Open the Door!

Shabbat Hagadol, Malachi 3:4–24

Dr. Vered Hillel, Netanya, Israel

 “On the tenth day of this month [Nissan] each man is to take a lamb for the household, a lamb for each home” (Exodus 12:3). This lamb is set aside in anticipation of the Pesach sacrifice that would be offered four days later, which was five days before their redemption. Although this mitzvah was given for a specific time in the life of Israel, the tradition continues today in the observance of Shabbat Hagadol (the Great Shabbat), the Shabbat before Pesach.  

Many mysteries surround the origin and meaning of Shabbat Hagadol. The term is not found in the Tanakh or in Talmudic literature. However, by the later Middle Ages the celebration of Shabbat Hagadol was a well-established custom. One interpretation holds that Shabbat Hagadol originated from the special haftarah reading assigned to the Shabbat before Pesach, Malachi 3:4–24, and particularly from verse 23 (4:5 in Christian Bibles) which proclaims the coming of Elijah before the great day (yom hagadol) of the Lord. This haftarah speaks of the future redemption of Israel, serves as a reminder of the Exodus from Egypt, and looks forward to the final redemption.  

The haftarah addresses topics such as judgment and rules (3:5, 22), those who fear Adonai and serve him (3:16, 20, 22) and those who don’t (3:5, 14, 18), and divine vindication (3:9). But the overall theme of restoration dominates the haftarah; for example, restoration of the Temple offerings (3:4), of the covenant relationship through repentance (3:7), of Adonai’s justice (3:24), and of parents and children to Adonai and to each other (3:23–24).  

Malachi addresses the people of Israel, who have lost faith in the promises of Hashem. They have become discontent and are murmuring against Hashem because the expected manifestation of his glory has not taken place. In their despair they even question his holiness and justice and have begun to deny that he will come to judge the world. The people of Israel grumble, “Everyone who does evil is good in the eyes of Adonai and he delights in them,” or “Where is the God of justice?” (Malachi 2:17) and “It is useless to serve God. What have we gained by keeping his requirements?” (Malachi 3:14). Malachi assures Israel that the day of Hashem is reality and that the Lord (Ha’adon) is coming to judge the people in order to refine them (3:1–6). However, before the Lord comes he will send a messenger to prepare the way, and then the Lord will appear suddenly. The haftarah concludes with the admonition to heed the Torah of Moshe and the announcement that Hashem will send Elijah before that great and terrible day to call the nation to repentance (3:23–24). 

Notice that Malachi is addressing the people of Israel and announcing national redemption. Hashem’s actions are unilateral. He takes the necessary steps for redemption and restoration; Israel is not required to do anything. Israel’s rebellion against Hashem is so profound that he will send his prophet Elijah to renew their hearts to prepare for the coming of the Lord. This one-sided act of restoration is ultimate proof of Hashem’s love for Israel stated at the beginning of the book (Malachi 1:2).   

The expectation of Elijah appearing before the great day of Hashem to prepare the hearts of Israel was firmly established by the late 2nd Temple period. For example, the three disciples of Yeshua, perplexed by his transfiguration and his instructions to remain silent until after his resurrection, question him about his timing, as they expect Elijah to come first. Yeshua answers that Elijah has already come, and they understand him to mean John the baptizer (Matt 17:12). The Gospel according to Luke explicitly states that John the baptizer is the forerunner of the Lord who came in the spirit and power of Elijah “to make ready a people prepared for the Lord” (Luke 1:16–17). Elijah the messenger has come as has Yeshua the Lord, who through his sacrifice provides redemption to all who believe in him. Yet that great and terrible day of Hashem and his judgement have not come to pass.  

Shabbat Hagadol is a fitting time to remember and meditate on Malachi’s admonitions, warnings, and announcements of redemption and restoration because it is the Shabbat before Pesach, when we open the door for Elijah in anticipation of final redemption. As Israel took the lamb on the 10th of Nissan in preparation for the sacrifice and in anticipation of their redemption, let us take this time on Shabbat Hagadol to prepare ourselves for Pesach and in anticipation of the final redemption to come. As we clean our houses, removing all the chametz, let us clean the chametz from our own lives and hearts, removing any discontent or weariness at Hashem’s timing and seeming lack of judgement, as Israel did in former days, and focus on Hashem’s provision of redemption and restoration that has been promised to Israel and provided for us individually through Yeshua. 

I’ll close with an illustration from Midrash Rabbah, as it comments on Song of Songs 5:2: “I sleep, but my heart is awake. Listen, the voice of my beloved is knocking and says, ‘Open to me, my sister, my dove.’” Focusing on the words “open to me,” Song of Songs Rabbah explains, “Open for me an opening of repentance the size of a needle’s eye, and I will open for you doorways that ox-drawn carts . . . can fit through” (Songs Rabbah 8:2).  

When Hashem saw the blood on the doorways of B’nei Israel that first Pesach night, he skipped over their homes. The door in this midrash symbolizes the tiny opening for repentance that they opened in their hearts. God had compassion on those small openings and greatly enlarged them, leading to the redemption that followed. We learn from this midrash that even if we merely open our hearts a tiny crack, Hashem will use that opening to penetrate into the depth of our hearts and souls and bring redemption—and restoration.  

May we all open our hearts this Shabbat Hagadol!

It's About Time

Shabbat Hachodesh

By Rabbi Paul L. Saal, Shuvah Yisrael, W. Hartford, CT

Time is the most elusive yet dominant concept in the human experience. We struggle to understand it and we struggle to control it, yet our endless awareness and fear of time lurks behind all our endeavors. So, we invent devices to measure time. We create currencies to measure our productivity over time. We guard our time, we gift our time, and ultimately, we often waste our time. Some even invest themselves in cosmetically attempting to hide or surgically alter the deleterious effects of time. But eventually we all run out of time. Then we memorialize the time that was.

We endlessly attempt to control time. Go ahead, do a web search of books on time management! Pop culture is filled with odes to our engagement with time. Time by Pink Floyd; Time Is on My Side, Rolling Stones; Time in A Bottle, Jim Croce; etc. It is virtually impossible to scan your local television channels, on any day at any time, without being able to find a show or movie that involves time travel, the ultimate fantasy of control over time.

This week is Shabbat Hachodesh, Judaism’s sublime recognition that the Holy One has given Israel mastery over time!

First let me say that every Shabbat affords us the opportunity to take control of our time, though few afford themselves the luxury of this gift. But Hachodesh celebrates the first commandment given to Israel to observe as a liberated nation, a command that will allow the keeping of every Shabbat, every liturgical holiday, as the anticipation and declaration of prophetic renewal. 

This Shabbat, in addition to reading the weekly portion of Tazria, we also read a maftir from Shemot chapter 12. There is also a special Haftarah from Ezekiel 45, but I think this is better understood if we first discuss the maftir.

