Shavuot/Pentecost, the Feast of Weeks
Counting 50 days (inclusive) from the day after the Sabbath following Passover, seven complete Sabbaths and one day, brings us to the Feasts of Weeks.
Counting 50 days (inclusive) from the day after the Sabbath following Passover, seven complete Sabbaths and one day, brings us to the Feasts of Weeks.
It has been the practice of the Jewish people to read through the Torah – the first five books of Scripture – on either a one-year or three-year schedule.
Jehu became the tenth king of the northern tribes of the divided kingdom of Israel. He claimed to have a “zeal for the LORD” and his actions seem to confirm it.
You probably do as well. In fact, you may be one. The majority of us have, at one time or another, transgressed the laws of the land. Sometimes we get caught.
Recently I received a letter from a prison inmate who has been reading the book of Esther before Purim. Here are his questions and my responses.
After concluding each book of the Torah, it is traditional to recite the phrase “Chazaq! Chazaq! v’Nitchazeq! – Be strong! Be strong! And let us be strengthened!”
It is good to give thanks to the LORD,
And to sing praises to Your name, O Most High;
To declare Your lovingkindness in the morning
And Your faithfulness by night
In Torah portion Tetzaveh we read the instructions for tending the Menorah and the altar of incense. These were probably on David’s mind as he composed this Psalm.
After bringing His people out of Egypt to Mount Sinai, Yahweh, the God of Israel, gave Moses the instructions for the Tabernacle and its furnishings.
The Greek version of Esther in the Apocrypha includes a letter – an “Executive Order” – from King Artaxerxes. Read it substituting the names of current political figures.