“We accept the responsibility for…

…offerings for appointed feasts…”

Nehemiah 10:33c

Last time we looked at Passover and The Feast of Unleavened Bread, the first appointed festivals commanded to Moses. Today we will visit the next two in detail.

Let us begin with the Offering the First fruits, listed next in our Leviticus chapter from last time:

The Lord said to Moses, “Speak to the Israelites and say to them: ‘When you enter the land I am going to give you and you reap its harvest, bring to the priest a sheaf of the first (reshith – chief, beginning, choicest, finest, foremost; from rosh – head, rank in order, master, topmost) grain you harvest (qatsiyr – harvest from qatsar – severed, to reap, mourn, cut down, grieve). 

He is to wave the sheaf before the Lord so it will be accepted on your behalf (ratson – favor, goodwill, acceptance, delight, desire); the priest is to wave it on the day after the Sabbath. On the day you wave the sheaf, you must sacrifice as a burnt offering to the Lord a lamb a year old without defect, together with its grain offering of two-tenths of an ephah of the finest flour mixed with olive oil—a food offering (ishsheh – an offering made my fire) presented to the Lord, a pleasing aroma—and its drink offering of a quarter of a hin of wine. 

You must not eat any bread, or roasted or new grain, until the very day you bring this offering to your God. This is to be a lasting ordinance for the generations to come, wherever you live.”

Leviticus 23:9-14

So as soon as our Israelites are out of Egypt, out of the desert, and settled in the Promised Land, they have their instructions for how to honor God with their harvest. Interesting, huh? Why do you think that is?

I have an initial suspicion. After watching a miraculous passover by the angel of death, a change of heart from a hard-hearted Pharaoh, a sea separated by the Hand of God when his heart changed back, and bread – just enough for the day – falling from the sky in the desert, I do believe our beloved Israelites, after working their new fields (previously tended by others), would be temped just like me: they would gather in their first harvest, and somehow believe they were the reason it grew.

God is good, is He not? He put it right in the instructions that as soon as their first produce came, they were to wave it before Him. To remember who makes the sun shine on the righteous and unrighteous alike. The Creator of the fields and rain, the seed bearing plants and every animal on ground and sky.

They weren’t to even eat of the grain – in any form – until they had brought the first fruits and offered them to God. In doing so, they would not only remind themselves of Yehovah-Jirah, their Provider, but the sheaf would be accepted before God as the priest waved it.

Accept here is ratson – favor, goodwill, acceptance, delight, desire. So why would God need to accept and delight in the people’s harvest?

Well, since He’s relentlessly after our hearts, likely it had to do with the surrender of it. Anything can become our idol, but productivity and results are particularly tantalizing. We feel we have worked, therefore we have worth. Our product speaks for itself and we are willing to protect it (and therefore our identity) whatever the cost.

But what if we bowed and offered the work of our hands – and any harvest – to Him? Seems to me it would look a lot more like that verse in Habbakuk:

Though the fig tree does not bud
    and there are no grapes on the vines,
though the olive crop fails
    and the fields produce no food,
though there are no sheep in the pen
    and no cattle in the stalls,
yet I will rejoice in the Lord,
    I will be joyful in God my Savior.

Habakkuk 3:17-19

I was struck by the Hebrew definition for harvest: qatsiyr, from qatsar – severed, to reap, mourn, cut down, grieve. Our cycles of life – every season, each birth, all seed planting, dying, blooming – speaks of first mourning. Mourning what we let go of, grieving what must die in order to live, allowing the Vinedresser to severe branches and call it pruning. Yes, it yields all the more, each of these processes. I’m just grateful for the Hebrew which points to truth of the emotion involved.

As long as we’re talking about death and resurrection, did that phrase “first fruits” ring any bells to New Testament ears?

But Christ has indeed been raised from the dead, the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep. For since death came through a man, the resurrection of the dead comes also through a man. For as in Adam all die, so in Christ all will be made alive. But each in turn: Christ, the firstfruits; then, when he comes, those who belong to him.

1 Corinthians 15:20-23

The order of Passover, Feast of Unleavened Bread, then Offering of First Fruits is remarkable. I remember first learning about it in this study as I watched John lean against the Savior at the Passover meal.

First, the Passover Lamb is put to death. The next day, beginning the Feast of Unleavened Bread – bread without leaven or spoilage – the sinless Lamb is buried. Then at the Offering of First Fruits comes the resurrection of the Messiah. And that’s not all…

The next festival in our Leviticus 23 passage is all tangled up with the Offering of First Fruits. It’s called the Feast of Weeks, or Shavuot. The Israelites were to count off seven weeks from the day they waved their first fruits, then celebrate Shavuot.

“Shavuot…falls seven weeks after Passover (6 Sivan), at the end of the barley harvest and the beginning of the wheat harvest [May-June on Gregorian calendar]. The Bible (Deut. 16:10) describes this…as the occasion on which new grain and new fruits are offered to the priests in the Temple. (Source)

From Leviticus:

“‘From the day after the Sabbath, the day you brought the sheaf of the wave offering, count off seven full weeks. Count off fifty days up to the day after the seventh Sabbath, and then present an offering of new grain to the Lord.

From wherever you live, bring two loaves made of two-tenths of an ephah of the finest flour, baked with yeast, as a wave offering of firstfruits to the Lord. Present with this bread seven male lambs, each a year old and without defect, one young bull and two rams. They will be a burnt offering to the Lord, together with their grain offerings and drink offerings—a food offering, an aroma pleasing to the Lord. Then sacrifice one male goat for a sin offering and two lambs, each a year old, for a fellowship offering.

The priest is to wave the two lambs before the Lord as a wave offering, together with the bread of the firstfruits. They are a sacred offering to the Lord for the priest. On that same day you are to proclaim a sacred assembly and do no regular work. This is to be a lasting ordinance for the generations to come, wherever you live. When you reap the harvest of your land, do not reap to the very edges of your field or gather the gleanings of your harvest. Leave them for the poor and for the foreigner residing among you. I am the Lord your God.’”