Adonai spoke to Moses and Aaron in the land of Egypt and said: “HaChodesh, this month is lachem (for you) the first of the months, the first of the months of the year.” (Exod 12:1)

I have emphasized the word lachem to indicate that the celebration of the New Moon (Hachodesh) is a unique and special gift for Israel. While other tribal nations accounted for the passage of time using the repetitive cycles of nature, this mitzvah stands out conspicuously. So why does Adonai make this declaration and why does he do so right before Pesach and Israel’s liberation?

The first day of Hachodesh of Nissan (the first month on the biblical calendar, not a Japanese auto company) is the real New Year’s Day (Tishrei, when Rosh Hashanah occurs, is the seventh month). It ushers in spring, renewal, and the rebirth and blossoming of nature. It is a real beginning. Slavery in Egypt was a kind of death for the Jewish people, and the Exodus is a resurrection, the beginning of a renewed life. I think it is worth noting that chodesh (month) and chadash (new or renew) share a common root and form a fascinating and poetic alliteration!

The new moon elaborately illustrates the hitchadashut (renewal) of Israel. The moon waxes and wanes, each month renewing itself. Adonai is informing Israel that the observance of Hachodesh is the key to the performance of all the other mitzvot. Each mitzvah kept today should be different from the way in which it was kept yesterday. The Pesach that we celebrate this year should be on a higher level than the Pesach we observed last year. Our lives should be an upwards spiral, arriving at the same point in the yearly cycle as last year but on a higher level. This was different from all of the other nations, which saw life as an endless cycle of time, winding down and eventually evaporating.

The Holy One paradoxically gives Israel sovereignty over time contingent upon his blueprint and ultimate guidance.

The Holy Blessed One said to Israel, “In the past they were in my hands. But from now on they are in your hands.” (Shemot Rabbah 15)

This brings us to the special haftarah assigned to Shabbat Hachodesh. It is quite appropriate that this prophetic portion depicts a fulfillment of Israel’s responsibility to commemorate the New Moons and Shabbats. Taken from Ezekiel 45:16-46:18 it gives a glimpse of a renewed Israel and a reinstatement of Israel’s liturgical calendar. In prophetic snapshots the prophet vividly declares that Israel will follow Adonai’s precepts and gain mastery of time and destiny.

The fulfillment of these snapshots has been hotly debated over the two millennia following the destruction of the 2nd Temple by the Romans in 70CE. Some take this passage quite literally and long for the building of a Third Temple as the ultimate fulfillment of Adonai’s timetable. I find this improbable for two reasons. First, I cannot imagine that the hope of Israel and the world is tied to the archaic tradition of animal sacrifice. If we were to accept the entire passage as literal, then these also would be part of the package. I find it impossible to imagine a day where “the wolf will dwell with the lamb…” (and the lamb will get up to tell about it) and humans will still be engaging in hideous ritual bloodbaths.

Second, Ezekiel’s normal mode of communication is extravagant illusions that illustrate realities greater than our present realities. The opening vision of the Merkabah (chapter 1) and the Valley of Dry Bones (chapter 37) should indicate that Ezekiel must be taken seriously, not literally.

Most importantly, if we are to take Ezekiel as seriously as we should it is imperative that we not miss the forest for the trees. That is, we cannot overlook the important symbolism of this portion. In this haftarah the Kohen offers the sacrifice as prescribed, but the sacrifices and the entire means of commemorating the New Moons, the Shabbats, Pesach and Sukkot are all provided by the Nasi (the ruler). What this indicates is a time is coming when governance will not be hostile to the observance of Adonai’s highest standards; rather there will be a perfect marriage between the secular and the religious. This means that there will be trustworthy and benevolent rule: “the Nasi will not take from the inheritance of the people to rob them of their holdings” (46:18).

What if the Nasi and the Kohen were truly embodied in one person? What if this person lives and gives of his own inheritance sacrificially? What if he is the living sacrifice, a model for us forever? What if he embodies the entire Mikdash (Temple)?  What if he gives us our true inheritance . . . mastery of time? Is it possible that all of history, all time, and therefore all of our hopes and aspirations, collapse on one personage?

 But when Messiah came as Kohen Gadol of the good things that are now already here, he went through the greater and more perfect Mishkan that is not made with human hands, that is to say, is not a part of this creation. 12 He did not enter by means of the blood of goats and calves; but he entered the Most Holy Place once for all by his own blood, thus obtaining eternal redemption. 13 The blood of goats and bulls and the ashes of a heifer sprinkled on those who are ceremonially unclean sanctify them so that they are outwardly clean. 14 How much more, then, will the blood of Messiah, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself unblemished to God, cleanse our consciences from acts that lead to death, so that we may serve the living God! 15 For this reason Messiah is the mediator of a new covenant, that those who are called may receive the promised eternal inheritance—now that he has died as a ransom to set them free from the sins committed under the first covenant. (Hebrews 9:11-15)

Apparently, it is all about time.

The Husband's Longing

Shabbat Parah, Ezekiel 36:16-38

David Wein, Tikvat Israel, Richmond, VA

 The longest I’ve been away from my wife since we were married about four years ago is a couple of days. This year for a weekend in February she went away with two other married women. I missed her, for sure. I tried to spend some time with my guy friends, and that helped. I got regular updates of their exploits, and that was enjoyable. But you can’t hug a picture on your phone. I mean, you can, but it’s not the same.  

The husband-wife dynamic is so unique and intimate that it is a frequent analogy in the Scriptures. This week’s haftarah portion opens with just such a striking analogy. The uncleanness of Israel in the land is like the uncleanness of the niddah, a woman during her time of “uncleanness.” But why this particular analogy? Whom does this status affect but her husband? This underscores that the “husband” of Israel is away from his bride, longs for her, misses her during this time. The medieval commentator Rashi affirms: “Scripture likened them to a woman in the period of her separation, whose husband looks forward to when she will become clean, and longs to return to her.”  

The word used here for profane or defile, chalal, shows up in Leviticus, of course: 

Then Adonai said to Moses, “Speak to the kohanim, the sons of Aaron, and say to them: A kohen is not to allow himself to become unclean for the dead among his people, except for his relatives that are nearest to him—his mother, his father, his son, his daughter, his brother, or his virgin sister who is near to him, who has had no husband. For her he may allow himself to become unclean. But he is not to defile himself—a husband among his people—and so profane himself. (Lev 21:1–4 TLV, emphasis added) 

I like this translation because here the kohen (priest) is also a husband among his people. The husband/priest longs for his bride to be purified because he longs for intimacy with her. And what is it that defiles, that gets in the way? The exiting of life, otherwise known as death. In Ezekiel’s time, Israel is spiritually dead by her idolatry and injustice. And worse, not only has she profaned herself, but . . . well, let’s pick it up in the haftarah portion at Ezekiel 36:16–21. 

