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For reference: Yahweh (LORD or God)
Elohim (God)
Yahshua (Jesus)
Ruach HaKodesh (Holy Spirit)
In these last days there has been a urgency in an effort to understand the biblical hebrew roots
of the faith that confesses that Yahshua is the Messiah. With this point in mind we dive into situations in the scriptures
where we don’t quite understand the scenario and teaching point because we are not familiar with the Hebraic background.
But in these last days we need to come back to the hebrew roots of the faith and get rid of the abominations that we
have inherited (Jer 16:19-21)
19[Then said Jeremiah] O Lord, my Strength and my Stronghold, and my Refuge in the day of affliction,
to You shall the (Gentile) nations come from the ends of the earth and shall say, Surely our fathers have inherited nothing
but lies, emptiness, and futility, worthless things in which there is no profit!
20Can a man make gods for himself? Such are not gods!
21Therefore (says the Lord Because the gentiles cry out in repentance for
the abominations that they have inherited) behold, I will make them know--(yes) this once I will make them know
My power and My might; and they (the Gentiles) will know and recognize that My name is the Lord (Yahweh).
One of these Hebrew items is called a TALLIT (TALLIOT-plural) TALIT, TALIS, TALITH or PRAYER SHAWL. PRAYER SHAWL
is actually a misnomer because an observant Jew wears one all the time and not just in prayer.
The history
of the tallit is best understood in its biblical context.
Numbers 15: 37-41
Again Yahweh spoke to Moshe, saying,
"Speak to
the children of Israel: Tell them to make tassels (tzitziot) on the corners of their garments throughout their generations,
and to put a blue thread in the tassels of the corners. And you shall have the tassel (tzitziot), that you may look
upon it and remember all the commandments of Yahweh and do them, and that you may not follow the harlotry to which your own
heart and your own eyes are inclined, and that you may remember and do all My commandments, and be holy for your Elohim.
I am Yahweh your Elohim, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, to be your Elohim: I am Yahweh your Elohim."
Tzitzit (singular. Tzitziot - plural) is Strong’s # 6734 tsiytsith
(tsee-tseeth'); feminine of # 6731; a floral or wing-like projection, i.e. a forelock of hair, a tassel: KJV-- fringe,
lock.
Deut 22:12
"You shall make tassels (gadilim) on the four corners of the clothing with which
you cover yourself".
Gadilim is Strong’s # 1434 gedil (ghed-eel'); from 1431 (in the
sense of twisting); thread, i.e. a tassel or festoon: KJV-- fringe, wreath
In Numbers 15:37-41
and Duet. 22:12, the Israelites were commanded to wear fringes (tassels, or twisted coils) on the corner of their garments
to remind them of the commandments of the Lord and to do them.
The commandment was not to wear
the Tallit. By itself, the tallit has no value other than a cloak in biblical times. Its purpose was simply to
carry the tzitzits. Today the tzitzit has other symbolism as you will see. Outside of being a sign of the
commandments, the tzitzits actually say something!
In Hebrew there are no numbers but each letter has
a numerical value. This is called gematria (Jewish numerology). Therefore each word has a numerical value.
For example, on each tzitzit (tassel) there were 39 windings (7+8+11+13 separated by double knots). 26 is the numerical
value of YHWH. 13 is the numerical value of Echad (one). Therefore these windings on each tzitzit equals the numerical
value of the Hebrew words "YHWH Echad" Yahweh is One .
This is the fundamental axiom of the Jewish faith
known as the "Shema". Deut. 6:4
In addition we also realize that Jesus suffered the same number of stripes
for our healing.
(Isaiah 53:5 and I Pet. 2:24)
They were also
commanded to "give to them" (the fringes) a blue strand called the "Shamash" or servant. In the same way Yahshua are messiah
was given to us. This is the same word as the center candle in the Menorah.
Each tzitzit have
seven white strands, the number of perfection, surrounded by the blue "servant" depicting royalty. It now adds up to
eight, the number of new beginnings
In addition, if you add 600 which is the value of tzitzit and the
5 knots and 8 strands, they equal 613 that are the number of mitzvahs (commandments or instructions) in the Tanakh (Old Testament).
All 613 commandments are not just for one person some are just for men, some is just for a woman.and outhers for children.
but all 613 represents theTorah.
