#14 Sabbath, Return to the Covenant.

This post brings us full circle back to day seven.

I started this discussion of seven segments of time with the unusual approach by addressing the last segment, day seven first. As I explained, my reason for this approach is because Human, was created last on the sixth day and therefore experiences, day seven, Sabbath, a day of rest, as his first day.

The obvious implication for humanity is, day seven “rest” comes before “the work” of day one through six. So which is most important work or rest?

There are six days set apart for work. However for humanity, the day for rest is first. Creating a rather interesting balance, a narrow path, if you will. Work is clearly important, as there are six days set apart for it. However rest’s day has the unique importance of being first for humanity. One cannot help but think of Jesus’ words in Mark 2:27 “The Sabbath was made for man, and not man for the Sabbath.”

None the less the answer to “Which is more important?” has to be, they are both important and one cannot replace the other. For those humans who are unmotivated and inclined to sloth, the narrow walk of faith is clear “work six”. For those inclined to never rest, the narrow walk of faith is also clear, “rest first, on the seventh day, month, year or seventh set of seven years” to prepare for the six of work to come. In either rest or work having the order correct and the elements of time in their proper place, appears to be of great value.

This idea of preparation for the six of work to come, shows itself clearly for the household of faith in Deuteronomy 15 and 31. Israel is instructed to release all debts, as a way to have its economic system in a state of maximum flexibility, as it comes to the seventh month of the seventh year. 

There are also instructions to release slaves and to rest the agricultural land.

Each of these would have also had the economic effect of reset or new beginnings for the upcoming six years of work. They each demonstrate a willingness to lay down “our work” and fervent belief in new birth, life from the dead, and hope beyond what our eyes can see.

For me the adaptation of these concepts to modern life has a uniquely powerful draw. How much more effectively could we be with our economic resources if we adapted these ideas to our lives? But how? How do we return to this system? What are the steps? Where do we start?

Some time ago, I ran across Jeff Benner’s white paper on the Hebrew word Shabbat. 

(Its link is here http://www.ancient-hebrew.org/thelivingwords/sabbath.pdf )

In his piece Mr. Benner tells us that when considering the word Shabbat using the ancient, Paleo script, one comes to understand “Shabbat” as having a core meaning “return to the covenant”

But what covenant? There are a number of covenants in the bible but one sticks out as a uniquely, “rest first” covenant. In Genesis 15 the covenant God makes with Abram is completed when a mysterious open flame and a glowing red hot furnace passes between cut up pieces of animals.  The passage records that Abram is asleep and in great darkness when this happens. In other words he is at rest. His works will follow but for the moment of receiving the covenant, he was at rest.

So also it appears, every time we rest in a set apart, seventh segment of time, we also are joining or rejoining Abram’s “rest first” covenant, or as Mr. Benner’s word pictures suggests we “return to the covenant”. After all, it was while he was at rest that Abram received a whole new direction and expectation for his life. I expect rest, as proscribed in the seventh segment of time, can and will open a new beginning for us as well. 

In doing so, our six of work will become more fulfilling and productive. Even more important, we will begin to have the means to fulfill another of God’s’ promises to Abram. “In you shall all the nations of the earth be blessed” Genesis 12:3

A close study of Revelation 1 will reveal the identity of that mysterious open flame and a glowing red hot furnace. Therefore our study ends where it began resting in day seven, anticipating the LIGHT of day one.

#13 The Transition from day five to day six, DECISION TIME IS NOW!

This may be the most fluid transition of the whole set. The flying and swimming “Nephesh Chay” (Strong’s H5315 and H2416) are now joined by the land walkers and runners. The hard and dangerous work of figuring out how to handle day five’s critters, relatively easily transfers to the management of the first set of day six’s created beings.

However it should be expected that systems and relationships will become more complex.

The creation of Human in day six signals that a “God like” being has entered the arena and from now on his role will affect the rest of creation for good or evil.

All of creation now awaits Human’s decision…. Will he rest and worship the Creator or will he plunge ahead, continuing to try to improve his enterprise, in essence worshiping the works of his hands?

Signs of his decision will be evident in day six, since if he plans to rest and worship he will be in the mode of preparation and gathering in day six. On the other hand if he plans to ignore the day of rest he will be setting things up with the intent to build and grow his enterprise in a liner fashion without regard for the revealed.

