23Observations
Covenant
2
Signs Along the Way
On the Right Path…
In the previous volume of Observations, I offered to share why Tsyown | Zion should be seen as coterminous with the ridgeline of Mowryah | Moriah. The first sign was posted along the way, rising out of the City of Dowd | David. The last will be erected upon the barren summit at the top of the mountain.
Far more than just resolving a curiosity, I expect to elucidate the purpose of Tsyown, revealing what the Signs Posted Along the Way mean to the God who established them and what they say to us for whom they were intended. To do so, we will have to consider what Yahowah has had to say about Tsyown’s association with the City of Dowd | David, while remaining cognizant of the special relationship that exists between Yahowah and His favorite Son.
Our perspective will be framed by the events that occurred on Mowryah | Moriah one thousand years earlier between ‘Abraham and his son, Yitschaq | Isaac, and their interactions with Yahowah. Along the way, we will consider what God had to say about His home, the one prepared by Dowd and built by Solomon, and its restoration as the Millennial Home – which Yahowah and Dowd will construct upon their return.
While we have fertile ground to plow, I would like to begin by reviewing where we have been, commencing with the prophetic statements that brought us to this place. If you recall, the first mention of Tsyown in Yasha’yah | Isaiah 24appeared in the eighth statement of the opening chapter. Yahowah was presenting His enduring solution to religious rebellion. In context, our prophetic introduction to Tsyown began…
“Listen, Spiritual Realm, and choose of your own accord to pay attention and respond, Material Realm, because Yahowah has spoken, ‘I reared My children, lifting them up, helping them grow, and enabling them to be great. I raised them, taking them to a higher place, but they have actually rebelled against Me. (Yasha’yah / Isaiah 1:2)
A cow, one who looks, sees what is around him, and views the world from the proper perspective, is aware, and recognizes his creator as the one who gave birth to him, but not an ass, a stubborn domestic beast of burden, regarding his Lord. Yisra’el, those who Struggle and Fight with God, does not know and remains unaware. My people have failed to consider this connection, and thus, they do not understand. (Yasha’yah 1:3)
Woe to an errant and blameworthy nation acting like Gentiles, severely stubborn and heavily laden, dulled and unresponsive with the corruptions and the guilt associated with perverted distortions. They are the offspring of errant and evil children who have become corrupt and destroyed because they lack integrity. They have rejected and abandoned Yahowah.
They despise and revile, harboring contempt for the Set-Apart One of Yisra’el. They have become strangers, alienating themselves. Having gone backward, they are headed in the wrong direction. (Yasha’yah 1:4)
For what reason, and on whose account, do you want to be continually afflicted and devastated over and over again, associating with and adding to your 25obstinate and hostile rebellion? The entire head is impaired with disease. The entire heart, and thus the ability to exercise good judgment is cramped up and infirmed. (Yasha’yah 1:5)
From the sole of the foot and all the way up to the top of the head, there is nothing in them that is healthy or sound. They are emasculated and castrated, battered and bruised. Their raw and rotten wounds from this devastating and deadly plague have not been cleansed, medicated, or bandaged, not even soothed with olive oil. (Yasha’yah 1:6)
Your land will become lifeless and ruined. Your cities and towns will be consumed by fire. Your soil, conspicuously in your presence, will be devoured and destroyed by illegitimate foreign foes, the most nauseating of whores. They will bring devastating perversions and adversarial transformations, akin to being overthrown by alienated enemies. (Yasha’yah 1:7)
But the daughter of Tsyown, the Conspicuous Signs Posted to Mark the Way, will be preserved and left as a reminder. It will be like a sheltered place for living in a vineyard, like an overnight cottage for a watchman in a challenging, ill-treated garden filled with stubble and chaff, like an awakened encampment preserved by the observant.’ (Yasha’yah 1:8)
Unless Yahowah, of the host of spiritual messengers, had not spared and preserved a remnant on our behalf, as a few survivors, then like Sodom, scorched and burning, we would have been, and approaching Gomorrah, a tyrannically manipulated depressed habitation, we would be likened and compared. (Yasha’yah 1:9)
Choose to listen to the Word of Yahowah, leaders of the Scorched and Burning, and listen intently, perceiving what is said, and then respond appropriately 26to the Towrah Teaching, Guidance, Direction, and Instruction of our God, you people of the Tyrannical and Manipulated Habitation. (Yasha’yah 1:10)
‘By what means do you think that I can be approached by the great multitude, exalted aspects, and rabbinic nature of your sacrifices?’ asks Yahowah.
‘I am completely satisfied with the uplifting offerings to rise associated with the male lambs. Moreover, the lipid tissue of overfed fatlings and the blood of bulls, lambs, and goats, I do not want or desire. (Yasha’yah 1:11)
For if you try to approach to look upon My presence, who or what was it that sought this beggary from your hand, thereby to tread upon the blowing of My trumpets in My court? (Yasha’yah 1:12)
You should not increasingly and habitually come, continuing to bring devastatingly worthless, completely invalid, and deceptively futile tributes, gifts, and offerings. Incense is a detestable abomination to Me.
I cannot comprehend, I cannot endure, nor can I overcome the deceptive and disastrous falsifications associated with your oppressive and lifeless religious assemblies because they hinder and withhold the benefits associated with the Time of Renewal, the Shabat, and the calling out of the Miqra’ | the Invitation to be Called Out and Meet. (Yasha’yah 1:13)
Your monthly times of renewal and your designated meetings, My soul hates. They have actually become an annoying problem to Me. I am weary of enduring their duplicity. (Yasha’yah 1:14)
So, when you spread out of the palms of your hands, I will hide My eyes, but also My presence, from you. Because you choose to make many worthless rabbinic prayers, abhorrent pleas, and repulsive 27petitions, I will not be listening. Your hands are full of the shedding of the blood of life, and your fingers are full of iniquity. (Yasha’yah 1:15)
Choose to actually wash yourselves, and of your own freewill, remove the impurities, bathing yourself using an abundance of water, demonstrating a desire to be free of foreign sediment and impure substances, to be upright and acquitted.
And then, of your own volition, reject and turn away from your evil and counterproductive rituals, these things you have done before My eyes, thereby preventing becoming invalidated or seen as unethical, improper, and errant. (Yasha’yah 1:16)
Desire learning, be receptive to being taught, and be open to instruction, to being right, to being better, and to prosper. Seek, choosing to inquire about the means to justly resolve disputes and to exercise good judgment. Live an upright life, walking the right way, serving as a guide for those who are oppressed by human institutions.
Be judgmental, pleading on behalf of the fatherless child, especially those who are searching. Quarrel, verbally contending with, even ridiculing the congregation of the bound, dumb, and forsaken. (Yasha’yah 1:17)
Please, let’s go for a walk because I want to continuously engage in rational dialog,’ says Yahowah.
‘Even if your sins are as crimson, like snow, they shall be made white. Even if they are continually as ruddy red and as dirty as crimson, they shall be like wool. (Yasha’yah 1:18)
If you are genuinely willing and listen, by way of the good and beneficial qualities of the Land, you shall be continually nourished. (Yasha’yah 1:19)
28But if you consistently refuse to agree and continually withhold your consent and are rebellious, by the sword, you shall be devoured because the mouth of Yahowah has spoken it. (Yasha’yah 1:20)
How, and by what means, has this city which was once filled with enduring truth become like a whore? The fair and vindicating path to execute good judgment regarding the means to justly resolve disputes had once dwelled in her, even through the darkest hours. But now, they have become murderers – causing many to die needlessly. (Yasha’yah 1:21)
Your silver, your money in general, and that which you yearn for have become impure, worthless dross. Your alcoholic drinks are diluted in the sea. (Yasha’yah 1:22)
Your political and religious officials are defiant in their rebellion, and they are closely associated, sharing a common agenda, with kidnappers, slave traders, and thieves. Every one of them adores a bribe and chases after illicit inducements to buy influence, for payoffs and rewards.
