In this new year, the direction of the Holy Spirit to us, at least for a while, is “deeper”. With twelve years of studies behind us for reference it seems that now we are going to work on the personal side of our spiritual walk to get the words of the Holy Spirit deeper into our heart.
I would like to share how the twelve years of Bible Study blogs that I have written came to be. I was working for a Christian organization back then and the Lord said that it was time to leave. He told me to write a blog and I immediately agreed. I thought it would be a happy, lively, one or two paragraph summation on Jesus and life. What I didn’t know at the time was that this was not what Jesus had in mind. Maybe I should have asked questions before agreeing. A few months after I left my job I started writing about the Bible, archeology, history, astronomy, and science. As time went on I learned more about the actual texts. I dove into the best and oldest translations that we have and found many Masoretic alterations and translators errors. I made sure that I was using open source materials so that anyone who wanted to could dig into this as well.
I love exploring the Bible. I am often amazed at what is actually written and the extreme divide that exists between the commercial Christian religious corporations teaching, statements of faith, etc. and the actual text that was given to us by the Holy Spirit. The conclusion is that the commercial Christian religious corporations have sold themselves out to easy doctrine. As an example of this, does anyone teach about David being a giant slayer? Or why were there genetically modified beings for David to slay? How many Philistine foreskins did David cut off? Who is Satanas and who is Drakōn? With the answers written in the text, we have no excuse as to keeping this information a secret. Is history intentionally distorted? How many children did Abraham have? Why did Jesus read Isaiah 61 in a Nazareth synagogue, including ‘recovery of site to the blind’, yet that phrase does not appear in our Masoretic translated text of Isaiah 61? How is it that there are so many seminary graduates who do not teach with accuracy and integrity? Do people sell out to a paycheck? Therefore we see that we are up against the corporate “dumbing down” of biblical text and the fear that many individuals have of teaching the truth.
Another issue we face is that people are “stiff necked”. They do not want their beliefs challenged. They do not want to know what the text says, but will rely on someone who does not know the text to teach them. They trust an uneducated person more than the Holy Spirit. That seems as silly as people who say that they worship satan. Do the satan worshippers actually know who or what they worship? Does satan look like a goat headed man? When people use their little hand gestures to show their allegiance to their cult it makes me laugh. There really is no difference between what they are doing and what people did in the old Israel days after entering the promised land. People make up their own gods so that they can be god. Does any human really have the power to create the heavens and the earth? Can a figure carved by man give a man power to create a new heaven or earth?
As you notice, I do not monetize, or accept any money or donations. Why? It was Jesus’ idea. I am not owned by a denomination, or a church, or a group of people who want me to teach the way that they believe. Sadly I have seen great teachers turn away from teaching unimpeded, for money. When someone earns a living from teaching or preaching they are concerned about offending people and they preach to gain popularity, sensationalizing their own ideas. I don’t care if I’m popular or not. I don’t really care how many people read and study this Bible Study blog. I suppose I can offend everyone without concern.
With that said, I do know many of my readers are pastors and teachers. The research is free of charge and anyone can teach it in their own congregations or study groups. Anyone can reproduce the study with the open source materials. This is why I cite the text, the definitions, and the breakdown of the words. It is laborious to read and there is no shortcut, but that takes the disagreement out of the mix. People sometimes ask if I have to use the AP text and put in the definitions, I always say yes. This way it is not a matter of trusting me. I am not building a team of followers who trust me so to speak, I am exposing the words of the Holy Spirit. Trust the Holy Spirit. There is no secret hidden knowledge that I have that I am not sharing, it is all in the Biblical text. The goal is to have this knowledge in common and to be able to go out and teach others also. Salvation is always first and foremost, but we have an enemy who knows how to distort scripture and history, and how to promote falsehoods to the masses.
This is the how and why this weekly study came into being. While I have no great insights into life or formulas for success, the secret is always Jesus Christ, Lord and Creator of all. Let’s go deeper.
