As we prepare to celebrate Sukkot next Shabbat I would like to briefly share a taster regarding a Sukkot tradition known as the waving of the lulav, also known as the “the 4 Species because it consists of four plants originating from four different environments — the palm from a desert oasis, the citron from an orchard, myrtle from the hills and the willow from a riverbank — all of them are gathered together and waved in one action before God.
The lulav/arbar minim represents our diversity as believers who worship God as one, in unity. And we wave it as a prophetic act describing the future millennium when everyone from every background and culture will dwell together in unity to serve the King of Kings. Zech.14 states how pilgrims from every nation will be represented specifically at the feast of Sukkot to pay homage in Jerusalem ladened with gifts for the King of Kings.
But there is more. The traditional practice linked to the lulav is taken from an obscure text in Lev.23:40: “On the first day (of Sukkot) you are to take choice fruit, palm fronds, thick branches and river-willows, and celebrate in the presence of Adonai your God for seven days.” But since the text does not state specifically how we are to celebrate it one of the traditions linked to Sukkot has evolved with the waving the lulav during the synagogue services. The lulav is waved in six directions — north, south, east, west, up and down while reciting Ps.118 that acknowledges God’s presence, the Creator, within every corner of the universe. In verses 25-26 of the psalm everyone joins in with the words, “Save now, I beseech thee, O LORD. (Hosanna) …Blessed be he that cometh in the name of the LORD.” Here we get to the interesting part. These same words were shouted by the large crowds who had gathered around Yeshua as He entered Jerusalem to observe His last Pesach together with His disciples. The crowds openly declared Him to be the coming Messiah much to the fury of the religious hierarchy – because it directly connected to the “Hoshanot” (prayers for salvation) as were recited during Sukkot during the lulav waving ceremony. The significance is great for us as believers. When we wave the lulav we are declaring Yeshua to be both Saviour, Lord!
Another symbolic action connected with the waving of the lulav is that when it is waved downwards, it’s beaten against the ground to remind us that from dust we came and in dust we will return as we await the promise of eternal life. Our mortal lives each has a best-buy date but with the promise of eternal life to rule and reign with Yeshua forever!
One last thing. The four species require plenty of water to thrive. And a central feature of Sukkot is the water libation where the priests, who were accompanied by a great crowd, came with much rejoicing and pageantry to the Pool of Siloam where one of the priests drew water with a special gold pitcher. When they returned to the Temple, it was poured into a bowl at the altar and offered unto God as a water libation. This is something we will reflect upon more next Shabbat but for now let’s draw upon the One who is the Water of Life as we worship the Lord together in love and unity the One who alone is worthy of our praise!
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HA’AZINU (Listen!) Deut. 32:1–52; 2 Sam.22: 1-51 – by Raphael ben Levi
“Give ear [Ha’azinu], Oh heavens, and I will speak …” (Deut. 32:1)
This parasha is always read on the Shabbat before Sukkot and holds a primary theme that highlights the importance of actively listening to God, something which Yeshua often stressed in His teaching (“He who has ears let him hear…”) But Ha’Azinu also speaks about the joy linked to Sukkot that speaks of God’s abundant provision to everyone who knows and loves Him and walks in obedience to His ways.
But, joy is not the only element associated with this Shabbat because it’s also referred to as Shabbat Teshuva (Sabbath of Repentance) which may appear as a contradiction – teshuva and simcha – repentance and joy. How can they coexist? And it simply makes sense when we understand how this period is a transition point: Yom Kippur leading to Sukkot just 5 days later with the gematria of 5 being the biblical number for “grace.” Scripture contains many transition points like this and therefore it’s a dangerous thing to be stuck in a groove because it’s something outside of God’s vocabulary and instead a choice of our own making. Sometimes, being stuck in a groove may appear attractive and it becomes our comfort zone as we choose to play it safe rather than stepping out in the Kingdom of God.
God desires to lead us through different seasons in life, the good, the bad and the ugly even unto the fellowship of His sufferings with a specific purpose to fashion us more into His likeness so that we who with unveiled faces reflect the Lord’s glory, and are transformed into his image with ever-increasing glory. 2Cor.3:18.
