7. שבע-Tora, Moedim in the days of Ezra.

Sephardic Judaism is the only Judaism that exist!

The Joy of Ha'Tora,

Ha'Moedim

in the days of

Ezra Ha'Sofer

Cohen.

As recorded in Nechemyah Chapter 8.

שמחתהתורה, החגבימי עזראסופרכהן.

By Rabino Aminadav Hinton.

הרב עמינדב הינטון

[Ariel 13. 23 Pages]

NECHEMYAH-NEHEMIAH INTRODUCTION AND HISTORICAL BACKGROUND:

Nechemyah means: Hashem has comforted.

Hashem promised Yisrael if they obeyed Him (SHMA B'Kol), He would bless them as a nation (Ha'Ezrach Umah La'om). If they did not, then He would judge them(Lashaput Utam) and cause them to be taken into captivity (Ha'Galut Asir-Dvarim 28). That promise was repeated to Shlomo with a specific application to his own life. If he, as King of Yisrael, obeyed Hashem he would experience Hashem's continual blessings. If Shlomo (Solomon) did not obey Him, Hashem would take away his power and position as King of Yisrael (Melachim Alef-1 Kings 9.1-9).

As happened so frequently among many of Yisrael's leaders, a good beginning had an unfortunate ending (Ha'Abirei Ha'Lev-Stubbornness of heart). Shlomo sinned against Hashem, particularly by marrying many foreign, non Jewish wives (Nashim Yehudiot La) from the nations and worshipping their false gods(Elilim Shu'ua) (Melachim Alef -1 Kings 11.1-5). So the Kingdom was split in 931 BCE. The 10 Northern Tribes were initially ruled by Jeroboam, and The Southern Tribes (Yehudah and Benyamin) were ruled at first by Rehoboam.

Both Kingdoms, however, continued to be characterized by Idolatry (Ha'Avodat Elilim) and Immorality (Hinazach). And as Hashem had forewarned, His hand of judgment fell on all Yisrael because of their sin.The Northern Kingdom fell first and the Jewish People were taken into captivity by the Assyrians in 722 BCE. The Babylonians brought about the fall of the Southern Kingdom in 586 BCE.

The Israelites ofthe Northern Kingdom were absorbed into Assyria. (Assyria was the country that lies on the Tigris- Gen 2.14, with Nineveh being the capital, the people of Nimrod. It received its name Assyria from Asshur, the son of Shem, Gen 10.22. Which means these people were Hebrews who at some point left Hashem and started worshiping the gods of Nineveh- Gen 10.22) and eventually took on other cultures and left Tora and Ha'Moedim (The Tora, Hashem given festivals) all together! However, the people of the Southern Kingdom remained intact in Bavel, and after the power of Bavel (Babylon) was broken, by the Medes and Persians in 539 BCE., many Jews returned back to their homeland Yisrael, Yerushalayim!

In 538 BCE the first group of Jews returned to Yehudah (Judah) under the leadership of Zerubavel-Zerubabbel (Ezra 1.1-2.2). Over a period of years and tremendous opposition from the Samaritans, the returnees-Ha'Chuzarim “Aliyah” eventually succeeded in rebuilding Ha'Beit Mikdash (The Temple) in 515 BCE. A number of years later in 458 BCE- a second group of Jews returned, led by Ezra (Ezra 7.1-10). Arriving on the scene, they found the Jews in Yisrael in a state of spiritual (Ruchani)and moral degradation (Hidordarot Musarot).They had intermarried with Goyim, pagans from the surrounding nations and were participating in their pagan practices. This is why their isn't a Pure Ethnos Jew(Tahor Etnus Ha'Yehudi) any longer, just about all Jewish People today have within their DNA the bloodline of other nations. Through Ezra's Tora teaching and Cohenim restoration, the majority of the Jewish people returned (Tikun) from their sins (Chataim) and again followed Hashem's Tora and Moedim.

In 444 BCE., 14 years later after Ezra's return to Yerushalayim, Nehemiah also returned and Hashem used him to guide Yehudah (Judah) in rebuilding the city's walls(Ha'Chumot Hayr) and in reordering the Jewish People's lives around Tora, Tanakh and Moedim. This should bring tears to the eyes of any Ehrliche Yid- Earnest Jew.

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Nehemiah-Nechemyah (Consolation of Hashem).

The son of Hachaliah, not to be confused with Nehemiah son of Azbuk, the prince of Bethzur who helped repair the wall of Jerusalem- Neh. 3.16, Nehemiah the son of Hachaliah is from the tribe of Judah. All we know certainly concerning him is contained in the book which bears his name. We first find him at Shushan, as a captive Jew under the residence of the King of Persia, in a high office as the cup bearer (Cos Nusah) of King Artaxerxes Longrimanus- Neh 1.11; 2.1. In the twentieth year of the Kings reign, 445 BCE, Jews including Nehemiah's brother Hanani arrived from Judah and gave Nehemiah a deplorable account of the state of Jerusalem in the month of Kislev before Hanukkah.Chapter 2. 1-4/ 7.2 Hanani was a ruler of the palace in Jerusalem, Hanani is the same man mentioned in the Elephantine Papyri as an officer who seems to have come into Egypt on a government mission. On such a trip Hanani learned about the sad state of affairs himself taking place in Jerusalem and went to find his brother in Persia to tell him the ordeal. It is during Pesach in Artaxerxes 20^th year that Nehemiah sat down and wept, mourned, fasted and prayed at the age of 60 -Neh 1.5, 2.4,20. He immediately went to Jerusalem to endeavor to better Yisroel and obtained the King's consent to his mission. Having received his appointment as governor of Judea, he started upon his journey being under promise to return to Persia within a given time. Nehemiah's work was rebuilding, for the first time since their destruction by Nebuzaradan (Jer 39.11/ 2 Kings 25.18-20/ Jer 52.30). The walls of Jerusalem, and restoring that city to its former state and dignity as fortified land to Hashem.

Nehemiah had acted in hastening on the work. On the very first arrival, as governor, Sanballat (A Moabite of Horonaim. Neh 2.10,19;13.28) and Tibiah had given unequivocal proof of their mortification at his appointment; but when the restoration was seen to be rapidly progressing, their indignation knew no bounds. They made a great conspiracy to fall upon the builders with armed forces and to put a stop to the undertaking. Only about 12 years earlier, in Artaxerxes seventh year (457 BCE), Ezra had gone back to Jerusalem with about1,750 Jewish men, plus women and children (Ezra 8.1-20) and treasures worth a king's ransom (Ezra 8.26-27). But, if we refer to Ezra 4. 6-23to the days of Ezra himself, it appears that his adversaries had persuaded the king to stop Ezra's efforts at rebuilding the city, therefore, lay un-repaired, needing a new decree from the King.

