You shall not take the Name of G_D in vain
• To know and memorialize G_D’s NAME “YHVH” THE GREAT I AM from generation to generation (Ex 3:14-15)
• To hallow G_D's name (Lev. 22:32)
• Not to profane G_D’s name (To use commonly or outside of reverent activities) (Lev. 22:32)
• To obey and not rebel against the ANGEL of THE LORD in WHOM G_D’s NAME resides (Ex. 23:21)
Commentary:
We must begin this brief commentary with a simple explanation of profanity. Unlike our modern understanding which views profanity as some form of curse or verbal filth, it should be noted that profane quite simply means “common”. Using this proper framework we see in these commandments the mandate to treat what is holy … as only holy; in this instance G_D’s sacred NAME!
In a Hebraic understanding a name is critical in that it defines the owner of the name. If we peel the onion back just a bit and look we would see that Hebrew names actually mean things … important things! For instance Mashiach’s NAME in Hebrew is “Yeshua “meaning literally G_D’s SALVATION. This NAME is not a means to associate Mashiach with G_D’s SALVATION … much more so in a Hebraic context it means that Yeshua is G_D’s Salvation. As for “Jesus” we must simply acknowledge that it represents a mere Greek translation “Ieosus” which has been transliterated into English as “Jesus”. Sadly the final transliteration most assuredly does not carry with it the Hebraic meaning or power that is the owner of THE NAME.
In the very same respects THE GREAT I AM is in fact all life and creation! His NAME as such is existence … not just a name to be associated with life … but pure life itself.
Of course G_D has many NAMES in the Bible and contained within all of these NAMES is his collective glory. When THE LORD pronounced his NAME to Moses he declared: “'The LORD, the LORD, G_D, merciful and gracious, long-suffering, and abundant in goodness and truth; keeping mercy unto the thousandth generation, forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin; and that will by no means clear the guilty; visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children, and upon the children's children, unto the third and unto the fourth generation.'
The point being … In a Hebraic perspective the GREAT NAME OF G_D is rarely invoked. In fact the mandate to treat G_D’s NAME with the utmost reverence led the ancient Israelites to limit the use of this NAME only to the High Priest and only within the inner sanctuary on Yom Kippur. This ultimately led to the bizarre scenario where Israel quite frankly has actually forgotten to antiquity the correct pronouncing and full spelling of G_D’s PERSONAL NAME (YHVH - The Tetragrammaton). Hence in traditional orthodox Jewish culture G_D, out of reverence, is referred to as HaSHEM … or simply “THE NAME”.
Now despite such a turn of events let us bring this back to our modern times where apparently we are lacking a real understanding of how we should be handling G_D’s sacred NAME(s) … and sadly enough the NAME of Mashiach as well. We live in times wherein G_D is invoked commonly far too often and most unfortunately in a manner that is most certainly unholy. We've come a long way and as it pertains to correctly treating G_D’s HOLY NAME … we better consider retracing our steps and going back to a time where believers were very cautious, selective and frugal when invoking the NAME of G_D!
Sadly our culture without shame invokes and slanders Mashiach … undoubtedly the name “Jesus Christ” is misused by believers, non-believers, seemingly everyone on a regular basis and for profane utterances! Can this even be debated?
And one final note … as we ponder the importance of names let us not forget the NAME of Mashiach as revealed in Revelation and let us also not forget that the very name of each and every believer is recorded in the Book of Life … Hmmm … let us pray that it is his NAME that is in us when these books are opened because one could surmise that what our own personal names’ depict by way of our human personal essence is not all that worthy of anything … let alone eternal life and sharing the glory of Mashiach!
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• To swear by His name truly (Deut. 10:20)
• That a man should fulfill whatever he has uttered (Deut. 23:24)
• Not to violate an oath or swear falsely (Lev. 19:12)
• Not to break a vow (Num. 30:3)
• Not to delay in fulfilling vows or bringing vowed or free-will offerings (Deut. 23:22)
• Not to swear needlessly (Ex. 20:7)
• To decide in cases of annulment of vows, according to the rules set forth in the Torah (Num. 30:2-17)
Commentary:
As the previous discourse exposed the nature of sanctity associated with THE LORD’s NAME it should be quite intuitive then that the issue of oaths and vows … in G_D’s NAME is also a serious matter.
As we learn from our Mashiach … it is best in general not to make oaths since such matters entail significant responsibilities as well as dire consequences for not living up to said oaths.