Moses gathered the Israelites together to hear his parting message that was presented in a song called Ha’Azinu (Listen). God commanded Moses to ascend Mount Nebo to glimpse the Promised Land but never to enter it. God told him, “…you shall see the land before you, though you shall not go there, into the land which I am giving to the children of Israel.” (Deut. 32:52) This was a devastating blow for Moses yet he ended life with a song rather than a mournful dirge – one that describes God’s lovingkindness and faithfulness toward Israel, His redemption and atonement, yet also with an accompanying promise of vengeance against their enemies: “Rejoice, O Gentiles for He will avenge the blood of His servants, and render vengeance to His adversaries (but) provide atonement for His land and His people.” (Deut.32:43)
Moses’ song contained words of comfort and encouragement for the Israelites but also with warnings that He would “hide His face” and render judgment against them should they turn away in rebellion: “I will heap disasters on them; I will spend My arrows on them. They shall be wasted with hunger, devoured by pestilence and bitter destruction; I will also send against them the teeth of beasts, with the poison of serpents of the dust.” (Deut. 32:23–24) Altogether we see a blend containing the perfect holiness of God, who is yet a loving father. (Deut.32:21) who remains faithful to His covenant promises but judges ungodliness with severe consequences. And in this respect, Ha’Azinu prophetically declares a time when Israel would make God jealous through their worship of false gods and idols. But, it was not a good jealous, So God dealt with the problem by turning things upside down with a stroke of genius. The Jewish people would consequently be provoked to jealousy but in a good way. Paul clearly explains these things quoting from the Book of Hosea. He states that in the end times God would plant the Jewish people in the land and reveal His steadfast love to them. And amid their apostasy Hosea, prophesied, “He will say to those called ‘Not my nation,’ (lo ami) ‘You are my nation’; and they will say, ‘You are my God.” Here is uncovered a massive paradigm shift that will occur when the Jewish people as a nation will turn to Yeshua the true Messiah who until then they have rejected (Hos.2:23). Paul provides us with a clear perspective in Rom. 9:22-25): “22 What if God, although choosing to show his wrath and make his power known, bore with great patience the objects of his wrath—prepared for destruction? 23 What if he did this to make the riches of his glory known to the objects of his mercy, whom he prepared in advance for glory— 24 even us, whom he also called, not only from the Jews but also from the Gentiles? 25 As he says in Hosea:
“I will call them ‘my people’ who are not my people; and I will call her ‘my loved one’ who is not my loved one,” 26 and, “In the very place where it was said to them, ‘You are not my people,’ there they will be called ‘children of the living God.’”
Paul explains further in Rom.11:
“So I ask, did the (Jewish people) stumble in order that they might fall? By no means! Rather through their trespass salvation has come to the Gentiles, so as to make Israel jealous.” (v.11)
And so the Gentile nations have a unique window of opportunity in these current times to play an integral part in this amazing transformation which we already see beginning to take place! Increasingly, the Jewish people marvel at the love and support that true believers are extending to them, instilled by the Ruach ha Kodesh – it is something new and strange that is bringing transformation to their lives. More and more, Jewish people are turning to their true Messiah among secular, traditional and orthodox Jews world-wide. But it is a trickle compared to what will occur at the end of this age!
The late chief rabbi, Jonathan Sacks, wrote that, “Jewish life is a symphony whose score is the Torah, whose composer is God, whose orchestra is the Jewish people…” But somehow the melody became lost in the past 2000 years when the Jewish people as a nation rejected their Messiah. This is the melody of salvation that can only be received through the One who is the way, the truth and the life, Yeshua the only true and precious Messiah.
The 19th century sage, Rabbi Nachman of Brataslav adds to the commentary when he said, “If two people talk at the same time, neither hears or understands the other; whereas if two people sing at the same time, they give each other harmony.” But unless we sing the same tune revealed in Yeshua we will end in discord.
God designed humanity to worship Him even even as Heaven is saturated with worship containing an infinite variety of harmonies yet to be heard on earth. Worshipping God is not only an unparalleled privilege and unbounded joy but it also provides us with a powerful weapon against the enemy who flees at its sound. The levitical singers and musicians were sent out in times of war way in front of the armies of Israel loudly singing praises to God accompanied by the sound of the shofar and other musical instruments that sent the enemy scattering.
God delivered the children of Israel out of Egypt with the outstretched wings like an eagle: “As an eagle stirs up its nest, hovers over its young, spreading out its wings, taking them up, carrying them on its wings, so the LORD alone led him, and there was no foreign god with him.” God is our covering, our refuge and our strength – our Rock, perfect in all His ways. Deut.32;4
Knowing this helps us better understand the dilemma of abject suffering that plagues so many people. And it is a common thing for many to ask that if God is entirely righteous then why does He allow bad things happen to good people? This question contains a common thread among believers and unbelievers alike and although the answer may appear messy and complicated without an easy response, the bottom line is simply rooted in the consequences sin – something most people prefer to ignore and cannot accept. Sadly it is the innocent who so often become the victims alongside the carnage that Satan wreaks accompanied by a demonic blood lust that can never be assuaged. This is the world we live in that Satan has corrupted and turned upside down rooted in a vicious hatred of God and, by virtue of this, also His covenant people.
