The LORD is Dwelling With Us

As I began to prepare for the Message for Sukkot, I asked the LORD, what He wanted me to share. Sukkot is so full of material for a message, that we could almost go in any direction, and it would be impossible to cover everything in this short time. Therefore, I asked, "What does Sukkot mean?"

I wasn't asking about the Word, which we know refers to "Tabernacles, Booths, or Temporary Dwellings." I was referring to the idea surrounding Sukkot. Why would the LORD Command us to Observe this Holiday every year?

My initial thought was, "To remind us of where we came from." Therefore, it was to teach us humility, and to remember what the LORD has done for us. This is the "Thanks Giving," application of Sukkot. This is the Christian perspective of it, and because of this, we now have a Celebration in North America called, "Thanks Giving" around this time of year.

I then looked deeper into the theme of "Temporary Dwelling." Sukkot is to teach us that "This World is not our home. We are just passing through." Although this theme is shared both by the Jewish and Christian perspectives, it does not begin to incorporate, the universal aspects of Sukkot.

Sukkot was not only an "Old Testament," practise that The Ancient Israelites were to observe, but a practise that is mentioned in prophesy that will be a requisite of all nations in the Millennial reign of the Messiah. (Zechariah 14:16-19)

16 Then the survivors from all the nations that have attacked Jerusalem will go up year after year to worship the King, the LORD Almighty, and to celebrate the Festival of Tabernacles.
17 If any of the peoples of the earth do not go up to Jerusalem to worship the King, the LORD Almighty, they will have no rain.
18 If the Egyptian people do not go up and take part, they will have no rain. The LORD will bring on them the plague he inflicts on the nations that do not go up to celebrate the Festival of Tabernacles.
19 This will be the punishment of Egypt and the punishment of all the nations that do not go up to celebrate the Festival of Tabernacles.

If you are of the belief that The "Old Testament," is a thing of the past? What Bible are you reading? Perhaps this means, that when the LORD establishes an "Everlasting Covenant," He actually means it.

When the LORD wants us to do this every year, it is for a reason. As we know, these "High Holidays," hold a central theme within this season.

From Yom Teruach, the Day of Shouts, and the blowing of the Shofar, we get "The Wake Up Call." Then we have 10 Days of reflection, "The Days of Awe." This is completed by Yom Kippurim, "The Day of Atonement." These are all steps towards Sukkot, where we experience a "Temporary Dwelling" with the LORD. Ultimately, this leads us to Shmini Atzeret, "The Eighth Day," a day symbolic of the Eternal. This is in "expectation" as declared in Psalm 23, "... and I will dwell in the House of the LORD forever!"

Finally, if this is not the time of His Coming to take us to His House, then we celebrate Simchat Torah, which commences another year of instruction, "The Days to Prepare," once again for His Coming, and our translation to the Eternal. There is a central theme to the High Holidays, and it is all to do with His Return. This is not a Thing of the Past.

Perhaps this is why we should start to become more intimate with God's Appointed Times. They still have purpose for this day, less we be ignorant of this mystery.

Therefore, as we begin to embrace the present importance of this Holiday, we must once again look at the deeper meaning behind it.

In the process of trying to understand this theme, I turned back to the beginning of God's relationship with man. As I turned back to the Bereshiet, I found a verse that began to link the Universal aspect of Sukkot to the past, present and future.

"And they heard the voice of the LORD God walking in the garden toward the cool of the day; and the man and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the LORD God amongst the trees of the garden." Genesis 3:8

Now, you may be thinking, "What does this have to do with Sukkot?" To answer this, we must find the weave through Scripture. Let's now look at Leviticus 26:11-12:

11 And I will set My tabernacle among you, and My soul shall not abhor you.
12 And I will walk among you, and will be your God, and ye shall be My people.

Are you beginning to see the common link here?

Verse 11: "My soul shall not abhor you." Why, because we are no longer an abhorrence, because we are "Covered" (Yom Kippurim).

Verse 12: "And I will walk among you..." (Sukkot)

Now, once again, let's look to Zechariah 14:

4 And His feet shall stand in that day upon the mount of Olives, which is before Jerusalem on the east, and the mount of Olives shall cleft in the midst thereof toward the east and toward the west, so that there shall be a very great valley; and half of the mountain shall remove toward the north, and half of it toward the south.

Now, as we begin to apply this to Our understanding of Messiah, we see the contextual connection to a Physical presence of God, which is tied into John 1:14

"The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the One and Only, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth."

