Category: July 2022

From the book “Understanding the Difficult Words of Jesus” Authors David Blivin’s and Roy Blizzard Jr. “The more Hebraic the saying or teaching of Yeshua the more difficult it is to understand….Most of Yeshua’s sayings are Hebrew idioms which do not translate into Greek”  The synoptic Gospels are derived from original Hebrew texts. Hebraic Idioms become meaningless when translated into Greek then English. In spite of the fact that some of the letters were initially written in Greek, the background and setting is thoroughly Hebrew. The writers are Hebrew, the culture is Hebrew, the religion is Hebrew, the traditions are Hebrew, and the concepts are Hebrew.  The Old Testament is 78% of the bible and the New Testament is 22%. Of course, the Tanach, the Old Testament is Hebrew and 43% of the New Testament was written originally in Hebrew, Matthew, Mark, Luke, and Acts 1-15 which is 43% of the New Testament, of the entire Bible, 88% is written in Hebrew! If you subtract the 176 quotations in the Brait Chadesha, the New Testament taken from the Tanach, the Old Testament, the Hebrew portion rises to 90%. Wonder why all this Greek stuff doesn’t make any sense, Its all Greek to me!

Eusebius stated emphatically that Matthew was written in Hebrew then translated to Greek. Jerome stated in 400 AD that all of Matthew was written in Hebrew and that in his time the original text still survived at the library in Caesarea. Jerome lived that last 31 years of his life in Jerusalem as he wanted to be closer to Adonai and read the original text in Hebrew. This original copy was destroyed when the library burned down in the great 4^th century earthquake! This then reveals why the term Jehovah is never found in scripture and is actually a dangerous term to use.

Let’s break down the term Jehovah.  Je is Germanic/Latin for the Hebrew Yah.  There is no “J” in the Hebrew language, so the Germanic Latin equivalent of the vowel “Y” is “J”. Hova is a Hebrew word that means ruin/destroy (Strong’s Ref# 1943). Every time you say Jehovah Your saying God Destroys!  Jehovah Jira-God ruins/destroys my provision, Jehovah Perizim-God ruins/destroys my breakthrough! The term Jehovah was invented by a German scribe in the 16th century when unsure of how to correctly translate Yah from the Hebrew Text.

We must use caution in what we use as resources in the Kingdom, deception abounds! This is critical as Father desires those who will worship Him in Spirit and Truth!

Genesis chapter 22 is the source of the ancient rabbinical explanation of the Shofar’s beginning. When Abraham took Isaac to be sacrificed, an Angel appeared and stopped Abraham just before he sacrificed Isaac.  God provided the sacrifice, a ram caught in a thicket.  Here’s the tradition as retold by Jewish sages:  After sacrificing the ram, Abraham took one horn of the ram to remember this day and God took the other. Abraham was known to make altars, to keep reminders of whenever and wherever he met God.  He would go back and visit those places. Though this is an interesting story about Avraham it is not scriptural but the Shofar is!  The first mention of the Shofar in Torah is found in:

The Shofar is a spiritual instrument that announces the arrival of God and calls in God’s Glory! The Shofar is a warfare instrument.  The Shofar is symbolic of obedience to God!  Shofars are made from the horns of the ram, mountain goat, kudu, antelope, and oryx.  Because of the Golden Calf incident, a bull’s horn is never kosher for a Shofar. The Shofar grew louder announcing the presence of Adonai.

We are commanded to sound the Shofar on Yom Teruah (Feast of Trumpets):

The sound of the Shofar staggers and confuses HaSatan who at the first sounding thinks that we are merely complying with the command to blow the Shofar – the second blowing he (HaSatan) thinks it might be the return of Messiah as we know from:

A translation error from Hebrew to Greek has trumpet being used in most bible translations vice Shofar. There were two silver trumpets that were in the Temple but there were rarely used. The reemergence of the Shofar in the Greater Body of Messiah is a sign of restoration and revival!

Judges 7:15-22 tells the story of Gideon’s obedience and the destruction of the Midianite army by the Israeli army upon the great blast of 300 Shofars! Joshua chapter 6 relates the story of Israel walking around Jericho six times (six being the number of man, man can’t do anything on his own but, seven, the number of the Holy Spirit shows us how God is the only way anything can get done) with incessant Shofar blowing and absolutely no talking then on the seventh 7^th time they blow the Shofars and all the people shout at the top of their lungs, the walls of Jericho come crashing down! We see that the Shofar is used in spiritual warfare!