This permission Nehemiah providentially secured, thanks to his position at the court. Nehemiah therefore appeared at Jerusalem with a royal commission to continue the work that Ezra had begun. The project was defeated by the vigilance and prudence of Nehemiah, various stratagems were then resorted to get Nehemiah away from Jerusalem, and if possible to take his life; but that which most nearly succeeded was the attempt to bring him into suspicion with the King of Persia, as if he intended to set himself up as an independent king as the walls were completed. The artful letter of Sanballat so far wrought upon Artaxerxes that he issued a decree stopping the work till further orders. It is probably that at the same time he recalled Nehemiah, or perhaps his leave of absence had expired. After a delay of 25 years-some scholars say 90 years,Nehemiah age 80 was permitted to return to Jerusalem and to crown his work by repairing the Temple and dedicating the walls. During his government Nehemiah firmly repressed the exactions of the Jewish men and the usury (Nashech) of the rich Jews, and rescued the poor Jews from spoliation and slavery. He refused to receive his lawful allowance as governor from the Jewish people, in consideration of the poor, during the whole twelve years that he was in office, but kept at his own charge a table for 150 Jews at which any who returned (Chazruti) from captivity were welcome. He made most careful provision for the maintenance of Ha'Cohenim and Levi'im, and for the due and constant celebration of divine worship to Hashem alone! He insisted upon the sanctity (Kodesh) of the precincts of the Temple being preserved in violable, and ejected Tobiah from one of the chambers which Eliashiv had assigned him. With no less firmness and impartiality he expelled from all sacred functions, those of Ha'Cohen Ha'Gadol family who had contracted heathen marriages, and rebuked and punished those of the Jewish people who had likewise intermarried with foreigners [And expunged those marriages]; and lastly, he provided for keeping holy Ha'Shabbat, which was shamefully profaned by the Jewish People, both Jews and foreign merchants, and by his resolute conduct succeeded in repressing the lawless traffic on the day of rest-Shabbos. Nehemiah 6.1-16 and reinstated Hashem's Moedim!

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NEHEMIAH'S PROBLEMS AND HIS RESPONSES:

Problems:

1. Walls Broken and gates burned (1.2-3).

2. False Accusation of the workers (2.19).

3. Ridicule of the workers (4.1-3).

4. Plot to attack the workers (4.7-8).

5. Physical exhaustion and threat of murder (4.10-12).

6. Economic crises and greed (5.1-5).

7. Plot to assassinate or at least harm Nehemiah (6.5-7).

8. Slander against Nehemiah (6.5-7).

9. Plot to discredit Nehemiah (6.13).

10. Tobiah moved into a Temple storeroom (13.4-7).

11. Neglect of Temple Tzedakah and Shekalim (13.10)

12. Violation of Shabbat by business activities ( 13.15-16).

13. Mixed Marriages (13.23-24).

Responses:

1. Grief and Prayer (1.4), and motivation of the Jewish People to rebuild (2.17-18).

2. Confidence that Hashem would give them success (2.20).

3. Prayer (4.4-5) and action (greater diligence in the work, 4.6).

4. Prayer and action (Posting of a guard, 4.9).

5. Positioning of people by families with weapons (4.13, 16-18) and encouragement of the people (4.14,20).

6. Anger (5.6), reflection, rebuke (5.7), and action, having the Jewish People return the debtors interest, 5.7-11).

7. Refusal to cooperate (6.3).

8. Denial (6.8) and prayer (6.9).

9. Refusal to cooperate (6.11-13) and prayer (6.14).

10.Tossing out Tobiah's furniture (13.8).

11. Rebuke (13.11a), stationing the Levi'im at their posts (13.11), and Prayer (13.14).

12. Rebuke (13.17-18), posting of guards (13.19), and prayer (13.22).

13. Rebuke (13.25-27), removal of guilty Cohen (13.28), and prayer (13.29). It took 52 days to complete the walls of Jerusalem.

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Jews return to the land of Yisrael from exil (Ha'Galut) in Ezra 2 and Nehemiah 7.

JEWISH FAMILY CLANS: EZRA 2.3-60- NEHEMIAH 7.8-62.

Parosh 2,172 2,172

Shephatiah 372 372

Arah 775 652

Pahath-Moab 2,812 2,818

Elam 1,254 1,254

Zattu 945 845

Zaccai 760 760

Bani (Binnui) 642 648

Bebai 623 628

Azgad 1,222 2,322

Adonikam 666 667

Bigvai 2,056 2,067

Adin 454 655

Ater 98 98

Bezai 323 324

Yorah (Hariph) 112 112

Hashum 223 328

Gibbar (Gibeon) 95 95

Inhabitants from towns that repopulated with Jews returning:

Bethlehem and Netophah 179 188

Anathoth 128 128

Azmaveth (Beth Azmaveth) 42 42

Kiriath Jearim, Kephirah, and Beeroth 743 743

Ramah and Geba 621 621

Micmash 122 122

Bethel and Ai 223 123

Nebo 52 52

Magbish 156 -------

The other Elam 1,254 1,254

Lod, Hadid, and Ono 725 721

Jericho 345 345

Senaah 3,630 3,930

Harim 320 320

Cohenim-Priest:

Yedaiah 973 973

Immer 1,052 1,052

Pashhur 1,247 1,247

Harim 1,017 1,017

Levites, Levi'im:

74 74

Asaph Singers:

128 148

Gatekeepers (Sha'ar Bava):

139 138

The Temple Servants (Beit Ha'Mikdash Eved Misheretet):

392 392

Jewish descendants of Delaiah, Tobiah and Nekoda:

652 642

Totals: 29,818 31,089

“Jews returned back to the land of Yisrael in 541 BCE.”

