ועשׂית מזבח – ‘’you shall make an altar’’
Building altars
was one of the central priorities for our patriarchs – True Israelites were and
remain pilgrims on a journey to the ‘’promised land’’ or ‘’Messianic Kingdom’’
– their lifestyle consisted of ‘’building altars’’, ‘’pitching their
tents’’, and ‘’digging wells’’
- Gen 26:25 And he(Abraham) built a slaughter-place(altar) there, and
called on the Name of יהוה, and he pitched his tent there, and the
servants of Yitsḥaq dug a well there.
To embrace true spirituality, we discover that our pilgrimage in this life is about Him who has called us and loved us, and our lives are measured by our willingness to lay down our lives for Him and others. The altar was the appointed place of YHVH where a set apart Israelite man would hear ‘’shemah’’ and respond to YHVH. The altar was a place of complete surrender to YHVH and His Will.
The
Altar of Incense
Exo 30:1 “And you shall make a
slaughter-place to burn incense on, make it of acacia wood,
Exo 30:2 a cubit long and a cubit
wide – it is a square – and two cubits high, its horns of the same.
Exo 30:3 “And you shall overlay
its top, and its sides all around, and its horns with clean gold. And you shall
make for it a moulding of gold all around.
Exo 30:4 “And make two gold rings
for it, under the moulding on both its sides. Make them on its two sides, and
they shall be holders for the poles to lift it with.
Exo 30:5 “And you shall make the
poles of acacia wood, and overlay them with gold.
Exo 30:6 “And you shall put it
before the veil that is before the ark of the Witness, before the lid of
atonement that is over the Witness, where I am to meet with you.
Exo 30:7 “And Aharon shall burn on
it sweet incense, morning by morning. As he tends the lamps, he shall burn
incense on it.
Exo 30:8 “And when Aharon lights
the lamps between the evenings, he shall burn incense on it – a continual
incense before יהוה throughout your generations.
Exo 30:9 “Do not offer strange
incense on it, or an ascending offering, or a grain offering, and do not pour a
drink offering on it.
Exo 30:10 “And Aharon shall make atonement upon its horns once a year with the blood of the sin offering of atonement – once a year he makes atonement upon it throughout your generations. It is most set-apart to יהוה.”
There
are very few men that have had the profound insight of the Apostle Paul in
these matters concerning a man’s spiritual journey - Gal 2:20 “I have been impaled with
Messiah, and I no longer live, but Messiah lives in me.[b]And that which I now live in the
flesh I live by belief in the Son of Elohim, who loved me and gave Himself for
me. Footnote: b Rom_8:10, 2Co_6:16, 2Co_13:5, Eph_3:17,
Col_1:27, 1Jn_4:4.
Paul goes on to capture much of the essence of this week’s Torah portion in 2Co 2:14 - But thanks be to Elohim who always leads us on, to overcome in Messiah, and manifests through us the fragrance of His knowledge in every place. 2Co 2:15 Because we are to Elohim the fragrance of Messiah among those who are being saved and among those who are perishing. 2Co 2:16 To the one we are the smell of death to death, and to the other the fragrance of life to life. And who is competent for these? 2Co 2:17 For we are not, as so many, adulterating the Word of Elohim for gain – but as of sincerity, but as from Elohim, in the sight of Elohim, we speak in Messiah.
We discover that as we learn about the altar that all offerings placed on these altars were first subject to some form of ‘’death’’ or ‘’crushing transformation’’ before been placed on the altar. How does this reality tie in with taking a census?You could only count ‘’dead men’’
The Census Tax – Parashat 21 ‘’Ki Tisa’’ -
Exo 30:11 And יהוה spoke to Mosheh, saying,
Exo 30:12 “When you take the census of the children of Yisra’ěl, to register them, then each one shall give an atonement for his life to יהוה, when you register them, so that there is no plague among them when you register them.
