YRR has released two audio MIni-Pods covering the topic of The Festival of Passover and Unleavened Bread, Abib 14.
This two-part series demonstrates that the Hebrew text of the book of John (MS. Vat.ebr.100) establishes that Abib 14 is a High Sabbath and the first day of the Festival of Passover and Unleavened Bread.
The MIni-Pods can be accessed and listened to at the following links:
It would be remiss of the Yahu Ranger Report if, at this time, there was not issued the report of an approaching Sabbath Year beginning at sunset on March 22 (Abib 1) of the Gregorian Year 2023.
For various reasons, there are those who would dismiss any consideration of the validity of Sabbath Years or Jubilee Years as commanded in Scriptures. (Lev. 25: 1-13)
The Yahu Ranger Report strongly disagrees with this position.
First, the knowledge of the Sabbath and Jubilee Years is essential for reconstructing the chronological framework of ancient Israelite history.
Second, once the true Sabbath and Jubilee years are ascertained, it allows us to “clock in” and discover which years are presently Sabbaths and Jubilees. This knowledge holds great significance for the followers of Yahweh.
The book of Hebrews, for example, notes that “The Law,” of which the Sabbath and Jubilee Years are a part, is “a shadow of the coming good things.” (Heb. 10:1) The Sabbath day, to demonstrate, was reckoned as a type of the great sabbatism and rest into which the people of Yahweh will one day enter. (Heb. 3:7-4:13)
Many followers of Yahweh recognize the importance of correctly observing Yahweh’s sacred calendar.
At the same time, there seems to presently exist some confusion regarding the determination of a scriptural month and year.
We know that Abraham was justified to receive the Promised Land “because Abraham obeyed my (Yahweh’s) voice, and kept my charge, my commandments, MY STATUTES, and my laws.” (Gen. 26:5)
The observance of Yahweh’s Festival Days is a STATUTE that Abraham would have kept as a requirement for justification to achieve salvation and eternal life.
One would also have to conclude that Abraham did, in fact, observe the Festival Days correctly. Otherwise, he would have failed to keep them and Yahweh would not have justified him.
During our present time, if one is in error regarding Yahweh’s sacred calendar, it follows that one is not properly keeping Yahweh’s statutes and, therefore, would fall short of Yahweh’s commands.Continue reading “Rules for the New Moon”→
Of the four Gospels, there exists a perception that the book of John relates a contradictory narrative in relation to the other Gospels regarding the account of Yahushua the messiah’s last Passover supper, also known as the “Last Supper.”
Because of this perception, many have utilized the book of John to support the idea that Yahushua never actually ate the Passover supper since it occurred on the evening of Abib 14, which was one day before the officially sanctioned day of Abib 15 as recognized by the Jewish religious leaders.
Some claim that Yahushua’s “Last Supper” on Abib 14 was a faux Passover or a fake. The reason being that Yahushua knew that he would be dead and would not be able to keep the true Passover on Abib 15.
Others say that because of this unique circumstance, an exception was made for Yahushua by father Yahweh, who permitted him to observe a valid Passover one day earlier, thereby circumventing the Law!
Recently, a popular Sacred Name group put forth a list titled “10 Key Passover Facts,” found in their Jan-Feb 2018 magazine.
We will address Fact #5 which reads:
While leavening is not prohibited on Passover day, Abib 14, it is disallowed with the Passover memorial, Exodus 12:8. The Passover is a time of removing leavening in preparation for the Feast of Unleavened Bread that follows.
Modified Version For many, this would seem to be a reasonable statement because this reflects the present-day acceptance, by most, of a modified version of the Hasidic/Pharisaic practice of Passover and Unleavened Bread which encompasses the dates of Abib 14-21 with the result of an observance consisting of 8 days.Continue reading “The Math of Passover & Unleavened Bread”→
In our previous discussion, Beginning the New Year – Pt. 1, we addressed the issue of the Hebrew terms תקופה (tequphah) and תקופת (tequphath).
We learned that a tequphah is a solar event and is a point in time that could be an equinox or a solstice.
It was also recognized that a tequphath represents a season of the solar year. The two seasons for calculating Festival Days being spring-summer and autumn-winter.