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The news was very bad. Nehemiah turned his back on his brother and stared sadly out of the window. “Hanani, he said, “what you tell me makes my heart heavy. I have never seen our homeland, but I always dreamed it was a beautiful place where all our Jewish People can be happy. Many of our Jewish People had returned from exile (Ha'Galut) to rebuild Jerusalem and restore its ancient glory and now you tell me that it is almost as badly off as it ever has been. The walls broken down, the people beset by enemies, The Tora of G-d observed only half-heartedly. “I felt that it was important for you to know,” said Hanani. “You are closer to King Artaxerxes than any of us. I hoped you might be able to do something for us. We need a leader, Nehemiah, and there is no one in all of Judah who is equal to the task. That is why I came to you here in Susa, in the king's palace...” Nehemiah let his gaze move slowly over the warm Persian Hills. “It is true that the king trust me. I am his cup bearer (Mashkeh), testing his wine first to make sure it is not poisoned by enemies. And I perform many other important services for his majesty. But I am not entirely “a free Jew, Hanani.” After all, I am a Jew, and this is the land of our conquerors.” “But you chose to remain in exile,” Hanani pointed out. “You could have gone home to Jerusalem with the rest of us- but you stayed to serve the king. Surely this gives you added favor with him.” Hanani laid his hand on his brother's shoulder and looked earnestly into his face. “Surely you want to do everything you can to help our Jewish People. You know how terribly they have suffered in the past because of their own waywardness, and because of the malice of their enemies.” Then as the dusk fell and as the attendants started leaving the palace, Nehemiah and Hanani spoke together about the misfortunes that had befallen the Israelites.

“It began,” said Hanani, when our people strayed from Hashem...”

The Israelites had permitted pagan influences (Hashapaut Pananiot) to steep in from the nations round about them. They forsook the ways of their Avot. They neglected their spiritual duties (Chavu'votRuchanim Avodah). Then came Ha'Navi (The Prophets), who made known the will of Hashem and urged the Jewish People to return(Tikun Yiras Shamayim) to His ways (“Tora”). But most of them would not listen, prophets like Yeshayah- Isaiah/ Yirmeyahu-Jeremiah/ Yechezkel- Ezekiel pleaded with them- but in vain.

“Then, continued Hanani, “The punishment came...”

Bavel-Babylon, the great power to the east, attacked Judah. Now the Prophets did something unusual: They urged their fellow Jews not to resist. These Ha'Nevi'im Ha'Kedoshim(Holy Prophets) saw that it was Hashem's plan to chastise(Yachar) the Jewish People by permitting them to be defeated and sent into exile (Ha'Galut). Later, when they would made Teshuvah, He would deliver them from bondage (Sha'avor) and allow them to return (Lachzarot) to Jerusalem. Judah was over-run, and the people sent into exile in Bavel. After many years they saw their Chatiim, and repented. Hashem fulfilled his promise; Cyrus of Persia invaded Bavel and conquered it, and then announced that the Jews might return to Jerusalem any time they wished.

[Cyrus means: The sun, the founder of the Persian Empire- 2 Chron 36.22,23; Dan 6.28; 10.1,13 was, according to the common legend, the son of Cambyses, a Persian of the royal family of the Achaemenidae. He defeated the Median King in BCE 559. In BCE 546 he defeated Croesus, and the kingdom of Lydia was the prize of his success. Bavel fell before his army, and the ancient dominions of Assyria were added to his empire in BCE 538. The Prophet Dani'EL's home for a time was at his court. Dan 6. 28. The edict of Cyrus for the rebuilding of the Temple- 2 Chron 36.22-23; Ezra 1.1-4; 3.7;4.3; 5.13-17; 6.3 was the beginning of Modern Judaism; and the great changes by which the nation was transformed into a more Orthodox Judaism observed cohesively by all Jewish People. Cyrus tomb is still shown at Pasargadae, the scene of his final decisive victory. Cyrus was good to the Jewish People, a Goy Tzadek-Righteous Gentile in that he did not stop the Jewish People from going back to Yisroel, keeping Shabbos and Ha'Moedim and creating Shuls, the Temple. And teaching Hebrew as the national language. He did not prevent the Jewish People from being Jewish].

“Our Jewish people left Bavel with high hearts,” mused Hanani.

They were going home to rebuild their nation- and, above all, to rebuild the Temple, as the prophet Yechezkel had instructed them. When the caravans were ready, joyous songs arose from the crowd. Prince Zerubavel rode at the head of the long line, surrounded by his advisors. Immediately behind them came Ha'Cohen Ha'Gadol Yeshua Ben Yehozadak (1 Chron 6.15) and a great company of Cohenim, carrying the Temple Gabbai which Cyrus had returned to them. To assure the safety of Ha'Gabbai, soldiers marched on either side with swords ready. The caravan stretched for miles and included over forty thousand Jews, more than seven thousand Gerim(Jewish Converts), and thousands of donkeys, horses, camels and cattle. And entire city was on the move, on route to rebuild the city of Hashem-Ha'Sha'ar Hashem!

“The exiles were not prepared for what they found,” said Hanani, shaking his head sadly.”

Everyone had heard stories of the destruction the Babylonians had inflicted upon the land Yisrael, but never in their worst dreams had they envisioned the ruins that greeted them. They passed silently though ghost villages that looked as if they had been trampled by angry giants. Fields lay waste, the soil scarred by the flames that, many years earlier, had devoured harvests and turned orchards to ashes. Many wept at the sight of desolation. “Is this the Promised Land (Ha'Eretz Yisrael) that Hashem gave to Ha'Bnei Yisrael?” Did our fathers (Ha'Avot) remember correctly this land they loved when they spoke to us about it back in Bavel? How can we be expected to build anything here?” But build they did. At first there was some trouble with the people who inhabited the area- a scattering of Jews who had remained behind when the rest were exiled, as well as settlers (Matnachlim Goyim) who had come in from surrounding lands and taken over as squatters (Pulshim). Some of these people were permitted to remain and convert to Judaism (Geyores Lahatger). Others were evicted from the land they had taken over, and were forced to go elsewhere. But this problem was soon solved, and the returned exiles began the gigantic task of rebuilding their Jewish Homeland.

“They did not forget Hashem,” Hanani assured his brother.”

After preparing dwellings as best they could, and setting out crops for the coming year, the Jewish People built an altar (Mizbeiach) to Hashem and offered sacrifices upon it- Ha'Olah, Ha'Shlamim, Ha'Asham etc.

