Skip to main content

Yeshua’s Habit of Going to the Synagogue on Shabbat (Part 1)


Yeshua came to Nazareth, where he had been brought up, and went into the synagogue on Shabbat, as was his habit. (Luke 4:16)

It was Yeshua’s habit (custom) to go to a synagogue on Shabbat. Shabbat began at sundown on Friday and ended at sundown on Saturday. It was the seventh day of the Jewish week. Shabbat is a special period of time in the Jewish culture.

On the seventh day ELOHIYM (the Creator) completed His work which he had done, and He rested on the seventh day from all his work which He had done. ELOHIYM blessed the seventh day and set it apart, because in it He rested from all his work which ELOHIYM had created and made. (Genesis 2:1b-3)

Remember the Shabbat by keeping it holy. Six days you shall labor and do all your work, but the seventh day is a Shabbat to YAHWEH your ELOHIYM. On it you shall not do any work, neither you, nor your son or daughter, nor your male or female servant, nor your animals, nor any foreigner residing in your towns. For in six days YAHWEH made the heavens and the earth, the sea, and all that is in them, but he rested on the seventh day. Therefore YAHWEH blessed the Shabbat day and made it holy. (Exodus 20:8-11)

In Hebrew, to make something “holy” means to “set apart for a particular purpose or use.” One purpose of the Shabbat is to rest from work and the other is for the teaching of the Creator’s wisdom and laws. The two places His wisdom and laws were taught were at the Temple and in the synagogues during the life of Yeshua.

Theodotus, a Greek historian,[i] noted that there was an important difference between synagogues in Israel and those outside the land. The central focus of all synagogues was to teach the Torah – Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers & Deuteronomy. Synagogues in Israel, however, were not houses of prayer.” [ii] In the land of Israel there was only one House of Prayer -- the Temple.
Synagogues in Judea, Samaria and Galilee werehouses of study,” as well as community meeting centers. Yeshua would have attended the synagogue in Nazareth many times during his life and would have been well known by those attending it.

Synagogues shared a number of things in common. The physical alignment of a synagogue pointed in the direction of the Temple in Jerusalem. When we walked through the entrance with Yeshua we would see that the seating was on benches, not in pews. There was a raised platform called a BEMA in the middle, a MENORAH (a seven-branched candlestick), and an ARK.[iii] The congregation faced the Temple as they participated in the services, recited Scriptures, and were taught the Torah.

Synagogues were also the centers of community life on the other six days. Meetings were held and children received their basic education there. Jews traveling through a town would stop at the local synagogue, especially on the Shabbat.  Strangers would be welcomed by the congregation, invited to eat meals with them, and some synagogues even had places where they could spend the night. We will learn more about the synagogue in the blog.

If you like The Real Yeshua Blog let us know by going to our Facebook page and “Like” it -- https://www.facebook.com/therealyeshua?ref=hl

We would also appreciate your support. For information about how to donate go to -- http://www.biblicalheritage.org/yeshua_donate.htm -- Shalom!

SHALOM!

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

It’s a Yod -- NOT a Jot and Tittle!

Not only did Yeshua read and speak Hebrew, so did his followers and disciples! Two very well known, but not accurately understood words in the Gospel of Matthew prove it – jot and tittle . For some reason jot and tittle stick in the minds of Christian Bible readers. But when you ask them what jot or tittle mean, you get a lot of conflicting and some really weird answers. Today, you are going to get the facts about what Yeshua originally said and how they ended up in English translations of the Bible as jot and tittle . Let’s begin by reading Matthew 5:18 from the King James translation: For verily I say unto you, Till heaven and earth pass, one jot or one tittle shall in no wise pass from the law, till all be fulfilled. If you have not read the article “ From Yeshua to Jesus ” in Yeshua’s Kingdom Handbook please take a moment to read it online by clicking here before you continue. In it you will see how we began with the name “ Jesus ” and traced it through Lati

Do Not Say RAQA! - Yeshua on Anger (Part 2)

In the last blog, we covered the first part of Yeshua’s lesson on Anger -- An Angry Person Should be Tried in Court like a Murderer – keep in mind that “anger” is the focus of Yeshua’s lesson. “Whoever says to a brother, ‘ RAKA ,’ shall be answerable to the Sanhedrin.” [i] Yeshua reveals that the seriousness of the offense has become greater by elevating the crime to the next highest court – the Sanhedrin . It is the highest court in the nation and would be the equivalent of our Supreme Court. What makes this offense more serious than murder, to keep things in the context established by Yeshua? It is because of what the angry person said out of anger – “ RAKA !” RAKA is the English transliteration of the Greek word found in the ancient manuscripts of Matthew. Interestingly, the Greek word is also a transliteration of a Hebrew word into Greek. Keep in mind that when a translator working on a translation of a Greek manuscript transliterates a Greek word, he only finds the

The Prayer Yeshua Prayed Twice Every Day

One of Jesus’s earliest memories was no doubt watching and listening to his family when they gathered to pray the Shema at sunrise before the day’s work began and after the working work day was over at sunset . He also heard and participated in praying the Shema at their synagogue. He was surrounded by neighbors who also prayed the same prayer in their homes every day. The Hebrew word for prayer is tefilah . It is derived from the root Pe-Lamed-Lamed and the word l'hitpalel, meaning “ to judge oneself .” This surprising word origin provides insight into the purpose of Jewish prayer. The most important part of any Jewish prayer, whether it be a prayer of petition, of thanksgiving, of praise of God, or of confession, is the introspection it provides, the moment that we spend looking inside ourselves, seeing our role in the universe and our relationship to God. [1] Most of Jewish prayers are expressed in the first person plural, "us" instead of "me," an