The word of Adonai came to me saying: “Son of man, when the house of Israel lived in their own land, they defiled it by their way and by their deeds. Their way before Me was like the uncleanness of a woman in her niddah. So I poured out My fury on them for the blood which they had shed upon the land and because they had defiled it with their idols. I scattered them among the nations, so they were dispersed through the countries. According to their way and their deeds I judged them. Wherever they went among the nations, they profaned My holy Name, since it was said about them, ‘These are the people of Adonai, yet they had to leave His land.’ But I had concern for My holy Name, which the house of Israel had profaned among the nations wherever they went.”

 Here the husband is Hashem, and his name, or reputation, is profaned among the nations where Israel was scattered. The message being communicated was this: “The God of Israel couldn’t save these people from being scattered all over the earth.” Therefore, even when Israel is in exile, far from home because of her uncleanness, she has the same calling and purpose to reflect the God of Israel. It is still her job to sanctify the Name. In exilic shock? You’re not off the clock.  

But in the tradition of Leviticus, Ezekiel offers a solution: there is an opportunity for cleansing, renewal, and intimacy once again.  

For I will take you from the nations, gather you out of all the countries and bring you back to your own land. Then I will sprinkle clean water on you and you will be clean from all your uncleanness and from all your idols. Moreover I will give you a new heart. I will put a new spirit within you. I will remove the stony heart from your flesh and give you a heart of flesh. I will put My Ruach within you. Then I will cause you to walk in My laws, so you will keep My rulings and do them. Then you will live in the land that I gave to your fathers. You will be My people and I will be your God. (Ezek 36:24–28 TLV)

 The uncleanness of Israel runs deep, for she has a heart problem—indeed, the same heart problem as all sons and daughters of Adam. She needs a new heart, a new ruach (spirit) and a cleansing of living water (atonement), so that she can actually follow the Torah (instruction) of God, and be a faithful bride. With the Ruach of God within us, there is nothing separating us from his presence.  

In 1979, the UMJC was formed. Also of note in 1979, Peaches and Herb reminded us:           

Reunited, and it feels so good

Reunited ‘cause we understood

There’s one perfect fit

And, sugar, this one is it

We both are so excited ‘cause we’re reunited, hey, hey.

 The good news (both literally and figuratively) is that Yeshua has reunited Israel with her “husband/priest,” has given her a new heart to follow Torah, a new Spirit to be in his presence, and a cleansing with the water of life. May we be rooted in his longing for us and in restorative atonement, that we also would long for him. This will propel us toward the restoration and redemption of the earth.  

A new narrative is being written here, to restore the name of God: 

The land that was desolate will be tilled instead of being a wasteland in the sight of all that passed by. They will say, “This land that was a wasteland has become like the garden of Eden.” (Ezek 36:34–35a TLV)

 As we cling to our husband and priest, Yeshua, let us be gardeners, cultivators, and guardians of what he has given us, for our avodah (service) restores not only the name of God, but the garden of Eden on earth.

Purim and Its Remedy

 Rabbi David Friedman, Jerusalem

“For if you remain silent at this time, relief and deliverance for the Jews will arise from another place, but you and your father’s family will perish. And who knows if not for this very time you achieved royalty?”— Esther 4:14. 

It brings joy to my heart when I see little children dressed up in their Purim costumes on our streets here in Israel. I loved it when my children donned their costumes, paraded on the town’s sidewalks with their elementary school class, and had tons of fun at their class parties. To them, Mordecai and Esther were our heroes, our role models. Purim was happiness, songs, cookies, and treats; it was the reading of the Megillah (the book of Esther) and the foot stomping, grogger noise, boos and hisses that we let out when Haman’s name was read. It is fun to see my neighbors in a giving mood, exchanging presents of candy, cookies, and other food items. For these are “days of celebrating and rejoicing, a holiday and a time of sending each other portions of food” (Esther 9:19b). The feeling all around is one of happiness and giving. Combine this historical event with the coming of springtime, and how can we not feel good? 

But then I am faced with my growing uneasiness during this holiday. I am uneasy at the lack of God’s name appearing even once in the Megillah. Even the language of the book makes me uneasy, for it is not Hebrew in the main, but Aramaic, a diaspora language. I am also faced with uneasiness when I read about diaspora life in Persia, as once again our people are at the mercy of a foreign ruler who couldn’t care less about our fate. I know the end of the story; God comes through with his deliverance!  But my uneasiness persists. The book of Esther contains a divinely revealed message to us. It contains a pattern that we are to learn and act upon. To me, this message resounds through the ages, throughout Jewish history.   

Surely the book of Esther teaches us that the diaspora will always be fertile ground for many of us to lose our identity as Jews. Some of us will not, but we will still have to fight to simply exist; some of us will survive in the diaspora, and some of us won’t survive.   

Jewish life throughout our diaspora history has repeated this same pattern everywhere we have lived. My grandmother used to tell me how she suffered in Czarist Russia as a Jew in the early 1900s; my father used to tell me how he had to fight with his fists to get home safely from school in early 20th century Midwestern America. I too had a few bouts in my youth in the 1960s in order to do the same. Here or there, then or now, this pattern from Esther seems to repeat itself: Diaspora life consists of playing politics deftly to survive, while being dependent on non-Jews to protect us and grant us the right to live: “Esther . . . fell at the king’s feet, and wept and implored him to avert the evil intention of Haman the Agagite, and his scheme that he had plotted against the Jews” (8:3). 

All over the world today, in Western Europe, in Central Europe, and in North America, our people’s situation is getting worse. In the USA, anti-Semitism is being openly expressed right up to the halls of Congress. 

Recently, the Israeli government assessed the worldwide Jewish situation as resembling that of early 1930s Europe. Now, I certainly do not want to hear that, but it is reality. Recent events in Belgium and in the USA show movement in that direction. In England, France, Germany, Sweden, Denmark, Hungary, Belgium, Switzerland, Holland, Turkey, and Tunisia, our people live in outright fear. I know because I spend time every year in these places, talking to both Jewish and Christian leaders. The only city in all of Europe where I feel safe enough to wear my kippa in public is, sadly enough, at Oswiecim, Poland (the site of the Auschwitz-Birkenau death camps). 

Esther and Mordecai remained in the Persian diaspora, and they played their cards of wisdom, politics, and intelligence to outmaneuver Haman and his allies. They played their hand well. They were involved in a life or death situation for over a million people. Yet, God’s name is not mentioned once by them, nor is He called upon in the text to deliver His people. It is as if He is forgotten by His own people.   I admire the courage and wisdom of Mordecai and Esther. And yet, our history hasn’t always displayed that same wisdom, nor have we had sympathetic people in high political places to “save” us on any consistent basis. We have not always been given an opportunity to speak to a king who would listen to us. This was certainly the case during the Holocaust. 

