{"id":687,"date":"2013-06-23T16:50:37","date_gmt":"2013-06-23T20:50:37","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/bethadonai3.web802.discountasp.net\/wordpress\/?page_id=687"},"modified":"2013-06-23T16:54:56","modified_gmt":"2013-06-23T20:54:56","slug":"hanukkah-chanukah","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"http:\/\/bethadonai.com\/?page_id=687","title":{"rendered":"Hanukkah (Chanukah)"},"content":{"rendered":"

This feast did not originate with Moses, nor is it even mandated in the Bible. \u00a0It is found in the books of First and Second Maccabees in the Apocrypha, the books written in the 400 year \u201csilence\u201d between the Tanakh (Old Testament) and B\u2019rit Hadashah (New Testament). \u00a0God was not silent in these years however. \u00a0He was still at work fulfilling His promises and preserving His people. \u00a0Furthermore, \u00a0there are good Biblical reasons to celebrate this feast. The first is that Yeshua observed this holiday:<\/span><\/p>\n

John 10:22-23<\/span><\/b> \u00a0\u201cThen came the Feast of Dedication at Jerusalem. \u00a0It was winter and Yeshua was in the Temple area walking in Solomon\u2019s colonnade.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Secondly, the events at Hanukkah were prophesied centuries before by Daniel:<\/p>\n

Daniel 11:3-4<\/span><\/b> \u00a0\u201cThen a mighty king will appear, who will rule with great power and do as he pleases. \u00a0After he has appeared, his empire will be broken up and parceled out toward the four winds of heaven. \u00a0It will not go to his descendants, nor will it have the power he exercised, because his empire will be uprooted and given to others.\u201d The \u201cmighty king\u201d was Alexander the Great. Then Daniel goes on to describe another person who would succeed Alexander…<\/span><\/p>\n

Daniel 11:21-28<\/span><\/b> \u00a0\u201c…a despicable person….and his heart will be set against the Holy Covenant…\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Daniel 11: 31<\/span><\/b> \u00a0\u201cHis forces will desecrate the sanctuary and do away with the regular sacrifice, and they will set up the abomination of desolation.\u201d This prophecy accurately describes Antioch IV who reigned 175 – 164 BCE. His reign was one of many throughout history that tried to wipe out the Jewish people. The survival, however, of the Jewish people is a firm testimony of God\u2019s faithfulness…<\/span><\/p>\n

Genesis 12:3<\/span><\/b><\/p>\n

\u201c…All peoples on earth will be blessed through you.\u201d Yeshua, the Messiah of all mankind, would come through the Jewish bloodline.<\/span><\/p>\n

Antiochus wanted everyone to be united under Greek Hellenism, thus he was not at all tolerant of the Jews.<\/p>\n

Daniel 11:36<\/span><\/b> \u00a0\u201cThen the king shall do according to his own will. \u00a0He shall exalt and magnify himself above all gods and speak blasphemies against the God of Gods.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

The king called himself \u00a0\u201cAntiochus Epiphanies\u201d which means \u201cvisible god\u201d. He made people bow down to his statues and if they didn\u2019t comply…..the consequence was death! \u00a0Social and political pressures caused some Jews to follow Antiochus and they actually bowed down to his statues (doesn\u2019t sound Jewish to me).<\/p>\n

Daniel 11:32<\/span><\/b> \u00a0\u201c…by smooth words he will turn to godlessness those who act wickedly toward the Covenant, but the people who know their God will display strength and take action.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Many Jews took the easy way out and tried to \u201cgo Greek\u201d. Others understood that assimilation and elimination of Jewish worship, sacrifices and traditions would be the destruction of Judaism itself…making God a liar! The Jewish people faced persecution. Antiochus\u2019 heavily armed soldiers were sent out to force people to worship the king and make sacrifices (pigs) on the holy altar. This was the \u201cabomination\u201d that Daniel spoke of. The penalty for resistance was death. Antiochus\u2019 actions foreshadowed Hitler\u2019s axiom toward the Jews:<\/p>\n

First: \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cYou can\u2019t live among us as Jews.\u201d
\nThen: \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cYou can\u2019t live among us.\u201d
\nFinally: \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cYou can\u2019t live.\u201d<\/p>\n

In 167 BCE soldiers came to Modin outside Jerusalem to force Greek worship on an influential Jewish family led by Matathias and his 5 sons. Matathias would not forsake his faith. \u00a0He tore down the Greek altar and drove off the soldiers with the battle cry, \u201cWhoever is for the Lord, follow me!\u201d This was the beginning of the Jewish rebellion. \u00a0The Jewish people knew they were up against great odds, but their banner was \u201cWho among the mighty is like Thee, o God?\u201d \u00a0(\u201cMee Kamocha B\u2019aleem Adonoi!\u201d<\/span><\/i>) \u00a0The name for the Jewish heroes of Hanukkah comes from using the first letters of these Hebrew words to form \u201cMaccabee\u201d. \u00a0Matathias\u2019 oldest son was nicknamed \u201cJudah Maccabee\u201d….the hammer….because he fought so hard. The battle was difficult for untrained Jewish farmers against the well equipped Syrian soldiers.<\/span><\/p>\n

Daniel 11:32<\/span><\/b> \u00a0says: \u00a0\u201c…the people who know their God shall be strong and carry out great exploits.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

The real miracle of Hanukkah is that a few, with God on their side, triumphed over a multitude of powerful enemies.
\nRemember: \u00a0\u201cGod\u2019s people + God = VICTORY!<\/p>\n

