PARASHAH BEHAR
(Leviticus 25:1-26:2) Week 32
BEHAR: ‘On the mount’…The Lord spoke to Moses on Mount Sinai, (Lev. 25:1)
SHEMITTAH: The 7th-year of total REST for the land, meaning ‘Let Go or Withdraw’
SHABBAT: Sabbath Rest on the 7th Day of each week
5778 or 2018: WAS A JUBILEE YEAR
YOVEL: Jubilee…meaning the 50th Year: To Be Carried Away … Ram’s Horn
PENTA: 50 days! Pentecost is 50 days past Passover… Just like Shavuot comes on the fiftieth day of the Omer, and represents a departure from the natural world into the supernatural realm, the Yovel year signals an opportunity to rise above nature.
The Encyclopedia Americana says:
“The Jubilee LAW as a whole was distinctly Theocratic.” It vindicated the absolutism of YHVH; it meant that Hebrews were the servants of YHVH, and could not therefore continue to be slaves of their fellowmen. The land belonged to YHVH, and was only lent to the Hebrew Tribes and families, who could not be driven out by mere human initiative!
God’s Kingship trumps any law of the land!
The Yovel Year is dependent upon the Shemittah or Sabbatical, year. As such, you will see these two Mitzvot linked throughout Torah. Both Mitzvot are related to time, just as the Sabbath and Festivals are related to time.
Time is important because ADONAI speaks through TIME and its CYCLES.
Today, without the Temple, the mitzvot of the Sabbatical year and Yovel cannot be observed the same way. Many farmers observe the Sabbatical year and have reported miraculous bumper crops in the sixth year, as promised by the Torah. To supplement the incomes of such brave farmers, additional funds have been established to ease the financial stress of keeping the Sabbatical year today.
Rosh Hashanah means the beginning of the year and is the physical Jewish New Year.
The biblical name for this holiday is Yom Teruah meaning: The day of shouting and blasting of the Shofar.
Begins: On the first day of the month of Tishrei. All Hebraic calendar days begin at Sunset.
Observances: Praying, reflection and turning from sin; as souls are awakened by the Shofar!
The Jewish new year commences each year with a deep personal inventory of the preceding year for each person celebrating this holy time of the Lord.
“Self-Reflection” is primary and important leading up to Yom Kippur, the National Day of Atonement for Israel.
THE SHOFAR: The Ram’s Horn…used for trumpeting the call to attention of God’s Nation, Israel!
The word Shofar in Hebrew means “To Bring Beauty.” The blast of the ram’s horn COMMANDS attention!
IT AWAKENS US TO GOD’S SHOUT! His shout will bring about BEAUTY!
I pray for the sound of the SHOFAR to be heard in the heart and mind of EVERY PERSON I LOVE and all whom THEY LOVE!
God, please press the Shofar to your lips and blow the sound of the awakening of the Souls of Men!
SHEMITTAH YEAR: The Sabbatical Year. The outcomem for observing this 7year cyclical rest for the land, and for people and animals working the land is:
RESTING IN THE GOD OF CREATION, GENEROSITY, FREEDOM, GRACE, ABUNDANCE, FORGIVENESS, ALIGNMENT WITH ADONAI!
THE RESULT: POWER!
How does this pertain to the outcome of the Shemittah Rest for the Land for Israel? Consider the scriptures that describe the result of the Shemittah observance for Israel.
70 Years in Babylon as captives: One year for EVERY year Shemittah was ignored by the Nation of Israel and resulted in judgement from ADONAI:
BONDAGE, SLAVERY, LACK, WANDERING, DISHONOR, TRIALS, TRIBULATIONS!
The judgement brought about curses which are the opposite of the promised blessings for observing the Mitzvot of the Lord!
The month of Tishri is the beginning of the New Year and is counted as the “7th Month” because Yahweh commanded that the months be counted from the month of Nisan. (Lev. 23:24, 1 Kings 8:2)
In Biblical times, the month of Nisan was called Aviv, and the month of Tishri was called Etamin.
One must be savvy on what calendar the Author is referring to when reading the Bible! Today it causes confusion, but in the age in which these things were written everyone understood!
In our Greek-minded society today, we see the Calendar as ‘linear instead of lunar’!
Adonai commanded the counting of the months to begin with the Month of Nisan, on Passover.
The freeing of the Nation of Israel marked the beginning of all things associated with the Nation of Israel.
This is the marking of physical time, where what was manifested in Heaven became manifested on earth.
ADONAI spoke to me as I prayed for Revelation on the topic of God’s Appointed Times:
- The Moed’im or appointed times of the Spirit marking times which are heavenly and eternally relevant.
- The Hebrew Calendar marks time by Rosh Chodesh ~ New Moons and this is ADONAI’S TIME PIECE.
