CLEANSING THE TEMPLE

The Feasts of Israel by Bruce Scott concurs. In it we read: "On the 25th day of Kislev, 165 B.C., exactly three years to the day from when it was desecrated by Antiochus and his troops, Judah and the people of Israel dedicated the cleansed Temple. The celebration lasted for eight days and featured music, feasting, worshipping, and praising God. Judah then decreed that such a festival should be instituted and observed every year, lasting for eight days and memorializing the 'restoration of their Temple worship.' Thus was established what became known as the Feast of Dedication or Hanukkah." You see, Chanukkah means "dedication."

This portion of history is strangely silent in our Bibles. It falls during the missing pages of that four hundred year period between the closing of the Old Testament and the opening of the New. However, just as Purim was based upon a real and valid series of events, likewise Chanukkah was founded upon the occurrence of such real and valid events as well. Esther relates the story of Purim, but the two books of Maccabees, which tell of the Hasmonean victory are not a part of the current Protestant Biblical canon. They are, however, found in the Apocrypha. The Apocrypha is comprised of fourteen books which are found in the Greek Septuagint, but were not deemed worthy to be included in our Protestant Biblical text. Catholic Bibles include 11 of the books of the Apocrypha, including the two books of the Maccabees. The King James Bible of 1611 also included these two books, but later Protestant editions of the King James version deleted all books of the Apocrypha.

Though historical records fall short of verification, there is strong inference from oral tradition and a notation in the Talmud (Shabbat 21b) that a miracle occurred when the Temple was cleansed. The contention is that the jugs of oil used to burn the Temple Menorah had been desecrated by Antiochus and associates - that is, all the jugs save one. This single jug bore an unbroken seal of the High Priest, and was the only sacred oil worthy of the Menorah lamps. Thereby, a problem arose. The single jug would be sufficient to burn the Menorah for only one day, and once the lighting was resumed, the flames were never be extinguished or allowed to fail. Yet it would take eight days to prepare a new batch of sacred oil fit for the Temple Menorah lamps. Undaunted, the High Priest performed the priestly protocol, and lit the Menorah. It burned brightly, and burned, and burned .... Eight days later, it burned yet brightly, until the newly completed oil was ready to service the Menorah lamps. A tradition was thereby built within the framework of the Chanukkah festival instituted by Judah, establishing the length of the festival to be eight days, and mandating that lights be kindled each of the eight days of Chanukkah, beginning on Kislev 25. This is usually midway through December on the Gregorian calendar. Due to the miracle of Chanukkah, it would also henceforth be deemed Hag Haorim, or the "Festival of Lights."

In The Work of Josephus, The Antiquities of the Jews, Book 12, Chapter 7, Verse 7 we find: "Now Judas celebrated the festival of the restoration of the sacrifices of the temple for eight days; and omitted no sort of pleasures thereon: but he feasted them upon very rich and splendid sacrifices; and he honored God, and delighted them, by hymns and psalms. Nay, they were so very glad at the revival of their customs, when after a long time of intermission, they unexpectedly had regained the freedom of their worship, that they made it a law for their posterity, that they should keep a festival, on account of the restoration of their temple worship, for eight days. And from that time to this we celebrate this festival, and call it Lights."

In The Jewish Book of Why by Alfred J. Kolatch we read: "Why are eight lights kindled on Chanuka? Aside from the explanation ... that a cruse of oil burned for eight days instead of only one day, the Midrash explains that after the sons of Mattathias defeated the Syrian-Greeks and entered the Temple, they found eight iron spears. They pushed these spears into the earth and kindled a light in each one."

There is now also The Second Jewish Book of Why with even more tidbits of information.

Jewish Holy Days by Coulson Shepherd tells of a current Chanukkah custom which almost certainly must be derived from the report of these eight spears. It reads, "One of the very interesting and exciting customs in Israel during this historic celebration is the carrying of the Hanukkah lighted in Modin, the historic site near Lydda, where the Maccabees rebelled in ancient times. The flaming spears were carried by marathon runners, both young men and women. They run from Modin in relays to Tel Aviv and then on to Jerusalem, where torchlight processions are held."

Special nine branch menorahs are used in the Chanukkah commemoration. Since the Jewish day begins at sundown, the observance of Chanukkah begins at sundown on Kislev 24, with the lighting of the menorah. Once lit, each lamp is to burn for at least one half hour before being extinguished.

Jewish Holy Days also tells of the use of this special menorah. In it we read: "On the first day the shamash, the prominent branch of the Hanukkah Menorah, ... is lighted. The shamash, which means servant, is usually in the center and is the tallest of the branches of the candlestick. From it each of the other branches is lighted on subsequent days, until all are lighted."

