Would you worship the Sun and the Moon?

Sounds like a ridiculous question when talking to admitted followers of the Torah, doesn't it? We must never be so confident in our own salvation that we are not ready to re-evaluate our beliefs to separate the dross from the gold and silver. Is it possible for a redeemed and Torah observant people to become confused and fallen? Yes.

Ezekiel 22: 17And the word of the LORD came unto me, saying,  18Son of man, the house of Israel is to me become dross: all they are brass, and tin, and iron, and lead, in the midst of the furnace; they are even the dross of silver.  19Therefore thus saith the Lord GOD; Because ye are all become dross, behold, therefore I will gather you into the midst of Jerusalem. 20As they gather silver, and brass, and iron, and lead, and tin, into the midst of the furnace, to blow the fire upon it, to melt it; so will I gather you in mine anger and in my fury, and I will leave you there, and melt you.  21Yea, I will gather you, and blow upon you in the fire of my wrath, and ye shall be melted in the midst therof.

We cannot miss the fact that it is not the Torah, but it is "the Hand of YHWH", the Messiah that separates the dross and subsequently cleanses the defiled and fallen woman. It is this once Torah observant and righteous woman who is now lodged in sin and can only be redeemed by another, the "Hand of YHWH". She is incapable of redeeming or purifying herself.

Isaiah 1: 18Come now, and let us reason together, saith the LORD: though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they be red like crimson, they shall be as wool.  19If ye be willing and obedient, ye shall eat the good of the land:  20But if ye refuse and rebel, ye shall be devoured with the sword: for the mouth of the LORD hath spoken it.  21How is the faithful city become an harlot! it was full of judgment; righteousness lodged in it; but now murderers.  22Thy silver is become dross, thy wine mixed with water:  23Thy princes are rebellious, and companions of thieves: every one loveth gifts, and followeth after rewards: they judge not the fatherless, neither doth the cause of the widow come unto them.  24Therefore saith the LORD, the LORD of hosts, the mighty One of Israel, Ah, I will ease me of mine adversaries, and avenge me of mine enemies:  25And I will turn my hand upon thee, and purely purge away thy dross, and take away all thy tin:  26And I will restore thy judges as at the first, and thy counsellors as at the beginning: afterward thou shalt be called, The city of righteousness, the faithful city.  27Zion shall be redeemed with judgment, and her converts with righteousness.  28And the destruction of the transgressors and of the sinners shall be together, and they that forsake the LORD shall be consumed.

YHWH says He will set His Hand upon them to purge them and that He will restore them, personally. He will separate the dross from the silver.

Jeremiah 6:  29The bellows are burned, the lead is consumed of the fire; the founder melteth in vain: for the wicked are not plucked away.  30Reprobate silver shall men call them, because the LORD hath rejected them.

Now what is the connection between dross, being reprobate, and recognizing Yeshua as the Messiah, the Presence of YHWH? We must remember our election does not come from the Torah, it comes through the selection that comes via the Messiah.

Romans 3:  8And not rather, (as we be slanderously reported, and as some affirm that we say,) Let us do evil, that good may come? whose damnation is just.  9What then? are we better than they? No, in no wise: for we have before proved both Jews and Gentiles, that they are all under sin;  10As it is written, There is none righteous, no, not one:

This does not negate our obligation to obey the Torah, it simply clarifies that it is the Messiah and not the Torah which redeems you. It is the Messiah, not Israel or Judah which redeems you. There is no Jew or Gentile in Yeshua.

I Corinthians 12: 12For as the body is one, and hath many members, and all the members of that one body, being many, are one body: so also is Christ.  13For by one Spirit are we all baptized into one body, whether we be Jews or Gentiles, whether we be bond or free; and have been all made to drink into one Spirit.  14For the body is not one member, but many.

The Renewed Testament is clear that the body is not Judah, the body is the Messiah Yeshua. That is why many Messianic Jews reject the Renewed Testament scriptures. They are rejecting the Body of Messiah, Yeshua. They may claim Him in name, but they reject Him in Body. They are consumed with the shadow of the body, the Torah. The reality of the body is the Messiah Yeshua. Messianic Jews that claim to be redeemed by Yeshua the Messiah, but deny His body, Him being the Fullness of YHWH bodily, and reject the Renewed Testament writings because they support our grafting into the Messiah and not Judah, are prefering the shadow over the reality.

Romans 1: 1Paul, a servant of Jesus Christ, called to be an apostle, separated unto the gospel of God,  2(Which he had promised afore by his prophets in the holy scriptures,)  3Concerning his Son Jesus Christ our Lord, which was made of the seed of David according to the flesh;  4And declared to be the Son of God with power, according to the spirit of holiness, by the resurrection from the dead:  5By whom we have received grace and apostleship, for obedience to the faith among all nations, for his name:  6Among whom are ye also the called of Jesus Christ:

Notice the connection between our calling and the messiah. We are separated unto Him through His work, not through the Torah. Many first century Christians were ashamed of that fact. Unfortunately many Messianic Jews today are ashamed as well.

Romans 1:  16For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek.  17For therein is the righteousness of God revealed from faith to faith: as it is written, The just shall live by faith.  18For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who hold the truth in unrighteousness;  19Because that which may be known of God is manifest in them; for God hath shewed it unto them.  20For the invisible things of him from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even his eternal power and Godhead; so that they are without excuse:  21Because that, when they knew God, they glorified him not as God, neither were thankful; but became vain in their imaginations, and their foolish heart was darkened.  22Professing themselves to be wise, they became fools,  23And changed the glory of the uncorruptible God into an image made like to corruptible man, and to birds, and fourfooted beasts, and creeping things.  24Wherefore God also gave them up to uncleanness through the lusts of their own hearts, to dishonour their own bodies between themselves:  25Who changed the truth of God into a lie, and worshipped and served the creature more than the Creator, who is blessed for ever. Amen.  26For this cause God gave them up unto vile affections: for even their women did change the natural use into that which is against nature:  27And likewise also the men, leaving the natural use of the woman, burned in their lust one toward another; men with men working that which is unseemly, and receiving in themselves that recompence of their error which was meet.  28And even as they did not like to retain God in their knowledge, God gave them over to a reprobate mind, to do those things which are not convenient;

Many use this same rationale today by stating that Yeshua was just another great man, like any other man. They refuse to see the greater realities and are more comfortable with the shadows and the darkness. Many are preoccupied with the darkness of the shadows that foretell the greater reality of the light. Please don't skip over the direct connection of the proper joining of male and female in reference to recognizing and acknowledging the Messiah and YHWH in the above scripture. The abandonment of the male/female union is akin to rejecting the Messiah and acknowledging the Presence of YHWH. This rebellious mind set leads to a reprobate state and a rejection of God. It causes those of such mind to worship the creature instead of the creator. The Torah calls this act, Idolatry.

Currently two great preoccupations with shadow are existent in the Body of Messiah:

• That the Torah is the same as the Messiah. That if you have the Torah you have no need of the Messiah (the redeeming seed).
• That the seven day sabbath count started with the sun and the moon, instead of the manifestation of the Light of YHWH.
• Both are preoccupations with the shadow and the promotion of the creature above the creator.

Realizing the virtual impossibility of addressing these issues without offending many of you, I would urge you to remember the words of our Messiah Yeshua. I would beg you to take the time to consider what is said here and allow some of these points to come under consideration as you edify one another. Yeshua realized the polarizing effect He would have upon humanity and how he would divide many. He did not use that as an excuse to not reveal the greater realities to the world.

Luke 7:  22Then Jesus answering said unto them, Go your way, and tell John what things ye have seen and heard; how that the blind see, the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, to the poor the gospel is preached.  23And blessed is he, whosoever shall not be offended in me.

Today I address the misconceptions of the lunar sabbath count and the current messianic Jewish misconception that the Torah is your redeemer and not the Messiah Yeshua. Many may not realize that they are related issues. Many self-ascribed followers of Yeshua are attempting to count the seventh day sabbath from a new (dark) moon, and many other messianic Jews are rejecting Yeshua as the Presence of YHWH, using the rationale that they view themselves as redeemed by the Torah (which is a "shadow of things to come" and a "pattern of the heavenly").

Hebrews 10: 1For the law having a shadow of good things to come, and not the very image of the things, can never with those sacrifices which they offered year by year continually make the comers thereunto perfect.  2For then would they not have ceased to be offered? because that the worshippers once purged should have had no more conscience of sins.  3But in those sacrifices there is a remembrance again made of sins every year.  4For it is not possible that the blood of bulls and of goats should take away sins.

The Torah is clearly a shadow of "something" greater, "Something" Heavenly.

Hebrews 8:   2A minister of the sanctuary, and of the true tabernacle, which the Lord pitched, and not man.  3For every high priest is ordained to offer gifts and sacrifices: wherefore it is of necessity that this man have somewhat also to offer. 4For if he were on earth, he should not be a priest, seeing that there are priests that offer gifts according to the law:  5Who serve unto the example and shadow of heavenly things, as Moses was admonished of God when he was about to make the tabernacle: for, See, saith he, that thou make all things according to the pattern shewed to thee in the mount.  6But now hath he obtained a more excellent ministry, by how much also he is the mediator of a better covenant, which was established upon better promises.

Notice this connection of the heavenly fulfillment in direct connection to the "minister of the sanctuary", and the "mediator of a better covenant". This is not a casual connection, a clear point is being made if we have the ears to hear it. What does this heavenly mediator and minister of the sanctuary have to do with the seventh day sabbath?

We must address the significance and meaning of the whole seventh day sabbath commandment to understand why we need to start this count with the appearance and manifestation of the divine light and mark it continuously from there instead of using the new (dark) moon to begin the seven day count. The fulfillment of the whole Sabbath commandment is not only to rest on the seventh day, but to work for 6 days and then rest on the 7th.  This hearkens back to the creation week and all that it signifies. If you have an inaccurate understanding of the events and meaning of that original creation week, you will never understand the greater realities of what YHWH is doing in the manifest universe, which is symbolized by the sanctuary and by the role of the "minister of the sanctuary".

Those who observe a seventh day sabbath beginning from each new moon disrupt the proper seventh day count on a regular basis. The creation sabbath count begins with six days of labor and then concludes with the seventh day rest. This interval count continues through all time and does not restart depending upon the physical moon or the sun. The lunar Sabbath concept states that the seventh day sabbath should follow the lead of the new (dark) moon each month and start its count over again from that dark (shadow) moon. Failing to consecrate the original six days of the labor/creation count has greater meaning than most currently understand.

Exodus 20: 8Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy.  9Six days salt thou labour, and do all thy work:  10But the seventh day is the sabbath of the LORD thy God: in it thou shalt not do any work, thou, nor thy son, nor thy daughter, thy manservant, nor thy maidservant, nor thy cattle, nor thy stranger that is within thy gates:  11For in six days the LORD made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that in them is, and rested the seventh day: wherefore the LORD blessed the sabbath day, and hallowed it.

To keep the commandment you need to work 6 days and then rest on the seventh day sabbath. This count and interval does not begin in Exodus 20. It began in Genesis 1 and 2.

Genesis 2: 1Thus the heavens and the earth were finished, and all the host of them.  2And on the seventh day God ended his work which he had made; and he rested on the seventh day from all his work which he had made.  3And God blessed the seventh day, and sanctified it: because that in it he had rested from all his work which God created and made.

The connection between the seventh day sabbath being mentioned in the giving of the 10 commandments (which are the 10 expressions of the image of YHWH), to the original penalty for the eating of the forbidden fruit is profound. The curse started the need to labour, which is the opposite of the original created state of the heavens, earth, and the hosts thereof. They abided with YHWH in a state of rest on the first seventh day sabbath.

Genesis 3: 17And unto Adam he said, Because thou hast hearkened unto the voice of thy wife, and hast eaten of the tree, of which I commanded thee, saying, Thou shalt not eat of it: cursed is the ground for thy sake; in sorrow shalt thou eat of it all the days of thy life;  18Thorns also and thistles shall it bring forth to thee; and thou shalt eat the herb of the field;  19In the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread, till thou return unto the ground; for out of it wast thou taken: for dust thou art, and unto dust shalt thou return.

This original violation of the seventh day sabbath resulted in the curse of labour and a "covering"/body that sweats and toils with the ground. Adam and Eve in their original state were not subject to this "lack of rest" and "labor". They were created in the image of YHWH and had no need of labour. When they sinned that image was broken. That image could only be restored and redeemed by the "promised seed". This is the restoration of the Image of YHWH. This promised seed is the Messiah, the Son of YHWH. It is not the Torah. The sabbath count relates to the original giving of and breaking of the divine image of YHWH, the manifest Light of YHWH. This manifest Light appears on the first day of the week and the seven day count begins from there.

So why didn't Adonai create/appoint the moon on the first day and not the 4th day?  The manifest Light on Day 1 is not the same as the light of the sun and the moon. As with all things He set the pattern in the beginning.  If the Sabbath count begins mid-week we have problems from Genesis 1.

Genesis 1:  14And God said, Let there be lights in the firmament of the heaven to divide the day from the night; and let them be for signs, and for seasons, and for days, and years:  15And let them be for lights in the firmament of the heaven to give light upon the earth: and it was so.  16And God made two great lights; the greater light to rule the day, and the lesser light to rule the night: he made the stars also.  17And God set them in the firmament of the heaven to give light upon the earth,  18And to rule over the day and over the night, and to divide the light from the darkness: and God saw that it was good.  19And the evening and the morning were the fourth day.

Notice this appointment of the sun and the moon does not occur until the fourth day. This is the middle of the week and not on the first day of creation. The 7th day Sabbath count does not begin with the appointment of the sun and the moon which are used for signs, and for seasons, and for days, and years. The count begins and ends with the manifestation of the divine light.

The divine manifestation of light is on the first day.

Genesis 1:  3And God said, Let there be light: and there was light.  4And God saw the light, that it was good: and God divided the light from the darkness.  5And God called the light Day, and the darkness he called Night. And the evening and the morning were the first day.

We must ask ourselves the question, why the delay in the appointment of the sun and the moon to divide the day and the night on day 4 along with their purpose of marking time upon the earth? We must conclude that the light of Day 1 is not the same light as the light coming from the sun that is meant to "give light upon the earth".

This means that the days and nights of the first 3 days of creation are able to be determined without the aid of the sun, moon, or stars of the physical universe. We cannot pass over the significance of "Light" being the manifest act of Day 1, and the beginning of creation or that it is the separation of light from darkness that is the demarcation point between day and night. It is from this starting point and start of "separation" that we count the 6 days of labor until the divine Sabbath or seventh day of rest, which concludes the creative effort with the complete manifestation of all things. We cannot pass over the the possibility that if the sun and the earth are present and accounted for on day one, yet in darkness, there is still nothing else present aside from the divine light to cause the demarcation of day and night for the earth that would establish a day and night count. The appointment of the sun and moon to these roles is still on the 4th day of creation. Hence the count of the sabbath is still not from the appointment of the sun and the moon to the tasks of "signs, and for seasons, and for days, and years:". We can assume that the principal goal of the creation week is for the manifestation of the image of YHWH in the physical universe. All preceding days lead up to this end goal on the 7th day sabbath and make it possible. With YHWH He always begins as He finishes; seed then flesh, hidden then revealed, water then dry land, light then image, above then below, and male then female.

Take note that the light manifested on day one is within the context of the creation of the firmament, which is then called heaven.

Genesis 1: 4And God saw the light, that it was good: and God divided the light from the darkness.  5And God called the light Day, and the darkness he called Night. And the evening and the morning were the first day.  6And God said, Let there be a firmament in the midst of the waters, and let it divide the waters from the waters.  7And God made the firmament, and divided the waters which were under the firmament from the waters which were above the firmament: and it was so.  8And God called the firmament Heaven. And the evening and the morning were the second day.

We cannot presuppose that there is only one kind of light. To do so is to oversimplify the scriptures. This light of the first day is to divide the day from the night in relation to the firmament of heaven. We must remember "as above, so below".

Hebrews 8: 4For if he were on earth, he should not be a priest, seeing that there are priests that offer gifts according to the law:  5Who serve unto the example and shadow of heavenly things, as Moses was admonished of God when he was about to make the tabernacle: for, See, saith he, that thou make all things according to the pattern shewed to thee in the mount.  6But now hath he obtained a more excellent ministry, by how much also he is the mediator of a better covenant, which was established upon better promises.

We see that Yeshua also reinforces that He is from above, not below. That which is below is merely a shadow of what is above.

John 8: 22Then said the Jews, Will he kill himself? because he saith, Whither I go, ye cannot come.  23And he said unto them, Ye are from beneath; I am from above: ye are of this world; I am not of this world.  24I said therefore unto you, that ye shall die in your sins: for if ye believe not that I am he, ye shall die in your sins.

The creation week is not only the creation of the physical universe, but of that which is called heaven. As you have an earthly light, you also have a heavenly light. As you have earthly waters, you also have heavenly waters. As you have earthly bread, you also have heavenly bread. Just as you have an earthly male and female, there is a heavenly male and female. Just as you have an earthly left and right, you have a heavenly left and right. Just as you have an earthly light and darkness, you have a heavenly light and darkness. Just as you have an earthly evening and day, you have an heavenly evening and day.

Understanding these concepts is critical to understanding the meaning and purpose of the 7th day sabbath and the observance of the new moon. They are not the same observance. They have different meanings. The seventh day sabbath is for the manifestation of the image of YHWH, the earthly reproduction of the image of the heavenly YHWH, the unification of the male and the female, the left and the right, the above with the below, the reproduction of the mind of YHWH. Yeshua came to cause His light to shine within us. This original manifestation is not fallen or corrupted. This seventh day sabbath requires no new moons or redemptive Holy days in order to have fulfillment. It is only fallen creation that requires the redemptive meaning of holy days and new moons to reacquire the original "rest" and "wholeness" of the original seventh day sabbath. If there had been no fall, there would be no need of holy days or sacrifices that picture ascension or redemption to restore or reacquire the holiness of the seventh day sabbath.

Matthew 5: 14Ye are the light of the world. A city that is set on an hill cannot be hid.  15Neither do men light a candle, and put it under a bushel, but on a candlestick; and it giveth light unto all that are in the house.  16Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven.  17Think not that I am come to destroy the law, or the prophets: I am not come to destroy, but to fulfil.

Yeshua is the light that causes our light to shine and provides for the fallen woman to re-ascend. Yeshua gives us the image of YHWH so that there may be many sons of YHWH. It is from the coming of this light that our lights are caused to shine on the seventh day sabbath. The image of YHWH is also the Messiah of YHWH. He is the glory or light of the Father YHWH and the Torah is His shadow. That is why you see the direct connection between the "light", the "glorification" of your Father in heaven and the fulfillment of the Torah in Yeshua and His redemptive work. You cannot follow the light and at the same time abandon the shadow that His body casts.

2 Peter 1: 18And this voice which came from heaven we heard, when we were with him in the holy mount.  19We have also a more sure word of prophecy; whereunto ye do well that ye take heed, as unto a light that shineth in a dark place, until the day dawn, and the day star arise in your hearts:  20Knowing this first, that no prophecy of the scripture is of any private interpretation.

It is inescapable that the creation week appears and begins with the divine manifestation of light.

Hebrews 10:  4For it is not possible that the blood of bulls and of goats should take away sins.  5Wherefore when he cometh into the world, he saith, Sacrifice and offering thou wouldest not, but a body hast thou prepared me:  6In burnt offerings and sacrifices for sin thou hast had no pleasure.

The substance of our salvation is not on the shadow of the body (Torah/Shadow), but on the body (Messiah/Light) that saves us.

I Peter 1:  19But with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot:  20Who verily was foreordained before the foundation of the world, but was manifest in these last times for you,  21Who by him do believe in God, that raised him up from the dead, and gave him glory; that your faith and hope might be in God.

