With Feast of Trumpets Now here you should all have a copy of this book to understand and know the deeper things of this Amazing Feast.

It Was A Riddle Not A Command

Torah Portions

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There are many people in need of fellowship and who are sitting at home on the Sabbath with no one to talk to or debate with. I want to encourage all of you to join us on Shabbat, and to invite others to come and join us as well. If the time is not convenient then you can listen to the teaching and the midrash after on our YouTube channel.

What are we doing and why do we teach this way?

We are going to discuss both sides of an issue and then let you choose. It is the work of the Ruach (Spirit) to direct and to teach you.

The medieval commentator Rashi wrote that the Hebrew word for wrestle (avek) implies that Jacob was “tied”, for the same word is used to describe knotted fringes in a Jewish prayer shawl, the tzitzityot. Rashi says, “thus is the manner of two people who struggle to overthrow each other, that one embraces the other and knots him with his arms”.

Our intellectual wrestling has been replaced by a different kind of struggle. We are Wrestling with Yehovah as we grapple with His Word. It is an intimate act, symbolizing a relationship in which Yehovah and I and you are bound together. My wrestling is a struggle to discover what Yehovah expects of us, and we are “tied” to the One who assists us in that struggle.

Today, many say Israel means “Champion of God”, or better — the “Wrestler of God”.

Our Torah sessions each Shabbat teaches you and encourages you to constantly challenge, question, argue against, as well as view alternative views and explanations of the Word. In other words, we are to “wrestle with the Word” to get to the truth. Jews worldwide believe that you need to wrestle with the Word and constantly challenge Dogma, Theology, and views or else you will never get to the Truth.

We are not like most churches where “The preacher talks and everyone listens.” We encourage everyone to participate, to question and to contribute what they know on the subject being discussed. We want you to be a champion wrestler of the Word of Yehovah. We want you to wear the title of Israel, knowing that you not only know but are capable of explaining why you know the Torah to be true with logic and facts.

We have a few rules though. Let others talk and listen. There is no discussion about UFO’s Nephilim, Vaccines or conspiracy-type subjects. We have people from around the world with different world views. Not everyone cares who is the President of any particular country. Treat each other with respect as Fellow wrestlers of the word. Some of our subjects are hard to understand and require you to be mature and if you do not know, then listen to gain knowledge and understanding and hopefully wisdom. The very things you are commanded to ask Yehovah for and He gives to those who ask.

Jas 1:5  But if any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives to all liberally and with no reproach, and it shall be given to him.

We hope you can invite those who want to keep Torah to come and join us by hitting the link below. It is almost like a Torah teaching fellowship talk show with people from around the world taking part and sharing their insights and understandings.

We start off with some music and then some prayers and it’s as though you were sitting around the kitchen back in Newfoundland having a cup of coffee and all of us enjoying each other’s company. I hope you will grace us with your company someday.

Sabbath services begin at 12:30 PM EDT where we will be doing prayers songs and teaching from this hour.

Shabbat Services will begin at about 1:15 pm Eastern.

On the Holy Day, Shavuot, we will be having two meetings. One at 10 AM Eastern and the afternoon will be 2 PM Eastern. Look forward to seeing you all there.

We look forward to you joining our family and getting to know us as we get to know you.

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New Moon of the 11th Month

The New Moon was sighted at 16:46 from Poriyah Ilit, by Becca Biderman, from Tiberias at 4:56 pm by Dennis Chkolnik and Maureen Chkolnik and from Haifa at 5:02 by Ephraim Amnon.

You must have two witnesses to testify of the new crescent moon. There is only one Feast that goes by the New Crescent moon. That is the Feast of Trumpets at the start of the 7th month. We are now beginning the 11th month. Had the moon not been seen Thursday evening, then the month would have been declared a 30-day month. Which would have made Friday evening and Saturday day the 1st day of the 11th month. 

From this understanding, you should not understand why no man can know the day or the hour of the coming of the Messiah because He is coming on the Feast of Trumpets, which is determined by the first crescent of the new moon. With this understanding, we can no longer keep the Hillel calendar using the conjunction to begin each month. If we did, we would always know the day and the hour of each month’s start and the Feast of Trumpet’s start.

Each month we go out to look for the new crescent moon, this exercise demonstrates to you why no man can know the day or the hour. You learn by doing.

This picture is by Becca Biderman.

Golgotha

The Crucifixion Site of Jesus By: Ernest L Martin

Bible and Spade (Autumn 1992)

Since the publication of my book Secrets of Golgotha in the Spring of 1988, there has been a steady flow of new information which shows that the crucifixion of Jesus took place on the Mount of Olives. Some of the evidence has come from other scholars who have seen the fact that Jesus was executed somewhere near the summit of Olivet. A great deal has also been arrived at by further research of my own. What is emerging is real evidence that the Church of the Holy Sepulchre and the Garden Tomb located in Jerusalem are nowhere near the proper spot where the actual crucifixion and resurrection of Jesus took place. This fact has revolutionary consequences associated with it. This is because the Roman Catholic Church, the Greek Orthodox Church, the Armenian Orthodox churches for the past 1660 years have generally accepted the area associated with the Church of the Holy Sepulchre as the crucifixion site. Even classical historians have thought the site has most of the historical credentials to justify its acceptance by the scholarly world. But this new evidence shows that the Constantinian Church is thoroughly wrong. The Bible and history plainly establish that the Mount of Olives is the real place of the crucifixion.

Just over 118 years ago in the Palestine Exploration Quarterly (1873, 115; also 1870, 379–381) Dr. Hutchinson suggested that the crucifixion of Jesus must have taken place east of the Temple Mount — which placed it on the Mount of Olives. Until the publication of my book Secrets of Golgotha, that is the last scholarly indication I have found which suggests that the crucifixion happened on Olivet. Since AD 1873, the only candidates for the site have been the Church of the Holy Sepulchre which was built west of the second wall of Jerusalem or at the Garden Tomb region north and east of the Damascus Gate. But my book shows from the New Testament and early Jewish records that the southern summit of the Mount of Olives near the altar “without the sanctuary” where the Red Heifer was burnt to ashes (Ez 43:21) has far greater credentials for being the site.

Sacrifice of the Red Heifer:

The first point to notice is that the burning of the Red Heifer and Jesus’ crucifixion were symbolically connected in a precise way by Christians who lived during the period of Herod’s Temple. The author of the Book of Hebrews (about AD 61) stated that Jesus was a “sin offering” for the world and that His sin-atoning death epitomized the symbolic role of all the sin offerings sacrificed at the Temple (Heb 10:8–14). The major sin offerings were burnt to ashes at an altar region east of the Temple near the top of the Mount of Olives. Besides that, all of the ashes of the other sacrifices offered at the Altar of Burnt Offering in the Temple itself were deposited at the same altar east of the Temple on Olivet (Lv 4:12; 6:11). The author of Hebrews also connected the ashes of the Red Heifer (which were mixed with pure spring water) with the sprinkling of the blood of Jesus which occurred at the precise time of his crucifixion (Heb 9:13, 14). And particularly note this point. In the Letter of Barnabas (written by a person from Jerusalem about AD 90), the author stated that the Red Heifer in Christian circles was reckoned as Jesus. “The calf is Jesus: the sinful men offering it are those who led him to the slaughter” (8:2). Remarkably, very few Christian historians have asked: “Where was this Red Heifer altar?”

As explained in my book Secrets of Golgotha, the early Jewish records found in the Mishnah plainly state that the Red Heifer altar was located directly east of the Temple that existed in Jesus’ time and that it was just shy of the summit of the Mount of Olives (Middoth 1:3; 2:4; Yoma 7:2; along with the Talmud in Yoma 68a and Zebahim 105b). And here we find the author of the Letter of Barnabas directly stating that “the calf [heifer] is Jesus” and that “the sinful men offering it are those who led him [Jesus] to the slaughter” (8:2). It is well known in Jewish circles that the priests did indeed lead the heifer from the Temple on Mount Moriah eastward across a double-tiered arched bridge (called the Bridge of the Red Heifer) to an altar just outside the camp near the summit of Olivet. This is where they sacrificed and burnt to ashes the Red Heifer. This first century identification of Jesus with the Red Heifer is clear proof that early Jewish Christians connected the sacrifice of the heifer on the summit of Olivet with the death of Jesus which took place in the same vicinity But no sacrifices of the Temple were ever connected with the western area of the “Holy Sepulchre.”