As specified in the Tora of Moshe- Tora Shebictav, Shebelpeh. They celebrated Ha'Moedim of Hashem as their ancestors had many years ago. And then they began making plans for a project dear to the heart of every true Israelite- the rebuilding of the Temple in Jerusalem. Great cedar logs were ordered to be brought from Lebanon. The masons and carpenters went to work. The laying of the foundation became the occasion of a joyous ceremony. Ha'Cohenim in their vestments came forward with Shofars, Cymbals(Mazaltim), and one of Dovid's Tehillim was sung, praising Hashem for His enduring love toward Yisroel. There were shouts of joy, mingled with the weeping of those who remembered the magnificent glory of the old Temple that had been destroyed by the Babylonians.

Then came trouble from another quarter. North of Judah lived the Samaritans- The half breed pagan descendants of pagan foreigners who had been brought into Northern Yisrael many years ago to replace the Jews who were taken away in the Assyrian Captivity. These pagans had been taught the Hebrew faith and had accepted part of the Tora but rejected the rest. In many ways they had diluted the pure Judaic faith with their own idolatrous practices. The Samaritans-ShomeroniteHalf BreedAssyrians were created in 721 BCE. Prior Samaria at first included all the tribes over which Jeroboam made himself king, east or west of Jordan- 1 Kings 13.32. This last was at first portions belonging to Asher, Issachar and Zebulon, and even of Ephraim and Manasseh- 2 Chron 30:1-26. These new Samaritansoccurred during the captivity of Yisroelby Shalmaneser, 2 Kings 17.24 “The King of Assyria” brought men from Babylon, and from Cuthah, and from Ava (Ivah, 2 Kings 18.34), and from Hamath, and from Sepharvaim, and placed them in the cities of Samaria instead of the children of Yisroel;and they possessed Samaria, and dwelt in the cities thereof.” Thus the new Samaritans were Assyrians by birth or subjugation. These strangers, whom we will not assume or have been placed in “the cities of Samaria” byEsar- haddon were of course Idolaters, and worshiped a strange medley of gods. Hashem's displeasure was kindled, and they were annoyed by beasts of prey which had probably increased to a great extent before their entrance upon the land. On their explaining their miserable condition to the king of Assyria, he dispatched one of the captive Cohens to teach them “how they should fear Hashem.” The Cohenim came accordingly, and henceforth, in the language of the sacred historian they feared Hashem, and served their graven images, both their children and their children's children; as did their fathers so do they unto this day-2 Kings 17.41, a gap occurs in their history until Judah has returned from captivity. They then desire to be allowed to participate in the rebuilding of the temple at Jerusalem; but on being refused, the Samaritans throw off the mask, and become open enemies, frustrating the operation of the Jews through the reign of two Persian kings, and are only effectually silenced in the reign of Darius Hystaspes, BCE 519.

The feud thus unhappily begun, grew year by year more inveterate. Matters at length came to a climax. About BCE 409, a certain Manasseh, a man of Cohenim lineage, on being expelled from Jerusalem by Nehemiah for an unlawful marriage, obtained permission from the Persian King of his day, Darius Nothus, to build a Temple on Mount Gerizim for the Samaritans, with whom he had found refuge. The animosity of the Samaritans become more intense than ever. They are said to have done everything in their power to annoy the Jews. Their own temple on Gerizim they considered to be much more superior to that at Jerusalem, their temple of course venerated pagan gods with the veneration of Hashem.The Tora of Moshe was their code; for they rejected every other book in the Jewish Tanakh. The Jews, on the other hand, were not more conciliatory in their treatment of the Samaritans. Certain other Jewish renegades had from time to time taken refuge with the Samaritans; hence by degrees the Samaritans claimed to partake of Jewish blood, especially if doing so happened to suit their interest. Very far were the Jews from admitting this claim to consanguinity on the part of these people. The Traditional hatred in which the Jew held the Samaritan is expressed in Ecclus 50.25,26. “Such were the Samaritan is expressed of our Hashem's day; a people distinct from the Jews, thou lying in the very midst of the Jews; a people preserving their identity, though seven centuries had rolled away since they had been brought from Assyria by Esar Haddon, and though they had abandoned their polytheism for a sort of ultra Mosaicism; a people who, thought their limits had gradually contracted, and the rallying place of their religion on Mount Gerizim had been destroyed one hundred and sixty years before John Hyracanus- BCE 130, and though Samaria the city had been again and again destroyed, still preserved their nationality, still worshiped from Shechem and their impoverished settlements toward their sacred hill, still retained their peculiar religion, and could not coalesce with the Jews.

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Ezra Ha'Sofer Cohen (Ezra the Scribe, Sage, Cohen).

Ezra means: Help, called Esdras in the Apocrypha, the famous Sage and Cohen. He was a learned and pious Cohen residing in Bavel in the time of Artaxerxes Longimanus. The origin with the King does not appear, but in the seventh year of his reign he obtained leave to go to Jerusalem, and to take with him a company of Israelites (BCE 457). The journey from Bavel to Jerusalem took just four months; and the company brought with them a large Tzedakah offering of gold and silver, and silver vessels. Ezra's objective was to effect a “Judaic reformation” amongst the Jews of Yisrael. His first step was to enforce separation upon all who had married foreign wives. This occurred a little more than six months after his arrival in Jerusalem with Nehemiah. The functions Ezra executed under Nehemiah's authority were purely of a Cohenim character. The date of his death is uncertain. There was a Jewish tradition that he was buried in Persia. The principal works ascribed to him by the Jews are 1. The institution of the Temple and Jerusalem's Shul/ Synagogue. 2. The settling of the Tora, and restoring, correcting and editing the whole Tora damaged parts as a Sofer. 3. The introduction of the Hebrew language. Ezra within the Tanakh, is a continuation of the books of Chronicles. The period covered by the book is eighty years from the first of Cyrus, BCE 536, to the beginning of the eighth of Artaxerxes BCE 456. Jer 34.7/ 2 Kings 25.22/Daniel 1.3-4/Jer 40.1-6;42.1-43.3/Jer 44.15. The Babylonian period was from 605-539.Nebuchadnezzar ruled for 43 years. The Jews were out of the land of Yisroel into captivity for more than 500 years. Ezra lead the Cohenim in the Temple sacrifices, restructuring Jewish Life around Tora, the placing back in place of Ha'Moedim of Hashem. Now let us examine Nehemiah chapter 8. with the restoration of Tora, Rosh Ha'Shanah- The Biblical Jewish New Year, Sukkot and Shmini Atzeret and Simchat Tora.