- YHVH commanded that the counting of the months of the year begin with PASSOVER, the month of Nisan, in the Spring, between March and April on the Gregorian Calendar.
Because God is the Creator of ORDER out of CHAOS, He set boundaries around the physical passing of the years after Creation as they lead up to THE GREAT DAY OF THE LORD! His physical return to ZION will usher in The Millennial Reign of the Messiah!
Up from the earth will ascend the sweet fragrances of Holy Convocations of Corporate Worship, Praise, Atonement for Sin, and Songs of praise during the Festivals of the Lord! These are SPIRITUAL TIMES set apart for our intimacy with our Lord! All heaven rejoices when we praise HIM.
Torah observance fulfills these commandments. It is said when the Nation of Israel again observes Torah, the Messiah Will Come.
Time is a unique creation of God. Time plays an important part in our relationship with God. Today, the Church as a whole is unaware their clocks and calendars, even their sacred Christian celebrations are not synchronized with God’s time revealed in Torah.
There’s no time like the present to discover the blessings of synchronizing God’s timing in your life. It’s a fascinating journey of information, inspiration, and revelation!
Yovel: Jubilee or 50th Year…the word Yovel comes from the origination of the Hebrew word SHOFAR! A ram’s horn is called a Yovel in Hebrew.
And you shall hallow the 50th year proclaiming LIBERTY throughout all the land to all its inhabitants thereof: it shall be a Jubilee for you!
You shall return EVERY man to his Estate, and you shall return EVERY man to his family!
This is God’s Heart: FREEDOM, FAMILY, INHERITANCE and BLESSING!
As Messianic believers in Yeshua Ha Massiache we understand the great shofar blast will herald the return of the Lord
(1 Thes. 4;16-17) for Kallat Mashiach, the Bride of Messiah before Yom Adonai, the great and terrible Day of the Lord.
His Bride is to prepare for His return!
He will return in a Shemittah year; the LAST TRUMP of the SHOFAR will be blown by Messiah Yeshua calling us out of bondage, and into His marvelous light!
The Number 7!
Repetition in God’s Word alerts us to important MESSAGES. Adonai knows we must be reminded. We must the SEE PATTERNS of HIS truth!
Used 735 times (54 times in the book of Revelation alone) If we include with this count how many times ‘sevenfold’ (6) and ‘seventh’ (119) is used, our total jumps to 860 references of the Number SEVEN.
Seven: The number of completeness and perfection (physical and spiritual).
7 is decoded in the Creation Story in Genesis (In the Beginning) According to Jewish thought, Adam was created on September 26, 3760 B.C.
Tishri, the seventh month on the Hebrew calendar. The word created is used 7 times describing God’s creative work (Genesis 1:1, 21, 27 three times; 2:3; 2:4).
There are 7 days in a week and God’s Sabbath is on the 7th day!
The Bible in its entirety was originally divided into 7 major divisions.
They are: 1) the Law; 2) the Prophets; 3) the Writings, or Psalms; 4) the Gospels and Acts; 5) the General Epistles; 6) the Epistles of Paul; and 7) the book of Revelation.
The total number of originally inspired books was forty-nine, or 7 x 7, demonstrating the absolute perfection of the Word of God.
HAFTARAH (Old Covenant) READING (Prophetic Scriptures): Jeremiah 32:6-27
“I will gather them out of all the countries where I drove them in my anger, fury and great wrath; and I will bring them back to this place and have them live here in safety.”
We see the obedience to Shemittah by the Prophet Jeremiah. He redeemed the land with a price, in the presence of the leaders of Judah, before the Babylonian invasion. We also see the 70 years of captivity were punishment for the 70 years of the Nations disobedience to the Shemittah command of Adonai! Can we see the earth and all its land belongs to Adonai! He commands it be RESTED every 7 years, and returned to its rightful tenant in the Jubilee Year!
King Adonai will accomplish HIS purposes, whether the people obey OR NOT! This is the lesson of the Lord. The Tapestry of History is NOT dependent upon the obedience of mankind!
The Tapestry of History is written by King Adonai and He will fulfill every detail, every mark, every stitch of His will, in His time.
BRIT CHADASHAH (New Covenant) READING: Luke 4:6-21
The “Jubilee Release” is linked to “Yovel” or the Shofar ~ Ram’s Horn!
The entire theme of Shabbat, Shemittah, and Yovel is rooted in FREEDOM and LIBERTY!
Slaves never REST from their TOIL!
We have been set free!
How can one REST without TRUSTING?
TRUST means the one in whom we REST has PROVEN Himself to be faithful, and is trustworthy.
The Red Letter Words of Jesus the Messiah:
“The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to proclaim the good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim LIBERTY to the captives and recovering of sight to the blind. To set at liberty those who are oppressed, and to proclaim the year of the Lord’s FAVOR! Today this Scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing!” (Luke 4:18)