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MESSIAH in the first seven words of Scripture
Posted : 25 Apr, 2011 09:26 PM
1 sorry some of it did not post well from copying but i am tired i still think it is very readable though the message is still there
B�resheet � In the Beginning � Part 2
Genesis 1:1
תיִ
שׁאֵ
רְ
בּ
The First 7 Words of Scripture
This week continues our study of the first sentence, or the first 7 words of Scripture. While the
English rendering of the first sentence of Scripture yields the ten words �In the beginning, God
created the heavens and the earth,� we must remember that those ten words are just that.
They are a rendering. In the very strictest sense, they are not God�s words to us. They are only
a translation of the original words that our Creator dictated to Moshe at Mount Sinai.
The intent of a translation is to give us the closest possible rendering of an original work. Many
people have spent countless years translating the Scriptures to give us what they thought was
an accurate depiction of the Biblical writings. We have numerous versions that tell us that this
is true. We have the King James, New King James, American Standard, New American Standard
and New International Versions, among many others, that have all tried to give us the most
accurate depiction of the original text. When it comes to study of God�s Word, and the study of
God�s truth, we must understand and accept that these versions, are just that. They are
versions of that Truth, and they are not the Truth itself. As we all have likely heard, there is no
version of the truth, there is only the truth. This statement is never more accurate than when
applied to the Bible.
Though we have come to understand that a version of the Bible is simply a translation from one
language to another, we need to consider the literal meaning of the word, version. It is defined
as �A description or account from one point of view, especially as opposed to another.� It seems
interesting that the word we use to describe a translation of the Bible also means one
viewpoint as opposed to another. In this case, we might want to take the definition of that
word literally to help us understand that our English versions of the Truth may oftentimes stand
in opposition to the original Truth.
This may be difficult for many of us to swallow, especially to those of us that have grown up
thinking that the King James Version (or whatever our pet version may be) is the most accurate
version of the original Bible available. Though the King James Version has been painstakingly
translated, there are unquestionably many errors in the translation. Unfortunately, these
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errors have led to many improper beliefs and doctrines that have hindered us in our individual
walks with YHVH. This isn�t to say that the translation of the Bible is necessarily a bad thing,
only to enforce the fact for us that if we want to understand the depths of the words that God
gave us, we have to get back to those words. Trying to understand God from a translation of
His Word is not only difficult, it is impossible. It�s impossible because the whole system of
translation is inherently flawed.
Translations are inherently flawed because not every culture is the same. What is important in
one culture is not necessarily important in another. This is especially true of cultural idiom.
The American Heritage Dictionary defines the word idiom as follows:
�A speech form or an expression of a given language that is peculiar to itself grammatically or
cannot be understood from the individual meanings of its elements.�
In the simplest of terms, this definition of this word tells us that there are particular phrases in
one language that cannot be understood in another. English has hundreds of these sayings.
In other words, there are peculiarities in every language that simply cannot be translated
literally. English is full of these. Some examples of well-known English idioms:
�Graveyard shift�
�Raining cats and dogs�
�Eat your heart out�
�That�s a deusy!�
There are literally hundreds of others, but as an example, I�ll take the last one, �That�s a deusy!�
To most of the world, this really doesn�t mean much. But, because we are Americans, this
means something. If we ever call anything a �duesy,� we are telling someone that it is
exceptional, or outstanding in some way.
The etymology of this word comes from the Duesenberg luxury automobiles that were popular
during Clark Gable�s day. They were highly crafted, extremely ornate, and ridiculously
expensive. Because the automobiles were so opulent, the nickname for the cars stuck.
Anything that was high performance, ornate, or was often only available to the rich was term a
�duesy.� Though the Duesenberg autos haven�t been seen in quite some time, the term is still
in use today.
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Likewise, we have hundreds of Hebrew idioms. To most of the world, the literal translation of
most of these idioms does not accurately represent what is trying to be expressed. One such
Hebrew idiom is the term �A thief in the night� or very simply the word �thief.�
There are many references in the Brit Chadashah (New Testament) that mention the word
thief.
Matthew 24:43 �But know this, that if the goodman of the house hand known in what watch
the thief would come, he would have watched, and would not have suffered his house to be
broken up.�
1 Thessalonians 5:2-4 �For yourselves know perfectly that the day of the Lord so cometh as a
thief in the night. For when they shall say, Peace and safety; then sudden destruction cometh
upon them, as travail upon a woman with child; and they shall not escape. But ye, brethren, are
not in darkness, that that day should overtake you as a thief.�
2 Peter 3:10 �But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night; in the which the heavens
shall pass away with a great noise, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat��
Revelation 16:15 �Behold, I come as a thief. Blessed is he that watcheth, and keepeth his
garments, lest he walk naked, and they see his shame.�
We have many scriptures detailing the day of the Lord coming as a thief in the night, but some
questions still remain. Why do the disciples equate it to a thief? What about keeping our
garments? These are things that we cannot understand without returning to our Hebrew roots.
Without doing that, we would not know that this is a reference to the High Priest of Israel.
In the Tabernacle and Temple era, there were two oblation offerings given each day. These
were offerings of a male lamb, without blemish, and were done to give thanks to God, and to
signify that the earth is the Lord�s, and the fullness thereof. One sacrifice was performed in the
morning, the other sacrifice was performed in the evening.
Exodus 29:39 �The one lamb thou shalt offer in the morning; and the other lamb thou shalt
offer at even.�
Numbers 28:4 �The one lamb shalt thou offer in the morning; and the other lamb thou shalt
offer at even.�
The morning sacrifice was performed each morning as the sun rose and the light hit the valley
of Hebron. So, in order to perform this sacrifice, the high priest had to make sure he was there
long before sunrise. He had to insure that the evening sacrifice had been completely consumed
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off of the altar, and that the altar fire was stoked and ready for the morning sacrifice. He
accomplished this by assigning these duties to a priest, and by stationing this priest in the
temple the night before.
This assigned priest was to be vigilant concerning the fire on the altar. He was to make sure
that it was constantly stoked and burning at full capacity. If he did not do this, the lamb
offering would not be completely consumed, and the morning sacrifice would be delayed. If he
was not attentive, he would have to answer to the High Priest. Though this was an extremely
important assignment, sometimes he was not as attentive and vigilant as he should have been.