Leviticus 23:15-22

Did you notice how many days they were to count until they were to present the offering of new grain? Fifty. And do you know the word for 50 (or 5) in Greek? Pente. Sound familiar?

When the day of Pentecost came, they were all together in one place. Suddenly a sound like the blowing of a violent wind came from heaven and filled the whole house where they were sitting.

Acts 2:1-2

So we have the resurrection of Jesus on the Offering of First fruits, then fifty days later, His disciples were clothed from on high by His Spirit. I love that God doesn’t waste a good gathering of His people. The masses were in Jerusalem when He came in flesh to be sacrificed. And they were gathered once again for Feast of Weeks – Pentecost – when He showed up again. Brings particular significance when juxtaposed with the Deuteronomy passage:

Then celebrate the Festival of Weeks to the Lord your God by giving a freewill offering in proportion to the blessings the Lord your God has given you. And rejoice before the Lord your God at the place he will choose as a dwelling for his Name—you, your sons and daughters, your male and female servants, the Levites in your towns, and the foreigners, the fatherless and the widows living among you…

Deuteronomy 16:10-12

The Spirit coming at Pentecost showed us where He chose as a dwelling for His Name – us. Sons, daughters, workers, helpers, foreigners, fatherless, widows. Us. He has chosen the human heart to dwell. May we never get over it. May we celebrate with abandon, a feast of His goodness.

And may we never leave out the last instructions for the Feast of Weeks:

“You shall not reap the very edges…leave them for the poor and for the foreigner residing among you.”

Why?

“I am the LORD your God.”

“We accept the responsibility for…

…offerings for appointed feasts…”

Nehemiah 10:33c

Last time we looked into some specifics about the offerings for Sabbaths and New Moon celebrations for which the group vowed to take responsibility. Today we will look at two more feasts in detail.

The phrase in today’s verse is “appointed feasts.” The Hebrew for appointed is moed – appointed time, place, or meeting; appointment, definite time, fixed festival, set time, appointed sign, solemn feast, an assembly (as convened for a definite purpose, season).

These were the feasts God’s people had been commanded to observe at the same time each year. Leviticus 23 spells out each of these set festivals. We’ll start with the second one first.

The Festival of Unleavened Bread is intertwined with Passover in our Leviticus 23 verse. So we’ll first look at a more detailed description in Exodus 12:

“Celebrate the Festival of Unleavened Bread, because it was on this very day that I brought your divisions out of Egypt. Celebrate this day as a lasting ordinance for the generations to come. In the first month you are to eat bread made without yeast, from the evening of the fourteenth day until the evening of the twenty-first day. For seven days no yeast is to be found in your houses. And anyone, whether foreigner or native-born, who eats anything with yeast in it must be cut off from the community of Israel. Eat nothing made with yeast. Wherever you live, you must eat unleavened bread.”

Exodus 12:17-20

The preparation for Passover includes removing this leaven. “To this very day, this regulation is observed with rigor. Before the day of Passover, the observant family spends weeks cleaning house…Breadcrumbs under the refrigerator are sought out and eliminated. Coat pockets are emptied out. Couch cushions overturned and vacuumed. Cupboards are emptied and cleaned. Anything defined as leaven is removed from the house…” (Source)

Then the festival itself begins the day after Passover, though over time this is thought to have evolved:

“Most scholars believe the two holidays [Passover and Feast of Unleavened Bread] were eventually combined in 622 B.C.E. — when, on the orders of Josiah, the king of Judah, a national celebration emerged, which had at its heart a pilgrimage to the Temple and the killing of a Paschal lamb.” (Source)

But now we’re just getting ahead of ourselves.

While this removal of yeast was originally symbolic of how the Israelites left Egypt in a hurry, giving the bread no time to rise, it is also a representation of staying pure to God’s Law.

“Bread is ‘puffed up’ by the process of leavening…It is also a metaphor for our own feelings of being ‘puffed up.’

“What is the process of leavening?  It is the process of fermentation.  Fermentation takes place as grain or fruits spoil…Thus, leavening is spoiling.  We are removing from our homes anything that is, or could be spoiled, from the previous year and replacing it with unspoiled (unleavened) produce…”

“…[These appointed times are] opportunities to examine ourselves for anything that is spoiled in our behavior, our attitudes, our relationships with others and with the world around us and to take it far from our homes, from our workplaces and from our communities.” (Source)

Interesting, huh? Just as followers of Jesus sacrifice in Lent and examine ourselves before partaking in Holy Communion, this appointed time is set aside to observe and repent.

Next up is the Passover:

The Lord’s Passover (pesach) begins at twilight on the fourteenth day of the first month. 

Leviticus 23:4

Passover originates in the exodus of God’s people from slavery in Egypt. Perhaps you remember the story of the Hebrews being under the thumb of Pharaoh for 400 years. After Moses killed a man in his anger, fled to Midian, and hid out for awhile, God called him back to Egypt through a bush ablaze.

After some bartering with I AM, and being allowed his brother, Aaron, to join him, Moses stood before the mighty Pharaoh with the request, “Let my people go.” If you know the story, it doesn’t work out so well at first. Especially for Pharaoh.

The God of Abraham, Issac, and Jacob sends plagues, the final one being the angel of death, taking the firstborn of every household. Except those who killed a lamb and put its blood on their doorposts. The angel of death passed over those homes, thus the name Passover.

And this movement of Yahweh was to be remembered at a set time each year:

“While the Israelites were still in the land of Egypt, the Lord gave the following instructions to Moses and Aaron: ‘From now on, this month will be the first month of the year for you. Announce to the whole community of Israel that on the tenth day of this month each family must choose a lamb or a young goat for a sacrifice, one animal for each household...

‘Take special care of this chosen animal until the evening of the fourteenth day of this first month. Then the whole assembly of the community of Israel must slaughter their lamb or young goat at twilight. They are to take some of the blood and smear it on the sides and top of the doorframes of the houses where they eat the animal. That same night they must roast the meat over a fire and eat it along with bitter salad greens and bread made without yeast...

