Modern Fulfilling of Prophecy

HaYovel from Zac on Vimeo.

RE: Jennifer Knapp

Most of you by now are probably aware of the "coming out" of popular "Christian" music artist Jennifer Knapp.

I thought this blog post by Pastor Bob Botsford (never heard of him before until I read his post concerning Jen), was a good, balanced post, though I have to say that what we are seeing in the "Christian" world concerning the coming out/exposing of many of it's beloved artists, and the hypocrisy of the Evangelical community and it's open stance against homosexuality while being consumed in sin itself (rampant divorce, adultery, etc.) is telling of the times. A "Church" that has rejected God's word, and wallowed in it's continued downward spiral are now reaping what it has sown.

One last comment. While I agree with the second to the last paragraph in Pastor Bob's post in that sexual sin is by no means on par with eating shellfish, etc., I do not agree with his statement that the NT brings out a "new level of understanding" regarding them (though I am aware that much of Christendom would agree with him).

When Yeshua returns, will He find faith on the earth?!

Commandments or traditions?

"He answered and said unto them, Well hath Esaias prophesied of you hypocrites, as it is written, This people honoureth me with [their] lips, but their heart is far from me. Howbeit in vain do they worship me, teaching [for] doctrines the commandments of men. For laying aside the commandment of God, ye hold the tradition of men, [as] the washing of pots and cups: and many other such like things ye do." - Mark 7:6-8

I'm sure that many reading this would be familiar with the passage, as much as they would understand that this statement was made by Yeshua to the Pharisees, a first century sect within Judaism, in the presence of His (Yeshua's) disciples. Yeshua was responding to an accusation made by the Pharisees that His disciples were basically in the wrong because they ate some grain (basically bread) without having washed their hands first. If you read the passage (Mark 7:1-23), you will get a much better understanding of the whole context of the dispute - I do not want to take the time to flesh it all out right now so that I can get to the issue I want to point out. (BTW, I do not recommend that you read it in the NIV, nor in the ESV, because I believe they slaughter the translation of this passage, particularly in vs. 19!)

One of the favorite labels, or accusations that Christians like to ascribe to other Christians when they feel that the other is being too strict with their own life, or with another is..."Pharisee." It is the best way that many feel they can get another Christian to "back off", so-to-speak, or, to discredit the alleged "Pharisee" to others. Now, I do believe that with "right judgment" (cf. Lev. 19:35; John 7:24), people that are "Pharisaical" can be identified. However, I also think that the "Pharisee" label is way to often employed. And one area that is often the situation for accusation is in the case of holidays/holy days. There has long been debate over the issue of what day/days are biblical/non-biblical.

Without getting into specifics here, let me simply ask a few questions: Why do you celebrate the days, and, or, times that you do? Where did/do they come from? How did they develop? Are they simply traditions of men, or do they come from the scriptures? And last but not least...are you sure that God is pleased with them?

In time to come I hope to flesh this out more, but in the mean time I hope you will take the time to begin to ask some very pointed questions of yourself, and what it is that you believe. If you truly care about what God has to say about it in His word, are you willing to really prove your beliefs and examine yourself (1 Thess. 5:21; 2 Cor. 13:5 respectively)? Are you following the scriptures, or the traditions of men...traditions that are not harmless, but are in fact contrary to His word?

Do you know?

Holocaust Memorial Day - Today

I'd like to mention that today is Holocaust Memorial Day, so if you have a moment, visit the link I have on the left side labeled "Yad Vashem" - a link that takes you to the official Holocaust Memorial website.

Long Time - No Post

I'm sorry that I haven't posted in a while - work ran dry where I live so I had to go out of town for a month and a half. I hope to post something substantial soon - in the meantime, I have added a new website link to the "Teaching Websites" section. The ministry is called "Shatter the Darkness", and is the ministry of Pastor Russ Dizdar. I want to warn you that at first glance, you might be freaked out by his website. His ministry deals with confronting the satanic agenda in all of it's forms. You must listen to his teachings and read his writings before you make any judgment calls based on the website design and titles of much of his material. I've been somewhat following his ministry for approx. 2 years now, and have learned some very disturbing, but I believe, important information from him. For a brief bio of Russ, you can go here.

Sycamore: The 9/11 Tragedy Movie

Several months ago I posted a link to an article at HolyBibleProphecy.com called "Sycamore: The 9/11 Tragedy, where a very powerful argument is presented to show that the 9/11 events were indeed judgment from God - a kind of warning judgment that if we (America) do not repent, worse judgment is coming.



