The Mystery of Messiah: Revealed in the Law and Prophets

By Mark Killingbeck

The Jewish teachings of the Torah in the law and prophets contain a treasure of knowledge and understanding revealing the Jewish Messiah Yeshua or Jesus Christ. When viewed through the lens of the Hebrew alphabet clues hidden in plain sight reveal the mystery of Messiah that the eyes of our understanding may be opened.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Covenant Books, Inc.
• Release date: Mar 26, 2019
• ISBN: 9781644712900

Book preview

Introduction to the Law and the Prophets

Then said he unto them, Therefore every scribe which is instructed unto the kingdom of heaven is like unto a man that is an householder, which bringeth forth out of his treasure things new and old. (Matt. 13:52, KJV)

Out of the treasure chest of God we find things new and old. The types and the shadows and the figures of the Old Testament are for our examples and learning and admonition. We see the shadow of the Messiah, revealed in the fullness of time, clothed with humility to redeem himself a bride and a covenant people. The law and the prophets were building blocks held together and founded upon the Rock that was to come and be revealed to Israel. The Torah, the teaching of the Law from the Jewish perspective proves that Jesus or Yeshua was and is and is to come Lord and Messiah, the Christ.

Every work, every building, every skyscraper, every dwelling must have a foundation before it can be built. Without a strong foundation there can be no lasting value, no lasting appreciation for the work, because every storm that comes will tear the building apart.

So it is with the soul, the body, and the spirit, the threefold cord of life and the spiritual tabernacle of God. Our King the Creator has laid a foundation from the beginning of time, and has put building blocks upon that foundation of life. The chief cornerstone was laid and the word of life built upon that foundation, so that our life, the tabernacle of flesh, would not be in vain. This work is to paint in the heart, soul, and mind the masterpiece of the author of life, the only wise God who has built all things that pertain to life and godliness.

Humbly with prayerfulness we will descend into the deep things of God proving that he is the only wise God, the King Eternal, and that in the fullness of time he revealed himself in the image of Jesus Christ. Jesus or in Hebrew Yeshua is the promised seed, the rock of salvation and foundation of heaven and earth.

The Hebrew alphabet or aleph-bet corresponds to the teaching of the law and the prophets. The Word of God was made flesh, and as Jesus the Word incarnate is both Alpha and Omega, he is Aleph and Tav, the beginning and end, and all in between. The disciple of God is also to be a living epistle, writ and read of all men. This is accomplished by having the Word of God, the living Word of spirit and truth in the heart. The treasure chest of God is full of nuggets of truth worth more than gold or silver, and these nuggets lead us to the feet of the King, eternal, immortal, invisible, the only wise God, our Savior Jesus Christ. His mercy and truth has atoned for the deception of our sin and brought a new heart and spirit from his kingdom to our fallen world. The bonds of hell and death have been cut by the Messiah’s two-edged sword. The law and the prophets reveals Messiah whose mercy and truth was made manifest in the body of his flesh, who dwelt or set up his tabernacle among us.

And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth (John 1:14–15, KJV).

The Hebrew letters are found to be building blocks of his Word, of faith and hope, shadows of light that point to their fulfillment and author the Lord Jesus Christ. Counting the letter/numbers one by one and finding their interpretation and understanding builds a tabernacle and temple for the Holy Ghost, the Spirit of God, to dwell in. This tabernacle cannot be moved by the storms that rage, the sufferings, and the fiery trials and tests that come upon a rebellious world and the confusion prevalent in this day and age. The living Word incarnate came to tabernacle among men that we might behold his glory, the everlasting glory of the Eternal Spirit that we might worship in spirit and in truth. God’s creative Word spoke the invisible things and the visible things into existence by his power, and they were framed and understood by the things that were made even his eternal Godhead and power, so that we are without excuse. Line upon line and precept upon precept, here a little and there a little, the Word of God will lead us to the feet of our Creator, his Word and his doctrine will lead to his eternal throne.

The Hebrew Aleph-Bet

In the Hebrew alphabet there are no numerals such as the Arabic system or the Roman system of numbers. Instead, each letter corresponds to a numerical value. For instance aleph equals one, bet two, gimel three, and so on. There are twenty-two letters and five end letters, making a total of twenty-seven letters. The end letters also have a numerical value and thus are used as the five finals of the Hebrew aleph-bet.

So teach us to number our days, that we may apply our hearts unto wisdom. (Ps. 90:12)

Behold, this have I found, saith the preacher, counting one by one, to find out the account. (Eccles. 7:27, KJV)

Whom shall he teach knowledge? and whom shall he make to understand doctrine? them that are weaned from the milk, and drawn from the breasts. For precept must be upon precept, precept upon precept; line upon line, line upon line; here a little, and there a little. (Isa. 28:9–10, KJV)

The numbers and the counting were used that they might bring profit to the soul and a protection that the soul would be prepared and ready to see the King and not be snared by the temptress and seducing spirits of the world. The letters of the Hebrew Aleph-bet lead on a path to the feet of the great Creator and King.

"Hearken unto me, O Jacob and Israel, my called; I am he; I am the first, I also am the last." (Isa. 48:12, KJV)

The Creator stated that he was the first and last and there was none other but him and we shall witness the truth of his Word. Truth (אֱמֶת) in the Hebrew tongue is spelled with the first, middle, and last letter of the Aleph-beis.

