The book of Psalms ends with a beautiful psalm that is music to our ears. When I read these last words of this book, my heart is full of excitement, I can feel the Levites who were standing on the Temple's stairs, when G-d was praised. Let's enjoy the words, as written:

" הַלְלוּ-יָהּ:
הַלְלוּ-אֵל בְּקָדְשׁוֹ; הַלְלוּהוּ, בִּרְקִיעַ עֻזּוֹ.
הַלְלוּהוּ בִגְבוּרֹתָיו; הַלְלוּהוּ, כְּרֹב גֻּדְלוֹ.
הַלְלוּהוּ, בְּתֵקַע שׁוֹפָר; הַלְלוּהוּ, בְּנֵבֶל וְכִנּוֹר.
הַלְלוּהוּ, בְּתֹף וּמָחוֹל; הַלְלוּהוּ, בְּמִנִּים וְעֻגָב.
הַלְלוּהוּ בְצִלְצְלֵי-שָׁמַע; הַלְלוּהוּ, בְּצִלְצְלֵי תְרוּעָה.
כֹּל הַנְּשָׁמָה, תְּהַלֵּל יָהּ: הַלְלוּ-יָהּ."

"Praise the LORD!
Praise God in His sanctuary;
Praise Him in His mighty expanse.
Praise Him for His mighty deeds;
Praise Him according to His excellent greatness.

Praise Him with trumpet sound;
Praise Him with harp and lyre.
Praise Him with timbrel and dancing;
Praise Him with stringed instruments and pipe.
Praise Him with loud cymbals;
Praise Him with resounding cymbals.
Let everything that has breath praise the LORD.
Praise the LORD!"(Psalms 150:1-6) FULL POST

There are three places in the Pentateuch that forbid the Israelites to come back to Egypt, after they left it. The first is in Exodus 14:13-

" וַיֹּאמֶר מֹשֶׁה אֶל-הָעָם, אַל-תִּירָאוּ--הִתְיַצְּבוּ וּרְאוּ אֶת-יְשׁוּעַת יְהוָה, אֲשֶׁר-יַעֲשֶׂה לָכֶם הַיּוֹם: כִּי, אֲשֶׁר רְאִיתֶם אֶת-מִצְרַיִם הַיּוֹם--לֹא תֹסִפוּ לִרְאֹתָם עוֹד, עַד-עוֹלָם"

" But Moses said to the people, "Do not fear Stand by and see the salvation of the LORD which He will accomplish for you today; for the Egyptians whom you have seen today, you will never see them again forever."

The second is in Deuteronomy 17:16-

" רַק, לֹא-יַרְבֶּה-לּוֹ סוּסִים, וְלֹא-יָשִׁיב אֶת-הָעָם מִצְרַיְמָה, לְמַעַן הַרְבּוֹת סוּס; וַיהוָה, אָמַר לָכֶם, לֹא תֹסִפוּן לָשׁוּב בַּדֶּרֶךְ הַזֶּה, עוֹד"

" Moreover, he shall not multiply horses for himself, nor shall he cause the people to return to Egypt to multiply horses, since the LORD has said to you, 'You shall never again return that way."

We can find the third one also in Deuteronomy as written:

" וֶהֱשִׁיבְךָ יְהוָה מִצְרַיִם, בָּאֳנִיּוֹת, בַּדֶּרֶךְ אֲשֶׁר אָמַרְתִּי לְךָ, לֹא-תֹסִיף עוֹד לִרְאֹתָהּ..."