Elijah at Horeb
https://musingsofawinsomeheart.blogspot.com/2021/04/the-zadok-priest-no-rain-out-from.html
https://musingsofawinsomeheart.blogspot.com/2021/04/elijah-yahweh-passes-by-jehu-hazael.html
https://musingsofawinsomeheart.blogspot.com/2021/04/fire-fall-letter-from-elijah-lord-of.html
https://musingsofawinsomeheart.blogspot.com/2022/01/run-to-yahweh-false-hope-in-dead-things.html
Ruminating on Elijah’s intense desire to hear from Yahweh we have to wonder if we ourselves would we be willing to run 400 miles? He wasn’t wearing Nikes. How desperate was Elijah? Elijah was hearing from Yahweh his whole life. We have to wonder if Elijah felt that he had accomplished everything he was supposed to or if he felt he had reached the pinnacle of his life’s service. Elijah was a priest, a Zadok priest from out of the city of priests, Heshbon. Our Sunday School flannel-graphs do not portray the depth of Elijah’s life. Elijah didn’t simply just show up one day to challenge the spiritual decay in the northern kingdom, he had been preparing his whole life to serve the Lord where Yahweh needed him.
We should realize that Elijah had a great desire to do what Yahweh wanted him to do no matter how uncomfortable it would be. Do we react the same way or do we stop ourselves when doing something hard? What is our thought process when we hesitate on God’s direction? These are questions we can ask ourselves so that we can be better at our walk with Yahweh. If Yahweh can trust us in doing small things for Him, then he will be able to trust us in doing big things for Him. So many people promote themselves as top dog of their denomination/ministry/organization, but many do not have the fortitude to be faithful in the direction Yahweh gives. People easily sell out.
It must have been uncomfortable to kill the prophets of Baal. Why would Elijah be asked to do that? We can see that when a corrupt government took over the northern kingdom they brought their corrupt spiritual advisors. The contest of fire was an expose’ of the lack of spiritual power that the prophets of Baal had. Yet even with their apparent lack of spiritual power, they seem to have amassed followers. People trusted the prophets of Baal to teach them and to sacrifice for them. But Elijah exposed them all. Even though the kingdom stayed under the power and authority of Ahab and Jezebel, the people were awake. It took time for the news to travel but once it did it woke people up to the fact that Ahab and Jezebel were corrupt.
The saddest part of this whole account is the way preachers teach Elijah’s experience on Horeb. Almost everyone focuses on the mistranslated part of the verse claiming “God is in the still small voice”. This is incorrect. In fact the voice of Yahweh is not what the sound is. But preachers neglect to tell the whole story. Elijah and his servant, the boy that he raised from the dead, ran together, then Elijah sends the boy home and he continues into the wilderness alone where an angel feeds Elijah. Elijah speaks with Yahweh when he gets to Horeb and then Yahweh tells him to come out and meet him. Preachers leave out the fact that Yahweh says the same thing to Elijah both times. Let’s focus on this.
Once he gets to Horeb he goes into a cave and rests. Horeb makes up the entire region of Mount Sinai, Jebel Musa, the mountain of Moses. Why did he go there? Was Elijah thinking that Yahweh would speak to him there? If the ten commandments were given there could Yahweh visit again?
Mount Horeb was known in the days of Moses as the “Mountain of the Elohim”. The people of that region believed that God resided there. Certainly if Moses visited with Yahweh face to face then Elijah could also visit with Yahweh face to face.
1 Kings 19:9 G2532 And G1525 he entered G1563 there G1519 into G3588 the G4693 cave, G2532 and G2647 rested up G1563 there. G2532 And G2400 behold, G4487 a word G2962 of the lord G4314 came to G1473 him. G2532 And G2036 he said, G5100 Why are G1473 you G1778.2 here, G* Elijah?
Elijah received a rhēma, an utterance, from Yahweh. He was right, Yahweh was speaking to him there. Yahweh wants to know why he is at mount Horeb. Apparently Yahweh didn’t tell him to go there. Yahweh will ask him again after some surprising commotions.