I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end, the first and the last. (Rev. 22:13, KJV)

Yeshua or Jesus states that he or I AM, the name that appeared to Moses in the wilderness, was the beginning and the end, the first and the last. The Bible or the Word states that it is truth.

Sanctify them through thy truth: thy word is truth. (John 17:17, KJV)

We have already noted Yeshua or Jesus was the Word, and Jesus also stated he was the truth.

Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me. (John 14:6, KJV)

Jehovah, the I am, the Self-existing One, in the fullness of time revealed that he and he alone would redeem his people from their sins.

Behold, God is my salvation; I will trust, and not be afraid: for the LORD JEHOVAH is my strength and my song; he also is become my salvation. (Isa. 12:2, KJV)

Thus saith the LORD the King of Israel, and his redeemer the LORD of hosts; I am the first, and I am the last; and beside me there is no God. And who, as I, shall call, and shall declare it, and set it in order for me, since I appointed the ancient people? and the things that are coming, and shall come, let them shew unto them. Fear ye not, neither be afraid: have not I told thee from that time, and have declared it? ye are even my witnesses. Is there a God beside me? yea, there is no God; I know not any. (Isa. 44:6–8)

Counting one by one, line upon line, precept upon precept, here a little and there a little, the Word of God, the puzzle pieces of the Old Covenant and New Covenant point to the One who created and saved a confused and lost world, deceived through their own lusts and desires.

The law and the prophets reveal the love and mercy of God who desires us to worship him in spirit and in truth.

Look unto me, and be ye saved, all the ends of the earth: for I am God, and there is none else. I have sworn by myself, the word is gone out of my mouth in righteousness, and shall not return, That unto me every knee shall bow, every tongue shall swear. (Isa. 45:22–23, KJV; emphasis mine)

That at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth; And that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father. (Phil. 2:10–11, KJV; emphasis mine)

The building blocks of mercy and truth in the law and prophets reveal the oneness of God, that he cannot be divided, nor can his Kingdom be divided but he is All in All.

I said therefore unto you, that ye shall die in your sins: for if ye believe not that I am he, ye shall die in your sins. (John 8:24, KJV)

Jesus said unto them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Before Abraham was, I am. (John 8:58)

The Torah: The Revelation of God

God revealed himself to Israel at Mt. Sinai after he redeemed them from Egypt by the blood of the lamb (his firstborn), and after he led them through the waters of the Red Sea. Israel had grown accustomed to idolatry and foreign trinities of gods. They were confused and did not know the name of their Lord that they could call on him. Moses brought them to Mt. Sinai by the hand of God to let them see and hear, witness and meet, their Lord and God, the one who saved them out of Egypt. God was to keep his word with his people, and his word to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob that the covenant relationship established four hundred years prior would continue.

At Sinai, Israel saw the Lord and heard his voice and they became terrified by his presence, his holiness, his purity, and his power. The people cried for Moses to speak unto them that they wouldn’t die. So God gave Moses the written law and the commandments to proclaim to Israel that they might know the character and the righteousness of their creator and they would obey the Lord’s voice.

Moses wrote of the revelation of God at Sinai and all that was revealed by God was written down as a witness and a testimony of God’s mercy and truth. In the process of time, this Torah was copied by scribes who were called soferim, meaning one who counts. The scribes counted every dot, every tittle, every letter to make certain nothing was added or taken away from the Word of God, the revelation at Mt. Sinai.

In the early centuries of the land of Israel, the entire Torah was divided into weekly portions. Each weekly portion was called a sidra. The annual reading cycle of Torah portions or sidrot has been adopted as the standard of world Jewry today. The Torah portion or weekly reading is read in an annual cycle that in the process of a year the entire Torah would be read. The terms sidra and parasha are interchangeable terms for the weekly reading of the Torah. Sidra means order or arrangement of the prophets and Torah. Parasha means selection or division used by the Jewish people signifying the weekly reading. Both these terms refer to the law and the prophets today and their divisions in the annual Sabbath reading.

There are fifty-four divisions of the annual reading of the Torah and each of these readings or parasha have been given names. There is a common theme in both the law and the prophets in each week and its reading. The total number of letters in the Hebrew aleph-bet doubled is fifty-four (27+27).

"Speak ye comfortably to Jerusalem, and cry unto her, that her warfare is accomplished, that her iniquity is pardoned: for she hath received of the LORD’S hand double for all her sins." (Isa. 40:2, KJV; emphasis mine)

We note the Word of the Lord, doubled, or fulfilled will bring a pardon and forgiveness and a conclusion for her sins. This twofold cord shadows the fullness of the Word of God in the twenty-seven divisions of the New Testament or covenant, which is the revelation of Yeshua or Jesus in the fullness of time. We note how the firstborn under the Torah was always given a double portion of his inheritance. So Yeshua carries a double portion of the letters of Aleph-Tav (27+27) to fulfill the law and prophets (54). His word and letters complete and fulfill the redemption of the world and bring his life and love, mercy and truth, to those who don’t deserve it.

Salvation is brought through a double portion of his Word and letters to allow us his salvation.

"Think not that I am come to destroy the law, or the prophets: I am not come to destroy, but to fulfil. For verily I say unto you, Till heaven and earth pass, one jot or one tittle shall in no wise pass from the law, till all be fulfilled." (Matt. 5:17–18, KJV; emphasis mine)

Jesus or Yeshua said that he was the substance of the law and prophets. He was their fulfillment and as the firstborn he got a double portion (27+27=54). Jesus, Jehovah saves, came to double (or to close the book and to hide) the sins of Israel, from the accuser and to blot them out with his blood. In the first verse of the Torah, there is the Aleph-Tav. The word created is ‏אֵת + ‏בָּרָא. In the last chapter of the Bible is the same thing the Aleph-Tav.