" The LORD will bring you back to Egypt in ships, by the way about which I spoke to you, 'You will never see it again!'..."(Deuteronomy 28:68) FULL POST

The destruction of the First Temple was a shocking event in the history of the Israelites. However, not everyone remembers that in the Promised Land stayed people who were very confused about the future to come. Jeremiah, who was the prophet in this period, was asked to help those people to reach an important decision, as written:

"וַיִּגְּשׁוּ, כָּל-שָׂרֵי הַחֲיָלִים, וְיוֹחָנָן בֶּן-קָרֵחַ, וִיזַנְיָה בֶּן-הוֹשַׁעְיָה--וְכָל-הָעָם, מִקָּטֹן וְעַד-גָּדוֹל. וַיֹּאמְרוּ אֶל-יִרְמְיָהוּ הַנָּבִיא, תִּפָּל-נָא תְחִנָּתֵנוּ לְפָנֶיךָ, וְהִתְפַּלֵּל בַּעֲדֵנוּ אֶל-יְהוָה אֱלֹהֶיךָ, בְּעַד כָּל-הַשְּׁאֵרִית הַזֹּאת: כִּי-נִשְׁאַרְנוּ מְעַט מֵהַרְבֵּה, כַּאֲשֶׁר עֵינֶיךָ רֹאוֹת אֹתָנוּ. וְיַגֶּד-לָנוּ יְהוָה אֱלֹהֶיךָ, אֶת-הַדֶּרֶךְ אֲשֶׁר נֵלֶךְ-בָּהּ, וְאֶת-הַדָּבָר, אֲשֶׁר נַעֲשֶׂה"

"Then all the army officers, including Johanan son of Kareah and Jezaniah son of Hoshaiah, and all the people from the least to the greatest approached Jeremiah the prophet and said to him, "Please hear our petition and pray to the LORD your God for this entire remnant. For as you now see, though we were once many, now only a few are left. Pray that the LORD your God will tell us where we should go and what we should do." FULL POST

In the Jewish tradition the ninth day of month 'AV', the fifth month according to the Old Testament, considered to be the day when the Babylonians destroyed Jerusalem and burned the first Temple, in 586 B.C.E.

However, not many people know that this date is not found in the Bible. If we read the description of Jerusalem's destruction in 2 Kings 25, we will find a different date:

" וּבַחֹדֶשׁ הַחֲמִישִׁי, בְּשִׁבְעָה לַחֹדֶשׁ--הִיא שְׁנַת תְּשַׁע-עֶשְׂרֵה שָׁנָה, לַמֶּלֶךְ נְבֻכַדְנֶאצַּר מֶלֶךְ-בָּבֶל: בָּא נְבוּזַרְאֲדָן רַב-טַבָּחִים, עֶבֶד מֶלֶךְ-בָּבֶל--יְרוּשָׁלִָם. וַיִּשְׂרֹף אֶת-בֵּית-יְהוָה, וְאֶת-בֵּית הַמֶּלֶךְ; וְאֵת כָּל-בָּתֵּי יְרוּשָׁלִַם וְאֶת-כָּל-בֵּית גָּדוֹל, שָׂרַף בָּאֵשׁ. וְאֶת-חוֹמֹת יְרוּשָׁלִַם, סָבִיב--נָתְצוּ כָּל-חֵיל כַּשְׂדִּים, אֲשֶׁר רַב-טַבָּחִים. וְאֵת יֶתֶר הָעָם הַנִּשְׁאָרִים בָּעִיר, וְאֶת-הַנֹּפְלִים אֲשֶׁר נָפְלוּ עַל-הַמֶּלֶךְ בָּבֶל, וְאֵת, יֶתֶר הֶהָמוֹן--הֶגְלָה, נְבוּזַרְאֲדָן רַב-טַבָּחִים. וּמִדַּלַּת הָאָרֶץ, הִשְׁאִיר רַב-טַבָּחִים, לְכֹרְמִים, וּלְיֹגְבִים"

"Now on the seventh day of the fifth month, which was the nineteenth year of King Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon, Nebuzaradan the captain of the guard, a servant of the king of Babylon, came to Jerusalem. He burned the house of the LORD, the king's house, and all the houses of Jerusalem; Even every great house he burned with fire. So all the army of the Chaldeans who were with the captain of the guard broke down the walls around Jerusalem. Then the rest of the people who were left in the city and the deserters who had deserted to the king of Babylon and the rest of the people, Nebuzaradan the captain of the guard carried away into exile. But the captain of the guard left some of the poorest of the land to be vine-dresser and plowmen."(2 Kings 25:8-12) FULL POST