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Nechemyah Chapter 8. The Jews restored Ha'Tora, Rosh Ha'Shanah,Sukkot and Shmini Atzeret and Simchat Tora.

1. And Kol Ha'Am (The voice of the people) gathered themselves together as one man(Echad Ish) into Ha'Rechov (The streets of Jerusalem) that was before the watergate(The Eastern wall); and they spoke unto Ezra Ha'Sofer (The Scribe, Sage) to bring Ha'Sefer Tora Moshe(The Tora of Moshe), which Hashem had commanded to Yisroel.

[This Tora of Moshe, would have been either the sacred stone copy of the tablets (Ha'Lucha) or Ezra had the Tora scroll from the Temple.Ezra Ha'Sofer was standing in the streets of Jerusalem behind a Bema underneath or behind a Sukka with 40 other men who were Cohenim, stood on the Bema under the Sukka with Ezra and the Jewish People. They were located at the watergate as the brick wall surrounding the city had within its walls foundations of water and springs. Thus the location was called: Watergate or Vavut'ragi'im].

2. And Ezra Ha'Cohen (The Priest) brought the Tora before Ha'Kahal (The Jewish Community) both of Jewish men and Jewish women, and all that could hear (SHMA) with understanding(Havnah), upon the first day of the seventh month (Rosh Ha'Shanah-Tishrei).

[Its Tishrei the 15th. “Sukkot.” Tishrei is a Sh'lema a thirty day month. And the Jewish People haven't begun the celebration of Sukkot just yet. They are being reminded of the Tora.Sukkot was approaching them which leads me to believe Sukkot was just about to start, just about to approach the Jewish People who must have had their Sukkah's up, some perhaps adding finishing touches on them and hearing Ha'Dvar Ezra in preparation of Sukkot.]

3. And he read therein before Ha'Rechov (The streets of Jerusalem) that was before the WaterGate(Vavut'ragi'im) from the morning (Boker) until midday (Hazahrim), before the Jewish men and the Jewish women, and those that could understand (Teenagers); and the ears of Kol Ha'Am (The voice of the Jewish People) were attentive unto Ha'Sefer Tora(The book, selections from Tora.)

4. And Ezra Ha'Sofer stood upon a platform of wood-bema, which they had made for the purpose; and beside him stood Mattityah, and Shema, and Anayah, and Uriyah, and Chilkiyah, and Ma'aseiyah, on his right hand; and on his left hand, Pedayah, and Mishael, and Malkiyah, and Chashun, and Chashbadana, Zecharyah, and Meshullam.

[Mattithiah, Shema, Anaiah, Uriah, Hilkiah, Maaseiah, Pedaiah, Mishael, Malchijah, Hashum, Hashbaddanah, Zechariah, Meshullam.

● Mattithiah-means: Gift of Hashem. A Levite who presided over the offerings made in the pans. 1 Chron 9.31. One of the Levites appointed by Dovid to Mishnah before the ark. 1 Chron 16.5 who played the harp upon Sheminith.

● Shema-means: To hear. A Reubenite ancestor of Bela. 1 Chron 5.8. Son of Elpaal- 1 Chron 8.13. Probably the same as Shimhi .

● Anaiah-means: Whom Hashem answers. One of the Cohens who was one of the heads of the people who signed the covenant with Nehemiah. Neh. 10.22.

● Uriah-means: Light of Hashem. One of the thirty commanders of the thirty bands into which the Israelite army of Dovid was divided. 1 Chron 11.41; 2 Sam 23.39, Uriah was a descendant of Canaan, he was a Hittite. He married Bathseba, the daughter of Eliam.

● Hilkiah-means: Hashem is my portion. The father of Eliakim- 2 Kings 18.37; Isa 22.20; 36.22. Cohen Ha'Gadol in the reign of Yosiah. 2 Kings 22.4; 2 Chron 34.9 His Cohen Ha'Gadol status was rendered by King Yosiah, by the solemn Pesach kept at Jerusalem in the 18^th year of that king's reign, and above all by the discovery which he made of in the Tora of Moshe in the Temple.

● Maaseiah-means: work of Hashem., the name of four persons who had married foreign wives in the time of Ezra. A descendant of Yeshua the Cohen, Ezra 10.18.

● Pedaiah-means: Whom Hashem redeems. The father of Zebudah, mother of King Johoiakim. 2 Kings 23.36. The brother of Salathiel or Shealtiel, the father of Zerubbabel, the son of Parosh, that is one of the family of that name, who Nehemiah in repairing the walls of Jerusalem. Neh 3.25 BCE 446. A Cohen who stood on the left hand of Ezra at the Bema. He was also the father of Joel, of the half tribe of Mannasseh in the reign of Dovid. 1 Chron 27.20 1013 BCE.

● Mishael-means: Who is what Hashem is. All we know about him was that he was a Cohen during the time of Nehemiah and Ezra.

● Malchijah-means: Hashem is King. A Levite descendant of Gershom. 1 Chron 6.40. Son of Rechab ruler of Bethhaccerem, repairer of the dung gate. Nehemiah 3.14.

● Hashum-means: Flat Nose. Bene-Hashum came back from Bavel with Zerubababel -Ezra 2.19;10.33;Nehemiah 7.22 BCE 536. He was a Levite.

● Hashbaddanah-means: Considerate Judge. A Levite who stood with Ezra on his left hand while he read the Tora.

● Zechariah-means: Hashem remembered. This Zechariah is from the Cohenim family of Iddo in the days of Joiakim the son of Yeshua. Neh 12.16 BCE 536, or the Zechariah of the Cohens, son of Jonathan, who blem with the Shofar at the dedication of the city wall by Ezra and Nehemiah. Neh 12.35,41 BCE 446.

● Meshullam-means: Friend. A Cohen who assisted Ezra in abolishing Non-Jewish marriages which some of the people had contracted with foreign wives. Ezra 10.29. Neh 3.30;6.18. The son of Berechiah, who assisted in rebuilding the wall of Jerusalem. Neh 3.4. Berechiah comes from the Gershonite Levite Tribe.

5. [During Hakafah-The Tora procession behind Ha'Bema]. And Ezra Ha'Sofer Cohen opened Ha'Sefer(The book “Tora”) before the eyes of Kol Ha'Am Yehudi(The voice,eyes of the Jewish People)[For Ezra was above the people on the Bema at Hakafah-The Tora procession]; and when he opened it, all the people stood up!(For Ba'al Kriah-reading of the Tora.)

