B.

Scott 3/22/13

Seder: Tradition or Divine Appointment?

As we find ourselves preparing for the highly anticipated Spring Feasts of Passover, Unleavened Bread, and First Fruits, we must ask ourselves how do we fulfill the commands to keep these divine appointments? What is tradition and what is Torah? Can the hand of Yahweh be seen in some of these very practices, such as the Seder, that have been passed on from generation to generation? With many coming out of a religion entrenched with the traditions of men that made void the Word of Yahweh, we can become wary of all traditions, yet at Passover we come face to face with the ceremony of the Seder (the meal and story telling that takes us through the events of the Passover and the lamb as well as the Exodus from Egypt), and it raises the question is this a mere tradition of men or perhaps is there something more to it, can the hand of Yahweh be seen in the midst? *Because of the length of the Seder itself, we will by no means cover all of it, instead our goal is to establish an understanding of why this particular tradition is more than it seems! To find the full order and all the details, you can get the Haggadah, or the book that acts as the script for this meal. Seder: Strongs #5468 Ceder arrangement, order; shares the same 2 letter root as #5475 cowd council, counsel, assembly, something that is confidential or secret, suggests the idea of intimacy; upon the end the root = generation, or a period of time could it be that when we participate in the Seder, that during this period of time Yahweh actually has promised to reveal some secret and confidential knowledge reserved for those that would enter into this intimate meal with Him? This word is used only once in the Scriptures in Job 10:22 A land of darkness, as darkness [itself; and] of the shadow of death, without any order/seder, and [where] the light [is] as darkness. Darkness: Strongs #5890 eyphah darkness; 3 letter root = ayeph (#5889) weary, faint, exhausted; attached to the letter = revelation, knowledge; in other words the difference between having light or having darkness is whether or not we become weary/faint/exhausted concerning the knowledge and revelation that is given during the Seder! Its no accident that the gematria of the term Seder = 264, and the term light is seen 264 times in the Scriptures! 1

The traditional Seder has 14 parts; the 14th letter of the Hebrew Alephbet is the letter which represents light, life, and seed! All pointing towards how the Seder is used by Yahweh to impart His life/seed/light into those that gather to partake of it!

Parts of the Seder Meal

o Karpas : Normally the karpas is represented by parsley, during the meal it is dipped into salt water, said to represent the salty tears shed during slavery in Egypt. This same word however can also mean fine linen (#3768); breaking it apart = authority & possession; = to humble oneself, to tread or trample; the karpas reminds us of the Humble Servant, Messiah, who came in order to restore our garments that we had allowed to be trampled, yet He promises to clothe His Bride in garments of fine linen (Rev. 19:8), once again restoring the garments of light that first clothed His Bride in the Garden of Eden. o Matzah : Exodus 12:8 And they shall eat the flesh in that night, roast with fire, and unleavened bread; [and] with bitter [herbs] they shall eat it. Not only does the matzah play an important role in the Seder meal, but for the entire festival of Unleavened Bread we are commanded to eat it as well! The leaven that is to be removed is symbolic of pride, that which causes us to be puffed up, in other words it reminds us of our need to circumcise our flesh and hearts as we partake of this Covenant meal. *The term matzah has a numerical value of 135 = hacullam the ladder, a reference to what Jacob was shown by Yahweh. The ladder represented a DNA helix, literally the DNA/Word of Yahweh that would change and restore His creation. The epitome of the ladder as well as the matzah (the sinless Bread of life) was manifested in Yahshua! Its through these feasts and the removal of the leaven that we learn how we must deal with our flesh in order to gain access to this ladder! A very special piece of matzah during the Seder meal is referred to as the Afikomen, it is wrapped in a cloth, hidden/buried, and called forth just like Yahshua was buried yet called forth from the grave! The Afikomen is the best part of the meal, the highlight of the meal, just as Yahshua is the best part and within Him is contained all the promises of our covenant! Afikomen = nostrils, nose; in the Temple (built in the form of the man), the nostrils/nose are represented by the Ark of the Covenant (the vessel that contains the presence of Yahweh); to arise, to stand

