Sermon Tone Analysis

The Hand of God

The historical interpretation of the sixth letter of the Hebrew Alef-Beit speaks of the power of God in Creation.

It is as a single line of light, from the infinite source of all that exist, God Almighty Himself.

According to Rabbi Yitzchak Ginsburgh, “This property of the letter vav, in its usage in Hebrew, is referred to as vav hachibur, ‘the vav of connection” – ‘and’.

The first vav of the Torah, found in Genesis 1:1, ‘In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth,’ - serves to join spirit and matter, heaven and the earth, throughout creation.”

So, as the Psalmist speaks of the steadfast love of God and the promise of His salvation, he trust in the eternal Word of God and in this he walks (halak) returning to God love for Him and His commandments (metvoh).

In serving God according to His ways heaven and earth are connected by the power of the love of God Almighty.

In Hebrew, the vav serves the function of inversion.

It inverts the apparent tense of a verb to its opposite.

What was the future becomes the past when coming from the mouth of Adonai.

And what was not now becomes what is and shall be.

In Genesis, there was nothing but darkness, “And God said…and there was light.

This power from the mouth of God to draw from the future into the past is the essence of teshuvah (repentance and turning back to God) because of His great love.

When one returns to God, because of love, the desire to close the gap in the relationship becomes the kavanah (motivation) for running back to Him with a greater passion than ever before (Ginsburgh, Rabbi Yitzchak; The Alef-Beit, 1991; Gal Einai Publications; Northvale, New Jersey).

In relation to Jesus Christ, the vav represents absolute truth.

The truth that laid the foundations of the earth and holds all things together.

A lie can hold nothing for it sooner or later crumbles.

If you are living a complete lie or a half truth, your life and peace cannot be sustained.

Moral compromise is always unsustainable.

Truth is the only sure foundation.

There is and can be only one truth that holds all things together.

You must build your entire life on nothing but the truth and the whole truth.

This is the only way to stay connected to the Father.

The word vav (ואו) means “a hook” or “nail”.

The curtains of the Tabernacle were suspended to pillars by “hooks”.

The coverings and walls were anchored to the ground with nails [vav].

These represent our connection to God, our staying grounded, anchored, connected , sustained through the revelation of His Son Jesus Christ who was hung by nails on a tree for your redemption.

In Hebrew the word “Law” (ḥōq חוק), relating to man’s laws, comes from the root ḥāqaq חקק, meaning “to engrave”.

When these engraved letters of God’s Law (Torah תּוֹרָה) are engraved on our hearts, they point us to the will of God.

It is then that the revelation of God becomes truth in our hearts as He desired from the beginning, “I am God your God…” (Ginsburgh, Rabbi Yitzchak; The Alef-Beit, 1991; Gal Einai Publications; Northvale, New Jersey).

“The Torah of God is perfect, restoring the soul.

The testimony of God is sure, making wise the simple.

The statutes of God are right, rejoicing the heart.

The commandments of God are bright, enlightening the eyes.

The fear of God is pure, enduring forever.

The judgments of God are true and are righteous altogether” (Ginsburgh, Rabbi Yitzchak; The Alef-Beit, 1991; Gal Einai Publications; Northvale, New Jersey)

“The Law of God links us to the will of God.

This is the essence of vav hachibur (connecting our past and future to the will of God)” (Ginsburgh).

Our past is forgiven, but the amazing and redeeming work of God is remembered with a thankful heart.

We are then given a clean slate and a new future.

The Word of God links us in relationship to Him like a covenant marriage relationship between a biological man and a biological woman.

Tradition states that God wrote the first set of tablets by His hand [yud] using His second finger, the finger upon which a Jewish bride accepts her betrothal ring.

This bring us to the letter zayin (ז).

The initial letters of zakar זכר, “male,” and nequbah נקבה, “female,” spell zan(זן), “species” or “gender.”

Thus, in both its form and its name, the letter zayin represents the covenant marital relationship of man to wife as in Genesis.