[Ezra during Ha'Hoza'at Hakafah(The Tora procession at Etz Chaim) at Havzat Sefer Tora Ha'Aron Kodesh- At the removing of the Tora from the ark, Tora cabinet, perhaps after chanting Mipi Eil, Havu Godel Laloheinu Utnu Kavod La'Tora- Let us declare the greatness of our G-d and give honor to the Tora! Ezra promoted: Tora Ha'Cherut-The Tora of our freedom/ Tora Ha'Sheimah- The Tora that perfects/ Tora Emunah- The Tora of truth/ Tora Shebiksav-The written Tora/ Tora Shebictav, Tora Shebelpeh- The written and oral Tora/ Tora Chacham- The wise Tora. Torateinu-Our Tora!,our Teachings and our Torot-Laws and instruction for Totze'ot Chayyim- The issues of life, wellspring of life. Tovah Tokhakhat- good reproof.It was the learning of Tora that caused these Jewish People to come to correction, to leave paganism, to return back to Moedim and Hashem's expectations!!!

This puts me in mind of the last brachos chanted before the closing of Ha'Aron Chodesh- “The Tora of Hashem is perfect.”

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TORAT ADONAI T'MIMA M'SHIVAT NEFESH EIDUT. ADONAI NE'EMAHAH, MACH'KIMAT PETI. PIKUDEI ADONAI Y'SHARIM M'SAMCHEI LEV MISHPTEI ADONAI EMET SAZDKU YACHDAV KI' LEKACH TOV, NATATI LACHEM TORATI AT TAZOO.The Tora of Hashem is perfect, restoring the soul; the testimony of Hashem is sure making wise the simple. The precepts of Hashem are right, rejoicing the heart. The judgments of Hashem are true. They are righteous all together.

Behold a good doctrine had been given to you. Forsake it not, forsake not Tora- Tehillim 19. 7-9.

PIKUDAI ADONAI YSHARIM M'SAMACHI LEV MITZVAT ADONAI BARACH MAIRAT ENAYIM- The precepts of Hashem are right, delighting the mind; The Mitzvah of Hashem are clear, giving light to the eyes.

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6. And Ezra blessed (Brachos) Hashem Ha'Elohim Ha'Gadol( Hashem the almighty, the great G-d). And Kol Ha'Am (The voice of the people) answered, Omein, Omein, with lifting up their hands (Marim At Yadi); and they bowed (Kafuf-bending at Baruch), and worshipped Hashem with their faces to the ground (Panim La'Adamah Hashem).

[As Ezra chanted: Kre'at Ha'Tora Bracha- The blessing prior to Tora reading and Kriyat Ha'Tora Brachas- The blessing after the Tora reading the Jewish People lifting their hands, bent at Baruch, we know this to be true as to bend is Lakafuf, thus they bent as we do at Baruch today and worshipped Hashem prostrait in the streets of Jerusalem before Sukkot on Panim- faces. The Jewish People stopped prostrating before Hashem after they saw the Muslims doing it. The Jewish People stopped raising hands after they saw the Christians doing it to their “Jesus (JZeus).” But bending at Baruch in reverance to Hashem we still do today and no other religion has taken that away from us in over 3000 years.

7. Also Yeshua Ben Yehozadak, and Bani, and Sherevyah, Yamin, Akuv, Shabtai, Hodiyah, Ma'aseiyah, Kelita, Azaryah, Yozavad, Chanan, Pelayah, and Ha'Levi'im caused the Jewish People to understand the Tora; and the people stood in their place .

[Jeshua, Bani, Sherebiah, Jamin, Akkub, Shabethai, Hodiah, Maaseiah, Kelita, Azariah, Jozabad, Hanan, Pelaiah.

● Jeshua-means: Save. Head of a Levitical House, one of those which returned from the Babylonian Captivity. Ezra 2.40-;3.9; Neh 3.19; 8.7; 9.4-5; 12.8. Jeshua is from the family of Pahathmoab, one of the chief families of the tribe of Judah. Neh 10.14, 7.11; Ezra 10.30.

● Bani-means: Built. He was a Levite and an Israelite who returned with 642 of his children, descendants from captivity with Zerubababel- Ezra 2.10; 10.29,34; Neh 10.14.

● Sherebiah-means: Heat of Hashem. A Levite in the time of Ezra. Ezra 8.18-24 BCE 459. Sherebiah was one of the Levities who helped with the Tora.

● Jamin-means: Right Hand. A Levitie who expounded on Tora in BCE 410.

● Akkub-means: Insidious. A Levite one of the Nethimim whose family returned with Zerubabbel. Ezra 2.45 BCE 536. He assisted with teaching Tora to the Jewish People with Ezra and Nehemiah.

● Shabethai-means: Sabbatical also spelled: Shabbetha'i. A Levite in the time of Ezra. Ezra 10.15 who helped teach the Jewish People Tora.

● Hodiah-means: Majesty of Hashem also spelled: Hodijah. A Levite, one of the heads of the Jewish People. Neh 10. 18.

● Maaseiah-means: The work of Hashem. The father of Azariah Neh 3.23. A Levite who assisted, one of the heads of the people whose descendants signed the covenant with Nehemiah. Neh 10.25. The son of Baruch and descendant of Pharez the son of Judah. Neh 11.5. Two Cohens of this name are mentioned, Neh 12.41-42, as taking part in the musical service which accompanied the dedication of the wall of Jerusalem under Ezra.

● Kelita-means: Assembly. Root word for Kehilah. One of the Levites who returned with Ezra. Ezra 10.23. He assisted in expounding the Tora. Neh 8.7, and signed the covenant with Nehemiah. Neh 10.10 in BCE 459-410.

● Azariah-means: Whom Hashem helps. A common Hebrew name in the families of Cohenim of the line of Eleazar, whose name has precisely the same meaning as Azariah. A Leviite son of Maaseiah, who repaired part of the wall of Jerusalem in the time of Nehemiah. Neh 3.23-24 BCE 446-410. One of the leaders of the children of the province who went up from Babylon with Zerubbabel. Neh 7.7. One of the Cohens who sealed the covenant with Nehemiah, Neh 10.2 and assisted in the dedication of the city wall. Neh 12.33.