They do not bring justice to the fatherless child. Quarreling with the congregation of the bound, dumb, and forsaken is not pursued by them.’” (Yasha’yah / Isaiah 1:23)
In the midst of the perversity, in the place where the whore of religion was running amok, Yahowah posted His signs in the most conspicuous place and then encouraged us to consider their message. Their text, He said, would benefit those who were “willing to listen to the Word of Yahowah and respond to His Towrah’s Guidance.” As such, Tsyown represents the signs Yahowah posted in His Towrah to lead us away from the corruption of man to His home – a home He has and will establish upon Mowryah | Revere Yahowah.
29The second time we see Tsyown, Yahowah is making the same point. The monuments were designed to guide the observant individual toward the means God has established to justly resolve disputes. Tsyown, thereby, directs our attention to the Mow’ed Miqra’ey and away from man’s religious replacements and counterfeits.
Let’s pick up the story of Tsyown right where we left off…
“Therefore, this is the prophetic announcement of the Upright One of Yahowah of the spiritual implements, the Mighty One of Yisra’el, ‘Woe, pay attention to this warning. I will be relieved of My adversaries. I will take vengeance on My enemies. (Yasha’yah / Isaiah 1:24)
Then I will turn My hand upon you in My desire to remove your impurities in the manner of natural cleaning agents. Your repulsive rubbish,Yah and your worthless divisions, all of which I will choose to remove. (Yasha’yah 1:25)
And I will opt to restore your judges, as it was at the beginning, along with your counselors who provide advice and direction, as it was from the start. Thereafter, for you to approach, Yaruwshalaim will be called the “City of Righteous Vindication” and the “City of Confirmed and Enduring Truth.” (Yasha’yah 1:26)
Tsyown | the Signs Marking the Way, by the means to exercise good judgment regarding justly resolving disputes, shall ransom and redeem those who change their attitude and return the right way, causing them to become innocent and upright. (Yasha’yah 1:27)
Then the downfall and destruction of the revolting rebels who defiantly transgressed the agreement will occur, along with the errant and blameworthy, all 30together at the same time with those who have rejected, abandoned, and forsaken Yahowah.
For they will perish, be destroyed, and vanish from sight, ultimately being incarcerated.’” (Yasha’yah / Isaiah 1:28)
According to God, and He ought to know since He wrote and posted the signs, Tsyown demarks the way to becoming redeemed and vindicated. These signs denote the dividing line between those God views as Family and those He considers foes. Tsyown separates the saved from the damned, the living from the dead. As such, nothing may be as important as knowing where these signs are located, realizing what they have to say, and recognizing where they lead. If exploring those answers isn’t worth our time, what is?
As I shared previously, based upon what Yahowah has to say about Tsyown, I am convinced that, rather than existing as a separate mountain, Zion actually runs the length of Mount Mowryah | Moriah, from the City of Dowd / David, through the Temple Mount, and up to the summit above Golgotha. All three aspects of Mowryah are relevant to Yahowah’s story: the City of Dowd, the Temple Mount above it, and the actual summit of the mountain where Yahowah met with ‘Abraham and upon which Dowd fulfilled Pesach, Matsah, and Bikuwrym. This chapter, then, will be devoted in part to providing the reasons behind this conclusion.
The third reference to Tsyown in Yasha’yah appears shortly thereafter, and it addresses events occurring at the same time, 2,777 years removed from Yahowah’s initial warning to Yisra’el circa 745 BCE. Now Yahowah is revealing the final resting place for His Home on Earth.
“This is the Word that beneficially Yasha’yah | Salvation is from Yahowah, son of ‘Amowts – the Trustworthy and Steadfast, observed in the prophetic 31vision concerning Yahuwdah | Beloved of Yah and Related to Yah and concerning Yaruwshalaim | the Source from which Guidance and Direction Flow Regarding Reconciliation and Restoration. (Yasha’yah / Isaiah 2:1)
It shall come to pass in the last days, firmly established, completed and enduring, the House, Home, and Family of Yahowah will come to exist in proximity to the summit of the first and foremost mountain of the mountains, lifted up, supported, and sustained as part of these elevated places. Then every Gentile shall flow forth with a joyful countenance, beaming with happiness, and shining brightly. (Yasha’yah 2:2)
And many people who are part of the family shall travel, and they shall say, ‘Walk because we can, of our own volition, ascend to the mountain of Yahowah, to the House and Family of the God of Ya’aqob, and therefore of Yisra’el and the Covenant, so that He can fulfill His will and teach and guide us by means of His ways in order for us to choose to genuinely and continually travel about in His manner.’
For indeed, from Tsyown | the Conspicuous Signs Posted to Mark the Way shall be brought forth the Towrah | the Source from which Teaching, Guidance, Direction, and Instruction Flow – the Word of Yahowah from Yaruwshalaim | the Source of Guidance on Reconciliation. (Yasha’yah 2:3)
Then He shall execute good judgment, exercising discernment by making appropriate connections, regarding the Gentiles, and He shall reasonably conclude that the enriched and empowered people who are part of the family are right, deciding to vindicate them once and for all.
They shall beat their weapons for plows and their spears for pruning hooks. And Gentile nations shall not 32rise up toward Gentile nations, deploying weapons of war. They will no longer train or teach conflict ever again. (Yasha’yah 2:4)
House of Ya’aqob, choose to walk this way because then we can genuinely and continuously journey throughout space and time of our own volition in the light of Yahowah. (Yasha’yah 2:5)
Except, your people have rejected and abandoned the family of Ya’aqob, because they are full of the ways of Eastern antiquity and of fortune-tellers, magicians, and those who practice sorcery by attempting to communicate with dead souls and demonic spirits like the Palishty, the foreign foes who invade the Promised Land, invoking fear with the offspring of foreigners, they clasp hands and engage in the business of mockery and ridicule. (Yasha’yah 2:6)
Their realm is filled with silver and gold. And there is no end to their treasures. Their land overflows with swift stallions, and there is no limit to their chariots of war. (Yasha’yah 2:7) Their land is overwhelmed with religious images and false gods, the work of their hands. They convey their intent by bowing down in homage and allegiance to that which they have made with their fingers. (Yasha’yah 2:8)
Humankind bows down in submission and fear, each and almost every individual is humiliated and humbled. So do not accept them, support them, endure them, or respect them.” (Yasha’yah / Isaiah 2:9)
God has answered many of our questions. Yahowah’s focus remains on Yahuwdah, Yaruwshalaim. This is where He will return to build His Home and establish His Family – doing so on His own initiative. The specific location within Jerusalem was also foretold: the summit of His first and foremost mountain – which would be the highest point on Mount Mowryah. His Family will be sustained because 33of what Yahowah has done for us upon these elevated places and thus by everything that transpired along the ridgeline, from Dowd’s home to Yahowah’s home, with the Temple Mount in between.
Although we are in Yahuwdah, it is now home to Gentiles who have embraced Yahowah’s Beryth | Covenant and who have answered His Miqra’ey | Invitations. Those who are now included in the Family of the God of Ya’aqob shall be as light, enlightened by the greatest Teacher of all, embarking on a life of discovery. What’s more, Yahowah will be providing the directions necessary to keep His children safe as they explore the universe He created for their entertainment and edification. It will be a perfect blend of parental guidance and volitional freedom.
Especially germane to our study, we have just been told that Tsyown brings us to the Towrah. The Signs point the way to Yahowah’s Instructions. The Directions provided by the Word of Yahowah lead us to and through Yaruwshalaim because it is God’s Source of Guidance on Reconciliation.
Using His Towrah as the basis for adjudication, Yahowah will exonerate every surviving Gentile who made the proper connections, vindicating, adopting, enriching, and empowering those who read the signs correctly. As a result, conflict will be replaced by contemplation.