It was then that he had to deal with the High Priest�s punishment.
You must remember that this assigned priest was carrying out these duties during what we
would term a �graveyard shift,� and staying awake and alert at 3 and 4 a.m. is sometimes a
difficult thing. Our bodies tend to want to shut down and sleep at that time, and for a duty
priest in the tabernacle, it was no different. He had to fight sleep to insure that the altar was
stoked and that the worship of YHVH was done properly. If he happened to drift off to sleep, it
was then that the �thief in the night� would come into play.
It was said of the High Priest that when he entered the tabernacle or temple in the early
morning hours, he did so extremely quietly. He entered the temple as a �thief in the night� to
inspect the evening sacrifice and the altar fire. He did it without announcement, and very
stealthily. If he happened to find the evening sacrifice not completely consumed, and the fire
not stoked properly, he would do two things:
First, he would get coals from the fire altar, and re-stoke the fire on the previous evening�s
sacrifice to insure that it burned completely before the morning sacrificed was offered. After
this, he obtained some more coals in his fire pan, and went looking for the sleeping priest.
When he found the sleeping priest, he awakened him in a way that was not forgettable. He
took the coals that he had from the fire altar and lit the sleeping priest�s clothes on fire from
the bottom.
Now, imagine sleeping in a corner somewhere, and you are jolted to consciousness by the pain
of your clothes on fire. This is something that you would not soon forget. Another thing to
remember is that the priest�s garments were woven linen, and were extremely flammable. It
did not take very long for his garments to be completely consumed. The only way he could
keep himself from being burned to a crisp was to yank his clothes off of him as fast as he could.
The trouble was the timing. He had no other clothes to wear, and the sun was either rising
quickly, or already risen. He then had to walk home from the tabernacle or temple, and he
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had to do so naked and burned. This was obviously a very humiliating thing for the priest, and a
lesson that he did not soon forget. His High Priest had taught him a lesson about being vigilant
when it came to the worshipping YHVH. Now, with this understanding, we can go back to
Revelation, and know what is being expressed.
Revelation 16:15 �Behold, I come as a thief. Blessed is he that watcheth, and keepeth his
garments, lest he walk naked, and they see his shame.�
Now the verse makes sense. It is important to understand that without this understanding of
the Hebrew idiom �a thief in the night,� there cannot be a proper understanding of the verse in
Revelation. What is also important to understand is that if mankind doesn�t understand
something, he will oftentimes invent his own understanding. This is particularly true of
Scripture. In the case of this particular idiom, many people have taught falsely about the return
of the Messiah. Many have taught that the Messiah coming as a thief in the night is a reference
to the imminence of the rapture, and that no man can know when He will return. This is not
exactly Scriptural, though. We may not be able to pinpoint an exact hour, but we can,
according to Scripture, know the times and the seasons that will lead to our Messiah�s glorious
return. We can know these things through understanding the idioms that our Messiah taught
and understood. This is why returning to His language is not only beneficial, but critical to our
understanding of His teachings.
The fact is that studying God�s Word through English will only result in a slight scratching of the
surface of all that God intended. If the Word of God is the clear, cool water that we drink for
our spiritual health and survival, then we must penetrate the translation surface of that body of
water that is covered with dust and debris. Only when we reach deeper into that body of water
will we obtain the pure and life-giving essense that is there, and always has been there waiting
for us.
Now we get back to finish our study on the first sentence of the Bible. Again, the seven Hebrew
words that make up the first sentence are B�resheet bara Elohim et h�shamayim v�et h�aretz. Or
in Hebrew:
ְ
􏰀
􏰁ֶ
ר􏰂ָ
ה תֵ
אְ
ו ,􏰃ִ
יַ
מָ
􏰄ַ
ה תֵ
א ,􏰃יִ
ה􏰅ֱ
א אָ
רָ
􏰀 ,תיִ
􏰆אֵ
ר
Last week we finished discussing the many layers of meanings that are contained in the first of
these seven words. B�resheet gives us much more information than is contained in the simple
translation of the word. Though the surface meaning of this word is something resembling �In
the beginning,� the depths of meaning are also very much apparent. Through this one word we
were able to learn that the Father started with a house, that the Son of God was the beginning
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of that house, that the Son was the one that created, that He was the first and foremost in the
house, and that the inhabitants of that house were sons and daughters that were to be a very
small remnant of people. Hard to believe, but all of that information is contained within the
first six letters of Scripture.
As we continue our study of Scripture from a Hebrew perspective, hopefully we will be able to
come to the realization that the more we study, the more ignorant we are. That doesn�t mean
that we don�t learn tremendous and significant teachings and depths as we go, it simply means
that the continued revelation of God�s Word exposes our lack of knowledge of it. As one
mystery is revealed, dozens more seem to show themselves. There are layers and dimensions
to God�s Word that should leave us in awe of our Creator. As we humble ourselves before Him
and His Word, we can begin to understand the need for eternity with the Father. It�s going to
take that long just to get to know His Word the way that we need to.
Throughout our studies, we will get into significant depth with each portion, but nothing will
come so close as the depth and dimension that we will cover in the first verse of Genesis. The
reason for this is time. If we were to study the Torah the way that it could be studied with the
differing levels of revelation, we quite literally could spend a year on the first chapter of
Genesis. At that rate, it would take us 183 years to get through the Torah. Though we will not
dissect the Scriptures with that intensity, the depth is there for anyone that is willing to do
some digging. If you are looking for depth of that nature, I would recommend Brad Scott�s
study of the book of B�reshiyt (Genesis). He has approximately 50 hours of teaching that covers
the first four chapters of Scripture in which he breaks down each individual letter, and shows
how the patterns found in Genesis 1-4 are the beginning of the cycles of human history. So
now back to our study.
If we will look at the second word that is presented for us in the Bible, we will notice that it is
an exact duplication of the first three letters of �B�resheet.�
אֵ
רְ
􏰀
,תיִ
􏰆
אָ
רָ
􏰀
􏰁ֶ
ר􏰂ָ
ה תֵ
אְ
ו ,􏰃ִ
יַ
מָ
􏰄ַ
ה תֵ
א ,􏰃יִ
ה􏰅ֱ
א
The second word here is spelled beit, resh, aleph, or bara. This is the word that is translated as
created. As we discussed last week, the word bara is only ever used of God. We do not see
instances in Scripture where man bara (created) anything. The reason for this is simply because
man is not a creator. He is only a manipulator, and as such can only form, twist and mold those
things which the Creator has already given him.