We know that Yeshua is the light of the world.

John 8: 11She said, No man, Lord. And Jesus said unto her, Neither do I condemn thee: go, and sin no more.  12Then spake Jesus again unto them, saying, I am the light of the world: he that followeth me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life.  13The Pharisees therefore said unto him, Thou bearest record of thyself; thy record is not true.14Jesus answered and said unto them, Though I bear record of myself, yet my record is true: for I know whence I came, and whither I go; but ye cannot tell whence I come, and whither I go.

Let's not miss the significance of the Messiah being light and where that light comes from and goes to. Also, let's not miss that then as today, the Messianic Pharisees still reject where the Messiah's light comes from and they reject following it.

John 9:  4I must work the works of him that sent me, while it is day: the night cometh, when no man can work.  5As long as I am in the world, I am the light of the world.  6When he had thus spoken, he spat on the ground, and made clay of the spittle, and he anointed the eyes of the blind man with the clay,

The end goal of the manifestation of the light is to give us the power to become the sons of YHWH, to manifest the light of YHWH and have His image fulfilled in us. This joining with the Messiah causes the fallen to ascend, the broken to be made whole, and those who under the curse of "labour" from Genesis 3 to "rest" in the true seventh day sabbath.

Matthew 11:  27All things are delivered unto me of my Father: and no man knoweth the Son, but the Father; neither knoweth any man the Father, save the Son, and he to whomsoever the Son will reveal him.  28Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.  29Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls.

We can see clearly that Yeshua the Messiah is the "rest" that we seek. He is the true seventh day sabbath, the fulfillment of the image of YHWH. This is how we come to know the Father.

John 1: 1In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.  2The same was in the beginning with God.  3All things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was made.  4In him was life; and the life was the light of men.  5And the light shineth in darkness; and the darkness comprehended it not.

The Messiah Yeshua is the Divine Light, the glory of the Father.

John 1:  11He came unto his own, and his own received him not.  12But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name:  13Which were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God.

The completion of the seventh day sabbath count is manifest in the transmitting of the image of YHWH - the divine light - to man. It is through the divine light that we are made complete. Heaven and Earth are not completed on earlier days of the creation week. Heaven and Earth are unified in "one" on the seventh day from the manifestation of the divine light. On the 7th day Sabbath, the male and the female are united as are the heavens and the earth. The kingdom of YHWH is one. The image of YHWH appears in the earth. The earth is no longer void, the waters are gathered and the breath of life and the mist of the garden bring forth uncorrupted flesh and image.

We can conclude that the 7 day count starts and begins with the manifesting of the image of YHWH, divine light. This is the true redemption, the true rest, the true wholeness or completion. It starts with divine light and ends with the union of male and female, the union of heaven and earth, a self replicating system that reproduces the mind of YHWH - the divine "one mind" becoming many countenances.

Ephesians 3: 14For this cause I bow my knees unto the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ,  15Of whom the whole family in heaven and earth is named,  16That he would grant you, according to the riches of his glory, to be strengthened with might by his Spirit in the inner man;  17That Christ may dwell in your hearts by faith; that ye, being rooted and grounded in love,  18May be able to comprehend with all saints what is the breadth, and length, and depth, and height;  19And to know the love of Christ, which passeth knowledge, that ye might be filled with all the fullness of God.

The crucifixion of the divine one mind is through the manifestation of light nailed to the material crucifixion cross (tree/bush). This restricting of YHWH to material existence and experience so that the one mind (fire in the bush on the mountain) might become many countenances. This is why Moses was surprised by the fire in the bush on the mountain. Moses was astounded that the bush was not consumed. YHWH is the fire and we are branches of the tree/bush (material existence). YHWH does this so that we might receive His image/countenance. This occurs on the seventh day sabbath. The count starts with the divine manifestation of light/fire (mind) and ends with the replication of His image in our countenance on the seventh day sabbath. The one mind becomes many countenances. So what happens when that image or countenance is broken? It must be restored by the promised seed, the Messiah.

Numbers 6: 25The LORD make his face shine upon thee, and be gracious unto thee:  26The LORD lift up his countenance upon thee, and give thee peace.  27And they shall put my name upon the children of Israel, and I will bless them.

That fallen image and the material universe is depicted as the fallen, unclean, and barren woman. It does not produce light of itself. It can only reflect the light of another. We are but the reflection of the light of YHWH, like the moon reflecting the light of the sun. Without external light the moon is a shadow, just as the material universe without the mind of YHWH is consumed in darkness and becomes of a reprobate mind.

2 Corinthians: 12Seeing then that we have such hope, we use great plainness of speech:  13And not as Moses, which put a veil over his face, that the children of Israel could not stedfastly look to the end of that which is abolished:  14But their minds were blinded: for until this day remaineth the same vail untaken away in the reading of the old testament; which vail is done away in Christ.  15But even unto this day, when Moses is read, the vail is upon their heart.  16Nevertheless when it shall turn to the Lord, the vail shall be taken away.  17Now the Lord is that Spirit: and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty.  18But we all, with open face beholding as in a glass the glory of the Lord, are changed into the same image from glory to glory, even as by the Spirit of the Lord.

We do not produce the light of ourselves. We are as the moon, which reflects the glory of the sun. When we are resurrected on the seventh day we will only need the light of the Messiah Yeshua and of YHWH and will no longer need to rely on the physical symbols that currently provide us with light.

Revelation 21:  22And I saw no temple therein: for the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb are the temple of it.  23And the city had no need of the sun, neither of the moon, to shine in it: for the glory of God did lighten it, and the Lamb is the light thereof.  24And the nations of them which are saved shall walk in the light of it: and the kings of the earth do bring their glory and honour into it.

We can also see why the heavens and earth melt away and are replaced. This barren woman must ascend with a new perfected image that is no longer broken.

2 Peter 3: 9The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.  10But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night; in the which the heavens shall pass away with a great noise, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat, the earth also and the works that are therein shall be burned up. 11Seeing then that all these things shall be dissolved, what manner of persons ought ye to be in all holy conversation and godliness,

Isaiah 65:  16That he who blesseth himself in the earth shall bless himself in the God of truth; and he that sweareth in the earth shall swear by the God of truth; because the former troubles are forgotten, and because they are hid from mine eyes.  17For, behold, I create new heavens and a new earth: and the former shall not be remembered, nor come into mind.  18But be ye glad and rejoice for ever in that which I create: for, behold, I create Jerusalem a rejoicing, and her people a joy.

Isaiah 66:  21And I will also take of them for priests and for Levites, saith the LORD.  22For as the new heavens and the new earth, which I will make, shall remain before me, saith the LORD, so shall your seed and your name remain.  23And it shall come to pass, that from one new moon to another, and from one sabbath to another, shall all flesh come to worship before me, saith the LORD.

Revelation 21: 1And I saw a new heaven and a new earth: for the first heaven and the first earth were passed away; and there was no more sea.  2And I John saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband.  3And I heard a great voice out of heaven saying, Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and he will dwell with them, and they shall be his people, and God himself shall be with them, and be their God.

The manifestation of the divine light lies in the count of seven. This count requires no redemption. The redemption of the fallen and unclean woman lies in the birth of the new moon and the 30 day count. This pattern matches that of the woman bearing a new egg every thirty days. The Torah describes the purging of this unfertilized egg as making her "unclean", needing to be separated from her people until the time of her impurity passes. We must remember several principles about the "patterns of life". Remember "as above, so below".

The light of the moon waxes and wanes in accordance with its relation to the sun, from which it receives its light. The sun is constant and the moon is not. Like Israel, its faithfulness is not constant, but sometimes strong and sometimes weak. The glory of the sun is constant like the Messiah who is without sin, our redeemer. The moon is directly connected to the fertility of a woman and her production of the seed of life. This seed requires that she become unclean if it is not fertilized to bring forth the image of its parents. This seed needs to be fertilized with the image of the Father, the Messiah Yeshua. It is this conjunction (sun-Messiah and moon-fallen woman/us) that provides for the multiplicity of seed which can only occur in "good ground", the repentant. The ground without seed produces no fruit. The egg without seed is purged.

Leviticus 12: 1And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying,  2Speak unto the children of Israel, saying, If a woman have conceived seed, and born a man child: then she shall be unclean seven days; according to the days of the separation for her infirmity shall she be unclean.  3And in the eighth day the flesh of his foreskin shall be circumcised.  4And she shall then continue in the blood of her purifying three and thirty days; she shall touch no hallowed thing, nor come into the sanctuary, until the days of her purifying be fulfilled.  5But if she bear a maid child, then she shall be unclean two weeks, as in her separation: and she shall continue in the blood of her purifying threescore and six days.  6And when the days of her purifying are fulfilled, for a son, or for a daughter, she shall bring a lamb of the first year for a burnt offering, and a young pigeon, or a turtledove, for a sin offering, unto the door of the tabernacle of the congregation, unto the priest:  7Who shall offer it before the LORD, and make an atonement for her; and she shall be cleansed from the issue of her blood. This is the law for her that hath born a male or a female.  8And if she be not able to bring a lamb, then she shall bring two turtles, or two young pigeons; the one for the burnt offering, and the other for a sin offering: and the priest shall make an atonement for her, and she shall be clean.

Notice the connections. If she brings forth a male-child (prophetic of the heavenly man-child - Revelation 12) then she is unclean for seven days, circumcision occurs on the eighth day, and then she continues to be unclean 33 more days for the completion of 40 days. So the majority of the uncleanness is taken care of with the circumcision of her male child, but she remains somewhat contaminated until 40 days are completed. Notice all the redemption and resurrection ties to the number 40.

But when a female child is produced the woman is unclean for 80 days - twice as long. She is not only bearing her uncleanness, but the duration of the uncleanness of her daughter. The female or earthly component is typically viewed as being unclean and needing to become clean. Hence the reason for the woman being considered impure during her menstrual cycle (30 days) and via her separation and then the elevation through the sin offering she becomes clean once again after 40 days. This is why we continually see the redemption of the unfaithful woman throughout the Torah, Tanach, and the Brit Chadasha. The unfaithful woman is the physical manifestation (creation) that brings forth broken, corrupt, and dying images instead of faithfully reproducing the heavenly image of YHWH (the true and complete male, pictured by the mature union of male and female). That is why we see the number 40 associated with exile, wandering, uncleanness, and deliverance from a place without seed - death. This count of 40 concludes with entrance to the Promised Land, which is a picture of resurrection, the completion of the image of YHWH in us through the Messiah Yeshua. The fallen soul ends its journey and ascends via the Messiah.

It is the role of the female to ascend and become one with her husband. That is why you see the heavenly Jerusalem becoming one with the earthly Jerusalem. That is why Yeshua the Messiah becomes one with the Ruach Hakodesh, His Bride, of which we are bridesmaids and her garments. Also take note that the process for the unclean woman to become clean is split into durations of time that reflect the number 3 and all that that number implies about redemption and resurrection. We can gain greater insight into Yeshua's healing of the woman with an issue of blood.

Matthew 9: 15And Jesus said unto them, Can the children of the bridechamber mourn, as long as the bridegroom is with them? but the days will come, when the bridegroom shall be taken from them, and then shall they fast.  16No man putteth a piece of new cloth unto an old garment, for that which is put in to fill it up taketh from the garment, and the rent is made worse.  17Neither do men put new wine into old bottles: else the bottles break, and the wine runneth out, and the bottles perish: but they put new wine into new bottles, and both are preserved.  18While he spake these things unto them, behold, there came a certain ruler, and worshipped him, saying, My daughter is even now dead: but come and lay thy hand upon her, and she shall live.  19And Jesus arose, and followed him, and so did his disciples.  20And, behold, a woman, which was diseased with an issue of blood twelve years, came behind him, and touched the hem of his garment:  21For she said within herself, If I may but touch his garment, I shall be whole.  22But Jesus turned him about, and when he saw her, he said, Daughter, be of good comfort; thy faith hath made thee whole. And the woman was made whole from that hour.

It is the work of the Messiah, the divine light (symbolically the sun) to heal the unclean woman who brings forth life (symbolically the moon). Israel is typically identified with the moon. Take note that the woman had the issue of blood for "12" years. Hence she is personified as being unclean for 12 years and also takes on the personification of being the woman of the 12, Israel with 12 tribes. She cannot heal herself. She cannot make herself clean. Notice it was not her general faith or religion that made her whole. it was her faith that if she became associated with the garments (flesh and image) of the Messiah she would be made whole and clean. It is this faith in the Messiah's redemptive work that made her whole.

Here we see Israel typified as the garments of the Ruach Hakodesh, the barren woman who is made to finally bring forth a man-child. Notice she is clothed with 12 stars.

Revelation 12: 1And there appeared a great wonder in heaven; a woman clothed with the sun, and the moon under her feet, and upon her head a crown of twelve stars:  2And she being with child cried, travailing in birth, and pained to be delivered.  3And there appeared another wonder in heaven; and behold a great red dragon, having seven heads and ten horns, and seven crowns upon his heads.  4And his tail drew the third part of the stars of heaven, and did cast them to the earth: and the dragon stood before the woman which was ready to be delivered, for to devour her child as soon as it was born.  5And she brought forth a man child, who was to rule all nations with a rod of iron: and her child was caught up unto God, and to his throne.

Many typically view this woman as Israel. It is my belief that this woman is more accurately identified as the Ruach Hakodesh who is clothed with the garments of the redeemed, Israel. Notice she is crowned with 12 stars, just as the woman who is healed by Yeshua had her impurity for 12 years. The union of heaven and earth, the union of the Messiah with the Ruach Hakodesh in us, is the resurrection we yearn for. If we have been joined to the Messiah and the Ruach Hakodesh, we indeed are the garments (man-child) of that union. If we do not, we are not the fruit of that union. We cannot save ourselves. Indeed our righteousness is as filthy rags.

Isaiah 64:  6But we are all as an unclean thing, and all our righteousnesses are as filthy rags; and we all do fade as a leaf; and our iniquities, like the wind, have taken us away.

Don't take this lightly. Start to view it as literal redemption of our fallen flesh and blood. The broken cannot heal itself.

John 10:  1Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that entereth not by the door into the sheepfold, but climbeth up some other way, the same is a thief and a robber.  2But he that entereth in by the door is the shepherd of the sheep.  3To him the porter openeth; and the sheep hear his voice: and he calleth his own sheep by name, and leadeth them out.

Those who think they can provide for their own redemption are sadly mistaken, whether they be Christian, Jew, Messianic Jew, Muslim, Buddhist, or any other faith. The accession of the fallen, barren (dead) , and unclean woman follows the pattern of 3 and 30.

You'll notice the repeating theme of "hiding", "mourning", "imprisonment" and "petitions" with the number 3 and 30. Without the fall there would be no need for the accession of the fallen and unclean woman. We must consider what this means.

If there were no fall and no sin the following would result:

• No need for the Holy Days, as they are all a picture of accession and rapprochement to union that was separated in the beginning
• No need for observance of the new moons, as they are a picture of accession and rapprochement to union that was separated in the beginning
• No need for sacrifices, as they are a picture of accession and rapprochement to union that was separated in the beginning
• No need for some of the Torah, as they are a picture of accession and rapprochement to union that was separated in the beginning
  • Matthew 5:18, 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.

Hence there would be no need for the imagery of the cleansing of the fallen woman, the count of the new moon, and the subsequent count of the Holy Days, which are all counted from the "New Moon" consumed with darkness, without the light of the Messiah, the image of YHWH (symbolically the Sun).

The promise of this fulfillment comes from the joining of the heavenly male and the material (fallen) female. This is the union of heaven and earth, the heavenly and the earthly Jerusalem. This is the passing away of all things and a new heaven and earth prevailing where there is no need for redemption, for all things will be as they were originally intended: righteous, one, whole, and full of rest which is fulfilled in the seventh day. This is also why you see the seventh day sabbath included in the 10 expressions of the image of YHWH (the ten commandments), but not the Holy Days or New Moons.

2 Peter 3: 10But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night; in the which the heavens shall pass away with a great noise, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat, the earth also and the works that are therein shall be burned up.  11Seeing then that all these things shall be dissolved, what manner of persons ought ye to be in all holy conversation and godliness,  12Looking for and hasting unto the coming of the day of God, wherein the heavens being on fire shall be dissolved, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat?  13Nevertheless we, according to his promise, look for new heavens and a new earth, wherein dwelleth righteousness. 14Wherefore, beloved, seeing that ye look for such things, be diligent that ye may be found of him in peace, without spot, and blameless.  15And account that the longsuffering of our Lord is salvation; even as our beloved brother Paul also according to the wisdom given unto him hath written unto you;  16As also in all his epistles, speaking in them of these things; in which are some things hard to be understood, which they that are unlearned and unstable wrest, as they do also the other scriptures, unto their own destruction.  17Ye therefore, beloved, seeing ye know these things before, beware lest ye also, being led away with the error of the wicked, fall from your own stedfastness.  18But grow in grace, and in the knowledge of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. To him be glory both now and for ever. Amen.

This reunion is effected by the work of the Messiah Yeshua YHWH and no other. This picture of redemption is played out for us through the imagery of the physical sun and the moon. Remember the Torah is a means to an end and that end is Yeshua the Messiah and our becoming one with Him. Once that has occurred and we and all things are renewed, many of the statues and ordinances of the Torah will no longer be needed. The Torah shows us how to handle a fallen and broken image that has become unclean. When there is no uncleanness there is no need for certain Torah statutes and ordinances. To refuse to acknowledge this is to hold the Torah as an idol that is separating you from the plan of redemption provided by YHWH, which comes through the seed, the Messiah (the light).

It is through the cooperative effort of the sun and the moon that life is brought forth out of the earth: the sun (male), the moon (female), spirit (male), earth & soul (female). The two must become one in order to become the image of YHWH. Because of the nature of the "moon", it requires redemption and resurrection via the messiah (sun). The sun is constant, the moon waxes and wanes. The sun is always lit and the moon is only lit at times, then is not, and it is resurrected and lit again. The moon reflects the glory of the sun. The sun does not rely on the moon for glory, the moon relies on the sun for glory.

The completion of the seven day count begins with the divine light, not the reflective moon. The divine light is the Messiah Yeshua. We cannot escape notice of the fact that the earthly light and darkness is divided on the 4th day of the 7 day creation week. At the middle point of the week after 3 days from the appearance of the divine light we see the earthly sun and moon appointed their light and role.

Genesis 1: 14And God said, Let there be lights in the firmament of the heaven to divide the day from the night; and let them be for signs, and for seasons, and for days, and years:  15And let them be for lights in the firmament of the heaven to give light upon the earth: and it was so.  16And God made two great lights; the greater light to rule the day, and the lesser light to rule the night: he made the stars also.  17And God set them in the firmament of the heaven to give light upon the earth,  18And to rule over the day and over the night, and to divide the light from the darkness: and God saw that it was good.  19And the evening and the morning were the fourth day.

And it is after 3 more days that we see the appearance of the image of YHWH in the earth. The male is giving His image to the female. Below is becoming as above. They are becoming one flesh. The female is taking the name of the male. I cannot escape the realization that the number seven is connected to the male and the number 3 or 30 is connected to the female and the menstrual cycle of fallen life. Notice Eve's method of producing seed is changed by YHWH after her disobedience to YHWH's command.

Genesis 3: 15And I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed; it shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heel. 16Unto the woman he said, I will greatly multiply thy sorrow and thy conception; in sorrow thou shalt bring forth children; and thy desire shall be to thy husband, and he shall rule over thee.

We can see that Eve's method of conception is changed. She has become unclean. She becomes clean again on the seventh day by the work of the Messiah Yeshua. She must become one with Him and accept His heavenly image. Her fire must be lit by the the fire of YHWH. She must receive His countenance.