These commandments depict just how much importance G_D places on one's word. In a Hebraic perspective the faithfulness of G_D is paramount to our entire belief system and our confidence in him is predicated upon the simple fact that what G_D says will be done … what G_D says is true and can be counted upon … forever. Consequently the obligation for believers in him is to have our word be just as faithful … or at least most certainly when we give our word to G_D himself in the form of an oath or vow. When we fail to make good on our vows to G_D we not only dishonor ourselves but dishonor THE ONE WHOSE NAME resides in us.
Given our propensity to be unfaithful and imperfect we really must be careful as Mashiach instructed in the way of making vows for we are held accountable.
Still further we must be very careful in the manner by which we commonly/profanely invoke G_D as our judge in this matter or that matter. To a broader extent promises are in fact extensions of the eternal covenant under which we operate. As such promises should be treated as sacred and we should be extremely careful that we exercise the will to promise only in appropriate situations and make sure that we make good on said oaths.
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• That a Nazarite shall not drink wine, or anything mixed with wine (Num. 6:3)
• That he shall not eat at all of the grape (Num. 6:3-4)
• That the Nazarite must permit his hair to grow (Num. 6:5)
• That the Nazarite not enter any covered structure where there is a dead body (Num. 6:6)
• That a Nazarite shall not defile himself for any dead person (by being in the presence of the corpse) (Num. 6:7)
• That the Nazarite shall shave his hair when he brings his offerings at the completion of the period of his Nazariteship, or within that period if he has become defiled (Num. 6:9)
Commentary:
Although the concept of Nazarite sanctification is quite frankly a foreign concept in our modern culture, we must admit that many believers undergo endeavors to promote holiness … a.k.a. sanctification through various means. Ultimately we are naturally dealing with the concept of personal dedication to THE LORD for some specified time frame and these commandments lay out the framework around said dedication. Let this sink in for a moment!
Naturally the modern believer is prone to establishing their own requirements around a period of dedication … such as refraining from this or from that for instance. But then the question must be raised … is this acceptable to G_D? Hmmm! Additionally we should understand that in a Hebraic context the nature of this dedication period is not just a personal issue between a believer and G_D. The commandments would seem to indicate that others within the community will physically observe the terms of dedication by virtue of abstinence from the grape as well as the growing and subsequent shaving of hair. Yes it appears that this period of dedication is not just for the individual but for the community as well regardless of how the dedication is applied.
With this in mind we should also consider the nature of the dedication itself. There can be no doubt that the dedication to G_D by the Nazarite vow is designed to bring a believer into a closer relationship with G_D. As such we should ponder then what the results of the dedication would produce. Is it designed to make a believer spiritually stronger? Is it designed to enable a believer to hear from G_D? Just what is the purpose? Ultimately we should understand that the nature of the Nazarite vow is to bring the believer into closer conformance to G_D’s character and consequently the result would be a believer that is more closely walking along the path … “haDerech” … The Way and willing to do so at personal expense in the eyes of the community.
It seems apparent by these commandments that “dedications” are natural to all believers … that dedications are not necessarily optional … that dedications represent various movements along our path of growth in relationship with G_D. Hmmm … seems like personal dedication is quite uncommon but we as believers need to change this … agreed?
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• To heed the call of every prophet in each generation, provided that he neither adds to, nor takes away from the Torah (Deut. 18:15)
• Not to prophesy falsely (Deut. 18:20)
• Not to refrain from putting a false prophet to death nor to be in fear of him (Deut. 18:22)
Commentary:
In this modern era it seems that the sheer concept and idea of “the prophet” is quite frankly profaned to the maximum. One seemingly can't turn to the left or the right without hearing about this prophet … or that prophet … or worse yet the community member that has for you a “word from G_D”!
Like all other Torah mitzvot categories it is certain that volumes could be written regarding this matter. Herein however let us focus on some core issues such as: what constitutes a legitimate prophet; what constitutes legitimate prophecy; and who should the legitimate prophet be dealing with?
From a Hebraic perspective the legitimate prophet is always the person who first and foremost fears and faithfully follows G_D. This of course means that they are a person who is aligned with G_D’s plan for Israel and most importantly a person that is walking according to the Torah! King David provides us the best view into the heart and spirit of the legitimate prophet … David's was a heart that THE LORD knew and loved.
When we review the Biblical pattern regarding the raising up of prophets what do we see? Do we see rebels as prophets? Do we see persons that disregard Torah as prophets? Do we see THE LORD raise up people from the nations to be his prophets? Hmmm!