Today when we see a tallit we rarely see the blue "shamash" in the
tzitzit. Most modern talliot have eight white strands. This has to do with tradition and the ancient source of
the blue dye.
In ancient times the only permanent blue dye was available from a the glands of a snail
called the hillazon (spelled a variety of ways.) Vegetable dyes would eventually fade. The dye was extracted from
the snail through a process that was known by only one family from the time of the Exodus to the destruction of the Second
Temple. The cost of obtaining enough dye to create four strands would today cost thousands of dollars. It may
be one of the reasons that the tzitzit with the "techelet" (blue dye) were removed from the tallit before it was used to wrap
the head of the dead.
At the death of Yahshua, we are told that the snail disappeared and was thought
to be extinct. In addition, the Romans, in order to stamp out the knowledge of Temple service, separated father and
sons so that the knowledge of the blue dye would be lost. Later the Muslims killed all who had this knowledge in order
to eradicate its use.
Many men have sought to restore the use of the techelet and have used many items
from the ocean, including the ink from a squid, to recreate the dye.
About ten years ago the chillazon
snail reappeared and the process to obtain the blue dye has been re-established. It’s use has not been widespread
since the cost of a set of tzitziot cost as much as the tallit itself.
Think of the implications!
The snail disappears at the death of Yahshua and reappears today with the rest of the signs of His return.
In Zechariah 8:24 we read that ten people from nations all around the world ( which are Gentile nations ) will clutch
the hem (Tzitzit) of a jew and say let us walk with you for we have heard that God is with you.
In biblical times the Jewish men wore this garment all the time when they were outside their home. They wore it as a
cloak over their regular garment called a halluq. Yahshua would have dressed like the other people of His time. Being
a observant Jew, He would have obeyed all the commandments, including this one. In addition as the Messiah
without sin, He would also have not disobeyed this commandment.
TALITH contains two Hebrew
words: TAL meaning tent and ITH meaning little.
Thus, you have LITTLE TENT.
The apostle Sha'ul (Paul) was a Jewish Pharisee and a tentmaker. Since the tzitzits are usually tied under the supervision
of a rabbi, many believe that he may have made talliot and not tents.
In the wilderness Moshe
set up a tabernacle (tent) of meeting according to the command of Yahweh. When the two silver trumpets were blown the
people assembled there. Obviously two and a half million Israelite men could not fit into it. Therefore, what
they had were their own private sanctuaries where they could meet with Yahweh. Each man had his own little tent - his
tallit.
They would pull it up over their head, forming a tent, where they would begin to pray and sing.
Here they would call upon the name Yahweh. It was an intimate, private place set apart from everyone else. A time totally
focused upon Him. This was their prayer closet. In Matt 6:6 Yahshua says (But thou, when thou prayest, enter into
thy closet, and when thou hast shut thy door, pray to thy Father which is in secret; and thy Father which seeth in secret
shall reward thee openly) i believe this is talking aboit the tallit.
Even Balaam, in Numbers
24:5, who had come to curse Israel exclaimed as he looked down upon the camps and saw the assembly:
"How lovely are your tents, O Jacob! Your dwellings, O Israel!"
Even today the Jewish people say that the Tallit is a tool which envelops
the Jew both physically and spiritually, in prayer and celebration, in joy and sorrow.
It is used at
all major Jewish occasions: circumcisions, bar mitsvahs, weddings and burials.
It protects the scrolls
of the Torah when they are moved.
The dead are wrapped in it when they are buried.
In John 11: 43-44, the "napkin" that is wrapped around the head of the dead is mentioned twice. Once, when Yahshua
calls Lazarus forth. He commanded that they "Loose him, and let him go".
The second time, in John
20:6-7, when Kefa (Simon Peter) went into the sepulcher:
"the napkin (tallit) that was about Yahshua head, not
lying with the linen clothes, but folded up by itself." And when Kefa seen Yahshua's tallit folded up in a way
that only Yahshua could have folded it he know that Yahshua was alive.
In a Jewish wedding the bride and bridegroom are covered with a "chupah" (a canopy) which is a
large tallit. Some wrap themselves in it (or two), while others have the whole wedding party stand under it. The
tallit is symbolic of the wedding canopy of Yahshua and His bride.
It inspired the Jewish flag. Three separate people had the same inspiration.
