Tefillin are
Berachoth 6a And how
do you know that the tefillin are a strength to
Menachoth 35b It is
written,’ And all the peoples of the earth shall see that the name of the Lord is called upon thee; and they shall be
afraid of thee. It was taught: R. Eliezer the Great says, This refers to the
tefillah of the head.
What are Tefillin? Tefillin are passages from the Torah that are written on parchment and are placed within square leather batim (casements), with long leather straps attached to the batim. These straps are used to bind the batim with the parchment Torah passages within them, on one's arm and hand and on one's head.
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The four Torah portions are written on a single parchment in the hand tefillin (tefillin shel yad), while in the head tefillin (tefillin shel rosh) each passage is written on a separate parchment, so that each passage can be placed within one of the four compartments in the head tefillin. "The four passages are:
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HaShem also wears tefillin. His arm and head tefillin both contain the same passages because His thoughts and His actions are the same. The following four portions are in HaShem’s tefillin:
1.וּמִי
כְּעַמְּךָ
יִשְׂרָאֵל,
גּוֹי אֶחָד בָּאָרֶץ “U'Mi K'A’amkha Yisrael Goy
Echad Ba'Aretz” – “And who is like Your people
2. כִּי
מִי-גוֹי
גָּדוֹל “Ki Mi Goy Gadol” – “For what great nation” (Deut. 4:7), וּמִי גּוֹי
גָּדוֹל “U'Mi Goy Gadol” – “And
what great nation” (Deut. 4:8)?
3. אַשְׁרֶיךָ
יִשְׂרָאֵל “Ash’rekha Yisrael” –
Fortunate are you, O Israel” (Deut. 33:29)?
4. אוֹ
הֲנִסָּה
אֱלֹהִים “O Ha-Nisa Elohim” – “Or has G-d assayed” (Deut. 4:34)?
and
5. וּלְתִתְּךָ
עֶלְיוֹ “U'L’titkha El’yon” - and to make
you high” (Deut. 26:19)
These six Pesukim are arranged
in HaShem's Tefilin as follows: "Ki Mi Goy
Gadol" and "U'Mi Goy Gadol" in the first Parshah, “Ash’rekha
Yisrael” and "U'Mi K’A’amkha Yisrael" in the second, “O Ha-Nisah
Elohim" in the third, and "U'L'Titkha El’yon" in the fourth.
The mitzva of tefillin is mentioned in four separate parashiyot in the Torah. Two of them, those in Shemot 13, are mentioned in the context of the story of the exodus. In fact, the dominant theme of these two parashiyot is the need to remember the exodus:
Shemot (Exodus) 13:8 And thou
shalt shew thy son in that day, saying, because of that HaShem did unto me when
I came forth out of Egypt.
The other two parashiyot, Devarim 6 and Devarim 11, were
first mentioned some forty years later, in the plains
of Moav, just prior to entry into Eretz Israel. Here,
the main theme concerns acceptance of the yoke of Heaven
and of the mitzvot, within the clear context of entry into Eretz
We will examine these Torah portions in greater detail later in this study.
Tefillin are put on in the synagogue before shacharit, morning prayers, on days that are not Shabbat or a Torah based Festival. The Torah based Festivals, when Tefillin are not put on, are the first and last days of Pesach, Shavuot, Yom Teruah, Yom Kippurim, and the first and last days of Succoth. It follows that Tefillin ARE worn on Rosh Chodesh, Chanukah, Purim, and Yom ha-Atzma'ut - unless any of these days fall on Shabbat.
A man always needs a sign of his bond with HaShem. Shabbat itself is such a sign, but on the weekdays, this sign is tefillin:
Eiruvin 96a Who is it
that was heard to hold that Sabbath is a time for the wearing of tefillin? — R.
Akiba. For it was taught: Thou shalt, therefore, keep this ordinance in its
season form year to year, the term ‘days’ excludes nights, ‘from the days’
implies: But not all days; thus excluding Sabbaths and festivals; so R. Jose
the Galilean. R. Akiba said: The expression ‘This ordinance’ was meant to apply
to the Passover [sacrifice] only. With reference, however, to what we have
learnt: ‘The Paschal [sacrifice] and circumcision are positive commandments’,
must it be assumed that this is not in agreement with the view of R. Akiba, for
it were to be contended that it was in agreement with R. Akiba the objection
would arise: Since he applied it to the Passover [sacrifice] a negative precept
also should be involved as R. Akiba laid down in the name of R. Ila'i for R.
Abin citing R. Ila'i laid down: Wherever the expressions ‘Take heed’, ‘Lest’ or
‘Do not’ is used a negative precept is invariably intended? — It may be said to
be in agreement even with the view of R. Akiba, for the expression ‘Take heed’
has the force of a negative precept only where it introduces a prohibitions but
where it introduces a positive commandment it has the force of a positive
commandment. But how could R. Akiba hold that the Sabbath is a time for wearing
tefillin seeing that it was taught: R. Akiba stated: As it might have been
presented that a man shall wear tefillin on Sabbaths and festivals, it was
explicitly said in Scripture: And it shall be for a sign
unto thee upon thine hand, which denotes: on those days only that require a sign; but these, since
they themselves are a sign, are excluded.
Gemara is
allegory. What is the allegory?
There are two related concepts: allegory and metaphor. Lets examine the dictionary definitions:
Allegory: The representation of abstract ideas or principles
by characters, figures, or events in narrative, dramatic, or pictorial form. A
symbolic representation: The blindfolded figure with scales is an allegory
of justice.
Metaphor: A figure of speech in which a word or phrase that
ordinarily designates one thing is used to designate another, thus making an
implicit comparison, as in “a sea of troubles” or “All the world's a
stage” (Shakespeare).
One
thing conceived as representing another; a symbol: “
Of the six hundred-thirteen mitzvot, only three are referred to as an ,ut "ot", a sign representing the eternal bond between HaShem and the Jewish people. Those mitzvot are:
These signs are witnesses which bear constant testimony to the love that HaShem has for Israel, and the miracles which He has wrought on their behalf, And just as there is a need for two witnesses to give any matter legal credence, so too, it is necessary to be involved with two of these "signs" constantly to remind us of our responsibilities. Therefore, on the weekday we have the tefillin and the sign of Milah. On Shabbat, the day itself is a sign, so all that is needed is the sign of Milah, and there is no need for the third sign, tefillin. In fact, according to some opinions, it is forbidden to don tefillin on Shabbat because the sign of tefillin detracts from the sanctity of the sign of Shabbat.
So, what is the allegory of this verse? I have a small thought:
Mila, Shabbat, and Tefillin each speak to an intimate connection with HaShem.