1 Kings 19:10 G2532 And G2036 Elijah said, G* G2206 Being zealous, G2206 I am zealous G3588 for the G2962 lord G3841 almighty, G3754 for G1459 [4abandoned G1473 5you G3588 1the G5207 2sons G* 3of Israel]. G3588 G2379 Your altar G1473 G2679 they razed, G2532 and G3588 G4396 your prophets G1473 G615 they killed G1722 by G4501 the broadsword, G2532 and G5275 [3am left G1473 1I G3441 2alone], G2532 and G2212 they seek G3588 G5590 my life G1473 G2983 to take G1473 it.
Elijah says “Zealous zealous Yahweh Pantokratōr”. Pantokratōr is a compound word meaning “all” and “mighty”. Elijah went to Horeb because he is zealous or excited about Yahweh All Mighty. It must have seemed to Elijah as if Moses received the commandments there then Elijah could hear from Yahweh too. Elijah tells Yahweh that Israel abandoned Him, Yahweh. He believes that he himself is all alone because Elijah thinks that Jezebel killed all of the prophets of Yahweh. Yahweh has directions for Elijah.
Elijah believes that he is the only prophet left in the northern kingdom. He doesn’t think the Israelite people are behind him because he exposed the false prophets. He knows that the government is corrupt. What does Elijah think the future holds for the northern kingdom? Yahweh is going to meet with Elijah face to face. Yahweh is already talking to Elijah, without a still small voice, but now Elijah will see Yahweh. Or will he?
1 Kings 19:11 G2532 And G2036 he said, G1831 You shall go forth G2532 and G2476 stand G1799 before G2962 the lord G1722 in G3588 the G3735 mountain! G2532 and G2400 behold, G2962 the lord G3928 will go by…
Elijah is to “come out” and “stand”, histēmi, “before the face of”, enōpion, Yahweh in the mountain. Yahweh told him to come out to the front of the cave to stand in the face of Yahweh because Yahweh was coming for a visit. Yahweh will pass by. Yahweh is already talking to Elijah, but now Yahweh is going to come in person. When Yahweh shows up it is unmistakable.
...G2532 And G4151 [3wind G3173 1 there was a great G2900 2strong] G1262 parting G3735 the mountains, G2532 and G4937 breaking G4073 rocks G1799 before G2962 the lord; G3756 [2 was not G1722 3in G3588 4the G4151 5wind G2962 1 but the lord]. G2532 And G3326 after G3588 the G4151 wind G4952.2 a rumbling; G3756 [2 was not G1722 3in G3588 4the G4952.2 5rumbling G2962 1 but the lord].
There was a wind so strong that it dispersed the mountains and crushed rocks or was it actually the Holy Spirit? The words megas krataios pneuma can be a great powerful wind or a great powerful spirit. The Holy Spirit came and dispersed mountains and crushed rocks before the face of Yahweh. The word “before”, enōpion, means “in the face” or “before the face of” or “in the presence of”. The wind came before the presence of the Lord. Read this as the time or the sequence of the event, the wind came before the face of Yahweh was seen. Yahweh was not in the wind, the Holy Spirit was.
The next thing that happened was a rumbling or a concussion, sysseismón. This is not quite the word for earthquake, seismos, it was something more, like a violent convulsion in the atmosphere. The rumbling was not coming from the earth. This rumbling happened to David when he battled the Philistines. When David heard the sound he was to go down and engage the Philistines and Yahweh would go before them.
2 Samuel 5:24 G2532 And G1510.8.3 it will be G1722 in G3588 G191 your hearing G1473 G3588 the G5456 sound G3588 of the G4952.2 rumbling G575 from out of G3588 the G251.1 Grove G3588 of the G2805.1 Weeping, G5119 then G2597 you shall go down G4314 to G1473 them; G3754 for G5119 then G1831 the lord shall go forth G2962 G1715 in front of G1473 you G5180 to strike G1722 in G3588 the G4171 battle G3588 of the G246 Philistines.
Later Elijah and Elisha heard this rumbling, sysseismón, when Elijah was taken up to heaven.