In the previous chapter, by using ‘acharyth to depict the timing, we recognized that God was speaking about what He is going to do in “the last days preceding the end of a period of time” and thus during the five days between Yowm Kipurym and Sukah in year 6000 Yah. That correlates, the best I can determine, to commencing at sunset in Jerusalem on Sunday, October 2nd, and concluding before sundown on Friday evening, October 7th, in 2033 on the Roman Catholic calendar in use today. 34That is when Yahowah, after incinerating all of man’s religious and political rubbish, will establish an Earthly home for His Family on the summit of His favorite place. And while that is Mowryah, it is not upon the Temple Mount. It is neither the summit of Mount Mowryah nor the place where Yahowah initiated the Covenant.
Tsyown | the Signs Posted Along the Way, therefore, depicts all four events which have and will take place on Mowryah over the course of eighty Yowbel (4,000 years). This story begins with the arrival of ‘Abraham and Yitschaq to Mowryah | Moriah at Yahowah’s request. Like Noach before him, ‘Abraham listened to God and followed His directions.
The result of accepting and acting upon Yah’s guidance was to confirm the Beryth | Covenant in year 2000 Yah / 1968 BCE. The meeting that foreshadowed Passover on this day, in this place, and for this reason, serves as one of the most important Signs Posted Along the Way. It affirmed the correlation between the Covenant, God’s directions, and the benefits Yahowah would provide by way of His Miqra’ey | Invitations to be Called Out and Meet. And like the example of Noach, it puts us on notice that we need not only listen to God but also act, doing what He has requested.
The next step on this journey includes the establishment of the Kingdom of Dowd on this same mountain, culminating with His son, Solomon, building Yahowah’s Home in year 3000 Yah / 968 BCE. According to God, the Kingdom of Dowd will be reestablished upon His return, so it is especially relevant to this story. God’s home and the home of His beloved Son share a common view and a similar address, seeing that both are set upon the ridgeline of the same mountain. Momentarily, we’ll turn back to Shamuw’el to verify these assertions.
35Continuing to survey the four most important events depicted by Tsyown, indeed, the four most important events in human history occurred exactly one thousand years after the cornerstone of the Temple was set into place when Dowd and the Set-Apart Spirit honored the promise Father and Son had made regarding Passover, UnYeasted Bread, Firstborn Children, and the Seven Sevens – fulfilling the Miqra’ey of Pesach, Matsah, Bikuwrym, and Shabuw’ah – all on Mowryah, all in year 4000 Yah / 33 CE, thereby enabling the benefits of the Covenant. If one considers, as I do, the upright pillar, upon which the Passover Lamb of God was affixed, as a signpost, then these events serve as the ultimate Tsyown. Golgotha, the site of Pesach’s fulfillment, is located directly above Yirma’yah’s | Jeremiah’s Grotto, where the Ark of the Covenant is currently stored, and it is directly below the summit of Mount Mowryah, where Dowd’s body was taken at the conclusion of Passover.
And finally, in year 6000 Yah (2033 CE), God will do as He foretold and return to this place, just as Yasha’yah predicted, erecting His Home. He will demonstrate that Mowryah is where the Signs Along the Way have been Posted.
Now that Yahowah has reaffirmed, restored, and reestablished His Family, He tells us that His children will come Home. And you’ll notice that, not once or twice but three times, God speaks of them “halak – walking,” which serves to augment the realization that He had previously asked His Covenant children to walk away from human entanglements and then walk to Him.
Now that we are with Him, we are going to stroll through the universe He has created for us to enjoy. Also interesting, as we shall learn in a moment, there are two intersecting measurements of 777 strides that speak to the location and elevation of the two most important sites on Tsyown.
36In this regard, you may have noticed that Tsyown’s reappearance at the end of this text reinforces the idea that the Covenant’s children will walk along the path designated by Tsyown to the summit of Mowryah. Further embellishing this understanding, Tsyown and the Towrah are juxtaposed in the prophecy, connecting them, just as we have done.
When we walk, Yahowah wants us to be upright and unwavering, thus embedding our heels. That way, we will not veer away nor be pulled off of the path. This is what Ya’aqob means, and it explains why Ya’aqob became a synonym for Yisra’el.
Our Heavenly Father’s role as a parent is to “yarah – guide and teach” His Covenant children. That is the purpose of His Towrah, which is where we find the terms and conditions for participating in His Covenant Family. It is also where we find the path that we are invited to walk in conjunction with the Miqra’ey, beginning with Passover. Tsyown marks the way, with the Towrah, the Word of Yahowah, and Yaruwshalaim working as an integrated whole to provide the necessary guidance for the trip to the seventh dimension and the Home of God.
As I mentioned a moment ago, since there are three places where the Tsyown are posted on Mowryah, we should not be surprised that each provides a compelling affirmation relative to the length of a man’s stride, both in distance and elevation. That is why the Hebrew word for walk, halak, was used three times in the previous statement regarding the enduring nature of the Towrah’s guidance and the Signs Yahowah has Posted to Show us the Way.
The lowest outcropping of Mount Mowryah | Moriah rises 1970 feet above the sea, which is 600 meters, equivalent to 600 strides by the average man. That is telling because six is the number of man, who was conceived on the sixth day, and Dowd, whose home was built there, was 37Yahowah’s most beloved man. This occurs at the south end of the junction between the Kidron and Hinnon Valleys.
The actual summit of Mount Mowryah, where Yahowah will build His Home, reaches 2549 feet above mean sea level, which is 777 meters, comparable to 777 human strides. Seven embodies Yahowah’s purpose in having created humankind. Man, who is represented by the number six, with God, who is one, equals seven. The creation story played out over seven days. There are seven days of the week, with the seventh set apart as special. There are seven Miqra’ey representing the seven steps along our walk to God. There are seven lights in the Manowrah, with six on the flanks and one in the middle.
The summit of Mount Mowryah is found directly above the Golgotha embankment, which served as the backdrop for the crucifixion on Pesach. This location is exactly seven hundred seventy-seven paces (and thus also 777 meters) northwest of where the Second Temple was located by way of the Damascus Gate.
I don’t suppose that any of this is perchance.
As for the Temple Mount, it sits in the midst of the ridge, situated directly between the City of Dowd | David below it and the summit of Mount Mowryah 40 meters above it, with the foundation of the Temple established at 2424 feet (737 meters or strides) above the sea. Forty is the number of completion in Hebrew and there are three locations associated with the ultimate embodiment of seven in this place, and therefore 737 strides. And as an affirmation of forty, it rained forty days and nights during the flood. After spending 400 years as slaves in Egypt, the Exodus lasted forty years. And Yahowah devoted forty days to sharing His Towrah with Moseh.
It is thought-provoking to be sure that the home of the man Yahowah loved most of all, Dowd, is 600 human strides above the sea, in that six is the number of man 38created on the 6th day, a carbon-based lifeform with an atomic number of 6 whose stride is one meter in length: 3.28084 feet. Likewise, in that a meter is equivalent to the distance we cover with each step we walk with Yahowah, the actual summit of Mount Mowryah where ‘Abraham and Yahowah met to affirm the Covenant is 777 strides above the sea.
Yes, I am repeating myself, but so does Yah.
Equally intriguing, from the original location of the Ark of the Covenant in the Second Temple to its present location beneath the summit of Mowryah (and thus also directly below the Golgotha escarpment) is 2,353 feet or 777 strides. The summit directly above Golgotha remains substantially uninhabited and undisturbed. There are no shrines, monuments, or other forms of human clutter on Mowryah’s rounded peak. As of the time of this writing in 2018, the single best building site in the most coveted city in the world has remained largely unchanged, untouched since the time of ‘Abraham, just seventeen years shy of 4,000 years ago.