Geographical Features:

While we moderns have wondered if we should use geographical features associated with the sin offerings as having literal geographical relationships to actual events in the life of Jesus, such usages were commonly applied by Biblical writers. Matthew symbolically associated a prophecy about Israel coming out of Egypt with Jesus and his stay in Egypt. While “Israel” of the prophecy could only symbolically refer to Jesus, Jesus still had to have been literally in Egypt for the symbol to be applied in any sensible way. Also, the symbolic teaching of Rachel weeping in Ramah could only be applied to those in Bethlehem because that is where Rachel’s cenotaph was located. Also, Isaiah’s reference to the lands of Zebulun and Naphtali could only apply to Jesus because these lands were in Galilee where Jesus taught. Thus, the geography associated with the symbols must be literal even if the symbols are not.

As an example, note a further geographical reference in the book of Hebrews associating the sin offerings of the Temple with the crucifixion of Jesus. The author stated that Jesus carried His reproach (the cross-piece for His crucifixion) to an altar located “outside the gate,” even “outside the camp” (Heb 13:10–14). There was the literal altar on Olivet that matches the author’s illustration. Indeed, in this case the author used the Tabernacle of Moses as his standard of reference (the Jewish authorities did the same thing in the Mishnah about a century later). It is important to note that the Tabernacle only had eastern gates. By using the Tabernacle as a standard, this points to the “gate” through which Jesus went to His crucifixion as being the east gate in the outer wall surrounding the Temple. Interestingly, this eastern gate was the same gate through which the major sin offering and the Red Heifer were taken to Olivet. The roadway through the eastern gate was designed specifically by the Jewish authorities to lead directly to the altar “outside the camp” where the Red Heifer was burnt to ashes. Early Jewish Christians were keenly aware of these ritualistic connections of the sin offerings with the death of Jesus. Geographically, these historical and Biblical texts about His crucifixion direct us to Olivet.

Furthermore, this Red Heifer altar was located just “outside the camp” which was at least 2000 cubits east of the Hall of the Sanhedrin then situated at the Chamber of Hewn Stones in the Temple, located on the left side of the Altar of Burnt Offering (Middoth 5:4; Sanhedrin 11:2; Yoma 25a). Indeed, just before Jesus was crucified, He was actually condemned to be executed while He stood before the Sanhedrin in the Chamber of Hewn Stones on the Temple Mount (see Shabbath 15a and Rosh ha-Shanah 31a, b). Since it was then the Passover season, the chief priest (the president of the Sanhedrin who was Caiaphas) and his deputy (Annas, the Sagan) were required to be resident in their quarters within the precincts of the Temple. They were then living in their official “houses” which were located in the Temple compound itself (Middoth 5:4; Encyclopaedia Judaica III.991). This is when the top priestly authorities left their own private houses (no doubt located on the aristocratic southwest hill of Jerusalem) and they took up residence within the Temple itself.

There were special times in the Jewish ecclesiastical year when residence within the Temple was essential for the High Priest and his deputy. For the seven days prior to offering the Red Heifer, the High Priest had to stay in his Temple “house” called the “House of Stone” (Parah 3:1). For the seven days prior to the Day of Atonement the High Priest had to reside within his “house” on the Temple Mount (Yoma 1:1). Though Josephus did not mention the Temple residency of the priests, he did state that such attendance at the Temple was a requirement for weekly Sabbaths, new moons and annual festivals (War V.230). Since Jesus was judged by the Jewish authorities at the Passover season, Caiaphas and Annas were not at their private homes during Jesus’ interrogation. Jesus was judged by the chief priests and condemned by the Sanhedrin while all parties were within the Temple enclosure. From the Christian point of view, this meant that Jesus was judged to die in His own Father’s House. He was sentenced to die “in the presence of God” who symbolically dwelt in the Holy of Holies.

After his judgment by the Sanhedrin on the Temple Mount, Jesus was then taken a short distance to the northwest part of the Temple courtyard where there was a stairway that led to Fort Antonia where Pilate was amongst his troops. Being at Antonia during Passover provided Pilate with a personal command over his resident army in order to properly control the festival crowds in Jerusalem, and especially those within the Temple precincts. After interrogating Jesus, Pilate washed his hands of the matter. Jesus was then led out of Fort Antonia and through the east gate of the Temple (which was also the east gate of Jerusalem) and taken over the two-tiered arched bridge of the Kidron Valley to the summit of Olivet near where the Red Heifer was sacrificed — a prominent area in Jerusalem.

The Area of Judgment:

This eastern area where Jesus was executed was famous for another reason. Jesus was actually crucified in the official area of Jerusalem that was designed for the execution of criminals and in the region that the Jewish authorities believed was the symbolic place where the whole world would one day be judged by God. This was the area directly east of the Temple but located “outside the camp” of Israel (Nm 15:35). The limits of the camp were determined in the time of Jesus to be a radius of 2000 cubits (near 3000 ft) from the Court of the Sanhedrin in the Temple (Rosh ha-Shanah 2:5, see also Sanhedrin 1:5 and Shebuoth 2:2 for the authority of the Jewish Supreme Court to set the limits of the camp). This factor alone disqualifies the present sites of the Church of the Holy Sepulchre and the Garden Tomb from being the place of Jesus’ crucifixion (even though outside the walls) because both sites were within the official region of the “camp.”

The authorized place of execution for criminals in the time of Jesus had to be at least 2000 cubits from the Court of the Sanhedrin on the Temple Mount, but it had to be in a place where the condemned could see the entrances to the Temple located in a westward direction. The Biblical examples for judicial sentencing of people for their criminal acts in the time of Moses show they took place on the east side of the Sanctuary. Women accused of adultery were brought for judgment “before the Lord”, that is, to the east entrance of the Sanctuary (Nm 5:16–31). The two sons of Aaron were judged “before the Lord” on the east side of the Sanctuary (Lv 10:1–7). Korah and his Levites were also punished east of the Tabernacle (Nm 16:41–50).

It was important for official judgments to be rendered and executed east of the Temple. This allowed the judgments to be made “in the presence of God,” who figuratively faced east from his Sanctuary. Because of this, both the Sanhedrin and the lesser courts at Jerusalem in the time of Jesus were located in the Temple to the east of the Holy Place (Cohen 1949:299). It was reckoned that while God was symbolically sitting in the Holy of Holies, he could watch the proceedings going on in the law courts. God supposedly faced east while sitting on his Temple throne. Thus God in a figurative way had a panoramic view of all the ritualistic and judicial duties of his people which were being conducted east of the Sanctuary. This allowed all ceremonies (both religious and secular) to be done “in the presence of God.” It is remarkable that many textbooks written by Christian theologians fail to mention the importance of this eastern area in this regard nor do they show the location of the altar “without the Sanctuary” (Ez 43:21) where the Red Heifer was sacrificed and where the Day of Atonement sin offerings were burnt.

This eastern location was also significant in judicial matters involving capital crimes. Moses demanded that the place of executions had to be “outside the camp” (Nm 15:35, 36). All ritual sacrifices were offered east of the Sanctuary and in full view of God who figuratively dwelt in the Holy of Holies, and the prime sin offerings were burnt “outside the camp” at the summit of Olivet. And in Jewish practice, heinous criminals were required to be their own “sin offerings” in paying for their sins (without having the benefit of an animal sacrifice as a substitute) (Cohen 1949:185, n. 1).

Since the major sin offerings were sacrificed near the summit of the Mount of Olives, this is why criminals were “sacrificed” as being their own sin offerings in the same vicinity. This is precisely the area where the later Jerusalem church believed Stephen was officially executed by the Sanhedrin (Wilkinson 1981:185, n. 1). This was known by the Jews as “the Place of Stoning” (Sanhedrin 6:1, 2, 3, 4). It was just “outside the camp” but in full view of the eastern entrances of the Temple. The Temple curtain in front of the Holy Place could easily be seen from this prospect and the New Testament shows that when the Temple curtain tore in two at the moment of Jesus’ death that the centurion and the others around the crucifixion site viewed that phenomenon taking place (see especially Lk 23:44–47and Mt 27:54). From outside the walls of Jerusalem the curtain could only be seen from an elevated site east of the Temple. The area of the “Holy Sepulchre” is disqualified because from there only the back parts of the Temple could be seen. Besides, Josephus shows that the site of the “Holy Sepulchre” was the spot of the Tomb of John Hyrcanus (a respected Jewish king of the Hasmonians) and such a shrine would never have been selected by the Jewish authorities as a place to execute criminals. But the summit of Olivet is different. Everything fits perfectly.