Mila is used to connect with one’s wife and with HaShem to produce a child.
Shabbat is the day of connection, as seven is always associtaed with connection. We do several things in a special manner on Shabbat. We eat special food and drink in order to connect our soul to our body. We pray special prayers and have a special Torah reading in order to connect with HaShem. We have marital intimacy in order to physically connect two human beings. Even the number seven speaks to connecting. Consider that every physical object has seven parts. Six sides: front, back, to, bottom, left and right, and a seventh which is the center that connects the six disparate sides.
Tefillin also speaks to connections. The head tefillin is centered on the head. Now we know that every organ of the body, internal and external, which is in the center, is used for connecting as we learned in the study of the human body. The arm tefillin forms a ring on the finger as an act of betrothal. Betrothal is, of course, another form of connection. The tefillin is placed opposite the heart, which is an organ which is centered between the sholders and the belt, between the left and right side, and also centered front to back in the body. Further the tefillin are bound in a tight physical connection to the human body.
Since we only need two
connections to bear witness of our connection with HaShem, then we do not
require the connection with the third sign. Thus the sign is an allegory of an
intimate connection between HaShem and His people.
Tefillin and
Longevity
The students asked Rabbi Ada ben Ahavah, “Why were you worthy of such long life?” He replied, “One reason is because I always wore tefillin”:
Taanit 20b Thus it has
been stated: The disciples of R. Adda b. Ahabah asked him: To what do you
attribute your longevity? — He replied: I have never displayed any impatience
in my house, and I have never walked in front of any man greater than myself,
nor have I ever meditated [over the words of the Torah] in any dirty alleys,
nor have I ever walked four cubits without [musing over] the Torah or without
[wearing] phylacteries, nor have I ever fallen asleep
in the Beth Hamidrash for any length of time or even momentarily, nor have I
rejoiced at the disgrace of my friends, nor have I ever called my neighbour by
a nickname given to him by myself, or, some say by the nickname given to him by
others.
Thus we see that that longevity of life is related to wearing tefillin.
The ש
shin appears on the tefillin in two forms: on
the left side of the one worn on the head, the letter
is embossed with four splays[3]
while on the right side of the one used for the arm, the
standard three-headed version of the ש shin is used. The two forms infer the two
kinds of Divine wisdom - the revealed and the concealed. The four ו vav form of the shin originates from the Ten Commandments, on which the
The letter a shin is
formed from three letter ו vavs. These are
depicted as three separate entities that combine in completeness. The
verticality of the structure suggests ascension and symmetry. According to the Zohar, the three ו vavs infer the three fathers of
There is a knot on the head tefillin straps. The knot that goes at the base of the skull is shaped like a ד dalet.
The arm tefillin straps have a knot formed like a י yod.
Together the ש shin, ד dalet, and י yod form the name שדי Shaddai (Almighty).
The Midrash says that at the beginning of creation the world developed and approached perfection. Then, HaShem told it to stop and remain imperfect. Commentaries explain that the purpose was to leave the world incomplete and allow man to bring it to absolute perfection. This would allow man the opportunity to earn his own reward and enjoy HaShem’s pleasure - entirely.
This expression of HaShem is captured by a particular name of HaShem: שדי Shaddai. שדי is formed with a ש shin (the only letter not made of knots) and די dai, the Hebrew word which means “enough”. This refers to the end of the Creation process when HaShem said “enough”, reinforcing His mastery over the limitations of the universe.
That is why our Tefillin have those three letters: ש shin, ד dalet, and י yod within them: Tefillin capture the purpose of creation; שדי Shaddai pictures HaShem’s giving man the opportunity to earn reward on his own.
Our Sages teach us that the passages that come just before or just after a particular passage, give insight and understanding to the passage being studied. This is called the rule of adjacent sections (semikhut parshiot). I would like to use this technique to see what other insights can be gained by examining the passages in the tefillin.
Shemot (Exodus)
13:1-10
Shemot (Exodus)
13:11-16
The passage which precedes Shemot 13:1 is:
Shemot (Exodus) 12:43-51 And HaShem said unto Moses and Aaron, This is the
ordinance of the passover: There shall no stranger
eat thereof: 44 But every man’s servant that is bought for money, when thou
hast circumcised him, then shall he eat thereof. 45 A
foreigner and an hired servant shall not eat thereof. 46 In one house shall it
be eaten; thou shalt not carry forth ought of the flesh abroad out of the
house; neither shall ye break a bone thereof. 47 All the congregation
of Israel shall keep it. 48 And when a stranger shall sojourn with thee,
and will keep the passover to HaShem, let all his males be circumcised, and then let him come near and keep it;
and he shall be as one that is born in the land: for no uncircumcised person
shall eat thereof. 49 One law shall be to him that is
homeborn, and unto the stranger that sojourneth among you. 50 Thus did all the
children of
From these pasukim we learn that the sign of tefillin is given to those who are NOT strangers (v.43). This sign is given to those circumcised individuals who celebrate Pesach (v.48). Tefillin are related to those who serve HaShem by keeping the mitzvot (v.49-50). Finally, tefillin in intimately related to the exodus from Egypt when HaShem began His courtship of the Bnei Israel.
The passage which precedes Shemot
Shemot (Exodus) 13:17-22 And it came to pass, when Pharaoh had let the
people go, that G-d led them not the way of the land of the Philistines,
although that was near; for G-d said, Lest peradventure the people repent when
they see war, and they return to Egypt: 18 But G-d led the people about, the
way of the wilderness of the Red sea: and the children of Israel went up
harnessed out of the land of Egypt. 19 And Moses took the bones of Joseph with him: for he had straitly sworn the children
of
From these pasukim we learn that the sign of tefillin is
given to those who are protected and sheltered by HaShem, to those who will
never return to
Devarim
(Deuteronomy) 6:4-9
The passage which precedes Devarim 6:4 is:
Devarim (Deuteronomy) 6:1-3 Now these the commandments, the statutes, and the
judgments, which HaShem your G-d commanded to teach you, that ye might do
in the land whither ye go to possess it: 2 That thou mightest fear HaShem thy
G-d, to keep all his statutes and his commandments, which I command thee, thou,
and thy son, and thy son’s son, all the days of thy life; and that thy days may
be prolonged. 3 Hear therefore, O
From these pasukim we learn that the sign of tefillin is given to those who accepted the covenant at Sinai and have pledged to obey all the Torah of HaShem (v.1-2). Those who do as they promised are assured of long life, numerous progeny, and a portion in a land flowing with milk and honey (v.3).
