Bar’chu et YHVH ha-m’vorach, Baruch YHVH ha-m’vorach
l’O’lam va-ed!
Baruch ata YHVH Eloheinu melech ha-olam asher bachar
banu m’kol ha-amim, v’na-tan lanu eht Torah-to. Baruch atah YHVH, noteyn
ha-Torah. Ameyn.”
(Bless YHVH the
blessed One; Blessed is YHVH, the blessed One for all eternity. Blessed are
you, YHVH, our Elohim, King of the Universe, you have selected us from among
all the peoples, and have given us your Torah.)
This last portion of
Shemot – Vayakel – ends with the construction of the Tabernacle with all its
furniture, coverings, garments, and vessels. All the materials had been
collected, now was time to create a “space” where YHVH could dwell with His
people and reveal to them who He was and His Desire to be with His Chosen
People.
These events remind us
that YHVH has allowed all the events in our lives to come about to prepare a
dwelling place for Himself within our hearts. Nothing has happened to us by
accident. If YHVH has called you, He is preparing you for a vessel for His co-habitation.
The most discussed topic
of the Torah is the “Mishkan” – the Tabernacle. It is a ‘’Love Tent’’ this is
all about the ‘’divine romance’’ between the Creator and His Creation. He calls
His Beloved to Himself from the Most Set Apart Place. How will we respond? This
Torah portion gives us valuable insight into these matters.
Where does the
construction of this Tabernacle begin? With the “Ark of the Covenant”.
Is this just a co- incidence? True love,
eternal love begins in our hearts, in our deepest inner selves
When did our lives really
begin on this earth? The day or time when YHVH introduced Yahshua into our
lives (hearts) and everything about our lives changed. The Father and His Son came
to seek a dwelling place in our hearts. Rev 3:20 “See, I stand
at the door and knock. If anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I shall
come in to him and dine with him, and he with Me.
And so, the construction
of the Tabernacle begins with the “Ark of the Covenant” the very dwelling place
of YHVH amongst men.
Exo 37:1 And
Betsal’ĕl made the ark of acacia wood, two and a half cubits long, and a cubit
and a half wide, and a cubit and a half high. (1.125mx 0.675m x 0.45m) –
Betsalel = “in the shadow (i.e. protection) of Elohim”
Exo 37:2
And he overlaid it with clean gold inside and outside, and made a
moulding of gold all around it.
Exo 37:3
And he cast four rings of gold for it, for its four feet, two rings on
its one side, and two rings on its other side.
Exo 37:4
And he made poles of acacia wood, and overlaid them with gold.
Exo 37:5
And he put the poles into the rings at the sides of the ark, to lift the
ark.
Exo 37:6
And he made a lid of atonement of clean gold, two and a half cubits long
and a cubit and a half wide.
Exo 37:7
And he made two keruḇim of beaten gold. He made them from the two ends
of the lid of atonement,
Exo
37:8 one keruḇ at one end on this side, and the other keruḇ at the other end on that side. He made the keruḇim from the lid of atonement, from the two ends.
Exo
37:9 And the keruḇim spread out their wings above, and covered the lid of atonement with
their wings, with their faces toward each other, the faces of the keruḇim were turned toward the lid of atonement.
A total circumference of 8 cubits – 8 the number
of new beginnings, only that which is perfect enters into His Presence of
Perfection. From the very beginning of Creation – YHVH had our perfection, our
completeness as part of His plan and purpose for our lives. Only perfection can
dwell in His Presence.
YHVH takes common wood and covers it with gold –
He takes man, a clay vessel and fills him with His Esteem – one day Messiah
will present us perfect to YHVH – Jud 1:23
2Co 4:7
And we have this treasure in earthen vessels, so that the excellence of
the power might be of Elohim, and not of us –
Exo
37:10 And he made the table of acacia
wood, two cubits long, and a cubit wide, and a cubit and a half high.
Exo
37:11 And he overlaid it with clean
gold, and made a moulding of gold all around it.
Exo
37:12 And he made a rim of a handbreadth
all around it, and made a moulding of gold for the rim all around it.
Exo
37:13 And he cast four rings of gold for
it, and put the rings on the four corners that were at its four legs.
Exo
37:14 The rings were next to the rim, as
holders for the poles to lift the table.
Exo
37:15 And he made the poles of acacia
wood to lift the table, and overlaid them with gold.
Exo
37:16 And he made the utensils which were
on the table, its dishes, and its cups, and its bowls, and its jars for
pouring, of clean gold.
The
table is a place where we break bread and have fellowship with YHVH and with
one another.
Exo
37:17 And he made the lampstand of clean
gold. He made the lampstand of beaten work, its base, and its shaft, its cups,
its ornamental knobs, and its blossoms were from it.