This is clearly addressed in Scripture and throughout rabbinic literature and Christian commentaries. Our confidence and assurance as believers lies in His outstretched arms – like the arms of an eagle – because “He who dwells in the secret place of the Almighty shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty.”
The Song of Moses provides a clear warning to the Israelites of the dangers that lay of them within the Promised Land. Although it was a land flowing with milk and honey, Israel had also to contend with the giants in the land. Once the hardships of the desert had been forgotten, the people would have to contend with many dangers including the subtle danger of complacency. They would attribute their achievements to themselves rather than to God in arrogance and pride, and drift from their faith seeking instead to assimilate among the surrounding pagan nations. They would betray the terms of their covenant and consequently discover that God no longer remained with them as their Protector.
History paints a picture how Israel continually separated themselves from the source of her strength. For nearly 2000 years they remained isolated and torn apart in exile, easily overpowered by her enemies – no longer the ‘head’ but the ‘tail’. Yet although God’s judgment has been as stark as it has been terrifying, His covenant love, grace and mercy has proved unshakeable – His eternal purposes unswerving – that is no better illustrated than with the return of the Jewish people from exile in 1948 to their Homeland.
Moses wanted God to explain why he was refused entry into the Promised Land but God remained silent. There will always be things in our lives that are baffling and appear senseless. But as one person has remarked, “The wicked are like grass, the righteous like a tree. Grass grows overnight but it takes years for a tree to reach its full height. In the long run, tyrannies are defeated. Empires decline and fall. Goodness and rightness win the final battle.” (Jonathan Sacks)
In closing, Ha’Azinu is a provocation to stir us up and spur us on in our walk with God “…Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, (to) press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called (us) heavenward in Christ Jesus!” (Phil.3:13-14) God has bestowed to us victory as overcomers in every circumstance through Messiah Yeshua with the capacity to rejoice greatly that even eternity itself is insufficient to adequately express! He is indeed our all in all. Let’s consider for a moment:
He is our Emmanuel (Is 7:14, Mt 1:23) Dayspring from on High (Lk 1:78) The Lamb of God Who Takes Away the Sin of the world (Jn 1:29, 36) and the Horn of our Salvation (Ps 18:2) Our Ransom and Sacrifice (1 Tim 2:6, Eph 5:2) Redeemer and Refuge (Is 59:20, Is 5:4)
The Bread of Life (6:35) The Light of the World (9:5) The Door of the Sheep (10:9, 7) The Good Shepherd (10:11) The Resurrection and the Life (14:6) The Way/Truth/Life (14:6) The True Vine (15:1,5)
Our Rock (Deut 32:15, Ps 6;2) Our Rabboni (Mt 8:19, Jn 13, Jn 3:2, 20:16) The Word of God (Jn 1:1, Rev 19:13) Refiner and Purifier (Mal 3:3) Rose of Sharon/Lily of the Valleys (Song of Songs 2:1) Captain of Salvation (Heb 2:10) Desire of Nations (Haggai 2:7) Our Righteousness (Jer 23:6, 33;16) Sun and Shield (Ps 84:11) Author (source) and Finisher (goal) of our Faith (Heb 12:2) and the Author of our Salvation (Heb 5:9) Prince of Life (Acts 3:15) The Only Begotten of the Father (Jn 1:14, 18) Lord of the Dead and the Living (Rom 14:9) The Lord of Glory (1 Cor 2:8)
He is our Advocate with the Father (2 Tim 4:8) Kohen Ha Gadol (Heb 3:1, 7:1) Mediator Between God and Man (1 Tim 2:5) Mediator of the New Covenant (Heb 12:24) A Priest after the Order of Malki-Tzedek (Gen 14:18-20, Heb 5:10)
He is the Alef and the Tav, The Almighty (Rev 1:8) Amen, the Faithful and True Witness, The Beginning of the Creation of God (Rev 3:14) The Bright and Morning Star (Rev 22:16) The Sun of Righteousness (Mal 4:2) The Bridegroom (Mt 9:15) The Faithful and True (Rev 19:11) The King of Righteousness and Shalom (Heb 7:2) The King of Glory (Ps 24:7-10) and King Over All the Earth (Zech 14:9) Wonderful, Counsellor, the Mighty God, the Everlasting Father, the Prince of Peace (Is 9:6)
This is the God we serve, who is Altogether Lovely beyond comparison, the Creator God who loves us with an everlasting love and infinite tenderness; born into this world that we might experience Life through His death and resurrection! Let’s give Him all the glory!
