In Jewish tradition, Shavuot is considered to be the day on
which the Torah was given; it is thus also called Hag Matan Torah – Holiday of the Giving of the Torah.
In Exodus 19-20, we read the account of this incredible
event.
In the third month, when the children of Israel were gone
forth out of the land of Egypt, the same day came they into the wilderness of
Sinai… and there Israel camped before the mount.
And Moses went up unto God, and the Lord called unto him out
of the mountain, saying, Thus shalt thou say to the house of Jacob, and tell
the children of Israel; Ye have seen what I did unto the Egyptians, and how I
bare you on eagles' wings, and brought you unto myself. Now therefore, if ye
will obey my voice indeed, and keep my covenant, then ye shall be a peculiar
treasure unto me above all people: for all the earth is mine: And ye shall be
unto me a kingdom of priests, and an holy nation. These are the words which
thou shalt speak unto the children of Israel.
And Moses came and called for the elders of the people, and
laid before their faces all these words which the Lord commanded him. And all
the people answered together, and said, All that the Lord hath spoken we will
do. And Moses returned the words of the people unto the Lord.
And the Lord said
unto Moses, Lo, I come unto thee in a thick cloud, that the people may hear
when I speak with thee, and believe thee for ever … Go unto the people, and
sanctify them to day and to morrow… And be ready against the third day: for the
third day the Lord will come down in the sight of all the people upon mount
Sinai…
You can imagine the suspense. The Israelites were gathered
around Mount Sinai, in the middle of the seemingly endless desert, waiting to
receive the Word of God, for three days.
And God spake all these words, saying, I am the Lord thy
God, which have brought thee out of the land of Egypt…
And God gave the people of Israel the Ten Commandments, which you can read here.
In verse 18 we read:
And all the people saw the thunderings, and the lightnings, and
the noise of the trumpet, and the mountain smoking: and when the people saw
it, they removed, and stood afar off.
How can someone see noise? And what does it mean?
In order to understand, we have to refer to the Gospel of
John 1:1-4:
In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was
with God, and the Word was God. The same was in the beginning with God.
All things were made by him; and without him was not
any thing made that was made.
In him was life; and the life was the light of men.
We find the equivalent in genesis 1:3:
And God said, Let there be light: and there was
light...
This is a concept, which although not fully understood, is
quite known in Judaism; it is called the Mimra. The Mimra is an Aramaic term,
which means “the creative power of God in a word”. This is clearly seen in
Genesis’s creation story, where God “speaks” the world into being…
We, who have been saved by the blood of the Lamb, and know
the words spoken by John, understand that Jesus and the Mimra are one and the
same.
When I look at the verse from Exodus: “And all the people saw
the noise of the trumpet…” I can
see the Mimra – Jesus –in action! Actually, according to Jewish tradition, the Ten
Commandments were spoken by God, and written by a flame of fire onto the
tablets; not unlike Genesis 1…
Jesus was there, leaving his footsteps, observable to those
who seek him, whether by sight or by visible sound, from the very beginning,
throughout time, until eternity. If we follow in his footsteps, we are bound to
reach eternity, together with him.
Let us worship him, and rejoice in our salvation, and in the
infinite blessings that our Heavenly Father showers upon us boundlessly.
Hag Shavuot Mevorah Vesame’ah – Have a happy and blessed
Shavuot!
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