The highest summit in Jerusalem is actually the Mount of Olives, which is due east of the Temple Mount across the Kidron Valley. Olives is comprised of three hills, the highest of which is 2639 feet above sea level and thus 800 strides. That is also relevant because Yah uses eight to depict eternity and the Set-Apart Spirit, the Mother of eternal life, is consistently associated with the properties of olive oil. As it relates to olives, they are the longest living tree in the Land, and their oil serves as a metaphor for the Set-Apart Spirit because it lights the darkness, provides nourishment, and promotes healing.
There is a hotel and a church on the highest point of Olives and a menagerie of graves along the western face, but it matters not because Olives is the mountain that will be severed upon Yahowah’s return. An earthquake fault 39will separate it into two, running east to west through it. The resulting fissure will destroy the Temple Mount, along with the shrines to Satan that have been erected upon it. Also, the Church of the Holy Sepulcher will be swallowed by the earth.
Through this new valley, living waters will flow east and west, cascading into the Mediterranean Sea over Yisra’el’s primary seaport while giving life to the Dead Sea on the east. I suspect that Yahowah will build a bridge over this river, connecting Dowd’s home to His home. That has been God’s intent from the beginning.
The summit of what is called “Mount Zion” today lies an equal distance to the west and across the Central Valley. It claims an elevation of 2510 feet and is actually the largest mountain in Yaruwshalaim / Jerusalem, albeit not the highest.
However, what is referred to today as “Mount Zion” is not the Tsyown of which Yahowah speaks. You see, during the second half of the First Temple period, Jerusalem expanded westward, and its defensive walls were extended to include the entire Western Hill, now called Zion. But the lines of demarcation were blurred by Nebuchadnezzar II, who completely destroyed the city in 586 BCE, obliterating historical landmarks while significantly impairing the people’s memory of them, especially following their long detention in Babylon. After successive periods of intermittent rebuilding, Jerusalem was destroyed a second and third time by the Romans, first in 70 CE and then again in 133 CE. The people who forgot their God also forgot what He had said about Tsyown.
The Jewish religious traitor turned Roman historian, Josephus, never used the term, Tsyown | Zion, but he wrongly wrote that the “Citadel of King Dowd / David” was “situated on the higher and longer hill.” This implied that the Western Hill was the location of the City of David, 40which is why it is called Zion today. The fact that it is a more prominent location than the ridgeline below the Temple Mount caused the myth to be perpetuated throughout the long chasms of time.
This misperception continued under Christian Byzantine, Muslim, Ottoman, British, and Jordanian rule over Jerusalem, with the latter forbidding Jews from visiting any of the sites made famous by the Towrah | Guidance and Naby’ | Prophets between 1948 and 1967. Man has a long history of being wrong.
Tsyown, considering what Yahowah has just revealed regarding it through Yasha’yah, and what He previously conveyed in 2 Shamuw’el / Samuel 5:7, must be co-located with “the City of Dowd | David.” This location is known because the buried ruins surrounding the site have been the focus of a number of recent archeological digs. They all place the City of David just south of the Temple Mount along the southern portion of the Moriah ridge.
Further, once the First Temple was erected in Yaruwshalaim, Tsyown’s name migrated there too – at least according to God. Also, in Yasha’yah 60:14, Yahowah affirms a second time that one of Tsyown’s Signs was posted at the top of the hill, coterminous with the summit of Mowryah.
There are three different, albeit closely related, locations for Tsyown, all of which are relevant, and each of which is located upon Mount Mowryah | Moriah. The first is Dowd’s City and Home. The second is where Yahowah’s Beryth | House, known as the Temple, was located upon the Temple Mount. The third is upon the summit of the mountain where Yahowah met with ‘Abraham. It is where the Messiah fulfilled Pesach. And it 41is where Yahowah will erect His Home for the celebration of Sukah from 6000 to 7000 Yah.
Yahowah’s juxtaposition of Tsyown and the City of Dowd is fascinating. For those insights, we will have to turn back the clock 300 years and listen to what Shamuw’el had to say about the Messiah circa 1008 BCE.
“Then all of the tribes of Yisra’el came to Dowd (Dowd – the beloved) at Chebrown (Chebrown – to associate and share) and said, ‘Behold, we are the very substance of your flesh. (Shamuw’el / 2 Samuel 5:1)
Even though yesterday, and heretofore, when Sha’uwl was king over us, you were the one who came out and led Yisra’el’s return. Yahowah said to you, “You shall be shepherd of (ra’ah – you shall care about and tend to the needs of, lead, feed, enable, and protect) My family of Yisra’el, and you shall exist as a leader and guide for Individuals who Engage and Endure with God.’” (Shamuw’el / 2 Samuel 5:2)
And so, all of the elders of Yisra’el came to the king at Chebrown | Hebron. And King Dowd cut for them a covenant (karat beryth la hem – established through separation for them to approach a family-oriented relationship agreement) at Chebrown to approach the presence of Yahowah. They anointed (mashach – they applied olive oil to prepare and devote, setting apart to serve) Dowd as king over Yisra’el. (Shamuw’el / 2 Samuel 5:3)
Dowd (Dowd – the Beloved) was thirty years old (ben shalosh shanah) at the beginning of his reign (ba malak huw’). He would reign for forty years (‘araba’ shanah melek). (Shamuw’el / 2 Samuel 5:4)
42At Chebrown (ba Chebrown), he reigned (malak) over Yahuwdah (‘al Yahuwdah – on behalf of Yahowah’s Beloved) for seven years and six months (sheba’ shanah wa shesh chodesh). And at Yaruwshalaim (wa ba Yaruwshalaim – by Providing Guidance on Reconciliation), he reigned thirty-three years (malak shalosh wa shalosh shanah) over all of Yisra’el (‘al kol Yisra’el – for every Individual who Engaged and Endured with God) and Yahuwdah (wa Yahuwdah – the Beloved of Yah). (Shamuw’el / 2 Samuel 5:5)
And so (wa), the king (ha melek) and his men walked (halak wa ‘ysh huw’) to Yaruwshalaim (Yaruwshalaim – Source of Instruction Regarding Reconciliation), toward where the Yabuwsy (‘el ha Yabuwsy – to the Jebusites (Descendants of Jebus); from buws – to tread upon and trample down) inhabited the land (yashab ha ‘erets).
And they said to Dowd (wa ‘amar la Dowd), ‘You will not come here now (la ‘amar lo’ bow’ henah). Because without a doubt (ky ‘em), the blind (‘iwer – the unknowledgeable who are not observant and are thus ignorant and irrational) and the lame (piseah – the permanently incapacitated who are crippled as a result of skipping Passover; from pasah, verb for lame, meaning to impair mobility or decisiveness, akin to pasyl – as a result of religious worship and idolatry) shall cut you off, reject you, turn you away, and remove you (suwr – corrupt you, labeling you a dishonest, degenerate, fraud),’ they said, boasting that Dowd could not enter this place at the present time. (Shamuw’el / 2 Samuel 5:6)
Nevertheless, Dowd captured the stronghold (‘eth matsuwdah – the mountain fortress serving as a defensive position as a result of a higher inaccessible hill or ridgeline) of Tsyown (Tsyown – Signs Posted to Mark the Way, a Monument to Identify the Proper Place and the Right 43Direction to Go Along the Path) which is (hy’ – she is) the City of Dowd (‘iyr Dowd). (Shamuw’el / 2 Samuel 5:7)
So, Dowd said on that day, ‘Anyone striking the Yabuwsy should manipulate the water supply.’ And the lame and the blind (read: the ignorant, irrational, and religiously incapacitated) were shunned and detested (sane’ – intensely disliked, viewed as adversarial, and unloved) by the soul of Dowd, therefore, and for this reason, it is said, ‘The blind and the lame (the ignorant, irrational, and religiously incapacitated) shall not come into the house.’ (Shamuw’el / 2 Samuel 5:8)
And Dowd lived (yashab – established his dwelling place, settled, and remained) in the stronghold (ba ha matsuwdah – in the mountain fortress serving as a defensive position as a result of a higher inaccessible hill or ridgeline), and he called it (wa qara’ la hy’ – and he called out with regard to her, summoning, inviting, appointing, and designating her), ‘the City of Dowd (‘iyr Dowd).’