This word bara also gives us some great details in the pictographic representations of the
letters. Beit means house or family, resh means head or chief, and aleph means strength or
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God. Put them together and we see that the bar-aleph or the Son of God is He who created,
and that what is created is quite literally the strength of the Son. In the first two words the
Creator shows us one of the most fundamental lessons. If we want to see the power or
strength of the Son, we simply need to look at what He created. Nature shows us this power.
This is why David tells us in Psalm 19:1:
1
The heavens declare the glory of God; and the firmament sheweth his handywork. 2Day
unto day uttereth speech, and night unto night sheweth knowledge. 3There is no speech nor
language, where their voice is not heard.
This teaching is echoed by Shaul in Romans 1:
19
Because that which may be known of God is manifest in them; for God hath shewed it unto
them.
20
For the invisible things of him from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being
understood by the things that are made, even his eternal power and Godhead; so that they
are without excuse:
This is why no man stands before God with an excuse. It does not matter if anyone has ever
heard the name Yeshua, Jesus, Elohim or even God because man does not have to hear His
name to know that He exists. The power of the Creator and the power of the Son are declared
in everything that we see. As Shaul tells us in verse 20, the invisible things from the Creation of
the world are clearly seen and understood by the things that are made. Again, if we want to
know the power of our God, we simply need to look outside of our windows and look at it. It�s
all around us.
The next word we come to in verse 1 is Elohim (􏰃יִ
ה􏰅ֱ
א), which in the English is translated as
God. Though it can and frequently is translated as God in our Bibles, there is a very important
aspect of this word that is completely missing from the English. What is missing is the number
associated with this word. The reason for this is that the word Elohim is masculine gender and
plural. If the word were singular, it would be Eloha, not Elohim. Adding the yud-mem suffix to
the singular Eloha makes this and many other Hebrew words plural. Quite literally, it could be
translated as Gods, but it isn�t. What is important to note here is that there are many places in
Scripture where this word elohim is translated as gods in the plural, instead of God in the
singular. So why would that be?
The reason for this singular translation goes back to the Hebrew word for created, bara. As it is
with any language, verb numbers must match with noun numbers. If we mix plural nouns with
singular verbs, the sentence construction is wrong. We don�t say things like, �They is waiting
for a bus� because the pronoun, they, is plural, while the verb, is, is singular. In order for the
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construction to be correct, the number of the noun and verb must agree. In this case, we say,
�They are waiting for a bus.�
It is the same in the case of the first three words of Scripture, except that the noun and verb
don�t exactly agree. There is a plural noun, yet this plural noun uses a singular verb. The
reason for this is that this seeming plural noun is understood to be singular. Even though
Elohim is translated as �gods� in other places in Scripture, it is understood to be referring to the
Creator whenever the plural pronoun Elohim is accompanied by a singular verb. This is just an
understood aspect of the Hebrew language. When the Creator is involved, the exception to the
rule of number matching has to do with our God being presented as a plural God. He is not just
a singular God. He is much more than that. From the first three words of Genesis 1, we see
that God is presenting Himself as a plural God that acts in a unified manner. This is the reason
we have a singular verb followed by a plural noun.
Last week we covered the fact that Hebrew is an action based language. Hebrew is much more
focused on the action of the sentence, rather than the subject. Whereas in English we would
typically construct a sentence with a subject followed by a verb and an object, Hebrew
construction is typically a verb, subject then object. We must also remember that the Creator
could have designed His language as one that was more focused on subjects, such as English,
but He didn�t. He specifically created His language as one that focused on actions. More
specifically, He designed it as a language whereby actions precede subjects. As with everything
in Hebrew, this is done by design.
One of the most popular teachings that we have in our Bibles is that we are known by our
fruits. What we must understand about this teaching is that our fruit is understood to mean
not only how many people we turn to righteousness, but how we turn those people to
righteousness. Our fruit has everything to do with what we do and what we say. In Matthew 7,
the Messiah taught us that we will know people by their fruits. We will know people by what
they do and what they say. Quite literally we can tell what people stand for by their actions
and by their words. If someone claims that they know Yeshua, their actions and their words
will confirm that claim. Their fruit will proclaim who they are.
This is the sense of the text that we see in the first three words of Scripture. The Almighty and
Infinite God shows us that even where He is concerned, He is letting His actions and His Word
proclaim who He is. If we want to know who He is, and the power that He possesses, we simply
need to look around at our physical world. All that we see in nature screams to the
magnificence of our Creator.
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Another aspect of this verse that we need to understand is that it is constructed with a sense of
humility. We must remember that these words were given by God Himself, and as such are the
most powerful words ever recorded. That said, the Creator did not start off His Book with His
own name. He didn�t start with Elohim, YHVH, or any other word that identifies Him. Instead,
He started it off with a time (In the beginning), and an action (created). Even though He is the
Creator of all heaven and earth, and even though He is worthy of being listed first and foremost
in all things, He still showed humility. He mentioned Himself after his works.
This is the exact same pattern that the Messiah followed when He came to us 2,000 years ago.
He didn�t take up the position of the Royal King, walk in kingly guise, or carry a golden scepter..
Even though He was the Creator Himself and worthy of all honor, He chose to take a humble
approach and come to us as a suffering servant and let His fruit, His words and His actions
speak to His identity. We must remember that Yeshua is the Son of God, and as His Son,
follows the teachings of His Father. Though we oftentimes don�t make the connection, the
Messiah was humble because He learned that humlity from His Father.
Another word we may want to look into at this point is another Hebrew word for son, ben. This
is a Hebrew word that most of us have heard before, even if only in movie titles. For those that
have seen or heard of the movie classic, �Judah ben Hur�, the word ben is the Hebrew word to
which we are referring. In the case of the title of the movie, it literally means, Judah, the son of
Hur. The reason that we need to understand this is because of a comparable Hebrew word.
The Hebrew word banah is the Hebrew word that means stone, or pattern. This is how we
know what a son is. A son is literally made after the pattern of his father. So we see in this third
word of Scripture that Messiah was humble not just because He came as the suffering servant,
but He was humble from the beginning.