In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth. (Gen. 1:1, KJV)

I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end, the first and the last. Blessed are they that do his commandments, that they may have right to the tree of life, and may enter in through the gates into the city. (Rev. 22:13–14, KJV)

Without the breath of the Spirit, the power of God, the Word of God is hidden from the carnal mind and there is a veil on the heart. The Word falls on deaf ears and blind eyes, that seeing cannot see, and hearing cannot understand. But Jesus came as the Word in flesh to reveal the substance of his way and truth and life. The grace of God has brought a new heart and a new spirit, through a new birth after a death and burial and resurrection of his body.

God desires us to draw nigh to him that he might draw nigh to us. He came unto his own and they did not receive him, but to all those who receive him through his Torah and teaching there is a rest and a life we have never known in this dark world.

The Law and the Prophets Revealed

Give ear, O my people, to my law: incline your ears to the words of my mouth. I will open my mouth in a parable: I will utter dark sayings of old: Which we have heard and known, and our fathers have told us. We will not hide them from their children, shewing to the generation to come the praises of the LORD, and his strength, and his wonderful works that he hath done. For he established a testimony in Jacob, and appointed a law in Israel, which he commanded our fathers, that they should make them known to their children: That the generation to come might know them, even the children which should be born; who should arise and declare them to their children: That they might set their hope in God, and not forget the works of God, but keep his commandments: And might not be as their fathers, a stubborn and rebellious generation; a generation that set not their heart aright, and whose spirit was not stedfast with God. (Ps. 78:1–8, KJV)

And as they thus spake, Jesus himself stood in the midst of them, and saith unto them, Peace be unto you. But they were terrified and affrighted, and supposed that they had seen a spirit. And he said unto them, Why are ye troubled? and why do thoughts arise in your hearts? Behold my hands and my feet, that it is I myself: handle me, and see; for a spirit hath not flesh and bones, as ye see me have. And when he had thus spoken, he shewed them his hands and his feet. And while they yet believed not for joy, and wondered, he said unto them, Have ye here any meat? And they gave him a piece of a broiled fish, and of an honeycomb. And he took it, and did eat before them. And he said unto them, These are the words which I spake unto you, while I was yet with you, that all things must be fulfilled, which were written in the law of Moses, and in the prophets, and in the psalms, concerning me. Then opened he their understanding, that they might understand the scriptures. (Luke 24:36–45, KJV; emphasis mine)

Jesus after the cross meets with the disciples and testifies that all that happened to him, his birth, his life, his ministry, his rejection, his death, his burial, his resurrection were told beforehand. There was a witness of who he was and what he was doing and going to do in the law and the prophets and the psalms. This was the weekly readings of the Jewish people, their parasha or sidra, every week in fifty-four divisions.

The Old Testament consists of the law and the prophets and the psalms, which are songs and prayers. Jesus was talking about what every Jewish boy and girl knew; they had been taught the same way for centuries since the time of Ezra. These were the right divisions of the Torah.

Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth. (2 Tim. 2:15, KJV)

Again, there are fifty-four divisions of the annual reading of the Torah and each of these divisions has been given names.

The law and the prophets, the weekly readings, were to prepare them to recognize and receive their Messiah and King, when he came in the fullness of time, with the double portion.

Think not that I am come to destroy the law, or the prophets: I am not come to destroy, but to fulfil. For verily I say unto you, Till heaven and earth pass, one jot or one tittle shall in no wise pass from the law, till all be fulfilled. (Matt. 5:17–18, KJV)

Jesus or Yeshua declares that he came to fulfill or accomplish what the law and the prophets were talking about. We note the disciples believed Yeshua to be that fulfillment.

Philip findeth Nathanael, and saith unto him, We have found him, of whom Moses in the law, and the prophets, did write, Jesus of Nazareth, the son of Joseph. And Nathanael said unto him, Can there any good thing come out of Nazareth? Philip saith unto him, Come and see. (John 1:45–46, KJV)

We note how Philip describes Yeshua, the one whom Moses in the law and prophets did write.

But when they departed from Perga, they came to Antioch in Pisidia, and went into the synagogue on the sabbath day, and sat down. And after the reading of the law and the prophets the rulers of the synagogue sent unto them, saying, Ye men and brethren, if ye have any word of exhortation for the people, say on. Then Paul stood up, and beckoning with his hand said, Men of Israel, and ye that fear God, give audience. The God of this people of Israel chose our fathers, and exalted the people when they dwelt as strangers in the land of Egypt, and with an high arm brought he them out of it. (Acts 13:14–17, KJV)

Paul uses the law and prophets as the platform and foundation to declare to them that Yeshua is their Lord and Savior.

"But now the righteousness of God without the law is manifested, being witnessed by the law and the prophets; Even the righteousness of God which is by faith of Jesus Christ unto all and upon all them that believe: for there is no difference: For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God." (Rom. 3:21–23, KJV; emphasis mine)

Paul speaks of the witness the law and the prophets declared. In the mouth of two or more witnesses, the Word was established and declared as truth.

"For they that dwell at Jerusalem, and their rulers, because they knew him not, nor yet the voices of the prophets which are read every sabbath day, they have fulfilled them in condemning him. And though they found no cause of death in him, yet desired they Pilate that he should be slain." (Acts 13:27–28, KJV; emphasis mine)

Why did the Jewish nation as a whole miss their Messiah? Hearing they did not hear and seeing they did not see.