In the days of the Persian Empire, Haggai, Zechariah, Yehoshua the Priest, Zerubabbel and 50,000 other Jews made another decision. Their actions also took courage and determination to carry out. And on their heels, Nehemiah and Ezra repeated that same decision. All of these famous Jews made aliyah (they immigrated to Israel) in their generation. They left the centers of the Persian diaspora for the Land of Israel. 

My uneasiness during Purim comes from my concern that we will embrace one lesson of the book of Esther, but ignore another one. The events of the Megillah show us that God is behind the scenes, delivering His people in ways that we sometimes cannot even see. And that is indeed one true and good lesson.   

But the other lesson? The Megillah carries no encouragement for us to remain in lands and situations where we are subject to annihilation. Surely ensuing Jewish history also argues for us to be aware of this. We all wonder how many more violent attacks on synagogues will occur, both in Europe and in America. We wonder how many more Israel-hating American Congressmen will be elected to national office in the near future. I am sorry to be so blunt, but I cannot be otherwise. Recent charges against Jewish communities in the USA have reiterated Haman’s accusations: “There is a certain people that is scattered abroad and dispersed among the people in all provinces of your realm. Their laws are different from every other people’s, and they do not observe the king’s laws; therefore it is not befitting to tolerate them” (3:8). 

Haman asserted that our ancestors were disloyal to the state and kept to their own ways. Intolerable minority! Haman was full of lies, but the king didn’t care about truth. How often has this been our situation in Diaspora history? 

I urge my non-Jewish readers as Mordecai urged Esther: “For if you remain silent at this time, relief and deliverance for the Jews will arise from another place. . . . And who knows if not for this very time you achieved royalty?” Please advocate for the welfare of your local Jewish communities. Please speak to others; please pray and intercede for God’s destiny to be embraced by our people. As Isaiah put it, “Comfort, comfort my people” (Isa 40). As believers in Yeshua, you are “grafted into the root of the olive tree” (Romans 11), so you share in part of Israel’s destiny. Perhaps it is for this very time in human history that you have been given many of the blessings that you have—so that you can help Jewish communities and aid those who make aliyah. 

The book of Esther’s messages only reach their fulfillment with a return to Israel. Otherwise, they are part of a never-ending diaspora history characterized by continual oppression, suffering, and eventual migration. In the days of Esther we escaped, but there were plenty of times afterwards when we did not escape. 

Life in Israel has its dangers, certainly. It has its hardships, definitely: national headaches every day; violent attacks that murder Jews just because we are Jewish, yes. Life in Israel also had its great difficulties in the days of Ezra and Nehemiah. Yet, as the events of Esther and Mordecai occurred, Ezra and Nehemiah were on their way to Israel. Jewish life in Persia carried no enduring promises. Nor did Jewish life in medieval France, or in Nazi Germany, or in Western Europe today. Life in Israel does carry enduring promises.

I am Adonai, I do not change. So, the children of Jacob are not annihilated (Malachi 3:6, author’s translation).

Purim is March 20-21 this year.

Holy Dual Loyalty

Haftarat Vayikra, Isaiah 43:21–44: 23

 Rabbi Russ Resnik

Ilhan Omar, the Democratic congresswoman from Minnesota, has maintained her high exposure in the news stream for weeks by repeatedly “using anti-Semitic clichés in her criticisms of the American-Israeli relationship” (quoting NY Times columnist Ross Douthat). The particular cliché that seems to have gotten the most attention and pushback is Omar’s recent insinuation of dual loyalty: “I want to talk about the political influence in this country that says it is okay to push for allegiance to a foreign country.” In the wider context of Omar’s rhetoric “political influence” refers to pro-Israel lobbyists and particularly AIPAC, and the “foreign country” is Israel.  

Dual loyalty. It reminds me of Haman’s slanderous charge to Ahashuerus, which we’ll be reading next week for Purim: “There is a certain people scattered and dispersed among the peoples in all the provinces of your kingdom whose laws differ from those of every other people and who do not obey the king’s laws. It is not in the king’s interest to tolerate them” (Esth 3:8).  

I’m not ranking Rep. Omar with Haman, but there is a faint echo. Jews are problematic because they have a different story and different laws (the Hebrew here is datim, which is used throughout Esther mostly to denote the imperial laws and ordinances). They just don’t fit in. In the current iteration, Jews who support the state of Israel—even if they’re critical in their support—aren’t just mistaken; they’re declaring allegiance to a different country. Their priorities differ “from those of every other people.” 

Columnist Douthat claims that those defending Rep. Omar “want and I suspect will eventually get a politics that remembers the Holocaust as one great historical tragedy among many, that judges Israel primarily on its conservative and nationalist political orientation, rather than on its status as a Jewish sanctuary, and that regards the success of American Jews as a reason for them to join white Gentiles in check-your-privilege self-criticism, ceding moral authority to minority groups who are more immediately oppressed” (https://www.nytimes.com/2019/03/09/opinion/is-anti-semitism-exceptional.html). 

In other words, according to a significant segment of the American political class, Jews ought to just behave and think like everyone else. Otherwise we’re guilty of dual loyalty. 

Oddly, I encountered something similar years ago when I first became a follower of Messiah. When the Spirit of God swept into my life as a radical young drop-out in the remote mountains of New Mexico, I was surprised, shocked really, to discover that Yeshua—the Jesus of the goyim—was our Jewish Messiah. I was also surprised to discover soon after that being Jewish really mattered to God. Some of our early mentors supported this idea: Don Compton, who had an outreach based in Santa Fe that he’d named Shalom Ministries before he knew exactly what shalom meant; Pastor Limas at the local Spanish Assembly of God, where we found great encouragement and support at the beginning of our journey. But other Christians seemed concerned about our dual loyalty: “There is no longer Jew nor Greek,” and so on.  

One emphasis Don Compton and brother Limas shared was Pentecost. I’m not just talking about the Christian name for the holiday of Shavuot. I’m talking about the baptism in the Holy Spirit with evidence of speaking in tongues, and all the energy and uplift (with a dash of mishegoss, of course) that this entails. And the proof text for Pentecost was the whole book of Acts. As I spent time in this text over the years, I became impressed that it not only pictured an active, dramatic presence of the Holy Spirit, but also an active, dramatic presence of a Jewish body of Yeshua-followers living right in the midst of the Jewish people. These loyal Jewish followers of Messiah were also loyal Jews—lots of them as the Jerusalem elders tell Paul: “You see, brother, how many myriads there are among the Jewish people who have believed—and they are all zealous for the Torah” (Acts 21:20).  

Torah and Yeshua? Jewish and Messianic? These might be dual loyalties, but they’re loyalties that the Lord seems to have linked. The charge of political dual loyalty in modern America echoes historic anti-Semitic slanders. But here’s a holy dual loyalty of an entirely different order.  