Golgotha—Mount of the Skull:

The Bordeaux Pilgrim in AD 333 said that at the southern summit of Olivet there was a small knoll or hillock (called in Latin a monticulus). In the time of David this region was known as the rosh (that is, “the head”) (2 Sm 15:30) and remarkably the Hebrew word “Golgotha” also means “head” or “skull.” Such a usage shows that “Golgotha” (or the rosh) was a well-known place at the summit of Olivet.

Golgotha was even reckoned among the Jews as being on a mountain. Professor James Tabor in his review of my research in Secrets of Golgotha (1991:213–215) gives new information to sustain my thesis for Olivet: An interesting support of Martin’s thesis, which he does not note, is that the Hebrew text of Matthew known as Even Bohan refers to the place of crucifixion as Mount (har) of the Skull (see G. Howard, The Gospel of Matthew according to a Primitive Hebrew Text [Macon, GA: Mercer University Press, 1988]).

For Golgotha to have been reckoned as a mountain (har) in the Jerusalem area gives the Mount of Olives considerable credentials as being the place of Jesus’ crucifixion. Dr. Tabor, of the University of North Carolina, concludes his favorable review of my research by stating: All in all Martin’s work is valuable, fascinating, and certainly pioneering. His hypothesis deserves attention from historians, New Testament scholars, and archaeologists.

There are numerous historical reasons for selecting Olivet as the place of Jesus’ crucifixion. In the recently translated Temple Scroll, Yadin pointed out that all people bearing religious defilements which prevented them from entering the holy city or the Temple were directed to stay east of the ideal Sanctuary region mentioned in the scroll (1985:177). Evil and defiled people (sinners) were kept east of Jerusalem in order to prevent any “winds of evil” from flowing over the holy city from the west. This is one of the reasons the sin offering of the Red Heifer and those of the Day of Atonement (which were to atone for sins) were burnt to ashes in this eastern area “outside the camp” (Lv 4:21; 16:27). Yadin suggested that a part of this eastern region which had been put aside for defiled persons was even referred to in the New Testament (e.g., Mk 14:3).

Since all sin offerings were sacrificed (or “executed”) east of the Holy Place of the Temple, and the most important ones were sacrificed further east at the Red Heifer altar on Olivet, this easterly region of the Temple became known as the place where God dealt with sin — where all the sins of the world will be judged. This is one reason why the Kidron Valley separating the Temple from the Mount of Olives became known as the Valley of Jehoshaphat (the valley where “God Judges”). Even to this day Jews, Muslims and Christians consider the summit and western slope of Olivet as the ordained place where God will judge all people in the world for their sins. Charles Warren in Hasting’s Dictionary of the Bible listed over 14 Christian authorities (from the Bordeaux Pilgrim onward) who attested to this belief (II.562). This is why it was important, from the Christian point of view, that Jesus died in this eastern region which was reckoned the judgment place for all mankind. For Jesus to be judged as dying for the sins of all mankind, Christians thought that He had to be judged in the place where all mankind were designed to be judged for their sins.

Muslim Beliefs:

Even Muslims (who inherited many traditional beliefs from the Jews and Christians) firmly believe that the summit and the western slope of the Mount of Olives is the judgment area for mankind. The Encyclopaedia Judaica has an interesting excerpt about this: All the dead will congregate on the Mount of Olives and the angel Gabriel will move paradise to the right of Allah’s throne and hell to its left. All mankind will cross a long bridge suspended from the Mount of Olives to the Temple Mount, which will be narrower than a hair, sharper than a sword, and darker than night. Along this bridge there will be seven arches and at each arch man will be asked to account for his actions (IX col. 1576).

This is the Muslim account. It is easy to see that this traditional Muslim belief is based on the geography of the Temple and the Red Heifer arched bridge over the Kidron Valley that existed in Jesus’ time. Indeed, the Hebrew word for the altar where the Red Heifer was burnt to ashes is miphkad (see Ez 43:21). This word means “muster” or the place where people “congregate” or “gather together.” And in traditional teaching, it was at or near this site on Olivet where all mankind would “congregate” to be judged. This teaching can be seen in the New Testament itself. When the Son of Man returns with all His angels, He shall sit on His glorious throne and He will then “gather together” before Him for judgment all the nations of the world. Those selected to be on His right hand will go into the Kingdom of God while those on His left will go into the fire of perdition (Mt 25:31–46). The geographical features of this teaching of Jesus (from the Jewish point of view in the first century) shows Jesus sitting on His glorious throne (which was in the Sanctuary of the Temple) and all the nations were then depicted as gathering together before Him at the summit and on the western slope of the Mount of Olives to face Him for judgment. This allowed them to be judged “in the presence of Jesus.” The Book of Revelation also spoke of the wicked being tormented in the presence of the holy angels and in the presence of the Lamb (Rv 14:10). To be judged “in the presence of God” while He sits on His throne locates these individuals at the summit or on the western slope of the Mount of Olives. Again, this is why, even to Christians, the region of the Kidron Valley became known as the Valley of Jehoshaphat — the place for God’s judgment.

Conversely, the present Church of the Holy Sepulchre as well as the Garden Tomb are located west and north of the Temple. These sites were in no way areas of judgment, as was Olivet and its western slopes. These sites are further disqualified, though they were outside the western and northern walls of Jerusalem, because they were still located within the 2000 cubit zone of the “camp of Israel” as measured from the Sanhedrin located in the Temple.

The Testimony of Eusebius:

In conclusion, Christians in Jerusalem as late as the early fourth century knew that Jesus was crucified and buried on the Mount of Olives. In fact, Eusebius (the first Christian historian) stated that the only area to which pre-Constantinian Christians paid any attention in the environs of Jerusalem was the Mount of Olives, and specifically to a cave near its summit (Proof of the Gospel, VI.18). The Acts of John also mentioned the importance of this cave 100 years before Eusebius (Charlesworth I.301). In another work (The Acts of Pilate), we find that it was described as both a cave and as a tomb in the same context (bk.XII,XIII). Even the tomb of Lazarus had been a cave before it was a tomb (Jn 11:38).

When one views the evidence carefully, it can be seen that pre-Constantinian

Christians reckoned this cave on Olivet to be the ruins of the tomb of Jesus. Prior to Constantine, there is no evidence (either orthodox or heretical) that the later site of the Church of the Holy Sepulchre in the western part of Jerusalem was in any way significant to Christians nor was the southwest hill important that came to be called “Sion” after the time of Constantine. Indeed, when Eusebius first heard in AD 326 that Constantine and his mother were selecting a Venus Shrine as the site of the crucifixion and resurrection of Jesus, he stated that such was “contrary to all expectation” (Life of Constantine III.28). At the dedication of the “Holy Sepulchre” in AD 335, Eusebius requested Constantine to inform the assembled bishops his reasons for building that church. The reasons were “SECRET to us [Eusebius and the bishops], but known TO YOU ALONE…which caused YOU to RAISE UP this sacred edifice (Oration of Eusebius, XVIII, emphasis mine). There were no historical documents or traditions which were retained by Christians at Jerusalem to support its legitimacy. It was selected because of the dreams, visions and supposed miraculous signs associated with Constantine and his advisors. The early church historian Sozomen felt that historical records were not necessary when visions and dreams presented the “real facts” to the Christian world (History II.1).

Eusebius showed in his works written before AD 326 that Jesus was actually crucified on what he called the symbolic “Mount Sion” for Christians. Three times in his Proof of the Gospel (I.4; VI.13; IX.14) he identified the Christian “Mount Sion” as being where Jesus spent most of His time when He was in the area of Jerusalem and that spot was on the Mount of Olives (Mk 11:1; Lk 21:37; 22:39; Jn 18:2). Eusebius also said the shekinah left Mount Moriah and went eastward to abide on this Christian “Mount Sion” that was located “adjacent to” or “opposite” Jerusalem and the Temple Mount — an apt geographical description of the Mount of Olives (Proof of the Gospel, I.4; VI.18). To Eusebius, Olivet was where the New Covenant began when the Temple veil tore in two (VIII.2). Eusebius even stated that the Christian church was founded on Olivet (VI.18) and Jerome reiterated the same belief (Letter CVIII.12). And in his commentary on Isaiah (written before AD 326), Eusebius made the plain statement that this new “Mount Sion” (Olivet) was actually the site of the crucifixion and resurrection of Jesus (Is 2:1–4; see Walker, Holy City, Holy Places?, pp.302,305). This makes the top of Olivet to be Calvary.

The Altar & The Wheels

The past few days, I have been here in Israel thinking. September 22, has come and gone. Today is Shabbat. Will the abomination be set up today the 23, or Sunday the 24th or Monday, the Day of Atonement according to the Hillel calendar, September 25, 2023?