In The Jewish Book of Why, Kolatch writes: "The Talmud discusses whether one candle should be lighted the first night, two the second, etc. (which was the view of Hillel), or whether eight should be lighted the first night, seven the second, etc. (which was the view of Shammai). The decision was made to follow the view of Hillel, which was based on the principle that in matters of holiness one should add to (increase) rather than diminish (decrease)."

The lamps of the menorah are to be lit from left to right. An attempt is made to allow equal significance to the right and left sides of the menorah as in indication of the omnipresence of God. In other words, He is not present more at the right than at the left, or at the left more than at the right. For this reason, (if candles are used rather than oil lamps in the menorah), the candles are usually inserted from right to left, but they are lit, proceeding from left to right.

In addition to the lighting of the menorah, the prayers of Psalm 113-118 are recited, along with prayers proclaiming praises for the miracles of Chanukkah and giving thanks to God. Excerpts of Exodus 40 and the entire books of I Kings and Zechariah are read during this eight day celebration as well. Three blessings are recited over the Chanukkah candles on the first night of the holiday. The first two refer specifically to the lighting of the lights and the miracle of Chanukkah. The third blessing is recited on the first night of all holidays, and expresses thanksgiving for being blessed and able to observe the holiday.

On other holidays, the candles are used as light within the home, but because the Chanukkah lamps are primarily for celebration, they are not to be used as a source of light, but rather proudly displayed.

Chanukkah is not a Biblically mandated holiday. Thus there are no exclusions to secular activities as there are in most of the festival days which the Bible specifies. Work is not forbidden, but neither is it encouraged. Other than the brief traditional readings, and activities as well as the festive air of the season, routine life for the most part continues as normal throughout this eight day period.

Due to the celebration aspect of this holiday, fasting is not to be observed on Chanukkah, though it is unclear if this restriction is specifically for the first day of the festival, or for the duration of the eight days of celebration. In fact, several types of food are traditionally eaten at this time of year. For instance, potato latkes (a type of potato pancake) and donuts are fried in oil and consumed to commemorate the miracle of the oil which continued to burn for eight days instead of one.

The fat of a goose or chicken is often used to prepare favorite holiday delicacies. Thus, serving a goose or chicken has become a tradition in many homes on Chanukkah. Some of the fat is used for Chanukkah cooking, and any excess is saved for use at Passover.

Life in the Hebrew schools is more relaxed, beginning about a week before the first day of Chanukkah. Not only is the teaching regiment lightened, but the teacher often ignores the playful tendencies of the children rather than enforcing the standard attitude of study. When the first day of the festival arrives, all discipline ceases. School hours are reduced to half days, and even then, there is more fun than work, and the teacher not only allows the playfulness, but usually joins in as well. The most popular game for the season is spinning leaden tops called draydels. The word draydel is a Yiddish word derived from a German word meaning "to turn." The lead for the tops is poured some weeks prior to the holiday, and cast in wooden forms. It is often done at the school by some of the students. They whittle the forms with four Hebrew letters and cast the leaden tops.

Each player spins the draydel to see what letter faces up when the draydel comes to rest. These four sided tops have a different Hebrew letter written on each side. The four letters are nun, gimel, hay, shin. The nun counts as "nothing" (nisht), the gimel is to win all (gants), the hay means to win half (halb), an the shin is to lose (stel or shlecht). In a variation of the rules, each letter has a numerical equivalent, and the players score points for the values of the letters which face up at each turn of the top.

Even this simple game has hidden meaning. The nun, gimel, hay, and shin form an acronym for nes gadol haya sham, meaning "a great miracle happened there", which refers to the incident of the oil and their victory over Antiochus. However, the Jewish people also recognize their current statehood of Israel as a miracle. Therefore, after the State of Israel was established, it was often noticed that the letter shin on the draydels had been changed by their manufacturers to a pay, symbolizing the substitution of the word po which means "here" for the word sham which meant "there". Thus, the draydel send us the message that "a great miracle happened here" (in current day Israel) rather than there in the unsanctioned state.

Traditionally children receive gelt or Chanukkah money on the fifth night of festivities when a special family night is observed. This Chanukkah money is sometimes real currency, but is often chocolate money to be consumed by the eager children. It has now become customary to give small gifts each day of the eight day celebration.

There is a cute little children's book available today called Hanukkah Lights, Hanukkah Nights by Leslie Kimmelman.

In this little book, they feature a different aspect of the celebration for each of the eight nights of Chanukkah, so there are plenty of traditions linked with this celebration to go around.