Job 2:2 reveals that HaSatan (devil) is walking this earth! I Peter 5:8 says the Devil is roaming about waiting to devour (us!) like a Lion! These passages show us that HaSatan, the enemy does in fact roam the earth!  So based on the knowledge given us in the second paragraph of this article, when we blow the Shofar the first time the enemy thinks that we are being obedient and blowing the Shofar as God commands in Leviticus but on the second blast the enemy thinks the Messiah is coming, so he flees before us. This is why we start every service by sounding the Shofar, we sound the shofar in home dedications, and on all the feast days except Yom Kippur! At the final shofar the dead will be raised!

The establishment of the Messianic Reign and Yeshua’s return to earth is heralded by the sounding of the Shofar!

Blowing the Shofar while praying over a brother or sister opens the heavens and clears a path for those prayers. Blowing of the Shofar when beginning any type of service will clear the space of any presence of the enemy. God’s glory descends on the sounding of the Shofar! The Shofar is also a powerful intercessory prayer instrument used by watchman and prayer warriors alike! Each Watchman had a shofar, there were hundreds of calls! They would announce sunrise and sunset with the shofar! They would sound the shofar if an enemy approached, they sounded the Shofar in war, they would sound the shofar to begin and end Shabbat! The Shofar is a heavenly communication tool.

TEN REASONS WE BLOW THE SHOFAR.

1. When we hear the shofar we are to remember God’s Kingship. In ancient Israel the new king’s reign was announced with the shofar (1 Kings 1:34). When we blow the shofar we remember that Yeshua is King of Kings and Lord of Lords and we are to be obedient subjects.

2. When we hear the shofar we are to remember to be God’s worshippers. God seeks those who will worship Him in spirit and in truth. The Shofar is used in worship and in fact heads the list of instruments in Psalm 150, which are used to worship God. “Praise Him with the Shofar.”

3. When we hear the Shofar we are to remember our need to repent. The Shofar signaled the approach of danger. We are in danger without repentance. “Blow a Shofar in Zion and sound an alarm on my holy mountain… consecrate a fast, proclaim a solemn assembly. Return to Me with all your heart, and with fasting, weeping and mourning, and rend your heart and not your garments” (Joel 2:1, 12- 13).

4. When we hear the Shofar we are to remember the faithfulness of the Patriarch. The Shofar is made from a ram’s horn. It reminds us of the Akedah, the binding and Abraham’s intended sacrifice of Isaac. Because of this act of faith, God promised to bless the Jewish people and give us victory over our enemies. The Shofar is a reminder of our covenant with God because of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.

5. When we hear the Shofar we are to remember the binding of Messiah Yeshua, our ultimate Akedah. Abraham prophesied that God would provide for Himself the Lamb for the burnt offering (Genesis 22:8). Messiah Yeshua was offered up as the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world on that same spot two thousand years later.

6. When we hear the Shofar we are to remember the Shofar that accompanied the revelation of the giving of the Torah on Mount Sinai, and that all Scripture is divinely inspired by God.

7. When we hear the Shofar we are to remember the battle alarm for war. “Near is the great day of the L-rd, near and coming very quickly… a day of Shofar and battle cry” (Zephaniah 1:14-16). Messiah will return and fight during the greatest battle of all time, the battle of Armageddon. We are in the middle of a battle that has been raging for the soul of humanity. HaSatan and his fallen angels are fighting for people to share their destiny. Messiah Yeshua is fighting for people to share His eternal destiny.

8. When we hear the Shofar we are to remember our resurrection that will take place at Messiah’s return when the Shofar blows (1 Corinthians 15:52, 1 Thessalonians 4:16).

9. When we hear the Shofar we are to be reminded of Aliya, our people’s restoration to the Land of Israel. Messiah Yeshua will gather all of Israel’s exiles.

10. When we sound the Shofar we are asking God to remember us. The sounding of the Shofar is like a prayer that ascends to God’s throne saying, “O Lord, may the sound of our Shofar ascend before Your throne. Remember Your covenants, forgive us, save us, and deliver us.” As an instrument of proclamation, announcing the presence or coming of the Lord.

Finally, the sounding of the Shofar Heralds the Day of the Lord:

Until the Shofar Sounds again, be blessed!

Rabbi Eric S Carlson

Shalom Mishpocha!

It’s July, summer has arrived! We are halfway through this year, where is the time going? The Messianic Jewish Alliance of America (M.J.A.A) annual “Messiah Conference” begins this Sunday July 3^rd at Messiah College in Grantham PA. Monday, July 4^th, 2022. Congregation Zion’s Sake offices will be closed in observance of Independence Day! The United States Declaration of Independence is the pronouncement adopted by the Second Continental Congress meeting in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, on July 4, 1776. Enacted during the American Revolution, the Declaration explains why the Thirteen Colonies were at war with the Kingdom of Great Britain and that they regarded themselves as thirteen independent sovereign states, no longer under British rule. With the Declaration of Independence, these new states took a collective first step in forming the United States of America. The declaration was made to guarantee equal rights for every person!