All I can do is wait and watch.

As I sit here at the crucifixion site, a thought occurred to me. We have written to you about the Shekinah moving from the Temple to the Mount across from Jerusalem. And we have identified that Mountain as Golgotha and how it was the Altar. We explain this in our book The Abomination That Makes Desolate.

Here is the verse that came to mind.

Lev 6:8  And Jehovah spoke to Moses, saying,

Lev 6:9  Command Aaron and his sons, saying, This is the law of the burnt offering. It is the burnt offering for burning on the altar all night to the morning, and the fire of the altar shall be burning in it.

Lev 6:10  And the priest shall put on his linen garment. And he shall put his linen breeches on his flesh and take up the ashes which the fire has consumed with the burnt offering on the altar. And he shall put them beside the altar.

Lev 6:11  And he shall strip off his garments and put on other garments, and carry forth the ashes outside the camp to a clean place.

Lev 6:12  And the fire on the altar shall be kept burning on it. It shall not be put out. And the priest shall burn wood on it every morning, and lay the burnt offering in order on it. And he shall burn on it the fat of the peace offerings.

Lev 6:13  The fire shall always be burning on the altar. It shall never go out.

We read in Lev 9 how Yehovah consumed everything on the Altar.

Lev 9:22  And Aaron lifted up his hands toward the people, and blessed them, and came down from offering the sin offering and the burnt offering and peace offerings.

Lev 9:23  And Moses and Aaron went into the tabernacle of the congregation, and came out and blessed the people. And the glory of Jehovah appeared to all the people.

Lev 9:24  And there came a fire out from before Jehovah, and burned up the burnt offering and the fat on the altar. And all the people saw and shouted and fell on their faces.

The fire is never to go out on the Altar. Why?

We are told that Yehovah is a consuming fire as well as a Jealous God.

Exo 24:17  And the sight of the glory of Jehovah was like devouring fire on the top of the mountain in the eyes of the sons of Israel.

Deu 4:23  Take heed to yourselves, lest you forget the covenant of Jehovah your God, which He made with you, and make you a graven image, a likeness of anything which Jehovah your God has forbidden you.

Deu 4:24  For Jehovah your God is a consuming fire, a jealous God.

Now, read and understand what Isaiah is telling us when He encountered Yehovah.

Isa 6:1  In the year that King Uzziah died I then saw the Lord sitting on a throne, high and lifted up, and His train filled the temple.

Isa 6:2  Above it stood the seraphs; each one had six wings; with two he covered his face, and with two he covered his feet, and with two he flew.

Isa 6:3  And one cried to another, and said, Holy, holy, holy, is Jehovah of Hosts; the whole earth full of His glory.

Isa 6:4  And the doorposts moved at the voice of the one who cried, and the house was filled with smoke.

Isa 6:5  Then I said, Woe is me! For I am undone; for I am a man of unclean lips, and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips; for my eyes have seen the King, Jehovah of Hosts.

Isa 6:6  Then one of the seraphs flew to me, having a live coal in his hand, snatched with tongs from the altar.

Isa 6:7  And he laid it on my mouth and said, Lo, this has touched your lips; and your iniquity is taken away, and your sin purged.

He was cleansed with a burning coal from the Altar.

You have already read about Ezekiel and the Shekinah in the article before this one, now let’s read some more for a better understanding.

Eze 1:4  And I looked, and behold, a windstorm came out of the north, a great cloud, and a fire flashing itself, and a brightness to it all around, and out of its midst, like the color of polished bronze out of the middle of the fire.

Eze 1:5  Also out of its midst came the likeness of four living creatures. And this was how they looked; they had the likeness of a man.

Eze 1:6  And four faces were to each, and four wings to each.

Eze 1:7  And their feet were straight feet; and the sole of their feet was like the sole of a calf’s foot. And they sparkled like the color of burnished copper.

Eze 1:8  And the hands of a man extended from under their wings on their four sides; and the four of them had their faces and their wings,

Eze 1:9  joining each one to the other by their wings. They did not turn in their going; each one went toward the front of their face.

Eze 1:10  And the likeness of their faces: the face of a man, and the face of a lion, on the right side to the four of them; and the face of an ox on the left side to the four of them; and the face of an eagle to the four of them.

Eze 1:11  So their faces were. And their wings werestretched upward; to each, the two wings of each one were joined; and two wings covered their bodies.

Eze 1:12  And each went toward the front of their faces. To where the spirit was to go, there they went; they did not turn in their going.

Eze 1:13  And the likeness of the living creatures: they looked like burning coals of fire; like the appearance of torches. It was continually circling among the living creatures. And the fire was bright, and out of the fire went forth lightning.

Eze 1:14  And the living creatures kept running and returning, like the appearance of a flash of lightning.

Eze 1:15  And as I looked at the living creatures, behold, one wheel was on the earth by the living creatures, with its four faces.

Eze 1:16  The appearance of the wheels and their workmanship was the color of beryl, and the four of them had one likeness. And their appearance and their workmanship was like a wheel in the middle of a wheel.

Eze 1:17  When they went, they went on their four sides; and they did not turn when they went.

Eze 1:18  And their rims: they were even high; they were even awesome. And their rims were full of eyes all around the four of them.

Eze 1:19  And in the going of the living creatures, the wheels went beside them; and in the lifting up of the living creatures from the earth, the wheels were lifted up.

Eze 1:20  Wherever the spirit was to go, there they went; there the spirit was to go, and the wheels were lifted up along with them. For the spirit of the living creature was in the wheels.

Eze 1:21  In their going, these went; and in their standing still, these stood still. And in their lifting up from the earth, the wheels were lifted up along with them. For the spirit of the living creature was in the wheels.

Eze 1:22  And there was a likeness over the heads of the living creature; an expanse, like the color of awesome crystal stretched out over their heads from above.

Eze 1:23  And under the expanse their wings were straight, the one toward the other. Each one had two wings covering on this side, and to each two covering on that side of their bodies.

Eze 1:24  And I heard the sound of their wings, like the sound of great waters, like the voice of the Almighty, in their going was the sound of tumult, like the sound of an army. In their standing still, they let down their wings.

Eze 1:25  And there was a voice from the expanse which was over their heads, in their standing still, and they let down their wings.

Eze 1:26  And from above the expanse that was over their heads was a likeness like a sapphire stone, the likeness of a throne. And on the likeness of the throne was a likeness looking like a man on it from above.

Eze 1:27  And I saw Him looking like the color of polished bronze, looking like fire all around within it. From the likeness of His loins even upward, and from the likeness of His loins even downward, I saw Him, looking like fire, and it had brightness all around.

Eze 1:28  As the bow that is in the cloud in the day of rain looks, so the brightness all around looked. This was how the likeness of the glory of Jehovah looked. And I saw. And I fell on my face, and I heard a voice of One speaking.

Eze 10:1  And I looked, and behold! In the expanse over the head of the cherubs was seen the appearance of the form of a throne, like a sapphire stone, above them.

Eze 10:2  And He spoke to the man clothed with linen, and said, Go in among the wheels, under the cherub, and fill your hands with coals of fire from between the cherubs, and scatter them on the city. And he went in before me.

Eze 10:3  And the cherubs were standing on the right side of the house when the man went in; and the cloud filled the inner court.

Eze 10:4  And the glory of Jehovah rose from the cherub, over the threshold of the house. And the house was filled with the cloud, and the court was full of the brightness of Jehovah’s glory.

Eze 10:5  And the sound of the cherubs’ wings was heard over the outer court, as the voice of the Almighty God when He speaks.

Eze 10:6  And it happened when He had commanded the man clothed with linen, saying, Take fire from between the wheels, from between the cherubs; he went in then and stood beside the wheels.

Eze 10:7  And a cherub stretched out his hand from between the cherubs to the fire between the cherubs, and he lifted it and put it into the hands of the one clothed with linen. And he took it and went out.

The Fire beneath the Shekinah are the coals from the Altar. The Altar was never to go out as it represented the burning fire of jealousy and Yehovah. When those coals are mixed with the incense, they are like our prayers rising before Yehovah.

Lev 16:12  And he shall take a censer full of coals of fire from off the altar before Jehovah, and his hands full of fragrant perfumes beaten small, and bring it within the veil.

Lev 16:13  And he shall put the incense on the fire before Jehovah. And the cloud of the incense shall cover the mercy-seat that is on the Testimony. And he shall not die.

Psa 141:1  A Psalm of David. O Jehovah, I cry to You; make haste to me, give ear to my voice when I cry to You.