And Dowd built (banah – established the home and restored the family) all around (sabyb – on all sides of the surrounding area) from the terraces (min ha milow’ – the system of retaining walls and supporting mounds used to level a parcel of undulating ground), including his home (wa beyth). (Shamuw’el / 2 Samuel 5:9)
And Dowd walked about through life in a way which became greatly revered (halak halak gadal – traveled around growing great) because Yahowah, the God of the spiritual implements (tsaba’ – heavenly envoys), was with him.” (Shamuw’el / He Listens to God / 2 Samuel 5:10)
We now have absolute and irrefutable confirmation that Tsyown and the City of Dowd are coterminous. And since we have unassailable archeological proof that the “City of David” is on the lowest portion of the Mowryah 44ridgeline, directly below the Temple Mount, we know that this area is at least part of what Tsyown represents. And I say “part” because not only have we been told in Yasha’yah 1:8 that Tsyown would be preserved by Yahowah as a reminder, but in Yasha’yah 2:3, we find Yahowah affirming a direct connection between Tsyown, His Home during the millennial celebration of Sukah, the highest summit of this mountain, His Towrah, and His Word. That makes Tsyown the most important set of signs posted anywhere in the universe.
Since there are nuggets here, bear with me a moment while I share a few of them (actually eighteen). Dowd’s name explains the kind of relationship Yahowah developed with His Son, “Beloved,” and his name serves as a living metaphor for how He would like to engage with us.
The meeting occurred at a place synonymous with Covenant: “Chebrown – to associate and share.” Those who attended referred to Dowd as “the very substance of our flesh.” That was done to introduce the realization that Dowd’s basar would fulfill Pesach.
Long ago, the people chose Sha’uwl against Yahowah’s advice, and he failed miserably. Yahowah selected Dowd, and God’s choice succeeded long before he was king. Just as Moseh had led the Yisra’elites back home, and just as Dowd made it possible for Yisra’el to be restored into fellowship, the Messiah led Yisra’el’s return to the Land, to the Towrah, to the Covenant, and to God.
Yahowah asked Dowd to “be a shepherd for His family” because this is God’s favored approach to leadership. It is how He, Himself, leads. A shepherd walks with his flock, speaks to and listens to his flock, sleeps and eats with his flock, and mends the ailments of his sheep. He protects and guides his flock, leading the sheep to shelter, food, and water. But it would be Dowd’s failures in this regard that would cost many sheep their lives. It is 45what happens when a shepherd fails – as Dowd did on occasion.
Nonetheless, the covenant between Dowd and Yisra’el, Shepherd and Sheep, at “Chebrown – to associate and share,” reflects many aspects of the Covenant between Yahowah and His children. Yahowah guides us with His Towrah. It is the staff of the Shepherd. In this regard, the Hebrew word for God, ‘el, consists of the head of a male lamb and a shepherd’s staff: , thereby showing the shepherd engaged with his sheep and leading by example.
Neither the blind nor the lame find Yahowah because He can only be known through observation and contemplation. That is why they are precluded from entering His Home. It is not that God has a problem with physical deformities; it’s that He views an unwillingness to consider His Towrah and respond to it as handicaps that are too debilitating to overcome. This text is not about physical infirmities, but instead about a disabling attitude.
The religious are prone to oppose and demean those Yahowah has chosen. Those who are patriotic and militaristic are also inclined to be presumptuous and overly impressed with their prowess. The political pontificate, promising all manner of things they cannot deliver. But in the end, all of the noise is nothing more than an irritant to God, like scraping one’s nails on a blackboard. He diverts the water supply and the parched of spirit wither away.
The word used to depict the “matsuwdah – stronghold” which is Tsyown, and which became “‘iry Dowd – the City of Dowd,” is literally “the ridgeline of the mountain.” Dowd’s and Yahowah’s homes are coterminous because God envisions camping out together. It is what Sukah, the culmination of the Miqra’ey, represents, with Tsyown pointing out the way to camp out with God.
46We are told that Dowd “established the home and restored the family, building all around the surrounding area,” an environment that ran from “the terraces to the home.” The milow’ describes the system of retaining walls that were used to level the ground along the western embankment of the lower ridgeline of the City of Dowd. Large sections have been unearthed by archeologists, verifying this depiction. The beyth is the “home” of Yahowah, a place where we find the foundations, floors, and walls of the City of the Beloved, today.
Dowd walked with Yahowah, and then he walked some more. So shall those of us who have similarly acted upon the terms and conditions of the Covenant. Yahowah conceived us to walk with Him. Dowd realized God’s propensity for taking long strolls through life together, and came to respect Yahowah for it, which in part is why God revered His Son. He made him extraordinary. No greater man has ever lived. His legacy is recorded in his life and lyrics, the example and testimony of a man who was right about God.
Within moments of the time I translated this statement, I received a letter from a Covenant brother down under, in the land of Oz. A scientist by training, he explained why Yahowah constantly refers to Himself as the God of the Tsaba’. As a seven-dimensional being, Yahowah cannot fully enter the universe that He created for us, so He uses His “mal’ak – messengers” to accomplish what He wants to be done.
By way of example, Walt Disney, a three-dimensional being, cannot go into the two-dimensional world of his creation, Mickey Mouse. Walt’s capability and power infinitely exceed that of his cartoon, and yet the character he conceived cannot see him. The only way Walt can interact with his creation is to use implements: pencils, brushes, and pigments.
47Yah’s implements are mal’ak. They serve Him as part of His tsaba’. Since this is how God interacts with His creation while we exist in lower dimensions, He introduces Himself to us as Yahowah of the tsaba’ | spiritual implements.
There is more we can learn about the association between the City of Dowd, the Temple Mount, and the summit of Mowryah in conjunction with Tsyown from Shamuw’el, so let’s turn to the conclusion of the book. There is a story that reveals that, even though Yahowah loved Dowd in spite of his flaws when his poor judgment led people astray, there was a consequence.
After having sent his men out on a killing spree to fetch him a cup of water from a well in Bethlehem, only to pour it out on the ground, and then squandering the better part of a year counting the number of troops at his disposal, Dowd realized that he had damaged his relationship with Yahowah by failing to honor God’s request to shepherd His family. He had been called to guide and protect the flock, leading them to water. But he had done the opposite, using men to protect him and satiate his own desires.
“Now Dowd’s heart troubled him after he had counted the people, and Dowd said to Yahowah, ‘I have gone substantially astray with what I have done. So Yahowah, please forgive the guilt of your associate because I have acted very foolishly.’ (Shamuw’el / 2 Samuel 24:10)
Then Dowd got up in the morning and the Word (dabar – statement and testimony) of Yahowah (Yahowah – the proper pronunciation of YaHoWaH based upon His towrah – teaching regarding His hayah – existence) came to Gad (Gad – one who brings a brighter future and a more joyful state; from gowd – to overcome (also the name of the seventh son of Ya’aqob by Leah’s servant, Zilpah)), the 48prophet, and the seer of Dowd, to say, (Shamuw’el / 2 Samuel 24:11)
‘Walk, because you shall speak to Dowd, thusly, “Yahowah says three options I am providing for you to choose one of them which I will do to you.’” (Shamuw’el / 2 Samuel 24:12)
And Gad came to Dowd and he told him, asking him, ‘Shall you endure seven years of famine in your land, three months of yourself fleeing from the presence of your foes pursuing you, or the existence of three days of plague in your land?