Therefore, the common theme is; He wants to be with us, and walk among us. We once existed in a state of "Physical" relationship with God, where Physical is referring to a directly interactive state of relationship, apposed to a proxy based relationship. Due to our "Fall" in the Garden, we were separated by a descended state of awareness of His presence. Meaning that, before "The Fall of Man," He walked among us. Then, due to our Sin, we were separated by a rift of direct conscious awareness. Therefore, God implemented a proxy relationship, which would remain in affect, until He Himself, descended to our lowered status, to dwell with us.

Therefore, upon enacting this event, we would call His name "Immanuel." ("God is with us.")
In my study of the word "Immanuel," I discovered that it is actually two words. Emanu (With us) and El (God) - Hence the meaning "God with us." The root word of Emanu is Aman (Firm) and Emun (Craftsman). This depicts the idea that when He is with us, He is with us, and He is Crafting (or Preparing) us. He isn't going anywhere, and He knows what He is doing. He is secured to us. This is also where we get the word Emunah - Faith. He is Faithful. He will not leave us, nor forsake us. (Hebrews 13:5) Therefore let us "Ascribe Greatness to our God, the Rock." (Deuteronomy 32:3-4)

As we know, the advent of His visitation was short lived (from the perspective of the realm of "The Flesh," but His first coming did fulfil its purpose, and He has brought Salvation to those who believe.

Now, we are also aware of His return, and in the mean time, He declared,

15 "If you love me, keep my commands.
16 And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another advocate to help you and "BE WITH YOU FOREVER" —
17 the Spirit of truth. The world cannot accept him, because it neither sees him nor knows him. But you know him, for he lives "WITH YOU" and will be IN you.
18 I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you.
19 Before long, the world will not see me anymore, but you will see me. Because I live, you also will live.
20 On that day you will realize that I am in my Father, and you are in me, and I am in you.
21 Whoever has my commands and keeps them is the one who loves me. The one who loves me will be loved by my Father, and I too will love them and show myself to them."
(John 14:15-21)

Now, you have heard me teach before, of the various times pointed out in Scripture, that we have had Physical visitations from the LORD.

I usually refer to the enigma of King Melchizedek, because of His Eternal Status, as referred to in Hebrews Chapter 7:1-3

1 This Melchizedek was king of Salem and priest of God Most High. He met Abraham returning from the defeat of the kings and blessed him,
2 and Abraham gave him a tenth of everything. First, the name Melchizedek means "king of righteousness"; then also, "king of Salem" means "king of peace."
3 Without father or mother, without genealogy, without beginning of days or end of life, resembling the Son of God, he remains a priest forever.

Although somewhat ambiguous in nature, King Melchizedek is referred to as "One having no beginning and no end," and His presence during the age of Abraham, connects Yeshua's statement, "before Abraham was born, I am!" (John 8:58)

If you recall, I also refer to Abraham's visitation in Genesis 18, where the LORD eats with Abraham, as one of these Moments in Time.

A couple side notes:

1) In this portion (Genesis 18), Abraham refers to Him as "My Lord." In the Hebrew, it is literally "Adonai," as in the term we use, when referring to "YHVH." What is most interesting is that when "The LORD," speaks to Abraham, the Hebrew is very specific that it is "YHVH," and not just someone that he is referring to as "My Lord."

2) What is also important to note is the consumption of food. This is a proof test of Physical attributes, very much like when Yeshua appeared to His Talmudim, after His Resurrection. He eats with them to prove that He is not simply "A Ghost," as in Luke 24:37-43:

37 They were startled and frightened, thinking they saw a ghost.
38 He said to them, "Why are you troubled, and why do doubts rise in your minds?
39 Look at my hands and my feet. It is I myself! Touch me and see; a ghost does not have flesh and bones, as you see I have."
40 When he had said this, he showed them his hands and feet.
41 And while they still did not believe it because of joy and amazement, he asked them, "Do you have anything here to eat?"
42 They gave him a piece of broiled fish,
43 and he took it and ate it in their presence.

One other reference that I usually point out is from Daniel 3:25 regarding Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-nego in the fiery furnace:

25 "He answered and said, Lo, I see four men loose, walking in the midst of the fire, and they have no hurt; and the form of the fourth is like the Son of God."

Again, a side note: I was raised on King James, and therefore I only knew it Translated this way. However, I have just become aware that this portion was actually written in Aramaic, and that this Translation may not be as "Specific" as I initially thought. None the less, I will be conducting further Midrash on this topic, and at some point, get back to you with my findings.