The passage which follows Devarim 6:9 is:
Devarim (Deuteronomy) 6:10-16 And it shall be, when HaShem thy G-d shall have brought thee into the land
which he sware unto thy fathers, to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob, to give
thee great and goodly cities, which thou buildedst not, 11 And houses full of
all good, which thou filledst not, and wells digged, which thou diggedst not,
vineyards and olive trees, which thou plantedst not; when thou shalt have eaten and be full; 12 beware lest thou forget HaShem,
which brought thee forth out of the land of Egypt,
from the house of bondage. 13 Thou shalt fear HaShem thy G-d, and serve him,
and shalt swear by his name. 14 Ye shall not go after
other G-ds, of the G-ds of the people which round about you; 15 (For HaShem thy
G-d is a jealous G-d among you) lest the anger of HaShem thy G-d be kindled
against thee, and destroy thee from off the face of the earth. 16 Ye shall not
tempt HaShem your G-d, as ye tempted in Massah.
From these pasukim we learn that the sign of tefillin is
given to the owners of the promised land, a land pre-built and ready to inhabit
(v.10-11). This pasuk also relates tefillin to the exodus of
Devarim
(Deuteronomy) 11:13-21
The passage which precedes Devarim
Devarim (Deuteronomy) 11:8-12 Therefore shall ye keep all the commandments
which I command you this day, that ye may be strong, and go in and possess the
land, whither ye go to possess it; 9 And that ye may prolong your days in the
land, which HaShem sware unto your fathers to give unto them and to their seed, a land that floweth with milk and honey. 10 For
the land, whither thou goest in to possess it, is not as the land of Egypt,
from whence ye came out, where thou sowedst thy seed, and wateredst it with thy
foot, as a garden of herbs: 11 But the land, whither ye go to possess it, is a
land of hills and valleys, and drinketh water of the rain of heaven: 12 A land which HaShem thy G-d careth for: the
eyes of HaShem thy G-d are always upon it, from the beginning of the year even
unto the end of the year.
From these pasukim we learn that the sign of tefillin is given as a sign to those who keep the commandments of HaShem (v.8). Tefillin are again connected with the promised land and those who will inherit that beautiful land (v.8-12).
The passage which follows Devarim 11:21 is:
Devarim (Deuteronomy) 11:22-25 For if ye shall diligently keep all these commandments which I command you,
to do them, to love HaShem your G-d, to walk in all his ways, and to cleave
unto him; 23 Then will HaShem drive out all these nations from before you, and
ye shall possess greater nations and mightier than yourselves. 24 Every place
whereon the soles of your feet shall tread shall be yours: from the wilderness
and
From these pasukim we learn that the sign of tefillin is given as a sign to those who diligently keep all of the commandments of HaShem (v.22). Tefillin are related to the land that HaShem will clear for those who keep His commands (v.23-25).
There are several related themes found in these before and after passages:
Tefillin are called the sign, or mark, of HaShem in:
Devarim (Deuteronomy) 6:8 And thou shalt bind them for a sign upon
thine hand, and they shall be as frontlets between thine eyes.
This pasuk is part of the Shema which we say twice a day. We are reminding ourselves of HaShem and His mitzvot which are our intimate connection with Him. Tefillin being a mark of HaShem is also mentioned in the Talmud:
Shabbath
12a The School of R. Ishmael
taught: A man may go out with his tefillin on the eve of Sabbath
near nightfall. What's the reason? Because Rabbah son of R. Huna said: One must
feel his tefillin every now and then, [inferring] a minori from [the High Priest's] headplate. If in the case of the
headplate, which contained the Divine Name only once,
yet the Torah said, and it shall always be on his forehead, [i.e.,] his mind
must not be diverted from it; then with the tefillin, which contain the Divine
Name many times, how much more so! therefore he is fully cognizant thereof.
The Midrash also speaks of this sign:
Midrash
Rabbah - Exodus XIX:8 … Make
thereof a sign upon thy hand and upon thy head, as it says: And it shall be for
a sign upon thy hand, etc. (ib. 16). It can be compared to a king who made a
great banquet for his daughter [on her release] after she had been imprisoned
by enemies. Her father then said to her: ‘Make this day one of rejoicing, for I
have provided a crown for thy head so that thou dost not forget it.’ G-d,
likewise, performed miracles for Israel, slaying the
firstborn of the Egyptians on their account: for this reason, did He exhort
them concerning the sanctity of the firstborn, for He with His own hands had
slain them, as it says: That the Lord slew all the firstborn (ib. 15), so that
they might be a crown upon the heads of Israel, so that the miracle may never
be forgotten by them.
Finally, the Zohar also speaks of this sign:
Soncino Zohar, Bereshith, Section 1, Page 2b The letter Tau advanced in front and
pleaded: May it please Thee, O Lord of the world, to place me first in the
creation of the world, seeing that I am the concluding letter of EMeTh (Truth)
which is engraved upon Thy seal, and seeing
that Thou art called by this very name of EMeTh, it is most appropriate for the
King to begin with the final letter of EMeTh and to create with me the world.
The Holy One, blessed be He, said to her: Thou art worthy and deserving, but it
is not proper that I begin with thee the creation of the world, since thou art
destined to serve as a mark on the foreheads of the faithful ones (vide Ezek.
IX, 4) who have kept the Law from Aleph to Tau, and through the absence of this
mark the rest will be killed; and, further, thou formest the conclusion of
MaWeTh (death). Hence thou art not meet to initiate the creation of the world.
In our time, the practice is to wear tefillin during the entire weekday Shacharit service. Since the commandment of tefillin has its source in the verse "Bind them for a sign upon thine hand and they shall be as frontlets between thine eyes" (Devarim 6:8), on Shabbats and festivals, tefillin are not put on. The reason for this is that the word "sign" (ot) is also mentioned in the commandment of the Shabbat, as it is written: "The Children of Israel shall keep the Shabbat, observing the Shabbat throughout the ages as a covenant for all time: it shall be a sign for all time between Me and the people of Israel" (Shemot 31:16-17), and one sign (that of the tefillin) is not placed on another (that of the Shabbat); the festivals are comparable to the Shabbat. Tefillin are a time dependent command and are not incumbent on women.
Tefillin are a sign of the special bond of love between HaShem and man. We show how intimate this love is, when, as we bind them, we say:
I
will betroth You to me with right and justice, with
love and mercy.
I
will betroth You to me with faith … and you shall know HaShem.
In Hosea 2:21-22 it is said: 'And I will betroth thee unto Me for ever … and thou shalt know the Lord …' The use of the word 'know' refers to knowledge in the deepest sense of the word. It is also used to describe sexual intercourse. Therefore, this verse further impresses upon the reader the bind between man and HaShem.