Now consider and decide what I should reply to the One sending me this communication.’ (Shamuw’el / 2 Samuel 24:13)
Then Dowd said to Gad, ‘My distress is very great. Please, let us fall into the hand of Yahowah because His compassion and mercy are great but not into the hands of humans.’” (Shamuw’el / He Listens to God / 2 Samuel 24:14)
Dowd wanted nothing to do with human institutions. He recognized that powerful men are universally bad – that they are his foes and God’s foes. But he, like Chawah three thousand years before him, misconstrued what God had said. Since it had been his own abuse of power that had led to this situation, as someone tasked with the mission of being a shepherd and a role model, he should have chosen the second option, which was to personally flee from the presence of his foes as they pursued him for three months.
No one else would be at risk – including Dowd. He had survived an onslaught of death threats from Sha’uwl for a much longer period of time. More importantly, he had written the 91st Psalm and should have known that Yahowah’s promise to protect him was unconditional.
49But that is not what he chose. As a result, nearly one percent of the shepherd’s flock would meet a premature demise – seventy thousand of them. (Since we are told that 1.3 million men in Yisra’el and Yahuwdah were valiantly drawing their swords, there would be at least three to four times that many men, counting those too young, too old, too limited in capability, and too otherwise occupied, to fight courageously. With an equal number of women, the population would have exceeded seven million.)
My initial reaction to all of this was concern. Why would God be so disappointed and why respond so harshly? But then I thought about it some more. Dowd was special. Yahowah had facilitated his rise from an unknown shepherd to a level of success and fame no one else throughout time would ever experience – beginning with a single well-guided stone. Everyone knows his name. They know where he lived, what he did, and what he had to say in his Mizmowr / Psalms. He was chosen and he accepted the most important mission in the world – shepherding God’s family. And he blew it, big time.
With each victory, with every accomplishment, he became more self-centered, more self-absorbed, more self-assured, and especially more self-indulgent. The boy who rose through reliance, having become Yahowah’s most beloved Son, had now become so independent of the source of his enlightenment, empowerment, and enrichment, God wasn’t even talking to him anymore – but was instead communicating through Gad.
Rather than lead Yahowah’s flock to living waters, he sent God’s sheep out on a deadly mission to fetch him a drink which he threw away. And then against the advice of everyone, he squandered his people’s resources to conduct a meaningless accounting of men who could be deployed to fight his battles, protect his interests, and defend him. He had become like Sha’uwl. He was acting like a Gentile king. And he had no excuse. He, of all people, knew better. 50And because he was the chosen one, the implement and spokesman for the living God, he was tarnishing Yahowah’s reputation and perverting His purpose.
So, Yahowah offered Dowd three options through Gad. That alone is revealing. Gad was Yahowah’s prophet now that His counsel was no longer being sought by Dowd. And for all of those who have a conniption fit over translating ‘elohym as “God,” Gad and God are written identically in Hebrew. Yahowah obviously did not have an issue with the man’s name.
Shepherds feed their flock. Dowd was derelict in this regard, so to convey the consequence of failing to appreciate this vital aspect of the job, there would be a seven-year famine if Dowd elected to remain self-indulgent. Since shepherds protect their flock from harm and seek to heal them when they are injured or sick, Dowd’s failure to put the safety and health of God’s sheep ahead of his own would result in a three-day pestilence, reflecting the way ungodly human institutions infect their societies with deadly plagues. And inexplicably, Dowd chose this option, putting the lives of God’s children at risk rather than being inconvenienced.
In a teachable moment, the most brilliant man who ever lived missed the lesson. This was ‘Adam eating from the wrong tree, ‘Abraham promoting the wrong son, Moseh striking the rock. And since these men were all chosen by God, used by God, and loved by God, this becomes an instructive situation for all of us.
The reason so few people respond to the conditions of the Covenant and answer the invitations to the annual meetings, and thus live, is largely because the most influential members of society are vastly more concerned about themselves than they are about God. Some grow thirsty, many become hungry, and most die, plagued by the 51self-indulgent religious and political schemes of their leaders.
God is offering to immortalize us, to perfect us, to adopt us, to enlighten us, to empower us, to enrich us, and most importantly, to work with us to assure our success. He asks very little of us in return, hoping that we accept His terms and benefit from what He is offering. And yet, most squander this opportunity.
In Dowd we see ourselves. In Dowd, we see what happens when we fail to engage as shepherds. It cost Dowd nothing, save a nagging conscience, a stained reputation, and lost opportunities. But it cost seventy thousand sheep their lives. When we fail to listen to Yahowah or to respond appropriately once we are part of His Family, our status within the Covenant does not change. His promises are unconditional. But our failure to use the time afforded to us and the resources He has provided to share what the Towrah says about His Covenant, can and will affect the lives of others who might have come to an understanding of the truth had we done our part.
The other lesson is: listen carefully. Know and understand what God is saying before responding. Consider the options He has provided within the context of who He is and what else He has said. Be thoughtful and considerate. Dowd’s failure in this regard proved devastating. It is the same consequence endured by society at large, because very few people are observant, closely examining and carefully considering what God has to say.
The plague was “shachath – corrupting, blemishing, polluting, and sliming,” which is to say it was designed to mimic the effect of religion. You will also notice that when Yisra’el was infected from Dan to Beersheba, the consequence was deadly, just as it is with religion. But since the remedy for religion resides in Yaruwshalaim, Yahowah would establish this place as such, preventing 52Dowd’s failures from ruining His means to perfect the imperfect.
“So Yahowah caused a plague in Yisra’el from that morning until the time of the agreement. And the people died from Dan to Beersheba: seventy thousand men. (Shamuw’el / 2 Samuel 24:15)
Then the spiritual messenger stretched out his hand toward Yaruwshalaim to corrupt her (shachath – to mar and inflict ruin upon her, blemish and ravage her, pollute and slime her), but Yahowah grieved in regret (nacham – bemoaned and lamented the decision Dowd had made and as a result of His sorrow and compassion, He provided comforting relief (nifal imperfect passive)) regarding (‘el) the shepherd’s leadership (ra’ah – the one caring for the flock and those enabling disastrous and ruinous perversions, the personal advisor and the friends of wrongdoing, the associates of misery and suffering, the advocates of a bad attitude, the calamitous and misfortunate anxiety and distress advanced by those attending to the groom at a wedding), and He said to the heavenly envoy who was bringing the deadly and destructive condition (mashchyth – the circumstances which ensnare and corrupt, leading to rotting decay, death, and destruction) to the people, ‘It is now (‘atah – it has reached the point based upon the sequence of things and what follows) abundantly sufficient (rab – great enough). Pull down your hand (raphah yad – let your hand fall to your side, relent, lower your hand and leave them alone).’
Then the messenger of Yahowah appeared upon (hayah ‘im) the threshing floor (goren – the outdoor area of smooth stone bedrock where grain is processed, winnowing the desirable kernel from the useless chaff) of ‘Arawnah (‘arawnah – Light of the Ark; from ‘arown – ark of the Covenant, meaning informed freewill, akin to ‘arukah – to repair and restore a relationship and ‘owr – 53light), the Yabuwsy (Yabuwsy – Jebusites (Descendants of Jebus)). (Shamuw’el / 2 Samuel 24:16)
Dowd realized that he had made a mistake and so he was looking for a way to accept responsibility and make things right again between himself and God. His desire was to be a good shepherd of His sheep. And since God is in the business of resolving problems, He was ready to vindicate the guilty.
“So Dowd spoke to Yahowah upon seeing His messenger crippling and condemning (nakah – afflicting and wounding, disabling and slaying, verbally criticizing) the people, saying, ‘Behold, I bear the blame for my mistakes (chata’ – I am culpable for erring and going astray, I have failed (qal perfect)) and I was wrong (‘awah – I was perverted, acting in a way that is contrary to the standard, bending, twisting, and perverting it), but these sheep (‘eleh ha tso’n – this flock), what (mah) have they done (‘asah – have they engaged in)? Please, let it be Your hand with me and with my father’s house.” (Shamuw’el / 2 Samuel 24:17)
With God, it is not about being good or bad, but instead right or wrong. And while good is never good enough, wrong can always be corrected and made right. Dowd acknowledged his mistake to be sure, but what won him favor with God was that he thoughtfully embraced the right approach. The same works for us. Once we refrain from that which is counterproductive, we are in a position to properly assess Yahowah’s guidance and make more appropriate choices.
