9.10.26 – Mirroring Mt. Sinai, Part 1

We are just a few days away from the traditional date of Yom Teruah!

People all over the world will be observing the day of rest, according to Scripture (Lev. 23:24), in anticipation of a future resurrection day—when the trumpet will blow (1 Thess. 4:16–17)—and with hindsight to the covenant they entered into with all their heart, soul, and might (Deut. 29:14–15).

With just a few days left of Elul, let us go back to Nehemiah 8 and see what we might glean for our 21st-century observance of this prophetic day.

It just so happens that this day is the first day of the seventh month, Tishrei 1. Unfortunately, the people of God had been in captivity so long that they did not even seem to be aware of it until Nehemiah told them.

The people gathered together as one in the street in front of the Water Gate. Ezra began to read the Torah Scroll—and we are told again that he was reading right there in that street. As the people listened all day, they began to cry. And with good reason. Like us, it is only in the hindsight of suffering through our own self-imposed exile that we gain a renewed mind—one that opens our spiritual eyes to see what we should have done to prevent unnecessary suffering.

Ezra stood on a wooden platform made especially for this event. And then we are introduced to an entourage of people who surround him. We get this whole list of names—people standing to his right, people standing to his left. And the strange thing is, we never hear about these people again. They seem like extras in a movie.

But their names are also a little… coincidental.

Take Shemah—spelled Shin, Mem, Ayin—which reminds us of the importance of giving heed and listening attentively, just like the Shema. Next to him just happens to be a man named Anayah, which means "answering." That seems rather coincidental, does it not? And those are just the ones on his right. On his left, you have names like Pedayah, Malkiyah, Chashbadanah, and Zecharyah.

So again—why do we even need to know all of this? Are they more than just "credits" at the end of a movie?

Anyway, Ezra reads, and when he is done, he blesses God. All the people answered, "Yes, yes! Amen, Amen!" (Neh. 8:1–8).

So why would the Almighty give us the details of this ceremony on Yom Teruah? Does this scene bring back any memories? Does it foster any thoughts of a future day? A nation gathered together as one man, listening to the Torah—the Word of God—from one man who was elevated above the rest?

If you guessed Sinai, you win the brownie button!

Think a little deeper. Revelation is something that hits you between the eyes—it is new. It was ultimately new at the revelation at Mount Sinai itself. But here, these people were unaware of their own history and what was written in the Torah. It was all new to them—a big revelation.

To us, with hindsight, it sounds like an echo of that very first revelation. There too, the people were gathered—gathered around the mountain. There too, they stood together as one. There too, they listened to the Torah. There too, there was a man—Moses—perched higher than them on top of a mountain. And there too, the people answered, "Everything that God says, we will do."

And it is not just the general themes—even the specific words are the same. For example, Ezra opens the scroll and reads it "in the eyes of all the people." That sounds like a normal, everyday phrase, but guess what? That phrase appears only one other time in the entire Tanakh.

The only other time is back at Sinai, when on the third day God descended from heaven—in front of the eyes of all the people—on Mount Sinai.

And it is not just that phrase. Vaya'anu kol ha'am—when the people answer Ezra's blessing by saying "Amen, Amen"—that phrase appears only one other time in the Five Books of Moses. Vaya'anu kol ha'am yachdov vayomru kol asher diber Hashem na'aseh—when at Sinai they said together, "Everything that God has said, we will do." It really sounds like the Nehemiah-Ezra event is echoing the original revelation at Sinai.

Now, remember the street? Big deal—they are on a street, who cares?

Well, where were they at Sinai? At a mountain. The mountain was known as Sinai, otherwise known as Horeb. Guess how you spell "street" in Hebrew? Reish, Chet, Vav, Beit—the same letters as Chorev/Horeb, just rearranged. And for those of you who study Hebrew, you know the significance of those same letters :-)

And what about all those people we did not understand—standing to the right and left of Ezra? Listen to some of their names and see how familiar they sound.

The first person standing to Ezra's right was Matityah—literally, "the gift given by God." What was Sinai about? It was about the gift of Torah given by God. Right next to him were Shemah and Anayah—"hearing" and "answering." What happened at Sinai? The people heard the voice of God and they answered: kol asher diber Hashem na'aseh—"everything that God says, we will do."

On Ezra's left, there was a fellow named Pedayah—"redeemed by God." That is exactly how God introduces Himself at Sinai: "I redeemed you. I took you out of Egypt, the land of slavery."

Right next to him was Malkiyah—"God is King." What was Sinai about? It was about God revealing Himself as King. And would you not know it, right after Malkiyah we hear echoes of the next logical Sinai/Rosh Hashanah theme—not just Malchiyot but Zichronot. Oh yes—Zecharyah was another fellow to the left of Ezra, and his name means "the remembrance of God."

And what about that fellow named Chashbadanah? A strange name, but seemingly a contraction of two words: Chashav and Dan—"to think" and "to judge." What is the Sinai day that Rosh Hashanah commemorates year after year? A day when God is King (Malkiyah), when God remembers (Zecharyah), and—as Chashbadanah hints—a day when God thinks of His creatures, figures out where they fit, and judges them (Chashav and Dan). It all mirrors Sinai.

Are you seeing the mirroring of Mount Sinai, the day of Pentecost (Ex. 19–23; Acts 1, 2)?

Are there any differences? Mmmhmmm. Lord willing, see you tomorrow!

Shalom and chag sameach Yom Teruah!

Alan