Psa 141:2  Let my prayer be set forth before You as incense, and the lifting up of my hands as the evening sacrifice.

Psa 141:3  Set a watch, O Jehovah, before my mouth; keep the door of my lips.

Golgotha is the Altar. Yehshua represented the Sin-offering described in Lev 16. The goat that was to be slain as a sin offering represented Yehovah. It was to burned on the Altar outside the camp. That, again is Golgotha. Yehshua was killed on the tree on Golgotha as our sin offering. The fire on that Altar was not to go out and it represented Yehovah as the Shekinah. Around the Altar are those four wheels carrying the throne of Yehovah whichever way He goes as Ezekiel described.

Understanding these symbols and how Yehovah uses them to teach us, shows you how Holy this Mountain of Golgotha is. And now they are setting up an abomination on it.

I know many of you are not seeing it or disagree. So let us look up the meaning of the word wheel from Ezekiel. I will let you read what it says. Remember that Golgotha means place of the skull or mound. No interpretation needed.

H1534   (Ancient Hebrew)

H1534 = AHLB# 1058-A (l)

1058) Lc% (Lc% GL) ac: Roll co: Round ab: ?: Something that is round or a second time around of a time or event. A dancing in a circle. (eng: skull – an added s and an exchange of the k and g, Greek golgotha)

A) Lc% (Lc% GL) ac: ? co: Round ab: ?

N^m) Lc% (Lc% GL) – Mound: A mound or pile of something such as rocks or a spring out of the ground. [freq. 36] |kjv: heap, wave, spring, billow, bowl| {H1530, H1531}

N^f1) Elc% (Elc% G-LH) – Mound: A mound or pile of something such as a spring out of the ground or other rounded object. [freq. 14] |kjv: spring, bowl, pommel| {H1543}

l^m) Lclc% (Lclc% GL-GL) – Wheel: The wheel of a cart or a whirlwind. [Hebrew and Aramaic] [freq. 13] |kjv: wheel, heaven, rolling thing, whirlwind| {H1534, H1535, H1536}

l^f2) Tlclc% (Tlclc% GL-G-LT) – Skull: The roundness of the head or skull. Also a census by the counting of heads. [freq. 12] |kjv: poll, skull, every, head| {H1538}

B) Llc% (Llc% GLL) ac: Roll co: Round ab: ?

V) Llc% (Llc% G-LL) – Roll: [freq. 18] (vf: Paal, Niphal, Hiphil, Pilpel) |kjv: roll, seek occasion, wallow, trust, commit, remove, run down| {H1556}

N^m) Llc% (Llc% G-LL) – I. Round thing: Something round such as stones or dung. [Hebrew and Aramaic] II.For the Sake of: As a rolling back around. [freq. 17] |kjv: dung, because, sake, because of thee, for, great| {H1557, H1558, H1560, H1561, H5953}

b^m) Lilc% (Lilc% G-LYL) – I. Ring: II. Border: As going around something. [freq. 4] |kjv: folding, ring| {H1550}

b^f1) Elilc% (Elilc% G-LY-LH) – Border: As going around something. The border of a country is also representative of the country itself. [freq. 5] |kjv: border, coast, country| {H1552}

d^m) Lflc% (Lflc% G-LWL) – Idol: As made from a round log or stone. [freq. 48] |kjv: idol, image| {H1544}

g^f1) Ellfc% (Ellfc% GW-L-LH) – Grape: The harvested round grapes. [df: hllwe] [freq. 6] |kjv: gleaning grapes, grapegleanings, grapes| {H5955}

C) Lca% (Lca% AGL) ac: ? co: Drop ab: ?: A drop of dew as round.

N^m) Lca% (Lca% A-GL) – Drop: [freq. 1] |kjv: drop| {H96}

D) Lac% (Lac% GAL) ac: ? co: ? ab: Redeem: The buying back, a bringing back around, of someone or something.

V) Lac% (Lac% G-AL) – Redeem: To restore one to his original position or avenge his death. In the participle form this verb means avenger as it is the role of the nearest relative to redeem one in slavery or avenge his murder. [freq. 104] (vf: Paal, Niphal) |kjv: redeem, redeemer, kinsman, revenger, avenger, ransom, deliver, kinsfolks, kinsmans, part, purchase, stain, wise| {H1350}

d^f1) Elfac% (Elfac% G-AW-LH) – Redemption: [freq. 14] |kjv: redeem, redemption, again, kindred| {H1353}

J) Lfc% (Lfc% GWL) ac: ? co: Infant ab: ?: A rejoicing at the birth of a child.

V) Lfc% (Lfc% GWL) – Milk: To get milk. [df: lwe] [freq. 5] (vf: Paal, Participle) |kjv: milch, young| {H5763}

N^m) Lfc% (Lfc% GWL) – Infant: One who takes milk. [df: lwe] [freq. 2] |kjv: infant, child, babe, little one| {H5764}

b^m) Lifc% (Lifc% G-WYL) – Young: [df: lywe] [freq. 2] |kjv: young, little one| {H5759}

l^m) Llfc% (Llfc% GW-LL) – Infant: One who takes milk. [df: llwe] [freq. 20] |kjv: suckling, infant| {H5768}

M) Lic% (Lic% GYL) ac: ? co: Circle ab: ?: A continual rolling or circling.

V) Lic% (Lic% GYL) – Rejoice: A rejoicing by dancing around in a circle. [df: lwg] [freq. 44] (vf: Paal) |kjv: rejoice, glad, joyful, joy, delight| {H1523}

N^m) Lic% (Lic% GYL) – Circle: A circle of rejoicing. [freq. 10] |kjv: rejoice, joy, gladness| {H1524}

N^f1) Elic% (Elic% GY-LH) – Circle: A circle of rejoicing. [df: tlyg] [freq. 2] |kjv: rejoicing, joy| {H1525}

k^f1) Elicm% (Elicm% M-GY-LH) – Scroll: The leather or papyrus sheets of written text that are rolled up. [Hebrew and Aramaic] [freq. 22] |kjv: roll, volume| {H4039, H4040}

fj^m) Nfilic% (Nfilic% GY-L-YWN) – Scroll: The leather or papyrus sheets of written text that are rolled up. [freq. 2] |kjv: glasses, roll| {H1549}

The four wheels described by Ezekiel when he was looking at the shekinah, are the four sides of the Altar, the four views of the Mount of Golgotha. They are describing Golgotha as being round, and in the midst of it is the ever-burning fire of Yehovah, the Shekinah which Ezekiel saw move from the Temple to the Mountain across from Jerusalem, making it the most Holy Place on Earth. The very same place they are about to set up a statue to Mary the Queen of Heaven.

The Merkava

By Rabbi Dr. Hillel ben David (Greg Killian)

https://www.betemunah.org/merkava.html#_ftnref15

Introduction

The merkava, chariot, that we read about in Yechezchel (Ezekiel) chapter 1 tells us that in the center, around the throne, were four living creatures, and they were covered with eyes, in front and in back. (These are the 4 cardinal signs of the Mazzaroth/Zodiac as you can see surrounding the throne in the image. Note that Scorpio (Akrab – עַקרָב) can be symbolized as an eagle) The first living creature was like a lion, (Leo) the second was like an ox, (Taurus) the third had a face like a man, (Aquarius) the fourth was like a flying eagle.

The Ramban, in his introduction to the book of Shemot, explains that the Avot, the Patriarchs and the Matriarchs, were the Merkava, the mystical “chariot” through which HaShem’s presence rests in this world. With the Egyptian exile, the Jewish People lost this spiritual elevation.

These four forms are graven on the divine chariot, thus: on the right side, the face of a man; on the left, that of an eagle; on the front, of a lion; and behind, of an ox. These forms are likewise graven on the four quarters of the world.

While we are forbidden from making a picture of the images in Ezekiel’s vision, we have some earthly images that we are premitted to draw. These earthly examples are the subjct of this paper. A couple of examples are superimposed in the following illustration:

In the above example, we have pictured the mazzalot, the constellations, on the ecliptic (aka zodiac). The mazzalot are surrounding the Mishkan, the Tabernacle in the wilderness. We will see an actual depiction of the camping order a bit later.

Rambam teaches us how our holy Sages taught the Maaseh Merkava, the chariot:

Yesodei haTorah – 2:12 The Sages of the early generations commanded that these matters should not be explained except to a single individual [at a time]. He should be a wise man, who can reach understanding with his [powers of] knowledge. In such an instance, he is given fundamental points, and an outline of the concepts is made known to him. He [is expected to continue to contemplate] until he reaches understanding with his powers of knowledge and knows the ultimate meaning and depth of the concept.