Revelation 1: 11Saying, I am Alpha and Omega, the first and the last: and, What thou seest, write in a book, and send it unto the seven churches which are in Asia; unto Ephesus, and unto Smyrna, and unto Pergamos, and unto Thyatira, and unto Sardis, and unto Philadelphia, and unto Laodicea.  12And I turned to see the voice that spake with me. And being turned, I saw seven golden candlesticks;  13And in the midst of the seven candlesticks one like unto the Son of man, clothed with a garment down to the foot, and girt about the paps with a golden girdle.  14His head and his hairs were white like wool, as white as snow; and his eyes were as a flame of fire;  15And his feet like unto fine brass, as if they burned in a furnace; and his voice as the sound of many waters.  16And he had in his right hand seven stars: and out of his mouth went a sharp twoedged sword: and his countenance was as the sun shineth in his strength.

We see this redemption in Revelation where the "seed", the Messiah Yeshua, is walking amongst the seven divine spirits of YHWH. He is in the process of giving His divine countenance to His chosen assemblies. Notice these scriptures focus upon His garments, His countenance, and His presence amongst the seven spirits of the chosen assembly. We also see this giving of the countenance of YHWH to the fallen woman in the Aaronic Benediction.

The Aaronic Blessing: Transcribing the Countenance (Image) of YHWH:

Numbers 6: 22And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying,  23Speak unto Aaron and unto his sons, saying, On this wise ye shall bless the children of Israel, saying unto them,24The LORD bless thee, and keep thee:  25The LORD make his face shine upon thee, and be gracious unto thee:  26The LORD lift up his countenance upon thee, and give thee peace.  27And they shall put my name upon the children of Israel, and I will bless them.

May the Lord bless you and guard you – יְבָרֶכְךָ יְהוָה, וְיִשְׁמְרֶךָ

May the Lord shine His countenance toward you and be gracious to you – יָאֵר יְהוָה פָּנָיו אֵלֶיךָ, וִיחֻנֶּךָּ

May the Lord lift up His countenance toward you and give you peace – יִשָּׂא יְהוָה פָּנָיו אֵלֶיךָ, וְיָשֵׂם לְךָ שָׁלוֹם

The Chumash translates Numbers 6: 22-27 this way: Hashem spoke to Moses, saying, "Speak to Aaron and his sons, saying: So shall you bless the Children of Israel, saying to them: "May Hashem bless you and safeguard you. May Hashem illuminate His countenance for you and be gracious to you. May Hashem lift His countenance to you and establish peace for you. Let them place My Name upon the Children of Israel and I shall bless them."

YHWH is transcribing His image, His countenance, His face, and His name upon us. He is not just shinning upon us, He is shining from us because we have received His image, Yeshua the Messiah, and we live through him. Yeshua is the manifestation of the Glory of YHWH before the people. YHWH's great desire was to be manifest before the people.

Numbers 20:  12And the LORD spake unto Moses and Aaron, Because ye believed me not, to sanctify me in the eyes of the children of Israel, therefore ye shall not bring this congregation into the land which I have given them.  13This is the water of Meribah; because the children of Israel strove with the LORD, and he was sanctified in them.

The people need to see and hear the Glory of YHWH in order to have the waters of life.

John 12:  27Now is my soul troubled; and what shall I say? Father, save me from this hour: but for this cause came I unto this hour.  28Father, glorify thy name. Then came there a voice from heaven, saying, I have both glorified it, and will glorify it again.  29The people therefore, that stood by, and heard it, said that it thundered: others said, An angel spake to him.

It is through seeing the Glory of YHWH, Yeshua, that we receive His image. Just as waters flowed from Yeshua to bring life to the people, so also the transcribing of His image produces the same effect in us.

John 7:  37In the last day, that great day of the feast, Jesus stood and cried, saying, If any man thirst, let him come unto me, and drink.  38He that believeth on me, as the scripture hath said, out of his belly shall flow rivers of living water.  39(But this spake he of the Spirit, which they that believe on him should receive: for the Holy Ghost was not yet given; because that Jesus was not yet glorified.)

The living water is the "Breath of the Almighty", the Ruach Hakodesh (Holy Spirit), and with it comes life.

We cannot pass over the connection of the cleansing waters of the Mikva and the Red Heifer (Messiah) and becoming clean on the seventh day.

Numbers 19: 2This is the ordinance of the law which the LORD hath commanded, saying, Speak unto the children of Israel, that they bring thee a red heifer without spot, wherein is no blemish, and upon which never came yoke:  3And ye shall give her unto Eleazar the priest, that he may bring her forth without the camp, and one shall slay her before his face:  4And Eleazar the priest shall take of her blood with his finger, and sprinkle of her blood directly before the tabernacle of the congregation seven times:  5And one shall burn the heifer in his sight; her skin, and her flesh, and her blood, with her dung, shall he burn:  6And the priest shall take cedar wood, and hyssop, and scarlet, and cast it into the midst of the burning of the heifer.  7Then the priest shall wash his clothes, and he shall bathe his flesh in water, and afterward he shall come into the camp, and the priest shall be unclean until the even.  8And he that burneth her shall wash his clothes in water, and bathe his flesh in water, and shall be unclean until the even.  9And a man that is clean shall gather up the ashes of the heifer, and lay them up without the camp in a clean place, and it shall be kept for the congregation of the children of Israel for a water of separation: it is a purification for sin.  10And he that gathereth the ashes of the heifer shall wash his clothes, and be unclean until the even: and it shall be unto the children of Israel, and unto the stranger that sojourneth among them, for a statute for ever.  11He that toucheth the dead body of any man shall be unclean seven days.  12He shall purify himself with it on the third day, and on the seventh day he shall be clean: but if he purify not himself the third day, then the seventh day he shall not be clean.  13Whosoever toucheth the dead body of any man that is dead, and purifieth not himself, defileth the tabernacle of the LORD; and that soul shall be cut off from Israel: because the water of separation was not sprinkled upon him, he shall be unclean; his uncleanness is yet upon him.  14This is the law, when a man dieth in a tent: all that come into the tent, and all that is in the tent, shall be unclean seven days.  15And every open vessel, which hath no covering bound upon it, is unclean.  16And whosoever toucheth one that is slain with a sword in the open fields, or a dead body, or a bone of a man, or a grave, shall be unclean seven days.  17And for an unclean person they shall take of the ashes of the burnt heifer of purification for sin, and running water shall be put thereto in a vessel:  18And a clean person shall take hyssop, and dip it in the water, and sprinkle it upon the tent, and upon all the vessels, and upon the persons that were there, and upon him that touched a bone, or one slain, or one dead, or a grave:  19And the clean person shall sprinkle upon the unclean on the third day, and on the seventh day: and on the seventh day he shall purify himself, and wash his clothes, and bathe himself in water, and shall be clean at even.  20But the man that shall be unclean, and shall not purify himself, that soul shall be cut off from among the congregation, because he hath defiled the sanctuary of the LORD: the water of separation hath not been sprinkled upon him; he is unclean.  21And it shall be a perpetual statute unto them, that he that sprinkleth the water of separation shall wash his clothes; and he that toucheth the water of separation shall be unclean until even.  22And whatsoever the unclean person toucheth shall be unclean; and the soul that toucheth it shall be unclean until even.

The divine light, Yeshua, the Son of Man, is tied to the number seven (the male). We become clean only through contact with the water of His purification.

The redemption of our souls, called resurrection, would appear to have a strong tie to the number 3 (the female). The female is cleansed on day three and remains unclean until the fulfillment of the seventh day, which is a picture of the seventh day Sabbath. Our souls are redeemed and made clean by the image of YHWH, the divine light.

Matthew 12: 38Then certain of the scribes and of the Pharisees answered, saying, Master, we would see a sign from thee.  39But he answered and said unto them, An evil and adulterous generation seeketh after a sign; and there shall no sign be given to it, but the sign of the prophet Jonas:  40For as Jonas was three days and three nights in the whale's belly; so shall the Son of man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth.  41The men of Nineveh shall rise in judgment with this generation, and shall condemn it: because they repented at the preaching of Jonas; and, behold, a greater than Jonas is here.  42The queen of the south shall rise up in the judgment with this generation, and shall condemn it: for she came from the uttermost parts of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon; and, behold, a greater than Solomon is here.  43When the unclean spirit is gone out of a man, he walketh through dry places, seeking rest, and findeth none.  44Then he saith, I will return into my house from whence I came out; and when he is come, he findeth it empty, swept, and garnished.  45Then goeth he, and taketh with himself seven other spirits more wicked than himself, and they enter in and dwell there: and the last state of that man is worse than the first. Even so shall it be also unto this wicked generation.  46While he yet talked to the people, behold, his mother and his brethren stood without, desiring to speak with him.  47Then one said unto him, Behold, thy mother and thy brethren stand without, desiring to speak with thee.  48But he answered and said unto him that told him, Who is my mother? and who are my brethren?  49And he stretched forth his hand toward his disciples, and said, Behold my mother and my brethren!  50For whosoever shall do the will of my Father which is in heaven, the same is my brother, and sister, and mother.

The sign of Jonah is not solely about Yeshua's resurrection. The story of Jonah is prophetic of the redemption and resurrection of our fallen souls through receiving the image of the Messiah Yeshua YHWH. Jonah is not prophetic of Yeshua, he is prophetic of our souls that have fallen into rebellion against the command of YHWH and are resurrected from the waters to fulfill the word of YHWH. We are grafted into the Messiah, our husband. We become one with Him, we receive His name and inherit with Him. The female rests upon the male. The female encompasses the male. Yeshua gave that generation the sign of Jonah because He came to redeem our souls from death and uncleanness. It is the Father who is seeking our souls buried in the field; the pearl of great price.

Matthew 13:  45Again, the kingdom of heaven is like unto a merchant man, seeking goodly pearls:  46Who, when he had found one pearl of great price, went and sold all that he had, and bought it. 47Again, the kingdom of heaven is like unto a net, that was cast into the sea, and gathered of every kind:  48Which, when it was full, they drew to shore, and sat down, and gathered the good into vessels, but cast the bad away.  49So shall it be at the end of the world: the angels shall come forth, and sever the wicked from among the just,

Our souls, which are hidden and buried in the material creation, are the pearls of great price that need to be purchased and redeemed. We are of the fallen and unclean woman. Our souls need to ascend.

Jeremiah 31: 19Surely after that I was turned, I repented; and after that I was instructed, I smote upon my thigh: I was ashamed, yea, even confounded, because I did bear the reproach of my youth.  20Is Ephraim my dear son? is he a pleasant child? for since I spake against him, I do earnestly remember him still: therefore my bowels are troubled for him; I will surely have mercy upon him, saith the LORD.  21Set thee up waymarks, make thee high heaps: set thine heart toward the highway, even the way which thou wentest: turn again, O virgin of Israel, turn again to these thy cities.  22How long wilt thou go about, O thou backsliding daughter? for the LORD hath created a new thing in the earth, A woman shall compass a man.  23Thus saith the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel; As yet they shall use this speech in the land of Judah and in the cities thereof, when I shall bring again their captivity; The LORD bless thee, O habitation of justice, and mountain of holiness.  24And there shall dwell in Judah itself, and in all the cities thereof together, husbandmen, and they that go forth with flocks.  25For I have satiated the weary soul, and I have replenished every sorrowful soul.  26Upon this I awaked, and beheld; and my sleep was sweet unto me.  27Behold, the days come, saith the LORD, that I will sow the house of Israel and the house of Judah with the seed of man, and with the seed of beast.  28And it shall come to pass, that like as I have watched over them, to pluck up, and to break down, and to throw down, and to destroy, and to afflict; so will I watch over them, to build, and to plant, saith the LORD.  29In those days they shall say no more, The fathers have eaten a sour grape, and the children's teeth are set on edge.  30But every one shall die for his own iniquity: every man that eateth the sour grape, his teeth shall be set on edge.  31Behold, the days come, saith the LORD, that I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel, and with the house of Judah:  32Not according to the covenant that I made with their fathers in the day that I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt; which my covenant they brake, although I was an husband unto them, saith the LORD:  33But this shall be the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel; After those days, saith the LORD, I will put my law in their inward parts, and write it in their hearts; and will be their God, and they shall be my people.  34And they shall teach no more every man his neighbour, and every man his brother, saying, Know the LORD: for they shall all know me, from the least of them unto the greatest of them, saith the LORD: for I will forgive their iniquity, and I will remember their sin no more.  35Thus saith the LORD, which giveth the sun for a light by day, and the ordinances of the moon and of the stars for a light by night, which divideth the sea when the waves thereof roar; The LORD of hosts is his name:  36If those ordinances depart from before me, saith the LORD, then the seed of Israel also shall cease from being a nation before me for ever.

The female is not waiting for the male to bring forth fruit. It is the male that is awaiting the female to bring forth fruit.

Revelation 12:  1And there appeared a great wonder in heaven; a woman clothed with the sun, and the moon under her feet, and upon her head a crown of twelve stars:  2And she being with child cried, travailing in birth, and pained to be delivered.

That is why you see the repeating thematic code of the great women of the bible unable to bring forth fruit without the appearance of the Messenger of YHWH, the Messiah - Sarah, Rebekah, Rachel, Manoah's wife, and many more. The count of seven begins with the divine light, Yeshua, not with the new (dark) moon. The new moon is appointed her circuit on the 4th day and appears in the middle of the creation week. Do you see the mirror imagery of the creation week?

You can see even in the creation week every day has a day mated with it. In this case you can see the mirror image of the days with one day reflecting the action of it's counterpart day.

Some traditionally mate the creation days as:

• 1 and 4
• 2 and 5
• 3 and 6
• and leave the seventh day mated to Israel

Once again we see here that the creation week is not solely the appointment of the sun, moon, and the earth, but it is the complete manifestation of all material things in the universe. It is the manifestation of the heavenly. It is the bringing forth of heavenly images or copies. It is the constricting of spirit to the crucifixion of limitation for the express purpose of YHHW reproducing His image. The crucifixion is not solely a single event in time, but it is the imprisonment of His light/spirit through time until the manifestation of the "sons of YHWH" occurs. We cannot forget that we exist by the word of His power.

Acts 17: 27That they should seek the Lord, if haply they might feel after him, and find him, though he be not far from every one of us:  28For in him we live, and move, and have our being; as certain also of your own poets have said, For we are also his offspring.  29Forasmuch then as we are the offspring of God, we ought not to think that the Godhead is like unto gold, or silver, or stone, graven by art and man's device.

I Corinthians 3:  15If any man's work shall be burned, he shall suffer loss: but he himself shall be saved; yet so as by fire.  16Know ye not that ye are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you?  17If any man defile the temple of God, him shall God destroy; for the temple of God is holy, which temple ye are.

This should give all the more meaning to loving our neighbor. When we greet our neighbor we greet the presence of the mind of YHWH in the process of redemption.

Matthew 25: 34Then shall the King say unto them on his right hand, Come, ye blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world:  35For I was an hungred, and ye gave me meat: I was thirsty, and ye gave me drink: I was a stranger, and ye took me in:  36Naked, and ye clothed me: I was sick, and ye visited me: I was in prison, and ye came unto me.  37Then shall the righteous answer him, saying, Lord, when saw we thee an hungred, and fed thee? or thirsty, and gave thee drink?  38When saw we thee a stranger, and took thee in? or naked, and clothed thee?  39Or when saw we thee sick, or in prison, and came unto thee?  40And the King shall answer and say unto them, Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me.  41Then shall he say also unto them on the left hand, Depart from me, ye cursed, into everlasting fire, prepared for the devil and his angels:  42For I was an hungred, and ye gave me no meat: I was thirsty, and ye gave me no drink:  43I was a stranger, and ye took me not in: naked, and ye clothed me not: sick, and in prison, and ye visited me not.  44Then shall they also answer him, saying, Lord, when saw we thee an hungred, or athirst, or a stranger, or naked, or sick, or in prison, and did not minister unto thee?  45Then shall he answer them, saying, Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye did it not to one of the least of these, ye did it not to me.  46And these shall go away into everlasting punishment: but the righteous into life eternal.

Picture the Image of YHWH nailed to the tree so that He cannot be free or move and then you can see the imprisonment of the Ruach of YHWH in the material universe awaiting the birth from the barren woman, typified by the barren barely lit moon. The woman is not complete of herself. She must join with her husband and bring forth fruit to be alive. This is symbolized by the conjunction of the sun and the moon.

The seventh day Sabbath is a picture of the joining of the male and the female and bringing forth the image of YHWH. On this day there is rest. The count begins with the appearance of the divine light and ends with the union of the Messiah and the Ruach Hakodesh (male & the female), the bridegroom and the bride in us. The redemption of the unclean woman (the moon, a picture of fallen creation) begins with the cycle of life, the production of the egg which is the soil that needs to produce the image of YHWH (the pearl of great price). The count of the sabbath does not wait upon her, it waits upon the coming of the Messiah, the Lord of the Sabbath. He is the seed of the kingdom searching for good ground. It is by the coming of the Messiah's water that we receive life. On the first seventh day sabbath you can see that the earth does not bring forth any flesh until a mist comes up from the ground.

Genesis 2: 1Thus the heavens and the earth were finished, and all the host of them.  2And on the seventh day God ended his work which he had made; and he rested on the seventh day from all his work which he had made.  3And God blessed the seventh day, and sanctified it: because that in it he had rested from all his work which God created and made.  4These are the generations of the heavens and of the earth when they were created, in the day that the LORD God made the earth and the heavens,  5And every plant of the field before it was in the earth, and every herb of the field before it grew: for the LORD God had not caused it to rain upon the earth, and there was not a man to till the ground.  6But there went up a mist from the earth, and watered the whole face of the ground.  7And the LORD God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul.  8And the LORD God planted a garden eastward in Eden; and there he put the man whom he had formed.

The most critical observation is the fulfillment of the whole Sabbath commandment, not only to rest on the seventh day, but to work for 6 days and then rest on the 7th, an uninterrupted interval from creation and the first week.

Exodus 20: 8Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy.  9Six days salt thou labour, and do all thy work:  10But the seventh day is the sabbath of the LORD thy God: in it thou shalt not do any work, thou, nor thy son, nor thy daughter, thy manservant, nor thy maidservant, nor thy cattle, nor thy stranger that is within thy gates:  11For in six days the LORD made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that in them is, and rested the seventh day: wherefore the LORD blessed the sabbath day, and hallowed it.

To keep the commandment you need to work 6 days and then rest. They are separate times. Work then rest. Female then male. Hidden then revealed. Seed then flesh.

The six days that precede the seventh day rest and union are days of labor, separation, and division. In order to complete the picture of wholeness, unity, and completion with the image of YHWH manifested in the earth on the seventh day, it must be preceded by 6 days of labor. which is a picture of the fallen state of creation due to the sin of Adam and Eve. Labor was the curse for those who disobeyed the commandment of YHWH. Rest is the restoration of the original state without sin: clean, whole, unified, and fruitful. Heaven and Earth are one. Man is able to commune with YHWH.

The new moon and the holy days picture the redemptive and ascending work after the fall and follow the count from the new moons, not the seven day count. The seventh day sabbath pictures the whole and complete rest of the image and countenance of YHWH in the heavens and earth and follows the seven day count from the manifestation of the divine light, not the appearance of the moon, which is a picture of the fallen state of creation needing redemption. This is also why you see the commemoration of the seventh day sabbath during the giving of the 10 commandments. Each of these are reflecting upon the original created image of YHWH manifest in creation, before the fall occurred. The new moon and the holy days are not mentioned in these 10 expressions of the image of YHWH, because they picture the redemption of the fallen woman seeking to regain the wholeness of the original created state, an unbroken image of YHWH. These other days aspire to the original holiness and rest of the original seventh day sabbath.