Sometimes he may get away with this lack of respect for his Creator, but eventually there will be a day of reckoning. The concurring sets of seven days, months, years and sets of seven years, all running simultaneously, causes these reckonings to appear random and convinces an untrained eye that our world is not understandable or ordered.

However a trained eye can see clear purpose of each segment of time.  In many respects creation is as much about division of one element from another, as it is about adding new elements. Early on elements are moved from where they were before to new defined, purposeful locations.  For example the water becomes restricted to its place above and below in day two and later, farther restricted to the seas, lakes and rivers creating bare ground as the place for plants in day three.

Each new day brings new physical structures or beings into the arena but these new creations are set in their place apart from those that came before.

Fish are given the water, birds the air and mammals and human the land. All of these are also separated into male and female form. Therefore not only are these beings created but they are properly set in their habitation, each with their unique role.

As you may recall the element of time came into being in day four with the advent of the sun, moon and stars. This division of time has some very unique characteristics. Its role in our lives is huge yet without the revelation, it’s as though there is nothing we can do with or about time, except to march through it, one day after another. However the information revealed by the biblical counts of seven shows division, separation and specific purpose for each segment of time. They also explain the reckonings that happen from time to time, to those who ignore the revealed appointments.    

Human as the last created being, given the right to rule, has a decision to make, If he chooses to ignore the appointed times the Creator set, then the divisions so neatly organized by the divine hand will begin to break down and the chaos of Genesis 1:2 will begin to creep back into our ordered world.

Next week we will explore the antidote for this creeping chaos and the gift that allows the return to the divine order.     

#12 Day Six, The Zenith Double

A time to gather

²⁴ Then God said, “Let the earth bring forth living creatures after their kind: cattle and creeping things and beasts of the earth after their kind”; and it was so. ²⁵ God made the beasts of the earth after their kind, and the cattle after their kind, and everything that creeps on the ground after its kind; and God saw that it was good.

²⁶ Then God said, “Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness; and let them rule over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the sky and over the cattle and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.” ²⁷ God created man in His own image, in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them. ²⁸ God blessed them; and God said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply, and fill the earth, and subdue it; and rule over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the sky and over every living thing that moves on the earth.” ²⁹ Then God said, “Behold, I have given you every plant yielding seed that is on the surface of all the earth, and every tree which has fruit yielding seed; it shall be food for you; ³⁰ and to every beast of the earth and to every bird of the sky and to everything that moves on the earth which has life, I have given every green plant for food”; and it was so. ³¹ God saw all that He had made, and behold, it was very good. And there was evening and there was morning, the sixth day. Genesis 1:24-31

Day six of the creation story is simply full of complex new life. First mammals in all their varieties, suitable for various purposes, terrain, intake and life cycles. Then of course the creation of humanity itself, created to take charge, or rule over all that had been created.

Here is an interesting thought: Is it not unusual to have an ecosystem so complex created and then bring in the ruler or overseer? Much has been made of the human, being made in the image of God but think of his lack of knowledge and understanding. Having been just been created, human had no part in the six days of creation and now with complete ignorance, he is put in charge.

Can this mean anything other than God wanted an ongoing moment by moment, day by day relationship with his final created being?  I think not!

For us who are finishing up a sixth, be it a day, month, year or a set of seven years the lesson seems to be that all the pieces are in place. One can begin to understand fully what the “echad” unity of day one was trying to communicate. In some ways our work of these six has yielded beyond our expectations and yet likely along the way we have suffered loss. Some of our dreams have developed beyond our wildest hopes, while others where lost amid the waves of days one and two or died for lack of new life in day four or where bitten in day five or even day six.

Notice that all these new creatures of day six, just like the day five creatures, have “chay nefesh”. (Vigorous bodies with self-determination, mouths and teeth for communication and biting) If we have figured out how to handle the creatures of day five, then day six critters can be managed in similar fashion with some adaptation. Day six should show great progress for the works of our hands. Day six should be full of good surprises.

Here the manna story of Exodus 16 comes into play giving us some instruction.