Faith and love are very tenuous things. We can speak of them and think about them. But unless we do something about them we tend to forget; tefillin serve to help us remember.
Strong’s Concordance gives us some insights into the Hebrew word for sign:
0226. Æowth oth; probably from 0225 (in the sense of appearing); a signal (literally or
figuratively), as a flag, beacon, monument, omen, prodigy, evidence, etc.:—
mark, miracle, (en-)sign, token.
As we mentioned earlier, of the six hundred-thirteen mitzvot, only three are referred to as an ‘ot’, a sign representing the eternal bond between HaShem and His people. Those mitzvot are:
The Talmud brings some more light on the relationship between these three signs:
Menachoth
36b And could Rabbah b. R. Huna
have said so? Did not Rabbah b. R. Huna say that if it was doubtful whether
darkness had already fallen or not, one should not take them off nor put them
on? Now it follows from this that if it were certain that darkness had fallen one
would have to take them off! — This was stated with regard to the eve of Sabbath. But what can be his view? If he holds that the
night is a time for tefillin, then the Sabbath is also
a time for tefillin, and if, on the other hand, he holds that the night is not
a time for tefillin, then the Sabbath, too, is not a time for tefillin, since
the same passage which excludes the Sabbath [from the wearing of tefillin] also
excludes the night. For it was taught: It is written, And thou shalt observe
this ordinance in its season from day to day. ‘Day’, but not night; ‘from day’,
but not all days; hence the Sabbaths and the Festivals are excluded. So R. Jose
the Galilean; but R. Akiba says, This ordinance refers only to the Passover-offering! — He derives it from the text from which R.
Akiba derives it. For it was taught: One might have thought that a man should
put on the tefillin on Sabbaths and on Festivals, Scripture therefore says, And
it shall be for a sign upon thy hand, and for frontlets between thine eyes,
that is, [only on those days] which stand in need of a sign [are tefillin to be
worn], but Sabbaths and Festivals are excluded, since they themselves are a
sign.
The first use of the Hebrew word, ot, is found in:
Bereshit (Genesis) 1:14 And G-d 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: 15 And let them be for lights in the firmament of the
heaven to give light upon the earth: and it was so.
In the above passage we can
see that signs are related to time and for light.
The Nazarean Codicil also speaks of a mystical seal (mark):
Revelation 9:4
And
it was commanded them that they should not hurt the grass of the earth, neither
any green thing, neither any tree; but only those men which have not the seal
of G-d in their foreheads.
This points us to Revelation. 7:4ff where the 144,000s are sealed with "the seal of the living God". In Revelation 14:1 we read that these 144,000s have "his [the Lamb's] Father's name written on their foreheads." They are also described as "being firstfruits unto God and to the Lamb":
Revelation 14:4
These are they which were not defiled with women; for they are virgins.
These are they which follow the Lamb whithersoever he goeth. These were redeemed from among men, being the firstfruits
unto G-d and to the Lamb.
In Hebrew "firstfruits" and "firstborn" are the spelled with the same characters but pronounced differently. Remember that Pesach is to be a sign upon ones hand and forehead (Shemot 13:9, 16) and that at Pesach, the blood of the Lamb redeems the firstborn and protects them from the plague of the firstborn. The seal of the living HaShem in Revelation is clearly connected to the mitzvot of Pesach, the tefillin, and the whole Torah. This seems in Revelation to be contrasted with the "mark of the Beast" (Rev. 13:16-17; 14:9, 11; 20:4).
Hag Shavuot is also the day of our betrothal to HaShem. It is interesting that Hag Shavuot is also called Atzeret, completion. It is called atzeret because it is the completion of Pesach. Pesach is connected to Hag Shavuot by the counting of the omer. Thus the goal of Pesach is the betrothal of HaShem to His people.
Tefillin is a mitzva, which
signifies betrothing the Word (Torah = Yeshua) unto
one¹s self! This is how we connect and become a part of the body.
The Talmud teaches us that HaShem also wears tefillin too:
Berachoth 6a R. Nahman
b. Isaac said to R. Hiyya b. Abin: What is written in the tefillin of the Lord
of the Universe? — He replied to him: And who is like Thy people
And in the same manner in which our Tefillin must be perfectly black in color, so too HaShem's Tefillin must be perfectly white.
The Number Four
The Book of Devarim is like the tefillin worn on the hand [whose box has only one compartment], while the four other books (of the Five Books of Moshe) are like the tefillin worn on the forehead whose parchments are rolled individually and set in four different chambers. This analogy also reminds us of the fingers on our hand. Four fingers are similar and one is different and fatter (the thumb). This reminds us of the meaning of the numbers four and five:
According to Chazal, our Sages, the number four signifies completion or fullness.
The number five represents the perfection of the natural order (the number four), with the addition of one: HaShem Himself.
And, in the same way, everything that has been said in the preceding four books, of the Torah, is contained in Devarim, so, all the Torah passages are [rolled into a single scroll contained] in the one house of the tefillin worn on the hand.
YYY
Succah 25a Tefillin
are called the glory of Israel.
What do tefillin have to do with the mark of the beast? Perhaps nothing. However, it should be noted that the mark of the beast is a sign on the hand and forehead, and the Torah passages about the tefillin are the only other places in Scripture where anything else is ever spoken of as a sign or mark on both the hand and forehead. The only two things in the Torah that are described as a sign or mark on both the hand and forehead are the tefillin and the mark of the beast. At the very least, this should tell us that there is a very strong likelihood of some kind of connection between the tefillin and the mark of the beast. If we can understand the deeper meaning of the tefillin as the mark of HaShem, then we should be able to understand the mark of the beast as a counterfeit of whatever the tefillin represent.
It is axiomatic that all truth can be falsified. The mark of HaShem is no exception. The antithesis of the mark of HaShem is the mark of the beast. Where do we find the term: “Mark of the beast”? (Keep in mind that the Book of Revelation is sod level literature where everything is a symbol and there is no literal meaning.)
Revelation 16:1-2 And I heard a great voice out of the temple saying to the seven angels, Go your ways, and
pour out the vials of the wrath of G-d upon the earth. 2 And the first went,
and poured out his vial upon the earth; and there fell a noisome and grievous
sore upon the men which had the mark of the beast, and upon them which
worshipped his image.
And:
Revelation 19:20 And the
beast was taken, and with him the false prophet that wrought miracles before
him, with which he deceived them that had received the mark of the beast,
and them that worshipped his image. These both were cast alive into a lake of fire burning with brimstone.