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יב כִּי תִשָּׂא
אֶת-רֹאשׁ בְּנֵי-יִשְׂרָאֵל, לִפְקֻדֵיהֶם, וְנָתְנוּ אִישׁ כֹּפֶר נַפְשׁוֹ
לַיהוָה, בִּפְקֹד אֹתָם; וְלֹא-יִהְיֶה בָהֶם נֶגֶף, בִּפְקֹד אֹתָם. |
12 'When you (sing) will lift up the head
of bnei Yisrael to cause them to be called to account they cause a man to be
given a covering atonement for his soul unto YHVH, to be counted; and not to be
for them a fatal plague-. for a sheltering covering is with them. |
ואני בהנשאי מעל־הארץ אמשך כלם אלי׃ (John 12:32)
ב שְׂאוּ, אֶת-רֹאשׁ כָּל-עֲדַת בְּנֵי-יִשְׂרָאֵל, לְמִשְׁפְּחֹתָם, לְבֵית אֲבֹתָם--בְּמִסְפַּר שֵׁמוֹת, כָּל-זָכָר לְגֻלְגְּלֹתָם. 'Take ye the sum of all the congregation of the children of Israel, by their families, by their fathers' houses, according to the number of names, every male, by their polls;(skulls) - Num 1:2
לְגֻלְגְּלֹתָם – Strongs 1538 – ‘’gûlgôleth’’ or ‘’skull’’ Maybe it’s only ‘’dead’’ men that can be counted.
Joh 19:17 And bearing His stake, He went out to the so-called Place of a Skull, which is called in Hebrew, Golgotha, Joh 19:18 where they impaled Him, and two others with Him, one on this side and one on that side, and יהושע in the middle.
Only a REMNANT obeyed the giving of the half shekel – Ex 38:25,26.
כה וְכֶסֶף פְּקוּדֵי הָעֵדָה, מְאַת
כִּכָּר; וְאֶלֶף וּשְׁבַע מֵאוֹת וַחֲמִשָּׁה וְשִׁבְעִים, שֶׁקֶל--בְּשֶׁקֶל
הַקֹּדֶשׁ. 25
And the silver of them that were numbered of the congregation was a hundred
talents, and a thousand seven hundred and three-score and fifteen shekels, (1775)
after the shekel of the sanctuary:
כו בֶּקַע, לַגֻּלְגֹּלֶת, מַחֲצִית הַשֶּׁקֶל, בְּשֶׁקֶל הַקֹּדֶשׁ--לְכֹל הָעֹבֵר עַל-הַפְּקֻדִים, מִבֶּן עֶשְׂרִים שָׁנָה וָמַעְלָה, לְשֵׁשׁ-מֵאוֹת אֶלֶף וּשְׁלֹשֶׁת אֲלָפִים, וַחֲמֵשׁ מֵאוֹת וַחֲמִשִּׁים. 26 a beka a head,(skull) that is, half a shekel, after the shekel of the sanctuary, for every one that passed over to them that are numbered, from twenty years old and upward, for six hundred thousand and three thousand and five hundred and fifty men.
If we do the math’s there was 603550 men 20 years and over. There was only 1175 shekels times 2 to get to the sum of men who obeyed the command of the ‘’half shekel’’ equals 3500 men equals 0,58% of the 603550 men counted in the first census.
Exo 30:13 “Everyone among those
who are registered is to give this: half a sheqel according to the sheqel of
the set-apart place, twenty gěrahs being a sheqel. The half-sheqel is the
contribution to יהוה.
Exo 30:14 “Everyone passing over
to be registered, from twenty years old and above, gives a contribution to יהוה.
Exo 30:15 “The rich does not give
more and the poor does not give less than half a sheqel, when you give a
contribution to יהוה, to make atonement for yourselves. (value
between R250 – R500)
Exo 30:16 “And you shall take the silver for the atonement from the children of Yisra’ěl, and give it for the service of the Tent of Appointment. And it shall be to the children of Yisra’ěl for a remembrance before יהוה, to make atonement for yourselves.”