²² Now on the sixth day they gathered twice as much bread, two omers for each one. When all the leaders of the congregation came and told Moses, ²³ then he said to them, “This is what the Lord meant: Tomorrow is a sabbath observance, a holy sabbath to the Lord. Bake what you will bake and boil what you will boil, and all that is left over put aside to be kept until morning.” ²⁴ So they put it aside until morning, as Moses had ordered, and it did not become foul nor was there any worm in it.²⁵ Moses said, “Eat it today, for today is a sabbath to the Lord; today you will not find it in the field.²⁶ Six days you shall gather it, but on the seventh day, the sabbath, there will be none.” Exodus 16:22-26

Day six, it turns out is not just a great day for progress but is also a day of preparation for day seven, “the day of rest”. Gather double and prepare it, seems to be the direction.

Here then is another counter intuitive moment. Having just seen everything improve so greatly, the call to prepare to cease building seems rather strange. After all the struggle, after all the loss. We now find ourselves with a fine, working system and now the instruction is to prepare to stop!

Here again is a moment for faith. Remember we are not the Creator only the created, made in the Creator’s image. We need to learn from him how his creation works and tomorrow, day seven will be our first day of intense training … or should I say a day of rest.

The fundamental lesson he wants all of us to learn is that REST is to be first in our lives followed by six days of work. So also for months, years and sets of seven years.

Always remember man was made last on the sixth day and he was put in charge of all of creation, crowned as the ruler and his first day was a day of rest.

If we somehow find ourselves successful or “MADE” in a sixth segment of time, now we know the purpose is to develop a place, ruled by the gracious time line of rest first and then work in the six prepared ahead for us.

Can you hear Ephesians 2 in the Genesis story?

⁸ For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; ⁹ not as a result of works, so that no one may boast. ¹⁰ For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand so that we would walk in them. Ephesians 2:8-10

Grace or rest must be first in our lives, then the works of our hands follow. Since they are prepared ahead for us, it would also be wise to acknowledge how clueless we are and our great need for divine wisdom for our new role.   

#11 The transition from day four, to day five

Hey … Look at that!

The fifth letter of the Hebrew alphabet is pronounced “hey” and has a root meaning of action, spirit and revelation.  The four letter name of God uses this letter twice, also “hey” is the letter that was added to Abram and Sarai’s name to indicate their new relationship with God. In its earliest Paleo form (seen attached) the fifth letter is the sketch of a man with his hands raised as if to exclaim “hey … Look at that!” and indeed as day five develops the sights are amazing.

These sightings often only last a split second as one or a group of the new beings of the air or water puts on a display. The less than productive, almost boring phase of day four is over. A new dynamic is now in place. The preparation, work and vision of our efforts in days one, two, three and four now has a chance to yield some great progress. The advantage seems to go to the strong or those with the means to harvest these wily creatures. While the weak seem vulnerable to the flocks above and the schools below. There is one factor of hope for the less strong or those of moderate means and that is timing.

The revealed use of the guiding lights of day four, give direction for when to rest and when to deploy your nets. When to be under cover and when to come out and play in this new world, now dominated by the mobile biters.

Better to be at the right place at the right time with little capability than to be at the wrong place at the wrong time with large capability. For many, during day five, luck appears to rule the day, some seem just lucky to be at the right place at the right time. Others, seemingly well prepared, find themselves simply positioned badly, ending up damaged or even consumed by some biter that no one saw coming.

On the other hand, the combination of a well-placed bit of produce from day three and timing from day four offers the hunter an opportunity for a successful ambush.

Day five is quite a ride, but if you can find some success in day five the sixth day may be very good indeed.

Hat tip again to Jeff Benner for the letter “Hey” .

#10 Day five, Behold the mobile biters

If day four was too boring for you, day five will make up for it. In day five we are about to experience new life in a very active and at times terrifying form.

Then God said, “Let the waters teem with swarms of living creatures, and let birds fly above the earth in the open expanse of the heavens.” God created the great sea monsters and every living creature that moves, with which the waters swarmed after their kind, and every winged bird after its kind; and God saw that it was good. God blessed them, saying, “Be fruitful and multiply, and fill the waters in the seas, and let birds multiply on the earth.” There was evening and there was morning, a fifth day. Genesis 1:20-23

A new life of swarming sea creatures and creatures capable of flight, fill the seas and the skies, showing clearly day five’s rhyme with day two’s creation of space separating water above from water below.