Whom shall he teach knowledge? and whom shall he make to understand doctrine? them that are weaned from the milk, and drawn from the breasts. For precept must be upon precept, precept upon precept; line upon line, line upon line; here a little, and there a little: For with stammering lips and another tongue will he speak to this people. To whom he said, This is the rest wherewith ye may cause the weary to rest; and this is the refreshing: yet they would not hear. But the word of the LORD was unto them precept upon precept, precept upon precept; line upon line, line upon line; here a little, and there a little; that they might go, and fall backward, and be broken, and snared, and taken. (Isa. 28:9–13, KJV)

Brethren, my heart’s desire and prayer to God for Israel is, that they might be saved. For I bear them record that they have a zeal of God, but not according to knowledge. For they being ignorant of God’s righteousness, and going about to establish their own righteousness, have not submitted themselves unto the righteousness of God. (Rom. 10:1–3)

The law and the prophets through the weekly reading reveal the mercy and truth that was available in the fullness of time, but was rejected. But as the rejection was in the law and prophets, the future hope of salvation to all Israel and the Gentiles is there also to those who receive him.

The law and the prophets witness the Messiah and his character, his sufferings and his death and burial and resurrection.

The law and the prophets also witness, the power, the rock, the strength, the love, the mercy, the grace, the resurrection of the Messiah.

Bind up the testimony, seal the law among my disciples. And I will wait upon the LORD, that hideth his face from the house of Jacob, and I will look for him. Behold, I and the children whom the LORD hath given me are for signs and for wonders in Israel from the LORD of hosts, which dwelleth in mount Zion. And when they shall say unto you, Seek unto them that have familiar spirits, and unto wizards that peep, and that mutter: should not a people seek unto their God? for the living to the dead? To the law and to the testimony: if they speak not according to this word, it is because there is no light in them. (Isa. 8:16–20, KJV)

The law of the LORD is perfect, converting the soul: the testimony of the LORD is sure, making wise the simple. (Ps. 19:7, KJV)

Simchat Torah is holiday in Israel. It is the conclusion of the annual reading of the Torah cycle and the beginning of another. It is celebrated as a full holiday in the Disapora but as part of Shemini Atzeret in Israel. Shemini Atzeret is the eighth day of the solemn assembly of Sukkot, the feast of tabernacles. Actually it is an independent holiday marking the end of Sukkot or Tabernacles and the conclusion of the Torah cycle and the start of another cycle. We note what Yeshua said on this day.

In the last day, that great day of the feast, Jesus stood and cried, saying, If any man thirst, let him come unto me, and drink. He that believeth on me, as the scripture hath said, out of his belly shall flow rivers of living water. (But this spake he of the Spirit, which they that believe on him should receive: for the Holy Ghost was not yet given; because that Jesus was not yet glorified.) Many of the people therefore, when they heard this saying, said, Of a truth this is the Prophet. (John 7:37–40, KJV)

The fulfillment of the law and prophets is when the Spirit of God tabernacles among us. But not just among us, in us. We become the temple of the Spirit of God.

The conclusion of the letters of the law and prophets is the Spirit. Note what Paul said to the church at Corinth: Who also hath made us able ministers of the new testament; not of the letter, but of the spirit: for the letter killeth, but the spirit giveth life (2 Cor 3:6, KJV).

The conclusion or the end is that we receive what was in the beginning—the Spirit of God in our midst.

But in the days of the voice of the seventh angel, when he shall begin to sound, the mystery of God should be finished, as he hath declared to his servants the prophets. (Rev. 10:7, KJV)

The mystery of the Godhead, the mystery of iniquity, the mystery of the Kingdom, the mystery of the bride, the mystery of the Messiah, the mystery of the Gospel, the mystery of Babylon are the mysteries to be revealed by the two witnesses who understand the law and the prophets.

But ye shall be named the Priests of the LORD: men shall call you the Ministers of our God: ye shall eat the riches of the Gentiles, and in their glory shall ye boast yourselves. For your shame ye shall have double; and for confusion they shall rejoice in their portion: therefore in their land they shall possess the double: everlasting joy shall be unto them. For I the LORD love judgment, I hate robbery for burnt offering; and I will direct their work in truth, and I will make an everlasting covenant with them. (Isa. 61:6–8, KJV)

But he shall acknowledge the son of the hated for the firstborn, by giving him a double portion of all that he hath: for he is the beginning of his strength; the right of the firstborn is his. (Deut. 21:17, KJV)

The double portion of the law and prophets brings us to the feet of our Creator and King.