In the above passages the mark of the beast is viewed as something which was given earlier. This mark is first mentioned in:
Revelation13:16 And he causeth all, both small and great, rich and poor,
free and bond, to receive a mark in their right hand, or in their
foreheads: 17 And that no man might buy or sell, save he that had the mark, or
the name of the beast, or the number of his name.
There is another connection that is worth noting:
Daniel 7:23-25 Thus he said, The fourth beast shall be the
fourth kingdom upon earth, which shall be diverse from all kingdoms, and shall
devour the whole earth, and shall tread it down, and break it in pieces. 24 And
the ten horns out of this kingdom are ten kings that
shall arise: and another shall rise after them; and he shall be diverse from
the first, and he shall subdue three kings. 25 And he
shall speak great words against the most High, and shall wear out the saints of
the most High, and think to change times and laws: and they shall be given into his hand until a time and times and the dividing of time.
From this passage we learn that the beast desires to change the times of HaShem and His laws. This suggests that the mark of the beast is intimately related to time and to the Torah.
The mark of the beast is on their right hand or forehead. The placement of this mark suggests tefillin which are placed similarly (between the eyes and on the weaker hand):
Shemot (Exodus) 13:15-16 And it came to pass, when Pharaoh would hardly
let us go, that HaShem slew all the firstborn in the
land of Egypt, both the firstborn of man, and the firstborn of beast: therefore
I sacrifice to HaShem all that openeth the matrix, being males; but all the
firstborn of my children I redeem. 16 And it
shall be for a sign upon thine hand, and for tefillin between thine
eyes: for by strength of hand HaShem brought us forth out
of Egypt.
From the above passage we can see that Pesach shall be for a sign upon thine hand, and for a tefillin between thine eyes....
Devarim (Deuteronomy) 6:4-8 Hear, O
And thou shalt bind them [the mitzvot] for a sign upon thine hand, and they shall be as tefillin between thine eyes.
Devarim (Deuteronomy)
Therefore shall ye lay up these my words in your heart and in your soul, and bind them [mitzvot] for a sign upon your hand, that they may be as tefillin between your eyes.
There are many varying
opinions as to what constitutes the mark of the beast. Most limit the
definition to the last days and promote it as being some sort of literal or
visible mark, logo, stamp, implant, identity chip, or sign. Most also try to
understand the meaning behind the number 666, which is mentioned in a single
passage within the context of the discussion regarding the mark. Whatever this
mark is, the righteous need to avoid it because of the terrible consequences
allotted to those who have the mark:
Revelation 14:9-11 And
the third angel followed them, saying with a loud voice, If any man worship the
beast and his image, and receive his mark in his forehead, or in his hand, 10
The same shall drink of the wine of the wrath of G-d, which is poured out
without mixture into the cup of his indignation; and he shall be tormented with
fire and brimstone in the presence of the holy angels,
and in the presence of the Lamb: 11 And the smoke of their torment
ascendeth up for ever and ever: and they have no rest day nor night, who
worship the beast and his image, and whosoever receiveth the mark of his name.
Revelation 16:2 And
the first went, and poured out his vial upon the earth; and there fell a
noisome and grievous sore upon the men which had the mark of the beast, and
upon them which worshipped his image.
Revelation 19:20 And
the beast was taken, and with him the false prophet that wrought miracles
before him, with which he deceived them that had received the mark of the
beast, and them that worshipped his image. These both were cast alive into a
lake of fire burning with brimstone.
To properly identify the mark of the beast we need to clearly understand the mark of HaShem.
Study carefully these two translations to begin to understand what is a beast and what is a mark:
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Murphy’s Peshitta
Translation |
Young’s Literal
Translation |
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13:1 ¶ And I saw a beast of prey
come up from the sea, having ten horns, and seven heads; and upon his horns ten diadems, and upon
his heads names of blasphemy. |
13:1 ¶ And I stood upon the sand of
the sea, and I saw out of the sea a beast coming up, having seven heads and
ten horns, and upon its horns ten diadems, and upon its heads a name of evil
speaking, |
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2 And the beast of prey which I saw,
was like a leopard; and his feet like those of a wolf, and his mouth
like the mouth of lions: and the dragon gave to him his own power and his
throne, and great authority. |
2 and the beast that I saw was like
to a leopard, and its feet as of a bear, and its mouth as the mouth of a
lion, and the dragon did give to it his power, and his throne, and great
authority. |
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3 And one of his heads was wounded
as it were to death; and his deadly wound was healed. And all the earth
wondered after the beast of prey. |
3 And I saw one of its heads as
slain to death, and its deadly stroke was healed, and all the earth did
wonder after the beast, |
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4 And they worshipped the dragon,
because he had given authority to this beast of prey, and they said,
who can make war upon him? |
4 and they did bow before the dragon
who did give authority to the beast, and they did bow before the beast,
saying, ‘Who is like to the beast? who is able to war with it?’ |
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5 And there was given to him a mouth
speaking great things, and blasphemies: and authority was given him to
operate forty and two months. |
5 And there was given to it a mouth
speaking great things, and evil-speakings, and there was given to it
authority to make war forty-two months, |
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6 And he opened his mouth in
blasphemy towards G-d, to blaspheme his name and his tabernacle,
and them who dwell in heaven. |
6 and it did open its mouth for
evil-speaking toward G-d, to speak evil of His name, and of His tabernacle,
and of those who in the heaven tabernacle, |
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7 And authority was given him over
every tribe and people and tongue and nation: and it was given him to wage
war with the saints, and to overcome them. |
7 and there was given to it to make
war with the saints, and to overcome them, and there was given to it
authority over every tribe, and tongue, and nation. |
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8 And all that dwell on the earth, whose names are not written in
the book of life of the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world, will
worship him. |
8 And bow before it shall all who
are dwelling upon the land, whose names have not been written in the scroll
of the life of the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world; |
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9 If any one hath ears, let him
hear. |
9 if any one hath an ear—let him
hear: |
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10 If any one carrieth into
captivity, he shall himself go into captivity; and if any one slayeth with
the sword, he must be slain with the sword: here is the patience and the
faith of the saints. |
10 if any one a captivity doth
gather, into captivity he doth go away; if any one by sword doth kill, it
behoveth him by sword to be killed; here is the endurance and the faith of
the saints. |
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11 ¶ And I saw another beast of
prey, which came out of the earth; and he had two
horns like those of a lamb, and he spoke like the dragon. |
11 ¶ And I saw another beast coming
up out of the land, and it had two horns, like a lamb, and it was speaking as
a dragon, |
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12 And before him he exercised all
the authority of the first beast of prey, whose deadly wound was healed. |
12 and all the authority of the
first beast doth it do before it, and it maketh the land and those dwelling
in it that they shall bow before the first beast, whose deadly stroke was
healed, |
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13 And he wrought great signs, even so as to make fire
come down from heaven upon the earth, before men. |
13 and it doth great signs, that
fire also it may make to come down from the heaven to the earth before men, |
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14 And he seduced them that dwell on
the earth, to erect an image to the beast of prey who had the wound from a