These creatures are not to be taken for granted or simply admired, because unlike the vegetation type life of day three these creatures have very unique capabilities.

Along with having physical bodies designed for travel in their element, water or sky. They have mouths, with teeth, they can bite, communicate with each other and they have brains and thus self-determination. They go where they wish often at very high speeds.

The plant life of day three is the base of their food chain but they also feed on each other and you, if they get a chance.

To survive and prosper in day five one needs good timing. Unlike the vegetation of day three which was immobile and could be harvested when you wished. The birds and fish of day five are a considerable challenge. Capturing them is very difficult and now they are eating the vegetation of day three as well as biting you when they get a chance.

Interestingly, the ecology is self-sustaining, in addition to the food chain, the plants produce the oxygen the birds and fish consume, while they in turn produce carbon dioxide which the plants consume.

The element of time marked by the celestial bodies of day four will now become crucial for any success. As any gathering of this new life will require being at the right place at the right time, with means and a plan

Opportunity in day five is huge, almost unimaginable, but the requirement is good timing and to be equipped to handle some very difficult creatures. Creatures who have the breath of life, a mind for self-determination and a body of flesh which can fly or swim with strength and skill.

If day four was a disappointment, day five will be a challenge, it can be very rewarding or it can be devastating.

I have to add that sitting here in spring of 2014 the above scene certainly reminds me of the business climate since the fall of 2008. All the assumptions that have developed since 1980 are under review and revision. The opportunities are huge so are the dangers.

Note: For this post I owe considerable credit to Jeff Benner and his insights concerning Strong’s #H2416 “chay” and #H5315 “nephesh” usually translated “living creature”. You can find his work at www.ancient-hebrew.org

#9 A New Normal, Transition to the second set of three.

The transition from day three, to day four is a disappointment for the logical thinker. We noted how everything suddenly made logical sense in day three when water, light, air and bare ground suddenly yielded the new life of vegetation. For the naturalist the hope is that we have turned a corner and the logical growth of our enterprise will continue. Having suffered through day one and day two he grasps the results of day three as proof of better days ahead.

In day four however things on earth see no improvement at all and instead new lights appear in the sky overhead. The naturalist has run into a day that is all about setting standards. Most importantly standards of time. Long term, the benefits of this day will become evident, but in the moment, day four is a disappointment for anyone seeking a continuation or improvement on the first set of three days.

Indeed day four is the beginning of its own set of three days and in many respects just as the light of day one exposed chaos and signaled that order was about to begin, so also the lights of day four signal an opportunity to order, the most difficult concept of time.

The element of time in our world is a mystery, more often, simply accepted than explored. More often taken for granted as normal, than thought of as extraordinary. In order to harness this component of our lives, we moderns have created a calendar which, using mathematical dates, simply moves forward in a steady march, adding one day to the next, one month to the next and one year to the next.

We barely think of the celestial bodies as time setters and it seldom occurs to us that in some way, we may have lived this day before or that history may have clues for us based on the rhythms of the celestial time setters. Therefore we miss many opportunities for new beginnings and sound endings. As a result our transitions in life are chaotic, halfhearted and often forced due to circumstance.

And no wonder since by the end of day four our natural eyes have seen one day, “day three” in which new life has been evidenced. Three of four have been seemingly sterile or inert. Our patience continues to be tested. It’s obvious now that day one and two where necessary for the new life of day three. Day four returns us to testing mode and requires more grit and determination.  As our story develops it will also become obvious, that the time setters of day four will also be of great value.

We are about to experience life very unlike the life we were so happy about back in day three. Day four is a time to set standards and consider the times, look back over previous cycles and set out on a new or maybe altered path. Like day one it’s a new beginning and we will need all our tools and resources for success when day five is revealed.

#8 Day Four

Signs for appointed times,

This may be my most important post to date. The ideas expressed in these next few paragraphs are hard won. Yet the journey to acquire these insights have been so remarkable that I would not change a thing.

