization that only He can justify us

If we do not deal with this disease that infects the body, the same way sin infects other people and cause other people to stumble

Matthew 15:18–19 NKJV

18 But those things which proceed out of the mouth come from the heart, and they defile a man.

19 For out of the heart proceed evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts, false witness, blasphemies.

We need a change of heart

Hebrews 12:14–16 NKJV

14 Pursue peace with all people, and holiness, without which no one will see the Lord:

15 looking carefully lest anyone fall short of the grace of God; lest any root of bitterness springing up cause trouble, and by this many become defiled;

16 lest there be any fornicator or profane person like Esau, who for one morsel of food sold his birthright.

This is Shalom peace we celebrate every Feast and Shabbat

A remembrance of our need to keep holy

Not to be defiled

A lot people in the body of Messiah do not realize they are dealing with this disease, as they are not versed in the Torah -the instructional manual.

We need to know Torah to recognize sin every time when we see it

This is not for us to diagnose who is sick, but to self-examine and seek for help if need be

We were called to be priests - the priest knew how to identify Tsara’at in a person

One thing is to be sick, and the other one is to be cleansed

Leviticus 14:1–6 NKJV

1 Then the Lord spoke to Moses, saying,

2 “This shall be the law of the leper for the day of his cleansing: He shall be brought to the priest.

3 And the priest shall go out of the camp, and the priest shall examine him; and indeed, if the leprosy is healed in the leper,

4 then the priest shall command to take for him who is to be cleansed two living and clean birds, cedar wood, scarlet, and hyssop.

5 And the priest shall command that one of the birds be killed in an earthen vessel over running water.

6 As for the living bird, he shall take it, the cedar wood and the scarlet and the hyssop, and dip them and the living bird in the blood of the bird that was killed over the running water.

Picture of two birds wood and scarlet- Leviticus chapter 14 verse 6

2 birds - one alive and the other dead suggests = when we speak negativity we are like a dead person

but when we speak life into something or others we are representing healing, a release to return to life

The leper lived in a perpetual state of death, treated as a corpse

The cleansing, is a picture of resurrection from death

Cedar wood and scarlet also mentioned in the process of purification

Some take the cedar as representation of Pride

The scarlet represents humility because the dye for the scarlet is made from a worm

Others see cedar as resistance to rot - meaning the leper has been set free from having to rot from the inside out - negative thinking does this

Still others see the cedar and scarlet as the symbols of the blood purification or life, since life is in the blood

The hyssop was used in Passover to keep the blood flowing and from coagulating while the children of Israel put the blood on the doorpost to protect Israel during the Pesach

Leviticus 15:31 NKJV

31 ‘Thus you shall separate the children of Israel from their uncleanness, lest they die in their uncleanness when they defile My tabernacle that is among them.

So the cedar, the scarlet and the hyssop were burned together with the red heifer to make the water of purification

Numbers 19:5–6 NKJV

5 Then the heifer shall be burned in his sight: its hide, its flesh, its blood, and its offal shall be burned.

6 And the priest shall take cedar wood and hyssop and scarlet, and cast them into the midst of the fire burning the heifer.

Physical manifestations are to be used as an example of our spiritual condition

Isaiah 42:6 NKJV

6 “I, the Lord, have called You in righteousness, And will hold Your hand; I will keep You and give You as a covenant to the people, As a light to the Gentiles,

In His divine purpose the Father gave us the gift of Torah which will be embodied by Yeshua.

He gave the covenant to Abraham as He chose him for His purpose.

And through his descendants He has promised to bless humanity:

Genesis 12:3 NKJV

3 I will bless those who bless you, And I will curse him who curses you; And in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed.”

Genesis 24:7 NKJV

7 The Lord God of heaven, who took me from my father’s house and from the land of my family, and who spoke to me and swore to me, saying, ‘To your descendants I give this land,’ He will send His angel before you, and you shall take a wife for my son from there.

SEED = זָרַע‎ (zā·rǎʿ) (zayin, resh, ayin)

Paul hyperlinks this verse in Galatians

Galatians 3:16 NKJV

16 Now to Abraham and his Seed were the promises made. He does not say, “And to seeds,” as of many, but as of one, “And to your Seed,” who is Christ.