1 Kings 2:1 G2532 And G1096 it came to pass G1722 in G3588 the G321 lord to lead G2962 G3588 G* Elijah G1722 in G4952.2 a rumbling G5613 as G1519 into G3588 the G3772 heaven, G2532 that G4198 [4went G* 1Elijah G2532 2and G* 3Elisha] G1537 from out of G* Gilgal.
2 Kings 2:11 G2532 And G1096 it came to pass G1473 of their going G4198 G2532 and G2980 speaking, G2532 that G2400 behold, G716 a chariot G4442 of fire, G2532 and G2462 horses G4442 of fire, G2532 and G1291 they drew apart G303.1 between G297 both; G2532 and G353 Elijah was taken up G* G1722 in G4952.2 a rumbling G2193 unto G1519 into G3588 the G3772 heaven.
Because Elijah had heard this sound before then he would not have been alarmed when he heard it again. It was common knowledge that when Yahweh shows up there is rumbling, sysseismón.
Jeremiah 23:19 G2400 Behold, G4578 a quaking G3844 by G2962 the lord, G2532 and G3709 anger G1607 shall go forth G1519 in G4952.2 a rumbling. G4962 [2contracting G1909 3upon G3588 4the G765 5impious G2240 1It shall come].
Nahum 1:3 G2962 The lord G3115.1 is lenient, G2532 and G3173 great is G3588 G2479 his strength; G1473 G2532 and G121 [4 one as innocent G3756 2will not G121.1 3acquit G2962 1 the lord]; G1722 [2 is by G4930 3consummation G2532 4and G1722 5by G4952.2 6a rumbling G3588 G3598 1his way], G1473 G2532 and G3507 the clouds G2868 are the dust G4228 of his feet; G1473
Because the Greek is very specific, they differentiate sysseismón from an actual earthquake. It is the sound and the violent convulsing coming from heaven not from within the earth. It comes from above the ground, not from below the earth’s surface up to the surface of the earth. The rumbling is a sonic boom. A sonic boom is a shock wave from something traveling through air faster than the speed of sound. Think lightning. When Yahweh and the military show up they travel faster than the speed of sound. Yahweh was not in the sonic boom. Elijah is saying that he saw the effects of the wind, but did not see Yahweh. He heard the sonic boom, but did not see Yahweh.
Yahweh travels to earth faster than the speed of sound. When Yahweh shows up it is loud. He breaks the sound barrier. When airplanes break the sound barrier there is a visible effect as well, as the air is pushed out of the way by the plane. There is a rippling effect in the air similar to a rippling effect of a stick drawn through water, although the ripples are much closer together and dense. This causes a smoke/cloud like appearance around the plane. Have we ever learned about Yahweh entering the atmosphere breaking the sound barrier in our churches? Elijah does a great job of explaining this event. Today we have the words and the understanding to put it together. In Elijah’s time all he could do was simply explain it, so that later Jeremiah would record it, and eventually we would have the technological understanding of a sonic boom.
Imagine, somewhere around 918 BCE, before there were cars, planes, computers, or indoor plumbing, Elijah was explaining the breaking of the sound barrier. Even the understanding of lightning and thunder was not enough to explain how Yahweh enters our atmosphere. But seeing how this idea is used several times in scripture, we can understand there is something sinister here. We have not been taught this correctly, nor have we had this translated correctly. Why? Why would someone want to hide the truth from us? Why make Yahweh obscure and hard to see?
1 Kings 19:12 G2532 And G3326 after G3588 the G4952.2 rumbling G4442 a fire; G3756 [2 was not G1722 3in G3588 4the G4442 5fire G2962 1 but the lord]. G2532 And G3326 after G3588 the G4442 fire G5456 a sound G838.1 [2breeze G3016 1of a fine] -- G1563 there was G2962 the lord .
Yahweh was not in the noise of a sonic boom, he travels ahead of the speed of sound. The cracking of the atmosphere around him is like a bolt of lightning striking a tree. After the rumbling there was a fire or lightning. Yahweh was not in the fire. Elijah did not see Yahweh as the lightning was striking.