● Jozabad-means: Hashem justifies. A Levite, son of Jeshua in the days of Ezra. Ezra 8.33 BCE 459. This Leviite were among those who returned with Ezra and had married foreign wives. He is identical with Jozabad the Levite, Neh 8.7; and with Jozabad who presided over the outer work of the Temple. Neh 11.16 BCE 459.

● Hanan-means: Merciful. The sons of Hanan were among the Nethinim who returned from Babylon with Zerubbabel. Ezra 2.46; Neh 7.49 BCE 536. One of the Levities who assisted Ezra in his public exposition of the Tora. Neh 8.7 BCE 446. One of the heads of the Jewish People. Neh 10.22 BCE 410.

● Pelaiah-means: Distinguished by Hashem. One of the Levities who assisted Ezra with the expounding of the Tora. Neh 8.7 BCE 445. He afterwards sealed the covenant with Nehemiah 10:10.

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8.So they read (studied-Dvar Tora Limud) from Ha'Sefer Torat Ha'Elohim distinctly, and gave the sense, and caused them to understand the reading.

[Each Cohen, Levi'im on this day did a Dvar Tora Drash! Each focusing on a Sidra Parshot Ba'al Kore/ Chatan Tora/ Krian Ha'Tora. Over 40 different Drakhahs on the Tora one after the other by these Levi'im read, explained in the hearing of the Jewish People covering the four Halachic aspects of study:

1.Peshat- Literal. 2. Ramez- One scripture tied to another.3.Derash- Derived interpretation, exegesis, commentary, Chumash, Sages.4. Sod- Deeper meaning (Mysteries) of scripture wisdom, sages to a large crowd of Jews between 30,000 and 50,000 “Jews” all under their own Sukkahs. Imagine what the streets of Jerusalem looked like lined as far as the eyes could see with Sukkahs!]

9. And Nechemyah Ha'Tirshata(Nehemiah the Tirshatha,Tirshatha comes from the Persian word for:The strict, severe one or the judge.), Ezra Ha'Sofer Cohen, and Ha'Leviim taught the Jewish People, said unto all the Jewish People , This day is Kadosh unto HashemEloheichem; mourn not, nor weep. For Kol Ha'Am (The voice of the Jewish People),when they heard the words of the Tora.

10. Then he said unto them, Go your way, eat the choice foods, and drink the sweet things [wines], and send portions (Sukkot Tzedakah, Matonos Lo'evyonim) unto them for whom nothing is prepared; for this day is Kadosh unto Adoneinu( Our Master); neither grieve, for-Ha'Simchat Ha'Yahyeh Kucha ShelachHa'Chedvah(The joy) of Hashem is your strength!

[This Sukkot meal is called: Seudat Keva and the substantial meal is called Achilat Keva. We Jews already know its a Mitzvah at this time to provide Tzedakah for the needs of the Jewish People-Lo Saamod Al Dam Reyacho-A Jew cannot stand by idly if another Jew is in danger.

This Tradition goes all the way back from here in 546 BCE. The marching of the Tora scroll goes back this far also which we have read in our hearing, that was done which we do today, dating back to 500 BCE. It is a Mitzvah to have Ushpizin-Jewish guest also called: Hachnossas Orchim within the Sukkah. There was such aL'sheim Mitzvah with the rededication of the walls of Jerusalem. The Jewish People marched the Tora around, taught from it, ate a meal under the Sukkah with the Sukkah Kiddish being rendered here. All of our traditions as Jews have such long standing Shurashim as seen here in the Tanakh.]

11. So Ha'Levi'im calmed Kol Ha'Am(The voice of the Jewish People), saying, Be still, for the day is Kadosh(Holy,Sacred); neither be you grieved.

[The Jewish People had not observed Sukkot sense the captivity, the exile and had lost an awareness of Ha'Luach Shanah, Moed, Mikra KodeshZamanim Vaunut-Times and seasons. Some Jews were raised in exile, without ever observing or seeing the observation of Hashem's Moedim.Thus Ha'Levi'im were one of the only ones who had kept up, marked, Hashem's Moedim Mikra Kodesh Zamanim. Some observed them while in captivity while many other Jews lost all observation all together. For these 30,000 Jews this was the first time for many of them in hundreds of years since they were free-Bnei Chorin to observe the seasons and “Hashem's festivals” as rendered in Tora and Tanakh. The first time for five hundred years, while for some of the older Jews, they had a recollection of memories from their Ha'Churim Gadulim-grandparents. Baal Midos Tovos- Their Jewish relatives recalling the observation of Ha'Moedim. For some Bnei ChorinJews who had been observing all along, who kept in stride with Ha'Luach- The Jewish Tora calendar of times and seasons, who even in exile observed them. They had freedom in Ha'Sharosh Regalim that they were being observed in Eretz Yisrael. After all Sukkot is also called: Zeman Simchatenu- ”The season of our joy”]

12. And Kol Ha'Am went their way [To their Sukkahs] to eat, and to drink, and send portions (Tzedakah Motonos Lo'evyonim), and to make Simchah Gedolah (Great Joy), because they had understood the words that were declared unto them [from the Tora].

13. And on the second day [Tishrei 16^th] were gathered together the chief of Ha'Avot (The father, head) of Kol Ha'Am. Ha'Cohenim, and Ha'Levi'im, unto Ezra Ha'Sofer Cohen, to understand the words of the Tora [further].

[Deut 16.14-15/ Lev 23.39-40/ Ex 25.8/ PS 92.13/Zech 14.16]

14. And they found written in the Tora which Hashem had commanded by Moshe that Ha'Bnei Yisroel (The children of Yisroel) should dwell in Sukkot in Ha'Chag( The festival) of the seventh month [Tishrei].

[Where in the Tora Scroll was Ezra, Ha'Cohenim and Ha'Levi'im reading in the Hebrew? In Vayikra 23.39-40 and Dvarim 16.14-15].

15. And that they should publish [Meshebeirach] in all their towns, and in Yerushalayim, saying, Go forth unto the hill country, and bring back olive branches (Aravot), and wild olive branches (Aanfi Zeit Havar), and myrtle (Hadasim), and palm branches (Lulav) and branches(Hoshano) of leafy trees (Sechach), to make Sukkot, as it is written.