Maoz Tzur is sung after the Chanukkah candles are kindled. It was written by an unknown author between the eleventh century and the thirteenth century. It extols God as Israel's deliverer, the precise theme of the holiday. The melody was adopted from a popular German folk song. It has been sung since the middle of the fifteenth century, and is still popular today.

The lyrics are as follows:

Rock of ages, let our song

Praise Your saving power;

You amidst the raging throng

Were our sheltering tower.

Furious they assailed us,

But Your help availed us;

And your word broke their sword

When our own strength failed us.

Marion F. Kremers has written a very intriguing book titled God Intervenes in the Middle East. It covers a huge amount of material, and has some very interesting nuggets.

In it we read: "Because of God's symbolic and exact ordering of sacred events to occur on the Feasts, Jesus may have been conceived in the Virgin Mary by the Holy Spirit on Hanukkah, which celebrates God's miracle of light in the Temple. At the conception of Jesus, the Light of the world was sent from heaven to earth."

Women are obliged to light the Chanukkah lamps. It is said that this privilege is theirs because they too witnessed the miracle of Chanukkah. However, if men AND women witnessed the miracle, this does not adequately explain why the women light the Chanukkah lamps, especially when we consider that male priests lit the original Chanukkah lamps which burned for eight days, and it was males through which God worked to achieve the victory over Antiochus that Chanukkah celebrates.

I believe that women light the Chanukkah lamps today because God supernaturally dictated it clear back in the second century B.C., and the Jewish people grasp at straws to explain why this is so. It carried over as well to the lighting of Sabbath candle. You see, if Marion Kremers was correct, and I DO concur with this author here, Yeshua was conceived on Chanukkah within the womb of Mary. Thus it was a female vessel which brought forth God's light (Yeshua) on Chanukkah. It may well be for this reason that God ordained the female to bring forth the light of Chanukkah in this symbolic manner as well. It is such unexplainable traditions that seem to place this festival firmly in the ordained patterning of God.

In Jewish Holy Days, Shepherd writes: "The way in which Jewish people celebrate Hanukkah today is very significant. The customs of this joyous season point very definitely to the One of whom all the divinely inspired Jewish prophets of old wrote, the One revealed in the New Testament." Of course, we know that this One is Yeshua.

He continues by stating: "The true Shamash, the Servant of Jehovah said: 'I am the light of the world: he that followeth Me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life' (John 8:12). Just as the Shamash on the Hanukkah Menorah lights all the other branches, Christ is the true Light who gives light to all who come in contact with Him, all who believe in Him. 'This is the condemnation, that light is come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil. For every one that doeth evil hateth the light, neither cometh to the light, lest his deeds should be reproved. But he that doeth truth cometh to the light that his deeds may be made manifest, that they are wrought in God.' (John 3:19-21). To His brethren after the flesh, He cries out: 'Arise, shine; for thy light is come, and the glory of the Lord is risen upon thee. For, behold, the darkness shall cover the earth, and gross darkness the people: but the Lord shall arise upon thee, and HIS GLORY SHALL BE SEEN UPON THEE. And the Gentiles shall come to thy light, and kings to the brightness of thy rising' (Isaiah 60:1-3). 'A light to lighten the Gentiles, and the glory of Thy people Israel' (Luke 2:32). Light dispels darkness. Light enables people to see. Light brings life. Light purifies. Light heals. 'The Lord is my light and my salvation' (Psalm 27:1). He is the effulgence of God's glory (Hebrews 1:3). For any who are in darkness to these spiritual truths, this message is given: 'To open their eyes, and to turn them from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan unto God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins, and inheritance among them which are sanctified by faith that is in Me [Christ]' (Acts 26:18)."

He continues to relate of a time yet to come, and Yeshua's role as Servant Candle therein. "The Scripture tells of an Eternal City, where all Jewish and Gentile believers will dwell forever with their Saviour: 'And the city had no need of the sun, neither of the moon, to shine in it: for the glory of God ... is the light thereof. And the nations of them which are saved shall walk in the light of it ... for there shall be no night there' (Revelation 21:23-25). 'I Jesus ... am the root and the offspring of David, and the bright and morning star' (Revelation 22:16). It was a great deliverance that God wrought through the Maccabees over 2,100 years ago. But here is a greater victory. The Lord Jesus Christ defeated the powers of darkness. There is deliverance from sin for Jews and Gentiles who believe in Him as the true light and the world's only Saviour. God grant that He might illuminate darkened minds and hearts. He will do this for those who will make Him their true Chanukkah today. He will deliver from the penalty of sin, from the power and practice of sin, and one day from the very presence of sin (I Corinthians 9:24-28).

Come to the Light, 'tis shining for thee;

Sweetly the light has dawned upon me;

Once I was bind, but now I can see:

The Light of the world is Jesus."