These concepts are extremely deep, and not every [person has] the knowledge necessary to appreciate them. In his wisdom, Solomon described them with the metaphor [Proverbs 27:26]: “Lambs for your clothing.” [The root kevas – “lamb” – also has the meaning “hide.”] Thus, our Sages interpreted this metaphor [to mean]: Matters which are the secrets of the world will be your clothing – i.e., they will be for you alone, and you should not discuss them in public.

Concerning them, [Proverbs 5:17] teaches: “They shall be for you and not for others with you.” [Similarly, the Song of Songs 4:11] states: “Honey and milk will be under your tongue.” The Sages of the early generations interpreted this [as a metaphor]: Subjects that are like honey and milk should be [kept] under your tongue.

* * *

Chagigah 11b MISHNAH THE [SUBJECT OF] FORBIDDEN RELATIONS MAY NOT BE EXPOUNDED IN THE PRESENCE OF THREE,[1] NOR THE WORK OF CREATION[2] IN THE PRESENCE OF TWO, NOR [THE WORK OF] THE CHARIOT7 IN THE PRESENCE OF ONE, UNLESS HE IS A SAGE AND UNDERSTANDS OF HIS OWN KNOWLEDGE. WHOSOEVER SPECULATES UPON FOUR THINGS, A PITY8 FOR HIM! HE IS AS THOUGH HE HAD NOT COME INTO THE WORLD, [TO WIT], WHAT IS ABOVE,9 WHAT IS BENEATH,10 WHAT BEFORE, WHAT AFTER.11 AND WHOSOEVER TAKES NO THOUGHT FOR THE HONOUR OF HIS MAKER,12 IT WERE A MERCY13 IF HE HAD NOT COME INTO THE WORLD.

GEMARA. You say at first: NOR [THE WORK OF] THE CHARIOT IN THE PRESENCE OF ONE;[3] and then you say: UNLESS HE IS A SAGE AND UNDERSTANDS OF HIS OWN KNOWLEDGE! — This is the meaning: the forbidden relations may not be expounded to three,[4] nor the work of creation to two, nor [the work of] the chariot to one, unless he is a Sage and understands of his own knowledge.[5]

Scorpion vs. Eagle

Scorpio is one of the water signs. Scorpio is associated with three different animals: the scorpion, the snake, and the eagle.

Many have said that Dan’s banner contained the image of a snake according to Yaakov’s blessing. But Rabbi Abraham ibn Ezra commented: “There were signs on each of the [four primary] standards. Thus the ancient sages said that on Reuben’s standard, there was a figure of a man decorated with mandrakes, and on Judah’s standard, there was the form of a lion, to which Jacob had compared him, and on Ephraim’s standard was the figure of an ox, based upon [the expression that Moses used in speaking of that tribe], “the firstborn of his ox,” and on Dan’s standard was the figure of an eagle. Thus [the four signs on the four main standards] were similar to the four figures that the prophet Ezekiel saw [in the Divine Charriot].” It was understood that each tribe had its own banner in addition to the four main banners. The eagle was on the main banner, and the snake was on Dan’s banner. [Adapted from Rabbi Dr. Charles Chavel’s annotated translation of Rabbi Moshe ben Nachman’s (Ramban) commentary on the Torah (Numbers 2:2).

Sir William Drummond asserted that in the zodiac which the patriarch Abraham knew, it was an Eagle.

Unger’s Bible Dictionary: ‘Dan’s position in the journey was on the north of the Tabernacle, with Asher and Naphtali. The standard of the tribe was white and red, and the crest upon it, an eagle, the great foe to serpents, which had been chosen by the leader instead of a serpent, because Jacob had compared Dan to a serpent. Ahiezer substituted the eagle, the destroyer of serpents, as he shrank from carrying an adder upon his flag.’

Yaaqob’s blessing to Dan, in Bereshit 49:17, symbolizes him by a type of snake called shefifon, which had wings in order to fly swiftly; Abarbanel explains that this is an eagle.

Rabbi Joel C Dobin, in his book, Kabblistic Astrology, teaches that in ancient times, Scorpios were depicted as being either eagles or serpents.

Rabbi Dobin was likely in part referring to the well-known vision of 6th century BC Old Testament prophet Ezekiel – the “wheel within the wheel”:

Yechezkel (Ezekiel) 1:4-10, 15-21 As I looked, a stormy wind came out of the north: a great cloud with brightness around it and fire flashing forth continually, and in the middle of the fire, something like gleaming amber. In the middle of it was something like four living creatures. This was their appearance: they were of human form. Each had four faces, and each of them had four wings… As for the appearance of their faces: the four had the face of a human being, the face of a lion on the right side, the face of an ox on the left side, and the face of an eagle…

As I looked at the living creatures, I saw a wheel on the earth beside the living creatures, one for each of the four of them. As for the appearance of the wheels and their construction: their appearance was like the gleaming of beryl; and the four had the same form, their construction being something like a wheel within a wheel. When they moved, they moved in any of the four directions without veering as they moved.

Their rims were tall and awesome, for the rims of all four were full of eyes all around. When the living creatures moved, the wheels moved beside them; and when the living creatures rose from the earth, the wheels rose. Wherever the spirit would go, they went, and the wheels rose along with them; for the spirit of the living creatures was in the wheels. When they moved, the others moved; when they stopped, the others stopped; and when they rose from the earth, the wheels rose along with them; for the spirit of the living creatures was in the wheels.

Jewish rabbinical scholars have historically tended to interpret Ezekiel’s wheels in a grand cosmological sense, with certain rabbinical traditions teaching that Ezekiel was referring to the wheel of the Zodiac.

The four astrological elements of the Zodiac form a cross represented by the four creatures: Lion (Leo – fire), Eagle (Scorpio – water), Man (Aquarius – air), and Ox (Taurus – earth).

Torah Connections[6]

When Yechezkel describes the movement of the creatures he emphasizes that as they rest, so they move: they have no need to turn in the direction in which the Merkava is headed: “And they went, each one straight ahead; to wherever their spirit was headed – there they would go; they did not turn as they went”.[7] [8] The same interesting detail appears in connection with the Israelite camp and journeying: “As they camped, so did they journey: each person at his place, by their banners.”[9]

However, the Tannaim and Rishonim are divided in their interpretation of the above verse.[10] The question is how this verse, according to which it appears that the order of the journey was the same order in which they encamped (“like an ark” – square formation), relates to the description of the journey in 10:11-28, where the text seems to describe a special order for journeying that is different from the order of encampment (“like a beam” – a long line). Either way, though, the formulation of the verse in chapter 2 (“as they camped, so did they journey”) closely resembles the description of the creatures and the wheels of the Divine Chariot in Yechezkel’s vision.

Finally, it should be noted that just as the camp of Israel was – as mentioned above – a military camp, so Yechezkel describes the bearers of the Merkava and the sound that they make: “And I heard the sound of their wings… like the sound of a [military] camp”.[11]

On the basis of this connection, I believe, we can begin to understand the profound significance of the camp of Israel. The tribes of Israel accompany the Divine Presence on its journey as a chariot for the Shekhina. So long as the Shekhina is on high, it is the holy creatures and wheels that accompany the Shekhina on its journeys, and they comprise its Chariot. But when HaShem chooses to make His Shekhina rest in the world, new escorts – an alternative Merkava – are required. HaShem’s seat is the keruvim and the Mishkan that Israel builds by HaShem’s command, and His escort is the nation of Israel, encamped “around the Mishkan,” each person with his clan and by his banner.

The Patriarchs

Midrash Rabbah – Genesis XLVII:6 The Patriarchs are [God’s] Heavenly Chariot. Thus it is written, AND GOD WENT UP FROM UPON ABRAHAM; again, And God went up from upon him;[12] further, And, behold, the Lord stood upon him.[13] [14]

Bereshit (Genesis) 35:13 And God rose up over him.

Iggerot HaRambam, Iggeret Teiman 12

So did Abraham of blessed memory, who was designated the Pillar of the World, discover the First Cause of the entire universe, and demonstrated the central importance of the principle of the Unity of God for all mankind. He, Isaac and Jacob, all three of them, carry the throne of glory in their hearts, to make use of a rabbinical metaphor “The patriarchs are the chariots,” (Genesis Rabbah 82:7), which in turn was suggested by the verse, “And God rose up over him.” (Genesis 35:13).