With this in mind we will continue in Part 2 with an examination of the Festival of Tabernacles and the Festival of Ingathering. What we will discover is how they both relate to the determination of the scriptural New Year.
Khag of Tabernacles We must next be cognizant of the difference between the use of the labels “the Khag (Festival) of Ingathering” and “the Khag of Tabernacles,” the latter forming only a part of the former. The instructions from Deuteronomy and Leviticus for the seven-day Khag of Tabernacles state:
When all of the window dressing is removed, we discover that the entire issue about when to begin the year rests with the instructions regarding the Khag of Ingathering and its tequphath (season of the year).
Preliminary Statement The late Jews tell of four תקופת (tequphath) of the year (spring, summer, autumn, and winter), each calculated as a period following one of the days of a תקופה (tequphah): the vernal equinox, the summer solstice, autumnal equinox, and winter solstice.1
It is also important for us not to confuse the occurrence of a tequphah (i.e., equinox or solstice) with the season (tequphath) although the same word is sometimes used in common speech for both.
To begin with, a tequphah (equinox or solstice), as spoken of by Scriptures, is a solar event, marking a point of passage of the earth around the sun. It represents a day wherein one of two visual effects occur.
1. A solstice day is a day when the sun, as seen along the earth’s horizon, reaches its furthest point of rising or setting either on the north or south.
2. On the day of an equinox, on the other hand, the rising and setting of the sun lies on the horizon precisely in the middle between the two solstice points. As a consequence, the length of the periods of daytime and nighttime on that day of the equinox are almost exactly equivalent.
The Tequphath The Hebrew word תקופת (tequphath)—various transliterated as tekufath, tequfoth, tequfath, and so forth—is a form of the term תקופה (tequphah)—tekufah, tequfah, and so forth. Tequphah is itself derived from the word קופ (quph), meaning to, “go round.”2 The term תקופה (tequphah) more precisely means, “a revolution, i.e. (of the sun) course, (of time) lapse:—circuit, come about, end”;3 a “circuit,”4 “orbit of the sun . . . circle of the year.”5
Prior to the observance of Passover during our present time, there frequently emerges a serious quest by some newer followers of Yahweh to experience a proper and valid water baptism.
The reason being that the majority of Sacred Name groups of today assert that in order for a person to partake of the Passover meal or emblems they must have undergone a mandatory water baptism in the proper name of the messiah.
It is also maintained by most of these groups that before the death of Yahushua the messiah, in order to partake of the Passover meal, all men had to be fleshly circumcised.
Different Passover Systems We must first admit to a basic difference in the opinion about Passover. To begin with, many are often unaware that there were several different Passover systems practiced by the ancient Jews.
There is a belief among some proclaimed followers of Yahweh that in order for men to partake of the Passover, they must first be circumcised of the flesh.
Fleshy circumcision is also held by some as a proof that Passover is not an actual Festival or Feast Day for the reason that the lack of circumcision would prevent individuals from participating in a required sacred day of Yahweh.
What do Scriptures actually say concerning this issue?
If you are interested in finding out the truth of the matter then it would be advantageous for you to continue with our investigation.
Before we can directly address the issue of circumcision as it relates to Passover we must first determine if Scriptures demand fleshy circumcision in order for men to be saved.
Usually two reasons are given by the advocates of circumcision:
• Abraham was circumcised and he was commanded to circumcise all the males of his household.
• Fleshly circumcision is required in the written Torah of Moses (Old Covenant).
For many, especially among those who assert to be followers of Yahweh, it seems that there exists an unfortunate commonality that runs contrary to what is advanced by Scriptures. This commonality can be labeled “Confusion.” Of course, this should raise a red flag as the following would indicate:
For the deity is not the author of confusion, but of peace, as in all assemblies of the saints. (1Cor. 14:33)
For example, this confusion can be demonstrated by the often divergent dates given by the various Sacred Name groups for Yahweh’s sacred days during any given year. For example, see Calendar Comparison. Continue reading “Seeking Yahweh’s Truth”→
It would be remiss of the Yahu Ranger Report if, at this time, there was not issued the report of an approaching Sabbath Year beginning at sunset on March 22 (Abib 1) of the Gregorian Year 2023.