The book of Haggai has only two chapters that we have to read and only the book of Obadiah is shorter than him. However, the number of verses won't decide what is more important and what is less. Every word that is written in the Holy Language is pure gold for us, his readers. Therefore, I wanted to share with you my thoughts about few verses from Haggai 2. When the people of Israel returned from Babylon to the Promised Land it wasn't easy for them as people might think. They needed the encouragement of G-d and in chapter 2 we can see how G-d's words try to help their leaders build the Second Temple, as written:

"וְעַתָּה חֲזַק זְרֻבָּבֶל נְאֻם-יְהוָה וַחֲזַק יְהוֹשֻׁעַ בֶּן-יְהוֹצָדָק הַכֹּהֵן הַגָּדוֹל וַחֲזַק כָּל-עַם הָאָרֶץ, נְאֻם-יְהוָה--וַעֲשׂוּ: כִּי-אֲנִי אִתְּכֶם, נְאֻם יְהוָה צְבָאוֹת. אֶת-הַדָּבָר אֲשֶׁר-כָּרַתִּי אִתְּכֶם, בְּצֵאתְכֶם מִמִּצְרַיִם, וְרוּחִי, עֹמֶדֶת בְּתוֹכְכֶם--אַל-תִּירָאוּ"

"But nowtake courage, Zerubbabel,' declares the LORD, 'take courage also, Joshua son of Jehozadak, the high priest, and all you people of the land take courage,' declares the LORD, 'and work; for I am with you,' declares the LORD of hosts. 'As for the promise which I made you when you came out of Egypt, My Spirit is abiding in your midst; Do not fear!"(Haggai 2:4-5) FULL POST

In the book of Proverbs the good woman appears as a metaphor of wisdom.it was and still is customary for a woman to put necklaces or other jewelries around her neck. The passage that you are about to read is one of my favorites in the Hebrew Bible, as written:

" בְּנִי תּוֹרָתִי אַל-תִּשְׁכָּח; וּמִצְו‍ֹתַי, יִצֹּר לִבֶּךָ.
כִּי אֹרֶךְ יָמִים, וּשְׁנוֹת חַיִּים-- וְשָׁלוֹם, יוֹסִיפוּ לָךְ.
חֶסֶד וֶאֱמֶת, אַל-יַעַזְבֻךָ:
קָשְׁרֵם עַל-גַּרְגְּרוֹתֶיךָ; כָּתְבֵם, עַל-לוּחַ לִבֶּךָ"

" My son, do not forget my teaching, But let your heart keep my commandments. For length of days and years of life .And peace they will add to you. Do not let kindness and truth leave you; Bind them around your neck, Write them on the tablet of your heart."(Proverbs 3:1-3)

If every man and woman on this planet will look into their hearts, they would probably meet the idea of grace and truth. All we need is not just love, we need grace, we must believe in peace and we always should remember, that we can have a lot of jewelry on our necks, but this is not the important thing to have in our mind and in our heart.

Hebrew-Transcription –Translation

חֶסֶד-chesed- Grace FULL POST

Abraham our father was a man of peace, a man who believed that before you fight about territory or property, you should try to prevent it. In Genesis 13, after returning from Egypt with a big flock, gold and other things, Abraham needed to decide what to do with Lot, who had also a lot of property, as written:

" וְאַבְרָם, כָּבֵד מְאֹד, בַּמִּקְנֶה, בַּכֶּסֶף וּבַזָּהָב. וַיֵּלֶךְ, לְמַסָּעָיו, מִנֶּגֶב, וְעַד-בֵּית-אֵל--עַד-הַמָּקוֹם, אֲשֶׁר-הָיָה שָׁם אָהֳלֹה בַּתְּחִלָּה, בֵּין בֵּית-אֵל, וּבֵין הָעָי. אֶל-מְקוֹם, הַמִּזְבֵּחַ, אֲשֶׁר-עָשָׂה שָׁם, בָּרִאשֹׁנָה; וַיִּקְרָא שָׁם אַבְרָם, בְּשֵׁם יְהוָה. וְגַם-לְלוֹט--הַהֹלֵךְ, אֶת-אַבְרָם: הָיָה צֹאן-וּבָקָר, וְאֹהָלִים. וְלֹא-נָשָׂא אֹתָם הָאָרֶץ, לָשֶׁבֶת יַחְדָּו: כִּי-הָיָה רְכוּשָׁם רָב, וְלֹא יָכְלוּ לָשֶׁבֶת יַחְדָּו"

"Abram had become very wealthy in livestock and in silver and gold. From the Negev he went from place to place until he came to Bethel, to the place between Bethel and Ai where his tent had been earlier and where he had first built an altar. There Abram called on the name of the LORD. Now Lot, who was moving about with Abram, also had flocks and herds and tents. But the land could not support them while they stayed together, for their possessions were so great that they were not able to stay together" (Genesis 13:2-6) FULL POST

The book of Hosea is the first time that we can see the beautiful metaphor of relationship between G-d and his people , as the love of a man to his wife. In the third chapter there is a description of two situations in this relationship: The first was in the days of the prophet, the days of treason, the days when the people of Israel looked for other gods and G-d; The second are the days in the future when there is going to be love in the air as written in Hosea 3:1-5-

" וַיֹּאמֶר יְהוָה אֵלַי, עוֹד לֵךְ אֱהַב-אִשָּׁה, אֲהֻבַת רֵעַ, וּמְנָאָפֶת: כְּאַהֲבַת יְהוָה, אֶת-בְּנֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל, וְהֵם פֹּנִים אֶל-אֱלֹהִים אֲחֵרִים, וְאֹהֲבֵי אֲשִׁישֵׁי עֲנָבִים. וָאֶכְּרֶהָ לִּי, בַּחֲמִשָּׁה עָשָׂר כָּסֶף; וְחֹמֶר שְׂעֹרִים, וְלֵתֶךְ שְׂעֹרִים. וָאֹמַר אֵלֶיהָ, יָמִים רַבִּים תֵּשְׁבִי לִי--לֹא תִזְנִי, וְלֹא תִהְיִי לְאִישׁ; וְגַם-אֲנִי, אֵלָיִךְ. כִּי יָמִים רַבִּים, יֵשְׁבוּ בְּנֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל--אֵין מֶלֶךְ וְאֵין שָׂר, וְאֵין זֶבַח וְאֵין מַצֵּבָה; וְאֵין אֵפוֹד, וּתְרָפִים. אַחַר, יָשֻׁבוּ בְּנֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל, וּבִקְשׁוּ אֶת-יְהוָה אֱלֹהֵיהֶם, וְאֵת דָּוִיד מַלְכָּם; וּפָחֲדוּ אֶל-יְהוָה וְאֶל-טוּבוֹ, בְּאַחֲרִית הַיָּמִים"

"Then the LORD said to me, "Go again, love a woman who is loved by her husband, yet an adulteress, even as the LORD loves the sons of Israel, though they turn to other gods and love raisin cakes." So I bought her for myself for fifteen shekels of silver and a homer and a half of barley. Then I said to her, "You shall stay with me for many days. You shall not play the harlot, nor shall you have a man; so I will also be toward you." For the sons of Israel will remain for many days without king or prince, without sacrifice or sacred pillar and without ephod or household idols. Afterward the sons of Israel will return and seek the LORD their God and David their king; And they will come trembling to the LORD and to His goodness in the last days." FULL POST

One of the beautiful sentences that I have learned is that G-d gave us one mouth and two ears. One mouth to speak less and two ears to hear more. This is a Greek sentence that shows the element of tolerance and being attentive are good qualities for us.