‘On that night I will pass through the land of Egypt and strike down every firstborn son and firstborn male animal in the land of Egypt. I will execute judgment against all the gods of Egypt, for I am the Lord! But the blood on your doorposts will serve as a sign, marking the houses where you are staying. When I see the blood, I will pass over you…’

Exodus 12:1-3,6-8,12-13a (NLT)

As noted in Leviticus, the Israelites were to celebrate Passover (Pesach) at sunset on the 14th day of Nisan. This year, it lines up with Wednesday, April 8. “Pesach is observed by avoiding leaven, and highlighted by the Seder meals that include four cups of wine, eating matzah and bitter herbs, and retelling the story of the Exodus.” (Source)

Of course, the timing of this verse and our Holy Week is beautiful. What Christians celebrate as the Lord’s Supper is a Passover Seder Jesus looked forward to eating with his closest friends.

“When the hour came, Jesus and his apostles reclined at the table. And he said to them, “I have eagerly desired to eat this Passover with you before I suffer.”

Luke 22:14-15

And do you not love this application of moed – appointed time? Indeed, our Rabboni had an appointment to fulfill as He was praised all the way into the City of God. Just not the appointment the crowd had in mind.

“…In First Century Judaism, Messianic expectations were running at an all time high. This expectation was only heightened at Passover. In the celebration of Passover, the Festival of Redemption, the people had an eschatological hope. It was believed that the Ultimate Redemption, which was to be brought about through the Messiah, would take place at Passover. Messiah is to be a second Moses who will lead Israel out from under the bondage of the nations…” (Source)

The crowd watched as He turned over tables and made claims to be God. He was not standing up to Rome as expected and in fact seemed bent on upsetting the powers that be in religious life.

Not only does the crowd turn on Jesus, but one of His closest friends turns Him over to be killed. His other friends scatter and Jesus’ blood flows from whippings and thorny crowns, from a heavy cross of torture and nails in His wrists. On the same day, the passover lambs – chosen for being without blemish or defect – were being killed.

“While the slaughter was being performed, the Levites in the Temple chanted the Psalms 113-118, the same Hallel which Yeshua and his disciples would have sung the night before (Pesachim 5:1-7)…” Source

Can you picture the passover lambs being brought to temple as the people chanted the following?

The stone the builders rejected
    has become the cornerstone;
 the Lord has done this,
    and it is marvelous in our eyes.
 The Lord has done it this very day;
    let us rejoice today and be glad.

 Lord, save us!
    Lord, grant us success!

 Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord…

Psalm 118:22-26a

Yes, the Stone the builders rejected became the cornerstone. The Messiah came in a renounced but necessary Way, His Kingdom not of this world, but His heart bleeding for it.

This Holy Week, may we praise our Lamb slain before the foundation of the world. Because up from the grave He arose.

“We accept the responsibility for…

…offerings for the Sabbaths, New Moons…”

Nehemiah 10:33b MSG

Last time we saw how our group covenanted to rise up and meet the responsibilities of Temple, including the Bread of the Presence, Grain Offerings, and Whole Burnt Offerings. Today we see what else they are taking on.

The first is offerings for the Sabbaths, which we have seen before comes from shabath – to rest, cease, desist. This command is from Numbers:

“On the Sabbath day, make an offering of two lambs a year old without defect, together with its drink offering and a grain offering of two-tenths of an ephah of the finest flour mixed with olive oil. 

This is the burnt offering for every Sabbath, in addition to the regular burnt offering and its drink offering.”

Numbers 28:9-10

So every Friday from sundown until Saturday’s sundown, the people of God were to rest from their usual work. But the expectation was more than refraining from buying and selling grain and wares. The Israelites were to sacrifice two lambs each week on Shabbat.

I was wondering who provided the lambs, and learned the significance of those shepherds in Bethlehem. The ones who were keeping watch over their flocks by night when the angel declared good news of great joy. These were the ones who tended the sheep for sacrifice, making sure they were “a year old and without defect.” The shepherds then provided the priests with these two additional lambs each week, along with the regular offerings. So not only was the community to cease from working to earn, they were required to sacrifice more.

What an interesting command from God. If we didn’t know Him better, it would look almost unkind, self-serving. But because He’s incapable of having impure motives, we can assume this was for our group’s best. Rest and trust does not come easily, and the opportunity was provided to choose over and over each week. The desired goal? Deeper intimacy and lived experience in a God Who provides.

The next offering was for the new moon, Chodesh, literally the “head of the month.” The word comes from chadash – to renew, repair, restore, rebuild.

I tore off a page on our calendar yesterday, one day early, and actually uttered aloud, “I need a new month.” I think we all did. And I appreciate God commanded a special celebration at the start of each calendar turn.

We made it.

From chabad.org:

“In the Temple times, special animal sacrifices were brought in honor of the day, known as musaf (additional) offerings, and special celebratory trumpet blasts were added to the daily service.”

In contemporary services, several different aspects are part of this celebration including:

“The Song of the Day is followed by Psalms 104, which contains the words, ‘He made the moon to mark the seasons.’

And a personal fav tidbit: “…many women observe it by taking the day off from household tasks such as laundry and sewing.”

I adore we serve a Creator Who allows us so many new beginnings. New mercies each morning, new lunar cycles, fresh seasons and growth. New songs in our mouths, hymns of praise to our God.

It seems good to celebrate our seemingly small accomplishments right now. We are not in a business-as-usual season here, all the world together fending off a virus which escalates quickly and does not discriminate. We are out of our usual routine, no matter how at-home we were before. Because of all these factors, finding reasons to celebrate will help us keep our heads. So, congrats, you. You made it to April 2020! It’s enough.

But the hard truth is we didn’t all make it, did we? If you are full of grief today, perhaps from losing someone you love or fighting a difficult battle, please know He sees. And while He makes all things new, He does it with very real skin in the game. Your cries are prayers. May you be held tonight.