They
simply unfurled the tallit and added the Shield of David to its center.
If there is Hebrew writing on the ATARAH or CROWN, it usually is the BLESSING:
"Blessed art Thou, Lord our God, King of the universe, who has sanctified us with His commandments
and commanded us to wrap ourselves in the tzitzit."
The Blessing
is recited as the tallit is placed over the head. The Atarah is on the outside, just like the tent walls of the Holy
Tabernacle so that they would always hang the same way.
As the tallit is placed over the head, it forms
a tent with the four tzitzits on each corner. The word for corners in Hebrew (kanaph) is translated many times as "wings". In
Malachi 4:2 we are told that whosoever will fear the name of god (Yahweh) that the son of righteousness (Yahshua) will
arise with healing in his wings (tzitzit.) And it is the same word as the wings of the Seraphim as in Isaiah 6:2-3. Each
Seraph had six wings and "Cried, Holy. Holy. Holy, is Yahweh of host…". As the arms are held out under the garment,
wings are formed and each corner is a kanaph or wing. Therefore "I dwell safely beneath the shadow of Your wings" takes
on a more intimate meaning.
In Revelation 4:8, we see the four living creatures with six wings who cry
"holy, holy, holy…" . They surround the throne of Yahweh in the temple. Are we not the "temple" of the Ruach
haKodesh?
How many kanaph (corners, wings) surround us as we put the Tallit over our head?
In Ruth 3:9, Ruth found herself at the feet of Boaz, and as he awakened, he was moved with her vulnerability. Women
were not to do things of this nature in those days. In complete honesty and openness she said to him, "spread the corner (kanaph)
of your garment over me for Thou art my kinsman redeemer" In the NKJ it says, "Take your maidservant under your wing, for
you are a close relative."
Ruth said, "Take me under your wing (kanaph)." Cover me, is a term of intimacy. Boaz
was an honorable man and did the honorable thing. They were married, and she became his bride. Here she was a Moabite
woman from a foreign country, grafted into the nation of Israel, like us ( Rom 11:17). Boaz and Ruth are listed in the
genealogy of King David and therefore of Yahshua (Jesus). She had the right to be covered by her spouse's Tallit. This
is a symbolic expression of marriage. (In some Mid Eastern cultures they cast a garment over one being claimed for marriage.)
In Ezk.16: 8 Yahweh speaks to Jerusalem and likewise says, "so I spread my wing (kanaph) over you and covered your nakedness,"
and in Psalm 91 we are able to "abide under the shadow of the Almighty" and "under His wings (kanaph)."
1Samuel 24: 1-22 is the story of Saul’s pursuit of David at the sheepfolds and caves of En Gedi.
Now it happened,
when Saul had returned from following the Philistines, that it was told him, saying, "Take note! David is in the Wilderness
of En Gedi." Then Saul took three thousand chosen men from all Israel, and went to seek David and his men on the Rocks
of the Wild Goats.
So he came to the sheepfolds by the road, where there was a cave; and Saul went in
to attend to his needs. (David and his men were staying in the recesses of the cave.)
Then the men of
David said to him, "This is the day of which the LORD said to you, 'Behold, I will deliver your enemy into your hand, that
you may do to him as it seems good to you.'" And David arose and secretly cut off a corner (kanaph) of Saul's robe.
Now it happened afterward that David's heart troubled him because he had cut Saul's robe. And he said to his men, "The
LORD forbid that I should do this thing to my master, the LORD'S anointed, to stretch out my hand against him, seeing he is
the anointed of the LORD."
So David restrained his servants with these words, and did not allow them
to rise against Saul. And Saul got up from the cave and went on his way.
David also arose afterward,
went out of the cave, and called out to Saul, saying, "My lord the king!" And when Saul looked behind him, David stooped with
his face to the earth, and bowed down.
And David said to Saul: "Why do you listen to the words of men who say, 'Indeed
David seeks your harm? Look, this day your eyes have seen that Yahweh delivered you today into my hand in the cave,
and someone urged me to kill you. But my eye spared you, and I said, 'I will not stretch out my hand against my lord, for
he is Yahweh's anointed. Moreover, my father, see! Yes, see the corner
(kanaph = wing) of your robe in my hand!
For in that I cut off the corner of your robe, and did not kill you, know and see that there is neither evil nor rebellion
in my hand, and I have not sinned against you. Yet you hunt my life to take it.