In their wonderful book titled The Mystery of the Menorah, J. R. Church & Gary Stearman relate the following: "The Menorah that stood in Herod's Temple may have been the one built by Judas Maccabaeus, because the Servant Lamp on that Menorah was said to burn longer than the other lamps. A strange story is told about the Menorah and its Servant Lamp. According to the Jerusalem Talmud, Yoma 43:3, the 'miracle of the Servant Lamp' ceased about 40 years before the Romans burned the Temple. The Servant Lamp simply refused to burn. The Jewish Encyclopedia says that the Lamp went out upon the death of 'Simeon the Righteous, who was high priest in those days.' And who was this Simeon? Was he the Simeon of Luke 2:25-36? The account tells of a certain Simeon who was in the Temple when the one-month-old Jesus was brought in by Joseph and Mary for His 'redemption of the firstborn' ceremony. According to certain details in the story, Simeon, the Righteous, and Simeon in Luke's account could very well be one and the same. '... the same man was just and devout, waiting for the consolation of Israel: and the Holy Ghost was upon him. ... And it was revealed unto him by the Holy Ghost, that he should not see death before he had seen the Lord's Christ' (Luke 2:25-26). Note that his death was divinely delayed until he could see the promised Messiah. And in the Jerusalem Talmud account, when Simeon the Righteous died, the Servant Lamp went out. Both stories were centered around a death experience. Luke's account does not refer to him as the high priest, but the story is set in the Temple. Furthermore, he had to be a priest in order to preside over the "Redemption of the Firstborn" ceremony. If he was not the high priest, and if he believed Jesus was the Messiah, he should have immediately fetched the high priest. Since the account does not say that he reported his find to the high priest, one may assume that he, himself, was the high priest.

Simeon took the child up in his arms and said, 'Lord, now lettest thou thy servant depart in peace, according to thy word' (Luke 2:29). Again, the subject concerns Simeon's impending death. Simeon continued: 'For mine eyes have seen thy salvation, which thou hath prepared before the face of all people; a light to lighten the Gentiles, and the glory of thy people Israel' (Luke 2:30-32).

He called Jesus a 'light to lighten the Gentiles' Indeed! It appears that Jesus was the fulfillment of this mysterious Servant Lamp in the Menorah!"

Isn't it interesting that the Servant Lamp refused to shine once Simeon had confirmed that Yeshua was the Christ, the true Shamash, the light for the world? The symbolic Shamash would now bow to the true by refusing to burn!

J. R. Church and Gary Stearman continue by stating: "... The opening chapter of the book of Revelation gives a view of Jesus standing in the middle of a Menorah. John saw Him standing on the Servant Lamp and 'his countenance was like the sun shining in its strength' (Revelation 1:16)."

Then in reference to Chanukkah in Jewish Holy Days we read: "This happy festival is not mentioned in the Old Testament .... It is mentioned, however, in the New Testament: 'And it was at Jerusalem the feast of the dedication, and it was winter' (John 10:22)."

Now recall, that we mentioned earlier that the Hebrew meaning for the word Chanukkah IS "dedication", and that it is known as both the Feast of Dedication AND the Feast of Lights. I believe that we can safely presume that this feast of dedication in John was, indeed, Chanukkah.

Coulson Shepherd now writes in Jewish Holy Days: "And it was at Jerusalem the feast of dedication, and it was winter. And Jesus walked in the temple in Solomon's porch. Then came the Jews round about Him, and said unto Him, How long dost Thou make us to doubt? If Thou be the Christ, tell us plainly (John 10:22-24).

This was the appropriate time for them to ask this question, for it was during the celebration of Israel's national deliverance, during the days of the Maccabees. In language that could not be misunderstood, He claimed to be a greater Maccabee (Hammerer); One who would bring about a deliverance not only for time, but for eternity: He claimed to be 'that Prophet' who was to come (Deuteronomy 18:15-19; Acts 7:37), even the promised Messiah (John 4:25-26), the Son of God (John 1:29-30)."

You see, it was ON the Feast of Lights that Yeshua first declared Himself to be one with the Father, a veiled reference that through His deity, He was the true light of the world, the TRUE Shamash.

Actually, there were three factors about the first Chanukkah which would all be fulfilled by Yeshua. 1) There was the miracle of the light, and He is the true light. 2) There was the miracle which ended the oppression and brought freedom. Yeshua will be the only source of salvation for mankind. 3) There was the cleansing and rededication of the Temple. Yeshua will not accomplish this as well. Whereas the other festivals foreshadow specific events of Yeshua's prophetic fulfillments, this hidden festival foreshadows Yeshua and the whole spectrum of the purpose of His interaction with mankind.