When we review the Biblical patterns concerning the prophets what do we see them doing and to whom do we see them confronting? The Biblical record seems clear on these matters: we see the prophets foretell upcoming events surrounding Israel and usually within the auspices of delivering guidance and or rebuking due to notable breaching of Torah! Typically the events prophesied and personal or communal behavior is directly correlated although this is by no means axiomatic. The pattern however is prominent and should provide us insights as to the predominant legitimate nature of prophecy used by G_D.
Ultimately what we see from the Biblical pattern is G_D lifting up persons that fear and obey him. G_D lifting up persons to guide and rebuke Israel … while at the same time declaring future events so that the prophecies and prophets themselves can be verified upon fulfillment of said future events.
If we take a step back we should readily see that it would seem quite strange for G_D to entrust his prophecy to an individual that does not follow his commandments. If a prophet does not follow THE LORD’s commandments then how would a receiver of the message know from where the portent or knowledge even emanated … the source could emanate from virtually anywhere but probably not from THE LORD.
If we take a step back we should readily see that prophets deal with G_D’s Kingdom Israel, the eternal covenant and of course the Kingdom's constitutional by-laws … Torah.
When we consider these visible and historic patterns we really need to ask the question … when was the last time we came across a legitimate prophet … with a legitimate prophecy … delivered to the leaders of G_D’s Kingdom for purposes of correction/guidance within the auspices of the eternal covenant and Torah fulfillment?
What then shall we say … that prophecy is dead? The answer is “of course not”. It just means that we must be diligent in understanding true prophecy and in recognizing true prophets. It also entails that we take a real hard look at what is purported prophecy in these modern times and put things to the test … and when the test results are not aligned with the Biblical patterns … well then we should shake the dust from our sandals.
Dear readers … be not swayed by the false prophets without first putting them to the test! If they do not walk the narrow path … if they do not cleave to the G_D of Israel … if they are ignorant of the Eternal Covenant and Torah … if they do not fit into the Biblical pattern of prophecy provided to us by G_D … then chances are they are not prophets of G_D MOST HIGH!
Certainly, from a Hebraic perspective, individuals not meeting these standards will be viewed as false prophets!
Let us all remain cautious in both delivering and receiving true prophecy!
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• Not to build an altar of hewn stone (Ex. 20:22)
• Not to mount the altar (Ex. 20:23)
• To remove the ashes from the altar (Lev. 6:3)
• That when the Ark is carried, it should be carried on the shoulder (Num. 7:9)
• Not to remove the staves from the Ark (Ex. 25:15)
• Not to offer strange incense nor any sacrifice upon the golden altar (Ex. 30:9)
• Not to compound anything after the formula of the incense (Ex. 30:37)
• Not to compound oil for lay use after the formula of the anointing oil (Ex. 30:32-33)
• Not to destroy anything of the Sanctuary, of synagogues, or of houses of study, nor erase the holy names (of G_D); nor may sacred scriptures be destroyed (Deut. 12:2-5)
• That he who, in error, makes unlawful use of sacred things, shall make restitution of the value of his trespass and add a fifth (Lev. 5:16)
• To send the unclean out of the Camp of the Shekinah, that is, out of the Sanctuary (Num. 5:2)
Commentary:
Once again it must be iterated that it is all about his NAME and in this case the Sanctuary … the place where his NAME resides and all of the items that are holy unto him.
Obviously these commandments resonate so great when viewed in the context of the “Tent of Meeting” or “The Temple” wherein a physical manifestation of G_D was gifted to Israel … simply AMAZING! But let us look beyond that period to today … let us ponder these commandments in the context of a modern believer.
We need to move past the obvious fact that the Temple and original sacred objects are not readily apparent to us. When we do so can we say that these commandments are no longer valid?
So … is your house of worship viewed in a similar context in which Israel viewed the Temple? Do modern believers really think that the ground within the worship hall is holy ground? Do modern believers consider the items of service to be holy? Do modern believers really consider their personal spiritual and ritual state of cleanness before entering the sanctuary? Hmmm!
Do we contemplate as we enter into our worship halls the sound of THE LORD whispering in our ear: “Moses … Moses … take off thy sandals for the ground that thou art upon is holy?”
These commandments were given to us as a permanent reminder that where THE LORD places his NAME and when objects of his service are set aside as “Kadosh/Holy” to honor him … then we are dealing with that wonderful transcendental reality of G_D amongst us … Immanu EL!
When we open our Bibles do we do so with awe, reverence and excitement … or have they become a training component or mandatory reading manual? Do we treat G_D’s word … his Torah … his Revelation … his Yeshua as the most precious gift to humanity? Do we revere and maintain the written word or do we treat his Torah like a high school text book?