“And Gad came to Dowd on that day and said to him, ‘Get up and ascend (‘alah – rise and be lifted up, climb to overcome), standing up, taking a stand (quwm – rising up, restored, and encouraged, becoming upright to build), to approach (la) Yahowah via a sacrificial altar (mizbeah – a place to make an offer of thanksgiving) in 54association with (ba) the threshing floor (goren – the outdoor area of smooth stone bedrock where grain is processed, winnowing the desirable kernel from the useless chaff) of ‘Arawnah (‘arawnah – Light of the Ark; from ‘arown – ark of the Covenant, meaning informed freewill, akin to ‘arukah – to repair and restore a relationship and ‘owr – light), the Yabuwsy (Yabuwsy – Jebusites (Descendants of Jebus)).’ (Shamuw’el / 2 Samuel 24:18)
So, Dowd ascended (‘alah – stepped up, climbing up) consistent with (ka – in accord with) the word (dabar – statement and communication) of Gad because it was in accord with (ka’asher – consistent with the benefits of the relationship and according to) Yahowah’s instructions and directions (tsawah – guidelines, clearly communicated verbal message, teachings, and advice).” (Shamuw’el / He Listens to God / 2 Samuel 24:19)
This is a key element of the story. Dowd recognized that the message was from Yahowah because it was in accord with Yahowah’s previous instructions and directions, a.k.a., His Towrah. Yahowah continually asks us to stand up in His presence and to take a stand on behalf of what is right. He is ever ready to lift up those willing to step up.
Our Heavenly Father has presented a series of sacrifices which are designed to vindicate those who step up and out to meet with Him during these occasions. Moreover, since separating grain from the chaff is one of Yahowah’s favorite metaphors to distinguish saved souls who are highly valued from those who are tossed aside and deemed worthless, a threshing floor next to his home was a perfect location. And lastly, the name of the man who owned this place, ‘Arawnah | Ark of Light, described what would one day reside here: the Ark of the Covenant.
Dowd’s respect for and familiarity with Yahowah’s Towrah not only prepared him in advance to accurately 55discern that Gad was indeed speaking for God, but his foreknowledge and prior experiences facilitated an appropriate response. A lifetime of devotion to the relationship, consistent scholarship, a continual willingness to listen and be discerning, combined with the desire to engage in a manner consistent with Yah’s instructions, served Dowd’s interests, and ours, as well as God’s at this critical juncture in place and time.
Dowd did not have to be good, much less perfect. He had to be prepared and willing, capable of recognizing Yahowah’s voice and predisposed to go where His words led. And that did not come without effort. Dowd was observant, closely examining and carefully considering Yahowah’s Towrah. He was discerning, making the connections that led to understanding. And he was engaged, not only following Yahowah’s advice but sharing it with others.
There are three interesting metaphors associated with our salvation, all of which share something in common. Grain has to be milled to bake bread, grapes have to be crushed to create wine, and olives are pressed to make oil. The desired and useful product is separated from that which is tossed aside. Proper preparation requires effort. Life is akin to a threshing floor.
“Arawnah asked, ‘Why (maduwa’ – for what cause or reason, on whose account) has my lord (‘adony – my master) and king (melek – ruler) come (bow’ – arrived and returned) to his servant (‘ebed)?’
And Dowd said, ‘For the purpose of purchasing (qanah – buying and acquiring, creating a means to branch out and redeem, giving birth to restoration by creating a means of recovery) your threshing floor (goren – the outdoor area of smooth stone bedrock where grain is processed, winnowing the desirable kernel from the useless chaff) in order to (la) build (banah – establishing the 56home and restoring the family by erecting) a place to make an offer of thanksgiving (mizbeah – a sacrificial altar) to approach (la) Yahowah.
So then (wa), the plague of death (magephah – the deadly pandemic associated with being wrong and resulting disapproval) will be continually held back (‘atsar – will always be restrained, detained, and constrained (nifal imperfect)) from the people (min ‘am – away from the family).’” (Shamuw’el / 2 Samuel 24:21)
Humans are omnivores who thrive on the protein provided by meat. I say this because the animals being sacrificed served to nourish those who provided it. No animal was ever sacrificed to God, prepared for God, or given to God. But by using an essential element of our very existence, of life coming from life, of one animal being sacrificed for the benefit of others, God communicated an essential aspect of His plan. He made it possible for us to live. This symbolism facilitates our understanding and appreciation of Passover, causing it to be a celebration of thanksgiving. Righting his wrong, Dowd volunteered to serve as the Passover Lamb, making an extraordinary sacrifice for us on Pesach.
But Passover does not stand alone. When the blood of the Pesach lamb opens the door to eternal life, on this same day, and for the week that follows, we consume the purest meal the threshing floor can provide – grain baked into bread without yeast. Dowd’s soul removed the guilt, which caused the plague of death, from our souls on Matsah, carrying and depositing our rebellion into the one place Yahowah can never see it – She’owl.
Thereby, the Son of God paid the price to redeem the people he had once neglected, ransoming them from the same fate. That is why Dowd wanted to purchase the threshing floor. He understood how all of these things would work together to enable us to approach Yahowah. 57Our freedom came at a price. We were ransomed and redeemed, not stolen.
“Then ‘Arawnah said to Dowd, ‘I want Him to take it (laqach – of my own freewill, I want Him to accept it and receive it (qal imperfect jussive)) because I want Him to lift up my lord the king, doing what is generous and good (towb – beneficial and pleasing) in His sight (‘ayn – from His perspective).
Look, there are cattle for the uplifting offering (‘olah – the purifying means to become acceptable and rise), the threshing implements (mowrag – the sled comprised of heavy beams and stones used to separate the grain from the chaff as part of the harvest), and the wooden yokes for the oxen. (Shamuw’el / 2 Samuel 24:22)
All of this ‘Arawnah gives, O King, to the king.’ And ‘Arawnah said to the king, ‘May Yahowah, your God, choose to accept you, be pleased with you, and make amends with you (ratsah – may He desire to treat you favorably, mercifully reestablishing the relationship with you, delighting in you and approving of you because He is fond of you (qal imperfect jussive)).’” (Shamuw’el / 2 Samuel 24:23)
‘Arawnah realized the significance of what was happening, that a means to cure the plague of death and approach the living God was being facilitated by what would transpire upon his threshing floor. And since he knew Yahowah, ‘Arawnah recognized that God was not about to do any of this alone and that Dowd, His favorite Son, would play a significant role in the salvation of humankind. No doubt, he had listened to Dowd sing his psalms. That would have been sufficient.
And indeed, that is what occurred. Through Dowd and his son, Solomon, Yahowah prepared the home for the Ark of the Covenant, a place for man and God to meet. Dowd would write about it, conceiving lyrics that explained what 58was being offered in this place. Noteworthy in itself, the first to benefit was a Gentile, ‘Arawnah. He not only provided the proper place for this to occur, but he also offered the initial blessing: “May Yahowah, your God, choose to accept you, be pleased with you, and make amends with you.” Every word is a Tsyown.