Yahshua paid this half shekel temple tax:
Mat 17:24 And when they came into Kephar Naḥum, those who received the tax came to Kěpha and said, “Does your Teacher not pay the tax?” temple tax)Mat 17:25 He said, “Yes.” And when he came into the house, יהושע spoke to him first, saying, “What do you think, Shim‛on? From whom do the sovereigns of the earth take toll or tax, from their own sons or from the strangers?” Mat 17:26 Kěpha then said to Him, “From the strangers.” יהושע said to him, “Then the sons are exempt. Mat 17:27 “But, lest we cause them to stumble, go to the sea, cast in a hook, and take the fish that comes up first. And when you have opened its mouth, you shall find a stater.c Take that and give it to them for Me and you.” Footnote: c A coin -see also Rev 21:14
The Hebrew word “bekah” or half shekel (Shemot 38:26) means “to cleave or to rend to break open” we associate with the suffering of Messiah.
The Bronze Basin
Exo 30:17 And יהוה spoke to Mosheh, saying,
Exo 30:18 “And you shall make a
basin of bronze, with its stand also of bronze, for washing. And you shall put
it between the Tent of Appointment and the slaughter-place and shall put water
in it.
Exo 30:19 “And Aharon and his sons
shall wash from it their hands and their feet.
Exo 30:20 “When they go into the
Tent of Appointment, or when they come near the slaughter-place to attend, to
burn an offering made by fire to יהוה, they wash with water,
lest they die.
Exo 30:21 “And they shall wash their hands and their feet, lest they die. And it shall be a law forever to them, to him and his seed throughout their generations.”
This basin was made from mirrors belonging to the women who guarded the entrance of the Tabernacle. Perhaps this gave the priests an opportunity to first examine themselves before entering the Tabernacle. 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 Appointment.
The Anointing Oil and Incense
Exo 30:22 And יהוה spoke to Mosheh, saying,
Exo 30:23 “And take for yourself
choice spices, five hundred sheqels of liquid myrrh, and half as much –
two hundred and fifty – of sweet-smelling cinnamon, and two hundred and fifty
of sweet-smelling cane,
Exo 30:24 and five hundred of
cassia, according to the sheqel of the set-apart place, and a hin of olive
oil.
Exo 30:25 “And you shall make from
these a set-apart anointing oil, a compound, blended, the work of a perfumer.
It is a set-apart anointing oil.
Exo 30:26 “And with it you shall
anoint the Tent of Appointment and the ark of the Witness,
Exo 30:27 and the table and all
its utensils, and the lampstand and its utensils, and the slaughter-place of
incense,
Exo 30:28 and the slaughter-place
of ascending offering with all its utensils, and the basin and its stand.
Exo 30:29 “And you shall set them
apart, and they shall be most set-apart. Whatever touches them is to be
set-apart.
Exo 30:30 “And you shall anoint
Aharon and his sons, and set them apart, to serve as priests to Me.
Exo 30:31 “And speak to the
children of Yisra’ěl, saying, ‘This is a set-apart anointing oil to Me
throughout your generations.
Exo 30:32 ‘It shall not be poured
on the flesh of a man, and make no other like it, according to its composition.
It is set-apart, it is set-apart to you.
Exo 30:33 ‘Whoever compounds any
like it, or whoever puts any of it on a stranger, shall be cut off from his
people.’
Exo 30:34 And יהוה said to Mosheh, “Take sweet spices, fragrant gum and cinnamon
and galbanam, and clear frankincense with these sweet spices, all in equal
amounts.
Exo 30:35 “Then you shall make of
these an incense, a compound, work of a perfumer, salted, clean,
set-apart.
Exo 30:36 “And you shall beat (דּקק or pulverize) some of it very fine, and put some of it before the Witness in the
Tent of Appointment where I meet with you, it is most set-apart to you.