Come, and let us return unto the LORD: for he hath torn, and he will heal us; he hath smitten, and he will bind us up. After two days will he revive us: in the third day he will raise us up, and we shall live in his sight. Then shall we know, if we follow on to know the LORD: his going forth is prepared as the morning; and he shall come unto us as the rain, as the latter and former rain unto the earth. (Hos. 6:1–3, KJV)

Then he said unto them, O fools, and slow of heart to believe all that the prophets have spoken: Ought not Christ to have suffered these things, and to enter into his glory? And beginning at Moses and all the prophets, he expounded unto them in all the scriptures the things concerning himself. (Luke 24:25–2,7 KJV)

Then he said, I pray thee therefore, father, that thou wouldest send him to my father’s house: For I have five brethren; that he may testify unto them, lest they also come into this place of torment. Abraham saith unto him, They have Moses and the prophets; let them hear them. And he said, Nay, father Abraham: but if one went unto them from the dead, they will repent. And he said unto him, If they hear not Moses and the prophets, neither will they be persuaded, though one rose from the dead. (Luke 16:27–31, KJV; emphasis mine)

Having therefore obtained help of God, I continue unto this day, witnessing both to small and great, saying none other things than those which the prophets and Moses did say should come: That Christ should suffer, and that he should be the first that should rise from the dead, and should shew light unto the people, and to the Gentiles. (Acts 26:22–23, KJV; emphasis mine)

But we desire to hear of thee what thou thinkest: for as concerning this sect, we know that every where it is spoken against. And when they had appointed him a day, there came many to him into his lodging; to whom he expounded and testified the kingdom of God, persuading them concerning Jesus, both out of the law of Moses, and out of the prophets, from morning till evening. And some believed the things which were spoken, and some believed not. (Acts 28:22–24, KJV; emphasis mine)

Every dot and every tittle and line of the Word of God is interconnected and God breathed. From the beginning to the end it points to the author and finisher of our faith. As the musical notes have a low C, middle C, and high C, there is a harmony in the correspondence of the law and the prophets and the New Covenant. The Messiah’s sufferings, his glory, his humility, his righteousness, his power, his kingdom, his name, all these things line upon line are witnessed in the Aleph-bet and the law and the prophets. The work of putting death to death and restoring the Kingdom to the Creator was accomplished through the love and mercy of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Jesus is the King of kings and Lord of lords, the only wise God.

Aleph (אָ)

אָ

Symbol of God’s Oneness, Leadership, Strength, Mastery, and Sovereignty

Numerical Value = 1

Torah Harmony

First Parasha: Bereshit (Beginning) Genesis 1:1–6:8

Twenty-eighth (2+8=10=1+0=1) Parasha: Metzora (the leper) Leviticus 14:1–15:33

First book of new covenant Matthew

Bereshit (The Beginning)

Law (Parasha): Genesis 1:1–6:8

Prophets (Haftara) Isaiah 42:5–43:10

In the beginning God created אֵת the heaven and the earth. And the earth was without form, and void; and darkness was upon the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters (Gen. 1:1–2, KJV).

We have already stated that the law and the prophets testify of Messiah, Yeshua, the Lord Jesus Christ. In the Hebrew Bible, the Aleph-Tav is in the first verse of the Bible, though not translated in the King James Version. What does this tell us? That God had a plan; the Divine Self had an order from the very beginning. His Word composed of each letter of the Aleph-Tav would bring a living epistle to be writ and read of all men, in his time. The mystery of the Godhead is in the first verse.

Elohim is one, not two or three or more. There is none like him. The Spirit, the invisible part of God, moved upon the waters of the deep to begin to reveal who he is. Chaos and confusion were part of the deep and darkness, when God moved and spoke order was established. Now line upon line and precept upon precept, knowledge of him would be revealed to creation. He desired fellowship with his people and would allow his people to approach him. Elohim, the majestic plural of his name is needed to come close to describing him, but he is more than that. The Aleph-Tav representing the Divine Self will reveal him to those who are searching for him, but they must search with all their heart.

The first two verses remind us of the teaching to the children of Israel, that God is one. The Egyptian and Babylonian, and Roman and Greek religions had gods of the sky and water and sun and moon and stars, multiple gods, trinities. The true God shows himself as the One God who can do everything. We don’t have to pray to different gods or different saints to guard us or lead us or keep us. If there is a storm, we don’t need to pray to the storm god, for there is One Creator, One Sovereign, One Master, One Lord who created all things for himself. He is the center of the universe, not us or anyone else. One God has many roles and offices that he fulfills. There is one stop shopping with the God of Israel, the I Am He, he is everything, Lord and Savior.

And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness: and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth. So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them.

(Gen. 1:26–27, KJV)

Man was to be created in the image of God. So the Spirit would have an image, a body that would be seen, that would function as his created man Adam. The image was another operation or administration of the Spirit, the One God. Man was created with a spirit (which is invisible), a body (which is visible), and a soul (fire) that is eternal. Is God a spirit, soul, and body? The law and the prophets will answer this. His name will be revealed.

The King

Aleph teaches that all things are dependent on the Creator King. All things are from him and through him and to him. There is no independence of him, even though we may claim it. Because we are standing on his ground, breathing his air, drinking his water, and eating his food, with a life that was given to us by him. Is he a control freak? No! Look at the life of paradise that he planned with man in the creation that he allowed Adam to be a part of, to dress it and to keep it.

And the LORD God took the man, and put him into the garden of Eden to dress it and to keep it. And the LORD God commanded the man, saying, Of every tree of the garden thou mayest freely eat: But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it: for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die. And the LORD God said, It is not good that the man should be alone; I will make him an help meet for him. (Gen. 2:15–18, KJV)

God’s authority is a part of his creation. When he is at the center, things go well; when he is not in our midst, chaos and hell break loose. His leadership is needed for life, his council, his provision and protection. Aleph teaches of an author of life who has authority because he defines what life and freedom is. Death was not a part of his creation, it was not part of his plan. The option was given because true sovereignty and leadership allow choice.