sword and recovered. |
14 and it leadeth astray those
dwelling on the land, because of the signs that were given it to do before
the beast, saying to those dwelling upon the land to make an image to the
beast that hath the stroke of the sword and did live, |
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15 And it was given him to put life
into the image of the beast of prey; and to cause that all they who would not
worship the image of the beast of prey, should be slain: |
15 and there was given to it to give
a spirit to the image of the beast, that also the image of the beast may
speak, and that it may cause as many as shall not bow before the image
of the beast, that they may be killed. |
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16 and to cause that all, great and
small, rich and poor, bond and free, should receive a mark on their right
hands, or upon their foreheads; |
16 And it maketh all, the small, and
the great, and the rich, and the poor, and the freemen, and the servants,
that it may give to them a mark upon their right hand or upon their
foreheads, |
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17 so that no one might be able to
buy or to sell, except those who had the mark of the name of the beast of
prey, or the number of his name. |
17 and that no one may be able to
buy, or to sell, except he who is having the mark, or the name of the beast,
or the number of his name. |
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18 Here is wisdom: let him that hath
intelligence, compute the number of the beast of prey; for it is the number
of a man: and its number is six hundred and sixty and
six. |
18 Here is the wisdom! He who is
having the understanding, let him count the number of the beast, for the
number of a man it is, and its number is six hundred and sixty six. |
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14:6 ¶ And I saw another angel
flying in heaven: and with blood, he had the
everlasting gospel, to proclaim to dwellers on the
earth, and to every nation and tribe and tongue and people; |
14:6 ¶ And I saw another messenger
flying in mid-heaven, having good news age-during to proclaim to those
dwelling upon the earth, and to every nation, and tribe, and tongue, and
people, |
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7 saying with a loud voice, Worship
G-d, and give glory to him; because the hour of his judgment is come; and
adore ye Him, who made heaven and earth, and the sea, and the fountains of
water. |
7 saying in a great voice, ‘Fear ye
G-d, and give to Him glory, because come did the hour of His judgment, and
bow ye before Him who did make the heaven, and the land, and sea, and
fountains of waters.’ |
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8 And another, a second angel
followed him, saying: Fallen, fallen is |
8 And another messenger did follow,
saying, ‘Fall, fall, did |
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9 And another, a third angel
followed them, saying with a loud voice: If any man shall worship the beast
of prey and its image, and shall receive its mark upon his forehead or on his
hand, |
9 And a third messenger did follow
them, saying in a great voice, ‘If any one the beast doth bow before, and his
image, and doth receive a mark upon his forehead, or upon his hand, |
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10 he also shall drink of the wine
of the wrath of G-d, which is poured undiluted into the cup of his
indignation, and shall be tormented with fire and
sulphur, before the holy angels, and before the throne. |
10 he also shall drink of the wine
of the wrath of G-d, that hath been mingled unmixed in the cup of His anger,
and he shall be tormented in fire and brimstone before the holy messengers,
and before the Lamb, |
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11 And the smoke of their torment
ascendeth up for ever and ever; and there is no rest, by day or by night, to
those that worship the beast of prey and its image. |
11 and the smoke of their torment
doth go up to ages of ages; and they have no rest day and night, who are
bowing before the beast and his image, also if any doth receive the mark of
his name. |
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12 Here is the patience of the
saints, who keep the commandments of G-d, and the faith of Yeshua. |
12 Here is endurance of the saints:
here are those keeping the commands of G-d, and the faith of Yeshua.’ |
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15:1 ¶ And I saw another prodigy in
heaven, great and wonderful; seven angels, having seven
plagues, the last in order, because with them the
wrath of G-d is consummated. |
15:1 ¶ And I saw another sign in the
heaven, great and wonderful, seven messengers having the seven last plagues,
because in these was completed the wrath of G-d, |
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2 And I saw as it were, a sea of
glass mixed with fire: and they, who had been
victorious over the beast of prey, and over its image, and over the number of
its name, were standing on the sea of glass; and they had the harps of G-d. |
2 and I saw as a sea of glass mingled with
fire, and those who do gain the victory over the beast, and his image, and
his mark, and the number of his name, standing by the sea of the
glass, having harps of G-d, |
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3 And they sing the song of Moses
the servant of G-d, and the song of the Lamb, saying: Great and marvelous are
thy deeds, Lord G-d Almighty; just and true are thy ways, O King of worlds. |
3 and they sing the song of Moses,
servant of G-d, and the song of the Lamb, saying, ‘Great and wonderful are
Thy works, O Lord G-d, the Almighty, righteous and true are Thy ways,
O King of saints, |
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4 Who shall not fear thee, O Lord,
and glorify thy name? Because thou only art holy and just: Because all
nations shall come and worship before thee, since thy righteousnesses have
been revealed. |
4 who may not fear Thee, O Lord, and
glorify Thy name? because Thou alone art kind, because all the nations
shall come and bow before Thee, because Thy righteous acts were manifested.’ |
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16:1 ¶ And I heard a voice, which
said to the seven angels: Go forth, and pour those
seven cups of the wrath of G-d upon the earth. |
16:1 ¶ And I heard a great voice out
of the sanctuary saying to the seven messengers, ‘Go away, and pour out the
vials of the wrath of G-d to the earth;’ |
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2 And the first went, and poured his
cup upon the earth; and there was a malignant and painful ulcer upon those
men who had the mark of the beast of prey, and who worshipped its image. |
2 and the first did go away, and did
pour out his vial upon the land, and there came a sore—bad and grievous—to
men, those having the mark of the beast, and those bowing to his image. |
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3 And the second angel poured his
cup upon the sea; and it became blood, like that of a dead person; and every
living soul of things in the sea, died. |
3 And the second messenger did pour
out his vial to the sea, and there came blood as of one dead, and
every living soul died in the sea. |
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4 And the third angel poured his cup
upon the rivers and the fountains of water; and they became blood. |
4 And the third messenger did pour
out his vial to the rivers, and to the fountains of the waters, and there
came blood, |
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5 And I heard the angel of the
waters say: Righteous art thou, who art and who wast, and art holy; because
thou hast done this judgment. |
5 and I heard the messenger of the
waters, saying, ‘righteous, O Lord, art Thou, who art, and who wast, and who
shalt be, because these things Thou didst judge, |
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6 For they have shed the blood of
saints and prophets; and thou hast given them blood to drink, for they
deserve it. |
6 because blood of saints and
prophets they did pour out, and blood to them Thou didst give to drink, for
they are worthy;’ |
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7 And I heard one from the altar say: Yes, Lord G-d Almighty: true and righteous is thy judgment. |
7 and I heard another out of the altar, saying, ‘Yes, Lord G-d, the Almighty, true and righteous are Thy judgments.’ |
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19:11 ¶ And I saw the heaven having
been opened, and lo, a white horse, and he who is sitting upon it is called
Faithful and True, and in righteousness doth he judge and war, |
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12 His eyes were like a flame
of fire, and on his head were many diadems; and he had names
inscribed; and the name which was written on him, no one knew, except