Exo 30:37 “And the incense which
you make, do not make any for yourselves, according to its composition, it is
set-apart to you for יהוה.
Exo 30:38 “Whoever makes any like it, to smell it, he shall be cut off from his people.”
All the elements placed on the altar were first subject to a rigorous transformation process.
‘’Cinnamon - The cut stems are processed by scraping off the outer bark, then beating the branch evenly with a hammer to loosen the inner bark, which is then pried off in long rolls.’’
‘’Frankincense –the stem of the tree is struck through the bark and into the sapwood, the tree secretes a resin. Myrrh gum, like frankincense, is such a resin. Myrrh is harvested by repeatedly wounding the trees to bleed the gum, which is waxy and coagulates quickly.’’
‘’Galbanam, -The stem contains resin ducts that carry a milky oleoresin. Incisions are made at the base of the stalk from which the gum runs and hardens in the shape of brown tears. The tears are then steam-distilled to produce an essential oil which is clear in colour.’’
‘’Black storax resin is a rare and precious incense that was popular in ancient times especially among Egyptians and Phoenicians. It is obtained from the Liquidambar Orientalis , when struck, the tree’s trunk produces a sap which is mixed with finely chopped bark.’’
Restoration
of the Priesthood:
The end time
restoration of all things begins with the restoration of Torah – there is no
restoration of Torah unless there is a restoration of the altar. There is no
restoration of the altar unless there is a restoration of the Levitical
priesthood and those from the nations called to be part of the Levitical
priesthood – Is 66:21- It was Aaron’s
rod that is in the ark of the covenant alongside the Torah and jar of manna,
which proved he was given the priesthood by YHVH – forever - Numbers 16&17.
Mal 2:1 “And
now, O priests,(Heb – Kohanim) this command is for you. Mal 2:2 “If you do not hear, and if you do not take
it to heart, to give esteem to My Name,” said יהוה of hosts, “I shall send a curse upon you, and I shall curse
your blessings. And indeed, I have cursed them, because you do not take it to
heart. Mal 2:3 “See, I shall rebuke your
seed, and scatter dung before your faces, the dung of your festivals. And you
shall be taken away with it.
Mal
2:4 “And you shall know that I have sent
this command to you, as being My covenant with Lĕwi,” said יהוה of
hosts. Mal 2:5 “My covenant with him was
life and peace, and I gave them to him, to fear. And he feared Me, and stood in
awe of My Name. Mal 2:6 “The Torah of
truth1 was in his mouth, and unrighteousness was not found on his lips.
He walked with Me in peace and straightness, and turned many away from
crookedness. Footnote: 1Neh. 9:13.
Mal 2:7 “For the lips of a priest should guard knowledge, and they seek the Torah from his mouth, for he is the messenger of יהוה of hosts. Mal 2:8 “But you, you have turned from the way, you have caused many to stumble in the Torah. You have corrupted the covenant of Lĕwi,” said יהוה of hosts. Mal 2:9 “And I also, I shall make you despised and low before all the people, because you are not guarding My ways, and are showing partiality in the Torah.”
It is at our devotional altar we find the good pleasing and perfect will of YHVH - Rom 12:1 I call upon you, therefore, brothers, through the compassion of Elohim, to present your bodies a living offering – set-apart, well-pleasing to Elohim – your reasonable worship. Rom 12:2 And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you prove what is that good and well-pleasing and perfect desire of Elohim.
Psa 84:1 How lovely are Your dwelling places, O יהוה of hosts! Psa 84:2 My being has longed, and even fainted, For the courts of יהוה; My heart and my flesh cry out for the living Ěl. Psa 84:3 Even the sparrow has found a home, And the swallow a nest for herself, Where she has put her young ones – Your slaughter-places,(altars) O יהוה of hosts, My Sovereign and my Elohim. (David found his comfort and a home at YHVH’s altar)
Blessed are you YHVH, 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 – Amein.