Oh, but there is yet more. The parallel goes on. Our God of patterns will yet use Chanukkah again in His handiwork! Looking again to The Jewish Festivals by Hayyim Schauss, we recall the manner in which Antiochus subdued his populace. It reads: "Antiochus now betook himself to convert his realm of diverse nationalities into a powerful, homogeneous kingdom .... The one way to accomplish this was to fuse all the peoples of his kingdom in the universal melting pot of Hellenistic culture."

Don't you see that this is exactly what will happen in the final fulfillment of the Antichrist. This is emphasized in Shepherd's Jewish Holy Day writing as well. In reference to the events that Chanukkah celebrates, it reads: "It would seem that this was in fulfillment of Daniel's prophecy found in Daniel 9:9-12. At least most Bible scholars so teach. Perhaps what happened in B.C. 164 was a near fulfillment and the far or complete fulfillment will take place during the time of Jacob's trouble (Jeremiah 30:6-8), referred to by the Lord Messiah as the great tribulation (Matthew 24:15-22)."

God Intervenes in the Middle East presents this same thought, and amplifies it a bit. It states: "God prepares His people for an important event by foreshadowing it long in advance. His selection of Kislev 25 for the rededication is a case in point. Here are important events on that date:

God gave the prophet Haggai four messages calling the Jews to rebuild the Second Temple. The final two messages were both given on the eve of Kislev 25, 520 B.C. Haggai said Jehovah would shake the heavens, the earth, and the sea. He would overturn thrones and shatter the power of kingdoms. The 'desired of all nations' would come and guarantee their inheritance like the seal of a signet ring (Haggai 2:7,21,&23).

On Kislev 25, ... the Maccabees rededicated the Temple precisely three years after its desecration.

Kislev 25, (December 10), 1917, was the day the British General Edmund Allenby entered Jerusalem and freed it from 400 years of Turkish rule. (He did not fire one shot.)

There is reason to believe that Kislev 25 will be the date of rededication of the Third Temple, ...."

Our God of pattern nearly always shadows anything of major import with a virtually identical typology earlier in history. Thus we see the great tribulation shadowed by the events which precipitated Chanukkah. Even the face of Antiochus on the idol which was placed upon the altar in the Temple depicts the image of the beast to be put in the temple during the Tribulation period! Apostates betraying their brethren will again occur, resulting in martyrdom, per Matthew 24:9-10. Indeed the ultimate Chanukkah or cleansing of the Temple will occur after the desecration of the third temple by the Anti Christ. Both the building of this third Temple (or possibly Tabernacle) and the Anti Christ figure await their ques to emerge on the scene of our current events in the here and now. But the typology gets yet deeper.

In our Forbidden Knowledge book, D. A. Miller refers to Arnold G. Fruchtenbaum's writings on Chanukkah when he says: "He establishes the time from the murder of the rightful high priest, Onias III (171 B.C.) until the time of the cleansing of the Temple by Judas Maccabeas. It was a span of exactly two thousand, three hundred days. This was just as Daniel had prophesied. 'Two thousand and three hundred days; then shall the sanctuary be cleansed.'"

Now let's work with this shadowing of two thousand and three hundred days, and project it into an end days timeline. It is just short of seven years. This insight coupled with the preceding information and that which will be presented momentarily regarding the timing of the construction of the Temple, would indicate that indeed 1) the Temple or Tabernacle might be constructed on Chanukkah at the beginning of the seven years of the tribulation period, 2) the newly appointed high priest killed some 220 days later, 3) the Temple defiled some 1220 days later on Chanukkah, then cleansed and rededicated by Yeshua on Chanukkah exactly three years or 1080 days after it was defiled, and exactly seven years after it was built, concluding the seven tumultuous years of Tribulation.

Recall that our physical realm is almost an exact duplication of the spiritual realm. So, from a spiritual perspective, We must also recall that, as Believers, each of us has a body which is considered to be a temple by God. I Corinthians chapter 3 tells of the Bema judgment throne. Verse 15 says that the man whose work is all burned up in this judgment will be saved, yet so AS BY FIRE. It is followed by this message in verses 16-17:

People if this does not wake us up as Believers, I don't know what will. IF WE DEFILE OUR BODY TEMPLES, the very Word of God says that HE WILL DESTROY us. A Believer's defiled and unrepentant temple body MUST BE DEALT WITH BY GOD! Matthew 10:28 warns of this when it indicates that God is able to "destroy BOTH SOUL AND BODY in hell". As mentioned in previous segments, this particular use of the word hell is Gehenna in the Greek. Please check it out.