Messianic Jewish scholar Mark Kinzer provides a fresh and profound interpretation of Acts in his recent book Jerusalem Crucified, Jerusalem Risen: The Resurrected Messiah, the Jewish People, and the Land of Promise. He comments on the loyalty of Jewish followers of Yeshua:  

Jerusalem in Luke and Acts is the city of God and the Messiah, with the Temple Mount at its heart. It is the holiest point in the land of promise, the most precious part that represents the whole. But Jerusalem in Luke and Acts is also the city of Torah-faithful Jews who are devoted to both Jesus the Messiah and the people of Israel. Simeon, Anna, Joseph of Arimathea, James the brother of Jesus, the “thousands . . . among the Jews” who were “all zealous for the Torah” (Acts 21:20)—these are the citizens of Jerusalem whose lives represent for Luke the city’s prophetic destiny. (pg. 265, emphasis added)

 Kinzer ably demonstrates that “the city’s prophetic destiny” in turn represents the prophetic destiny of the entire Jewish people, to be fulfilled in and through Messiah Yeshua. Messianic Jews today anticipate that destiny in our dual loyalty to Messiah and to the people of Israel.  

This week’s haftarah describes a holy dual loyalty that my wife, Jane, and I have been praying for on behalf of our family, and the wider Messianic Jewish family, for decades.  

“Do not fear, Jacob My servant,
Jeshurun, whom I have chosen.
For I will pour water on the thirsty land
and streams on the dry ground.
I will pour My Spirit on your offspring,
and My blessing on your descendants.
They will spring up among the grass
like willows by flowing streams.
This one will say, ‘I am Adonai’s.’
That one will be called by the name Jacob.
Another will write on his hand, ‘Adonai’s’
and will take the name Israel.” Isaiah 44:2b–5 TLV

 Jacob’s offspring, the Lord promises through Isaiah, will again identify themselves as belonging to Adonai—and belonging to Jacob, Israel his people. They will call themselves by the Lord’s name and by the name of Israel, and yet their loyalty will be undivided. May the Ruach, the Spirit of God, rain down upon our offspring, our children and grandchildren and their generations throughout the extended house of Israel, to produce new life and a new identity that honors him. This has been our prayer for decades and our haftarah reminds us that it’s based on a sure promise of the God of Israel.

What Do You See in the Cloud?

Haftarat Pekudei, 1 Kings 7:51–8:21

Rabbi Aaron Allsbrook, Ohev Yisrael, Springfield VA

 This week’s haftarah is a glorious one. What had begun with Moses in the desert now finds its culmination with Solomon in Jerusalem. The people were once nomads in a desert on their way to the land of promise. Now they stand before their established king in their allotted land to dedicate a secure, fixed, and beautiful house to the living God. This is a place for God to dwell among his people forever, a place wherein people may approach God through sacrifice, prayer, and worship. It is a place unique among all places because, whereas God’s presence surely fills the entire earth, he has a particular concentration of himself in this location.

Solomon builds an elaborate and baroque temple to house the presence of God. He received this idea from his father, David. David loved the presence of God and thought it was improper to have a palace of cedar for himself while God dwelt in a tent (2 Sam 7:2). So he came up with plans to construct an abode fitting to house the presence of God. God did not allow him to actualize these plans because of the blood on his hands, so the blueprints went to Solomon. And Solomon fulfilled the wishes of his father.

Solomon created a true wonder for God. It was laden with gold, silver, and bronze, and decorated with purple, blue, and scarlet, along with carvings of animals and angels—this was something to behold. When all was said and done, just as when Moses completed the tabernacle in the desert some 480 years earlier, the presence of God came and filled this building. We read,  

Now when the kohanim came out of the Holy Place, the cloud filled the House of Adonai, so that the kohanim could not stand to minister because of the cloud, for the glory of Adonai filled the House of Adonai. Then Solomon spoke: “Adonai said that he would dwell in the thick cloud.” (1 Kings 8:10–12)

Even though, to the natural eye, this temple was worthy of praise due to its architectural and artistic splendor, what truly made it a spectacle, just like the tabernacle of Moses, was the glory of the Lord that filled it.

The purpose of the tabernacle and the temple was to have a place where God could dwell among the people of Israel. God is relational and wants to be with his children. However, because he’s so awesomely radiant and we’re—well—not, he has to come in a thick, dark cloud. He must be concealed. Even when he is with us, he is hidden. Even his reflection was too much for the people (see Exod 34:30).

Ezekiel picks up on this pattern when he describes the presence of God in his vision of the temple (Ezek 10:4). But such an occurrence does not happen after Ezra, Nehemiah, and company finish the building of the second temple. The prophet Haggai, however, states that the glory of the second temple would surpass that of Solomon’s temple (Hag 2:9). Clearly the fulfillment did not happen when the physical building was complete. So when would it happen?

Hundreds of years later Yeshua the Messiah took three of his disciples, Peter, John, and Jacob, onto a mountain. While he was praying his face began to shine brightly, like the sun, and even his clothes became radiant. Moses and Elijah appear in glory and the three disciples are dumbfounded. Suddenly, a bright cloud overshadows them and they hear the voice of God, “This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased. Listen to him!” (Matt 17:5b). The disciples are terrified, but Yeshua touches them and all is well. They are to share this with no one.

What have they just experienced?! They witnessed here the cloud and glory of God in the person of Yeshua. And unlike Moses and Solomon, who saw a thick, dark cloud and were unable to stand in its presence, these three fishermen saw a bright cloud and were able to stand within it! How amazing! These men had just experienced the impossible. What their forefathers yearned to experience, these men were able to witness with their own eyes and encounter with their whole being.

Luke tells us that Moses and Elijah were discussing with Yeshua his eventual sacrifice and resurrection in Jerusalem. Such an event would fulfill the words of Haggai with the glory of the second temple being greater than that of Solomon’s temple. Yeshua, the radiance of the glory of God (Heb 1:3), would enter the house meant to hold the presence of God, and he would allow that presence to go out to the ends of the earth, no longer in darkness, but now in light and accessible to all (John 8:12).

Solomon built an amazing temple. He did something good in the eyes of the Lord. God dwelt there and, to a degree, the people could approach God. Isn’t that what we want, to be able to be close to God? The tabernacle is gone, the temples are gone, yet Yeshua is alive! Through him we are able to be in the presence of God all the time, wherever we are. What our fathers yearned for, what they saw in darkness, we see now in light. While his presence is still amazing and awesome, something we should revere greatly, we are able to approach in boldness because of Yeshua (see Heb 4:16).

When we see Yeshua, we see the Father (John 14:9). God continues to want nothing more than to be with his children, for them to dwell with him in his glory, without hindrance, without hesitation. We have such access now, and it will be even more glorious when he returns to Jerusalem to dwell with us forever!