himself. |
12 and his eyes are as a
flame of fire, and upon his head are many diadems—having a name
written that no one hath known, except himself, |
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13 And he was clothed with a vesture
sprinkled with blood; and his name is called, The Word of G-d. |
13 and he is arrayed with a garment
covered with blood, and his name is called, The Word of G-d. |
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14 And the soldiery of heaven
followed him, on white horses, clad in garments of fine linen, pure and
white. |
14 And the armies in the heaven were
following him upon white horses, clothed in fine linen—white and pure; |
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15 And from his mouth issued a sharp
two-edged sword, that with it he could smite the nations; and he will rule the
nations with a rod of iron; and he will tread the wine-press of the wrath of
G-d Almighty. |
15 and out of his mouth doth proceed
a sharp sword, that with it he may smite the nations, and he shall rule them
with a rod of iron, and he doth tread the press of the wine of the wrath and
the anger of G-d the Almighty, |
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16 And he hath upon his vesture and
upon his thigh the words written: King of kings, and Lord of lords. |
16 and he hath upon the garment and
upon his thigh the name written, ‘King of kings, and Lord of lords.’ |
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17 And I saw an angel standing in
the sun; and he cried with a loud voice, saying to
all the fowls that fly in the midst of heaven: Come
ye, assemble unto this great supper of G-d; |
17 And I saw one messenger standing
in the sun, and he cried, a great voice, saying to all the birds that are
flying in mid-heaven, ‘Come and be gathered together to the supper of the
great G-d, |
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18 that ye may eat the flesh of kings, and the
flesh of captains of thousands, and the flesh of valiant men, and the flesh
of horses and of those who sit on them, and the flesh of all the free-born
and of slaves, and of the small and the great. |
18 that ye may eat flesh of kings, and flesh of
chiefs of thousands, and flesh of strong men, and flesh of horses, and of
those sitting on them, and the flesh of all—freemen and servants—both small
and great.’ |
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19 And I saw the beast of prey, and
the kings of the earth, and their warriors, that they assembled to wage
battle with him who sat on the white horse, and with his warriors. |
19 And I saw the beast, and the
kings of the earth, and their armies, having been gathered together to make
war with him who is sitting upon the horse, and with his army; |
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20 And the beast of prey was
captured, and the false prophet that was with him, who did those prodigies
before him, whereby he seduced them who had received the mark of the beast of
prey and who worshipped his image. And they were both cast alive into the
lake of fire, which burneth with sulphur. |
20 and the beast was taken, and with
him the false prophet who did the signs before him, in which he led astray
those who did receive the mark of the beast, and those who did bow before his
image; living they were cast—the two—to the lake of the fire, that is burning
with brimstone; |
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21 And the rest were slain by the
sword of him that sat on the horse, by that sword which issueth from
his mouth: and all the fowls were satiated with their flesh. |
21 and the rest were killed with the
sword of him who is sitting on the horse, which sword is proceeding
out of his mouth, and all the birds were filled out of their flesh. |
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20:1 ¶ And I saw an angel that
descended from heaven, having the key of the abyss, and a great chain in his
hand. |
20:1 ¶ And I saw a messenger coming
down out of the heaven, having the key of the abyss, and a great chain over
his hand, |
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2 And he seized the dragon, the old
serpent, who is the Deceiver and Satan, who seduced the whole habitable
world: and he bound him a thousand years. |
2 and he laid hold on the dragon,
the old serpent, who is Devil and Adversary, and did bind him a thousand
years, |
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3 And he cast him into the abyss,
and closed and sealed upon him; so that he might deceive the nations no more,
until these thousand years shall be completed: but after that, he will be
loosed for a little time. |
3 and he cast him to the abyss, and
did shut him up, and put a seal upon him, that he may not lead astray the
nations any more, till the thousand years may be finished; and after these it
behoveth him to be loosed a little time. |
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4 And I saw thrones, and persons
sat on them, and judgment was given to them, and to the souls that were
beheaded for the testimony of Jesus and for the
word of G-d: and these are they who had not worshipped the beast of prey, nor
its image, neither had they received the mark upon their forehead or on their
hand; and they lived and reigned with their Messiah
those thousand years. |
4 And I saw thrones, and they sat
upon them, and judgment was given to them, and the souls of those who have
been beheaded because of the testimony of Jesus, and because of the word of
G-d, and who did not bow before the beast, nor his image, and did not receive
the mark upon their forehead and upon their hand, and they did live and reign
with Christ the thousand years; |
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5 This is the first resurrection. |
5 and the rest of the dead did not
live again till the thousand years may be finished; this is the first
rising again. |
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6 Blessed and holy is he that hath
part in this first resurrection: over them the second death hath no dominion;
but they shall be, nay are, priests of G-d
and of his Messiah; and they will reign with him the thousand years. |
6 Happy and holy is he who is
having part in the first rising again; over these the second death hath not
authority, but they shall be priests of G-d and of the Christ, and shall
reign with him a thousand years. |
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7 And when these thousand years
shall be completed, Satan will be released from his prison; |
7 And when the thousand years may be
finished, the Adversary shall be loosed out of his prison, |
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8 and will go forth to seduce the
nations that are in the four corners of the earth, Gog and Magog; and to
assemble them for battle, whose number is as the sand of the sea. |
8 and he shall go forth to lead the
nations astray, that are in the four corners of the earth—Gog and Magog—to gather
them together to war, of whom the number is as the sand of the sea; |
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9 And they went up on the breadth of
the earth, and encompassed the camp of the saints, and the beloved city. And fire came down from G-d out of heaven,
and consumed them. |
9 and they did go up over the
breadth of the land, and did surround the camp of the saints, and the beloved
city, and there came down fire from G-d out of the heaven, and devoured them; |
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10 And the Accuser who seduced them, was cast into the lake of fire and sulphur, where also were the beast of prey and the false prophet: and they shall be tormented, day and night, for ever and ever. |
10 and the Devil, who is leading
them astray, was cast into the lake of fire and brimstone, where are
the beast and the false prophet, and they shall be tormented day and night—to
the ages of the ages. |
Another Connection
Throughout Yechezkel (Ezekiel) chapter eight we are told of various "abominations." The first of these involves an "image of jealousy":
Yechezkel (Ezekiel) 8:5-6 Then said he unto me, Son of man, lift up thine
eyes now the way toward the north. So I lifted up mine eyes the way toward the
north, and behold northward at the gate of the altar this image of jealousy
in the entry. 6 He said furthermore unto me, Son of man, seest thou what they
do? The great abominations that the house of
Scholars generally identify this as the idol of Astarte[4]. Astarte is also known as Ishtar and Easter. The next "abomination" involves men worshiping in the dark (8:7-12). The next involved women "weeping for Tammuz":
Yechezkel (Ezekiel) 8:13-14 He said also unto me, Turn thee yet again, and
thou shalt see greater abominations that they do. 14 Then he brought me to the
door of the gate of HaShem’s house which was toward the
north; and, behold, there sat women weeping for Tammuz.