“We accept the responsibility for paying an annual tax of one-third of a shekel (about an eighth ounce) for providing The Temple of our God with

bread for the Table

regular Grain-Offerings

regular Whole-Burnt-Offerings…”

Nehemiah 10:32-33a (MSG)

Last time we saw the group promise not to marry or give in marriage to those who do not know and worship the Most High. As people set apart for Him, they also promised not to buy or sell on Shabbat or any other holy day. Today we continue on with more specifics the group promised in obedience to His Law.

We accept responsibility (amad – take one’s stand, arise, endure, fulfill, give stability, abide behind, dwell, be over) for (al – hover over) the ordinances (mitzvah: prescribed, terms; from tsavah – conditions, law, ordinance, precept, lay charge upon).

In describing how our group would obey, they communicate it like a weighty task hovering over them to which they must rise up and meet. The charge put upon them by the Law of Moses, His prescribed terms, would be where our group took their stand.

Oh, let’s let that be where you and I stand in our time, too. May the love of God and neighbor hover over us all. May we abide behind the ordinances that – from Genesis to Revelation – reveal His heart for the poor, the powerless, the sojourner, the widow and orphan, those with little political clout and even less esteem in camps who desire productivity over people and bottom lines over love.

And what, specifically, did our group accept responsibility for? To pay (nathan – give, to commit, entrust) one-third of a shekel yearly for the service (abodah – labor, service, ministry, office, bondservant) of the Temple (bayith – house).

They committed to entrusting their collective pool of funds to the ministry of Temple. God’s House, where He chose His presence to dwell. Any labor, all service, including the killing of animals, the baking of bread, the continuous burning of fire before Him would be funded by the community.

In these verses, three specific elements were promised to be cared for by our group. First is the bread for the Table/the showbread (maareketh – row, line, arrangement, pile, from arak – array, expert in war, set in order, compare, esteem, estimate, join battle).

Oh, here is where we not of Jewish heritage get to dig into some learning (source). When God led the Israelites out of Egypt and into the wilderness, He commanded Moses make a Tabernacle in which He would dwell among His people. Inside, there would be a variety of tools and furniture, one being the Table.

“Make a table of acacia wood—two cubits long, a cubit wide and a cubit and a half high. Overlay it with pure gold and make a gold molding around it. Also make around it a rim a handbreadth wide and put a gold molding on the rim. Make four gold rings for the table and fasten them to the four corners, where the four legs are. The rings are to be close to the rim to hold the poles used in carrying the table. Make the poles of acacia wood, overlay them with gold and carry the table with them.

And make its plates and dishes of pure gold, as well as its pitchers and bowls for the pouring out of offerings.

Put the bread of the Presence on this table to be before me at all times.”

Exodus 25:23-30

That source I linked to a few paragraphs earlier refers to the shape of this bread and how it somehow did not mold after a week before the LORD.

The details are from Leviticus 24:

“Take the finest flour and bake twelve loaves of bread, using two-tenths of an ephah for each loaf. Arrange them in two stacks, six in each stack, on the table of pure gold before the Lord. By each stack put some pure incense as a memorial portion to represent the bread and to be a food offering presented to the Lord. This bread is to be set out before the Lord regularly, Sabbath after Sabbath, on behalf of the Israelites, as a lasting covenant. It belongs to Aaron and his sons, who are to eat it in the sanctuary area, because it is a most holy part of their perpetual share of the food offerings presented to the Lord.”

“Every Shabbat, after the Mincha (afternoon) sacrifice, the old loaves were replaced with new ones. The old loaves were given to Kohanim to eat.” And what did this Bread of the Presence symbolize? “It’s a continuous reminder that our livelihoods and food come only from [Elohim].” (Source)

Let’s stop right there, because I don’t think we really believe that. I’m quite sure I don’t, at least all the way deep down, based on how I act and react to variables. We have plenty in the cupboards? We’ve been working hard. We are struggling to make ends meet? What have we done wrong?

I hope you’re not on a hunt to find out how I’m against personal responsibility based on those statements above. I believe in it sometimes too much, including loving our neighbor by being responsible in this pandemic.

But at what point do we as individuals, smaller communities, and larger cities, states, and nations unclench our fists, relax our jaws, and realize “our livelihoods come only from our Creator?” Like a baby in the womb we are, at rock bottom, reliant on a supply we cannot produce.

Can we trust in the midst of uncertainty? Can we freely share what has been freely given to us? Can we demand our leaders see the worth of all creation? Can we take this level playing field of dependence and let it change how we treat, talk to, and vote on behalf of one another?

And could we look back one more time to the definition for Showbread? Its root word is arak – array, expert in war, set in order, compare, esteem, estimate, join battle. While it is likely this referred to how the bread was to be arranged in stacks before the LORD, it seems fitting in another way as well.

Is there any area in which God may be setting priorities in order right now? Might there be a battle for human dignity in our time? All human dignity? Is it possible when we compare the worth of lives, we will be bankrupt long before the coffers run dry? Could it be our the God of Angel-Armies, Jehovah-Sabaoth, has ways and motives perfectly eclipsing our own right now?

Let’s keep paying attention, friends.

The second commanded element our group had read up on in Torah, and was committing to take care of, was the regular (tamid) grain offering (minchah – gift, tribute, offering, sacrifice [bloodless and voluntary]).

“When anyone brings a grain offering to the Lord, their offering is to be of the finest flour. They are to pour olive oil on it, put incense on it and take it to Aaron’s sons the priests. The priest shall take a handful of the flour and oil, together with all the incense, and burn this as a memorial portion on the altar, a food offering, an aroma pleasing to the Lord.

 The rest of the grain offering belongs to Aaron and his sons; it is a most holy part of the food offerings presented to the Lord.”

Leviticus 2:1-3

The finest flour of grains they had was required. Frankincense was added to make the aroma pleasing to God. The rest, the most holy part, would feed God’s ministers in Temple.

And isn’t that “bloodless and voluntary sacrifice” such an interesting description for minchah? While it refers to the grain not needing to be slaughtered like a sheep or goat or pigeon, it still conjures up more abstract images.

What might a bloodless and voluntary sacrifice look like to us this day? The one in which we are encouraged to ask for our daily bread? Seeing to the needs of others? Blessing those on the front lines? Medical, restaurant, grocery store, delivery, and other workers?