“But the king said to ‘Arawnah, ‘Absolutely not (lo’ ky – surely no). I will purchase (qanah qanah – I will buy, acquiring the means to branch out and redeem, giving birth to restoration by creating a means to recovery) it from you with you being compensated (min ‘atah ba machyr – from you for a price, for value, by exchanging goods and services, out of my earnings and for money). I will not take up (wa lo’ ‘alah – I will not go up carrying up or offering up) to Yahowah (Yahowah – the proper pronunciation of YaHoWaH based upon His towrah – teaching regarding His hayah – existence), my God, offerings (‘olah – unjust, incorrect, purifying and uplifting offerings) without basis (chinam – for free, without compensation, gratuitously or undeservedly, in vain and to no avail, for no reason; from chanan – to implore or show mercy, favor, and acceptance).’ So Dowd acquired (qanah – purchased the means to branch out and redeem, giving birth to restoration by creating the means of acquiring renewal by way of creating an exchange), accordingly, the threshing floor (goren – the outdoor area of smooth stone bedrock where grain is processed, winnowing the desirable kernel from the useless chaff) and the oxen for fifty (chameshym – the number of days from Matsah to Shabuw’ah and the number of years in a Yowbel) shekels (sheqelym – a monetary unit of equal weight to 180 grains of barley (approximately 11 grams or 0.4 ounces) of refined and precious metal) of silver (keseph – of earnestly longing and desiring or metal coinage comprised of silver).” (Shamuw’el / 2 Samuel 24:24)
59Our salvation is not without basis. A price was paid. Pesach and Matsah cost the King more than we can possibly imagine.
Said another way, there is no salvation without Passover and UnYeasted Bread. And while we pay nothing, we are asked to invest some time, not only to attend these Invitations to Meet with God, but also to read about them in His Towrah, Naby’, and Mizmowr so that we understand what Yahowah is offering, as did ‘Arawnah and Dowd.
Silver, like gold, has retained its value throughout the ages. So, if you would like to know how much the threshing floor cost Dowd, compare the price he paid for the property to other things you could acquire today for around $275. That is the value based upon the conversion of shekels to grams with silver trading for $0.50 per gram today. But that is not quite right. The oxen, even if there were just two of them, would have been worth over thirty shekels. Their yokes, the grinding sled they pulled, and the preparation of the threshing floor to make the bedrock smooth, collectively would have cost at least ten shekels. And that means that the costliest, most coveted, and most contested place on Earth was acquired for fifty dollars – the price of a pair of cheap shoes.
To put this into perspective, one of Dowd’s sons, Solomon, purchased Egyptian chariots for six hundred shekels apiece, paying an additional one hundred fifty shekels of silver for the war horses to pull them. And he amassed 1,400 of these – at a price of over one million shekels – nearly six million dollars. It is a wonder, with priorities like these, Solomon was considered wise.
But it was not the amount of money that mattered, instead that a price was paid for the benefits that would emerge from this place and its association with God. Yahowah gives; He does not take. Yahowah redeems; He 60does not steal. Yahowah ransoms; He neither kidnaps nor enslaves.
Even for God, there would have been no merit in His Son making the sacrifices of Passover and UnYeasted Bread had He not conveyed what he was doing and why he was doing it. His podium would be this threshing floor and His Home would be built on top of it. His dissertation had been written in the Towrah. And the proclamation would be declared by this man, a deeply flawed individual, telling all who would listen that Father and Son were providing the means to perfect the imperfect. In this way, we would be lifted up and approach God, reconciled and restored.
“So then and there (wa shem – and now at that time based upon the name and reputation), he built (banah – he established the home and restored the family (qal imperfect active)) a place to make an offering of thanksgiving (mizbeah – a sacrificial altar) to approach (la) Yahowah (Yahowah – the proper pronunciation of YaHoWaH based upon His towrah – teaching regarding His hayah – existence).
He ascended, lifting up purifying offerings (‘alah ‘olah – he climbed up, taking and carrying up to offer up that which cleans and makes acceptable to ascend) in addition to (wa) affirming an alliance of friendship while promising to reconcile and restore the relationship (shelem – to be devoted to an accurate assessment of the agreed proposition, committed to earnestly seeking an affectionate and friendly covenant, approving and consenting to the fulfillment of the Covenant via recompense and restitution).
So then (wa), Yahowah (Yahowah – the proper pronunciation of YaHoWaH based upon His towrah – teaching regarding His hayah – existence) responded to the request in a prolific and abundant fashion (‘athar – 61replied, speaking voluminously and lovingly, multiplying the request into something far greater).
On behalf of the land (la ‘erets – to approach the land), the plague of death (magephah – the deadly pandemic associated with being wrong and resulting disapproval) was restrained (‘atsar – was held back and detained) from upon (min ‘al) Yisra’el (Yisra’el – Individuals who Engage and Endure with God and also Those who Struggle and Fight with God).” (Shamuw’el / 2 Samuel 24:25)
Yahowah came up with the antidote for humankind’s plague of death. It would serve as a vaccine, in a way, in that the cure required Him to use the disease, placing it on His Son to stop the infectious nature of religion from plaguing and killing all humankind.
We turned to this section of Shamuw’el simply to prove that Tsyown and the City of David were conterminous. Zion is not a separate mountain but instead serves as signs posted on Mount Mowryah by Yahowah and ‘Abraham, and by Yahowah and Dowd to show us the way Home. And by considering what we have just learned, the way to God has become considerably clearer.
The conclusion of this story, which is recorded in parallel, is found in Dabry ha Yowmym / Words of the Time / 1 Chronicles 21:27-28:
“Then (wa) Yahowah (Yahowah – the proper pronunciation of YaHoWaH based upon His towrah – teaching regarding His hayah – existence) spoke (‘amar – communicated) to the spiritual messenger (la ha mal’ak – the heavenly envoy, implement, and representative) and he returned (shuwb – he restored) his sword that lays desolate (chereb – his weapon and cutting implement; from charab – to waste, destroy, and make lifeless) into (‘el) its sheath (nadan – scabbard, a protective covering 62offered as a gift designed to influence without a quid pro quo).
At that time (ba ha ‘eth), when Dowd saw (ha huw’ ba ra’ah Dowd) that indeed (ky) Yahowah (Yahowah – the proper pronunciation of YaHoWaH based upon His towrah – teaching regarding His hayah – existence) had answered him (‘anah huw’ – had responded to him), on the threshing floor (goren – the outdoor area of smooth stone bedrock where grain is processed, winnowing the desirable kernel from the useless chaff) of ‘Arawnah (‘arawnah – Light of the Ark; from ‘arown – ark of the Covenant, meaning informed freewill, akin to ‘arukah – to repair and restore a relationship and ‘owr – light), the Yabuwsy, he offered a sacrifice there (wa zabach shem).” (Dabry ha Yowmym / Words of the Time / 1 Chronicles 21:27-28)
I shared this conclusion for several reasons. First, Yahowah uses His mal’ak as messengers and envoys. They do as He commands. They are implements of His will. The mal’ak are deployed because Yahowah must either set apart and dispatch a diminished aspect of Himself to intervene in our three-dimensional world or use His tsaba’ – regimen of spiritual representatives to do His bidding. And in this case, since the mission was to show that man’s way is a plague of death, He did not want Yisra’el to end up fearing Him as a result. When Yah intervenes personally, it is to serve His children, not destroy them.
Second, the tool the mal’ak was wielding was hardly a sword. But when raised against the people, its gleaming nature may have caused it to appear as such. There would be no word in our vocabulary to describe it today, and there certainly was not then. The term, selected to depict it, however, chereb is telling, because it also describes the chisel which would have been used to engrave the Ten Statements Yahowah etched in stone. It is a cutting tool.
63Also, when scribed in verbal form, it speaks of “laying waste, causing destruction and desolation.” The point being made is that the plan Yahowah articulated is cast in stone, and it is about separating ourselves from an alliance with man to one with God. It is the only way to avoid the plague of death that infects all others, cutting off and wasting their potential.
Third, this implement was placed back inside of a “nadan – a protective covering offered as a gift designed to influence without a quid pro quo.” We are adorned in a similar protective covering, one comprised of Yahowah’s Light by way of the Set-Apart Spirit as a result of the sacrifice Dowd made on our behalf – a gift designed to influence us in the most favorable way with nothing expected in return.
And fourth, a sacrifice is required to redeem and to ransom. Our salvation is not free. It cost our God more than we can possibly imagine. And that was the symbolism on display in this place, a threshing floor, where the grain was separated from the chaff.