Then there was a voice or sound of a light aura, not a breeze, an aura. Late middle English used the word aura as a “breeze” or “breath”. We could think of it as spirit like pneuma, an apparition with no form, just light or color. It would look like an incorporeal being, air, aether, fire, or light. The tone, phōnē, of a small aura in that place was Yahweh.
If we think of the way that this might be portrayed in a movie we would see things blowing in the wind and rocks shattering. We would hear roar of the sonic boom, see fire, but then things would calm down. Yahweh would be present as the atmosphere around him would quiet to angels singing in the light behind him. Or we could make our movie to depict the wind blowing, the rocks shattering, the sonic boom, the fire, and then a bit of steam sizzling as cold temperatures from outer space warm up in the mountain sun. None of these events were still, and none were small, and none were a voice. Yahweh came after these things, he was not in these things.
The writer who told of these events is trying to express the exactness of Yahweh’s passing by. There was a wind, but that was not Yahweh; there was a sonic boom, but that was not Yahweh; there was lightning, but that was not Yahweh; then finally there was a light sounding aura, then there was Yahweh. The point is not that Yahweh is a small light aura, but that after the big commotion everything settled down, and that is when Yahweh was seen.
We have tried to be philosophical about this chain of events, but let’s put them together literally. First there was a mega-strong Spirit that moved and crushed rocks, a sonic boom, lightning, and a light sound aura. It sounds more like something broke into the atmosphere displacing the rocks and the mountains, it created a sonic boom as it entered and was heard after it entered, and it had fire, like the lightning chariots, and then everything calmed down and there was sound or language from a small aura or a glow. And “there”, “in that place”, “yonder”, “tither”, ekei, was Yahweh. There was no “still small voice”, there was a loud sound-barrier shaking and quaking with lightning, and then a distinctive tone in the atmosphere, and then Yahweh was perceived. It was Yahweh meeting with Elijah face to face.
If we want to hide the events of Elijah meeting Yahweh face to face we might simply claim Yahweh was a still small voice. However Yahweh enters earth’s atmosphere so fast he creates a sonic boom. The entire area reacts to his coming. There is nothing quiet about this. But keep in mind Elijah received a rhēma first. So Yahweh is already talking to Elijah. Elijah is there because he needs a face to face meeting. Why would he want to meet Yahweh face to face? We don’t understand the need to meet face to face, but it might be because there was a prophecy about Elijah from the days of Heshbon that said Yahweh would take Elijah up. Elijah may have thought he was done here on earth.
Elijah is ready to meet Yahweh so he does something rather odd. Elijah covers his face with his sheepskin, not a veil that he could see through, but a dense leathery and woolen covering.
1 Kings 19:13 G2532 And G1096 it came to pass G5613 as G191 Elijah heard, G* G2532 that G1943 he covered over G3588 G4383 his face G1473 G1722 with G3588 G3374 his sheepskin, G1473 G2532 and G1831 he went forth G2532 and G2476 stood G3844 by G3588 the G4693 cave. G2532 And G2400 behold, G4314 before G1473 him G5456 was a voice, G2532 and G2036 he said, G5100 Why are G1473 you G1778.2 here, G* Elijah?
As Elijah comprehends what is going on he covers his face and went out and stood alongside of the cave. Coming towards Elijah was a sound/voice/tone/language that said “Why you here Elijah?” It’s kind of comical. Yahweh was already talking to Elijah and had asked why he was there at Horeb. Then he told Elijah that he would pass by. Yahweh shows up after a violent commotion and asks Elijah why he is there. It’s funny. Elijah says nearly the same thing that he had said before. He has two additions.
Elijah wants a face to face meeting, but he puts a sheepskin coat on his head. What could Elijah see that way? He could probably only see the ground that he himself stood on and his own feet. Maybe that was enough because the brightness of Yahweh’s glory would have been visible on the ground. Elijah wanted a meeting but was also humble enough to realize he wasn’t worthy.