Keeping a partial workweek and then restarting the 6 day count until the next sabbath ruins the pattern of the manifestation of the image of YHWH set forth in the creation week and the Torah commandment to "labour for six days" and then rest on the seventh day. I would contend that the sabbath is meant for the appearance of the complete man (the copy of the divine light, the image of YHWH), which is typified by the appearance of the heavenly male, whereas the new moon is typified by the appearance of the redeemed woman. The counts are separate. Thus we see the 7th day sabbath commemorated immediately at the conclusion of the creative week.

The "woman (moon) encompasses the man (sun)", not the man encompassing the woman.

Genesis 2: 1Thus the heavens and the earth were finished, and all the host of them.  2And on the seventh day God ended his work which he had made; and he rested on the seventh day from all his work which he had made.  3And God blessed the seventh day, and sanctified it: because that in it he had rested from all his work which God created and made.  4These are the generations of the heavens and of the earth when they were created, in the day that the LORD God made the earth and the heavens,  5And every plant of the field before it was in the earth, and every herb of the field before it grew: for the LORD God had not caused it to rain upon the earth, and there was not a man to till the ground.

Notice that the completion of the image of YHWH does not occur until YHWH rests upon the seventh day and all flesh is brought forth on the seventh day.

This commemoration of the seven day count from creation is memorialized again from the mouth of YHWH at the giving of the 10 commandments at Mount Sinai. The 10 commandments are more correctly the 10 expressions of the image of YHWH. Each commandment bears directly upon the correct expression of that accurate image of YHWH, which appeared in the beginning on the first seventh day. The count begins with creation and never starts again from a different day. The seventh day sabbath and the image of YHWH is the crown of YHWH's creation and bears a special holiness set apart from all other days, which are depicted as labor. Remember labor is the curse assigned to the fallen image of YHWH.

Genesis 3: 17And unto Adam he said, Because thou hast hearkened unto the voice of thy wife, and hast eaten of the tree, of which I commanded thee, saying, Thou shalt not eat of it: cursed is the ground for thy sake; in sorrow shalt thou eat of it all the days of thy life;  18Thorns also and thistles shall it bring forth to thee; and thou shalt eat the herb of the field;  19In the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread, till thou return unto the ground; for out of it wast thou taken: for dust thou art, and unto dust shalt thou return.

There is no mention in the 10 commandments to other holy days, appointed times or moadim. The 7th day sabbath commemorates the original created state of rest and wholeness - the union of heaven and earth, male and female, uncorrupted flesh; the copy of the divine light, the image of YHWH.

The context of the festivals, appointed times, and new moons does not appear until Leviticus 23, right after the description in Leviticus 22 of those who have contamination or uncleanness and how they are forbidden from the Holy of Holies and the tent of meeting. Leviticus 22 goes into great detail describing those who are exiled from the tent of meeting and how they can gain entry to have fellowship with YHWH.

Leviticus 22: 1And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying,  2Speak unto Aaron and to his sons, that they separate themselves from the holy things of the children of Israel, and that they profane not my holy name in those things which they hallow unto me: I am the LORD.  3Say unto them, Whosoever he be of all your seed among your generations, that goeth unto the holy things, which the children of Israel hallow unto the LORD, having his uncleanness upon him, that soul shall be cut off from my presence: I am the LORD.  4What man soever of the seed of Aaron is a leper, or hath a running issue; he shall not eat of the holy things, until he be clean. And whoso toucheth any thing that is unclean by the dead, or a man whose seed goeth from him;  5Or whosoever toucheth any creeping thing, whereby he may be made unclean, or a man of whom he may take uncleanness, whatsoever uncleanness he hath;  6The soul which hath touched any such shall be unclean until even, and shall not eat of the holy things, unless he wash his flesh with water.

It is immediately after the full definition of uncleanness and cause of separation that we see the appointment of festivals, new moons, and appointed times. The goal of these days is to take on the holiness of the seventh day sabbath. The purpose of these days are "spiritual elevation" - ascension. These holy days aspire to the holiness of the sabbath because they are regular work days seeking to ascend.

The Chumash gives us insight as to why the 7th day sabbath is mentioned again in Leviticus 23.

Chumash, page 683, footnote number 2 & 3 on Leviticus 23:3:

The purpose of the festivals is spiritual elevation, and the special foods and festive clothing are to help people acheive that goal. By giving honor and distinctiveness to the day, we focus our minds on it and thereby foster a realization of the spiritual opportunities it offers us, if we but utilize them properly. A day of complete rest. The Sabbath is mentioned with the festivals to teach that anyone who desecrates the festivals is reagarded as if he had desecrated the Sabbath, and anyone who observes the festivals is regarded as if he had observed the Sabbath, because it is the holiest and the primary day of rest. The Sabbath bears testimony that God created the heaven and the earth, the festivals which recall the miracles of the exodus testify that God controls nature and can change it at will. Both concepts are fundamental.

The holy days symbolize how the unclean may become clean and attain the holiness of the original sabbath. The moon (unclean) does not dictate to the sun (clean) when the sabbath occurs. The light dictates to the image of YHWH when the complete wholeness and rest occurs, on the seventh day from the appearance of the divine light, when the image of YHWH appears in the earth. The count is from the beginning and does not start from any other count, not the new moon, not the new year, not the feast day or any other time.

The festivals point to the redemption of the fallen and broken image of YHWH. Indeed this is an appointment we do not want to miss. We must ask ourselves, are all moadim in scripture dictated by the new moon? What about the moadim of Numbers 28:2-4?

Numbers 28: 1And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying,  2Command the children of Israel, and say unto them, My offering, and my bread for my sacrifices made by fire, for a sweet savour unto me, shall ye observe to offer unto me in their due season.  3And thou shalt say unto them, This is the offering made by fire which ye shall offer unto the LORD; two lambs of the first year without spot day by day, for a continual burnt offering.  4The one lamb shalt thou offer in the morning, and the other lamb shalt thou offer at even;

Is this twice daily sacrifice a moadim dictated by the moon? Clearly it is not. Yet it is called a moadim.

We can also see the reinforcement of the the laboring of 6 days and through YHWH's provision of manna, the bread of heaven, the sanctification of every 7th day after 6 days of labor. Remember Yeshua the Messiah is the prophetic fulfillment of the Bread/Manna of Heaven. His image is the Father's.

Exodus 16: 12I have heard the murmurings of the children of Israel: speak unto them, saying, At even ye shall eat flesh, and in the morning ye shall be filled with bread; and ye shall know that I am the LORD your God.  13And it came to pass, that at even the quails came up, and covered the camp: and in the morning the dew lay round about the host.  14And when the dew that lay was gone up, behold, upon the face of the wilderness there lay a small round thing, as small as the hoar frost on the ground.  15And when the children of Israel saw it, they said one to another, It is manna: for they wist not what it was. And Moses said unto them, This is the bread which the LORD hath given you to eat.  16This is the thing which the LORD hath commanded, Gather of it every man according to his eating, an omer for every man, according to the number of your persons; take ye every man for them which are in his tents.  17And the children of Israel did so, and gathered, some more, some less.  18And when they did mete it with an omer, he that gathered much had nothing over, and he that gathered little had no lack; they gathered every man according to his eating.  19And Moses said, Let no man leave of it till the morning.  20Notwithstanding they hearkened not unto Moses; but some of them left of it until the morning, and it bred worms, and stank: and Moses was wroth with them.  21And they gathered it every morning, every man according to his eating: and when the sun waxed hot, it melted.  22And it came to pass, that on the sixth day they gathered twice as much bread, two omers for one man: and all the rulers of the congregation came and told Moses.  23And he said unto them, This is that which the LORD hath said, To morrow is the rest of the holy sabbath unto the LORD: bake that which ye will bake to day, and seethe that ye will seethe; and that which remaineth over lay up for you to be kept until the morning.  24And they laid it up till the morning, as Moses bade: and it did not stink, neither was there any worm therein.  25And Moses said, Eat that to day; for to day is a sabbath unto the LORD: to day ye shall not find it in the field.  26Six days ye shall gather it; but on the seventh day, which is the sabbath, in it there shall be none.  27And it came to pass, that there went out some of the people on the seventh day for to gather, and they found none.  28And the LORD said unto Moses, How long refuse ye to keep my commandments and my laws?  29See, for that the LORD hath given you the sabbath, therefore he giveth you on the sixth day the bread of two days; abide ye every man in his place, let no man go out of his place on the seventh day.  30So the people rested on the seventh day.

Notice that the manna is gathered for a count of six days, always six days, never five days, never four days. The time of gathering and labor is for 6 days and then through divine provision of a double portion on the sixth day, man is able to rest on the seventh day. Man abides in his house and does not go out to gather or work. We cannot miss the connection between the 6 day appearance of the manna of heaven and the role of Yeshua providing for the "rest" of His people on the seventh day through the manifestation of the divine light, the manna of heaven. He came to give us that light so that we might cease from our labors and "know YHWH".

We do not see YHWH providing for a third or fourth day that could occur if the new moon and the sabbath coincide sequentially. The provision is solely for the seventh day sabbath count interval from creation. We cannot escape notice that trying to preserve this manna overnight during the 6 day work week results in corruption of the manna, just as the image of YHWH was corrupted from the sin of the garden. Man became unclean and was subject to labor until He is redeemed on the seventh day sabbath.

Even the Talmud shows that Israel did not observe a lunar sabbath count. They make specific commentary on what to do if the new (dark) moon would ever fall on a seventh day sabbath. So why do they comment on what to do should this occur?

Talmud - Menachoth 103b

"Mishnah. A man may offer a meal-offering consisting of sixty tenths and bring them in one vessel if a man said, I take upon myself to offer sixty tenths, he may bring them in one vessel. But if he said, I take upon myself to offer sixty-one tenths, he must bring sixty in one vessel and the one in another vessel; for since the congregation bring on the first day of the feast of tabernacles when it falls on a Sabbath sixty-one tenths as a meal-offering, it is enough for an individual that his meal-offering be less by one tenth than that of the congregation."

Remember the lunar sabbatarians state that every 15th day of the month is a seventh day sabbath, and the first day of the Feast of Tabernacles is to start on the fifteenth day of the seventh month.

Talmud - Mas. Eiruvin 40b

"R. Zera replied: The New Moon is different from a festival - Since its mention is included in the benediction on the sanctity of the day in the morning and evening prayers it is also included in that of the additional prayer. But do Beth Shammai uphold the view that the mention of the New Moon is to be included? Was it not in fact taught: If a New Moon falls on a Sabbath, Beth Shammai ruled: One recites in his additional prayer eight benedictions and Beth Hillel ruled: Seven? This is indeed a difficulty."

Talmud - Pesachim 83a

"Mishnah. The bones, and the sinews, and the nothar of the paschal lamb are to be burnt on the sixteenth. If the sixteenth falls on the Sabbath, they are to be burnt on the seventeenth, because they do not override either the Sabbath or the festival."

Clearly these regulations pertain to the standing temple and there is no lunar sabbath observance. If there were there would be no need for the above commentary regarding if and when the new moon and the sabbath coincide.

Obviously any later methodized calendar set up by the rabbis would attempt to capture that which was in use before its creation. If they kept a lunar sabbath, they would have attempted to capture it in a calculated calendar. They did not. Also, If Yeshua saw Israel observing the work day as the Sabbath, He surely would have corrected them or mentioned it. He did not!

I do not see how it is possible to validate a lunar sabbath count. Some may claim it is because YHWH hasn't revealed it to me yet. I don't find this to be any kind of a convincing argument. All scripture must fit together otherwise we have an incorrect understanding of the instruction of YHWH.

We won't even begin to discuss that Hillel and Shammai or other rabbis never observed the Lunar Sabbath count during the first century when Yeshua would have walked the earth.

Those who keep a lunar sabbath count appear to be in error and are not in conformance to the Torah of YHWH. I pray that YHWH will enlighten us with His divine light and cause us to clearly see Him and not as through a darkened mirror (the moon).

I Corinthians 13:  11When I was a child, I spake as a child, I understood as a child, I thought as a child: but when I became a man, I put away childish things.  12For now we see through a glass, darkly; but then face to face: now I know in part; but then shall I know even as also I am known.  13And now abideth faith, hope, charity, these three; but the greatest of these is charity.

We must also take note of the transformation of being a bridesmaids of the Messiah to "Sons of YHWH" in our complete redemption. The female (fallen) has her true image restored and she becomes the true image of YHWH once again (male and female united - the heavenly male). We become one with the Messiah Yeshua.

Ephesians 2: 12That at that time ye were without Christ, being aliens from the commonwealth of Israel, and strangers from the covenants of promise, having no hope, and without God in the world:  13But now in Christ Jesus ye who sometimes were far off are made nigh by the blood of Christ.  14For he is our peace, who hath made both one, and hath broken down the middle wall of partition between us;  15Having abolished in his flesh the enmity, even the law of commandments contained in ordinances; for to make in himself of twain one new man, so making peace;  16And that he might reconcile both unto God in one body by the cross, having slain the enmity thereby:  17And came and preached peace to you which were afar off, and to them that were nigh.  18For through him we both have access by one Spirit unto the Father.

Luke 5: 33And they said unto him, Why do the disciples of John fast often, and make prayers, and likewise the disciples of the Pharisees; but thine eat and drink?  34And he said unto them, Can ye make the children of the bridechamber fast, while the bridegroom is with them?  35But the days will come, when the bridegroom shall be taken away from them, and then shall they fast in those days.

Matthew 25: 1Then shall the kingdom of heaven be likened unto ten virgins, which took their lamps, and went forth to meet the bridegroom.  2And five of them were wise, and five were foolish.  3They that were foolish took their lamps, and took no oil with them:  4But the wise took oil in their vessels with their lamps.  5While the bridegroom tarried, they all slumbered and slept.  6And at midnight there was a cry made, Behold, the bridegroom cometh; go ye out to meet him.  7Then all those virgins arose, and trimmed their lamps.  8And the foolish said unto the wise, Give us of your oil; for our lamps are gone out.  9But the wise answered, saying, Not so; lest there be not enough for us and you: but go ye rather to them that sell, and buy for yourselves.  10And while they went to buy, the bridegroom came; and they that were ready went in with him to the marriage: and the door was shut.  11Afterward came also the other virgins, saying, Lord, Lord, open to us.

The divine marriage is the joining of the male and the female, the above with the below. The fallen female takes on the image of the divine light (the heavenly male). She becomes clean on the seventh day, the sabbath. This heavenly joining turns her from the unclean, fallen, barren woman into the man-child of YHWH. This is the glorious appearing of the "Sons of YHWH".

Hosesa 1: 9Then said God, Call his name Loammi: for ye are not my people, and I will not be your God.  10Yet the number of the children of Israel shall be as the sand of the sea, which cannot be measured nor numbered; and it shall come to pass, that in the place where it was said unto them, Ye are not my people, there it shall be said unto them, Ye are the sons of the living God.  11Then shall the children of Judah and the children of Israel be gathered together, and appoint themselves one head, and they shall come up out of the land: for great shall be the day of Jezreel.

The fallen and defiled woman takes on the image of her husband, the Son of YHWH.

John 1:  11He came unto his own, and his own received him not.  12But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name:  13Which were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God.

It is only through the redemptive work of the promised seed that we can have our broken image repaired. It is the Messiah that gives us that spirit of adoption. It is not the Torah, it is not the holy days, it is not the new moon. They are shadows of His redemptvie work.

Romans 8:  13For if ye live after the flesh, ye shall die: but if ye through the Spirit do mortify the deeds of the body, ye shall live.  14For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God.  15For ye have not received the spirit of bondage again to fear; but ye have received the Spirit of adoption, whereby we cry, Abba, Father.

In fact all creation waits for the revealing of the manifestation of the Sons of God.

Romans 8: 18For I reckon that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us.  19For the earnest expectation of the creature waiteth for the manifestation of the sons of God.  20For the creature was made subject to vanity, not willingly, but by reason of him who hath subjected the same in hope,

Unfortunately, Israel did not recognize the coming of the redeemer, the Messiah Yeshua, the Image of YHWH, the promised seed from Genesis 3. In fact most still do not - even among Messianic Jews there are many who have rejected the oneness of Yeshua and YHWH and have made an idol of the Torah.

I John 3:  1Behold, what manner of love the Father hath bestowed upon us, that we should be called the sons of God: therefore the world knoweth us not, because it knew him not.  2Beloved, now are we the sons of God, and it doth not yet appear what we shall be: but we know that, when he shall appear, we shall be like him; for we shall see him as he is.  3And every man that hath this hope in him purifieth himself, even as he is pure.

The Messiah Yeshua YHWH gives us His image and we see this fulfilled in Revelation 12. This Heavenly man-child is not Yeshua.

Revelation 12: 1And there appeared a great wonder in heaven; a woman clothed with the sun, and the moon under her feet, and upon her head a crown of twelve stars:  2And she being with child cried, travailing in birth, and pained to be delivered.  3And there appeared another wonder in heaven; and behold a great red dragon, having seven heads and ten horns, and seven crowns upon his heads.  4And his tail drew the third part of the stars of heaven, and did cast them to the earth: and the dragon stood before the woman which was ready to be delivered, for to devour her child as soon as it was born.  5And she brought forth a man child, who was to rule all nations with a rod of iron: and her child was caught up unto God, and to his throne.

The heavenly man-child are those who receive the image of YHWH, provided by Yeshua's redemptive work. The Torah cannot do this redemption for you. It is merely a foreshadow (moon) of the messiah (sun). The body casts the shadow, the shadow does not cast the body.

Colossians 2: 16Let no man therefore judge you in meat, or in drink, or in respect of an holyday, or of the new moon, or of the sabbath days: 17Which are a shadow of things to come; but the body is of Christ.  18Let no man beguile you of your reward in a voluntary humility and worshipping of angels, intruding into those things which he hath not seen, vainly puffed up by his fleshly mind,

Those who wish to worship the Torah are observing the shadow and not the body. The body is the reality that casts the shadow. Yeshua is not the Torah. The Torah is merely His shadow. The reality of our redemption is not in the symbols, it is in the body of the Messiah Yeshua YHWH. Those well meaning Messianic Jews that reject Yeshua as the Messiah, the Image of YHWH, the Fullness of YHWH bodily, the Presence of YHWH, the Manna of Heaven, "Elohim with us", the utterance (Word) of YHWH, the manifest light of YHWH, are in profound error. They have made the Torah a golden calf choosing to worship the shadow and not the Light.

Hebrews 10:  1For the law having a shadow of good things to come, and not the very image of the things, can never with those sacrifices which they offered year by year continually make the comers thereunto perfect.  2For then would they not have ceased to be offered? because that the worshippers once purged should have had no more conscience of sins.  3But in those sacrifices there is a remembrance again made of sins every year.  4For it is not possible that the blood of bulls and of goats should take away sins.  5Wherefore when he cometh into the world, he saith, Sacrifice and offering thou wouldest not, but a body hast thou prepared me:  6In burnt offerings and sacrifices for sin thou hast had no pleasure.  7Then said I, Lo, I come (in the volume of the book it is written of me,) to do thy will, O God.  8Above when he said, Sacrifice and offering and burnt offerings and offering for sin thou wouldest not, neither hadst pleasure therein; which are offered by the law;  9Then said he, Lo, I come to do thy will, O God. He taketh away the first, that he may establish the second.  10By the which will we are sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all.  11And every priest standeth daily ministering and offering oftentimes the same sacrifices, which can never take away sins:  12But this man, after he had offered one sacrifice for sins for ever, sat down on the right hand of God;  13From henceforth expecting till his enemies be made his footstool.  14For by one offering he hath perfected for ever them that are sanctified.