So Aleph teaches of a King and authority that leads and does not drive from the back of the pack. His leadership is out front as an example for his creation to follow. He will not ask what he is not willing to do. His life included food and a secure environment within the boundaries of his word that would keep all evil out. Man was not created in darkness but light. Adam knew who God was and he knew that he was not God. Here is the order. God is the leader and God is Spirit, and man is flesh and body and he is the follower.

The fall of the first man into sin and death

Aleph teaches about the first man Adam, the first man into the arms of death. Adam crossed the boundaries of the Word of God that was given by the Aleph-bet.

Now the serpent was more subtil than any beast of the field which the LORD God had made. And he said unto the woman, Yea, hath God said, Ye shall not eat of every tree of the garden? And the woman said unto the serpent, We may eat of the fruit of the trees of the garden: But of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, God hath said, Ye shall not eat of it, neither shall ye touch it, lest ye die. And the serpent said unto the woman, Ye shall not surely die: For God doth know that in the day ye eat thereof, then your eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil. (Gen. 3:1–5, KJV)

We note the serpent comes sowing seeds of discord and discontent with a life in the paradise of the Spirit of God. Man is not laboring, there is security, provisions of food, shelter, clothed with God’s glory. Man is a caretaker and keeper of this paradise with God. God is in his midst, to lead and instruct them in the way they should go, but also to have fellowship with them.

The serpent paints their life as empty because they don’t have the poisonous tree with its divided fruit. God says not to eat of the tree, but the woman becomes a legalist and adds to the Word of God, making it her word and not God’s. The woman says we can’t touch the tree. God said don’t eat it. We note Eve nor Adam seeks God’s advice about this preacher of another gospel, supposedly bringing them good news. Eve listens and then listens some more and falls for the sales pitch. She is willing to give up paradise for door number three on this Let’s Make a Deal scenario. She is attracted by the possibility that self can be a god. Do we still hear this line today?

She eats the fruit and gives it to her husband Adam and he eats the fruit. Adam chose his wife over God. Eve made her decision based on her carnal mind and appetite that rises from the words of the serpent. What happens? Guilt replaces innocence in her conscience. What went through her lips and tongue affects her whole body and the eyes of self are opened. Their point of view shifts from looking at the world through the eyes of innocence and freedom with God to a self-centered, egocentric point of view that asks, What’s in this for me? instead of what can I do for you or what can I help you with? Aleph teaches of a lot of firsts: the first man, the first woman, the first life, the first death, and the first judgment, but also the hope of restoration.

First judgment

God sought for the man, and Adam and Eve were hiding from him because of guilt and shame. Sin made them night creatures instead of day creatures. Their nakedness was exposed and their glory was replaced by shame. God asks if they had eaten of the tree. The victim mentality enters the world. Adam blames his wife; he is just a victim of her desires. The woman blames the serpent; she was just a victim and can’t take responsibility for her actions. What happens? God judges all three: the man, the women, and the serpent. But the character of God is revealed through all of this. God brings a promise of hope and restoration with him again, by promising a coming seed of the woman.

The promise seed

And I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed; it shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heel (Gen. 3:15, KJV).

The seed of the woman and the seed of the serpent would be enemies because of what happened. Death would have his head crushed by the seed of the woman but in doing so, the heel of the seed would be bruised. Here is the love of God in the midst of judgment. After this God would slay an animal, which we believe was a lamb, and make garments to cover man’s nakedness. The animal’s skin that covers the nakedness of man that used to be covered by God’s glory. ("The lambs are for thy clothing, and the goats are the price of the field" [Prov. 27:26].)

Unto Adam also and to his wife did the LORD God make coats of skins, and clothed them. And the LORD God said, Behold, the man is become as one of us, to know good and evil: and now, lest he put forth his hand, and take also of the tree of life, and eat, and live for ever (Gen. 3:21–22, KJV).

Man was removed from paradise and the tree of life, God was no longer in his midst. Man knew who God was, he believed in God, but was not with God following in his steps. God was no longer in his midst.

Man now had the devil’s belief system, he knew there was One God and trembled.

The first religion without God

And in process of time it came to pass, that Cain brought of the fruit of the ground an offering unto the LORD. And Abel, he also brought of the firstlings of his flock and of the fat thereof. And the LORD had respect unto Abel and to his offering: But unto Cain and to his offering he had not respect. And Cain was very wroth, and his countenance fell. And the LORD said unto Cain, Why art thou wroth? and why is thy countenance fallen? If thou doest well, shalt thou not be accepted? and if thou doest not well, sin lieth at the door. And unto thee shall be his desire, and thou shalt rule over him. (Gen. 4:3–7, KJV)

Aleph brings another first, in Cain, the firstborn into the fallen world, in the process of time, brings a bloodless sacrifice to God. Abel brings the lamb, which is God’s sacrifice for sin, but Cain brings the fruit of the ground, a bloodless and spiritless sacrifice. Cain’s pride lifts him up to believe that his works can atone for his sin. God counsels Cain that there needs to be an innocent life for a guilty life, and life is in the blood. Cain feels his morals and good works are a lot more than his brother’s, who is justified with God through the lamb. Cain refuses to be a follower, he wants to be a leader; after all, he is the firstborn. The first murder and first division of a home and family occur in the beginning. Cain is sent away as a fugitive in the earth, a life without God in his midst.

What happens when God is not in our midst, our life, our family, our nation, our world?