I Corinthians 3:18-20 follows this statement that God will destroy a Believer's defiled body temple with a stern warning about the deceptive teachings of the world's gospel! It reads:

If we choose not to heed God's own warnings, and eat of the bread of deceit being taught today, we WILL suffer a terrible fate at His hand, even including the potential destruction of our body temples. What might any one of us have done that could desecrate the altar of our own body temples? Have we repented? How will this be dealt with by Yeshua? It may be that this matter should be considered very quickly!

We have mentioned in previous studies the correlation of the leprosy of Leviticus chapters 13 and 14 to the sin of the body (house) and soul (garments). Spiritually, we see Gehenna as being the place where the leprous body (house) of Leviticus is broken down and put in an unclean place outside the city. We might want to note at this time what happened to the altar which had been defiled by Antiochus. We find the report in Jewish Holy Days, as drawn from the Apocrypha. Here we read: "... the question arose as to what should be done with the old desecrated altar upon which a sow had been sacrificed. It was decided to pull down and store the stones of it in a convenient place, 'until there should come a prophet to give an answer concerning them' (1 Maccabees 4:44-46)." This may well be a shadow of the defiled body temple altars being slain, torn down, and thrown into Gehenna for destruction until such time as Yeshua deals with them later.

But what of the body temple altars which were not defiled, or which were defiled, but repentance had secured rededication and purification during this present life?

Those who have body temples worthy of redemption at the onset of the Tribulation period will be transported away from the trials to come. We are told to pray to be worthy of this escape in Luke 21:36. Here is where our game of Draydels comes into play. The one who is taken up as a First Fruits offering wins it all (gimel or gants). The one who is left behind is as though nothing has changed for him (nun or nisht). The one who overcomes during the Tribulation period will win half (hay or halb), and the one who never overcomes and must face the destruction of his temple body loses all (shin or stel/shlecht).

The Jewish Festivals presents us with an interesting parallel. Indeed, I had begun to see this parallel before I read this writing. It states: "The same Midrash, in dealing with Chanukkoh, in general, states that it is a commemoration of the rededication of the Temple by the Hasmoneans, who made war against the Greeks and defeated them, THAT IT WAS OBSERVED IN THE SAME MANNER AS THE DEDICATION THE JEWS HELD IN THE WILDERNESS WHEN THEY FINISHED THE TABERNACLE."

In a previous segment, we related this Nisan 1 dedication of the first wilderness Tabernacle to that of the heavenly wilderness Tabernacle, and indicated that just as the Ark of the Covenant was put into the ORIGINAL wilderness Tabernacle on Nisan 1 (per Exodus 40:1-3), it may well be on Nisan 1 that the First Fruits Ark is placed in the heavenly wilderness Tabernacle. However, as Hayyim Schauss has just pointed out, there may be a link between Chanukkah and this Nisan 1 event. We must recall that our physical earth is on one time schedule, but the heavenly Tabernacle is in a different dimension. Though still within the fabric of time, it may be on a different time track. It is remotely possible that God COULD be showing us that the feast of Chanukkah HERE is relative to the Nisan 1 timing THERE.

Let's look back to The Mystery of the Menorah for a moment. Here we read: "In 520 B.C., two contemporary prophets, Haggai and Zechariah, added a new dimension to Jewish hopes of rebuilding their Temple and rekindling the spirit of Messianic fervor. Haggai (2:18-19) predicted a SPECIAL BLESSING for the 24th day of Kislev. And Zechariah (4:1-7) predicted the addition of two more lamps on the Menorah. First Haggai was given the prophecy of Hanukkah. 'Consider now from this day and upward, from the four and twentieth day of the ninth month, EVEN FROM THE DAY THAT THE FOUNDATION OF THE LORD'S TEMPLE WAS LAID, consider it. ... from this day will I bless you' (Haggai 2:18-19)."

You see, the foundation of the Lord's Temple was thrown into the mix here, and the date was the eve of Chanukkah. Is this an important time to God or what? Whereas Yeshua is the foundation of the Heavenly Tabernacle, we read in Revelation 3:12 that the Philadelphian overcomers too are a key factor to this foundation as well. It states:

Now recall that the Philadelphians are the First Fruits, and you will see that there may be a link between the timing of the installation of the First Fruits pillars in the heavenly Tabernacle and our celebration of Chanukkah. The eve of Chanukkah on Kislev 24 when the first Chanukkah candles are lit could actually be when the body Temples of the First Fruits offering are cleansed and brought into the heavenly Tabernacle for the Nisan 1 dedication of the heavenly Tabernacle in its different time frame there, and it is at this time that these First Fruits pillars are spiritually erected as a part of the foundation of that heavenly Tabernacle.