Let Yahweh judge
between you and me, and let Yahweh avenge me on you. But my hand shall not be against you. As the proverb of the ancients
says, 'Wickedness proceeds from the wicked.'
But my hand shall not be against you.
After whom has
the king of Israel come out? Whom do you pursue? A dead dog? A flea? Therefore let Yahweh be judge, and judge between
you and me, and see and plead my case, and deliver me out of your hand."
So it was, when David had finished
speaking these words to Saul, that Saul said, "Is this your voice, my son David?" And Saul lifted up his voice and wept.
Then he said to David: "You are more righteous than I; for you have rewarded me with good, whereas I have rewarded you with
evil. And you have shown this day how you have dealt well with me; for when the LORD delivered me into your hand, you
did not kill me. For if a man finds his enemy, will he let him get away safely?
Therefore may the
LORD reward you with good for what you have done to me this day. And now I know indeed that you shall surely be king,
and that the kingdom of Israel shall be established in your hand. Therefore swear now to me by Yahweh that you will
not cut off my descendants after me, and that you will not destroy my name from my father's house." So David swore to
Saul. And Saul went home, but David and his men went up to the stronghold.
The corners
of Saul’s robe held the tzitziot and were one of the symbols of his authority. David repented of his action and returned
it to Saul.
As you study the Hebrew and Greek, this covering with the garment is expressed as:
The hovering
(or brooding) of the Spirit over the face of the waters.
Genesis 1:2
The hovering over and spreading out of the wings of the eagle.
Deut.32: 11
‘The overshadowing of the Most High" when Yahshua was conceived by the Ruach Luke 1:35
The
overshadowing that came upon Peter, John and James as they went with Jesus to the Mount of Transfiguration to pray.
Luke 9:28
Peter's shadow became the overshadowing as people were healed when his shadow (filled with the overshadowing
presence of Yahweh) fell upon them.
Acts 5:14
The Prophet Elijah passed his mantle or aderet on to Elisha in II Kings 2.
Aderet
is Strong’s word # 155 'addereth (ad-deh'-reth); something ample (as a large vine, a wide dress); also the
same as 145:
145 'eder (eh'-der); from 142; amplitude, i.e. (concrete) a mantle; also (figuratively) splendor: KJV--
garment, glory, goodly, mantle, robe.
142 'adar (aw-dar'); a primitive root; to expand, i.e. be great or (figuratively)
magnificent: KJV-- (become) glorious, honorable.
8 Now Elijah took his mantle, rolled it up, and struck the
water; and it was divided this way and that, so that the two of them crossed over on dry ground. (NKJ)
later
13-14
He also took up the mantle of Elijah that had fallen from him, and went back and stood by the bank of the Jordan. Then
he took the mantle of Elijah that had fallen from him, and struck the water, and said, "Where is the LORD God of Elijah?"
And when he also had struck the water, it was divided this way and that; and Elisha crossed over. (NKJ)
Many believe that this mantle was actually his Tallit and was the symbol of his calling as a prophet
of Yahweh. Elisha used this mantle to strike and part the waters as had Elijah had done and proclaimed the passing of
Elijah’s authority to him.
In Luke 8: 43-48
Now a woman, having a flow of blood for twelve years, who had spent all her
livelihood on physicians and could not be healed by any, came from behind and touched the border (hem, tzitzit)of His garment.
And immediately her flow of blood stopped.
And Yahshua said, "Who touched Me?" When all denied it, Kefa (Peter) and those
with him said, "Master, the multitudes throng and press You, and You say, 'Who touched Me?'" But Yahshua said, "Somebody
touched Me, for I perceived power going out from Me."
Now when the woman saw that she was not hidden, she came trembling;
and falling down before Him, she declared to Him in the presence of all the people the reason she had touched Him and how
she was healed immediately. And He said to her, "Daughter, be of good cheer; your faith has made you well. Go in peace."
The word "border" comes from the Greek word "kraspedon"
Strong’s # 2899: kraspedon (kras'-ped-on);
of uncertain derivation; a margin, i.e. (specifically) a fringe or tassel: KJV-- border, hem.
It is the Hebrew word tzitzit meaning fringe or tassel. (Remember the commandment of the Lord from Deut. 22:12 to wear fringes?).