Closing

Gideon - Abraham and Lot and the Feasts towards End Times

Remember the Passover is the start to the goal of Sukkot

Abraham Passover

Genesis 14:18–20 NKJV

18 Then Melchizedek king of Salem brought out bread and wine; he was the priest of God Most High.

19 And he blessed him and said: “Blessed be Abram of God Most High, Possessor of heaven and earth;

20 And blessed be God Most High, Who has delivered your enemies into your hand.” And he gave him a tithe of all.

Lot’s Passover

Genesis 19:1–3 NKJV

1 Now the two angels came to Sodom in the evening, and Lot was sitting in the gate of Sodom. When Lot saw them, he rose to meet them, and he bowed himself with his face toward the ground.

2 And he said, “Here now, my lords, please turn in to your servant’s house and spend the night, and wash your feet; then you may rise early and go on your way.” And they said, “No, but we will spend the night in the open square.”

3 But he insisted strongly; so they turned in to him and entered his house. Then he made them a feast, and baked unleavened bread, and they ate.

Passover verses Gideon

Judges 6:20–24 NKJV

20 The Angel of God said to him, “Take the meat and the unleavened bread and lay them on this rock, and pour out the broth.” And he did so.

21 Then the Angel of the Lord put out the end of the staff that was in His hand, and touched the meat and the unleavened bread; and fire rose out of the rock and consumed the meat and the unleavened bread. And the Angel of the Lord departed out of his sight.

22 Now Gideon perceived that He was the Angel of the Lord. So Gideon said, “Alas, O Lord God! For I have seen the Angel of the Lord face to face.”

23 Then the Lord said to him, “Peace be with you; do not fear, you shall not die.”

24 So Gideon built an altar there to the Lord, and called it The-Lord-Is-Peace. To this day it is still in Ophrah of the Abiezrites.

Barley -

Judges 7:13 NKJV

13 And when Gideon had come, there was a man telling a dream to his companion. He said, “I have had a dream: To my surprise, a loaf of barley bread tumbled into the camp of Midian; it came to a tent and struck it so that it fell and overturned, and the tent collapsed.”

He tests the warriors and the citizens of Israel - passover - to find out if they are all in

When we make sure we don’t get hurt in the battle - not taking sides, but playing it safe - not committing- apathy, waiting for the sure thing

Jesus said: depart from me I never knew you

Context of Abraham being known (yada- intimate relationship) and knowing how to pass this information of righteousness onto his children in contrast to Gideon

Abraham is willing

Gideon - elders of Sukkot - not all in -they were disciplined with thorns and briers (prickly stem) - judgement for not being commitment

Judges 8:16 NKJV

16 And he took the elders of the city, and thorns of the wilderness and briers, and with them he taught the men of Succoth.

Like the disciples:

The issue is they come back to Yeshua saying we cast out demons in your name:

Matthew 7:22–23 NKJV

22 Many will say to Me in that day, ‘Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Your name, cast out demons in Your name, and done many wonders in Your name?’

23 And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness!’

The issue is not following His word - obeying His law - lawlessness

We need to be doing what we understand we need to be doing - all in

If we do this, He will show us more

Not responsible for somebody else’s timeline.

But must be faithful with our own timeline, especially as we see the days coming for the Son of God to come back - not time to be apathetic - time to be all in

We are in a time of battle in our faith

The idea is to obey the commandments everyday

Commandments for everyone and for everyday

The opportunity to cast out demons, heal somebody may occur occasionally

But the opportunity to obey the law is every day.

Keeping the commandments is an expression of the law

Deuteronomy 6:4–6 NKJV

4 “Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one!

5 You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your strength.

6 “And these words which I command you today shall be in your heart.

John 14:15 NKJV

15 “If you love Me, keep My commandments.

This is the centre of the Gospel in His righteousness.

The garden / kingdom is not for someone who wants to do his own thing -like in our previous Torah portion with Nadab and Abihu

Casting out demons and healing the sick is not a prerequisite to enter the kingdom/ garden

Obeying the commandments is the prerequisite to enter the city

Matthew 7:24–28 NKJV

24 “Therefore whoever hears these sayings of Mine, and does them, I will liken him to a wise man who built his house on the rock:

25 and the rain descended, the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house; and it did not fall, for it was founded on the rock.

26 “But everyone who hears these sayings of Mine, and does not do them, will be like a foolish man who built his house on the sand:

27 and the rain descended, the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house; and it fell. And great was its fall.”