J. R. Church and Gary Stearman continue by stating: "Secondly, about the same time, autumn of 520 B.C., Zechariah was given a series of visions which correspond to Haggai's date. The implication that two more lamps would be added to Israel's Menorah can be seen in Zechariah's two olive trees: 'And the angel that talked with me came again, and waked me, as a man that is wakened out of his sleep, And said unto me, What seest thou? And I said, I have looked, and behold a candlestick all of gold, with a bowl upon the top of it, and his seven lamps thereon, and seven pipes to the seven lamps, which were upon the top thereof: And two olive trees by it, one upon the right side of the bowl and the other upon the left side thereof.' (Zechariah 4:1-3)."

He continues by saying, "In addition to the seven lamps of the Menorah, Zechariah was introduced to 'two olive trees,' which in Revelation 11:4 are also called 'two candlesticks.' The implication is that these two lamps are added to the other seven, making a total of nine lamps, a Hanukkah menorah! ... In Revelation 11:4, we are told that the TWO WITNESSES are fulfillment of the two olive trees in Zechariah's prophecy: These are the two olive trees, and the TWO CANDLESTICKS standing before the God of the earth (Revelation 11:4). Note that the two olive trees have now become two additional lamps on the menorah -- making a nine-lamp Hanukkah menorah! These two prophets, Haggai and Zechariah, direct our attention to the events in 165 B.C. -- the establishment of Hanukkah by Judas Maccabeus."

Isn't it interesting that the book of Zechariah is one of the two books which is read in entirety every Chanukkah?

In a previous segment, we saw how the expansion of the seven branch menorah to the nine branch menorah was significant in reference to the feasts. There were seven original feasts ordained by God. As they would be configured on the menorah, Pentecost would be the servant lamp or Shamash. In addition, Purim and Chanukkah are now celebrated in Judaism as well. Purim is just prior to the spring festivals, and Chanukkah is after the conclusion of the fall festivals, making the extension of both ends of the menorah. It is interesting that these two extra menorah candlesticks are designated as two WITNESSES in Revelation. It is also interesting to note that according to the Jewish tradition, there must be two witnesses to the wedding ceremony! Now Purim seems to tell of the First Fruits Bride of Christ being prepared and presented to the King, and likewise, Chanukkah may represent the cleansing of this Bride and her dedication in the Temple. Indeed these two witness candlestick additions to the holiday menorah may also represent the two witnesses to the heavenly wedding who then come down to earth to do their job down here!!!

Let's refer back now to the other book mentioned by J. R. Church and Gary Stearman. It was Haggai, a short book of only 2 chapters, but what a power packed two chapters it is! The underlying text is exquisite! One cannot fully appreciate the hand crafted perfect beauty of this passage without putting the English aside and researching the Hebrew written word found therein. Verses 4-5 of chapter 1 read:

In the superficial text we picture here the Temple in Israel which will be rebuilt and dedicated. But if this was the only message, why would God say: "Consider your ways"? He says it not once, but twice, repeating the command two verses later in verse 7. There seems to be a deeper textural message which is rather profound and relates to our study of the First Fruits Harvest. Let's check it out!

Ceiled here means covering, and recall that our body can be a house, and our skin a covering for our body house. Recall also that His chosen ones will be the First Fruits of the Wheat Harvest, wheat being a type of grain, which will be offered to Him. Ways here has a dual meaning, being BOTH conversation, manner, etc., AND ALSO pathWAYS of transport. Without lengthy explanation, let's paraphrase this text using the underlying meanings we find via the Hebrew and some symbology of our previous studies. "Will ye yet dwell in your bodies of skin and let your grain offering and seed remain dry and worthless? Now therefore, thus saith the Lord of hosts; Consider your worthiness and your portals." In other words: "Is it now time to consider worthiness and our transport to the heavenlies so we can shed these bodies of skin and bring our first ripened Wheat Harvest to God so He can change us and make our seed fruitful?" Two short verses later He repeats Himself, saying again, CONSIDER YOUR WAYS! As we have stressed in previous segments, we must strive to be found worthy of the NARROW PORTAL rather than the WIDE one. Verse 8 of this chapter then says:

Wood here can mean staff, and might imply the staff or rod of Aaron in the Ark. In the underlying message, we might find that the Lord is saying: "Go up the portal to God's holy mountain, bringing Aaron's rod, and construct My Tabernacle wherein I will take pleasure and be glorified". Man was a part of that which was created to bring pleasure, glory, and honor to the Lord per Revelation 4:11! As the First Fruits become the spiritual pillars of this heavenly tabernacle foundation, might they be His source of pleasure and glory at this time?