Day four begins a new series of three and as such, it has more in common or “unity” with day one than it does with the day that proceeded it. Indeed the transition from the third to the fourth day can be most counter intuitive. I will discuss that transition next week

¹⁴ Then God said, “Let there be lights in the expanse of the heavens to separate the day from the night, and let them be for signs and for *seasons* and for days and years; ¹⁵ and let them be for lights in the expanse of the heavens to give light on the earth”; and it was so. ¹⁶ God made the two great lights, the greater light to govern the day, and the lesser light to govern the night; He made the stars also. ¹⁷ God placed them in the expanse of the heavens to give light on the earth, ¹⁸ and to govern the day and the night, and to separate the light from the darkness; and God saw that it was good.¹⁹ There was evening and there was morning, a fourth day. Genesis 1:14-19 NASB

The writer shows us that these celestial bodies have two purposes the first of which is “as signs for seasons, and for days and years” the secondary purpose, apparently, is “to give light on the earth”. The writer goes on to speak of the greater light to govern the day and the lesser light to govern the night. Much more is going on here than simply providing light.

From this day forward it will be the sun and the moon which will be used to explain the meaning of time and to identify important times to those of us in on the revelation.  

The writer shows the lights in the heavens as created beings, not eternal. He does this by recording that they are created on the fourth day. In other words they have a beginning and as modern researchers now know, they also have an end. This is a very passive aggressive way to demonstrate that the ancient pagan practice of worship of the sun, moon and stars is meaningless and without merit.

Therefore we are subtly warned that these lights above are not gods, but we are to pay attention to them, because it is by their guidance, in collaboration with the revealed, that we will be able to identify important elements of time including days and years.

But notice the phrase “for signs for seasons” in verse 14, the word translated “seasons” is the Hebrew word “mow’ed”, Strongs number H4150.

The word mow’ed is best translated appointment or appointed time. In other words the sun and moon will be used to guide us to specific moments in time. 

This is the purpose of this entire study, to coordinate our efforts with the Creator’s timing. But what times you may ask?

If you recall in my introductory piece I mentioned the Biblical Feast of Tabernacles and its significance concerning the release of debts in the seventh year according to Deuteronomy 31:10 and the role it played in identifying this pattern.

Take a look at Leviticus 23 verse 2 from the New American Standard.

 “The Lord’s appointed times which you shall proclaim as holy convocations—My appointed times are these:” Twice in this verse the term “appointed times” is used, both clearly defined as God’s appointed times, both Strong’s H4150 “mow’ed”

Leviticus 23 goes on to define, by use of days and moons many “mow’ed” including the 8 days that start on the 15^th day of the seventh moon which is the appointed time of Tabernacles. As a matter of fact Leviticus 23 lays out its appointed times in the period of 7 lunar cycles. Here is likely one more place to gain insight, concerning the pattern of seven built in to creation.

Our modern calendars are designed to take us away from the appointed times as proscribed by the celestial bodies of day four, but to find our Creator’s appointments and rhythms we will need to return to a calendar governed by the sun and moon.

The celestial lights do us no good on their own but joined to the biblical revelation they set us up to be in time with the rhythms of the Creator and his creation. Used properly they will enhance our work and our rest.

Concerning day four itself, while it has no new life in it, as day three had and may feel like a useless day to the naturalist. It is actually a profoundly important moment, when a whole new standard is being set. Be careful what you do on day four, as it will set the standard for many days to come. Even more importantly, figure out how to put your life in rhythm of the “mow’eds” of Leviticus 23. After all if our creator has appointed times with his people, I can’t imagine anyone would want to miss them.

# 7 Transition from Day Two to Day Three.

Imagine the Natural observer at the end of day two. He has made one of two choices during the overwhelming disarray that has come to light, either he has given up or he has tried to fight through to, what he hopes will be, better times.

If he has given up, then if he survives at all, he will be in hunter-gather mode when the new life of day three emerges.  His garden will certainly not have clean rows of valuable produce but he may find some remnants of previous care taking.  

However consider the Naturalist who has worked through the entire period of chaos. The light of day one gave him some hope that a better day may be around the corner. However that light faded into a long night of doubts, if his determination survived the night, the light returned on day two renewing hope.  Alas, day two only yielded some space or an opening a-midst the water which still swirls above and below. Now the light fades again as, day two draws to a close, he faces what he suspects is another long night.