There are some interesting facets of the word Elohim that are found in the Hebrew. The first
thing that we�ll take a look at are the letters that compose the word. The word is formed from
five different Hebrew letters: aleph, lamed, hey, yud and mem (􏰃יִ
ה􏰅ֱ
א).
The first two letters of the word Elohim are the aleph and lamed. These two letters make up
the word El which is also used as a name for God. El Shaddai (God Almighty), and El Elyon (God,
the Most High) are just two examples of this. In addition to being one of the many names or
titles for God, el is also defined as power, or strength. Within the word that means strength or
power (el), we have the letter that means strength or power, the aleph (א). The first two
letters of God�s name show us that there is strength within strength. Certainly this is an
appropriate description of our Creator. We can see in the first name of God given to us in
Scripture that strength and power is a part of Who He is.
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When we look at the pictographic meanings of these letters, we see that aleph means
�strength� or �God� while lamed, the picture of a bent shepherd�s staff means �shepherd� or
�leader�. When we put those two together, we see that the name of God gives us the
definition �Strength of the Shepherd.� He is our strong and powerful Great Shepherd whose
voice we hear and obey. There is also something very interesting that is shown in the picture
meanings when we look at all five letters together:
א - Strength; God
ל � Shepherd
ה - Behold; Grace
י - Hand; Work
􏰃 � Water
With these five meanings of the five individual letters, we have God, shepherd, behold, hand
and water. That is very similar to some words that David penned in Psalm 23:
1The LORD is my shepherd; I shall not want. 2He makes me to lie down in green pastures: he
leads me beside the still waters.
Now we certainly cannot prove that David wrote the 23rd Psalm based on the letters that form
the word Elohim, but it is certainly not outside the realm of possibility. It is a possibility
because the Psalm lines up with the letter meanings. �The LORD is my shepherd� is a perfect
description of the first two letters of the name of Elohim, aleph (Strength;God) and lamed
(Shepherd). Additionally, �leads me beside the still waters� is a very appropriate application of
the meaning of the last two letters of the word Elohim: yud (hand) and mem (water). If the
LORD is going to lead someone beside the still waters, He is going to lead them there by the
hand. David may have simply started his Psalm by examining the pictographic meanings of the
name Elohim and putting them into a song.
The next word that we come to is the fourth Hebrew word, et. This word is made up of the first
and last letters of the Hebrew aleph-beit, aleph (א) and tav (ת). As a refresher of the number
7 in this first sentence, let�s take another look at the sentence as it is placed on a Menorah:
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ב
תישאר
ארב
􏰃יהלא
תא
􏰃ימשה
תאו
􏰁ראה
As you can see from the structure of the Menorah, the fourth stem or branch is the very center
of its structure. All the other branches that proceed from the Menorah are literally tied into the
center branch. It is also important to note that the fourth branch is the one that has the base
or the root system. In this way, it is much like the trunk of a tree. As with the natural things
that we see outside our windows, understanding how nature works will help us to understand
how the spiritual works.
It is important to understand the natural application of how a tree grows in order to
understand the structure of just how it is that we grow in our Messiah. A tree�s branches do
not grow out directly from the root system, rather the trunk grows out from the root system,
and the branches proceed from the trunk. The base and support for the whole living system is
the strong trunk, and it is only able to support the branches because it is part of a vast root
system that grows over time. The longer a tree lives, the larger its root system becomes. The
larger its root system becomes the stronger it becomes, and hence can bear more branches and
more fruit as it strengthens and grows.
The reason we need to bring this up now is because the very center word of this 7-word
structure is the word et, or aleph and tav. One of the most noteworthy characteristics of this
word in Hebrew is that it is not a translatable word. By that I mean that it has no other-
language equivalent in that it is not a word, so much as an indicator. In the Hebrew language,
the aleph-tav is the indicator to show where the action from the verb rests. In the case of the
first sentence of Scripture, we have the first part of the sentence, �In the beginning, God
created.� The aleph-tav tells us exactly what was created by God: the heavens and the earth,
though there is no direct English translation for the word. It is also important to know that this
is the only word in the Hebrew language that has no translation. Because of this fact, there
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have been numerous commentaries throughout rabbinical literature that wonder something
very significant: Who or what does the aleph-tav represent?
We must also continually remind ourselves that these words in Genesis are not the words of
man. While it is true that Moses wrote them, he was not the author. Moses was simply acting
as scribe or secretary to the Creator who was dictating these words directly to Him, much the
same way that Baruch was doing the same for Jeremiah. So why is it that the Creator would
choose the language to be represented this way? Why would He give us an indicator word that
is not translatable? Again, this is all by design. It is to get us to start asking questions. Once we
start having questions, He knows that we will start looking for an answer.
So what is the answer to this question about the aleph-tav? Who or what does it represent? In
order to help us to understand what this word means, we will need to go to the book of
Revelation. Revelation 1 tells us something very significant about the aleph-tav.
7Behold, he cometh with clouds; and every eye shall see him, and they also which pierced
him: and all kindreds of the earth shall wail because of him. Even so, Amen. 8I am Alpha and
Omega, the beginning and the ending, saith the Lord, which is, and which was, and which is
to come, the Almighty.
The significant reference that is made here is the reference to the Alpha and Omega, which are
the first and last letters of the Greek alphabet. We need to understand something about this
reference, and in order to do so, we need to put it into context. Yeshua was, is, and always will
be Jewish and Hebrew. John also was a Hebrew. So, here we have two Hebrew men, two
Jewish men on the Isle of Patmos, and the Messiah in His talking to John makes reference to the
Greek alphabet. It is very doubtful that the Messiah would make any reference to Himself as a
couple letters of any alphabet that was not His Father�s.
There is a great deal of evidence that points to the Brit Chadshah as being originally written in
Hebrew. The reason for this is the word structure. Even through a Greek translation, there are
word uses and certain sentence constructions, linguistic evidences and idioms that remain in
the text. An ancient Hebrew copy of the book of Matthew has been found, giving further
credence to this fact. Because of this evidence, it is more than likely that the reference that the
Messiah spoke to John was not that He was the alpha and omega, or the first and last letters of
the Greek alphabet, rather Yeshua told John that He was the aleph and tav, the first and last
letters of the Hebrew alphabet. In making that reference to Himself as the aleph and tav,
Yeshua answered the question that had been asked for centuries.