Exo
37:18 And six branches came out of its
sides: three branches of the lampstand out of one side, and three branches of
the lampstand out of the other side.
Exo
37:19 There were three cups like almond
flowers on one branch, with ornamental knob and blossom, and three cups like almond
flowers on the other branch, a knob and a blossom – so for the six branches
coming out of the lampstand.
Exo
37:20 And on the lampstand were four
cups like almond flowers, its knobs and blossoms,
Exo
37:21 and a knob under the first two
branches of the same, and a knob under the second two branches of the same, and
a knob under the third two branches of the same, for the six branches coming
out of it.
Exo
37:22 Their knobs and their branches
were of it, all of it was one beaten work of clean gold.
Exo
37:23 And he made its seven lamps, and
its snuffers, and its trays, of clean gold.
Exo
37:24 He made it of a talent of clean
gold, and all its utensils.
Isa 11:2 The
Spirit of יהוה shall rest upon Him – the Spirit of wisdom and understanding, the
Spirit of counsel and might, the Spirit of knowledge and of the fear of יהוה,
Isa 11:3 and shall
make Him breathe in the fear of יהוה. And He shall not judge by the sight of His eyes, nor decide by
the hearing of His ears.
Exo
37:25 And he made the incense altar of
acacia wood, a cubit long and a cubit wide, square, and two cubits high. Its
horns were of it.
Exo
37:26 And he overlaid it with clean
gold, its top and its sides all around, and its horns. And he made a moulding
for it of gold all around it.
Exo
37:27 And he made two rings of gold for
it under its moulding, at its two corners on both sides, as holders for the
poles with which to lift it.
Exo
37:28 And he made the poles of acacia
wood, and overlaid them with gold.
Exo
37:29 And he made the set-apart
anointing oil and the clean incense of sweet spices, according to the work of
the perfumer.
Exo 38:1 And he
made the altar of burnt offering of acacia wood, five cubits long and five
cubits wide, square, and three cubits high.
Exo 38:2
And he made its horns on its four corners, the horns were of it. And he
overlaid it with bronze.
Exo 38:3
And he made all the utensils for the altar: the pots, and the shovels,
and the basins, and the forks, and the fire holders. He made all its utensils
of bronze.
Exo 38:4
And he made a grating for the altar, a bronze network, under its rim,
midway from the bottom.
Exo 38:5
And he cast four rings for the four corners of the bronze grating, as
holders for the poles.
Exo 38:6
And he made the poles of acacia wood, and overlaid them with bronze.
Exo 38:7
And he put the poles into the rings on the sides of the altar, with
which to lift it. He made the altar hollow with boards.
Exo
38:8 And he made the basin of bronze and
its stand of bronze, from the bronze mirrors of the serving women who did
service at the door of the Tent of Meeting.
Exo 38:9
And he made the courtyard: for the south side the screens of the
courtyard were of fine woven linen, one hundred cubits long,
Exo 38:10
their twenty columns and their twenty sockets, of bronze. The hooks of
the columns and their bands were of silver.
Exo 38:11
And for the north side the screens were one hundred cubits long, their
twenty columns and their twenty sockets, of bronze. The hooks of the columns
and their bands were of silver.
Exo 38:12
And for the west side there were screens of fifty cubits, their ten
columns and their ten sockets. The hooks of the columns and their bands were of
silver.
Exo 38:13
And for the east side eastward, fifty cubits:
Exo 38:14
fifteen cubits of screens on the one side, with their three columns and
their three sockets,
Exo 38:15
and fifteen cubits of screens the other side of the courtyard gate, on
this side and that side, with their three columns and their three sockets.
Exo 38:16
All the screens of the courtyard all around were of fine woven linen.
Exo 38:17 And the sockets for the columns were of
bronze, the hooks of the columns and their bands were of silver, and the
overlay of their tops was of silver. And all the columns of the courtyard had
bands of silver.
Exo 38:18
And the covering for the gate of the courtyard was the work of an
embroiderer, of blue and purple and scarlet material, and of fine woven
linen, and twenty cubits long, and the height along its width was five cubits,
corresponding to the screens of the courtyard.
Exo 38:19
And the columns were four, and their sockets of bronze four, their hooks
were of silver, and the overlay of their tops and their bands was of silver.
Exo 38:20
And all the pegs of the Dwelling Place, and of the courtyard all around,
were of bronze.
Exo
38:8 And he made the basin of bronze and
its stand of bronze, from the bronze mirrors of the serving women who did
service at the door of the Tent of Meeting. – Note repetition of ‘’door of appointment.’’
1Sa 2:22 And Ěli was very old, and had heard
all that his sons were doing to all Yisra’ěl, and how they lay with the women
who were assembling at the door of the Tent of Appointment.