My sister and her neighbors are collectively ordering from a local eatery each week together to help places stay afloat, while staying safe. I know others organizing letter writing, drive-by-wave-at-safe-distance parades, dropping off needed items at doors (to be wiped down before brought in). Bloodless, not an offering which requires much hard labor, disguised as ordinary. But likely the most holy part as we love God by loving the precious people He made.

And, finally, our group took responsibility for the regular (tamid) whole burnt offering (olah – ascent, go up to, usually a holocaust [destruction or slaughter on a mass scale] as going up in smoke, feminine active participle of alah – step, climb, arise)

If you’re like me, that “holocaust…going up in smoke” section caught your eye. While it seems a bit extreme to us to describe a burnt offering as a holocaust, it probably wouldn’t to the sheep. He was entirely consumed, the aroma of the animal sacrifice – what should have happened to the human due to sin – arising to God.

As people commanded to lay our entire lives down as a living sacrifice to God, what else might need to go up in smoke at the same time? Anything in our justice system, our school systems, our family systems which might need to be destroyed on a mass scale?

We will know. He will tell us. And based on the current situation, many of us will have time to listen. May we lean in.

“‘We promise not to let our daughters marry the pagan people of the land, and not to let our sons marry their daughters.’

We also promise that if the people of the land should bring any merchandise or grain to be sold on the Sabbath or on any other holy day, we will refuse to buy it.

Every seventh year we will let our land rest, and we will cancel all debts owed to us.'”

Nehemiah 10:30 – 31

Last time we saw our returned exiles declare they would follow Yahweh’s torah, mitzvah, mishpat, and choq. Today we get into the specifics of those commands.

The first way our gathered group declared to follow Yahweh was one of His oldest commands: to not give their daughters in marriage to the peoples around, nor take (laqach – take, accept) daughters of the nations as wives for their sons. Remember, this is not about making room among His people for all nations, but rather the hearts of those who refuse Him.

When our hearts are given over to idols, it is impossible to worship the One True God. Those whose gods were no-gods could not join with the people of the Most High and expect there to not be a clash in authority. We can only have one master. I can only have one master. God was warning His people not to unite themselves to those who had refused Him.

Seems like a timely reminder to us now, yes? Most of us are either cooped up or making a beeline from work to home each day amid this pandemic. And many not for our own sakes, but for others’. So what will surface in your heart and mine in this downtime? Probably some junk we didn’t have time to face until now.

For me, as a teacher dealing with school closure and still getting paid, it is the pride that I’m not earning my keep. While I trust leadership to show us what is expected in these new structures, it is hard to feel like I’ll be pulling my weight. Hard to rest and trust.

Let’s face our junk together, shall we? Our only identity, if we are in Him, is being His beloved. It is very, very hard to rest in that when you’re restless, uncertain, and anxious. Help us, Lord. We need You right now. Show Yourself beautiful, True, majestic, and worthy as all other things fail us in this time.

And let’s pray for one another. It’s not just idol exposure that is difficult right now; some of us are really struggling with our circumstances. Let’s lift others up together:

Those who are immunocompromised or elderly

Those already ill

Those living alone for whom isolation is difficult

Those whose personalities desire more social time than is appropriate right now

Those with particularly small living quarters

Those for whom home is not a safe place – physically, emotionally, verbally

Those with big dogs (!!)

Those with small children, feeling cooped up and no one to share the burden of entertainment and care

Those scrambling for childcare plans in the face of school closure

Those who themselves or their children require routine and structure

Those with special needs kiddos now at home full time

Those who are now out of work and know not what is next

Those who are discerning how to best lead us right now

Those who are making decisions how to lead us spiritually

Those required to keep working: grocery stores, gas stations, medical professionals, caregivers.

We all need one another right now. May we pray to the One Who holds it all in His hands.

The second way our group vowed to follow Yah was to not buy or sell wares or grain on the Sabbath or any other holy day. The word for wares is maqqachah which comes from laqach – to take, buy, bring, accept, mingle, receive.

The idea is the people of Jerusalem may not have gone out of the city to sell and buy, but others were coming in offering their wares on a day which God insisted on rest and trust. Rest and trust.

Why is it so difficult? If those who did not know God’s law went ahead and set up shop on the Sabbath, why so hard to simply not buy? And why does this Sabbath rest matter so much to God?

Sabbath in Hebrew is shabbath from shabath – to cease, desist, rest, celebrate, desist from exertion, put away. Frankly, it should seem like the easiest of all commands to follow: Chill out, celebrate, put away our need for getting ahead, desist from the exertion of the rest of the week.

Instead, like me, the returned exiles were apparently struggling. If they were learning Torah and realized this was required, the implication is they had continued as usual through the Sabbath (Shabbat) up until now. And not just Shabbat, but “any holy day” (qodesh – apartness, sacredness, consecrated, holy, dedicated).

Perhaps that definition for holy is the key to our understanding, both why rest was important to God and why it is so difficult to obey. When God’s people took Him at His word and didn’t sell or buy wares or grain, they looked different than the rest of the peoples who don’t know Him. They were separate, set apart.

It looked like they trusted God to meet their needs even with this day of rest. Harkening back to the forty years when mysterious manna fell from the sky, and in double portion the day before Shabbat, to be gathered for the next day with no fear of molding.

God may be calling us right now to stop gathering more than we need, or to gather extra for our brothers and sisters who cannot gather at all right now. Either way, the rest and celebration, trust and community, are crucial lessons in our international moment. Those of us whose lives have been dedicated to Yah and His Kingdom are called to rest, trust, and serve right now. May we do so together.

The final way in today’s verses the group promised to obey God is to let the land rest every 7th year and cancel all debts. It’s as if the resting and trusting are being taken up a notch, huh? “We will forgo the land” in Hebrew is natash – leave, forsake, permit, abandon, cast away. 

For an agrarian society this was Shabbat on steroids. Every seventh year, for an entire year, they would not work the land. They would rely on God’s provision and daily bread while at the same time trust this land rest would yield enough next year.