Photo by Amber Flowers

One Man Makes the Difference

Haftarat Shekalim, 2 Kings 11:17–12:17

David Friedman, UMJC rabbi, Jerusalem

This Shabbat is Shabbat Shekalim, corresponding to the season in our calendar when the half-shekel tax was assessed in ancient Israel. Our haftarah is a short history lesson, but one that carries a challenge throughout the generations. 

The times of King Joash (843–796 BCE) and the prominent kohen (priest) Jehoiada were tumultuous ones, full of betrayal, chaos in the royal family, and bloodshed. Queen Athaliah of Judah had bludgeoned her way into power. She was the daughter of King Ahab and Queen Jezebel of the kingdom of Israel, and married into the royal family of Judah. Killing in order to strengthen her political position was one of Athaliah’s trademarks. Athaliah attempted to annihilate the royal house of King David. She acted similarly to her mother, Queen Jezebel, who was known for her penchant toward violence. Drastic and righteous actions were needed to put an end to the violence, disturbances, and disorder that Athaliah brought to the throne of Judah and to the nation. This is where we enter this week’s haftarah portion. 

Wicked Queen Athaliah had suddenly fallen because Jehoiada bravely organized a coup against her. As a result of his actions, even more chaos could ensue. When a ruler fell, competing parts of a royal family could cause purges and civil war, endangering the nation’s stability. Right then and there, the kohen Jehoiada had the gumption to take swift and decisive action in the royal quarter of the city of David, ensuring the avoidance of further conflict in the government. He led the unified royal guards in a plot to overthrow Athaliah.  

The sentiment of the palace officials and guards and of the city itself was to go ahead and place the rightful Prince Joash on the throne. “And all the people of the land rejoiced, and the city quieted down” (2 Kings 11:20). 

Jehoiada seized the moment, and went ahead boldly with his actions. After setting up the seven-year old Joash as king, Jehoiada apparently stayed close to him, protecting him and advising him. In the ancient world, when a government fell, neighbors on the borders would often jump at the chance to invade, to gain territory, and flex their muscle. Jehoiada’s quick, decisive, and unifying actions did not allow this to happen.  

The record shows Jehoiada to be wise and patriotic, loyal to God and passionate. When we combine the record of 2 Kings 11 and 12 with that of 2 Chronicles 24, that is indeed the picture that emerges. 

Jehoiada then made a covenant between the Lord and the king and people, that they would be Adonai’s people. He also made a covenant between the king and the people. All the people of the land went to the temple of Baal and tore it down. (2 Kings 11:17–18a)

[On Jehoiada’s initiative] the king then took his place on the royal throne, and all the people of the land rejoiced. And the city was quiet, because Athaliah had been slain. . . . Joash (the new king) was seven years old when he began to reign. (2 Kings 11:19–21)

During the six years of Athaliah’s heavy-handed reign, Prince Joash had been hidden in order to save him from Athaliah’s sword: “He remained hidden with his nurse at the temple of Adonai for six years while Athaliah ruled the land” (2 Kings 11:3). Though this text does not explicitly say so, I assume that Jehoiada tutored the boy-king Joash and advised him closely during his boyhood. That is, he helped the king to rule justly and righteously, with the fear of God in the forefront. Indeed, the first action that Jehoiada is recorded to have taken after his successful coup was to lead a renewal of the covenant between God and the people.  

Kings who took this type of decisive action (like Hezekiah and Josiah) are considered heroes. The kohen Jehoiada was a likeminded individual in his passion for the nation to be loyal to the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. His recorded actions show us his heart. He was even accorded the honor of being buried alongside the kings: “He was buried with the kings in the City of David, because of the good he had done in Israel for God and his temple” (2 Chron 24:16). 

“And Joash did that which was right in the eyes of God all the days of Jehoiada the priest” (2 Chron 2:24). This verse testifies to the influence of Jehoiada on King Joash. As long as Jehoiada was alive, he appears to have had positive influence upon the government and the very nation itself. Joash, though, had his faults, and after Jehoiada the kohen died, Joash allowed idolatry to creep back into the nation. Sadly, after Jehoiada’s death, Joash even was complicit in the murder of Jehoiada’s son: “King Joash did not remember the kindness . . . Jehoiada had shown him, but killed his son (2 Chron 24:22). 

When I stop to think about the life of Jehoiada, I see one clear lesson: one person who takes courageous action at a given time can turn history around in a good way. For the Jewish people at that time, the actions of Jehoiada reversed the trend towards idolatry, and again placed the kingdom into the hands of the faithful, living, and true God, right where it belonged. Lives were saved, security was established, and righteousness now had a chance to be manifested in the nation. Covenant faithfulness towards God had a real chance to be established for a long time. The foundation for such a legacy was created by the work of Jehoiada. Unfortunately, Joash chose another path, ending in his own death.  

This haftarah portion carries one particularly clear message. When I read it, it causes me to ask myself: can I be like Jehoiada? Will I allow God to fill me full of his courage so that I can help influence those around me, like my family, my workplace, and my community? When God opens doors for me to be the one person who can step through in order to make a big difference, will I do it? Will I muster up the courage and indeed step through? These are not rhetorical questions. As I ask them they may sound rhetorical, but they will become real for each one of us at some point in our lives.  

My prayer is that the Lord will fill you and me both with that very courage, with the foresight and wisdom of Jehoiada, with the very decisiveness and righteousness that he displayed. I cannot think of a more important challenge for any one of us. Will we rise up, take the responsibilities that we have in life, and further the kingdom of God by excelling at our task? Yehi ratzono. May it be. Amen.

Who You Gonna Listen To?

Haftarat Ki Tisa, 1 Kings 18:1–39

Michael Hillel, Netanya, Israel          

 I remember being a gangly, nearsighted, almost nerdy teenager, without the academic bent, during my high school years. When I decided to go into the Marine Corps in my senior year, very few of my peers were supportive of the idea. “You will never make it in the Marines” was the comment I heard more often than not. Well, I spent twelve years in the Marines and remain a proud Marine to this day. A year after I went into the Corps, I met and rather quickly married my wife. This time, some of the comments were, “You’ll never make it a year.” This year we will celebrate our 46th wedding anniversary. Coming to Israel, I knew that I would eventually be in full-time ministry, but again I was told, “You aren’t cut out for ministry; find something else for your hand to do.” Of all the rejections, this one hurt the worst. Interestingly, Hashem opened a number of doors for me over the years to be involved in various ministry activities, which includes leading a chavurah on the Mediterranean coast. One thing these three episodes have taught me is that we should listen to what God says over what man says, especially when man says something can’t be done.

This week’s haftarah from 1 Kings 18 is best known for Elijah’s victory over the priests of Ba’al at Mount Carmel, which led to a massive return of the people of Israel (the northern kingdom) to the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. Often overlooked in this well-known passage is the reception Elijah received on his way to Carmel and during the interactions that occurred there.  

A little background is helpful here. For three years Israel has been in a drought brought about at the word of Elijah. 