Num
27:1 Then came
the daughters of Tselophḥaḏ, son of Ḥěpher, son of Gil‛aḏ, son of Maḵir, son of
Menashsheh, from the clans of Menashsheh, son of Yosěph. And these were the
names of his daughters: Maḥlah, No‛ah, and Ḥoḡlah, and Milkah, and
Tirtsah.
Num 27:2 And they stood before Mosheh, and
before El‛azar the priest, and before the leaders and all the congregation, by
the doorway of the Tent of Appointment, saying,
Num 27:3 “Our father died in the wilderness,
yet he was not in the company of those who were met together against יהוה, in
company with Qoraḥ, but he died in his own sin. And he had no sons.
Num 27:4 “Why should the name of our father be
removed from among his clan because he had no son? Give us a possession among
the brothers of our father.”
Luk 2:36 And there was Ḥannah, a prophetess, a
daughter of Penu’ěl, of the tribe of Ashěr. She was advanced in years, and had
lived with a husband seven years from her maidenhood,
Luk 2:37 and she was a widow of about
eighty-four years, who did not leave the Set-apart Place, but served Elohim
with fastings and prayers night and day.
Luk 2:38 And she, coming in at that moment,
gave thanks to יהוה,
and spoke of Him to all who were waiting for redemption in Yerushalayim.
The pattern (Heb –
‘’tavniet’’) of the Tabernacle is the pattern of our Covenantal Remdemption which
in turn was meant to manifest itself in the marriage covenant.
Eph 5:22
Wives, subject yourselves to your own husbands, as to the Master.
Eph 5:23
Because the husband is head of the wife, as also the Messiah is head of the
assembly, and He is Saviour of the body.
Eph 5:24 But
as the assembly is subject to Messiah, so also let the wives be to their own
husbands in every respect.
Eph 5:25
Husbands, love your wives, as Messiah also did love the assembly and gave
Himself for it,
Eph 5:26 in
order to set it apart and cleanse it with the washing of water by the Word,f
Footnote: f Rev_19:8-9.
Eph 5:27 in
order to present it to Himself a splendid assembly, not having spot or wrinkle
or any of this sort, but that it might be set-apart and blameless.
Eph 5:28 In
this way husbands ought to love their own wives as their own bodies. He who
loves his wife loves himself.
Eph 5:29 For
no one ever hated his own flesh, but feeds and cherishes it, as also the Master
does the assembly.
Eph 5:30
Because we are members of His body, of His flesh and of His bones.
Eph 5:31 “For
this cause a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife,
and the two shall become one flesh.” Gen_2:24.
Eph 5:32 This
secret is great, but I speak concerning Messiah and the assembly.
Eph 5:33 However,
you too, everyone, let each one love his own wife as himself, and let the wife
see that she fears her husband.
Before YHVH renews
His covenant with an end time generation YHVH is going to do something new in
marriage as we know it.
Jer 31:31
“See, the days are coming,” declares יהוה, “when I shall make a renewed covenant with the house of
Yisra’ěl and with the house of Yehuḏah,a Footnote: a Heb_8:8-12, Heb_10:16-17.
Jer 31:22
“Till when would you turn here and there, O backsliding daughter? For יהוה has
created what is new on earth: a woman encompasses a man!”
Exo 38:8 And he made the basin of bronze and its stand
of bronze, from the bronze mirrors of the serving women who did service at the
door of the Tent of Meeting. – Note
repetition of ‘’door of appointment.’’
As Zornberg states, “The hosts of Israel, the secret of redemption: it is
all done with mirrors.
As it is stated, “And he made the basin and its stand of bronze out of
the mirrors of the ministering [women] that raised up hosts [ha-marʾot ha-tzovʾot ’asher
tzav’u]” – those same mirrors which raised up all the hosts (tzvaʾot). Midrash
According to the sages these mirrors were used by the woman to arouse
their husbands during the harsh conditions of slavery in Egypt. The intention was
to lift up their weary spirits.
Despite the cruel treatment of the Israelites by the Egyptians they
continued to be fruitful and multiplied more than was normal – Exodus 1
Marriage on earth was always meant to be a reflection and preparation for
covenant in the coming age.
Additional scriptures on this issue – midrash.
1Pe 3:1 In
the same way, wives, be subject to your own husbands, so that if any are
disobedient to the Word, they, without a word, might be won by the behaviour of
their wives,
1Pe 3:2
having seen your blameless behaviour in fear.
1Pe 3:3 Your
adornment should not be outward – arranging the hair, wearing gold, or putting
on dresses –
1Pe 3:4 but
the hidden man of the heart, with the incorruptible ornament of a meek and
peaceable spirit, which is of great value before Elohim.
1Pe 3:5 For
in this way, in former times, the set-apart women who trusted in Elohim also
adorned themselves, being subject to their own husbands,
1Pe 3:6 as
Sarah obeyed Aḇraham, calling him master, of whom you became children, doing
good, and not frightened by any fear.