The fallen and unclean woman is redeemed by the heavenly manna, the heavenly man, the divine light, the living waters, the flesh and blood (body) of the Messiah Yeshua. When we become one with Him, we receive His image and identity.

We see clearly that the Torah prophesied of the Messiah Yeshua YHWH. He is the fulfillment of those prophesies of redemption, the cleansing of those from sin, the attribution of righteousness to those who are bound up in sin. The Messiah Yeshua is the wholeness and completion of those prophesies. The Torah is not the completion, it is the foreshadow (darkness) of the reality (the Light of YHWH).

Romans 10: 1Brethren, my heart's desire and prayer to God for Israel is, that they might be saved.  2For I bear them record that they have a zeal of God, but not according to knowledge.  3For they being ignorant of God's righteousness, and going about to establish their own righteousness, have not submitted themselves unto the righteousness of God.  4For Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to every one that believeth. 5For Moses describeth the righteousness which is of the law, That the man which doeth those things shall live by them.  6But the righteousness which is of faith speaketh on this wise, Say not in thine heart, Who shall ascend into heaven? (that is, to bring Christ down from above:)  7Or, Who shall descend into the deep? (that is, to bring up Christ again from the dead.)  8But what saith it? The word is nigh thee, even in thy mouth, and in thy heart: that is, the word of faith, which we preach;  9That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved.  10For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.  11For the scripture saith, Whosoever believeth on him shall not be ashamed.  12For there is no difference between the Jew and the Greek: for the same Lord over all is rich unto all that call upon him.  13For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.

The division of male and female is no more, they are united in one and we become one with His name, Yeshua YHWH, the Messiah, the manifest Light, the Righteousness of YHWH, the Utterance (Word) placed in our mouths.

Revelation 3: 11Behold, I come quickly: hold that fast which thou hast, that no man take thy crown.  12Him that overcometh will I make a pillar in the temple of my God, and he shall go no more out: and I will write upon him the name of my God, and the name of the city of my God, which is new Jerusalem, which cometh down out of heaven from my God: and I will write upon him my new name.  13He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches.

I pray that you have the ears to hear what the Ruach Hakodesh says to the called out assembly. We await our true rest counted to the seventh day from day one, the manifestation of the divine light. Yeshua the Messiah is that divine manifest light appearing from the foundation of the world.

John 1: 1In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.  2The same was in the beginning with God.  3All things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was made.  4In him was life; and the life was the light of men.  5And the light shineth in darkness; and the darkness comprehended it not.  6There was a man sent from God, whose name was John.  7The same came for a witness, to bear witness of the Light, that all men through him might believe.  8He was not that Light, but was sent to bear witness of that Light.  9That was the true Light, which lighteth every man that cometh into the world.  10He was in the world, and the world was made by him, and the world knew him not.  11He came unto his own, and his own received him not.  12But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name:  13Which were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God.  14And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth.

You must receive the light to become a son of YHWH.

Notice Yeshua's comments in regard to the appearance of the light of the world in connection to the judgment of the adulterous woman who is a picture of the fallen, unclean, and barren woman, separated from her true husband. The Messiah redeems her by showing Her His light.

John 8: 4They say unto him, Master, this woman was taken in adultery, in the very act.  5Now Moses in the law commanded us, that such should be stoned: but what sayest thou?  6This they said, tempting him, that they might have to accuse him. But Jesus stooped down, and with his finger wrote on the ground, as though he heard them not.  7So when they continued asking him, he lifted up himself, and said unto them, He that is without sin among you, let him first cast a stone at her.  8And again he stooped down, and wrote on the ground.  9And they which heard it, being convicted by their own conscience, went out one by one, beginning at the eldest, even unto the last: and Jesus was left alone, and the woman standing in the midst.  10When Jesus had lifted up himself, and saw none but the woman, he said unto her, Woman, where are those thine accusers? hath no man condemned thee?  11She said, No man, Lord. And Jesus said unto her, Neither do I condemn thee: go, and sin no more.  12Then spake Jesus again unto them, saying, I am the light of the world: he that followeth me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life.  13The Pharisees therefore said unto him, Thou bearest record of thyself; thy record is not true.  14Jesus answered and said unto them, Though I bear record of myself, yet my record is true: for I know whence I came, and whither I go; but ye cannot tell whence I come, and whither I go. 15Ye judge after the flesh; I judge no man.  16And yet if I judge, my judgment is true: for I am not alone, but I and the Father that sent me.  17It is also written in your law, that the testimony of two men is true.  18I am one that bear witness of myself, and the Father that sent me beareth witness of me.  19Then said they unto him, Where is thy Father? Jesus answered, Ye neither know me, nor my Father: if ye had known me, ye should have known my Father also.

The woman is redeemed by Yeshua's own words, the "light of the world", which the pharisees cannot tell where it comes from or where it is going (much like the sun in its orbit) or where His image comes from, the heavenly Father. This parable is a picture of the Messiah's redemption of fallen creation through the appearance of His divine light, the image of YHWH. If we know Him, then we know the Father. This is the same goal that is aspired to in the giving of manna and subsequent resting and knowing YHWH on the divine seventh day.

Exodus 16: 12I have heard the murmurings of the children of Israel: speak unto them, saying, At even ye shall eat flesh, and in the morning ye shall be filled with bread; and ye shall know that I am the LORD your God.

This is the bread of heaven that we must consume in order to have eternal life. The Messiah Yeshua is the Bread of Life that we must consume and become one with. We must be grafted into Him and become one with Him.

Praise be the name of Yeshua YHWH, the divine light of the world, the beginning and ending. We see Him walking in the midst of the seven candlesticks in Revelation.

Revelation 1:  11Saying, I am Alpha and Omega, the first and the last: and, What thou seest, write in a book, and send it unto the seven churches which are in Asia; unto Ephesus, and unto Smyrna, and unto Pergamos, and unto Thyatira, and unto Sardis, and unto Philadelphia, and unto Laodicea.

We should all know that the Alpha and Omega is really the Aleph and the Tav that appears in Genesis 1:1.

Hebrews 4: 2For unto us was the gospel preached, as well as unto them: but the word preached did not profit them, not being mixed with faith in them that heard it.  3For we which have believed do enter into rest, as he said, As I have sworn in my wrath, if they shall enter into my rest: although the works were finished from the foundation of the world.  4For he spake in a certain place of the seventh day on this wise, And God did rest the seventh day from all his works.  5And in this place again, If they shall enter into my rest.  6Seeing therefore it remaineth that some must enter therein, and they to whom it was first preached entered not in because of unbelief:  7Again, he limiteth a certain day, saying in David, To day, after so long a time; as it is said, To day if ye will hear his voice, harden not your hearts.  8For if Jesus had given them rest, then would he not afterward have spoken of another day.  9There remaineth therefore a rest to the people of God.

This redemptive work was completed from the foundation of the world.

Ephesians 1:  3Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who hath blessed us with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ:  4According as he hath chosen us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before him in love:  5Having predestinated us unto the adoption of children by Jesus Christ to himself, according to the good pleasure of his will,

Our redemption starts and ends with the glorious appearing of the divine light. We should count accordingly to enter our rest. May your countenance bear the image of the Divine Light, Yeshua the Messiah, the true image of YHWH.

Romans 1:  19Because that which may be known of God is manifest in them; for God hath shewed it unto them.  20For the invisible things of him from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even his eternal power and Godhead; so that they are without excuse:  21Because that, when they knew God, they glorified him not as God, neither were thankful; but became vain in their imaginations, and their foolish heart was darkened.  22Professing themselves to be wise, they became fools, 23And changed the glory of the uncorruptible God into an image made like to corruptible man, and to birds, and fourfooted beasts, and creeping things.  24Wherefore God also gave them up to uncleanness through the lusts of their own hearts, to dishonour their own bodies between themselves:  25Who changed the truth of God into a lie, and worshipped and served the creature more than the Creator, who is blessed for ever. Amen.  26For this cause God gave them up unto vile affections: for even their women did change the natural use into that which is against nature:

The sole purpose of the manifest universe is to bring forth the manifestation of the divine image from start to finish - to divide light from darkness, day from night, below from above, water from land, and to show forth the unity of male and female. This is the replication of the light, the one mind becoming many countenances. This count of creation began on day one with manifest light and concluded on day seven with that light shining from the countenance of Adam and Eve as YHWH rested and tabernacled with them. They heard the voice of YHWH and breathed His breath.

Yeshua is the seed and the Image of YHWH and we are made complete in Him. The holy days and new moons are a picture of this redemptive work. They are shadows of the original seventh day sabbath and the fulfillment of the reality to come. Our beginning and ending is with the divine light, not the shadow. Our count begins with the manifestation of the reality, not the shadow. Rest on the seventh day sabbath is counted from the first appearance of the divine light.

Colossians 2: 8 Beware lest any man spoil you through philosophy and vain deceit, after the tradition of men, after the rudiments of the world, and not after Christ.  9For in him dwelleth all the fulness of the Godhead bodily.  10And ye are complete in him, which is the head of all principality and power:

We can see how the lunar sabbatarian count has become a vain philosophy leading people away from the Divine Light and the consecration of the appearance of the Divine Light and the Image of YHWH on the seventh day of the creation week. We cannot overlook the significance of the original rest in the Image of YHWH, the preeminence of that wholeness in all things. We aspire to return to that rest, and that redemption is typified by the New Moons and the Holy Days. They are not the same as the seventh day sabbath, just as the Torah is not the same as the Messiah Yeshua, the Seed and Light of YHWH.

The most glaring errors in the lunar sabbath count -Lunar Sabbatarians have left these issues unanswered since they cannot refute them:

• We need to be careful that we are relying on real evidence to support our belief rather than an interpretation of evidence.
• One would need to rely on a certain level of (highly interpretive) evidence rather than real "proof."
• One major problem that Lunar Sabbath keepers face is the fact that there are extra days in the month which prevent them from being able to keep the Sabbath every seven days. 
• This essentially means they don't truly get a day of rest every seven days. 
• This problematic logic centers around the belief that the moon must be used in setting ALL "moedim."
  • There were two lambs offered daily, one in the morning and the other in the evening. Yahweh says, "you shall be careful to offer to Me at their appointed time <4150>." The "appointed time" or "moed" here is morning and evening. The moon is not involved in determining the morning or evening, yet these are called "moedim."
• Yahweh would have to send a quadruple portion on the 28th day to cover the 28th, 29th, 30th and 1st day (they might be up to their knees in Manna!), or He sends Manna for the 7-8 days following the 29th day of the Lunar month (which conflicts with the principle "Six days you shall gather it.")
• A real problem with the Lunar Sabbath doctrine is a lack of a clear explanation anywhere in scripture.
• The fact that Yahweh blessed and sanctified one specific day... clearly demonstrates that a cyclic pattern is to follow. If Yahweh wanted to sanctify and bless the 8th, 15th, 22nd and 29th days of the month, He would need to say that He blessed and sanctified specific days of the month.
• Yahweh didn't rest two days and He didn't rest for three days. He didn't say to do a half-rest for one day or two days following the 4th Sabbath of the month.
• Yahweh never specified certain days of the month for His regular Sabbath, but a specific day of the month is given for each of His feast day Sabbaths.
• The recorded practices of first century Judaism while the temple still stood indicate that they did not keep a Lunar Sabbath. They kept the Sabbath on a recurring, seven day week just as it is given in Genesis chapter 1, independent of the moon cycle. Therefore, since Yahushua kept the Sabbath along with the rest of the Jews of that period, He did not participate in a Lunar Sabbath, a doctrine that doesn't appear to exist in Judaism at that time.
• Josephus even goes so far as to say that the Essenes are "stricter than any other of the Jews in resting from their labors on the seventh day." Does it sound like there was any disagreement as to when the Sabbath was?
• From Genesis to Revelation, you will not find a single commandment to keep the "Lunar Sabbath."
• We can look at the writings of Roman historians and other writers to see if the Romans associated the Jewish Sabbath with their "Saturday/Day of Saturn." If they did associate the Sabbath with their Day of Saturn in the first century or before, this would be undeniable evidence that the Jewish week and the Roman week were both kept on the same recurring weekly cycle.  
• Recognizing the seventh day sabbath is associated with a singular day though history, Saturday, many lunar advocates wish to distort the relationship between this seventh day observance and the roman calendar naming system, stating that the seventh day (known through history as Saturday) became a compromised pagan observance. In their zeal to abandon all things non-Hebrew they would abandon the truth of logic and history as well.
• I suggest you review this commentary at: http://www.eliyah.com/lunarsabbath.html . There are many valid points mentioned here which the Lunar Sabbatarians have left unrefuted and would rather not comment upon. This is rather telling in and of itself.

Much of the writings that support a Lunar Sabbath count are rife with poor scholarship and necessitate the assumption of unproven points to support their arguments. Those who are offended by this should use it as motivation to improve the scholarship of their arguments or forsake the argument completely. All of it I pray will be guided by the Hand of YHWH, our Messiah Yeshua YHWH, through whom we are redeemed; the Light of the world.

The simplest and most authoritative argument for Saturday being the correct seventh day sabbath is that Yeshua did not correct anyone during His ministry for keeping the wrong day as the seventh day sabbath. So if the lunar sabbatarians are right then when we examine contemporary history we should find the Romans documenting an irregular rest day of the Jews. Instead we find that the un-rebuked seventh day sabbath that Yeshua kept is acknowledged by the Romans as consistently being observed on the Roman Saturday. It is never documented as falling on any other day. This fact of itself destroys the arguments of the Lunar Sabbatarians.

http://www.eliyah.com/lunarsabbath.html

However, when it comes to determining whether or not the Jews of the first century kept the Sabbath using the Lunar Sabbath or, as I believe, a recurring weekly Sabbath, examining the records of Roman historians and other writers can be helpful. By the admission of Lunar Sabbath keepers, and clear historical record, the Romans did not follow the moon phases when determining the weeks, or even the months for that matter.

For this reason, we can look into the writings of Roman historians and other writers to see if the Romans associated the Jewish Sabbath with their "Saturday/Day of Saturn." If they did associate the Sabbath with their Day of Saturn in the first century or before, this would be undeniable evidence that the Jewish week and the Roman week were both kept on the same recurring weekly cycle.  

As we will see in this section, there is no doubt that Roman historians and other writers explicitly and repeatedly consider the timing of Jewish Sabbath keeping to be linked with the seventh day of the Roman week, which was a repeating seven day cycle, independent of the moon phases. 

70 - 84 CE (AD)

Frontinus, a Roman Soldier who lived from c. 40 CE to 103 CE, wrote a book on military strategy called Strategematicon in 84 A.D. In it, he writes:

"The deified Augustus Vespasian attacked the Jews on the day of Saturn, a day on which it is sinful for them to do any business." Frontinus Stratagem 2.1.17. 

The original Latin version of this book has "Saturnis" for Saturn, confirming that the Romans associated the Sabbath day with their "day of Saturn" which is on the seventh day of the week. 

Since this book was written a mere 14 years after Vespasian's (Titus') destruction of Jerusalem, this is obviously very strong historical evidence directly from a first century eyewitness, tying in the Sabbath with the recurring seven day cycle of the Romans.

63 BCE - 229 CE

Cassius Dio, a Roman Historian who lived from ca. 155 to 229 CE, using the historical annals of the Roman empire, wrote about 3 battles which the Roman empire had with the Jews. 

The first battle was during a time when the Hyrcanus II and Aristobulus II, two brothers who were the offspring of the Maccabees, were engaged in a dispute over who would rule. The Romans, through the actions of Pompey, came in and settled the dispute, siding with Hyrcanus. While speaking of Pompey's battle, the Sabbath is mentioned. 

The setting is 63 BCE: 

"Most of the city, to be sure, he took without any trouble, as he was received by the party of Hyrcanus; but the temple itself, which the other party had occupied, he captured only with difficulty. 
For it was on high ground and was fortified by a wall of its own, and if they had continued defending it on all days alike, he could not have got possession of it. 
As it was, they made an excavation of what are called the days of Saturn, and by doing no work at all on those days afforded the Romans an opportunity in this interval to batter down the wall. 
The latter, on learning of this superstitious awe of theirs, made no serious attempts the rest of the time, but on those days, when they came round in succession, assaulted most vigorously. 
Thus the defenders were captured on the day of Saturn, without making any defense, and all the wealth was plundered. 
The kingdom was given to Hyrcanus, and Aristobulus was carried away." Cassius Dio Roman History 37.16.1-4

So the Romans took advantage of the fact that the Jews would not work on the Sabbath. When was the Sabbath? Again, the weekly Sabbath coincides with the Roman "days of Saturn." 

The second battle listed by Cassius Dio occurred in 36 BCE, is the one that resulted in the very first King Herod coming to power: 

"The Jews, indeed, had done much injury to the Romans, but they suffered far more themselves. 
The first of them to be captured were those who were fighting for the precinct of their god, and then the rest on the day even then called the day of Saturn. 
And so excessive were they in their devotion to religion that the first set of prisoners, those who had been captured along with the temple, obtained leave from Sosius, when the day of Saturn came round again, and went up into the temple and there performed all the customary rites, together with the rest of the people. 
These people Antony entrusted to a certain Herod to govern; but Antigonus he bound to a cross and flogged,— a punishment no other king had suffered at the hands of the Romans,— and afterwards slew him." Cassius Dio Roman History 49.22.4-6

Note that Cassius Dio reports the Jews as keeping "customary rites" at the temple on "the day even then called Day of Saturn." This indicates that the Sabbath wasn't only called the "Day of Saturn" during his lifetime, but it was called the "Day of Saturn" back in 36 BCE, well before Yahushua was born in Bethlehem.

Next, he records that the 70 CE Jerusalem destruction was on the Sabbath, which he once again calls the "day of Saturn:" 

70 - 229 CE

Thus was Jerusalem destroyed on the very day of Saturn, the day which even now the Jews reverence most. 
From that time forth it was ordered that the Jews who continued to observe their ancestral customs should pay an annual tribute of two denarii to Jupiter Capitoline. 
In consequence of this success both generals received the title of imperator, but neither got that of Judaïcus, although all the other honours that were fitting on the occasion of so magnificent a victory, including triumphal arches, were voted to them. Cassius Dio Roman History 65.7.2

So his report is that the Jews kept the Sabbath on the "day of Saturn" from 63 BCE up until his day, no later than 229 CE. His report also agrees with Frontinus' account of the 70 CE battle. 

c. 100 CE

The Historian Cornelius Tacitus (ca. 56CE – ca. 117CE), after suggesting that Jews kept the Sabbath out of laziness, also associated the Sabbath with the Roman idol, Saturn: 

They are said to have devoted the seventh day to rest, because that day brought an end to their troubles. Later, finding idleness alluring, they gave up the seventh year as well to sloth. 
Others maintain that they do this in honor of Saturn; either because their religious principles are derived from the Idaei, who are supposed to have been driven out with Saturn and become the ancestors of the Jewish people; or else because, of the seven constellations which govern the lives of men, the star of Saturn moves in the topmost orbit and exercises peculiar influence, and also because most of the heavenly bodies move round their courses in multiples of seven. From The Histories, Book V

Again, the fact that a pagan associated Sabbath keeping with Saturn demonstrates that the Roman week's day of Saturn (Satur-day) was concurrent with what Yahweh calls the Sabbath day. Tacitus is an eyewitness from the first century who has no "axe to grind" in regards to when the Sabbath should be observed. He wrote this a mere 30 years after the destruction of the temple in Jerusalem.  