*Numbers 10:35-36 And it came to pass, when the ark set forward, that Moses said, Rise up/quwm, Yahweh, and let thine enemies be scattered; and let them that hate thee flee before thee. And when it rested, he said, Return, O Yahweh, unto the many thousands of Israel. In the Hebrew language its painting the image of a man, the vessel that contains the Presence, standing up from His throne (the Ark of the Covenant) and walking, leading the children of Israel and scattering the enemies! Upon the end of the term Afikomen we have the letter this points us once again to these verses in Numbers, which are bracketed with the letter just like the 14 parts to the Seder, as we go through this rehearsal its as if were making this same declaration found in Numbers!

o Maror : The bitter herbs are also represented once again fulfilling Exodus 12:8, usually present in the form of a romaine lettuce leaf and horseradish. The bitter herbs are said to remind us of the sorrow, persecution, and suffering of a life lived in bondage and slavery. The bitter herbs also serve to remind us though that we have played the role of the adulterous Bride, and are deserving of the bitter waters (Numbers 5), yet the Seder is all about His light being restored. So as we partake of this meal, it is His light that is able to change these bitter waters and turn them into living waters, changing the adulterous woman into the Bride that can be clothed with the Linen (karpas)! o Charoset : Sweet paste made of fruits and nuts meant to recall the mortar used to make the bricks in Egypt as we retell the story of our Exodus. Breaking apart this word = free, = Vav Man, the Messiah, = a garment, clothing Were reminded that even though there are times where Egypt can seem sweet, that Messiah came in order to restore our garments that mark us as a free individual!

o Zerowa : The shank bone of the Lamb is also represented upon the Seder plate. It represents the lamb that was promised, slain before the foundation of the world, the one whose blood first was applied to the doorposts in Egypt and now becomes applied to our hearts. This word has a value of 283, the same as the phrase Arown Yahweh the Ark of Yahweh! Once again tying together that the Zerowa, the lamb, is also the one that was the living Ark, the Man that would arise and scatter the enemies, the same Afikomen that we call forth during the meal! *Breaking down the term zerowa the same letters can be seen that form owr (#5785) skin, hide; a reference to the coats of skin that clothed Adam and Eve purchased by the lamb. The term zera (#2233) seed, is also seen in this word, pointing us once again to that letter which is a picture of the seed/zera, connecting all these elaborate patterns together, the Afikomen, the Zerowa, the Man who rises up from the Ark to scatter the enemies are all one and the same and this is who the Seder reveals to us! Zerowa is also translated as meaning arm, Isaiah 53:1 Who hath believed our report? And to whom is the arm/zerowa of Yahweh revealed? Who sees this Man in the Seder? o 4 Cups: During the Seder there are also 4 glasses of wine drunk, each one representing and reminding us of the four promises of Yahweh that were given to Moses. 1) I will bring you out (Cup of Sanctification) 2) I will free you (Cup of Deliverance) 3) I will redeem you (Cup of Redemption) 4) I will take you as my own people (Cup of Restoration) It is the third cup that Yahshua drank and elaborated on with His disciples, Luke 22:20 Likewise also the cup after supper, saying, This cup [is] the renewed covenant in my blood, which is shed for you. The final 4th cup is the one were told in Matthew 26:29 But I say unto you, I will not drink henceforth of this fruit of the vine, until that day when I drink it new with you in my Father's kingdom. o Conclusion: At the end of every Seder, everyone shouts Leshanah habaah bi-Yerushalayim! or Next year in Jerusalem! This phrase in Hebrew has a numerical value of 996, the same value as the verse Isaiah 2:5 O house of Jacob, come ye, and let us walk in the light of Yahweh.