Not only that, but every seventh year they would cease “the exacting” (mashsha – lending, interest, usury) of every debt (yad – guarantor, what deserves, yield, hand – open one indicating power and means versus closed one: hollow, flat, palm, bend down, bow).

They would stay their hand of power, demanding to be paid back what they were owed, to those with a hollow hand bowed down to them in their debt. That whole power situation would be reversed. Debts cancelled, as God’s Law outlines, that generational bondage would not overtake families. Those who had enough to lend in the first place were forced to see it was all God’s all the time and open their hands to His gracious one.

Where does that rub against your ideas of rightness and justice? Of fairness or the American dream? I think it’s supposed to be hard to swallow. I think the demand for rest and not earning, for letting go of debts and receiving debt forgiveness are all blows to our pride and self-sufficiency.

But we have a God continually pointing us to the Cross. Where we were forgiven a debt we would never be able to pay, given a salvation we never earned. Who Scripturally seems to care more about us communally flourishing in Shalom than individually climbing the financial ladder.

God has a Word for us in these difficult days. May we take the opportunity to listen.

“They swore a curse on themselves if they failed to obey the Law of God as issued by his servant Moses. They solemnly promised to carefully follow all the commands, regulations, and decrees of the Lord our Lord…”

Nehemiah 10:29b-30a NLT

Last time we saw the first steps of the repentant group: all the folk joining their leaders to obey. Today we see how.

“They swore on themselves a curse…” Curse in this verse is shebuah – perjury, oath. The first part of verse 29 we read last time talks about the oath, whereas today we see the curse. However, in the Hebrew it is seamless: “They entered into an oath and a curse.”

They promised and would perjure themselves, come upon a curse, if they failed to walk (halak) in the torah (direction, instruction, ruling, teaching) of God (Elohim).

In working with high-needs students, I feel God has given me a teensy glimpse of this desire that His people walk in His direction, follow His teaching. Like most teachers, I want to dole out praise, give rewards, and learn collectively how to best understand school and life. Unfortunately, like most teachers, I regularly have to do the opposite. Just like me, students often have to experience the negative of a ruling before motivated toward the positive.

I find myself wanting to plead with kids: “Just listen! Obey and see how much better it will go for you!” And when they barely begin to head in the right direction, I’m so overjoyed. How much more a Master Teacher, Perfect Father toward His people? With no dark side, and an all-seeing perspective, He knows how much better it will go for us when we walk in the direction of His instruction.

“…[They solemnly promised to] observe and do all the mitzvah of Yahweh our Adonai…”

Observe here is shamar (to watch, keep watch, preserve, attend, be careful, bodyguard, defend, pay attention, secure, take care, wait), and do is asah (accomplish). And what are they paying attention to and accomplishing?

All the commandments (mitzvah: prescribed, terms; from tsavah – conditions, law, ordinance, precept, lay charge upon) of Yahweh.

I wrote before about the difference between mitsvah and other commands:

“This word mistvah is distinct from torah in that it also includes ‘moral kindness in keeping the law.’ There are 613 mitzvot (plural of mitsvah). However, because the Temple is no longer in tact – and because Israel is not the theocratic state it was before – Jewish scholars list 271 mitzvot which are still to be followed today. (source) 

And let’s remember together these precepts are not just moral, individualistic rules. Rather, these were statutes that showed how justice and love come together communally. We as a Body cannot assume to ignore the corporate law and expect no correction.”

These mitsvot were the charges of Yahweh to His people. They were to keep watch, pay careful attention to them, yes, but also actually live them out, accomplish them in their lives.

I’ve got to ask what moral kindness in keeping the law might look like given our global virus situation? While panic is the last thing we need, taking serious the effect of this on our communities should be priority. Our family knows we are in a privileged situation compared to many. So what does it look like to prepare but not hoard, follow precautions even though we feel healthy to protect those who would be most affected, and let go of what is most convenient for us so the larger whole is well? And, of course as Believers, follow the necessary precautions while entrusting our very selves to our Creator?

May we as His people be the most others-centered, heart-calming influences in following communal charges.

Not only were torah and mitzvah solemnly promised to be observed, but our group also vowed to obey His ordinances (mishpat – due justice, kind manner, proper regulation, rightful sentence, worthy verdict, proper decree) and statutes (choq – allotment, boundaries, conditions, limit, fixed order, permission, required amount, commandment, decreed, appointment).

I’m so glad the heartbeat of the galaxies is one of justice, healthy boundaries, kindness, and permission. A perfect blend of grace and truth. Grace and Truth incarnate. Remember these are pleasing rules, faithful statutes, and beautiful commands. No harsh authoritarian or corrupt dictator to worry about.

Just a God Who knows the number of hairs on our head, the cattle on a thousand hills, and, hopefully, the puppies in every yard. Mine keeps running along the (broken) fence in our backyard, keeping his eye on me for an opportunity to escape (again). When he does, he’s put in a more restrictive fenced area until next time. Yes, violations of limits yield rightful sentencing. They would not be limits without it.

And, yet, he’s mine. Ours. I have no intention of casting aside a puppy for disobeying any more than I plan to stop teaching a student who is struggling to self-regulate. Not because I’m so kind, but because this kind of Love has loved me first.

He’s the God Who stays, and I’m so glad.

“Then the rest of the people—the priests, Levites, gatekeepers, singers, Temple servants, and all who had separated themselves from the pagan people of the land in order to obey the Law of God, together with their wives, sons, daughters, and all who were old enough to understand— joined their leaders and bound themselves with an oath.”

Nehemiah 10:28-29a

Last time we looked at the final three leaders’ names who signed the covenant. Today we move on to this group’s next moves.

First step is watching the rest of the folk join in obeying. The governor, Nehemiah himself, began the signing of this binding covenant; next the priests, the Levites, and the leaders of the people. Now it’s everyone else’s turn. Everyone who had “separated themselves (badal: to divide, exclude, make distinct, set apart, sever, make separate, distinguish) from the pagan people of the land.”