Zechariah 4:6<\/span><\/b> \u00a0\u201c…not by might, nor by power, but by my Spirit, says the Lord of hosts.\u201d (Haftorah reading for Hanukkah Shabbat)<\/span><\/p>\n

On the 25th of the Hebrew month of Kislev, the date we celebrate Hanukkah, the Maccabees won back Jerusalem and the Temple that had been desecrated by Antiochus. \u00a0This date was also prophesied by Daniel 8:13-14<\/span><\/b> \u00a0\u201cHow long will it be until the daily sacrifice is restored again? How long until the desecration of the Temple is avenged and God\u2019s people triumph?\u2019 He replied: \u201cFor 2,300 evenings and mornings; then the Holy Place will be properly restored.\u201d \u00a0This is a great confirmation that God\u2019s word is true: Historically accurate from the start of Antiochus\u2019 persecution of the Jews in 171 BCE until the restoration of the Temple in 165 BCE……<\/span><\/p>\n

6 years, 3 1\/2 months = 2,300 days!!<\/p>\n

How did the tradition of the 8 days and lighting 8 candles begin?<\/span><\/span> When the victorious Maccabees began cleaning up the Temple, they found only one small jar of oil for \u201cner tamid\u201d…only enough for one day. They sent a messenger for more. Meanwhile, the small amount of oil burned miraculously for 8 days. Another explanation for the 8 day observance is that some Rabbis believe it was a delayed celebration of the fall feast of Sukkot, which also lasts for 8 days.<\/span><\/p>\n

During the time of Yeshua (in John 10:22<\/span><\/b>), people\u2019s minds were focused on themes of deliverance and rededication, oil and light.<\/span><\/p>\n

John 10: 27-28<\/span><\/b> \u00a0\u201cMy sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow Me; and I give eternal life to them, and they shall never perish; and no one shall snatch them out of My hand.\u201d Yeshua was promising His people deliverance from sin and death…not just for a season, but for eternity!<\/span><\/p>\n

Earlier in John 8:12<\/span><\/b>, Yeshua proclaims \u201cI am the light of the world…he who follows me shall not walk in darkness, but have the light of life.\u201d The people listening to Yeshua understood what He was saying…they knew what God had promised through the prophet:<\/span><\/p>\n

Isaiah 9:2<\/span><\/b> \u00a0\u201cThe people who walked in darkness have seen a great light; \u00a0those who dwelt in the land of the shadow of death, upon them a light has shined.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Psalm 27:1 <\/span><\/b>\u00a0\u201cThe Lord is my light and my salvation.\u201d (\u201cYeshua\u201d in Hebrew means salvation.) Hanukkah is referred to as the \u201cFestival of Lights\u201d (Hag Haorim) and it was during this season that Yeshua described Himself as the\u201d light of the world\u201d.<\/span><\/p>\n

A future Hanukkah is described in 2 Thessalonians 2: 3-8 <\/span><\/b>where Paul writes about the second coming of the Lord:<\/span><\/p>\n

1. \u00a0Many will turn away from God (as some Jews did who followed Antiochus\u2019 Hellenism).
\n2. \u00a0The \u201cson of perdition exalts himself above God\u201d (as Antiochus Epiphanies did).
\n3. \u00a0But the Lord will destroy him with the \u201cbrightness of His coming\u201d… (this victory we can all think of when we gaze at the lights of our Hanukkah menorah).
\n4. \u00a0The Lord will usher in His millennial kingdom with the overthrow of the \u201clawless one\u201d in a miraculous way. \u00a0(A miracle to think about when we retell the Hanukkah story.)<\/p>\n

The shammash or \u201cservant\u201d is the candle used to light the other candles of the Hanukkah menorah. \u00a0Yeshua is our shammash…<\/p>\n

Matthew 20:28<\/span><\/b> \u00a0\u201c…the Son of man did not come to be served, but to serve and give His life as a ransom for many…\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Other traditions:
\n1. \u00a0Display your menorah in the window to show God\u2019s miracle to the world.
\n2. \u00a0So eat some latkes and donuts already! \u00a0Oil (the symbol of the Ruach) is associated with the Hanukkah miracle. \u00a0Fry the latkes in oil and don\u2019t think about the calories….think about the miracle!
\n3. \u00a0The draydel: \u00a0The four Hebrew letters mean \u201ca great miracle happened there\u201d. (nes gadol haya sham<\/span><\/i>) \u00a0Children play a game with the draydel and each letter has an assigned value: <\/span>nes<\/span><\/i> (nothing), <\/span>gadol<\/span><\/i> (all), <\/span>hayah<\/span><\/i> (half), and <\/span>sham<\/span><\/i> (put in).<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

This feast did not originate with Moses, nor is it even mandated in the Bible. \u00a0It is found in the books of First and Second Maccabees in the Apocrypha, the books written in the 400 year \u201csilence\u201d between the Tanakh (Old Testament) and B\u2019rit Hadashah (New Testament). \u00a0God was not silent in these years however. […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"parent":109,"menu_order":8,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":[],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/bethadonai.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/687"}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/bethadonai.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/bethadonai.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/bethadonai.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/bethadonai.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=687"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"http:\/\/bethadonai.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/687\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":689,"href":"http:\/\/bethadonai.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/687\/revisions\/689"}],"up":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/bethadonai.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/109"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/bethadonai.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=687"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}