16. So the Jewish People went forth, and brought them, and made themselves Sukkot, everyone upon the roof of his Beit(House), and in their courtyards, and in Ha'Khatzerot Beit Ha'Elohim(In the Temple courts of the House of G-d), and in Ha'Rechov (The streets of Jerusalem) of the Water Gate (Eastern Gate), and in Ha'Rechov (The streets) of Ha'Ephrayim Gate. [30,000 Sukkahs]

[The Ephraim Gate, was one of the gates of the city of Jerusalem at the entrance of what is termed today as the Damascus gate. 2 Kings 14.13; 2 Chron 25.23; Neh 8.16; 12:39].

17. And Kol Ha'Kahal, Klal Yisroel of them that were come again out of the captivity made Sukkot, and sat under the Sukkot; for since the days of Yeshua Ben Nun (Joshua the son of Nun) unto that day had not Ha'Bnei Yisroel (The children of Yisroel) done so. And there was Simchah Gedolah (Great Joy)

[Joshua the son of Nun, of the tribe of Ephraim- 1 Chron 7.27 BCE 1530-1420. Unto the 500's BCE is roughly 500 years. It's been 500 years of Exile! 500 years of Toralessness, 500 years of no Moedim being observed. 500 years of Jews being enslaved and 500 years of Yisroel in such disturbing conditions!]

18. Also day by day, from the first day unto the last, he read from Ha'Sefer Torat Ha'Elohim (The Tora of Thee G-d). And they kept Ha'Chag (Festival) seven days; and then came Shmini Atzeret according unto Ha'Mishpat (The ruling, custom).

[Shemini means: Eight- from the root word: Shemin. Atzeret means: Solemn, sacred gathering. Atzeret comes from the root ward: Atzarmeaning: Stop, refrain, refrain from work. Shemini Atzeret is Ha'Yom Tov Aharon Shel Ha'hag- The last day of the festival of Sukkot which the Jewish People hereobserved].

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It says in Tuv Ha'Aretz, in the name of the Arizal, the following:

Even if a Jew who resides in Chutz L'Aretz performs Tora and Mitzvos with as much purity as he can, neverthetless, the spirituality generated as a result will end up providing spiritual power to the ministering angel of that country. (Tuv Ha'Aretz, Ma'alas Eretz Yisroel V'Yeshivta, p 63).

He also explains that the only angel that is holy is the one responsible for overseeing Eretz Yisrael.The angel overseeing every other nation is from the side of impurity, which means that all Kedushah (Sanctity) generated in Chutz L'Aretz (outside world, in captivity) is handled by the impure angels along the way to Eretz Yisrael, before it can finally ascend to Heaven. The problem is, that being the case, our Kedushah (The Jewish People's Sanctity) in the Diaspora can end strengthening the side of impurity, which, as Ya'akov Avinu understood, works against us. This was totally unacceptable to him, but having no choice but to continue on his journey, he solved the problem by making a vow, saying:

If G-d will be with me, and take care of me on the path (Galut-in this exile) I am going, and give me bread to eat and clothes to wear, and then bring me back in peace to my father's house, then G-d will be my G-d. (Bereshis 28.20-21).

In other words,Ya'akov Avinu was asking G-d to go with him into exile, and to protect him, and more importantly, the Kedushah he would generate while living with his father-in-law, Lavan, one of the most impure men to ever live. This way, the side of impurity would never have more access to his holiness than is normally fitting, as if he had never left Eretz Yisrael in the first place, somewhat. This is why we don't learn Tora or do holy things, like make brochos, in impure places. It is not just that it isn't fitting to perform such holy activities in such unholy places. It is also that such places are the home of the forces of impurity, and generating Kedushah there only serves to strengthen them, increasing evil in Creation.

However, to be in a holy environment is to be surrounded by the Shechinah (Hashem's Divine Presence Manifested), which envelopes the Kedushah (Sanctity) we create with its own holiness, protecting it from Ha'Klipos (The vessel), or spiritual impurities. This keeps the world safe, even while the Jewish people are in the Diaspora, and allows us to flourish as a nation. The only problem arises, when the Jewish People stay in the Diaspora longer than the Shechinah (Hashem's Divine Presence Manifested). Lacking spiritual protection, the Kedushah we generate in the Diaspora is handled once again by the side if impurity, strengthening it, as seems to be the case today, and we must know how to respond.

No believing Jew wants to live where the Shechinah is not. We have seen what happens to the Jewish People when we stay anywhere too long, which, according to our long and difficult history, seems to have been the case far too many times.

The question is, what does it mean to stay anywhere too long? It's almost impossible not to. Very often, though we begin in poverty, over time we tend to be successful in foreign countries, physically, spiritually, and emigrating then seems to be out of the question. With so much invested in our host countries, how does not simply move on? But do we really have a choice, when staying too long has always meant losing all of that which we worked so hard to build up? Wouldn't it be better to leave our present homes, if the Shechinah is leaving, and while it is still safe?

According to Ya'akov Avinu, the answer is yes. The moment he realized that the Shechinah was moving on, he didn't waste a single second; he simply went home, packed up his family, and headed out, not even saying good-bye to his father-in-law. Doven one more Minchah when the Shechinah is not there to protect the kedushah? Learn some Tora and feed the side of impurity? Not a chance.

The question is, how did Ya'akov know that the Shechinah was on the way out? The Tora answers that question as well:

Ya'akov heard Lavan's sons saying, “Ya'akov has taken everything that belonged to our father; from our father he has gained so much. “When Ya'akovsawLavanin person, he didn't behave with him as before (Bereshis 31.1-2).

Until that time, Lavan and his sons had behaved sufficiently well towards Ya'akov, but not because they were nice people, but because G-d proctected Ya'akov from them. Like a wall, G-d protected Ya'akov from any anti-Semitism that was inherent in Lavan and his sons. Therefore, when they started to display less-than-cordial appearances to Ya'akov, he took it as a sign that the Shechinah was reducing its protection, because the Shechinah was leaving Padan Aram. As a result, he decided that he must do so as well, and the sooner the better.

As history shows, anti-Semitism follows the Jewish People everywhere we go. It is not racism, because it can be the fiercest in places that the Jewish People have the lowest Jewish profile. It is actually supernatural, because it is a message from Heaven than an exile is coming to an end, so be ready. If the world is becoming less hospitable to the Jews, it is time to consider the possibility that exile is coming to an end.

I am Hashem, your G-d, Who took you out of the land of Egypt to give you the land of Yisrael, to be G-d to you

(Vayikra 25.18).

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ביתם של היהודים ובני הנח.