In any case, I want to conclude with an examination of Isaiah 7:14.

14 Therefore the Lord Himself shall give you a sign: behold, the young woman shall conceive, and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel. ("God is with us")

This is from the JPS (Jewish Publication Society) translation. If you notice, most of our translations use the word "Virgin," in place of "young woman." However, the JPS avoids the use of this translation for obvious "Theological" reasons.

It is commonly argued by our Rabbis that the concept of "God Dwelling with us," is purely metaphoric, and that the aspect of using the Isaiah 7:14 verse to help support the Messiah's Virgin birth, is a stretch in applied hermeneutics.

In context, I would have to agree with the latter part of the Rabbis position. This verse, in and of itself, within the context of Isaiah 7, does not support a direct connection to the Messiah's virgin birth. (Note: "Direct Connection") Especially due to the fact that the word used in Hebrew, to describe "Virgin," is not specific enough to incorporate a young women, "who has not known a man." The Word "almah" is used within this context. It can be translated as "virgin," as in "young women," but is not specific enough to refer to as "One who has not known a man." The word more associated with this specific term is "Betulah," as in Genesis 24 referring to the Bride of Yitzchak, Rivka. In verse 16, it is used specifically to refer to "One who has not known a man." Upon further survey of Scripture, and looking for commonality of use, I found that Betulah was used more specifically to "Virgin," as it is to mean in English, apposed to simply a "Young Woman."

That being said, I do not agree with the Rabbis regarding "God is With us," to only refer to a metaphoric use. The name Immanuel fulfils the very concept of Sukkot, and God's plan to "Physically" dwell with us, as in the specific use of Zechariah 14, where His feet are placed in a very specific and physical position, for a very specific and physical purpose.

Now, I do not claim to be an expert in Hebrew, and so I am working with what I have. Therefore, regardless of the use of "Almah," and "Betulah," what is important to note about Isaiah 7:14 is the use of "The Virgin." Although "Almah," is more commonly used to describe "A Young Woman," opposed to the specifics of "One who has not known a man," the use of the preposition "Ha" in Hebrew or "The" in English, depicts something VERY specific.

Once again, in context:

14 "Therefore the Lord Himself shall give you a sign: behold, THE young woman shall conceive, and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel."

Regardless of the translation of "Virgin," this verse is implying something profound, and should not simply be dismissed as "It doesn't mean that!"

The point is, Rabbis, "What DOES it mean?"

Well, I'll tell you how the Gospel of Matthew demonstrates its meaning within Prophetic and Historical application:

This verse is tied to Matthew Chapter 1:23:

"The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel"
As I read this, for the first time as a child, I asked the question, "Then why did the Angel just say to Joseph to call Him Yeshua, two verses back?"

"She will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Yeshua, because he will save his people from their sins." Matthew 1:21

As a child, I asked questions, and I thank the LORD that I still do. I'd rather have His Truth, than my assumptions. Amen?

OK - So - What do we do with these verse discrepancies? Do we say - "Too much," or do we apply some common sense?

Here's what I got: It doesn't say, "He shall be named Immanuel," it says, "His NAME shall be called Immanuel." This is to say that His Name, Yeshua ("Salvation") shall be called "God is with us," because when He comes to "Save us from our Sins," He will come down (Physically) to us, to do so.

The fact of the matter is that regardless of what Theological twist you want to put on it, or take away from it, the fulfilment of Isaiah 7:14 is clearly explained in Matthew 1:23. I mean, you could argue the semantics and hermeneutics until you are no more, but The Truth is, is that Yeshua has fulfilled this Prophesy. Who else in History has, or ever can?

The point is that "The Lord Himself shall give you a sign." The sign is that He has come to us, so that He can take us to be with Him. This is the meaning of Sukkot. He wants to Tabernacle with us. He wants to dwell with us, and walk physically among us again.

Therefore, as you sit in your Sukkot this year, thinking about all the troubles in this World, all around you, remember that you are just passing through. Take a moment to experience the elements, and as you look through the leaves of your Sukkah's Roof, remember what the LORD told us, "And when these things begin to come to pass, then look up, and lift up your heads; for your redemption draweth nigh."
(Luke 21:28)

Perhaps this is why He wanted us to see through the roof.

May the LORD bless you on this Sukkot, and may He return soon to Tabernacle with us.