At this point our hard working Naturalist is in danger from his own hand, exhausted from the stress and doubt as well as the physical labor, his temptations are appeasement, capitulation and irresponsibility. Can he find within himself the strength to endure another long night or will he be so psychologically damaged that he makes a self-damaging decision.

As the light dawns on day three the doubts are huge. The real question is, can one endure without the revealed knowledge that, there is life in day three?

How much more, will a individual work hard and take chances in day one and two and how much more cheerfully and steadfastly can a person endure day one, day two and the early dark hours of day three if he understands the whole revelation of the first three days of Creation.

#6 Day Three

The amazing moment in time when water, light, air, and bare ground suddenly exist simultaneously.

Then God said, “Let the waters below the heavens be gathered into one place, and let the dry land appear”; and it was so. God called the dry land earth, and the gathering of the waters He called seas; and God saw that it was good. Then God said, “Let the earth sprout vegetation, plants yielding seed, and fruit trees on the earth bearing fruit after their kind with seed in them”; and it was so. The earth brought forth vegetation, plants yielding seed after their kind, and trees bearing fruit with seed in them, after their kind; and God saw that it was good. There was evening and there was morning, a third day. Genesis 1:9-13 

Water in uncontrolled, chaotic arrangement preexists day one giving us the first element necessary for life but in destructive, overwhelming form.  Day one and day two had only one event or new feature each, light in day one and space or air in day two, in contrast day three has two new features bare ground and vegetation.

Anyone who has ever gardened knows that if conditions are right, vegetation is going to sprout even if you did not plant seeds, even if you don’t want it, fertile ground combined with water, light and air will produce some sort of vegetation.

The Creation story in many ways seems to defy the observer of nature but in day three it suddenly all makes sense to the natural eye. Water, light, air, bare ground, of course plant life follows.

If only the naturalist had done more in day one and two to prepare of the new life of day three.

New life on the third day is a biblical theme with which every student should be familiar. In addition to the appearance of vegetation on day three, Abraham’s near sacrifice of Isaac happens on day three and Isaac comes off that altar with new life, Jonah’s fish spits him out, to a new life, on the third day.  I like this one…. it will take a bit of thought, Noah comes out of his boat on the 27^th day of the se

cond month. That’s three days before the beginning of the third month to offer sacrifices of thanksgiving… there are things in that story we all need to ponder.

There are lots of other examples of this biblical phenomenon of new life on the third if one wishes to dig them out. Of course the Jewish writers of the New Testament made sure to point out that Jesus was resurrected on the third day after his death, on the first day of the week. Just that in itself should give each of us plenty to ponder.

So much can be written about the third day the third month the third year and the third set of seven years that we could fill up Google. But the idea here is for each of you to ponder these things yourself. Here are a few thoughts about the new life, in the form of vegetation in day three. It is stationary, it’s stable, it can’t move or communicate, and vegetation grows slowly and provides the base of the food chain for all the future life to come.

What is our role? I am reminded of the gardener who was showing his pastor around his garden. The pastor commented on how God had very much blessed the garden. To which the gardener responded “Pastor you should have seen it when God had it alone!”

We have a role, we are part of creation. Whatever our calling, it will take both our effort and the miracles of new life for our gardens to produce well for the benefit of our families and our world.

So to the third day… HERE! HERE!

Or as Tevye sings in Fiddler…To life, to life, l'chaim…. L'chaim, l'chaim, to life.

#5 The transition from day one to day two.

The LIGHT of day one has revealed chaos and it also has given us hints about this new set of seven. As I showed earlier, the Genesis writer’s use of “Echad” gives us some indication that day one has in it all the elements, or has unity with the six to come.

With this in mind, we watch day one intently for clues about the six to come. As evening comes and the beginning of day two approaches we need to prepare ourselves for the natural feeling that we are headed back to the chaos in the dark of Genesis 1:2. There is simply no sign in the natural elements that give you any hope of improvement.

Indeed as I pointed out last week even the full and complete work of day two has no hopeful signs in it for a natural observer, unless they are aware of the revealed, which in the case of day two, is that there will be space for life created a-midst the chaos of water above and chaos of water below.