The wickedness of the world

And it came to pass, when men began to multiply on the face of the earth, and daughters were born unto them, That the sons of God saw the daughters of men that they were fair; and they took them wives of all which they chose. And the LORD said, My spirit shall not always strive with man, for that he also is flesh: yet his days shall be an hundred and twenty years. There were giants in the earth in those days; and also after that, when the sons of God came in unto the daughters of men, and they bare children to them, the same became mighty men which were of old, men of renown. And GOD saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually. And it repented the LORD that he had made man on the earth, and it grieved him at his heart. And the LORD said, I will destroy man whom I have created from the face of the earth; both man, and beast, and the creeping thing, and the fowls of the air; for it repenteth me that I have made them. But Noah found grace in the eyes of the LORD. (Gen. 6:1–8, KJV)

A world that is centered on self, and self-autonomy and self-righteous that takes the gifts of God, but refuses the giver of the gifts will destroy itself. When God’s way, his truth, his Word, and his path is rejected, society self-destructs. Every thought leads to violence and confrontation with those who want what you want. A society of predator and prey develops as man dumbs himself down. Reverse evolution kicks in as man who had the mind of God, and glory of God, now gets the mind and glory of an ape and amoeba.

What has Aleph taught us? God is one. After the Spirit created Adam as an earthen vessel, God desired fellowship and communion with man in his garden a paradise. Man was to be God’s ambassador on the earth. When man sinned, Adam was held accountable, but God promised redemption through the seed of the woman. God is the King and authority, and fallen man in his sin and independence is not a god. Self-righteousness is not God’s righteousness, but God’s mercy desires to restore man to a right relationship through the death of the lamb, the sacrifice of God, his grace.

The Prophets

(Haftara) Isaiah 42:5–43:10

Thus saith God the LORD, he that created the heavens, and stretched them out; he that spread forth the earth, and that which cometh out of it; he that giveth breath unto the people upon it, and spirit to them that walk therein: I the LORD have called thee in righteousness, and will hold thine hand, and will keep thee, and give thee for a covenant of the people, for a light of the Gentiles; To open the blind eyes, to bring out the prisoners from the prison, and them that sit in darkness out of the prison house. I am the LORD: that is my name: and my glory will I not give to another, neither my praise to graven images. Behold, the former things are come to pass, and new things do I declare: before they spring forth I tell you of them. (Isa. 42:5–9, KJV)

What was the light that was created before the sun and moon and the stars? This is what the prophet is talking about, and what creation abandoned when sin entered the heart and blinded the children of Adam. There can be no relationship with God without this light, only darkness.

And God said, Let there be light: and there was light. And God saw the light, that it was good: and God divided the light from the darkness. And God called the light Day, and the darkness he called Night. And the evening and the morning were the first day (Gen. 1:3–5, KJV).

God is God, and we are not God. Self by itself sits in darkness; it can never be enlightened without God or his Divine Self, the Aleph-Tav in our midst. His oil ignites his Word and we see what is of value and what is not. We see what truth is and what is not. We see what freedom is and what bondage is. The Creator must be in the midst of creation or we will sit in darkness.

The LORD shall go forth as a mighty man, he shall stir up jealousy like a man of war: he shall cry, yea, roar; he shall prevail against his enemies. I have long time holden my peace; I have been still, and refrained myself: now will I cry like a travailing woman; I will destroy and devour at once. I will make waste mountains and hills, and dry up all their herbs; and I will make the rivers islands, and I will dry up the pools. And I will bring the blind by a way that they knew not; I will lead them in paths that they have not known: I will make darkness light before them, and crooked things straight. These things will I do unto them, and not forsake them. They shall be turned back, they shall be greatly ashamed, that trust in graven images, that say to the molten images, Ye are our gods. Hear, ye deaf; and look, ye blind, that ye may see. Who is blind, but my servant? or deaf, as my messenger that I sent? who is blind as he that is perfect, and blind as the LORD’S servant? Seeing many things, but thou observest not; opening the ears, but he heareth not. The LORD is well pleased for his righteousness’ sake; he will magnify the law, and make it honourable. But this is a people robbed and spoiled; they are all of them snared in holes, and they are hid in prison houses: they are for a prey, and none delivereth; for a spoil, and none saith, Restore. Who among you will give ear to this? who will hearken and hear for the time to come? (Isa. 42:13–23, KJV; emphasis mine)

The self-autonomous, the self-righteous, the self seeking, the independent and humanistic world without God, as Cain and his lineage, will bring sacrifices so that they can appease God and continue on their self-serving agenda. They want a god they can manipulate and form into their image; they do not want to be conformed into his image. The gods of fallen man are like the fallen man—they do not see or hear or work for the benefit of fallen man. But the blind, deaf, and dumb idols represent the value fallen man places of his independence of God. Fallen man does not want a real God, because in our fallen state we think we don’t need to be accountable to anyone or be instructed, or have any boundaries or rules in our life. Like the pre-flood generation, do what thou wilt, is the only agenda. Pleasure for self is the whole agenda of life; a life blinded and in confusion until death swallows it up.

The true servant recognizes he lives in God’s world, and everything he has is from God. The true servant recognizes he can only exist by God’s grace and is blind and deaf to the serpent’s doctrine of you don’t need God, for you are a god.

"For I am the LORD thy God, the Holy One of Israel, thy Saviour: I gave Egypt for thy ransom, Ethiopia and Seba for thee. Since thou wast precious in my sight, thou hast been honourable, and I have loved thee: therefore will I give men for thee, and people for thy life" (Isa. 43:3–4, KJV; emphasis mine).