The first time that this question would have been asked was after reading the first sentence of
the Bible. What does et mean? What does that aleph-tav represent? From the Messiah�s
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words, we now know that the fourth word of the Bible was referring directly to Him. He is the
fourth word, and the fourth branch of the seven-branch menorah. He is the center trunk that
gives it all strength, and He is the strength from which all other branches grow.
What about the pictographic meanings of the two letters? Do they mean anything in
particular? The aleph and tav have the following meanings:
א - Aleph: strength; power; God
ת - Tav: covenant; cross
When we put the meanings of the letters together, we come up with several possible
definitions: The Strength and Power of the Cross, or The God of the Covenant. Either one is the
perfect description of our Messiah.
Doing a study on the uses of the aleph-tav through Scripture will yield some remarkable finds.
There are very particular instances and key verses in which this word is used that make clear
reference to the Messiah and the work of Redemption that He performed for us on the Cross.
One such reference is found in Zechariah 12:
10And I will pour upon the house of David, and upon the inhabitants of Jerusalem, the spirit of
grace and of supplications: and they shall look upon me whom they have pierced, and they
shall mourn for him, as one mourneth for his only son, and shall be in bitterness for him, as
one that is in bitterness for his firstborn.
Following is a Hebrew translation of the portion of the verse that reads, ��and they shall look
upon me whom they have pierced��
יַ
לֵ
א 􏰇טיִ
􏰀ִ
הְ
ו
תֵ
א
רֶ
􏰆ֲ
א
􏰈
ורָ
קָ
􏰉
Right in the center of this phrase is the aleph-tav. If we were to interject the aleph-tav in the
midst of this phrase, it would read, ��and they shall look upon me, aleph-tav, whom they have
pierced�� This is a very clear reference to the Messiah, who is the very strength and structure
that supports all those branches that grow from Him. This is also echoed in Shaul�s teachings in
Romans 11 when he tells us about the roots and the branches. He reminds us that it is not the
branches that support the roots, but the roots support the branches. Simple enough, but it�s
something that we need to remember:
16
For if the firstfruit be holy, the lump is also holy: and if the root be holy, so are the branches.
17And if some of the branches be broken off, and thou, being a wild olive tree, wert grafted in
14
among them, and with them partakest of the root and fatness of the olive tree; 18Boast not
against the branches. But if thou boast, thou bearest not the root, but the root thee.
It is also interesting to note that the aleph-tav is the fourth word of the first sentence of
Scripture. This is noteworthy because of the common thread that is presented in the number
four throughout the Bible. The number four represents completeness as found in the four
elements (earth, air, fire, water), the four seasons, the four compass points, the four rivers
flowing from Eden, the four Horsemen of the apocalypse, four corners of the earth, four
gospels, et cetera. This 4th word that denotes completeness also happens to be the aleph-tav,
et, the untranslatable word for the Messiah.
What we also need to understand is that the Hebrew language has no numbers. Every number
in the Tanakh is represented by words or letters that are given to us in the Hebrew alphabet.
Even in a modern Tanakh that contains chapter and verse designations, we can see this at work.
If someone is referring to the first chapter of Genesis, it would be referenced as derekh aleph,
or chapter one. Aleph is the first letter of the aleph-beit, and so it represents the number one.
Beit is the second letter, so it represents the number two. So what is the letter that represents
the number 4?
Dalet (ד) is the fourth letter of the Hebrew aleph-beit, and is a picture of a door. This is
important to understand for a number of reasons. As we have discussed, the number 4 has to
do with the center branch of the Menorah. It is the base, strength, center and support for the
remaining 6 branches. Because the aleph-tav is the fourth word of Scripture, we know that it is
the strength and trunk of anything that is composed of the number seven. It is represented by
the letter dalet, which is the picture of a door. Through this representation of the door, we can
picture the et, or the aleph-tav, or the Messiah as a door to a house. This will probably remind
us of some words that the Messiah used when talking with His disciples. John 10 confirms the
fact that the Messiah referred to Himself as a door:
1Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that entereth not by the door into the sheepfold, but
climbeth up some other way, the same is a thief and a robber. 2But he that entereth in by the
door is the shepherd of the sheep. 3To him the porter openeth; and the sheep hear his voice:
and he calleth his own sheep by name, and leadeth them out. 4And when he putteth forth his
own sheep, he goeth before them, and the sheep follow him: for they know his voice. 5And a
stranger will they not follow, but will flee from him: for they know not the voice of strangers.
6This parable spake Jesus unto them: but they understood not what things they were which
he spake unto them. 7Then said Jesus unto them again, Verily, verily, I say unto you, I am the
door of the sheep. 8All that ever came before me are thieves and robbers: but the sheep did
not hear them. 9I am the door: by me if any man enter in, he shall be saved, and shall go in
and out, and find pasture.
This is iterated for us in John 14:
15
6Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father,
but by me.
And by Peter in Acts 4:
10
Be it known unto you all, and to all the people of Israel, that by the name of Jesus Christ of
Nazareth, whom ye crucified, whom God raised from the dead, even by him doth this man
stand here before you whole.
11
This is the stone which was set at nought of you builders,
which is become the head of the corner.
12
Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is
none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved.
Yeshua tells us very clearly that the only way to get to His Father is through Him. There is no
other way by which we can enter into His House. He even specifically tells us through that
parable of the sheepfold that if someone tries to enter into heaven through some way other
than the door, that person is a thief and a robber. What is remarkable about these teachings is
that the concepts are found within the first four words of the Bible.
What we also need to note here is the fact that the Messiah said that NO man comes to the
Father, but by Him. We need to note this because this truth was not just truth when Yeshua
uttered it. It was and is true for the future and also for the past. Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Joseph
� they all had to go through the Messiah to get into the sheepfold where there is green
pastureland and a caring Shepherd. It didn�t matter that the Messiah had not yet been born, or
that they may not have known His name. As we can see from the first sentence of the Bible,
the Messiah was not just a man that appeared to us 2,000 years ago. He has been around from
the beginning.