This is a good time to point out few fundamentals, you may have noticed the words on the sunflower at the header of this Google plus community. Those words come from Deuteronomy 29:29.

 “The secret things belong to YHWH our God, but the things revealed belong to us and to our children forever, that we may observe all the words of this instruction.”

Certainly science and academics, in its study of the natural world, has done wonders for mankind, increasing our life spans, improving our health but one has to wonder, if certain things are not hidden from the observer of nature. Keep this thought in mind as we move along, commenting on these segments of seven and the transitions.

The instruction to work will be there when the natural feeling will be that, it is useless, and the temptation to work will be there when the instruction to rest is given.

So what is asked of us on day one and day two is that with steady faith, we work for improvement of the current condition without regard for how we feel. This is a moment when we need to be looking for even the slightest hint or direction from either the light of day one or an opening of space in day two.

Being prepared for day one and day two is crucial, resource wise, but also emotionally, as few others will see what you are seeing, observers of nature will see and feel only chaos on day one and two. Meanwhile we will be putting forth effort and resources toward faithfully improving the barely discernible path.

#4 Day Two

Back on January 17, I wrote about day one and the following week I wrote about the transition from day seven to day one.

This will be our mode of operation, I will introduce each new segment of time and give some thoughts on what characteristics that particular day, month, year, of set of seven years will likely exhibit. I will then in the following post, discuss the transition from the previous segment of time to the new segment of time.

If all that is confusing, you will get the idea as we go along.  

 Then God said, “Let there be an expanse in the midst of the waters, and let it separate the waters from the waters.”  God made the expanse, and separated the waters which were below the expanse from the waters which were above the expanse; and it was so.  God called the expanse heaven. And there was evening and there was morning, a second day. Genesis 1:6-8

Day two seems as chaotic as the events before day one.  However amid all the shaking, a space develops or opens up in the middle of the chaos. With water above and water below, suddenly there is a space. A space for what? We know it’s a space for life, but without knowledge of the fact that it is day two and good things are coming, that space very well may seem like cold air when you come out of the water. That this opening is space for life is not evident via natural observation, but we know life will come. Those unaware of the count have no idea what the space means. To them it seems like just more confusion.

Here is an interesting thought, in Hebrew, the alphabet is also a means of counting, the second letter of the Hebrew Alphabet is “beyt” which literally means house and in its original Paleo form, the letter was the floor plan of a two room house or tent. (See the attached) A house or a tent is a space for life.

Knowing it’s year two can be very helpful in keeping your chin up and your plan on track. It also can give you the courage to step into a space that opens up while others are still convinced that only chaos is the order of the day.

Consider this, the spies went to spy out the land in the second year after coming out of Egypt.  They lost heart just when they should have prepared to move boldly. I think they would have been planting roots on new ground in the third year had they not lost heart.

The second segment of time in our set of seven is a time of continued testing. It has openings or space for future life but you have the means and be willing to step in when the water is still swirling above and below.

Another analogy is that of a planted seed. The first step is to plant, the second step is the outer coating of the seed must decay before the third step, the germ of life can spring forth. So also in day two some breakdown is still happening. It’s a messy time but our instructions are to work, do our part to help things move in the right direction.   

The alphabet attached to this post is from Jeff Benner’s web site “The Ancient Hebrew Research Center”.  I highly recommend his work. It has been very helpful in my pursuit of the seven and fifty.

Today I want to finish my post by showing you a quote from his book A History of Hebrew. (Available free from his web site in ebook form it is only 44 pages and well worth your time.) the link is here… http://www.ancient-hebrew.org/ahh/ahh.htm

 “Let's take the concepts of the past and the future to demonstrate how important it is to recognize that

Biblical concepts are sometimes the opposite of our own. We perceive of the past as behind us and the

future as before us. The Hebrew word for yesterday, the past, is תמול (temol) and the word for

tomorrow, the future, is מחר (mahhar). Temol comes from a root that means "to be in front" while

mahhar comes from a root that means "to be behind." And therefore in Hebraic thought the past is in

front of you and the future is behind you. Why did the Ancient Hebrews perceive of time in this way?