The word "garment" is himation or cloak.
When she came forward and touched His tzitzit she actually
took the name of Yahweh in her hand.
(YHWH Echad). She was instantly healed.
Yahshua
immediately asked, "Who touched ME?" (YHWH Echad)
Later we read in the Gospels of both Matthew and Mark that Yahshua was asked to simply walk
through the crowds so that the sick might have the opportunity to touch the tzitziot of His tallit.
Matt 14:35-36
And
when the men of that place recognized Him, they sent out into all that surrounding region, brought to Him all who were sick,
and begged Him that they might only touch the hem of His garment. And as many as touched it were made perfectly well.
Mark
6:56
Wherever He entered, into villages, cities, or the country, they laid the sick in the marketplaces, and begged Him
that they might just touch the hem of His garment. And as many as touched Him were made well.
When we come to the scene of Yahshua’s triumphal entry into Jerusalem
we also notice that the same word for clothing (himation) used. The disciples put their talliot on the back of the colt
for Yahshua to ride and others put fronds and talliot on the ground as a grand gesture of welcoming a king.
Mark 11:7-8
Then
they brought the colt to Yahshua and threw their clothes on it, and He sat on it. And many spread their clothes on the
road, and others cut down leafy branches from the trees and spread them on the road.
Yahshua referred to the tzitziot of the talliot of certain Pharisees when He spoke of their
hypocrisy in
Matt 23:5:
"But all their works they do to be seen by men. They make their phylacteries broad and enlarge
the borders of their garments.
In Mark 5: 41
Then He took the child by the hand, and said to her,
"Talitha, cumi," which is translated, "Little girl, I say to you, arise."
Some scholars believe that word comes from the word "Talith" and that the literal translation of
this is, "Little girl who is now in my tallit, arise!" and the power of Yahweh caused her to rise.
In John 19:
23-24
Then the soldiers, when they had crucified Yahshua, took His garments and made four parts, to each soldier a part,
and also the tunic. Now the tunic was without seam, woven from the top in one piece. They said therefore among themselves,
"Let us not tear it, but cast lots for it, whose it shall be," that the Scripture might be fulfilled which says: "They divided
My garments among them, and for My clothing they cast lots." Therefore the soldiers did these things.
A tallit is made of one piece woven without seams and is usually made of the finest material.
In Acts 12 we have the story of Herod’s persecution of the saints. After having Yachov (James) killed he had Kefa
(Peter) seized and thrown into prison. The night before Kefa was to be slain an angel appears in the prison cell.
Then
the angel said to him, "Gird yourself and tie on your sandals"; and so he did. And he said to him, "Put on your garment (himation
or tallit) and follow me."
Finally in Revelation 19: 13-16
He was clothed with a robe (himation) dipped in blood,
and His name is called The Word. And the armies in heaven, clothed in fine linen, white and clean, followed Him on white
horses.
Now out of His mouth goes a sharp sword, that with it He should strike the nations. And He Himself will rule
them with a rod of iron. He Himself treads the winepress of the fierceness and wrath of the Almighty. And He has on
His robe and on His thigh a name written:
KING OF KINGS AND LORD OF LORDS. (NKJ) What kind
of robe would the returning Yahshua wear?
When sitting upon His throne with His tallit upon Him, where
would the tzitzit land?
Across His thigh would drape the tzitzit which proclaims "Yahweh is One"
who is King of Kings!
The restoration of the use and meaning of the tallit is symbolic of what
Yahweh is doing on the earth. He is restoring our Hebraic roots and heritage through Yahshua haMasiach (Jesus the Christ).
Christianity made many mistakes when it distanced itself from its "Jewish roots". Do not allow the anti-Semitism that
is built into many aspects of Christianity and the Greek interpretations of the Scriptures to rob you of your birthright
, insights and knowledge of God’s truth. Some Orthodox Rabbis say that it is mandatory for a man to wear a tallit,
but it is optional for a women. Do not allow the tradition that only men wear the Tallit to stop you, as a women, from
entering into its blessing by
wearing it.
Remember Galatians 3:28:
"There is neither Jew or Greek (Gentile), there is neither slave or free, there is neither male
or female, for you are all one (new man)
in Yahshua haMoshiach"
and John 8:32:
"And you shall know the truth and the truth shall set you free."
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