It’s root word also means that which sustains in the context of being a support in one’s life.

You can understand why Ha Satan seeks to pervert not just marriage but even gender.

As well, the form of the zayin resembles both a golden scepter and the crown on the head of a king.

Thus, as stated of the wife in Proverbs 12:4.

Let me tell you that my bones are healthy and I am blessed with the most excellent wife.

And if you are as blessed to get a Barham girl as a wife, you have a most precious crown.

The word zayin (זין) means a “weapon”, especially “a sword”.

The sword is a weapon but it was also used to cut bread on the battlefield.

Jesus was the Bread of Life pierced with a sword as the water from His side flowed for the cleansing of your sins at the shedding of His blood.

“The Sages taught that each day when we say, 'Holy Holy Holy is God the Lord of Hosts, the whole world is full of His glory,' we make three crowns for God.

God keeps one crown and returns two to us.

The two are that we might 'hear and do His will' corresponding to the revelation of infinite and unconditional love for God.

In this we become fitting vessels able to experience God’s Sanctity” (Ginsburgh, Rabbi Yitzchak; The Alef-Beit, 1991; Gal Einai Publications; Northvale, New Jersey).

It has been said that, “The candle of God is the soul of man.”

You are to be the light of Christ to this world.

Which brings us to Chet (ח).

Chet is the letter of “life” (חיימ) from the root chey (חיה).

Significant to this word for life is the letter chet.

We see it’s source in Genesis 1:2.

The Sages taught that the vav and zayin, from the mouth of God in Creation, come together in past and future creating the “hovering” of the Spirit of God over the face of the deep.

They believed that the power of God through His hovering Spirit referred to the soul of Mashiach (משיח: שמ חי, “the living name”- The name of Messiah).

(Ginsburgh 1991)

Thus, the Psalmist states in Psalms 119:57 “The Lord is my portion.”

“The word chet means (חית) means both 'life' (חיות), and 'fear' (as in חתת אלקימ, 'the fear of God').

Life and fear are related, as stated in Proverbs 19:23 'The fear of the LORD leads [is the source of] to life, and whoever has it rests satisfied; he will not be visited by harm.’”

(Ginsburgh, Rabbi Yitzchak; The Alef-Beit, 1991; Gal Einai Publications; Northvale, New Jersey).

The Psalmist put it this way in Psalms 119:64:

His steadfast love and statutes lead the Psalms in 119 to be expressed in the essence of the next letter Tet (ט).

The tet (ט) is the first letter of the word tov (טוב), which means “good”.

In Genesis 1 God created the light and saw that it was “good”.

The tet resembles a vessel with an inverted rim, a vessel containing the blessing of peace.

Peace is the only vessel capable of containing a blessing (as the Priestly Blessing concludes” “…and He shall grant you peace”).

We were given a choice between good and evil.

The only real goodness comes from God.

All that was good came from God.

But man chose that which was not good.

God then gave us His covenant ways and again giving us a choice between life and death, righteousness and unrighteousness.

Thus, the Psalmist declares in Psalms 119: 65-68.

In Psalm 119:72, he speaks of the “Law of God’s mouth.”

The Tet (ט) in Hebrew is often considered relative to the nine months of pregnancy as it is the ninth letter of the Alef-Beit.

It reflects the divine designed process of that which grows within.

Thus, what is in your inner most being, or your heart, will be revealed in due time.

This brings us to our final letter in this session, Yod (י).

This section of Psalms 119 begins with:

The letter yod holds the numerical value of ten.

There were Ten Commandments given to us.

There were ten plagues used to deliver Israel from Egypt.

There are ten days of repentance leading up to Yom Kippur.

The Rabbi’s state that there were ten utterances of creation.

And you were designed with ten toes and ten fingers for a reason.

Throughout Leviticus God states, “The tenth shall be Holy for God.”

Your are to be holy for God.

It is said that the yod’s shape is the “forming point” creating a path by which man should live.

As such the Psalmist declares:

The word yod (יוד) means “a hand” or “to thrust.”