28 And so it was, when Jesus had ended these sayings, that the people were astonished at His teaching,

Two kinds of people:

Those on the rock

Those on which the rock falls onto

To Know God in the positive sense is intimate love through obedience

Negative sense - discipline

Lot - Sodom and Gomorrah - passover celebration - still linked to the world - destruction at the time of Pesach -something about Sodom and Gomorrah that made it difficult to leave

Gideon

Judges 8:33–35 NKJV

33 So it was, as soon as Gideon was dead, that the children of Israel again played the harlot with the Baals, and made Baal-Berith their god.

34 Thus the children of Israel did not remember the Lord their God, who had delivered them from the hands of all their enemies on every side;

35 nor did they show kindness to the house of Jerubbaal (Gideon) in accordance with the good he had done for Israel.

But Abraham finds out about Lot Sodom of Gomorrah - he was in the knowyada, so that he can tell his children about this - passing down the righteousness

The same when we celebrated Passover, we tell our children what happened - passing down the righteousness of the Lord

The pattern seems to be a “revealing of destruction to the children of Abraham” - there is an awareness that tribulation is coming - about to descent

Lot delays

Abraham is willing

Gideon is willing - Israel delays

Lot even offers his daughters in order to delay -

He knows fire and brimstone is coming

but there is something about Sodom he does not want to let go

The same for some believers - one foot in with Yeshua for salvation, but not all in with all His plan because he can’t let go of the world. Let go of the world

The cycle of the Feast reveals to us what to expect: salvation, sanctification in terms of punishment and destruction

2 peoples:

the children of Yeshua living because Yeshua lives among us

the children who still want the world and do not include themselves in the story

It isn’t until you own the story that you will very quickly lose your citizenship.

So with Gideon, we have children of Abraham who did not want to behave as citizens who also own the story - they do not behave as Abraham is alive

Many christians behave as though Jesus is not alive

Song of Solomon 2:17 NKJV

17 Until the day breaks And the shadows flee away, Turn, my beloved, And be like a gazelle Or a young stag Upon the mountains of Bether.

From Passover

to the Return of Yeshua

Cool of the day = sunset

Shadows flee = our perception sees the sun going down fast / although it is the same rate of movement as it has been during the day

Turn - the world is going to turn around regarding the feasts and Israel

Turning - --when Messiah returns the movement between the thrones of Judgment and Mercy

He will judge from the seat of judgement and from the seat of mercy - the tabernacle Mishkan / mercy seat

You want to be judged from the mercy seat

We need to know/yada the sound of the trumpet

Paul

1 Corinthians 15:52 NKJV

52 in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed.

Psalm 89:15 NKJV

15 Blessed are the people who know the joyful sound! They walk, O Lord, in the light of Your countenance.

the word in here is Teruah / blast of the trumpet

Good news for the believer/ war for the enemy

With the sound we are concealed in His tabernacle

Psalm 27:5–6 NKJV

5 For in the time of trouble He shall hide me in His pavilion; In the secret place of His tabernacle He shall hide me; He shall set me high upon a rock.

6 And now my head shall be lifted up above my enemies all around me; Therefore I will offer sacrifices of joy in His tabernacle; I will sing, yes, I will sing praises to the Lord.

From Passover

to the Return of Yeshua

Sukkah - Sukkot - all in / - all the ones who were in - Passover to Sukkot - bookends

7 months from Passover to Sukkot

The feasts are secret hiding place - He will secret you in the secret - satar: yistireni and b’seter

Matthew chapter 6 refers to Him and the Father in the secret place

Tazria

Now the root word of Metzorah (the leper afflicted) Tzara’at (the leprosy affliction) is TZARA = זרע ( zayin, resh, ayin) = leper (afflicted) leprosy (affliction) SEED

Leviticus 14:1–2 NKJV

1 Then the Lord spoke to Moses, saying,

2 “This shall be the law of the leper for the day of his cleansing: He shall be brought to the priest.

7665 צָרַע‎ (ṣā·rǎʿ): v.; ≡ Str 6879; TWOT 1971—see 5211.5, 5211.6, 7653.5 (qal pass.) see 7653.5;11 James Swanson, Dictionary of Biblical Languages with Semantic Domains : Hebrew (Old Testament) (Oak Harbor: Logos Research Systems, Inc., 1997).

The same as

Revelation 9:1–5 NKJV

1 Then the fifth angel sounded: And I saw a star fallen from heaven to the earth. To him was given the key to the bottomless pit.

2 And he opened the bottomless pit, and smoke arose out of the pit like the smoke of a great furnace. So the sun and the air were darkened because of the smoke of the pit.