Verse 12 speaks of Zerubbabel the son of Sheltiel, and Joshua the son of Josedech, the high priest, with the REMNANT of the people. Zerubbabel means "born in Babylon", Sheltiel means "ARK of God", Joshua means "the Lord of Salvation", and Josedech means "the Lord has made JUST". Combining the meaning of these names, we can see that the identity of this REMNANT of people is those who were born in Babylon (i.e. spiritual Babylon), but are now aboard the Ark of God because Lord of Salvation has justified them. This REMNANT of the people "did fear" (showed reverence) BEFORE GOD! In Verse 11, God had begun His judgment on the earth, but in verse 12, this REMNANT of God's chosen weren't here, they were in God's presence in a new Tabernacle on God's holy mountain showing reverence before Him! Then spake Haggai, the Lord's messenger in verse 13, saying:

He IS WITH these First Fruits! Verse 14 reiterates the joyous event, using even more beautiful language. It says that the Lord "stirred up", meaning "lifted up or raised up" this remnant of people and they "did work" (made an offering - i.e. the First Fruits offering) in the house of the Lord of hosts, their God. Verse 15 tells us that this date was Elul 24 in the second year (which can mean a specific span of time) of Darius the king. Now I haven't got a firm grip on this Darius the king thing, but it is possible that it is a second term of office or service of one of our presidents, such as Bush, or maybe even a return term of office of Clinton if that is somehow achieved. It may not even be related to our presidents, but to someone else entirely, such as Sharon who was basically reelected recently, and is thus figuratively in a second "span of time" as ruler even as we speak. At any rate, it is Elul 24 of this unknown "year" when such transport may occur. Elul is a month of preparation, a time of self examination and repentance. If we have been seriously contemplating our standing with God and repenting throughout the month, we would be ready to be taken through the portal to the heavenly throne when the time of transport comes. The question is posed in 2:19:

Note here that barn can mean temporary abode or dwelling.

God seems to be asking a rhetorical question, as He is about to interact with the seed. In His next breath God says "from this day will I bless you". So which day is "this day"? Three months have elapsed since Elul 24. We were told in verses 10 and 18 that this day is Kislev 24, the eve of Chanukkah. We should note that the previous verse says this was the day that the foundation of the Lord's temple was laid, CONSIDER IT. What a strange phrase. CONSIDER IT! You see the Lord is telling us here that there is something more to consider or ponder than that which is indicated by the superficial text! We have a paradox here. If the First Fruits arrived on Elul 24 and "came and did work IN THE HOUSE OF THE LORD OF HOSTS, THEIR GOD" per 1:15, how is it that the foundation for this house is just being laid three months later on Chanukkah per 2:18? The answer might be that only the spiritual aspect of man was to be stirred up during Elul through dying to self, and the physical raising would occur on Chanukkah three months later. Even as Yeshua was raised on the third day, so the foundation could be laid, and the Temple dedicated. CONSIDER IT.

But let's go back to God's question in verse 19. Is WHAT seed yet in the barn? We have covered this "seed" issue in previous segments. We would note here that the word "you" in verse 19 is in italics, meaning that it was added. Indeed that which is to be blessed here may be specifically the SEED WITHIN the First Fruits Bride rather than the Bride herself. The blessing may be one of purification of her seed, and the fertility to bring it forth. Four different types of seed is mentioned here, and being a multicultural grouping, the First Fruits Bride may have within her an assortment of varying types of seed. As His chosen vessels, however we can rest assured that whatever the type, He is about to bless it in a very special way! What is noteworthy though, is that our God of pattern may have ordained that on Chanukkah, the same day of the Hebrew year that God made Mary fruitful, the Bride of Christ may be likewise blessed! Though I favor the spring window for catching up of the Bride of Christ, it is remotely possible that on the same day of the Hebrew calendar that God sent His seed to man, He will bring man's seed to Him!

While this is happening above, kingdoms and thrones are being overthrown below, AS WELL AS CHARIOTS, and those that ride in these chariots are being slain. The charioteers here may be those who have come forth during "first contact" as Ascended Masters in their mysterious "heavenly chariots". At this time, however, the Firsts Fruits are securely at rest in His Tabernacle above during the turmoil below, and the scene concludes now in His House in the last verse of the book with the Lord saying to His SERVANT of the ARK who was born in Babylon, I will TAKE THEE, and WILL MAKE THEE AS A SIGNET (i.e. I will seal thee), for I HAVE CHOSEN THEE saith the Lord of hosts!!!!! This would be when Yeshua writes upon the Philadelphian First Fruits the name of His God, and the name of the city of His God, and His new name (per Revelation 3:12)!!! What a Chanukkah celebration this will be!!!!!