Because the past is known, it is laid out in front of you to see, while the future is not known and is

therefore hidden behind you.” Jeff Benner … A History of Hebrew

Think about that, the past is in front of you, available for you to see. The future is behind you, still unknown. The rhymes of the past are available to be known, to what extent they can enlighten the future is our undertaking.

#3 The transition from seven to one, darkness to light.

The transition from seven to one, darkness to light.

Publicly writing your private meditations is a bit disconcerting but I want to do it in hopes of encouraging others to process these things in their own way and open the opportunity for us all to grow in our understanding. I believe deeply that this subject must be approached with great humility and I hope to demonstrate why by the end of this piece.

^“The earth was formless and void, and darkness was over the surface of the deep, and the Spirit of God was moving over the surface of the waters.” Genesis 1:2

The second verse of Genesis one represents the earth before the seven day week and in particular the Sabbath. In my view, it is also our eventual situation if we don’t follow day seven instructions. The clearly defined events of the six days of work have brought order but failure to follow the instructions for day seven will bring about degeneration and return us to the chaos of verse two. The prescribed antidote is to pull back and disengage from the normal work of our hands.

Again the instructions for day seven is different than the instructions for month seven which is also different from the instructions for the seventh year and for the seventh set of seven years or the Jubilee.  However in each case a shift away from what had been during the previous six is evident and the pattern holds regardless of which set of sevens we are discussing. This brings me to the words of Genesis 1 verse 5.

 ^“God called the light day, and the darkness He called night. And there was evening and there was morning, one day.” Genesis 1:5

Here may be the first example of the concept that rest is first, before work. As I pointed out last week, the seventh day was man’s first day since he was created last on day six thus his first day was a day of rest. Likewise on the very first day the Creator separated light from darkness and set evening as the beginning of the day, therefore setting darkness and by implication rest and sleep, before morning light and work.

But what I really want to highlight from this verse is the last two words “one day” or in the Hebrew “yom echad”. Yom is the Hebrew word for day but the use of echad (Strongs H259) seems to be giving us some guidance. It should be noted that echad is used here rather than the word “ri’shown (Strongs H7223)  

Ri’shown is used in the below passage to indicate Esau is born first.

^“Now the first (Ri’shown) came forth red, all over like a hairy garment; and they named him Esau.” Genesis 25:25

Ri’shown clearly is the word for first in line but echad has a different sense to it. While it is also used in many case as one or first, echad also has a characteristic of unity or harmony. A good example is below from 1 Chronicles.

“All these, being men of war who could draw up in battle formation, came to Hebron with a perfect heart to make David king over all Israel; and all the rest also of Israel were of one (echad) mind to make David king.” 1 Chronicles 12:38

This verse demonstrates the harmony factor of echad, many minds obviously, but all agreed or were in unity (echad). Therefore by using echad rather that ri’shown, the Genesis writer is showing us that while indeed the day of light is the first day, it also has a unity factor which I suspect tells us that what happens on day one, or year one (or whichever sequence of seven you are studying) has a unity or harmony with the other six which will follow. Again, thinking out loud, day one “yom echad” seems similar to a fertilized egg growing to its completed gestation by the end of day six. If this is the case, then greatest attention needs to be given to the events and characteristics of day one. For what we observe on day one, will likely have some unity, with what we will experience throughout this particular set of seven.

One more thought; the Jewish writers of the New Testament clearly saw that light on day one was not the result of the sun, since the sun was only created on day four. In many ways and at many places they tell us they that they believed that the LIGHT of “yom echad” was Yeshua (Jesus) none more so than John at the beginning of his gospel. Consider his rhythm and flow compared to Genesis one.

“In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. ² He was in the beginning with God. ³ All things came into being through Him, and apart from Him nothing came into being that has come into being. ⁴ In Him was life, and the life was the Light of men. ⁵ The Light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not comprehend it.” John1:1-5

Following the instructions for the seventh as a way of preparing for the LIGHT of one, is much more than a business strategy. To be prepared for the LIGHT of the world “full of grace and truth” John 1:17 is a profound opportunity we should not miss.

I can’t think of anything more terrifying than to arrive at year one tight-fistedly. I humbly submit that the real reason for Sabbath is so we do not worship the works of our hands and if we do worship the works of our hands, we can expect the LIGHT of yom echad to expose it to the world.