There Is Nothing New Under The Sun
By Rabbi Dr. Hillel ben David (Greg Killian)
In this study I would like to learn about new things and things that have been before. I will start with my paradigm:
Kohelet (Ecclesiates) 1:9 The thing that hath been, it [is that] which shall be; and that which is done [is] that which shall be done: and [there is] no new[thing] under the sun.
Was the resurrected body of Yeshua a new creation? My premise is that it was NOT a new thing.
My logic is this: Was the body of Adam HaRishon (the first Adam) designed to live forever? I think that we can find the answer to this in the Torah:
Bereshit (Genesis) 2:16-17 And HaShem God commanded the man, saying, Of every tree of the garden thou mayest freely eat: But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it: for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die.
The implication of Bereshit 2:17, is that Adam HaRishon would not die if he did not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. Therefore, I would conclude that Adam’s body was designed to live forever. It appears that the only additional requirement is:
Bereshit (Genesis) 3:22 And HaShem God said, Behold, the man is become as one of us, to know good and evil: and now, lest he put forth his hand, and take also of the tree of life, and eat, and live for ever:
The implications of this conclusion are:
✡ The body of Yeshua, after His resurrection, was not a new thing.
✡ The body of Yeshua, after His resurrection, was a restoration of the type of body that Adam HaRishon was given, before his sin.
✡ The body of Yeshua, after His resurrection, represents a picture of the type of body that will be given to the righteous in the resurrection.
Lets take a look at what this body could do:
✡ It could pass through stone to leave the grave without rolling back the stone. Matityahu (Matthew) 28:2.
✡ It still bore the marks and damage from life. Yochanan (John) 20:25.
✡ It could enter a room without opening the door. Yochanan (John) 20:26.
✡ He was not confined by gravity. Luqas (Luke) 24:51.
Why did Yeshua forbid his mother from touching Him? I believe that He was obeying Torah. Lets start by looking at this event:
Yochanan (John) 20:17 Yeshua saith unto her, Touch me not; for I am not yet ascended to my Father: but go to my brethren, and say unto them, I ascend unto my Father, and your Father; and [to] my God, and your God.
Note that He has not yet ascended. Why has He not yet ascended? What is He waiting for? I can derive some insight by noting that He allowed Thomas to touch Him a week later:
Yochanan (John) 20:26-27 And after eight days again his disciples were within, and Thomas with them: [then] came Yeshua, the doors being shut, and stood inthe midst, and said, Peace [be] unto you. Then saith he to Thomas, Reach hither thy finger, and behold my hands; and reach hither thy hand, and thrust [it] into my side: and be not faithless, but believing.
Note that Yeshua permitted Himself to be touched eight days later. This suggests that He may be obeying Torah:
Bamidbar (Numbers) 19:16-19 And 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. And 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: And 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: And 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.
In Bamidbar (Numbers) 19:16, we learn that one who touches a dead body or a grave, will be unclean for seven days. Surely you must say that Yeshua touched a dead body and that he touched a grave. Torah is clear; one who does these things must be sprinkled by the ashes of the red cow on the 3rd and the 7th days. He will be clean at sundown.
I propose that Yeshua had not yet ascended because he needed seven days for His purification. It seems clear that He WAS unclean according to Torah.
This study was written by
Rabbi Dr. Hillel ben David
(Greg Killian).
Comments may be submitted to:
Rabbi Dr. Greg Killian
12210 Luckey Summit
San Antonio, TX 78252
Internet address: gkilli@aol.com
Web page: http://www.betemunah.org/
(360) 918-2905
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