Now Elijah the Tishbite, of Tishbe in Gilead, said to Ahab, “As the Lord the God of Israel lives, before whom I stand, there shall be neither dew nor rain these years, except by my word.” (1 Kings 17:1)

Now, three years later, Hashem sends Elijah to tell Ahab that he will send rain. Since Elijah is the source of the drought, he is persona non grata in Israel. The first person whom Elijah encounters on his way to meet Ahab is Obadiah, “who was in charge of the palace [and] . . . feared Adonai greatly” (18:3). However, instead of praising Hashem at this meeting, Obadiah becomes fearful because Elijah wants him to tell Ahab that Elijah is back. In essence Obadiah asks Elijah if he is handing him over to Ahab to be killed (18:9–14). Thus, we see that Elijah’s first reception is less than favorable. Then when Elijah does meet Ahab, instead of welcoming Elijah and possibly bringing about the end of the drought, Ahab retorts, “Is it you, you troubler of Israel?” (18:17). Ahab obviously does not accept his or his wife Jezebel’s responsibility for the drought, blaming it solely on Elijah.  

Finally, maybe the hardest reception is from the people of Israel who are gathered on Mount Carmel to see what the prophet will do. Elijah throws down the gauntlet, “How long will you go limping with two different opinions? If Adonai is God, follow him; but if Ba′al, then follow him” (18:21). And the people do not say anything. Elijah receives no encouragement from a fellow man of God, the king, or the people who are bound to Hashem in covenant relationship. Instead he receives skepticism, accusation, and unresponsiveness. With such a reception, at least in the natural, why would Elijah want to continue in his mission? 

Doubt, criticism, and apathy are not the seedbed of success and victory. Blogger Ana Erkic notes

If someone keeps criticizing you, you should stop for a moment and consider what it really means. It doesn’t have anything to do with you—it has to do with their own fears and insecurities.”[i]

Had Elijah been derailed by the reception he received, the story may well have had a much different ending. Had the king’s attitude or the people’s apathy been the motivating factor, the drought may not have ended, and the priests of Ba’al would have won by default. However, Elijah had a word from the Lord, and it was that word that motivated him, that strengthened him to accomplish what he was sent to do. In The Message paraphrase, Eugene Peterson creatively renders Proverbs 3:5–6: 

Trust God from the bottom of your heart; don’t try to figure out everything on your own. Listen for God’s voice in everything you do, everywhere you go; he’s the one who will keep you on track.

 Part of trusting God from the bottom of our heart is knowing that he desires our best and that the dream or desire of our hearts runs in tandem with his desire for our good. So the key here is first trusting Hashem and then listening to Hashem’s guidance. When we do that, we can trust that he will lead, guide, and direct the dream or goal to its successful conclusion. Trust in him and do not be swayed by those who would attempt to heap criticism and doubt upon your dreams. Rav Shaul likewise encouraged the believers in Colossae when he wrote, “And whatever you do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Yeshua, giving thanks to God the Father through him” (Col 3:17). 

Remember, the successful completion of a goal or the realization of a dream is but a stop or, better yet, a marker on the journey of life. Our eyes are not to be on the markers; rather they are to be on the one who walks with us, leading and guiding us to be the very best that we can be, wherever that journey might take us.

[i] https://www.lifehack.org/523208/others-may-doubt-you-but-you-always-have-to-believe-in-yourself, accessed on February 15, 2019.

Be Lovers of Peace

Parashat Tetzaveh, Exodus 27:20–30:10

Rabbi Isaac Roussel, Congregation Zera Avraham, Ann Arbor, MI

 Our parasha this week focuses on the making of the priestly garments, including those of the Kohen Gadol. In Exodus 19:6 God says to Israel, “You shall be for me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation.” So in reality we are all priests. The kohanim are just the priests to the priests. But Israel as a whole are priests to the nations of the world. Just as there were special garments for the kohanim, we have our special garments, denoting our vocation as priests; for example, tallit and tefillin.  

Aaron, our first high priest, was known as a great peacemaker. Pirke Avot 1:12 says “Be among the disciples of Aaron, a lover of peace and pursuer of peace; love all fellow creatures, and bring them near to Torah.” As priests, this is one of our most important callings. And this is why communal peace is so important to the rabbis. Time and again throughout the Talmud, we see a deep concern for peace; even adjusting rulings to engender good relationships between people. There are stories of rabbis who even allow themselves to be denigrated in the interest of peace.

It is especially important for us to be pursuers of peace in our highly polarized society. I have been troubled these last few years with how contentious elections have become, and how dismissive people have become of others’ opinions and positions on difficult social issues. It often devolves into name calling. Conservatives call liberals “libtards” and “snowflakes”. Liberals call conservatives “rednecks” and “wing nuts”. Such labels are denigrating and dehumanizing, no better than racial pejoratives.  

People also use social media to blast others, wielding “their truth” like a sledgehammer. Rabbi Nachman’s words from two centuries ago apply so well in our modern context. He says, “Even on occasion when they do meet and converse, their words are not heard due to the climate of jealousy, spite and disdain. Aggression and the desire to win arguments cannot bear the truth. The main reason why most people are far from God is strife, which has become widespread in the world as a result of our sins” (Likutey Moharan I, 27). Social media today is rife with aggression, spite, and disdain.

To be peace-loving followers of Aaron, we need to avoid getting drawn into such behavior. It behooves us to keep in mind that these are complex issues facing our society and that both sides of a question can have equally compelling arguments and valid viewpoints. 

In the Talmud Moses asks God for a clear-cut Torah. God refuses because it would be too rigid. God tells Moses to learn to argue the 49 pros and the 49 cons and then go with the majority opinion. (Why 49? No one really knows. But a possible answer comes from another story in the Talmud where Moses asks God for all 50 levels of understanding, and God tells him that humans can only handle 49.) 

Because of the great importance of learning to listen to each other’s opinions, it also says in the Talmud that one may not be appointed to the Sanhedrin unless he can argue from Scripture why reptiles are kosher! In other words, our Sages wanted judges who were not rigid and unwilling to hear all sides of an argument. This is clearly hyperbole to make the point. 

There is a story told about a discussion between Bismarck, the Chancellor of Germany, and Disraeli, the Prime Minister of England (and also a Jew). Bismarck said that he wished he could limit his ministers of parliament to only two minutes of talking each, because he already knew the right decision. Disraeli replied that if no one in parliament disagreed with him, he would go out and hire people to argue with him! Bismarck asked him, “Why would you do that?” Disraeli replied, “It’s an old family tradition.” He recognized the need for peaceful discussion and disagreement. 