It’s so interesting in Holy Writ how God both demands a distinction from His people from the rest of the world, and yet seamlessly throughout shows how this is the way to be the light of it. If our desire is to sever ties from the world rather than sever ways of the world, how does this invite? If we divide and separate from our habits which don’t reflect Him, but do not at the same time multiply and unite our love and hearts toward those walking in darkness, how are we loving our neighbor as ourselves?

Indeed, this setting apart was an important primary step for God’s people as they sought repentance. They had witnessed first hand the consequences of not separating themselves from detestable practices. Now they were ready to listen.

I love how these verses make sure to include everyone in this covenant making. Wives, sons, daughters, and everyone who had knowledge and understanding.

Knowledge is yada: to know as familiar friend, discern, comprehend, perceive, take notice, well aware. Those joining in obedience didn’t just know intellectually, but apparently knew like you know your best friend that listening to Yahweh was vital. They were well aware the only way to true life was to trust the motives of the Author of Life.

And knowledge wasn’t all in this verse. In the NIV it says, “everyone who was old enough to understand. But according to the Hebrew, it is “everyone who had knowledge and understanding.” Understanding is bin – to carefully consider, act wisely, discern, interpret, pay close attention, skillful, teacher, eloquent, feel, instruct, prudent, deal wisely.

This group of people wanted to put their knowing into action. Like a skillful teacher they were going to take the previous lessons, build on them with discernment, carefully consider the next steps, and act wisely. Everyone who could understand was included. No one left on the sidelines.

Which is how they could join their leaders. Join in this verse is chazaq – to grow firm or strong, strengthen, take a stand, support, became courageous, fierce, stubborn, stalwart, to be fortified, become mighty, been arrogant, take courage, repair, recover, withstand.

From the top down they were uniting. Their strength was in their support. Governor, priests, Levites, and officials became stalwart against future slavery because the people came alongside. Our returning exiles saw a promising road ahead in which they could recover their worship of Who is worthy, continue to repair their city, and be fortified in the face of idolatry.

The same is true in our day, friends. When we unite on spine issues and disagree in love on non-essentials, the Church grows strong. When we take a stand against treating anyone as less than an image bearer of the King, we repair damage from the past. When we bow low and serve, we can recover from the slavery of idolatry.

“[The document was ratified and sealed with…the leaders of the people:]

..Malluk, Harim and Baanah.”

Nehemiah 10:27

Last time we focused on several leaders’ names, including one which pointed us to clouds – the invisible made visible. Today we see the final three names of leaders who signed our covenant.

First we have Malluk, whose name we have seen in Nehemiah 10:4. It comes from melek – king, royal and malak – become queen, reign, ascend to throne, induct into royalty, take counsel, consult.

I’m particularly in tune with the take counsel part of this definition, as our church is in Proverbs for the year 2020.

“In the abundance of counselors there is victory.”

And I’m considering the difference between yes men and wise counsel. Seems like the latter would be vital for someone whose job it is to lead others.

While our country does not have a king or queen, we can learn much from studying the kings of Israel. In particular, how power can lead to corruption and those in positions of influence will stand before God and answer to how we stewarded such.

But mostly how, based on the meanings of our next two names, the primary goal of reigning is that those under our reign would flourish. Not just those who can bring much to the table, but, in particular, those who cannot. To see a platform as an opportunity to pass the microphone to voices needing elevated and making decisions which benefit the good of all.

In God’s kingdom, to lead is to wash feet, and to ascend to a throne is to emulate the One Who left such heights to serve.

Next is Harim (Charim) whose name means “consecrated.” It comes from charam – cursed, ban, devote, exterminate, utterly destroy, forfeit, have a flat nose, snub-nosed, utterly slay, seclude by a ban, to devote to religious uses (especially destruction). We have seen this name in Nehemiah 3:11, 7:35, 7:42, and 10:5, as a priest signing the covenant.

Of course we know from world history that reigning over others more often leads to an abuse of power. What kills me is the “devote to religious uses…especially destruction.” I can’t think of something more devastating to describe one’s faith practices.

In what ways do we see religion devoting others to destruction in our day? How do we wield our differences in faith – or simply doctrine of the same faith – to exterminate others? To ban from our tribes or slay with our rhetoric?

May the name and its roots only ever describe those who follow Jesus as devoted, consecrated, set apart for Him and His Way in our tenure here. And if we are cursed may we bless. If we’re persecuted or banned, let us endure it. If we are hard pressed or struck down, may our testimonies be we were not destroyed.

And our final leader listed is Baanah as seen in Nehemiah 7:7. This name is a derivative of anah – to be bowed down, afflicted, abase self, defile, browbeat, chasten self, force, humble self, submit self, weaken.

Yeesh, so many things which can point to both positive intentions and not-so-much. If you have ever bowed low, humbled or weakened yourself for the sake of another – ultimately for the work of our God – you know there is nothing more powerful. Genuine submission – when the heart is trusting in the motives of the Ultimate Authority, not folding arms and waiting for everything to fall apart – puts us smack in the current of Yahweh’s rushing tide. In a front row seat at that.

But if we move to defilement, browbeating, and force, my friends, we have neglected the heart behind the Word. And we’ve ignored the imago Dei in others and possibly ourselves. If we chasten or abase ourselves out of a twisted idea of submission, we are not honoring His image in our own being. And if we allow others to do it, we are cooperating with abuse.

The way God is bringing to light such defilement in the Church and the world at large points to another opportunity for an upfront seat in His movement. For Justice will roll, what is whispered in private will be shouted from the rooftops, and those without worldly power have a Redeemer Who is strong.

“[The document was ratified and sealed with…the leaders of the people:]

…Ahiah, Hanan, Anan…”

Nehemiah 10:26

Last time we examined the depths of compassion, exploring the idea of co-suffering guiding us as a compass on our journey. Today we will see what we can mine from the meanings of three new leaders’ names.

First up is Ahiah, whose name means “brother of Yah” or “worshipper of Yah” from Yah and ach – alike, kinsman, relative, resemblance, kindred.