3 Then out of the smoke locusts came upon the earth. And to them was given power, as the scorpions of the earth have power.

4 They were commanded not to harm the grass of the earth, or any green thing, or any tree, but only those men who do not have the seal of God on their foreheads.

5 And they were not given authority to kill them, but to torment them for five months. Their torment was like the torment of a scorpion when it strikes a man.

Revelation 9:11 NKJV

11 And they had as king over them the angel of the bottomless pit, whose name in Hebrew is Abaddon, but in Greek he has the name Apollyon.

Abaddon

3 Ἀβαδδών (Abaddōn), ὁ (ho): n.pr.masc.; ≡ DBLHebr 9–11; Str 3; TDNT 1.4—LN 93.2 Abaddon (Rev 9:11+)

Deuteronomy 7:20 NKJV

20 Moreover the Lord your God will send the hornet among them until those who are left, who hide themselves from you, are destroyed.

Exodus 23:28 NKJV

28 And I will send hornets before you, which shall drive out the Hivite, the Canaanite, and the Hittite from before you.

Hornet = צִרְעָה‎ (ṣir·ʿā(h)

7667 צִרְעָה‎ (ṣir·ʿā(h)): n.fem.; ≡ Str 6880; TWOT 1971b—1. LN 25.251–25.269 panic, i.e., a state of fearful confusion (Ex 23:28; Dt 7:20; Jos 24:12+), note: some sources give similar translations that have other slightly different focuses, cf., (nrsv) pestilence; (Tanakh) plague; (neb, reb) panic; (njb) confusion; (KB, Holladay) depression, discouragement; 2. LN 4.47–4.50 (coll.) wasp, aggressive stinging insect

Almost identical, but you only add het to make the root famine

Supernatural confusion and blindness.

It will torment you

Cut fruit - reproduction

Revelation 9:21 NKJV

21 And they did not repent of their murders or their sorceries or their sexual immorality or their thefts.

These people thought they had found a place where God will not be

They thought God will not judge them - sound familiar

These are the people Moses mentions here:

Deuteronomy 29:14–21 NKJV

14 “I make this covenant and this oath, not with you alone,

15 but with him who stands here with us today before the Lord our God, as well as with him who is not here with us today

16 (for you know that we dwelt in the land of Egypt and that we came through the nations which you passed by,

17 and you saw their abominations and their idols which were among them—wood and stone and silver and gold);

18 so that there may not be among you man or woman or family or tribe, whose heart turns away today from the Lord our God, to go and serve the gods of these nations, and that there may not be among you a root bearing bitterness or wormwood;

19 and so it may not happen, when he hears the words of this curse, that he blesses himself in his heart, saying, ‘I shall have peace, even though I follow the dictates of my heart’—as though the drunkard could be included with the sober.

20 “The Lord would not spare him; for then the anger of the Lord and His jealousy would burn against that man, and every curse that is written in this book would settle on him, and the Lord would blot out his name from under heaven.

21 And the Lord would separate him from all the tribes of Israel for adversity, according to all the curses of the covenant that are written in this Book of the Law,

Mark 7:21–22 NKJV

21 For from within, out of the heart of men, proceed evil thoughts, adulteries, fornications, murders,

22 thefts, covetousness, wickedness, deceit, lewdness, an evil eye, blasphemy, pride, foolishness.

Matthew 12:34–35 NKJV

34 Brood of vipers! How can you, being evil, speak good things? For out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks.

35 A good man out of the good treasure of his heart brings forth good things, and an evil man out of the evil treasure brings forth evil things.

These are the ones who say He is not going to judge me

He is not going to expose it

Let me just remind you of what happened to Israel in the time of Gideon

Judges 6:3 NKJV

3 So it was, whenever Israel had sown, Midianites would come up; also Amalekites and the people of the East would come up against them.

But Yeshua ---

Luke 7:22 NKJV

22 Jesus answered and said to them, “Go and tell John the things you have seen and heard: that the blind see, the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, the poor have the gospel preached to them.

What do we do until He returns?

If you really believe Yeshua is Messiah then this last verse should make sense to you:

Isaiah 56:1–2 NKJV

1 Thus says the Lord: “Keep justice, and do righteousness, For My salvation is about to come, And My righteousness to be revealed.

2 Blessed is the man who does this, And the son of man who lays hold on it; Who keeps from defiling the Sabbath, And keeps his hand from doing any evil.”

Shabbat Shalom