Yahweh asking the same question twice is really a big key for us. Whether we see him or hear him, he is still asking the same things. We may question whether we are hearing Yahweh correctly, but we probably are. We can also laugh about what happened here because it is rather funny. Yahweh asks via rhēma why Elijah is there on the mountain of Elohim, and then when Elijah is standing there with a leather sheepskin over his head, Yahweh asks Elijah why he is there. Elijah told him why he was there the first time. So what does Elijah do the second time? He basically repeats himself, with a couple of changes.
1 Kings 19:14 G2532 And G2036 Elijah said, G* G2206 Being zealous, G2206 I am zealous G3588 for the G2962 lord G2316 God G3841 almighty, G3754 for G1459 [4abandoned G3588 G1242 5your covenant G1473 G3588 1the G5207 2sons G* 3of Israel], G3588 G2379 your altars G1473 G2679 they razed, G2532 and G3588 G4396 your prophets G1473 G615 they killed G1722 by G4501 the broadsword, G2532 and G5275 [3am left G1473 1I G3441 2alone], G2532 and G2212 they seek G3588 G5590 my life G1473 G2983 to take G1473 it.
Elijah says “Zealous zealous Yahweh Elohim Pantokratōr”. Elijah adds Elohim to Yahweh’s title. Then Elijah says that Israel abandoned Yahweh’s covenant, instead of what he said before, that Israel abandoned Him. Maybe it made more sense in the presence of Yahweh to clarify that it was the covenant and not Yahweh being rejected personally. Elijah again explains that the Israelites destroyed the altars of sacrifice. Remember the temple was in Judah, not in the northern kingdom. Elijah believes that all the prophets were murdered. He believes that he is alone and they are going to kill him. Yahweh gives Elijah an assignment.
Elijah adds the word Elohim. In person Yahweh is called Yahweh Elohim All Mighty. Instead of saying that the Israelites abandoned Yahweh, when Yahweh is actually standing before him Elijah says that they abandoned the covenant. I would imagine that it would be hard to tell Yahweh face to face that people reject him. However they do reject him and his covenant.
1 Kings 19:15 G2532 And G2036 the lord said G2962 G4314 to G1473 him, G4198 Go, G390 return G1519 to G3588 G3598 your journey! G1473 G2532 And G2240 you shall come G1519 unto G3588 the G3598 way G2048 of the wilderness G* of Damascus, G2532 and G5548 you shall anoint G3588 G* Hazael G1519 as G935 king G1909 over G* Syria.
Yahweh says “travel, return, or turn around, into the road, and you come into the deserted road to Damascus”. Elijah is now going through the wilderness of Jordan to Damascus, Syria, which is around 415 miles distance. Hopefully he hitched a ride with merchants or traders. He is told to anoint Hazael as king over Syria.
https://musingsofawinsomeheart.blogspot.com/2021/04/elijah-yahweh-passes-by-jehu-hazael.html
This face to face meeting is very significant because we do not see too many people meeting Yahweh face to face. We can learn that Yahweh is the same in person as he is in rhēma. He has an amusing personality. Elijah was so zealous for Yahweh that he ran 411 miles, then had to turn around and travel 415 miles. We see a Zadok priest from out of the city of priests who did miracles to show the power of Yahweh. He also showed the error of Ahab and Jezebel, and explains that Yahweh comes to earth breaking the sound barrier. Isn’t this why Elijah was taken up in a chariot of fire instead of dying on the earth? Wouldn’t it be because of his holiness and zealousness just like Enoch, that Elijah could be trusted to be taken, and then one day come back to the earth as one of the two witnesses? It is not the miracles that Elijah preformed, it was his zealous desire to know Yahweh.
We can guess that Yahweh spoke to Elijah about several things including anointing Hazel, Elisha, and Jehu. Yahweh may have spoken about taking Elijah up in a chariot of fire. It seemed that Elijah knew what was going to happen when he was trying to leave Elisha by the river.
How would we react to meeting Yahweh Jesus Messiah face to face? We all will meet him in the air, face to face. Would we bow? Would we cover our face? Would we be fearful? Think about meeting our Lord and Savior. We do not know how long we have on this earth but but we do know that when we are done here we will meet Yahweh Jesus Messiah face to face.