The meaning is that they have attained a true conception of the Deity. Now the three patriarchs lived during the earthly trigon.This matter will become clear if the following facts are borne in mind. There is first, the smaller conjunction, that is, the meeting of Saturn with Jupiter, which occurs once in approximately twenty solar years. These conjunctions continue to take place twelve times within the same trigon, covering a period of two hundred and forty years. Then conjunctions take place in the second trigon, which occur every two hundred and forty solar years. The shift to the next trigon is known as the medium conjunction. According to this calculation an interval of nine hundred and sixty years will elapse between the first and second meeting of two planets in the same point of the Zodiac.13 This is termed the great conjunction, and occurs once in nine hundred and sixty years. This is the time that must elapse between the first and second meeting of Saturn and Jupiter in the same degree of Aries. If you will calculate back, you will understand my statement above that Abraham, Isaac and Jacob as well as David lived during the earthly trigon. My purpose in going into details was to dispel any suspicion of yours that the trigon exercises any influence upon human affairs. Furthermore you write that some people have calculated the forthcoming conjunction and have determined that all the seven planets will meet in one of the constellations of the Zodiac. This forecast is untrue, for no meeting of the seven planets will occur in the next conjunction, nor in the following ones. For such an event will not happen even in ten thousand years, as is well known to those who are familiar with the astronomical law of equation.

Yaaqob’s Bier

The Midrashim preserve some of the additional instructions Jacob gave his sons as his death approached:

“When you carry me up, do so reverently and respectfully; no one who is uncircumcised may touch my bier so as not to drive away the Divine Presence. Also, let no one of my descendants who married a Canaanite woman touch my bier. Let Judah, Issachar, and Zebulun be its bearers on the east; Reuben, Simeon, and Gad on the south; Ephraim, Manasseh, and Benjamin on the west; and Dan, Asher, and Naftali on the north. In a similar order, will your tribes be grouped sometime in the future under four standards in the desert with the Divine Presence in the center.”

Jacob insisted that Joseph not carry his bier since he was a monarch; also that it would be improper for Levi — whose descendants were destined to carry the Holy Ark — to carry Jacob’s remains.[15] [16]

Midrash Rabbah – Numbers II:8  When the Holy One, blessed be He, told Moses, ‘Organise them [Israel] under standards in accordance with their desire,’ Moses began to feel distressed. He thought, ‘Now strife will arise among the tribes; for if I bid the tribe of Judah camp on the east side of the Tabernacle and he says, “I will accept only the south,” and the same applies to Reuben and the same to Ephraim and to each of the other tribes, what am I to do?’ The Holy One, blessed be He, therefore said to him, ‘Moses, why should that trouble you? They have no need of you. They know their places full well themselves. They are in possession of a testament left them by Jacob their father, which tells them how to camp under their standards. I am not going to make any changes. They already have a traditional order from Jacob their father: in the same way that they disposed themselves round his bier, when they carried him, so shall they dispose themselves round the Tabernacle.’ For R. Hama, son of R. Hanina, said: When our father Jacob was about to depart from the world he summoned his sons–as it is written, And Jacob called unto his sons[17]–and he blessed them and commanded them concerning the ways of God, and they acknowledged the Divine sovereignty. Having concluded his address, he said to them, ‘When you carry me to my last resting-place you must escort me with proper reverence and respect. No other man shall touch my bier; neither an Egyptian nor any of your children, because you have taken wives from the daughters of Canaan’[18] For this reason Scripture says,  And his sons did unto him according as he commanded them;[19] his ‘sons’ but not his ‘grandsons’. And his sons carried him.[20] How did he command them to do it? He said to them: ‘My children, when my bier is being carried, Judah, Issachar, and Zebulun shall be on the east side; Reuben, Simeon, and Gad shall be on the south side; Ephraim, Manasseh, and Benjamin shall be on the west side; Dan, Asher, and Naphtali shall be on the north side; Joseph shall not carry at all, for he is a king and must be shown due honour; neither shall Levi carry because he will carry the ark, and he that is to carry the ark of Him who is the life of all worlds must not carry the coffin of the dead.[21] If you will comply with these orders and carry my bier as I have commanded you, God will in the future cause you to camp beneath standards.’ When he died, they bore him as he had commanded them, as it is said, ‘And his sons did unto him according as he commanded them.’ Thus we can explain the verse [quoted above], ’I will fetch my knowledge from afar, and will ascribe righteousness to my Maker’; for it was from Jacob that they had obtained the knowledge how they were to camp under their standards. ’And will ascribe righteousness to my Maker,’ that is, to the Holy One, blessed be He, Who acted beneficently with Israel, and Who, in order to give them good reward[22] for having fulfilled the command of their father, bade them camp under standards only in the manner in which their father had commanded them. Therein He acted with righteousness toward them, since He made no alteration, so as not to cause strife among them. This is the reason why it is said, ACCORDING TO THEIR FATHER’S HOUSE; in the same manner as they had disposed themselves around the bier of their father, so shall they camp. This explains the text, ACCORDING TO THEIR FATHER’S HOUSE SHALL THE CHILDREN OF ISRAEL CAMP.

Midrash Rabbah – Genesis XCVII AND WHEN JACOB MADE AN END OF CHARGING HIS SONS.[23] What did he charge them? That three should carry his bier on the east side, three on the west, three on the north, and three on the south. Let none of your grandsons[24] born from Canaanitish women carry my bier,[25] he bade them. His sons accepted their father’s charge, and his blessing was with perfect love, as it says, Every one according to his blessing he blessed them.[26]

Midrash Rabbah – Genesis C:2  JACOB MADE AN END OF CHARGING HIS SONS; And his sons did unto him according as he commanded them.[27] The first was an exhortation against idolatry, as in the verse, Because he willingly walked after zaw- idolatry[28];[29] the second against blasphemy, as you read, And he that blasphemeth the name of the Lord, he shall surely be put to death[30].[31] The third was in connection with the carrying of his bier: ‘See to it,’ he bade them, ‘that no uncircumcised person carries my bier, so that the Shechinah may not depart from me. Perform your offices for me in this order: Do three of you carry me on the north [of my bier], three on the south, three on the east, and three on the west. Even as ye will do for me, so will ye be formed into standards in the wilderness with the Shechinah in the middle.’[32]

The Mishkan in the Wilderness

The camping order for the Bne Israel in the wilderness, mirrored the merkava, the chariot of Yechezkel’s vision. The four faces of the merkava were represented by the pictures on the standards, the banners, of the four main tribes. The four faces were:

“The likeness of their faces was like the face of a man (= flag of Reuven) with a face of a lion on the right side of all four (= flag of Yehuda) and the face of an ox on the left side of the four (= flag of Efraim) and all four also had the face of an eagle (= flag of Dan).”[33] [34]

As we can see in the Torah, these faces matched the pictures on the standards of the four main tribes:

Bamidbar (Numbers) 2:2 ‘The children of Israel shall pitch by their fathers’ houses; every man with his own standard, according to the ensigns; a good way off shall they pitch round about the tent of meeting. 3 Now those that pitch on the east side toward the sunrising shall be they of the standard (דֶּגֶל) of the camp of Judah, according to their hosts… 5 and those that pitch next unto him shall be the tribe of Issachar; … 7 and the tribe of Zebulun; … 9 all that were numbered of the camp of Judah being a hundred thousand and fourscore thousand and six thousand and four hundred, according to their hosts; they shall set forth first. … 10 On the south side shall be the standard (דֶּגֶל) of the camp of Reuben according to their hosts; … 12 and those that pitch next unto him shall be the tribe of Simeon; … 14 and the tribe of Gad; … 16 all that were numbered of the camp of Reuben being a hundred thousand and fifty and one thousand and four hundred and fifty, according to their hosts; and they shall set forth second. … 18 On the west side shall be the standard (דֶּגֶל) of the camp of Ephraim according to their hosts; … 20 and next unto him shall be the tribe of Manasseh; … 22 and the tribe of Benjamin; … 25 On the north side shall be the standard (דֶּגֶל) of the camp of Dan according to their hosts; … 27 and those that pitch next unto him shall be the tribe of Asher; … 29 and the tribe of Naphtali;

Ibn Ezra, discussing the special signs drawn on the flags of the tribes, teaches:

“Our early sages taught that the banner of Reuven featured the figure of a man, symbolizing the deeper meaning of the ‘dudaim;’ the flag of Yehuda had the picture of a lion, for that was the image that Yaakov used to describe him; the flag of Efraim showed an ox, since he was the ‘eldest of an ox;’ and the flag of Dan was decorated with the picture of an eagle.[35] THUS THEY APPEARED LIKE THE KERUVIM SEEN BY THE PROPHET YECHEZKEL.”