There is also a very significant word picture and definition that is found in this fourth letter
dalet. It has to do with the Creator�s name that we will not see until we get to the beginning of
Genesis 2. Though we will not get to the name of the Creator (YHVH) until then, we will take a
look at it now. The name of the Creator as given to us thousands of times in the Bible is
Yehovah, or Yahweh (הוהי). It is what is known as the tetragrammaton (meaning four-
letters) of God, the yud-hey-vav-hey. This is a very interesting selection of letters.
When looking at the meanings of the letters we have two heys (behold), a yud (hand), and a vav
(nail). When we put the meaning of these letters together, the tetragrammaton of God means
�behold the nail and the hand.� This is the name of the Father. When Yeshua told us in John 14
that no man came to the Father but by Him, this was the four-letter name by which they all
knew God the Father. Yeshua clearly tells us that He is the door to YHVH. He is the door to the
Father.
16
What is also remarkable about this name is what happens to it when you add a door to it.
When we take the four-letter name of God הוהי and add the fourth letter dalet (ד) to it, we
come up with a completely different word: הדוהי. This is the Hebrew word Yehudah, or
Judah.
What we see in this simple teaching of the number 4 along with the 4th word of the Bible is
nothing short of perfect design. We see that the Messiah is the very door by which we can get
to the Father. When we add that door to the Father�s name, we get the word Judah, which is
the Hebrew word for praise. And so we have it that the very door to God is the Messiah, and
that door to Messiah turns us into Judah, or those that praise God. This is exactly what it
means to be Jewish. It doesn�t mean that your mother�s name was Sarah and your father�s
name was Avraham. It means that you are not Jewish by blood, but that you are Jewish by
promise, just as Shaul tells us in Romans 2:
28
For he is not a Jew, which is one outwardly; neither is that circumcision, which is outward in
the flesh: 29But he is a Jew, which is one inwardly; and circumcision is that of the heart, in the
spirit, and not in the letter; whose praise is not of men, but of God.
Another thing to remember when we think about this is the fact that Leah had 7 children. Of
those 7 children, who was the fourth? Who was the son that represented the number 4 and
was the center and strength of that Menorah structure, just as the Messiah is the center and
strength of the 7-word structure in Genesis 1:1? Of course it was Judah, because that�s what
the Creator had planned right from the very beginning. And so it is here that we learn that
Judah or praise should be at the very heart and very center of all believers. We can see the
structure of the first sentence starting to develop:
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Table 1 � Heptadic Structure of Genesis 1:1
Days 1 2 3 4 5 6 7
Years
YHVH
1,000 2,000 3,000 4,000 5,000 6,000 7,000
Leah�s
children Reuben Simeon Levi Judah Zebulun Issachar Dinah
Spirits
of YHVH
Wisdom Understanding Counsel YHVH Might Knowledge Fear /
Reverence
Moedim
Pesach
(Passover
)
HaBikkurim
(First Fruits)
Matzah
(Unleavene
d Bread)
Shavuot
(Pentecost)
Yom
Teruah
(Trumpets)
Yom Kippur
(Atonement)
Sukkot
(Tabernacles)
7 Words תישארב ארב םיהלא תא םימשה תאו ץראה
English In the
beginning Created God
the
heavens and the earth
7
Letters א ב ג ד ה ו ז
As we have discussed, when it comes to any 7-based structure in Scripture, the 4th of the 7 will
be the base and strength for the rest of the structure. Looking at the 4 column, we can see how
YHVH, Judah, the aleph-tav and Shavuot (Pentecost) are the very center of their respective 7
structures, and hence are the base and strength from which the other branches grow. This is
something that we all need to keep in mind as we study God�s Word.
Now we come to the fifth word of Scripture, h�shamayim (םימשה), or the heavens. The first
thing to understand about this word is that it has a one-letter prefix, hey (ה). The letter hey is
used as the definite article, the same as our word �the.� After this we have the remaining four
letters that spell the word shamayim. What is interesting about this word is that the root for it
is the word mayim, (םימ), the Hebrew word for water. Right from the beginning, God is telling
us that even the heavens have something to do with water. As we look around our world
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today, we can see that this is true. Even though the concentration of water is very slight, there
is water in our atmosphere, we just know it as humidity. What is also fascinating is that we
have a combination of water and air that we breathe, and likewise, all the fish and sea-dwelling
creatures have a combination of water and air that they breathe. Just as we will drown if our
air is overwhelmed by water, so too will they die if their water is overwhelmed by oxygen. We
both need particular tolerances of both water and air to survive. Without one or the other, all
planet on this life would die.
The word mayim or water is made up of two letters, the yud (י),and mem (מ). The first and
third letters of this word are the same letter mem, though one is a mem-sofit, or a final mem.
What this means is that because the mem is the last letter of the word mayim, it is written
differently than usual. In this example, the first mem in the word is written (מ), while the final
mem is written (ם). Hebrew has five letters that are written this way: kaph, mem, nun, tzade,
and pey.
It is also interesting to note in this example that the letter mem is the picture of water. So we
have two pictures of water divided right down the middle by a hand. As we get through the
remainder of Genesis 1, we will see just how appropriate this word is when God divides the
waters from the waters. We must also remember that there are different types of water that
are given to us in the creation. We have salt water, and we have fresh water. Fresh water
would kill most salt water fish, and salt water would kill most fresh water fish. God made a
distinction between not only the waters, but also its inhabitants. According to the book of
Revelation, the sea represents people (Rev 17:15). This is something to keep in mind as we
study B�resheet.
Another thing to consider about the word mayim is that it can be broken into two different
expressions. It can be separated into the letter mem (מ), and another word, yahm (םי). This is
noteworthy because of the meaning conveyed each is taken individually. Mem, like the letter
hey and vav, can be added as a suffix to tell us something. Hey is added to give us the definite
article �the� while vav is added to the beginning of a word to give us the conjunction �and.�
Mem is the prefix letter that tells us something is from or of something else. The word yahm
that follows the mem in this instance is the Hebrew word for sea. Here we have the definition
of water breaking down into a pictographic representation that means �from the sea.� Even
when we break down the smallest words, we can easily see a Creator�s design.
God took the word for waters and added the letter shin () to it to create the word shamayim
(heaven or heavens). Another aspect to understand about this word is that it seems to be
plural, because it ends in a yud, mem, the exact same way that Elohim (God) ends. As we
19
discussed, Elohim is a plural word that is understood to be singular because it is acting in a
singular and unified way. It is much the same with water. It is a plural word that acts in a
singular way.