The prophet continues to show that God is one, he is the sovereign, the leader, the judge, the Savior and restorer. He is only one God with many operations and administrations. Mankind was blinded by sin into thinking God was only a sky god or a river god, or a sea god. The true God is holy and does all things well. He is not three separate persons or divinities. He is beyond our mind, but from his mind, he lets us know he is one. The first and the last.

Bring forth the blind people that have eyes, and the deaf that have ears. Let all the nations be gathered together, and let the people be assembled: who among them can declare this, and shew us former things? let them bring forth their witnesses, that they may be justified: or let them hear, and say, It is truth. Ye are my witnesses, saith the LORD, and my servant whom I have chosen: that ye may know and believe me, and understand that I am he: before me there was no God formed, neither shall there be after me. (Isa. 43:8–10, KJV)

Metzora (The Leper)

Law (Parasha): Leviticus 14:1–15:33

Prophets (Haftara): 2 Kings 7:3–20

The twenty-eighth weekly reading, or parasha, starts a new cycle of Aleph-bet. As in all creation there is a continuous cycle of the elements back to their Creator, so it is with the Torah.

The preacher in Ecclesiastes understood this concept.

One generation passeth away, and another generation cometh: but the earth abideth for ever. The sun also ariseth, and the sun goeth down, and hasteth to his place where he arose. The wind goeth toward the south, and turneth about unto the north; it whirleth about continually, and the wind returneth again according to his circuits. All the rivers run into the sea; yet the sea is not full; unto the place from whence the rivers come, thither they return again. All things are full of labour; man cannot utter it: the eye is not satisfied with seeing, nor the ear filled with hearing. The thing that hath been, it is that which shall be; and that which is done is that which shall be done: and there is no new thing under the sun. Is there any thing whereof it may be said, See, this is new? it hath been already of old time, which was before us. (Eccles. 1:4–10, KJV)

The twenty-eighth weekly reading corresponds to the first aleph in the cycle of Torah. As the Jewish teachers study, they sometimes study by mathematics. As a=1, b=2, c=3, and so forth so 1=a, and 2=b and 3=c, etc. The Hebrew numbers and letters correspond to each other and for centuries the Jewish teachers have used this way to study the Torah. So the twenty-eighth reading corresponds to the first reading as 2+8=10 and 1+0=1, so the twenty-ninth reading corresponds to the second reading as 2+9=11 and 1+1=2 and so on. The Torah and the Hebrew Aleph-bet correspond on differing levels, harmonizing all scripture together and pointing to the author of it all and the one who fulfills every dot and tittle.

We can also liken the harmony of the Torah, as the keyboard had a low C and a middle C and a high C. So the teaching of God’s kingship and authority and sovereignty and oneness and his being first goes into the depths of his word.

The twenty-eighth parasha is entitled Metzora, the leper. What does the leper have to do with the oneness, leadership, authority, and strength of God? Let us dig and look for the nuggets of truth worth more than gold in his glorious plan of creation.

And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying, This shall be the law of the leper in the day of his cleansing: He shall be brought unto the priest: And the priest shall go forth out of the camp; and the priest shall look, and, behold, if the plague of leprosy be healed in the leper; Then shall the priest command to take for him that is to be cleansed two birds alive and clean, and cedar wood, and scarlet, and hyssop: And the priest shall command that one of the birds be killed in an earthen vessel over running water: As for the living bird, he shall take it, and the cedar wood, and the scarlet, and the hyssop, and shall dip them and the living bird in the blood of the bird that was killed over the running water: And he shall sprinkle upon him that is to be cleansed from the leprosy seven times, and shall pronounce him clean, and shall let the living bird loose into the open field. And he that is to be cleansed shall wash his clothes, and shave off all his hair, and wash himself in water, that he may be clean: and after that he shall come into the camp, and shall tarry abroad out of his tent seven days. But it shall be on the seventh day, that he shall shave all his hair off his head and his beard and his eyebrows, even all his hair he shall shave off: and he shall wash his clothes, also he shall wash his flesh in water, and he shall be clean. And on the eighth day he shall take two he lambs without blemish, and one ewe lamb of the first year without blemish, and three tenth deals of fine flour for a meat offering, mingled with oil, and one log of oil. (Lev. 14:1–10, KJV)

The deeper truths of the Lord lead us to a day of deliverance when the power of sin and the guilt of separation from God are washed away by the blood offering of the substitute life. In the depths of truth we find that the mercy of God can and does triumph over guilt and judgment. The law of the leper in the day of his cleansing is that he needed to come to the priest, the intercessor, the minister of the tabernacle and temple of God. Leprosy had given him an independent world, where the leper had his own space and kingdom outside the gates of the temple. The leper is only concerned with and consumed with self. All he has is himself. Everywhere he goes people move out of his way and scatter. He has his own world, but it is a corrupt world.

The leper needed to return to God’s tabernacle and temple in the day of his cleansing, because this was the only clean place in a corrupt world. Real life is in where God was in the midst of all life. Humility and hope is what brings the leper to return to God’s house. In the state of his leprosy, an incurable state, something he cannot solve on his own, the leper recognizes the value of having God in his midst. But how can his corruption be cleansed?

As in the beginning when Adam and Eve had eaten of the forbidden tree and were stained with guilt and separated from their Creator, they had become outcasts because of sin. Adam and Eve were lepers in type. The leper was an outcast from his family, his home, his belongings, his Creator, the things he valued and loved. There was to be no companionship or fellowship. He was alone and without God, independent man, in his own world.