In Exodus 24 there is a covenant between G-d and the people of Israel. After the Ten Commandments and the first laws they received from G-d, this is the time to say – we are obligated to you G-d, as we can see in the next verse:

"וַיָּבֹא מֹשֶׁה, וַיְסַפֵּר לָעָם אֵת כָּל-דִּבְרֵי יְהוָה וְאֵת כָּל-הַמִּשְׁפָּטִים; וַיַּעַן כָּל-הָעָם קוֹל אֶחָד, וַיֹּאמְרוּ, כָּל-הַדְּבָרִים אֲשֶׁר-דִּבֶּר יְהוָה, נַעֲשֶׂה"

" And Moses came and told the people all the words of the LORD, and all the ordinances; and all the people answered with one voice, and said: 'All the words which the LORD hath spoken will we do."(Exodus 24:3)

However, in order to do is something that you cannot avoid the first step, and this is the time of listening. The people of Israel figured this out and this is the reason why they said in Exodus 24:7-

" וַיִּקַּח סֵפֶר הַבְּרִית, וַיִּקְרָא בְּאָזְנֵי הָעָם; וַיֹּאמְרוּ, כֹּל אֲשֶׁר-דִּבֶּר יְהוָה נַעֲשֶׂה וְנִשְׁמָע" FULL POST

The influence of G-d on the nature can be seen a lot of time in the Bible. If G-d wants to create an earthquake, it is not a problem to him. He controls all the nature. When the people of Israel needed to cross the red sea, G-d divided it by two, as written in Exodus 14:21-

" וַיֵּט מֹשֶׁה אֶת-יָדוֹ, עַל-הַיָּם, וַיּוֹלֶךְ יְהוָה אֶת-הַיָּם בְּרוּחַ קָדִים עַזָּה כָּל-הַלַּיְלָה, וַיָּשֶׂם אֶת-הַיָּם לֶחָרָבָה; וַיִּבָּקְעוּ, הַמָּיִם"

"Then Moses stretched out his hand over the sea; and the LORD swept the sea back by a strong east wind all night and turned the sea into dry land, so the waters were divided"

In Ezekiel 17 there is a prophecy about the cedar tree. This was the tree that was used to build the First Temple. At the end of this chapter we encounter the power of G-d and his control on the trees as we can see here:

" כֹּה אָמַר, אֲדֹנָי יְהוִה, וְלָקַחְתִּי אָנִי מִצַּמֶּרֶת הָאֶרֶז הָרָמָה, וְנָתָתִּי; מֵרֹאשׁ יֹנְקוֹתָיו, רַךְ אֶקְטֹף, וְשָׁתַלְתִּי אָנִי, עַל הַר-גָּבֹהַּ וְתָלוּל. בְּהַר מְרוֹם יִשְׂרָאֵל, אֶשְׁתֳּלֶנּוּ, וְנָשָׂא עָנָף וְעָשָׂה פֶרִי, וְהָיָה לְאֶרֶז אַדִּיר; וְשָׁכְנוּ תַחְתָּיו, כֹּל צִפּוֹר כָּל-כָּנָף--בְּצֵל דָּלִיּוֹתָיו, תִּשְׁכֹּנָּה. וְיָדְעוּ כָּל-עֲצֵי הַשָּׂדֶה, כִּי אֲנִי יְהוָה הִשְׁפַּלְתִּי עֵץ גָּבֹהַּ הִגְבַּהְתִּי עֵץ שָׁפָל, הוֹבַשְׁתִּי עֵץ לָח, וְהִפְרַחְתִּי עֵץ יָבֵשׁ: אֲנִי יְהוָה, דִּבַּרְתִּי וְעָשִׂיתִי" FULL POST