Shabbat Chol HaMo'ed Pesach
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· 18 viewsAdonai is faithful to his children and protects them from harm even when they are unaware of the harm. He is faithful to ressurect us and give our dry bones life again.
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Chol HaMo'ed Pesach | חול המועד פסח | "Intermediate Day of Passover "
Today is Shabbat Chol HaMo'ed Pesach
The Hebrew term "Chol HaMo'ed (חול המועד)" refers to the intermediate, non-holy days of a biblical festival. Only the festival of Unleavened Bread and the festival of Sukkot contain such days. The feast of Unleavened Bread is a seven day festival. The Torah designates the first day and the seventh day as days of holy convocation on which work is prohibited. The intervening five days are chol HaMo'ed, intermediate days. They are not festival Sabbaths or holy convocations, but they are still part of the festival.
The term chol HaMo'ed (חול המועד) means "non-sacred [days] of the appointed time." The intermediate days are "non-sacred" only when contrasted against the days of holy convocation on which work is prohibited. Intermediate festival days still retain the sanctity of the festival season and the special commandments of the festival. For example, the Torah forbids leaven through all seven days of Passover, and it requires the native-born Israelite to live in a sukkah for all seven days of the festival of Sukkot. Nevertheless, the intermediate days of those festivals are less sacred than the days of holy convocation because the Torah permits us to work on them.
A regular seventh-day (Saturday) Sabbath that falls on a day of chol HaMo'ed is called Shabbat Chol HaMo'ed. Shabbat Chol HaMo'ed is not really chol (non-sacred); instead, the holiness of the Sabbath sanctifies it. We regard it as non-sacred only in respect to the appointed time, but the holiness of the weekly Sabbath is greater than the holiness of the festivals.
For Shabbat Chol HaMo'ed Pesach, the sages assigned the Torah portion of .and the haftarah is Ezekiel's vision of the dry bones found in
In light of this tradition we will read from both the Torah Portion today and the haftarah portion today.
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The Scriptures Chapter 33
12 And Mosheh said to יהוה, “See, You are saying to me, ‘Bring up this people.’ But You have not made known to me whom You would send with me, though You have said, ‘I know you by name, and you have also found favour in My eyes.’
13 “And now, please, if I have found favour in Your eyes, please show me Your way, and let me know You, so that I find favour in Your eyes. And consider that this nation is Your people.”
14 And He said, “My Presence does go, and I shall give you rest.”
15 And he said to Him, “If Your Presence is not going, do not lead us up from here.
16 “For how then shall it be known that I have found favour in Your eyes, I and Your people, except You go with us? Then we shall be distinguished, I and Your people, from all the people who are upon the face of the earth.”
What does this sound like to you? To me it sounds like a parent and child relationship. How many times have we been at a park or perhaps at a pool and the parent says “Go slide down the slide or go jump in the water.” and the child being nervous or scared says “You go with me”. These people have been freed from Mitsrayim Egypt and have wandered in the Desert. They are at the foot of the mountain and Adonai has done great things in their eyes. The people are cautious now and want to serve rightly. Mosheh Moses in particular is trying to be as obedient as he can. Like any of us sometimes need, he needs a confidence boost or encouragement. We then have this interaction continue with Adonai giving Mosheh the reassurance he needs, just as all parents would reassure or give confidence to their children.
The Scriptures Chapter 33
17 And יהוה said to Mosheh, “Even this word you have spoken I shall do, for you have found favour in My eyes, and I know you by name.”
18 Then he said, “Please, show me Your esteem.”
19 And He said, “I shall cause all My goodness to pass before you, and I shall proclaim the Name of יהוה before you. And I shall favour him whom I favour, and shall have compassion on him whom I have compassion.”
20 But He said, “You are unable to see My face, for no man does see Me and live.”
21 And יהוה said, “See, there is a place with Me! And you shall stand on the rock.
22 “And it shall be, while My esteem passes by, that I shall put you in the cleft of the rock and cover you with My hand while I pass by.
23 “Then I shall take away My hand and you shall see My back, but My face shall not be seen.”