28 BCE to 1 BCE

Tibullus, a Latin Poet who lived from 54 BCE - 19 BCE, references the Sabbath in one of his Elegies. The Poet is quoted by J. Hugh Michael in his paper entitled "The Jewish Sabbath in the Latin Classical Writers." In this Journal article, he says:

"Tibullus, again, gives us a glimpse of the influence of the Sabbath on the Romans. The Poet, sick in a foreign land, complains of his loneliness; neither mother nor sister has he there to nurse him; nor is Delia with him--she who had inquired of all the gods before permitting him to leave the city. Says Tibillus:

All promised a return; yet did nothing stay her from looking back in tears and terror on my journey. Yea, even I her comforter, after I had given my parting charge, sought still in my disquiet for reasons to linger and delay. Either birds or words of evil omen were my pretexts, or there was the holy day of Saturn to detain me. (Book I, Eleg. iii 13-18 in Postgate's translation in the Loeb Classics.)

The day of which the poet speaks is of course the Saturday, or, as Postgate puts it, "the Jewish Sabbath, on which no work was to be undertaken," and the implication is clear that unwillingness to set off on a journey on the Sabbath day was no unusual thing among the inhabitants of Rome, for Tibullus is enumerating the common reasons for the postponement of journeys of which he was only too ready to avail himself." The Jewish Sabbath in the Latin Classical Writers. J. Hugh Michael Victoria College, Toronto, Canada. The American Journal of Semitic Languages and Literatures, Vol. 40, No. 2. (Jan., 1924), pp. 117-124. 

It is interesting that Romans would have any concern at all about traveling on the Sabbath. J. Hugh Michael references another writing by the Poet Ovid, who lived from 43 BCE to 17 CE:

Still more impressive is the witness of Ovid. In the Ars Amatoria he instructs the young Roman who is desirous of finding an object for his affections how he should set about his search. 
The quest need not take him far a field: there is no lack of suitable damsels in Rome. 
The poet even specifies the parts of Rome where the quest of the amorous youth is most likely to be crowned with success: he should not neglect "Adonis lamented of Venus, or the seventh day observed as holy by the Syrian Jew." 
The first part of this direction can only mean that the youth should visit the Temple of Venus when her grief for Adonis was commemorated on the anniversary of his death. 
Similarly the second part must mean that he should attend the Sabbath services held in the Jewish synagogues. 
Is it possible to attach any other meaning to the advice that the youth should not avoid the seventh day observed by the Syrian Jew? 
And what meaning is there in the counsel unless Roman maidens were wont to attend those services? 
It is not easy to think that it was the poet's intention that the young Roman should become enamored of a Jewess! The Jewish Sabbath in the Latin Classical Writers. J. Hugh Michael Victoria College, Toronto, Canada. The American Journal of Semitic Languages and Literatures, Vol. 40, No. 2. (Jan., 1924), pp. 117-124

The work that J. Hugh Michael references, Ars Amatoria, was written in approximately 1 BCE. Thus, it is evident that even the Romans were associating the seventh day of their Roman week with the Sabbath. But was Sabbath keeping really this tied into their culture?

119 CE

The Sabbath does appear to be closely entwined to the weekly cycle of the first century Romans. This is evidenced by the writings of Suetonius. Suetonius (ca. 69CE - 130CE) was a Roman historian who wrote "Lives of Twelve Caesars" in 119 CE. While describing the life of Tiberius Caesar (14 - 37 CE), he wrote::

"The grammarian Diogenes, who used to lecture every Sabbath at Rhodes, would not admit Tiberius when he came to hear him on a different day, but sent a message by a common slave of his, putting him off to the seventh day. When this man waited before the Emperor's door at Rome to pay his respects, Tiberius took no further revenge than to bid him return seven years later." Suetonius The Life of Tiberius 32.2

Rhodes was a major schooling center for Roman families. It's interesting that the seventh day is referred to as the "Sabbath" (Latin: sabbatis) in Roman literature, especially when it is written by a pagan historian who was even the Roman Emperor's secretary for a time (Wikipedia entry on Suetonius). 

It appears that J. Hugh Michael's references to the Roman poets, as well as this reference from Suetonius, is a strong indication that the seventh day Sabbath had become more tied into Roman society than most people realize. Possibly this is one of the reasons Josephus said:

"The masses have long since shown a keen desire to adopt our religious observances; and there is not one city, Greek or barbarian, nor a single nation, to which our custom of abstaining from work on the seventh day has not spread and where our fasts and the lighting of lamps and many of our prohibitions in the matter of food are not observed. Apion 2:282-283

In consideration of these things, it appears to me that the Romans picked up the recurring seven day week from the Jews, not the other way around. For 5 centuries or longer the Romans had kept an 8 day week with the days being named by the letters of the alphabet A through H. They did not keep a seven day week until they came into more contact with Sabbath keeping Jews in the early centuries BCE. 

The fact that they named the days of the week after various planetary idols doesn't prove that they originated the recurring 7 day week. The naming of the days after planetary idols appears to have originated with either the Babylonians or the Hindu civilization, not the Romans. 

So if you are a Lunar Sabbath keeper, the obvious question for you is, "If the Jews in the first century kept the Lunar Sabbath, and only later adopted what you call the 'Roman week,' why do the first century Romans keep saying the Jewish Sabbath is on their "day of Saturn (Saturday)?" The obvious answer to the obvious question is that the first century Jews, including Yahushua the Messiah and His disciples, kept the same recurring seven day week as the Romans. It is historical fact that the same week and day sequence exists to this day and has not changed. Yahweh has preserved His holy Sabbath!

There are those who attempt to use Philo's writing as a support of a lunar sabbath count. They are clearly reading their assumptions into His commentary as He does not once iterate that the seventh day sabbath count was governed by the New Moon. I would suggest you read them for yourself so you may observe how lunar sabbatarians read their assumptions into his writings. You will notice that I don't take any quotes out of context, but leave all surrounding commentary so that you will not be left with an inadequate view of what is being discussed.

We also notice that Philo has a good grasp of the Messiah and the meaning of numbers and symbols. His commentary only reinforces what you have read up to this point.

Philo, The Special Laws II:

THE SECOND FESTIVAL

XV. (56) But after this continued and uninterrupted festival which thus lasts through all time, there is another celebrated, namely, that of the sacred seventh day after each recurring interval of six days, which some have denominated the virgin, looking at its exceeding sanctity and purity. And others have called the motherless, as being produced by the Father of the universe alone, as a specimen of the male kind unconnected with the sex of women; for the number seven is a most brave and valiant number, well adapted by nature for government and authority. Some, again, have called it the occasion, forming their conjectures of that part of its essence which is appreciable only by the intellect, from the objects intelligible to their outward senses. (57) For whatever is best among the objects of the external senses, the things by means of which the seasons of the year and the revolutions of time are brought to perfection in their appointed order, partake of the number seven. I mean that there are seven planets; that the stars of the Bear are seven, that the Pleiads are seven, and the revolutions of the moon when increasing and waning, and the orderly well-regulated circuits of the other bodies, the beauty of which exceeds all description. (58) But Moses, from a most honourable cause, called it consummation and perfection; attributing to the number six the origination of all the parts of the world, and to the number seven their perfection; for the number six is an oddeven number, being composed of twice three, having the odd number for the male and the even number for the female, from the union of which, production takes place in accordance with the unalterable laws of nature. (59) But the number seven is free from all such commixture, and is, if one must speak plainly, the light of the number six; for what the number six engendered, that the number seven displayed when brought to perfection. In reference to which fact it may properly be called the birthday of the world, as the day in which the work of the Father, being exhibited as perfect with all its parts perfect, was commanded to rest and abstain from all works. (60) Not that the law is the adviser of idleness, for it is always accustoming its followers to submit to hardships, and training them to labour, and it hates those who desire to be indolent and idle; at all events, it expressly commands us to labour diligently for six days, {9}{#ex 20:9.} but in order to give some remission from uninterrupted and incessant toil, it refreshes the body with seasons of moderate relaxation exactly measured out, so as to renew it again for fresh works. For those who take breath in this way, I am speaking not merely about private individuals but even about athletes, collect fresh strength, and with more vigorous power, without any shrinking and with great endurance, encounter everything that must be done. (61) And the works meant are those enjoined by precepts and doctrines in accordance with virtue. And in the day he exhorts us to apply ourselves to philosophy, improving our souls and the dominant part of us, our mind. (62) Accordingly, on the seventh day there are spread before the people in every city innumerable lessons of prudence, and temperance, and courage, and justice, and all other virtues; during the giving of which the common people sit down, keeping silence and pricking up their ears, with all possible attention, from their thirst for wholesome instruction; but some of those who are very learned explain to them what is of great importance and use, lessons by which the whole of their lives may be improved. (63) And there are, as we may say, two most especially important heads of all the innumerable particular lessons and doctrines; the regulating of one's conduct towards God by the rules of piety and holiness, and of one's conduct towards men by the rules of humanity and justice; each of which is subdivided into a great number of subordinate ideas, all praiseworthy. (64) From which considerations it is plain that Moses does not leave those persons at any time idle who submit to be guided by his sacred admonitions; but since we are composed of both soul and body, he has allotted to the body such work as is suited to it, and to the soul also such tasks as are good for that. And he has taken care that the one shall succeed the other, so that while the body is labouring the soul may be at rest, and when the body is enjoying relaxation the soul may be labouring; and so the best lives with the contemplative and the active life, succeed to one another in regular alternations. The active life having received the number six, according to the service appointed for the body; and the contemplative life the number seven, as tending to knowledge and to the perfecting of the intellect.

XVI. (65) It is forbidden also on this day to kindle a fire, as being the beginning and seed of all the business of life; since without fire it is not possible to make any of the things which are indispensably necessary for life, so that men in the absence of one single element, the highest and most ancient of all, are cut off from all works and employments of arts, especially from all handicraft trades, and also from all particular services. (66) But it seems likely that it was on account of those who were less obedient, and who were the least inclined to attend to what was done, that Moses gave additional laws, besides, thinking it right, not only that those who were free should abstain from all works on the seventh day, but also that their servants and handmaids should have a respite from their tasks, proclaiming a day of freedom to them also after every space of six days, in order to teach both classes this most admirable lesson; (67) so that the masters should be accustomed to do some things with their own hands, not waiting for the services and ministrations of their servants, in order that if any unforeseen necessities came upon them, according to the changes which take place in human affairs, they might not, from being wholly unaccustomed to do anything for themselves, faint at what they had to do; but, finding the different parts of the body active and handy, might work with ease and cheerfulness; and teaching the servants not to despair of better prospects, but having a relaxation every six days as a kind of spark and kindling of freedom, to look forward to a complete relaxation hereafter, if they continued faithful and attached to their masters. (68) And from the occurrence of the free men at times submitting to the tasks of servants, and of the servants enjoying a respite and holiday, it will arise that the life of mankind advances in improvement towards perfect virtue, from their being thus reminded of the principles of equality, and repaying each other with necessary services, both those of high and those of obscure rank. (69) But the law has given a relaxation, not to servants only on the seventh day, but also to the cattle. And yet by nature the servants are born free; for no man is by nature a slave. But other animals are expressly made for the use and service of man, and are therefore ranked as slaves; but, nevertheless, those that ought to bear burdens, and to endure toil and labour on behalf of their owners, do all find a respite on the seventh day. (70) And why need I mention other particulars? The ox, the animal who is born for the most important and most useful of all the purposes of life, namely, for the plough, when the earth is already prepared for seed; and again, when the sheaves are brought into the barn, for threshing in order to the purification of the crop, is on this day unharnessed, keeping as a festival that day which is the birthday of the year. And thus its holiness pervades every thing and affects every creature.

XVII. (71) And Moses thinks the number seven worthy of such reverence that even all other things which at all partake of it are honoured by him; at all events, on every seventh year he ordains a remission of debts, assisting the poor, and inviting the rich to humanity; {10}{#de 15:1.} that so they, from their abundance, giving to those that are in want, may also look forward to receiving services from them in the case of any disaster happening to them. For the accidents of human life are numerous, and life is not always anchored on the same bottom, but is apt to change like the fickle wind which blows in different directions at different times. (72) It is well, therefore, that the kindness shown by the creditors should extend to all the debtors. But since all men are not naturally inclined to magnanimity, but some men are the slaves of money, or perhaps not very rich, the law has appointed that they should contribute what will not inconvenience them when parted with. (73) For while it does not permit them to lend on usury to their fellow countrymen, it has allowed them to receive interest from foreigners; calling the former, with great felicity of expression, their brothers, in order to prevent any one's grudging to give of his possessions to those who are as if by nature joint inheritors with themselves; but those who are not their fellow countrymen are called strangers, as is very natural...

XVIII. (79) After having given these commandments, Moses proceeds in regular order to establish a law full of all gentleness and humanity. "If," says this law, "one of thy brethren be sold to thee, let him serve thee for six years; and in the seventh year let him be set free without any Payment,"{11}{#de 15:12.}...

Philo also identifies with the meaning of the six (double three) and the seven and their relationship to the male and the female. He also reiterates, " there is another celebrated, namely, that of the sacred seventh day after each recurring interval of six days", indicating no reliance upon the new moon as a start for the count to the seventh day sabbath.

We also cannot miss that Philo associates this seventh day sabbath rest that occurs at the end of the year when the ox no longer needs to labor on the birthday of the year. So when did that first birthday find its completion? With the new moon? No, it was with the appearance of the image of YHWH on the first seventh day sabbath when the heavens and earth found completion and rest. The count of years has preceded from that date forward. We do not see the land sabbath nor the seven year release for slaves beginning their count from the new moon.

So what does Philo say about the New Moon, since he has not once mentioned the New Moon in relation to the seventh day sabbath?

Philo The Special Laws II:

THE THIRD FESTIVAL

XXVI. (140) Following the order which we have adopted, we proceed to speak of the third festival, that of the new moon. First of all, because it is the beginning of the month, and the beginning, whether of number or of time, is honourable. Secondly, because at this time there is nothing in the whole of heaven destitute of light. (141) Thirdly, because at that period the more powerful and important body gives a portion of necessary assistance to the less important and weaker body; for, at the time of the new moon, the sun begins to illuminate the moon with a light which is visible to the outward senses, and then she displays her own beauty to the beholders. And this is, as it seems, an evident lesson of kindness and humanity to men, to teach them that they should never grudge to impart their own good things to others, but, imitating the heavenly bodies, should drive envy away and banish it from the Soul.{17}{sections 142-144 were omitted in Yonge's translation because the edition on which Yonge based his translation, Mangey, lacked this material. These lines have been newly translated for this volume.} (142) The fourth reason is that of all the bodies in the heaven, the moon traverses the zodiac in the least appointed time: it accomplishes its orbit in a monthly interval. For this reason the law has honored the end of its orbit, the point when the moon has finished at the beginning point from which it began to travel, by having called that day a feast so that it might again teach us an excellent lesson that in the affairs of life we should make the ends harmonious with the beginnings. This will happen if we hold the reins on our first impulses with the power of reason and do not permit them to refuse the reins and to run free like animals without anyone in charge of the herd. (143) With regard to the benefits which the moon provides to all on earth, why is it necessary to run through and detail them? Their proofs are obvious. Or isn't it by its waxings that rivers and springs overflow, and again by its wanings that they diminish; that seas sometimes retreat and are drawn down through their ebb and flow, and at other times suddenly run full through the tide; that the air experiences all sorts of shifts in the form of clear weather, cloudy weather, and other changes? Don't the fruits of cultivated crops and trees grow and come to maturity through the orbits of the moon which nurses and ripens each of the growing crops through dewladen and very gentle breezes? (144) But this is not the appropriate occasion, as I said, to speak at length about the praise of the moon by running through and enumerating the benefits which it provides to animals and to all on the earth. For these reasons and others similar to them, the new moon has been honored and taken its place among the feasts.

We cannot help but notice that Philo captures the meaning we have discussed about the moon only reflecting the light of the sun, but his commentary is totally absent any connection to the seventh day sabbath count. Totally. Now if the seventh day sabbath count was from the new moon wouldn't Philo have made some sort of connecting reference to it? Let's not make assumptions about what Philo should or would do. He makes no connecting reference between the seventh day sabbath and the new moon, but he does specifically comment on and establish the connection between all days that are counted from the new moon.

Philo The Special Laws II:

THE FOURTH FESTIVAL

XXVII. (145) And after the feast of the new moon comes the fourth festival, that of the passover, which the Hebrews call pascha, on which the whole people offer sacrifice, beginning at noonday and continuing till evening. (146) And this festival is instituted in remembrance of, and as giving thanks for, their great migration which they made from Egypt, with many myriads of people, in accordance with the commands of God given to them; leaving then, as it seems, a country full of all inhumanity and practising every kind of inhospitality, and (what was worst of all) giving the honour due to God to brute beasts; and, therefore, they sacrificed at that time themselves out of their exceeding joy, without waiting for priests. And what was then done the law enjoined to be repeated once every year, as a memorial of the gratitude due for their deliverance. These things are thus related in accordance with the ancient historic accounts. (147) But those who are in the habit of turning plain stories into allegory, argue that the passover figuratively represents the purification of the soul; for they say that the lover of wisdom is never practising anything else except a passing over from the body and the passions. (148) And each house is at that time invested with the character and dignity of a temple, the victim being sacrificed so as to make a suitable feast for the man who has provided it and of those who are collected to share in the feast, being all duly purified with holy ablutions. And those who are to share in the feast come together not as they do to other entertainments, to gratify their bellies with wine and meat, but to fulfil their hereditary custom with prayer and songs of praise. (149) And this universal sacrifice of the whole people is celebrated on the fourteenth day of the month, which consists of two periods of seven, in order that nothing which is accounted worthy of honour may be separated from the number seven. But this number is the beginning of brilliancy and dignity to everything.

So when a moadim is counted from the new moon, Philo ALWAYS mentions it. When a day is not counted from the new moon, Philo does not discuss it. Why would he? There is no connection between the appearance of the new (dark) moon and the seventh day sabbath count, as we see above with Passover being counted from the new moon.

Notice Philo is again connecting the redeeming festival of Passover with two multiples of seven and its allegorical attainment of brilliancy and dignity to its observers. The holy days are about redemption of the fallen soul, its purification, as Philo states, and achieving the brilliancy of the seventh day. Now Philo goes to explain the festival combined with Passover.