Yes, please. May we take this definition and run with it in our spiritual lives. For our distinct personalities and experiences to not be overrun, but so eclipsed by the Spirit, that we look like His kin. We resemble Him because of our worship of His holiness. Our lives mirror His just mercy, His love and honor. And as a Body of believers worldwide, we celebrate our cultural diversity yet match one another in heart, like the spiritual relatives we are. Kindred spirits by His Spirit.

Next we have a popular name, Hanan. We have seen this name in Nehemiah 10:10 and 22, and the root word in several other names. It means gracious favor: to bend or stoop in kindness.

It’s what we’re called to, isn’t it? To look at the ridiculous favor, completely unearned, of God and soak it in. Absorb it so fully we are astonished. Then take that gob-smacked appreciation and refuse to refuse it to others. Forgiving offenses, receiving forgiveness when we’ve offended again. Getting back up when we smash into one another on our still-broken tenure here. Bending in kindness when we’d rather stand stiff and above. Gracious favor.

Finally today we have Anan, whose name only occurs here. It means cloud, heavy mist, nimbus or thunder cloud, and comes from anan – soothsayer, enchanter, observer of times, bring, cloud over (figuratively) to act covertly, practice magic. Hmm, enchanter once more.

I was struck this time by those thunder clouds: “The word ‘nimbus’ is derived from Latin meaning rainstorm or cloud (nimbo means rain)…”

“[They] are formed when the air cools and results in condensation of water vapor that is invisible and produces visible cloud or ice droplets…These water droplets then take various shapes and sizes and float in the atmosphere…

“I have swept away your offenses like a cloud,

your sins like the morning mist.

Return to me,

for I have redeemed you.”

Isaiah 44:22

…Formation of clouds is also affected by the movement of air currents…Cumulonimbus clouds are the clouds that usually cause thunderstorms, as the water droplets are closely packed or stay in a single mass.” (Source)

The process of cloud formation itself seems a sleight of hand by our Creator. Taking vapor which is invisible and turning it into a visible cloud by bunching up the droplets together.

Kinda like how we cannot see the Wind, as it blows wherever it pleases, but when the Holy Ghost is bunched up in a mass of believers, our invisible God is made visible to a watching world, in the various shapes and sizes of His wildly vast creation.

And how Jesus Himself was God-in-flesh, our Immanuel. The exact image of God, in a human body which we could tolerate, His holiness restrained for our sake.

No, it’s not soothsaying, nor does our Holy One need to act covertly or cloud over His flawless intentions or ways. But when we’re not sure what He is doing – despite how focused we are on observing our times – we can rest in His character, take Him at His Word, and trust when the mist parts and we see clearly, the majesty will be worth the wait.

“[The document was ratified and sealed with…the leaders of the people:]

…Rehum, Hashabnah, Maaseiah…”

Nehemiah 10:25

Last time we allowed three leaders’ names to remind of us His enchantment, what He calls us to let go of individually and corporately, and the breaking forth of fresh growth when we do. Today we see our next three names.

Rehum is the first, whose name we saw in Nehemiah 3:17. It means “compassion” from rachum (compassionate, merciful) and racham (to love, have compassion, have mercy, have pity).

Since I’ve been looking up words in Hebrew, it occurred to me to see the etymology of the English word compassion this time. It comes from the Latin pati “to suffer” and the prefix com “with, together.” To suffer with another.

Then it made me smile, when looking up images for compassion, how so many pictures of compasses appeared. I had not thought of how compass is in the word itself. But it gives you something to think about, huh?

What if our compass was entering into the sufferings of others? If, when looking whether to go one direction or another, we consulted our map, deciding between self focus and others-focused? What would change on the daily if that one factor was considered?

I don’t like it either, by the way. It is so much easier to write off those who would require me to suffer, especially if I have determined in my limited judgement they deserve whatever is going on.

Except. Every time I have hit bottom, due to my own decisions or outside circumstances, God has put people in my life willing to co-suffer with me. To have mercy and love precisely when I need it most. Often when I deserve it least. How could I deny that to another?

No, we don’t need to be foolish, nor is God asking us to enter into everyone’s suffering – we are not omniscient. But we are called to love our neighbor as much as we love our own comfort. May we follow the meaning of Rehum’s name and let compassion be our compass.

Next we have Hashabnah whose name only occurs in this verse. It means inventiveness, the feminine of cheshbon – account, explanation, reason, properly, intelligence.

So interesting the feminine rendering of Hebrew words in this study lately. While my understanding of Hebrew grammar is just enough to be dangerous, I appreciate taking what I have learned and coupling it with what I know from the rest of Holy Writ.

And what do we make of inventiveness, intelligence, and accounting when applied to women and the Word? I see it everywhere in the pages – from Tamar outwitting selfish men to Rahab leading her family to safety by her faith in the Most High God.

I see it in Hagar, forced by slavery to serve selfish whims yet seen and protected by God. In businesswoman Lydia, knowing the best offer when presented and the Proverbs 31 woman, earning an income, considering a field and buying it, working with her hands.

I see it in the prophetess Anna, her earthly husband taken away, then reasoned staying in Temple with her heavenly Husband her future. And in Pilate’s wife, listening to her instincts and obeying the mercy given in a dream, to leave that holy Man alone.

Yes, because God gives women intelligence and inventiveness, He uses it for His glory and made sure to set the precedent in Scripture. Let’s join the freedom of the Spirit and follow suit.

And finally we have Maaseiah, whose name we have seen in Nehemiah 3:23 and 8:7. It means “work of Yah” from Yah and maaseh – accomplishment, occupation, vocation, workmanship, art, task, sculptured.

Such a fitting finale to the ideas of compassion and feminine ingenuity. God is on the move among us all, highlighting those whose voices have not been historically elevated. It is my privilege, as one who has been privileged, to see God’s glory in the sheer genius of work and art, words and film being accomplished in our day.

It’s a good reminder that when justice begins to trickle, when right living becomes attractive, Jehovah-Tsidkenu is on the move.

And when it rolls like waters and a never-ending stream, it will be a Work of Yah.