The tribes of Israel accompany the Divine Presence on its journey as a chariot for the Shekhina. So long as the Shekhina is on high, it is the holy creatures and wheels that accompany the Shekhina on its journeys, and they comprise its Chariot. But when HaShem chooses to make His Shekhina rest in the world, new escorts – an alternative Merkava – are required. HaShem’s seat is the keruvim and the Mishkan that Israel builds by HaShem’s command, and His escort is the nation of Israel, encamped “around the Mishkan,” each person with his clan and by his banner.

The following illustration shows how Rabbi Aryeh Kaplan pictured them in his book, The Living Torah:

At Sinai

Ezekiel’s Merkava

Yechezkel (Ezekiel) 1:5-10 This was their appearance: they were human figures, but each one had four faces, and each one had four wings…. Their faces and their wings were alike on the four of them…. As for the likeness of their faces: each one had a human face [in the front]; each of the four had a lion’s face to the right; each of the four had an ox’s face to the left; and each of the four had an eagle’s face [in the back].

Midrash Rabbah – Exodus XXIII:13 R. Abin said: Four kinds of exalted beings have been created in the world. The most exalted of all living creatures is man; of birds, the eagle; of cattle, the ox; and of wild beasts, the lion. All of these received royalty and had greatness bestowed upon them, and they are set under the chariot of God, as it says, As for the likeness of their faces, they had the face of a man; and they four had the face of a lion… and… also the face of an eagle (Ezek. I, 10).

Midrash Rabbah – The Song of Songs III:23 R. Berekiah and R. Bun in the name of R. Abbahu said: There are four lordly creatures. The lord among the birds is the eagle; the lord among cattle is the ox; the lord among beasts is the lion; and the lord over all of them is man. The Holy One, blessed be He, took them and engraved them the Throne of Glory …

On the 5th of Tammuz of the year 3332 from creation (429 BCE), Ezekiel, among the only prophets to prophesy outside of the Holy Land, beheld a vision of the Divine “Chariot” representing the spiritual infrastructure of creation.

The “Holy Creatures” here are the four celestial beings that bear the Divine Chariot.

Merkava in Revelation

While the text of Revelation 21:12-13 does not tell us the names of the tribes for each gate, we can surmise, based on what we have learned, that the tribes must be arranged in the same manner that they were arranged around Yaaqob’s bier and around the Mishkan in the wilderness.

In The Mazzalot

Each of the Chariot faces also parallels the major constellations of the Zodiac: first is dli, “Aquarius”, with the face of a human. Three months later comes Shor, “Taurus”, the bull or ox. Three months after that is Aryeh, “Leo”, the lion. Finally, after another three months is ‘akrab, “Scorpio”, which in ancient times was alternately referred to as the “Eagle” constellation, nesher. The Zohar[36] points out that the initials of these four constellations and their faces is shinan (שנא״ן), standing for shor, nesher, aryeh, and the nun sofit being representative of the complete human. This is the meaning of the cryptic statement in Psalms[37] that “God’s Chariots are myriads, alfei shinan; God is among them, as in Sinai.” Just as at the Splitting of the Sea and at the Divine Revelation at Mt. Sinai that followed, when God “descended” into this world amongst myriads of Chariots, He continues to “mount the Cherubs and fly, gliding on the wings of the winds…”[38]

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This study was written by

Rabbi Dr. Hillel ben David (Greg Killian).

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[1] I.e., it is forbidden to expound this subject in the presence of more than two.

[2] V. Gen. I, 1-3; J.E. vol. IV, pp. 280f,s. ‘Cosmogony’, and vol. VIII, p. 235. The term, בראשית מעשה (Work of Creation) does not include the whole Talmudic cosmogony, only its esoteric aspects. The cosmogonic details mentioned infra in the Gemara (pp. 63f), such as the ten elements, the ten agencies etc., do not form part of the secret doctrine of Ma’aseh Bere’shith, for the Mishnah expressly forbids the teaching of the creation mysteries in public. The views recorded in the Talmud regarding the work of creation seem to belong chiefly to the realm of Aggadah. As regards their origin, they cannot with certainty be connected with the theosophic and cosmogonic doctrines of the Apocrypha and Pseudepigrapha, nor with Gnosticism; nor on the other hand can the mysticism of the Geonic period (e.g., as preserved in Sefer Yezirah with reference to the heavenly halls, angelology etc.) be regarded as a direct continuation of the Talmudic doctrines.

[3] This means, apparently, that a person is not permitted to study the mysteries of the Chariot even by himself, although the fact that he can study without the aid of a teacher shows that he is a Sage and understands of his own knowledge.

[4] I.e.,the number refers to the pupils and does not include the teacher.

[5] I.e., is able to speculate by himself. Such a disciple will not require to ask his teacher questions, for these mysteries may not be explained explicitly.

[6] As related by Prof. Yonatan Grossman in https://etzion.org.il/en/tanakh/torah/sefer-bamidbar/parashat-bamidbar/bamidbar-how-good-are-your-tents-yaakov-organization

[7] Yechezkel (Ezekiel) 1:12

[8] Likewise in verse 9. This emphasis is repeated in the description of the relationship between the wheels and these creatures in verses 20-21.

[9] Bamidbar (Numbers) 2:17

[10] See, for example, Talmud Yerushalmi, Eruvin 5:5.

[11] Yechezkel (Ezekiel) 1:24

[12] Bereshit (Genesis) 35:13

[13] Bereshit (Genesis) 38:13

[14] In these verses על is translated literally ‘ upon ‘, as though, as it were, God rode upon them. The idea is that through the Patriarchs the knowledge of God was diffused among all peoples.

[15] The ArtScroll Tanach Series, Bereishis, translation and commentary by Rabbi Meir, Zlotowitz, overviews by Rabbi Nosson Scherman, Published by Mesorah Publications, ltd, volume 1b, page 2194.

[16] See Tanchuma ad loc.

[17] Bereshit (Genesis) 49:10

[18] A contradiction of the statement in Pir. R. El. XXXIX ab init., which asserts that in order to avoid inter-marriage with the Canaanites all Jacob’s sons had married their sisters and kinswomen (Mah.). Tan. reads: ‘because there are some among them (i.e. among their children) who have married daughters of Canaan.’

[19] Bereshit (Genesis) 50:12

[20] Bereshit (Genesis) 50:13

[21] ‘Coffin’ and ‘ark’ are expressed by the same word in Hebrew.

[22] The inference is drawn from the use of the expression פועלי rather than יוצרי, the former denoting ‘reward’ or ‘recompense’; cf. Lev. XIX,, and Isa. XL, 10.

[23] Bereshit (Genesis) 49:33

[24] Th. thinks this an error for ‘sons’, Jacob’s sons themselves having married Canaanitish women (in accordance with R. Nehemiah’s view, supra, LXXXIV, 21).

[25] They were not necessarily all born from Canaanitish women, but Jacob did not wish to discriminate.

[26] Bereshit (Genesis) 49:28

[27] Bereshit (Genesis) 50:12

[28] Hoshea (Hosea) 5:11

[29] The Midrash connects ate with ziwwah ‘he charged,’ ‘commanded.’ E.V. ‘filth ’.

[30] Vayikra (Leviticus) 24:16

[31] Though he was not really afraid that his sons would lapse into idolatry and blasphemy, he charged them on account of their children, who might be corrupted by their Egyptian environment.

[32] You will be grouped in the wilderness in the same order. Cf. supra. XCVII (NV), p. 911 – Num. R. II, 8.

[33] Yechezkel (Ezekiel) 1:10 – The correlation between the pictures on the flags and the faces of the creatures in the Merkava is so complete and so clear that the Ibn Ezra seems to have solid reason for comparing the camp of Israel on the four sides of the Mishkan to the adornment of the Shekhina in the Divine Chariot by the four creatures.

[34] It should be noted that one of the differences between the Ibn Ezra and the version in the Midrash concerns the picture on the flag of Dan. According to the midrash, the picture featured a snake, while Ibn Ezra writes “the form of an eagle” – in accordance with the description of the Divine Chariot.

[35] It should be noted that one of the differences between the Ibn Ezra and the version in the Midrash concerns the picture on the flag of Dan. According to the midrash, the picture featured a snake, while Ibn Ezra writes “the form of an eagle” – in accordance with the description of the Divine Chariot.

[36] Zohar I, 24a

[37] Tehillim (Psalms) 68:18

[38] Tehillim (Psalms) Psalm 18:11