Well, the movie version is now available. I will provide the link below with this disclaimer -linking to this movie is not necessarily an endorsement by me of everything at Holy Bible Prophecy, or even the political views of the film makers. However, I DO agree with the basic message of the movie.



The movie can be viewed here:

http://www.youtube.com/user/ElliottNesch#grid/user/28B113985103761A

Allusions In Numbers

It is no secret that the Tenakh ("Old Testament") uses numbers symbolically - most readers of the bible are familiar with the frequent use of the number 7 for example. In fact, there is a method of bible study called "gematria", which is the study of numerics in he bible. While I DO believe there is some merit to numerical study in the scriptures, I am very cautious, as one could really come to some bizarre conclusions, hence, I don't particularly follow gematria per se, but rather, I take note of common numerical themes which are demonstrably in the biblical text.

In the first chapter of Matthew, we read of the genealogy of Yeshua. Matthews genealogy is interesting, because he starts at Abraham, and counts it in such a way as to achieve a certain numeric outcome. The verse reads as follows: "So all the generations from Abraham to David are fourteen generations; and from David until the carrying away into Babylon are fourteen generations; and from the carrying away into Babylon unto Christ are fourteen generations." Matt. 1:17

Three times Matthew draws out the number fourteen (7x2) in referring to Yeshua's genealogy. Why was this number so important to Matthew? One of the reasons is readily seen if you understand the link that Matthew is seeking to point out to the reader between Yeshua, and His Messianic link to David.

David was anointed King of Israel by Samuel the Prophet in 1 Samuel ch. 16. Of course, he didn't actually take the office of King until many years later. In 2 Samuel ch. 7, David is given a promise by YHVH that his "throne" would be "established for ever" (spec. vs. 16). Without getting into all of the details concerning the issue, I will just point out that, both within Judaism and Christianity, it is understood that the Messiah would be the King of Israel, sitting on the throne of David, His Patrilineal Ancestor.

So, with that quick (very quick!) lesson, let's understand Matthews desire to point out the relevance of Yeshua's genealogy to the fact that He is the Messiah of Israel, via His link to David. The numeric value of David's name happens to be fourteen (David's name in Hebrew is comprised of the letters 'dalet', 'vav', and another 'dalet'. The numeric value of the letter 'dalet' is 4. the numeric value of the letter 'vav' is 6. so with two 'dalet's' and a 'vav', we have fourteen.).

This link between the numeric value of David's name, and the way that Matthew breaks Yeshua's genealogy into three sets of fourteen has been pointed out before by many bible teachers. I simply wanted to explain it so that my next point would have a backdrop that made sense.

This weeks Torah portion is called "T'rumah", and encompasses Exodus 25:1 to Exodus 27:19. This portion begins with the receiving of offerings from the people of Israel for the purpose of constructing the Tabernacle, as well as the various "furnishings" that would go with it. The first three items that we read about are the "Ark" ("of the covenant" as it came to be known), the "Mercy seat", and the "Table" ("of shewbread"). Each item came with specific instructions as to how they were to be built, including the exact size of the item. Now what I really want to get to is the size of these three items. We read in Ex. ch. 25 the following, concerning the actual dimensions of the "ark", "mercy seat", and "table", respectively: "They shall make an ark of acacia wood. Two cubits and a half shall be its length, a cubit and a half its breadth, and a cubit and a half its height...You shall make a mercy seat of pure gold. Two cubits and a half shall be its length, and a cubit and a half its breadth...You shall make a table of acacia wood. Two cubits shall be its length, a cubit its breadth, and a cubit and a half its height" (Ex. 25:10,17,23 - ESV).

Notice that the total size of the ark is 5.5 cubits. The mercy seat comes out to 4.0 cubits. The table ends up being 4.5 cubits. When these three are added together we get a total of 14 cubits!

The symbolism of these three pieces of "furniture" are significant indeed, when viewed from a Messianic perspective, and in light of the Apostolic writings ("New Testament"), however that is not the scope nor purpose of this post. I simply wanted to point out that the measurements of the three first items listed in Ex. 25 equal 14, a number associated with David, the King of Israel, and, according to Matthews genealogy of Yeshua, the "son of David" who is to assume the throne in the future.

I have by no means exhausted the meaning and symbolism of this in my own study (which I will continue to do), and even less so in this post. I merely wanted to share these simple correlations here, and hopefully provoke others out there to examine it in more detail. Hopefully together, we can gain a deeper understanding of the scriptures that will continue to equip us in the knowledge and understanding of God's Holy, AWESOME word!

Be blessed in Yeshua our King!