1Pe 3:7 In
the same way, husbands, live understandingly together, giving respect to the
wife, as to the weaker vessel, and as being heirs together of the favour of
life, so that your prayers are not hindered.
1Co 11:2 And
I praise you, brothers, that you remember me in every way and keep the
traditions as I delivered them to you.
1Co 11:3 And
I wish you to know that the head of every man is the Messiah,a and the head of
woman is the man,b and the head of Messiah is Elohim.c Footnotes: a Eph_1:22, Eph_4:15,
Eph_5:23. b Gen_3:16. c 1Co_3:23, Joh_14:28.
1Co 11:4
Every man praying or prophesying, having his head covered, brings shame to his
Head.
1Co 11:5 And
every woman praying or prophesying with her head uncovered brings shame to her
head, for that is one and the same as if her head were shaved.
1Co 11:6 For
if a woman is not covered, let her also be shorn. But if it is a shame for a
woman to be shorn or shaved, let her be covered.d Footnote: d Num_5:18.
1Co 11:7 For
a man indeed should not cover his head, since he is the likeness and esteem of
Elohim, but woman is the esteem of man.
1Co 11:8 For
man is not from woman, but woman from man.
1Co 11:9 For
man also was not created for the woman, but woman for the man.
1Co 11:10
Because of this the woman ought to have authoritye on her head, because of the
messengers. Footnote: eSome say “a symbol of authority.”
1Co 11:11
However, man is not independent of woman, nor woman independent of man, in the
Master.
1Co 11:12 For
as the woman was from the man, even so the man also is through the woman. But
all are from Elohim.
1Co 11:13
Judge for yourselves: is it proper for a woman to pray to Elohim with her head
uncovered?
1Co 11:14
Does not nature itself teach you that if a man indeed has long hair, it is a
disrespect to him?
1Co 11:15 And
if a woman has long hair, it is an esteem to her, because the long hair has
been given to her over against a veil.
1Co 11:16 If,
however, anyone seems to be contentious, we do not have such a habit, nor do
the assemblies of Elohim.
Jer 31:22
“Till when would you turn here and there, O backsliding daughter? For יהוה has
created what is new on earth: a woman encompasses a man!”
Consequences of
violated covenants:
Judgment on Judah
and Jerusalem – Is 3.
Isa
4:1 And in that day seven women shall take hold of one man, saying, “We
shall eat our own food and wear our own clothes; only let us be called by your
name, to take away our reproach.”
Mat 7:21 “Not
everyone who says to Me, ‘Master, Master,’ shall enter into the reign of the
heavens, but he who is doing the desire of My Father in the heavens.
Mat 7:22
“Many shall say to Me in that day, ‘Master, Master, have we not prophesied in
Your Name, and cast out demons in Your Name, and done many mighty works in Your
Name?’
Mat 7:23 “And
then I shall declare to them, ‘I never knew you, depart from Me, you who work
lawlessness!’c Psa_6:8. Footnote: cSee Mat_7:15, and also Mat_13:41-42.
Mat 25:1
“Then the reign of the heavens shall be compared to ten maidens who took their
lamps and went out to meet the bridegroom.
Mat 25:2 “And
five of them were wise, and five foolish.
Mat 25:3
“Those who were foolish, having taken their lamps, took no oil with them,
Mat 25:4 but
the wise took oil in their containers with their lamps.
Mat 25:5 “Now
while the bridegroom took time, they all slumbered and slept.
Mat 25:6 “And
at midnight a cry was heard, ‘See, the bridegroom is coming, go out to meet
him!’
Mat 25:7
“Then all those maidens rose up and trimmed their lamps.
Mat 25:8 “And
the foolish said to the wise, ‘Give us of your oil, because our lamps are going
out.’
Mat 25:9 “But
the wise answered, saying, ‘No, indeed, there would not be enough for us and
you. Instead, go to those who sell, and buy for yourselves.’
Mat 25:10
“And while they went to buy, the bridegroom came, and those who were ready went
in with him to the wedding feast, and the door was shut.
Mat 25:11
“And later the other maidens also came, saying, ‘Master, Master, open up for
us!’
Mat 25:12
“But he answering, said, ‘Truly, I say to you, I do not know you.’
Mat 25:13
“Watch therefore, because you do not know the day nor the hour in which the Son
of Aḏam is coming,
Baruch atah YHVH,
Eloheynu, Melech ha-‘Olam, asher natan lanu Toraht-emet, v’chay-yeh o’lam
nata-b’tochenu. Baruch atah YHVH, noteyn ha-Torah. Ameyn.”
(Blessed are you
Yahweh, our Elohim, King of the Universe, you have given us your Torah of
truth, and have planted everlasting life within our midst. Blessed are you,
YHVH giver of the Torah – Ameyn