What is Mosheh asking for here? He is just asking how can I trust you? How much again is this like a child and a parent? We all remember as children climbing down from a tree when we have gone to high or maybe jumping in to a pool or even riding a bike. What where we afraid of? Getting hurt or falling right? What did our parents say to reassure us or give us confidence? “I will catch you” That was what Mosheh was asking for here. Adonai does not just say but he proves it. Mosheh wants to see his face and does not realize no man can look upon the face of Adonai and live. So Adonai proves he will protect Mosheh and the people. He does not let Mosheh hurt himself but guards him and at the same time he reveals himself to Mosheh by allowing him to look at his back.
This should be a sign to us as well. Adonai will guard us and protect us. We see this everyday though we may miss it. Sometimes we pray and ask for things that we think is good or noble or we even think will promote his kingdom and our relationship with him yet he says no. This maybe because it is harmful to us in ways we do not yet know or understand.
As parents we are all to familiar with this concept. For many times we have to say no when it is not what is best for our children even though they think it is. I am not sure of the exact mechanism or process that causes us to die when we see the face of Adonai but I trust in him so I trust in his word so I trust that if I where to see the face of Adonai I would die. In a similar way when a parent tells their child no it maybe the child should trust in their parent that a thing is harmful to them even when they do not see how.
What happens later though when we do die how can we trust Adonai to this point? Ezekiel has an answer in chapter 37:1-14.
The hand of יהוה was upon me and took me out by the Spirit of יהוה, and set me down in the midst of the valley. And it was filled with bones.
And He made me pass among them, all around, and see, there were very many on the surface of the valley, and see, they were very dry.
And He said to me, “Son of man, would these bones live?” And I said, “O Master יהוה, You know.”
Again He said to me, “Prophesy to these bones, and you shall say to them, ‘O dry bones, hear the word of יהוה!
‘Thus said the Master יהוה to these bones, “See, I am bringing into you a spirit, and you shall live.
“And I shall put sinews on you and bring flesh upon you, and cover you with skin and put a spirit in you, and you shall live. And you shall know that I am יהוה.” ’ ”
And I prophesied as I was commanded. And as I prophesied, there was a noise, and there was a rattling. And the bones came together, bone to bone.
And I looked and saw sinews and flesh came upon them, and skin covered them, but there was no spirit in them.
He then said to me, “Prophesy to the spirit, prophesy, son of man, and you shall say to the spirit, ‘Thus said the Master יהוה, “Come from the four winds, O spirit, and breathe on these slain, so that they live.” ’ ”
And I prophesied as He commanded me, and the spirit came into them, and they lived, and stood upon their feet, a very great army.
And He said to me, “Son of man, these bones are all the house of Yisra’ěl. See, they say, ‘Our bones are dry, our expectancy has perished, and we ourselves have been cut off!’
“Therefore prophesy, and you shall say to them, ‘Thus said the Master יהוה, “See, O My people, I am opening your graves, and shall bring you up from your graves, and shall bring you into the land of Yisra’ěl.
“And you shall know that I am יהוה, when I open your graves, O My people, and bring you up from your graves.
“And I shall put My Spirit in you, and you shall live, and I shall settle you in your own land. And you shall know that I יהוה have spoken, and I have done it,” declares יהוה.’ ”
Ezekiel 37
Even if we fall apart to bones and dust Adonai will restore his people. It is not beyond him or above him to resurrect the dead. He did so with his son Yeshua and he will do so with us in the fullness of time. A key point as well when it comes to faith and knowing Adonai can be found in verse 13. Adonai states “And you shall know I am Adonai when I open your graves”. This should be an encouragement to us. Upon our own resurrection we will know that he is Adonai. So if we have doubts or trouble trusting it is OK. We should work to resolve those issues and always try to be more faithful and trusting but a single moment does not undermine the entirety of our life in Yeshua.
From an apostolic perspective, the reading of cannot be separated from the historical recollection of our Master's resurrection. Depending on how one reckons the chronology of Yeshua's passion week, the Saturday after his crucifixion coincided with either the first day of Unleavened Bread or Shabbat Chol HaMo'ed. In either case, the first Sabbath to fall within the seven days of Unleavened Bread is the anniversary of our Master's sojourn in the grave.
Is it possible that the annual recitation of Ezekiel's vision of the dry bones is yet another footprint the early believers left behind in Jewish tradition? Perhaps they adopted the dry bones passage for Shabbat Chol HaMo'ed Pesach to honor the Master's resurrection and the custom spread into broader Judaism.