As we can see when we look at nature, even when God divides the waters from the waters,
each separate water is still water. When He separates salt water and fresh water, they are both
individual bodies of water, even though their properties are somewhat different. Both are life-
giving compositions of hydrogen and oxygen, though sea water has added elements which give
it much different characteristics than fresh water.
What is important to understand about this analogy is the fact that the words Elohim and
h�shamayim are related according to the Menorah structure of the first sentence of Scripture.
Just as number 7 has a relationship with number 1 in the above chart, so too does number 5
have a relationship with number 3. With that we see that even though the third and fifth words
are separate words, they have a relationship that needs to be explored.
In this case, part of that relationship has to do with separation. Just as waters can be separated
from waters and take on different characteristics, so too can our Elohim. Just as waters can be
separated and still retain their life-giving essence for all creatures, so too can God. Even though
Yeshua was separated from God, He still retained His state of being God, even if He had
different properties than the Father from whom He was separated. Just because He dwelled on
this earth in a physical body does not mean that He ceased being God. I believe this is also one
of the reasons that the Messiah referred to Himself as water so frequently. He wanted us to
make the connection.
What is also noteworthy about these relationship combinations is that they all add up to 8. 7
plus 1, 6 plus 2, 5 plus 3 � each combination adds up to 8 which is the very clear number of new
beginnings or the start of a new cycle. This is presented throughout Scripture, and there will be
more on these numbers as we further our study in B�resheet. For a few quick examples of the
number 8:
� The 8th day of the week (which is the first day of the next week) starts a new weekly cycle
� Noah�s party consisted of 8 people that started to repopulate the earth
� Male children are circumcised at 8 days old
� 7 whole notes in a musical scale; 8th note starts a new octave
� 8th letter of Scripture is the resh (ר), or head, denoting the beginning of something
20
There are many other examples, but that should suffice for now. Knowing that the number 8
represents the beginning of a new cycle will help us, not only in our study of B�resheet, but in
our study of the Bible.
One last thing we will discuss about the word shamayim (heavens) before we move on to the
sixth word of Scripture is the fact that the only difference between mayim (water) and
shamayim (heaven) is the Hebrew letter shin (ש). As we have discussed, the shin is a picture
of two front teeth, or the picture of a fire that means to consume, eat or destroy. In this way,
we can think of heaven or the heavens as fire water. What is also interesting to note about
the shin is that its gematria represents the number 300. This is the same number in gematria
as ruach Elohim, or the Spirit (wind) of God. We�ll have more on the gematria later, but for
now we can see that the number that is represented by this single letter is the same number
of the Spirit of God. Through this one letter we can see that water without God�s Spirit or
God�s Wind is just water. When the Spirit is added to it, it becomes shamayim, or heaven.
The sixth word we come to in God�s word is the word v�et. This is a conjunction of the Hebrew
letter vav (and), and the fourth word of Scripture, the aleph-tav. Put them together and you
have the three-letter vav-aleph-tav (תאו). As we discussed in the first mention of the aleph-
tav, it has no translation. It is no different in this instance, and because it has no translation,
points us to the following object, h�aretz, or earth. The only word that is translated in the sixth
word of Scripture is the 6th letter of the Hebrew aleph-beit that is also used as a prefix
meaning our word �and.� Though the aleph-tav is once again untranslated, it still holds
significant importance when it comes to its reference to the Messiah. We�ll get to that near
the end of this week�s study.
The last word we have in our study is h�aretz (􏰁ראה), or the earth. This is the word that the
Creator chose to end the first sentence of His novel, and thereby finish the perfect seven-
branched structure upon which all of His Work seems to be framed. As we look through
Scripture we will be inundated with sevens, literally hundreds of them that are given to us to
drive the point home about just how important this number is in God�s structure, His plan, and
His Word. The first hint that He gives us concerning the critical aspect of the number 7 is not
found when He sanctifies the Sabbath day, but in the first sentence and indeed the first 7
letters of Scripture.
Just as with h�shamayim, h�aretz has the definite article prefix letter hey (ה) that tells us to
translate the words as the earth, and not just earth. The root of this word is eretz (􏰁רא), and
can be translated as land, earth or country. Many of us may have heard the phrase Eretz
21
Yisrael, or as we westerners would say, Land of Israel. That word, eretz, is the same word that
is used here in the first sentence of Scripture. It is made up of three Hebrew letters, aleph,
resh and tzade. When we look at the individual meaning of those letters, we have three
definitions: strength, head (beginning) and man. When we put all those together, we can see
exactly what the earth is: the beginning of man�s strength. In order to have a kingdom, a man
must first have some land on which to build that kingdom.
Another thing that we can do with this word is jumble it up to a resh, tzade, aleph. When we
do this, we get the word ratza, which means to run. If we leave the aleph off of the word, and
only have the resh and tzade together, we have ratz, or runner. When we couple that two
letter word with the meaning of the letter aleph (strength), and we find out that earth is the
strength of the runner. If someone is running, they�re not going to go very far without some
ground under their feet.
One other way we can jumble this word up is to take the tzade and resh together. Doing this
gives us the word tzar, which means adversary or distress. Here we see something completely
different than what has already been presented. Though the earth can be the beginning of
man�s strength, and the strength of his running a race, it is also can be an adversary. As we
know, this same earth, land, dirt or whatever you want to call it is going to be the very
foundation of mankind. Genesis 2:7 will show us that man was formed from the dust of the
earth. This is just my personal opinion, but I think what the Creator is trying to tell us is that
the elements that make up our bodies are the very things that are our adversary, and those
elements that put us in distress. The reason I believe this is because man is constantly in a
battle with his flesh. Every day is a war in which either our spiritual side prevails, or our carnal
side prevails. This is the struggle that we all face, and one that is common to all humanity.
Making ourselves understand that we are spirit based rather than flesh-based is a difficult
thing to do. I believe this is exactly what Peter was talking about when he said in 1 Peter 2:11:
11
Dearly beloved, I beseech you as strangers and pilgrims, abstain from fleshly lusts, which
war against the soul;
Shaul puts it a little differently in 2 Corinthians 10:
1
Now I Paul myself beseech you by the meekness and gentleness of Christ, who in presence am
base among you, but being absent am bold toward you:
2
But I beseech you, that I may not be
bold when I am present with that confidence, wherewith I think to be bold against some,
which think of us as if we walked according to the flesh.