Philo The Special Laws II:

THE FIFTH FESTIVAL

XXVIII. (150) And there is another festival combined with the feast of the passover, having a use of food different from the usual one, and not customary; the use, namely, of unleavened bread, from which it derives its name. And there are two accounts given of this festival, the one peculiar to the nation, on account of the migration already described; the other a common one, in accordance with conformity to nature and with the harmony of the whole world. And we must consider how accurate the hypothesis is. This month, being the seventh both in number and order, according to the revolutions of the sun, is the first in power; (151) on which account it is also called the first in the sacred scriptures. And the reason, as I imagine, is as follows. The vernal equinox is an imitation and representation of that beginning in accordance with which this world was created. Accordingly, every year, God reminds men of the creation of the world, and with this view puts forward the spring, in which season all plants flourish and bloom; (152) for which reason this is very correctly set down in the law as the first month, since, in a manner, it may be said to be an impression of the first beginning of all, being stamped by it as by an archetypal Seal.{18}{sections 153û154 were omitted in Yonge's translation because the edition on which Yonge based his translation, Mangey, lacked this material. These lines have been newly translated for this volume.} (153) Although the month in which the autumnal equinox occurs is first in sequence according to solar orbits, it is not considered first in the law. The reason is that at that time, after all the crops have been harvested, the trees lose their leaves and everything that springtime produced in the height of its glory is withering under dry winds after it has been made dry by the flaming heat of the sun. (154) Therefore he thought that to apply the name "first" to the month in which the hill country and the plain become barren and infertile, was incongruous and unfitting. For it is necessary that the most beautiful and desirable phenomena belong to those things which are first and have received the position of leadership, those phenomena through which the reproduction and growth of animals and fruit and crops take place, but not the ominous destructive forces. (155) And this feast is begun on the fifteenth day of the month, in the middle of the month, on the day on which the moon is full of light, in consequence of the providence of God taking care that there shall be no darkness on that day. (156) And, again, the feast is celebrated for seven days, on account of the honour due to that number, in order that nothing which tends to cheerfulness and to the giving of thanks to God may be separated from the holy number seven. (157) And of the seven days, Moses pronounces two, the first and the last, holy; giving, as is natural, a preeminence to the beginning and to the end; and wishing, as if in the case of a musical instrument, to unite the two extremities in harmony. (158) And the unleavened bread is ordained because their ancestors took unleavened bread with them when they went forth out of Egypt, under the guidance of the Deity; or else, because at that time (I mean at the spring season, during hich this festival is celebrated) the crop of wheat is not yet ripe, the plains being still loaded with the corn, and it not being as yet the harvest time, and therefore lawgiver has ordained the use of unleavened food with a view to assimilating it to the state of the crops. For unleavened food is also imperfect or unripe, as a memorial of the good hope which is entertained; since nature is by this time preparing her annual gifts for the race of mankind, with an abundance and plenteous pouring forth of necessaries. (159) The interpreters of the holy scriptures do also say that the unleavened food is a gift of nature, but that barmed bread is a work of art. (160) Since, therefore, the vernal festival is a commemoration of the creation of the world, and since that it was inevitable that the most ancient persons, those formed out of the earth, must have used the gifts of the world without alteration, pleasure not having as yet obtained the dominion, the lawgiver ordained that food which was the most suitable to the occasion, wishing to kindle every year a desire to walk in the paths of a holy and rigid way of Life.{19}{section 161 was omitted in Yonge's translation because the edition on which Yonge based his translation, Mangey, lacked this material. These lines have been newly translated for this volume.} (161) The setting out of twelve loaves--the same number as the tribes--on the sacred table especially guarantees the things which have been said. For they are all unleavened, the clearest example of an unmixed food which has been prepared not by human skill for pleasure but by nature for the most essential use. These things are sufficient for this topic.

We must certainly question the lunar sabbatarians premise that the first and last days of unleavened bread already fall on ordained seventh day sabbaths. If that were the case then why would Moses need to pronounce them holy? Weren't they holy already as they are already the seventh day sabbath appointed from the creation week?

Philo once again, when given the opportunity to suggest that the seventh day is counted from the new moon, makes no comment whatsoever suggesting that they are linked in any way.

Philo The Special Laws II:

THE EIGHTH FESTIVAL

XXXI. (188) Immediately after comes the festival of the sacred moon; in which it is the custom to play the trumpet in the temple at the same moment that the sacrifices are offered. From which practice this is called the true feast of trumpets, and there are two reasons for it, one peculiar to the nation, and the other common to all mankind. Peculiar to the nation, as being a commemoration of that most marvellous, wonderful, and miraculous event that took place when the holy oracles of the law were given; (189) for then the voice of a trumpet sounded from heaven, which it is natural to suppose reached to the very extremities of the universe, so that so wondrous a sound attracted all who were present, making them consider, as it is probable, that such mighty events were signs betokening some great things to be accomplished. (190) And what more great or more beneficial thing could come to men than laws affecting the whole race? And what was common to all mankind was this: the trumpet is the instrument of war, sounding both when commanding the charge and the retreat. ... There is also another kind of war, ordained of God, when nature is at variance with itself, its different parts attacking one another. (191) And by both these kinds of war the things on earth are injured. They are injured by the enemies, by the cutting down of trees, and by conflagrations; and also by natural injuries, such as droughts, heavy rains, lightning from heaven, snow and cold; the usual harmony of the seasons of the year being transformed into a want of all concord. (192) On this account it is that the law has given this festival the name of a warlike instrument, in order to show the proper gratitude to God as the giver of peace, who has abolished all seditions in cities, and in all parts of the universe, and has produced plenty and prosperity, not allowing a single spark that could tend to the destruction of the crops to be kindled into flame.

Again Philo mentions no connection between the new moon and the seventh day sabbath count. He only does so where there is a connection between the new moon and any day, festival, or moadim that is counted there from.

Philo The Special Laws II:

THE NINTH FESTIVAL

XXXII. (193) And after the feast of trumpets the solemnity of the fast is celebrated, {27}{part of sections 193û194 was omitted in Yonge's translation because the edition on which Yonge based his translation, Mangey, lacked this material. These lines have been newly translated for this volume.} Perhaps some of those who are perversely minded and are not ashamed to censure excellent things will say, "What sort of a feast is this where there is no eating and drinking, no troupe of entertainers or audience, no copious supply of strong drink nor the generous display of a public banquet, nor moreover the merriment and revelry of dancing to the sound of flute and harp, and timbrels and cymbals, and the other instruments of music which awaken the unruly lusts through the channel of the ears? (194) For it is in these and through these, it seems, that they think good cheer consists. They do this in ignorance of the true good cheer which the all-wise Moses saw with the most sharpsighted eyes and so proclaimed the fast a feast and named it the greatest of feasts in our ancestral language, "a Sabbath of Sabbaths," or as the Greeks would say, a seven of sevens and a holier than things holy. He did this for many reasons. (195) The first reason is the temperance which the lawgiver is continually exhorting men to display at all times, both in their language and in their appetites, both in and below the belly. And he most especially enjoins them to display it now, when he devotes a day to the particular observances of it. For when a person has once learnt to be indifferent to meat and drink, those very necessary things, what can there be of things which are superfluous that he would find any difficulty in disregarding? (196) The second reason is, that every one is at this time occupied in prayers and supplications, and since they all devote their entire leisure to nothing else from morning till evening, except to most acceptable prayers by which they endeavour to gain the favour of God, entreating pardon for their sins and hoping for his mercy, not for their own merits but through the compassionate nature of that Being who will have forgiveness rather than punishment. (197) The third is an account of the time at which this fast is fixed to take place; for by this season all the fruits which the earth has produced during the whole year are gathered in. And therefore to proceed at once to devour what has been produced Moses looked upon as an act of greediness; but to fast, and to abstain from touching food, he considered a mark of perfect piety which teaches the mind not to trust to the food which it may have prepared as the cause of health or life. (198) Therefore those who, after the gathering in of the harvest, abstain from the food, do almost declare in express words, "We have with joy received, and we shall cheerfully store up the bounteous gifts of nature; but we do not ascribe to any corruptible thing the cause of our own durable existence, but we attribute that to the Saviour, to the God who rules in the world, and who is able, either by means of these things or without them, to nourish and to preserve Us.{28}{part of sections 199û200 was omitted in Yonge's translation because the edition on which Yonge based his translation, Mangey, lacked this material. These lines have been newly translated for this volume.} (199) At all events, behold, he nourished our forefathers even in the desert for forty Years.{29}{#de 8:2.} How he opened fountains to give them abundant drink; and how he rained food from heaven sufficient for each day so that they might consume what they needed, and rather than hording or bartering or taking thought of the bounties received, they might rather reverence and worship the bountiful Giver and honour him with hymns and benedictions such as are due him." (200) The day of the fast is always celebrated on the tenth day of the month by order of the law. Why is it on the tenth? As we have specified in our treatments of it, {30}{this is probably a reference to the tractate Concerning Numbers mentioned in QG 4.110 and Mos. 2.115.} it is named complete perfection by wise Men{31}{panteleia is a Pythagorean name for the number ten.} and encompasses all the proportions, the arithmetical and the harmonic and the geometric, and in addition the harmonies: the 4:3 ratio through four notes, the 3:2 ratio through five notes, the 2:1 ratio through the octave, the 4:1 ratio through the double octave, and it also has the 9:8 ratio so that it is the most perfect summation of musical theories. From this fact it is named complete Perfection.{32}{the text literally says: "the 11/3 through four, the 11/2 through five, the doubled through the octave, the quadrupled through the double octave, and it also has the 11/8 ratio ..." Philo has a fuller statement in Opif. 48. In each instance he is following the Pythagoreans who applied number theory to music. For similar treatments see Plutarch, Moralia 1139D (Mus. 23) and Sextus Empiricus Adv. Math. 7.94û95.} (201) Therefore God has ordained that abstinence from food should take place in accordance with the perfect number, for the sake of affording the best nourishment to the best thing which is in us; that no one may suppose that the interpreter of God's word is enjoining hunger, the most intolerable of all evils, but only a brief cutting off of the stream which flows into the channels of the body. (202) For thus the clear stream which proceeds from the fountain of reason was likely to be borne smoothly and evenly to the soul, since the uninterrupted use of food inundating the body contributes also to confuse the reason. But if the supply of food be checked, then the reason getting a firm footing as in a dry road, will be able to proceed in safety without stumbling; (203) and besides it was fitting that when the supply of all things had turned out according to the wishes of the people and become completed, they should, amid the abundance of their harvest, preserve a commemoration of their previous want by abstinence from food, and should offer up prayers, in order that they might never come to a real experience of a want of necessary food.

So what have we learned from Philo, a first century follower of Yeshua the Messiah and a keeper of the written Torah?

• The new moon is mentioned in connection to those days that are counted from it, every time.
• The moon and the sun have different meanings and glory.
• The significance of numbers in relation to the sabbath and holy days are meaningful and divinely assigned.
• The count of the seventh day sabbath does not begin with the new moon or the new moon of the new year.
• The festivals symbolize the purging of the soul.
• The seventh day sabbath has an independent count with its own interval, "there is another celebrated, namely, that of the sacred seventh day after each recurring interval of six days, which some have denominated the virgin, looking at its exceeding sanctity and purity."
• The seventh day sabbath pictures bringing the six former days to perfection through the combination of the male and female, "Moses, from a most honourable cause, called it consummation and perfection; attributing to the number six the origination of all the parts of the world, and to the number seven their perfection; for the number six is an oddeven number, being composed of twice three, having the odd number for the male and the even number for the female, from the union of which, production takes place in accordance with the unalterable laws of nature. (59) But the number seven is free from all such commixture, and is, if one must speak plainly, the light of the number six; for what the number six engendered, that the number seven displayed when brought to perfection."
• The count of seven and the seventh day sabbath relates to the completion of the manifestation of the divine light, "But this number is the beginning of brilliancy and dignity to everything."
• Our existence is attributed to the Messiah, to the God who rules this world, who is symbolized in the Day of Atonement, a Sabbath of Sabbaths, "but we do not ascribe to any corruptible thing the cause of our own durable existence, but we attribute that to the Saviour, to the God who rules in the world, and who is able".
• Pardon of sin pictured in the Day of Atonement occurs by the mercy of God and not by our own ability to keep the Torah. "...entreating pardon for their sins and hoping for his mercy, not for their own merits but through the compassionate nature of that Being who will have forgiveness rather than punishment".
• Philo's own words support the redemptive work of the Messiah pictured by the Seventh Day Sabbath and His atonement on the "Sabbath of Sabbaths", the Day of Atonement.

We find completion, not in the Torah, but in the Messiah who typifies the ultimate Sabbath, the manifestation of the image of YHWH, the divine light, and the final rest. Philo makes no mention of the Torah being the ultimate "sabbath of sabbaths" or our durable existence being supported by the Torah, but by the Messiah Yeshua.

The seventh day sabbath is counted with the manifestation of the Divine Light mentioned in Genesis 1, not from the conjunction of the moon and the sun. It is not counted from the dark moon or the new moon. It is not counted from the leading of the shadow or darkness. It is counted from the manifestation of the Light of YHWH. Philo supports this separate interval count and meaning of the seventh day sabbath and all other days needing to ascend to acquire the wholeness and rest of the original seventh day sabbath.

Now we know that we seek for:

• The true realities over the shadow.
• The internal over the external.
• The substance over the form.
• The Light instead of the darkness.
• The seventh over the six (twice three)

We do all these things through faith. We seek the true seventh day sabbath and the Lord of the Sabbath, the true Light of YHWH, the Messiah Yeshua. We do not seek the shadow of the new moon to establish the count for the seventh day, nor do we idolatrate the shadow (the Torah) over the reality (the Messiah). Just as the moon is dark and only lightened by the sun, so is the Torah dark and lightened by the Light of YHWH, the Messiah. We must become mature and recognize what is a shadow and live in the light.

Hebrews 11: 1Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.  2For by it the elders obtained a good report.  3Through faith we understand that the worlds were framed by the word of God, so that things which are seen were not made of things which do appear.

We must beware of committing the same sins of the pharisees. They were focused on idolatrous behaviors. They had the form, but forsook the substance. They prized the external appearance and form over the internal substance. They loved the darkness and despised the light.

Let's not miss the message of the Messiah to those who are occupied with idolatrous behavior, focusing on the shadow instead of the body/reality that makes the shadow possible.

Matthew 23: 19Ye fools and blind: for whether is greater, the gift, or the altar that sanctifieth the gift? 20Whoso therefore shall swear by the altar, sweareth by it, and by all things thereon.  21And whoso shall swear by the temple, sweareth by it, and by him that dwelleth therein.  22And he that shall swear by heaven, sweareth by the throne of God, and by him that sitteth thereon.  23Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye pay tithe of mint and anise and cummin, and have omitted the weightier matters of the law, judgment, mercy, and faith: these ought ye to have done, and not to leave the other undone.  24Ye blind guides, which strain at a gnat, and swallow a camel.  25Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye make clean the outside of the cup and of the platter, but within they are full of extortion and excess.  26Thou blind Pharisee, cleanse first that which is within the cup and platter, that the outside of them may be clean also. 27Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye are like unto whited sepulchres, which indeed appear beautiful outward, but are within full of dead men's bones, and of all uncleanness. 28Even so ye also outwardly appear righteous unto men, but within ye are full of hypocrisy and iniquity.  29Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! because ye build the tombs of the prophets, and garnish the sepulchres of the righteous,  30And say, If we had been in the days of our fathers, we would not have been partakers with them in the blood of the prophets.  31Wherefore ye be witnesses unto yourselves, that ye are the children of them which killed the prophets.  32Fill ye up then the measure of your fathers.  33Ye serpents, ye generation of vipers, how can ye escape the damnation of hell?  34Wherefore, behold, I send unto you prophets, and wise men, and scribes: and some of them ye shall kill and crucify; and some of them shall ye scourge in your synagogues, and persecute them from city to city:  35That upon you may come all the righteous blood shed upon the earth, from the blood of righteous Abel unto the blood of Zacharias son of Barachias, whom ye slew between the temple and the altar.  36Verily I say unto you, All these things shall come upon this generation.  37O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, thou that killest the prophets, and stonest them which are sent unto thee, how often would I have gathered thy children together, even as a hen gathereth her chickens under her wings, and ye would not!  38Behold, your house is left unto you desolate.  39For I say unto you, Ye shall not see me henceforth, till ye shall say, Blessed is he that cometh in the name of the Lord.

All of this focus on the shadow and not the reality (light) will not save you. It will only lead to death. Where is the valley of death? It is in the shadow.

Psalm 23: 1The LORD is my shepherd; I shall not want.  2He maketh me to lie down in green pastures: he leadeth me beside the still waters.  3He restoreth my soul: he leadeth me in the paths of righteousness for his name's sake. 4Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me.

Focusing on the shadow will only lead to death. The shadow cannot redeem itself. The image of YHWH, the Messiah Yeshua, is the Light that is symbolized (foreshadowed) by the rod and the staff, whereby we are delivered from Egypt and preserved in the wilderness. They did not save themselves as we cannot.

Acts 3: 14But ye denied the Holy One and the Just, and desired a murderer to be granted unto you;  15And killed the Prince of life, whom God hath raised from the dead; whereof we are witnesses.  16And his name through faith in his name hath made this man strong, whom ye see and know: yea, the faith which is by him hath given him this perfect soundness in the presence of you all.  17And now, brethren, I wot that through ignorance ye did it, as did also your rulers.  18But those things, which God before had shewed by the mouth of all his prophets, that Christ should suffer, he hath so fulfilled.  19Repent ye therefore, and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out, when the times of refreshing shall come from the presence of the Lord.  20And he shall send Jesus Christ, which before was preached unto you:  21Whom the heaven must receive until the times of restitution of all things, which God hath spoken by the mouth of all his holy prophets since the world began.  22For Moses truly said unto the fathers, A prophet shall the Lord your God raise up unto you of your brethren, like unto me; him shall ye hear in all things whatsoever he shall say unto you.  23And it shall come to pass, that every soul, which will not hear that prophet, shall be destroyed from among the people.  24Yea, and all the prophets from Samuel and those that follow after, as many as have spoken, have likewise foretold of these days.  25Ye are the children of the prophets, and of the covenant which God made with our fathers, saying unto Abraham, And in thy seed shall all the kindreds of the earth be blessed.  26Unto you first God, having raised up his Son Jesus, sent him to bless you, in turning away every one of you from his iniquities.

Paul reaffirms this required faith in the Messiah Yeshua.

Acts 20: 20And how I kept back nothing that was profitable unto you, but have shewed you, and have taught you publicly, and from house to house,  21Testifying both to the Jews, and also to the Greeks, repentance toward God, and faith toward our Lord Jesus Christ.  22And now, behold, I go bound in the spirit unto Jerusalem, not knowing the things that shall befall me there:

This requirement of faith is not in the shadow of the Torah, but in the reality of what the Torah foreshadows, the Messiah.

Romans 1: 16For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek.  17For therein is the righteousness of God revealed from faith to faith: as it is written, The just shall live by faith.  18For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who hold the truth in unrighteousness;

This required faith is in direct relation to the gospel of the Messiah. It is through faith in the Messiah Yeshua's name that we are saved, made righteous and made strong. It is not through our own working that we are found acceptable by YHWH.

Paul sums up and puts faith and the Torah in their appropriate context for those who dwell under the shadow of death.

Romans 3: 19Now we know that what things soever the law saith, it saith to them who are under the law: that every mouth may be stopped, and all the world may become guilty before God.  20Therefore by the deeds of the law there shall no flesh be justified in his sight: for by the law is the knowledge of sin.  21But now the righteousness of God without the law is manifested, being witnessed by the law and the prophets;  22Even the righteousness of God which is by faith of Jesus Christ unto all and upon all them that believe: for there is no difference:  23For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God;  24Being justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus:  25Whom God hath set forth to be a propitiation through faith in his blood, to declare his righteousness for the remission of sins that are past, through the forbearance of God;  26To declare, I say, at this time his righteousness: that he might be just, and the justifier of him which believeth in Jesus.  27Where is boasting then? It is excluded. By what law? of works? Nay: but by the law of faith.  28Therefore we conclude that a man is justified by faith without the deeds of the law.  29Is he the God of the Jews only? is he not also of the Gentiles? Yes, of the Gentiles also:  30Seeing it is one God, which shall justify the circumcision by faith, and uncircumcision through faith.  31Do we then make void the law through faith? God forbid: yea, we establish the law.

Paul makes it quite clear we are to keep and establish the Torah, but realize we are not justified through the shadow of the Torah, but by the reality of the Light of YHWH, by His blood and belief in His redemptive grace. There is no middle ground. The Torah is the shadow and as a shadow of the body, it must be established, since the reality of the Messiah is present. No flesh is justified by the shadow of the Torah, we are justified freely by grace through the redemption that is in the body of the Messiah Yeshua. Both abide still, but there is no question we are saved by the "substance of faith" and not the form of appearance. We are saved by the body, not the shadow. We are saved by the light and not the darkness.

The pharisees of Yeshua's day have the same problem that many today are confronted by. How are we saved? Will the Torah save me?

Romans 9: 31But Israel, which followed after the law of righteousness, hath not attained to the law of righteousness.  32Wherefore? Because they sought it not by faith, but as it were by the works of the law. For they stumbled at that stumblingstone;  33As it is written, Behold, I lay in Sion a stumbling stone and rock of offence: and whosoever believeth on him shall not be ashamed.