In Yeshua’s day there were two main schools of Pharisees, Hillel and Shammai. They often disagreed on the application of Torah, but usually their arguments were constructive and peaceful. On the 9th of Adar in 66 CE, however, their argument erupted into violence and many people were killed, some say as many as 3000! This was such a catastrophe that the 9th of Adar became a minor fast day. In modern times, a group of rabbis formed an organization teaching people how to peacefully disagree, and they called it the 9 Adar Project (see www.9adar.org). The 9th of Adar is this week, on February 14th. 

It is hard to handle disagreements peacefully, as it requires us to be humble and admit that we may only have 49 levels of truth, not all 50. And to admit that we may have our own biases that blind us from the validity other people’s perspectives. It requires us to have respect and empathy for our opponents. It requires us to develop deep listening skills and to learn from other people. 

As lovers of peace, we are required to eliminate strife, which is defined as angry or bitter disagreement over fundamental issues. Rav Shaul lists strife along with idolatry, sexual immorality, and sorcery (Gal 5:19–21)! In his letter to the Corinthians he says, “You are involved in strife because you are spiritually immature” (1 Cor 3:3). Proverbs 6 says “There are six things Adonai hates, seven which he detests: a haughty look, a lying tongue, hands that shed innocent blood, a heart that plots wicked schemes, feet swift in running to do evil, a false witness who lies with every breath, and him who sows strife among brothers” (emphasis mine). 

Yeshua said, “Love your enemies and do good. . . . Then your reward will be great and you will be called sons of the Most High” (Luke 6:35). Sometimes our “enemies” are people that we disagree with. 

As Jewish followers of Messiah Yeshua, I urge us all to avoid strife, to avoid getting sucked into vicious arguments, denigrating those with whom we disagree, and blasting people with our “truth”. We need to set an example for the Messianic Community and the world. We are priests and should always strive to engender peaceful discussions. 

May we be “49 people,” willing to listen to all sides of an argument. 

May we have humility, awareness of our own biases, and empathy for our opponents, and be deep listeners. 

May we be followers of Aaron, lovers of peace and pursuers of peace. 

Then we will be joint-heirs with our Messiah, and called sons of the Most High!

Where Does God Dwell?

Haftarat Terumah (1 Kings 5:26–6:13 [5:12–6:13])

Dr. Vered Hillel, Netanya, Israel

As for this house that you are building, if you will walk in my statutes, obey my ordinances and keep all my commandments by walking in them, then I will establish my word with you, which I spoke to your father David. I will dwell among the children of Israel and will not forsake my people Israel. (1 Kings 6:12–13)

These words to Solomon refer to the promise Hashem gave to David, that one of David’s descendants would build a house for Hashem’s name and that he would build a permanent dynasty for David (2 Sam 7). Ultimately, these words were fulfilled in Yeshua, the King and Messiah of Israel. As we say at Pesach, dayenu, this would have been enough, but Haftarat Terumah contains so much more than a fulfillment of a promise or a litany of architectural details. It records a monumental and defining event in the history and life of the people of Israel.

Israel had grown from a family, to a tribe of liberated slaves, to a covenant people wandering through the desert, to an established nation with a king. By the time of Solomon’s reign, Israel had become a superpower in the Middle East. Egypt and Mesopotamia had both fallen from power, leaving a political vacuum that Israel filled. Israel had reached its greatest heights of political, economic and intellectual greatness, and Solomon’s building of the Temple was the pinnacle. According to Rambam in Mishneh Torah, after entering the Land, Israel was to appoint a king (Deut 17:14–15), destroy the descendants of Amalek (Deut 25:19)—both of which were completed through Saul and David—and build the Temple (Deut 12:5; cf. Exod 25:8), which Solomon was building (Hilchot Kings and Wars 1:1).

A couple of pertinent details are found in Exodus 25:8. Hashem told Moshe to tell B’nei Israel to “make me a sanctuary, so that I may dwell among them.” Notice that the verse refers to the Mishkan or Tabernacle, and states, “that I may dwell in them (plural),” and not “in it,” meaning the sanctuary. Neither the Mishkan nor the Temple was intended to house God. No physical space, no matter how large or small, temporary or permanent, can contain God. Hashem says through Isaiah, “Heaven is my throne, and the earth is my footstool. Where is the house you will build for me?” (Isa 66:1). At the dedication of the Temple, Solomon affirmed God’s omnipresence, “But will God really dwell on earth? The heavens, even the highest heaven, cannot contain you. How much less this Temple I have built” (1 Kings 8:27). Both sanctuaries were meant to serve as a place where people could meet with God, and to enable God to dwell in the midst of B’nei Israel. God is everywhere, but we don’t sense the presence of God the same way in every place. The sanctuary was holy space where the presence of God touched the hearts of all who worshiped there. Though the Mishkan and Temple share the common purpose of providing a place for Israel and God to meet, the two institutions represent two different seasons and needs in the history and life of Israel. 

The Mishkan was the first collective house of worship for Israel. It was small and temporary, designed to travel along with Israel on their journey from Egypt to the Promised Land, and constructed from readily available materials from the animal and vegetable kingdom, of beams and hangings that could be dismantled easily and carried by the Levites. In Parashat Terumah (Exod 25:1–27:19), we read that the Mishkan was constructed by voluntary and enthusiastic participation from the whole of the Jewish people. They brought free-will offerings, gave of their time and talents, and supported the communal sacrifices through a regulated gift of a half-shekel per person. Although they were recently liberated slaves, they constructed the Mishkan with no foreign help, contributions, or labor. In contrast, the Temple was permanent, larger and more opulent. It was constructed from stones and materials obtained from foreigners, was built by conscripted labor, and was financed and supported from the king’s coffers. In short, the Mishkan was built by the people of Israel as a loving response to Hashem, while the Temple was primarily built by artisans commissioned by King Solomon and King Hiram as an extension of royal power.  

At first glance the Mishkan appears to be the work of God, thus positive, and the Temple the work of man, thus negative. This view is reinforced by the destruction of the Temple—twice. However, a look at the function of each structure demonstrates that each met the physical, cultural, and societal needs of two different seasons. The Mishkan was small and portable, suited for the needs of Israel during their wanderings, while the Temple was monumental and permanent, just as an established and powerful nation needed at that time. The two different sanctuaries provided a place for Israel and Hashem to meet in a manner appropriate for the different seasons of Israel’s life.  

The same principle applies to our lives. The manner in which Hashem meets with us may change throughout the seasons of our lives, but his presence and holiness do not change. No matter our season of life, we must guard against becoming apathetic, which happened with Temple worship and eventually led to its destruction, and actively pursue a vibrant relationship with Hashem. Remember that the Spirit of God does not dwell in buildings, but in the builders. As believers in Yeshua we are not only builders but living stones being built together into a dwelling place for the Spirit of God.

I encourage all of us to stir up our hearts to ignite or reignite a dynamic and passionate relationship with him (cf. 2 Tim 1:6), so we can be built into a sanctuary (Eph 2:22) where the presence of God may be sensed by all.