The point is not to stress what we do poorly but to take a step back and understand the nature of holiness … separation for G_D. We need to let this concept sink in … we need to be more serious and in so doing become more like the ancient Israelites! Who knows what might happen if we do? Perhaps G_D will even show up if we honor him according to the manner which he has already prescribed!
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• That one not a descendant of Aaron in the male line shall not serve in a priestly capacity (in the Sanctuary) (Num. 18:4-7)
• To prepare the oil of anointment and anoint High Kohanim and kings with it (Ex. 30:31)
• That the breastplate shall not be loosened from the ephod (Ex. 28:28)
• That a High Kohein shall not defile himself with any dead, even if they are relatives (Lev. 21:11)
• That a High Kohein shall not go (under the same roof) with a dead body (Lev. 21:11)
• Not to tear the High Kohein's robe (Ex. 28:32)
• That the High Kohein shall marry a virgin (Lev. 21:13)
• That the High Kohein shall not marry a widow (Lev. 21:14)
• That the High Kohein shall not cohabit with a widow, even without marriage, because he profanes her (Lev. 21:15)
Commentary:
Again … sacred commandments that seem to be irrelevant to our modern culture since the formal Aaronic Priesthood and culture of ancient Israel is readily not apparent to us. But …
For the modern believer it is imperative for us to understand these commandments from a Messianic perspective … a Yeshua perspective since he is the eternal High Priest.
As part of the great order of things willed and brought forth by THE LORD, the High Priest stands in the breach for his people Israel as The Intercessor! The ancient Israeli post of High Priest was always a shadow of the Heavenly and eternal pattern and consequently a shadow of Mashiach as revealed in Scripture … the High Priest in the order of Melchisedec! So … how then should we view these eternal commandments?
First we need to understand and really grasp what Paul revealed to us about Mashiach: the pattern of intercession remains in place and it is Mashiach who is able to intercede on our behalf. Critical to note is that Mashiach is able to intercede … he is not obligated to intercede … this is important to grasp!
The High Priest does intercede, however the High Priest is also responsible for the condition of the sacrifice being offered … as in no blemishes … as in offered up with a humble and contrite heart … as in offered up at the right times and circumstances. Scripture does reveal that upon acceptance we can be washed clean through the blood of Mashiach … yet Scripture is also clear regarding our path to intercession and the protocols to be followed. Frankly we must understand that we can't take intercession for granted. Mashiach our High Priest must be petitioned and approached and our plea/sacrifice will be inspected!
Let us also consider how these commandments apply to the believing community from a Bride of Mashiach perspective. Obviously the commandments dictate that the High Priest deal only with a pure or virginal bride! Let us not fall into a trap and think that somehow this refers to the church and some eternal designation of “virgin”. No indeed not … this refers to Israel as the bride and consequently all within Israel must be reborn of Spirit … as in virginal or untainted by the first creation or “this world”.
Additionally we should note that Mashiach as High Priest is the ONE whom anoints priests and kings … let us ponder under what circumstances we as his followers are to be anointed?
So … we see how even these seemingly most removed commandments are prevalent to believers of THE G_D OF ISRAEL … not in some off-hand or barely connected manner but thoroughly embedded within G_D’s plan and critical to our well-being … yea even our salvation!
Ultimately yet again we must peer down the hole with Hebraic eyes in order to see clearly. We must remove the scales and shake off the millennia of confusion and realize that things are not as we think they are. THE LORD has not done away with things and it is incumbent upon us to chase after him … just as he chased after us! Mashiach is obligated to uphold the integrity of G_D’s GREAT NAME in the role of Eternal High Priest … we can be assured that Mashiach will do so in accordance to the standards set forth by his own word!