We are saved by belief in the Messiah, not by our own ability or desire to keep the Torah. The shadow cannot save you, it does not contain the substance. The substance and reality is the Messiah Yeshua. Paul is unequivocal.

I Corinthians 1: 4I thank my God always on your behalf, for the grace of God which is given you by Jesus Christ;  5That in every thing ye are enriched by him, in all utterance, and in all knowledge;  6Even as the testimony of Christ was confirmed in you:  7So that ye come behind in no gift; waiting for the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ:  8Who shall also confirm you unto the end, that ye may be blameless in the day of our Lord Jesus Christ.  9God is faithful, by whom ye were called unto the fellowship of his Son Jesus Christ our Lord.  10Now I beseech you, brethren, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that ye all speak the same thing, and that there be no divisions among you; but that ye be perfectly joined together in the same mind and in the same judgment.  11For it hath been declared unto me of you, my brethren, by them which are of the house of Chloe, that there are contentions among you.  12Now this I say, that every one of you saith, I am of Paul; and I of Apollos; and I of Cephas; and I of Christ.  13Is Christ divided? was Paul crucified for you? or were ye baptized in the name of Paul?  14I thank God that I baptized none of you, but Crispus and Gaius;  15Lest any should say that I had baptized in mine own name.  16And I baptized also the household of Stephanas: besides, I know not whether I baptized any other.  17For Christ sent me not to baptize, but to preach the gospel: not with wisdom of words, lest the cross of Christ should be made of none effect.  18For the preaching of the cross is to them that perish foolishness; but unto us which are saved it is the power of God. 19For it is written, I will destroy the wisdom of the wise, and will bring to nothing the understanding of the prudent.  20Where is the wise? where is the scribe? where is the disputer of this world? hath not God made foolish the wisdom of this world?  21For after that in the wisdom of God the world by wisdom knew not God, it pleased God by the foolishness of preaching to save them that believe.  22For the Jews require a sign, and the Greeks seek after wisdom:  23But we preach Christ crucified, unto the Jews a stumblingblock, and unto the Greeks foolishness; 24But unto them which are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God, and the wisdom of God.  25Because the foolishness of God is wiser than men; and the weakness of God is stronger than men.  26For ye see your calling, brethren, how that not many wise men after the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble, are called:  27But God hath chosen the foolish things of the world to confound the wise; and God hath chosen the weak things of the world to confound the things which are mighty;  28And base things of the world, and things which are despised, hath God chosen, yea, and things which are not, to bring to nought things that are:  29That no flesh should glory in his presence.  30But of him are ye in Christ Jesus, who of God is made unto us wisdom, and righteousness, and sanctification, and redemption:  31That, according as it is written, He that glorieth, let him glory in the Lord.

We are to glory in the Lord, the Lord of Glory, the Light of YHWH, the Messiah. This is speaking about the Messiah Yeshua, from start to finish. This is the reason why many Messianic Jews have wrongly rejected the writings of the renewed covenant. In their supposed wisdom they are rejecting the Lord of Glory, their redeemer. They would save themselves. It is not possible without the redemptive work of the Messiah Yeshua. Beware the modern day Messianic Jewish Pharisees that reject the Messiah Yeshua as the Presence of YHWH.

We cannot miss the point that this faith is about the redemptive work of the Messiah. It is not a faith solely described as being directed to YHWH.

I Corinthians 15: 13But if there be no resurrection of the dead, then is Christ not risen:  14And if Christ be not risen, then is our preaching vain, and your faith is also vain.  15Yea, and we are found false witnesses of God; because we have testified of God that he raised up Christ: whom he raised not up, if so be that the dead rise not.  16For if the dead rise not, then is not Christ raised:  17And if Christ be not raised, your faith is vain; ye are yet in your sins.  18Then they also which are fallen asleep in Christ are perished.  19If in this life only we have hope in Christ, we are of all men most miserable.

This faith lies directly in relation to having or not having the Messiah in you.

2 Corinthians 13:  4For though he was crucified through weakness, yet he liveth by the power of God. For we also are weak in him, but we shall live with him by the power of God toward you.  5Examine yourselves, whether ye be in the faith; prove your own selves. Know ye not your own selves, how that Jesus Christ is in you, except ye be reprobates?  6But I trust that ye shall know that we are not reprobates.

Those of faith have the Messiah Yeshua abiding in them. This presence of YHWH provides for our salvation and redemption. The Torah does not do this for us. We must ask, why? Because the Torah is merely the shadow of the Messiah. The Messiah is the reality.

Galations 2:  16Knowing that a man is not justified by the works of the law, but by the faith of Jesus Christ, even we have believed in Jesus Christ, that we might be justified by the faith of Christ, and not by the works of the law: for by the works of the law shall no flesh be justified.  17But if, while we seek to be justified by Christ, we ourselves also are found sinners, is therefore Christ the minister of sin? God forbid.  18For if I build again the things which I destroyed, I make myself a transgressor.  19For I through the law am dead to the law, that I might live unto God.  20I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me.  21I do not frustrate the grace of God: for if righteousness come by the law, then Christ is dead in vain.

The light redeems us, not the shadow. It is through faith in the redemptive Light of YHWH, the same one who redeemed Abraham, that we are justified and made righteous in the sight of YHWH. The redemptive pattern has never changed. Those who cling to and join with the redeemer are saved by His redemptive work.

Galations 3:6Even as Abraham believed God, and it was accounted to him for righteousness.  7Know ye therefore that they which are of faith, the same are the children of Abraham. 8And the scripture, foreseeing that God would justify the heathen through faith, preached before the gospel unto Abraham, saying, In thee shall all nations be blessed.  9So then they which be of faith are blessed with faithful Abraham.  10For as many as are of the works of the law are under the curse: for it is written, Cursed is every one that continueth not in all things which are written in the book of the law to do them.  11But that no man is justified by the law in the sight of God, it is evident: for, The just shall live by faith. 12And the law is not of faith: but, The man that doeth them shall live in them.  13Christ hath redeemed us from the curse of the law, being made a curse for us: for it is written, Cursed is every one that hangeth on a tree:

All of those who abide in faith of the redemptive work of the Messiah are saved from the curse of sin. These are the seed of Abraham.

So if that is the case what do we do with the Torah?

Galations 3: 19Wherefore then serveth the law? It was added because of transgressions, till the seed should come to whom the promise was made; and it was ordained by angels in the hand of a mediator.  20Now a mediator is not a mediator of one, but God is one.  21Is the law then against the promises of God? God forbid: for if there had been a law given which could have given life, verily righteousness should have been by the law.

We see here the fundamental problem, life could not be given via the Torah. Why? It had a different part to play in the work of YHWH.

Galations 3:  22But the scripture hath concluded all under sin, that the promise by faith of Jesus Christ might be given to them that believe.  23But before faith came, we were kept under the law, shut up unto the faith which should afterwards be revealed.  24Wherefore the law was our schoolmaster to bring us unto Christ, that we might be justified by faith.  25But after that faith is come, we are no longer under a schoolmaster.

The shadow of the Torah was designed to bring us to the reality of the Light of YHWH, Yeshua the Messiah. It is through faith in His name and His redemptive work that we are given His name, His flesh and blood, and joined with Him in marriage.

 Galations 3:26For ye are all the children of God by faith in Christ Jesus.  27For as many of you as have been baptized into Christ have put on Christ.  28There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither bond nor free, there is neither male nor female: for ye are all one in Christ Jesus.  29And if ye be Christ's, then are ye Abraham's seed, and heirs according to the promise.

This is the reason why many professing Messianic Jews reject the Renewed Testament scriptures and ultimately the redemptive work of the Messiah. The writings are clear, the Torah will not save...EVER! The Torah if followed will lead you to the shadow's reality, the Messiah Yeshua. Many Messianic Jews have left the shepherd and yet still try to claim association with Him while denying most of what He taught.

Preoccupation with the shadow will leave you with what the shadow provides, "all are under death". We must embrace the Divine Light, the Fullness of the Godhead bodily, the image of YHWH in order to be saved.

Let us be clear, many Messianic Jews will claim Yeshua but state He is not YHWH, thereby feeling they justify their position on the Messiah.

Ephesians 4:  4There is one body, and one Spirit, even as ye are called in one hope of your calling;  5One Lord, one faith, one baptism,  6One God and Father of all, who is above all, and through all, and in you all.

Many fully reject the truth of these writings because they do not grasp the shadow, they cannot clearly view the light. They do not understand the meaning of "one body, one spirit, one Lord, one God".

Hebrews 1: 1God, who at sundry times and in divers manners spake in time past unto the fathers by the prophets,  2Hath in these last days spoken unto us by his Son, whom he hath appointed heir of all things, by whom also he made the worlds;  3Who being the brightness of his glory, and the express image of his person, and upholding all things by the word of his power, when he had by himself purged our sins, sat down on the right hand of the Majesty on high:  4Being made so much better than the angels, as he hath by inheritance obtained a more excellent name than they.  5For unto which of the angels said he at any time, Thou art my Son, this day have I begotten thee? And again, I will be to him a Father, and he shall be to me a Son?  6And again, when he bringeth in the firstbegotten into the world, he saith, And let all the angels of God worship him.  7And of the angels he saith, Who maketh his angels spirits, and his ministers a flame of fire.  8But unto the Son he saith, Thy throne, O God, is for ever and ever: a sceptre of righteousness is the sceptre of thy kingdom.

The clarity and significance of this scripture is astounding. We clearly see the unity and oneness of the Father and Son and the clarification that the Father calls the Son, "O God". We see the testimony that Yeshua is the Brightness of the Father's Glory and the express image of His person. The clarity of these statements is profound. That is why many masquerading Messianic Jews reject the writings of the Renewed Testament and reject their need for the Messiah Yeshua. Indeed He is a stumbling block for many, even today. We must acknowledge the possibility that those who are obsessed with the shadow and are blind to the brightness of the light of the Glory of the Father are likely not in the Messiah Yeshua or covered by His grace.

Those who cannot clearly see the Messiah and their need for His redemptive work are as blind men, unable to see the Light.

John 9: 35Jesus heard that they had cast him out; and when he had found him, he said unto him, Dost thou believe on the Son of God?  36He answered and said, Who is he, Lord, that I might believe on him?  37And Jesus said unto him, Thou hast both seen him, and it is he that talketh with thee.  38And he said, Lord, I believe. And he worshipped him.  39And Jesus said, For judgment I am come into this world, that they which see not might see; and that they which see might be made blind.  40And some of the Pharisees which were with him heard these words, and said unto him, Are we blind also?  41Jesus said unto them, If ye were blind, ye should have no sin: but now ye say, We see; therefore your sin remaineth.

Notice that the blame implied is even greater than being blind. They were willfully knowing and rejecting of the Light. They insisted upon the shadow. This preoccupation is idolatry. That is why we are warned that our righteousness must exceed that of the Pharisees.

Matthew 5: 20For I say unto you, That except your righteousness shall exceed the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, ye shall in no case enter into the kingdom of heaven.

We must take note that the principal argument of the Pharisee against the true followers of the Messiah is that following the Messiah and being redeemed by His work violated the Torah.

Acts 21: 27And when the seven days were almost ended, the Jews which were of Asia, when they saw him in the temple, stirred up all the people, and laid hands on him,  28Crying out, Men of Israel, help: This is the man, that teacheth all men every where against the people, and the law, and this place: and further brought Greeks also into the temple, and hath polluted this holy place.

Then as today the issue still has not changed. Those trying to bridge the gap do so to their doom, by failing to acknowledge Yeshua's appointed role in our redemption. They are still pharisees triumphing their version of the Torah (shadow) over the redemptive work of the Messiah (the light). This is described as idolatry.

The following Hasidic view of Idolatry can give you a reference point for understanding when an act becomes idolatrous.

http://74.125.93.132/search?q=cache:CSKD1ZOuPvAJ:www.hasidicuniversity.org/hu_theocracy/th01_idolatry.htm+idolatry+torah&cd=29&hl=en&ct=clnk&gl=us

Strictly speaking, idolatry is believing in the power of any entity besides the one G-d, or any act of worshiping such an entity. But many commandments may seem relevant to both idolatry and blasphemy, a related concept. What differentiates idolatry from blasphemy? Lichtenstein, in his book The Seven Laws of Noah, tries to define them thus: “…the Idolatry area regulates man’s theistic affairs in his relationship with the mundane, and… the Blasphemy area regulates man’s theistic affairs in his relationship with the Divine” (p. 78). This scheme tries to classify commandments from the vantage point of man in the physical world, groping in the darkness and searching for G-d; it starts with the material and looks for the spiritual. It is a definition of superficial, external characteristics, and thus leaves many gray, undefined areas between idolatry and blasphemy.

Hasidus (the inner meaning of Torah), on the other hand, starts from “G-d’s perspective” and looks downward into the creation, defining things according to their essence.

From this vantage point, one can better define idolatry, and its close relative heresy, as: the refusal to acknowledge Truth and its sources.

Who is the idolater? He is one who credits a false deity for his success or failure; he believes a false religion, listens to false prophets and teachers, and reveres and studies false “scriptures.” He does not recognize the Truth or its sources. One who rejects idolatry, on the other hand, is one who believes in and worships only the true G-d, listens only to true prophets and teachers, and studies the authentic Torah only according to its true meaning.

Idolatry, then, is best defined as the rejection of Truth as such, whereas blasphemy involves ignoring or opposing the permeation of holiness into the physical world. Consequently, we classify here all commandments related to the acknowledgement of G-d’s Truth and its authentic sources.

When we view idolatry in this context it certainly puts the shoe on the other foot when giving proper consideration to the work of the Messiah and the appearance of the image of YHWH on the seventh day.

John 1: 1In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2The same was in the beginning with God.  3All things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was made.  4In him was life; and the life was the light of men.  5And the light shineth in darkness; and the darkness comprehended it not.  6There was a man sent from God, whose name was John.  7The same came for a witness, to bear witness of the Light, that all men through him might believe.  8He was not that Light, but was sent to bear witness of that Light.  9That was the true Light, which lighteth every man that cometh into the world.  10He was in the world, and the world was made by him, and the world knew him not.  11He came unto his own, and his own received him not.  12But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name:  13Which were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God.  14And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth.  15John bare witness of him, and cried, saying, This was he of whom I spake, He that cometh after me is preferred before me: for he was before me.16And of his fullness have all we received, and grace for grace.  17For the law was given by Moses, but grace and truth came by Jesus Christ.

The idolatry of the pharisees maintained their adherence to the shadow over the reality, the darkness over the light. Their insistence required denial of the truth and the light. It set them in the rigidity of idolatry, putting them on a path away from the seed of redemption (the Son of YHWH). They could not see the fulfillment of the Torah standing before them or the greater realities He was showing them. Many Messianic Jews who are rejecting the Messiah Yeshua's substance are doing the same thing today: Idolatry of the Torah.

John 8: 29And he that sent me is with me: the Father hath not left me alone; for I do always those things that please him.  30As he spake these words, many believed on him.  31Then said Jesus to those Jews which believed on him, If ye continue in my word, then are ye my disciples indeed;  32And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.  33They answered him, We be Abraham's seed, and were never in bondage to any man: how sayest thou, Ye shall be made free?  34Jesus answered them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Whosoever committeth sin is the servant of sin.  35And the servant abideth not in the house for ever: but the Son abideth ever.  36If the Son therefore shall make you free, ye shall be free indeed.  37I know that ye are Abraham's seed; but ye seek to kill me, because my word hath no place in you.  38I speak that which I have seen with my Father: and ye do that which ye have seen with your father.  39They answered and said unto him, Abraham is our father. Jesus saith unto them, If ye were Abraham's children, ye would do the works of Abraham.  40But now ye seek to kill me, a man that hath told you the truth, which I have heard of God: this did not Abraham.

Because they could not reconcile their understanding of the shadow with the light standing in their midst they rejected the light for the rigid view of the shadow. This becomes idolatry because they worship the shadow instead of the reality.

John 14:  5Thomas saith unto him, Lord, we know not whither thou goest; and how can we know the way?  6Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.  7If ye had known me, ye should have known my Father also: and from henceforth ye know him, and have seen him.

We must acknowledge that the 10 commandments from Exodus 20 expressly forbid the making and worshiping of any image.

Exodus 20: 1And God spake all these words, saying,  2I am the LORD thy God, which have brought thee out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage.  3Thou shalt have no other gods before me.  4Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image, or any likeness of any thing that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth.  5Thou shalt not bow down thyself to them, nor serve them: for I the LORD thy God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth generation of them that hate me;  6And shewing mercy unto thousands of them that love me, and keep my commandments.  7Thou shalt not take the name of the LORD thy God in vain; for the LORD will not hold him guiltless that taketh his name in vain.  8Remember the sabbath day, to keep it holy. 9Six days shalt thou labour, and do all thy work: 10But the seventh day is the sabbath of the LORD thy God: in it thou shalt not do any work, thou, nor thy son, nor thy daughter, thy manservant, nor thy maidservant, nor thy cattle, nor thy stranger that is within thy gates:  11For in six days the LORD made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that in them is, and rested the seventh day: wherefore the LORD blessed the sabbath day, and hallowed it.

The Torah does not forbid the worship of the Presence of YHWH, the Image of YHWH, the Word of YHWH, the glory of YHWH, the fire of YHWH, the Angel (Messenger) of YHWH, or the Name of YHWH. In fact there are numerous examples from the Torah of worship occurring in relation to the appearance and presence of all these. The manifestation of the Son of YHWH is no different and also requires that same worship and honor credited to the aforementioned, for He is the Fullness of the Godhead bodily. Idolatry is the worship and submission to the shadow over the true, regardless of our intention and desire for communion with YHWH.

Again, counting your redemption secure through the shadow of the Torah is akin to idolatry. Using the (dark) New Moon to count the seventh day sabbath instead of recognizing the Divine Light, the manifestation of the image of YHWH, via the seven day sabbath creation count is akin to idolatry.

Those who attempt to take this letter as an attack instead of an opportunity to improve our understanding of truth need to realize that regardless of how they feel about others not agreeing with them, a mature follower of Yeshua must prove all things. Claiming defense of a cherished belief by suggesting others are attacking them is not an argument relative to the pursuit of truth and is an immature point of view.

Acts 17: 10And the brethren immediately sent away Paul and Silas by night unto Berea: who coming thither went into the synagogue of the Jews.  11These were more noble than those in Thessalonica, in that they received the word with all readiness of mind, and searched the scriptures daily, whether those things were so.  12Therefore many of them believed; also of honourable women which were Greeks, and of men, not a few.

So let us not deny the light of our salvation, the Messiah Yeshua. If we love the shadow more than the light what hope do we have? None.

John 3: 12If I have told you earthly things, and ye believe not, how shall ye believe, if I tell you of heavenly things?  13And no man hath ascended up to heaven, but he that came down from heaven, even the Son of man which is in heaven.  14And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of man be lifted up:  15That whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have eternal life.  16For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.  17For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved.  18He that believeth on him is not condemned: but he that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God.  19And this is the condemnation, that light is come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil.  20For every one that doeth evil hateth the light, neither cometh to the light, lest his deeds should be reproved.  21But he that doeth truth cometh to the light, that his deeds may be made manifest, that they are wrought in God.

Whether the issue be to follow the shadow or the light in regard to the count of the seventh day sabbath or if we believe we are saved by observing the Torah (fore-shadow) instead of declaring faith in the redemptive work on the Son of YHWH, the Messiah Yeshua (the Divine Light), I will follow the leading of the light (the reality) and allow the shadow to have its appropriate position in regard to the light, subordinate and following.