As you celebrate Independence Day this year, please pray for no traffic fatalities across the entire Commonwealth of Virginia over this three-day weekend! Say a prayer of thanks for those who have served and are currently serving in our military preserving our freedoms and way of life! As believers, we can thank Adonai for both physical and spiritual freedom in Yeshua. As you enjoy the Fourth of July festivities, celebrating our nation’s freedom, thank Adonai for the deliverance and freedom from sin He has given us through His Son, Yeshua, and for the new, abundant life we have in Him.

We are also entering into prime hurricane season! It’s time to prepare and get ready, not only for hurricane season but for the chaotic times we live in! I’ve been sharing articles on our social media of current events. I do so not to invoke fear but to make you aware so that you may prepare! Here is a profound biblical example of why:

There is a powerful mystery revealed here! Israel was in the midst of a severe famine due to their sin, idolatry, and apostasy from Adonai! People were dying of starvation! Yet when the widow was obedient to the word of Adonai, she and her son had enough provision to make it through the famine!! What supplies she had didn’t run out! The key is that she had something! This is why I have a great passion for people to get ready and be prepared! Adonai uses multiplication in the Kingdom! One million times zero equals zero! One million times one is one million! We must have something, a base or foundation so that He can multiply what we do have!!! This is a profound revelation for us today living in similar circumstances! Here is a very basic list of items to have on hand in case of any emergency.

1. Several Flashlights.
2. An ample supply of Lithium batteries (lithium lasts longer).
3. A good first aid kit.
4. Water, One gallon per person per day.
5. Candles with matches/lighters.
6. Emergency canned food that is high in protein such as Beans, Peanut Butter, Beef stew. Items that have a long shelf life, are ready to eat, and need no preparation. At least a three-day supply per person (I recommend a 30-day supply).
7. An emergency self-powered radio that can be charged with a hand crank or solar charged.
8. Make sure you have any prescription medicines you need on hand!
9. A whistle (to signal for help)
10. Dust mask (to help filter contaminated air)
11. Plastic sheeting and duct tape (to shelter in place)
12. Moist towelettes, garbage bags and plastic ties (for personal sanitation)
13. Manual can opener (for food)
14. Local maps
15. Cell phone with chargers and a backup battery

Additional items to consider:

1. Infant formula and diapers.
2. Pet food, water, and supplies for your pet.
3. Important family documents such as copies of insurance policies, identification and bank account records in a portable waterproof container.
4. Cash and change – ATM machines will not be functioning without electricity.
5. Sleeping bag or warm blanket for each person. Consider additional bedding if you live in a cold-weather climate.
6. Complete change of clothing including a long-sleeved shirt, long pants and sturdy shoes. Consider additional clothing if you live in a cold-weather climate.
7. Fire Extinguisher.
8. Feminine supplies, personal hygiene items and hand sanitizer.
9. Mess kits, Paper cups, plates and disposable utensils, paper towels.
10. Paper and pencil.
11. Books, games, puzzles, or other activities for children.
12. Generator with gasoline. The week before a hurricane enters our area you will not find a generator in any store, anywhere in our area! The time to buy a generator is now if you are considering purchasing one!
13. VHF/UHF handheld radios for communication with friends and family. Cell phones and cell towers often do not work in times of emergency.

This is a very basic list, adapt it for your own personal preferences and needs! I also recommend that you have a resource to defend and protect yourself and your family. In times of catastrophes such as New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina in 2005 there we’re no emergency services (police or EMS) for almost 30 days. Gather extra supplies to share! Being prepared is a supernatural opportunity during any emergency to be a blessing to others. Whether that is providing information, know-how skills, or actual supplies or food, being prepared can spread the love and salvation of Yeshua during stressful times. In the extremely unlikely event that all communication is down Congregation Zion’s Sake has an FM transmitter and a 15ft Antenna that has approx. a 12-mile broadcast radius from our offices. We will broadcast on 99.5 FM pertinent and emergency information to your emergency radio.

As Believers, we should always be prepared (Remember the ten bridesmaids in Matthew 25? Five were prepared and five weren’t), aware of our surroundings, and paying attention to what is happening in the world around us. Remember, acts of kindness open eyes of blindness!

As we enjoy the summer sun, gather for picnics and barbeques, enjoy the beach and warm ocean, and take our well-deserved vacations-be safe, spend daily time in prayer and worship, and above all else seek Adonai in all that we do! As recorded in Proverbs:

May Adonai bless you and keep you!

Blessings and Shalom,

Rabbi and Rebbitzen Carlson