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• That the kohein shall not enter the Sanctuary at all times (i.e., at times when he is not performing service) (Lev. 16:2)
• That the kohanim shall put on priestly vestments for the service (Ex. 28:2)
• That the kohein shall wash his hands and feet at the time of service (Ex. 30:19)
• That a kohein who is unclean shall not serve (in the Sanctuary) (Lev. 22:2-3)
• That a kohein with a temporary blemish shall not serve there (Lev. 21:21)
• That a kohein shall not enter the Sanctuary with disheveled hair (Lev. 10:6)
• That a kohein shall not enter the Sanctuary with torn garments (Lev. 10:6)
• That the kohein shall not leave the Courtyard of the Sanctuary, during service (Lev. 10:7)
• That a kohein who is unclean shall not enter the courtyard (Num. 5:2-3)
• That the ordinary kohein shall not defile himself by contact with any dead, other than immediate relatives (Lev. 21:1-3)
• That the kohanim defile themselves for their deceased relatives by attending their burial and mourn for them like other Israelites, who are commanded to mourn for their relatives (Lev. 21:3)
• That a kohein who had an immersion during the day (to cleanse him from his uncleanness) shall not serve in the Sanctuary until after sunset (Lev. 21:6)
• That a kohein shall not marry a divorced woman (Lev. 21:7)
• That a kohein shall not marry a harlot (Lev. 21:7)
• That a kohein shall not marry a profaned woman (Lev. 21:7)
Commentary:
Unlike the commandments respective to the High Priest it should be noted that these Priestly commandments are far more temporal to his believers … hopefully us! As we ponder these commandments we should discern that they are generally segmented by two distinct areas of concern: first there are commandments which deal with order concerning the holy service and secondly those commandments that are concerned with ritual cleanness.
For the sake of discussion let us visit Ephesians “6:14 Stand therefore, having your loins girt about with truth, and having on the breastplate of righteousness; 6:15 And your feet shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace; 6:16 Above all, taking the shield of faith, wherewith ye shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked. 6:17 And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of G_D.”
Paul is apparently painting a very discrete picture of the Priesthood and how believers of Mashiach are to ready themselves and proceed in their performance of “avodah” … the holy work as a “new person” … as a Priest. As we see Paul invokes: truth; righteousness; faith; salvation; spirit and of course the gospel of Mashiach. Paul however as we also see introduces these elements of priestly preparedness within the context of the armor/vestments necessary to perform the service … as in the battle with the powers and principalities!
It should also be pointed out as well that Paul's message, delivered to Gentiles, upon review exhorts those same Gentiles to remove themselves from the Gentile way and cleave to the ways of Torah … one simply needs to read the epistle to verify this truth. What we can ascertain from Paul's epistle in light of these priestly commands is the requirement to maintain spiritual and temporal cleanness. But let us delve a bit deeper and consider what Paul, a Hebrew Rabbi, would have been revealing to his audience and listeners to come at a later time.
• Truth (knowledge of G_D, knowledge of Mashiach & knowledge of Torah) …
• Righteousness … i.e. lawfulness as revealed through the sacred commandments …
• Gospel … message of righteous (lawful) redemption as in purchased reconciliation from unlawfulness to lawfulness …
• Faith (above all notes Paul) … not mere mental acceptance of G_D but obedient actions aligned with mitzvot compliance out of love for THE LORD and with joy …
• Salvation … gifted and undeserved mercy … grace …
• Spirit … the testimony of truth supported by G_D’s word
It would surely seem that these commandments are indeed relevant for persons who belong to Israel … the kingdom of priests! These principles are “in play” and Paul would not have invoked this pattern to B’rit Chadasha Gentile believers if Paul himself believed the Priesthood was done away with. Most certainly Paul was aware that we rank and file persons could not literally fill the prescribed commandments because of ethnic or religious status … but all the same he paints a picture indicating that these commandments are still meaningful to us … that we are ordained!
So as Priests of Mashiach what shall we do … strive for cleanness or uncleanness … be ready for our duties or not … view our very lives as “the holy service or not … consider ourselves to be part of Israel the nation of Priests or not? Hmmm!
Let us once more hear from Paul on the matter … Romans: 12:1 I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of G_D, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto G_D, which is your reasonable service. 12:2 And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is the good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of G_D.
So what should we think? Apparently it all depends upon an individual believer's willingness to accept the role of being an Israelite and a Priest in accordance to the unchanging will and plan of G_D! We either believe the Scriptures to be true and accurate or we simply pawn them off as being relative metaphors used to create interest in the sacred writings!
So do we believe in the writings? Do we believe that we belong to Israel … the Kingdom of Priests? Do we believe that our walk results in the ordination to the line of Priests?
Answers to these questions dear reader can explain much in the way of how a purported believer approaches and operates within the construct of one's personal faith. If we view the Scriptures as simple literary metaphors and not as actual living/application instructions … the author would challenge the validity of one's faith because the author is most certainly not going to challenge the perfection of G_D’s word!
So … are we Priests of Israel or not?
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• That the Levites shall not occupy themselves with the service that belongs to the kohanim, nor the kohanim with that belonging to the Levites (Num. 18:3)
• That none of the tribe of Levi shall take any portion of territory in the land of Israel (Deut. 18:1)
• That none of the tribe of Levi shall take any share of the spoil