3
For though we walk in the flesh, we
do not war after the flesh:
4
(For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty
through God to the pulling down of strong holds;)
5
Casting down imaginations, and every
22
high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every
thought to the obedience of Christ;
6
And having in a readiness to revenge all disobedience,
when your obedience is fulfilled.
Mankind�s greatest struggle is with his flesh. When we come to the Messiah and He cleans us
up, we may make the mistake of thinking that our spiritual walk will be an easy one. Heck, now
that we have the Messiah on board with us, what can stop us? The problem is that it�s not the
Messiah that makes the decision to succumb to what our bodies want. That decision is ours
and ours alone. When we are dedicated to the Messiah, we tell ourselves the same thing that
Peter told the Messiah. We tell Him that we will never deny Him, and that we will die before
denying Him. We make the same mistakes that Peter made. When the flesh comes creeping
in, we start rationalizing things. Maybe if I just went to the movies this one Shabbat. Maybe if I
just watch that one movie that I know I shouldn�t. Maybe if I just give in this one time, then I
will straighten myself out. I don�t know about you, but I�ve done that more times than I can
count.
Consider some of the words that we hear about this very thing:
Matthew 26:41 - Watch and pray, that ye enter not into temptation: the spirit indeed is
willing, but the flesh is weak.
Romans 7:5 -
5
For when we were in the flesh, the motions of sins, which were by the law, did
work in our members to bring forth fruit unto death.
Romans 7:14-15, 18-19 -
14
For we know that the law is spiritual: but I am carnal, sold under
sin.
15
For that which I do I allow not: for what I would, that do I not; but what I hate, that do I.
18
For I know that in me (that is, in my flesh,) dwelleth no good thing: for to will is present with
me; but how to perform that which is good I find not.
19
For the good that I would I do not: but
the evil which I would not, that I do.
Shaul tells us in Romans that which we all know. The things we want to do are the things that
we don�t do. Likewise the things that we don�t want to do are the things that we end up doing.
The reason is because this body is made from the earth. It is not spiritual, and hence cannot
inherit the kingdom of God. This is the war in which we find ourselves. We are spiritual beings
looking to inherit a spiritual Kingdom through our occupation in a physical realm. It is a huge
and daily struggle.
The last thing we will discuss is regarding the timing of the events that are recorded for us in
Genesis 1:1. I am confident that somewhere in Scripture this information is imbedded for us to
find. That said, I don�t know that we will ever discover this information until the Messiah starts
teaching the Torah Himself. In the meantime, the word B�resheet could have happened a
million years ago, or it could have happened a trillion years ago. The fact Is, we don�t know
23
when the beginning was. If we could find the edge of the universe, measure it, then measure
its current expansion rate, we might be able to get close to how long ago it was that the
creation took place. Last time I checked, science hasn�t quite been able to figure that one out.
What we do know is that we have the pattern that is laid out for us in Genesis 1. Another thing
to remind ourselves of is that the term �7 days of Creation� is an incorrect term. The act of
creation did not happen on each one of those days.
What we can very clearly ascertain from the Hebrew text is these 7 days of Creation are not all
days of Creation. What I mean by this is that the word �create� is used in verse 1, and then is not
used again until verse 21, when God creates the great sea monsters. In verses 2 through 20,
words like formed, made, and let there be are the words that are used, but not the word
created. Because of this, we can understand that everything that was given to us in verses 2
through 20 were given to us by God taking from the existing elements that were created in
verse 1. Everything that is made and formed in verses 2 through 20 are made and formed from
the matter that was created in the beginning. Light, firmament, dry land, plant life, sun, moon,
stars � they were all formed from the inventory that God created in Genesis 1:1. We will have
more on this as we get into our study next week.
And with that, we come to the end of some of the plain sense of the first sentence of God�s
Word. Please understand that the things we have discussed by no means cover everything that
we could have covered. There is much more information contained within the first seven
words of Scripture that is there waiting for discovery if you are just willing to do a little digging.
As further indication that the first sentence of Scripture was given to Moses by God directly, we
are now going to switch things up a bit and look at some of its other more profound and
numerical aspects. The first thing we will look at is the construction of the entire sentence
itself:
In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth
What is remarkable about this simple structure is the fact that it gives us the components of all
human existence.
� Time (In the beginning)
� Space (heavens)
� Matter (earth)
This simple structure gives us the components of all things that science has recently discovered
and obviously had no grasp of 3,500 years ago when Genesis was written. Science now knows
that all of our existing universe is composed of three things: time, space and matter. As our
science catches up to God, we are also realizing that time and space are so closely linked that
physicists and scientists have developed the idea of a space-time continuum. This is the notion
24
that time is not necessarily a fourth and separate dimension, but rather it is actually tied into
space, and is intimately linked to the three dimensions of space that we now understand.
One thing that I would also like to point out is concerning what some might say regarding time
in the first verse. We know that we were not given lights and the sun, moon and stars until the
fourth day of Creation. Because of that, there is conjecture that time was not created until the
fourth day. While that may be true, I think it�s important to look at the first words of Scripture
as an expression of time, even if time had not yet existed. The reason for this is simple: it
answers the question, �When?� When was it that God created the heavens and the earth? In
the beginning.
Now we are going to start looking at aspects of this verse that correspond to the number 7. As
mentioned earlier, there are literally hundreds of examples of the number 7 in Scripture that
are given to us as an example of God�s signature. The number 7 is also a picture of completion.
When we get to the number 7, we�re at the finish line. The Sabbath is the perfect example of
this. We can all likely think of numerous 7�s given to us in Scripture, but some of the ones with
which we are all likely familiar
� 7 Moedim or Feasts
� 7 Days of the week
� 7 times blood is sprinkled on the Mercy Seat
� 7 Bowls, Seals, Trumpets, Churches, Thunders, Stars of the book of Revelation
� 7 is the year of shmita or release
� 7th month of God�s calendar concludes with the last three Moedim (Feasts)
� 7 branches of the Menorah
� 7 years of plenty, 7 years of famine in Egypt during the time of Joseph
� 7 Spirits of God
What we may forget is that our Creator not on
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