For various reasons, there are those who would dismiss any consideration of the validity of Sabbath Years or Jubilee Years as commanded in Scriptures. (Lev. 25: 1-13)
The Yahu Ranger Report strongly disagrees with this position.
First, the knowledge of the Sabbath and Jubilee Years is essential for reconstructing the chronological framework of ancient Israelite history.
Second, once the true Sabbath and Jubilee years are ascertained, it allows us to “clock in” and discover which years are presently Sabbaths and Jubilees. This knowledge holds great significance for the followers of Yahweh.
The book of Hebrews, for example, notes that “The Law,” of which the Sabbath and Jubilee Years are a part, is “a shadow of the coming good things.” (Heb. 10:1) The Sabbath day, to demonstrate, was reckoned as a type of the great sabbatism and rest into which the people of Yahweh will one day enter. (Heb. 3:7-4:13)
When it comes to the issue of determining New Moons by visibility or calculation, there are a number of questions one should consider when trying to ascertain Yahweh’s truth of the matter.
It seems that various religious leaders have convinced many people that not only must one actually see the visible crescent of the new moon but must also determine the greenness of the barley crop for the New Year.
These religious leaders purport to know and understand the true criteria for the determination of Yahweh’s calendar. They also claim their knowledge and understanding comes directly from Scriptures.
In addition, these religious leaders claim that their formula for determining New Moons emanates from Scriptures and is very simple. So simple that Yahweh has provided the means for virtually anyone to determine the beginning of months and years regardless of circumstance.
Well, almost anyone. You might not be so fortunate if you don’t have 20-20 vision or are not a farmer.
So, just how and when did the notion of a Sabbath year beginning with Tishri, the seventh month, get considered and implemented by the Jewish religious leaders? Needless to say, with Part 2 we’re going to find out.
The Transition to the Tishri Year The New Year date of Tishri 1 for the Sabbath year is an offshoot of late Talmudic interpretation. As has been previously noted inPart 1, Scriptures never claim that the seventh month began a regular Sabbath year.
The deduction that Tishri began a Jubilee year was itself a misreading ofLeviticus 25:8-13. The rabbis of the post-Bar Kochba period, in an effort to “build a fence around the Law,”21merely extended their misreading of Leviticus 25:8-13, which dealt only with the year of Jubilee, to the regular Sabbath year.
For those who are interested in observing the Sabbath years it would be very beneficial, at least from Yahweh’s perspective, to know what month actually begins the Sabbath year, Abib or Tishri.
There are many who actually believe that the Sabbath year begins with the seventh month of Tishri and not with the first month of Abib (Nisan).
It has also been extrapolated by many that not only should Sabbath years commence according to a Tishri reckoning but that every year should begin with the seventh month of Tishri.
If one believes that such a notion is found in Scriptures, then it is suggested that one take a closer look at the relevant facts of the matter.
In order to addess this issue we must contend with the concept that the Jews, from the time of their return to Judaea from Babylon in 538 B.C.E. until the end of the Bar Kochba revolt (135 C.E.), officially began their Sabbath years with Tishri 1 (Sep./Oct.) of the sixth year of the Sabbath cycle, as had become their custom sometime after the Bar Kochba war.
Although all of the evidence from Scriptures unequivocally makes “between/among the arabim (evenings)” begin at sunset and end at dark, there is one challenge made by the advocates of System B(the Hasidic position) which must be addressed: their interpretation ofLeviticus 23:26-32.
This single passage is the mainstay defense used by all of those claiming that at least one arab (evening) represents the last few hours of a day (System B and System D).
Day of Atonement (Yom Kippur) Though the section begins by stating that “on the tenth day of this seventh month is a Day of Atonement,” a sacred convocation, and a day of humbling, i.e., fasting,1it later gives a statement which is popularly translated to mean:Continue reading “36. Passover – Atonement on the 9th?”→
YRR has released two audio MIni-Pods covering the topic of The Festival of Passover and Unleavened Bread, Abib 14.