Finally we are shown men facing the east and worshiping the Sun in the east
Yechezkel (Ezekiel) 8:15-17 15 Then said he unto me, Hast thou seen this, O son of man? turn thee yet
again, and thou shalt see greater abominations than these. 16 And he brought me
into the inner court of HaShem’s house, and, behold,
at the door of the temple of HaShem, between the porch and the altar, were
about five and twenty men, with their backs toward the
temple of HaShem, and their faces toward the east;
and they worshipped the sun toward the east. 17 Then he said unto me, Hast
thou seen this, O son of man? Is it a light thing to the house of
These images all point to the observance of the Babylonian festival of Easter. This day is similarly observed in Christendom today. Roman Catholics commonly worship with images of Mary whom they call "The Mother of G-d" (a title of the g-ddess Easter). There is a period of mourning for the dead deity (lent), A time in which the altar candles are removed and the altar is dark, followed by rejoicing at his resurrection with a sunrise service. So the "abominations" that those marked on their foreheads are mourning, must be the observance of Easter.
It is interesting to note the authority of the Catholic church is so great that when the Pope changed the day for the Sabbath, all of the Protestant churches followed this authority, as we can see from this except of the Catholic catechism:
Question: Have you any other way of proving that the Church has power to institute festivals of precept? Answer: Had she not such power, she could not have done that in which all modern religionists agree with her--she could not have substituted the observance of Sunday the first day of the week, for the observance of Saturday the seventh day, a change for which there is no Scriptural authority.
Thus we see that the church has changed the Sabbath and Pesach. Additionally, the catholic Sabbath goes from midnight to midnight whereas HaShem’s Shabbat goes from sundown to sundown.
Easter, as the most important festival (no matter what they call it) to Catholics and Christians, suggests that Easter is a pars pro toto for all of the Christian festivals and indeed, even their whole calendar. All Biblical events are connected by the Biblical calendar. There is no such relationship with the Gregorian calendar. If this logic be correct, we could say that:
The mark of the beast is the following of pagan festivals, a non-Torah calendar, and abandoning the Torah (laws) of HaShem.
After all, these folks claim that they do not have to keep the law.
Finally, the physical mark that comes closest to tefillin in terms of a relationship to Easter is described by the Catholic Encyclopedia:
The Wednesday after Quinquagesima Sunday, which is the first day of the Lenten fast. The name dies cinerum (day of ashes) which it bears in the Roman Missal is found in the earliest existing copies of the Gregorian Sacramentary and probably dates from at least the eighth century. On this day all the faithful according to ancient custom are exhorted to approach the altar before the beginning of Mass, and there the priest, dipping his thumb into ashes previously blessed, marks the forehead -- or in case of clerics upon the place of the tonsure -- of each the sign of the cross, saying the words: "Remember man that thou art dust and unto dust thou shalt return." The ashes used in this ceremony are made by burning the remains of the palms blessed on the Palm Sunday of the previous year. In the blessing of the ashes four prayers are used, all of them ancient. The ashes are sprinkled with holy water and fumigated with incense. The celebrant himself, be he bishop or cardinal, receives, either standing or seated, the ashes from some other priest, usually the highest in dignity of those present.
So those with the mark of HaShem are observing Pesach and those with the mark of the beast are observing Easter. There is a clear relationship revealed in this section as follows:
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Mark of HaShem |
Mark of the Beast |
|
Tefillin |
Lenten ash cross |
|
Easter |
|
|
Man’s Festivals |
|
|
Man’s Calendar |
|
|
Anti-Torah |
Another
Perspective
According to our Sages, at the battle of Gog and Magog every human in and around the Holy City will be given the mark of the Hebrew letter, tav, upon their forehead. According to the Tanakh {in Ezekiel 9} and the Talmud {in Shabbath 55a}, the Mark of HaShem’s sign – the , tav - will be placed upon everyone in and around Jerusalem. Those that receive the mark in ink will be the righteous and those that receive the mark in blood will be condemned.
You shall live
You shall die
18 = ו 6 (right) ו 6 (top) ו 6 (left)
The Gematria construction of the Tav is a ו Vav = 6 on the right plus a ו Vav = 6 on the top plus a ו Vav = 6 on the left. The constructed Gematria is 18. The
Gematria of 18 equals life!
18 = י 10, ח 8 = Life
When we examine the
Hebrew text of Ezekiel 9:4 we find that the English word “mark” is used to
translate the two Hebrew characters תו, which spell out tav, which is how we
pronounce the letter ת. This is the passage describing the mark of the wicked:
Ezekiel 9:4 And HaShem said unto him, Go through the midst of the city,
through the midst of Jerusalem, and set a תו, (a mark – of blood) upon
the foreheads of the men that sigh and that cry for all the abominations that
be done in the midst thereof.
The mark for the righteous is spelled out in:
Ezekiel 9:6 Slay utterly old and young, both
maids, and little children, and women: but come not near any man upon whom is
the תו, (a mark- in ink); and begin at my sanctuary.
Then they began at the ancient men which were before the house.
The Hebrew word is the same for the mark which is used for both the righteous and the wicked!
Strong’s concordance supplies the following information for this word:
08420 תו tav tawv
from 08427; TWOT-2496a; n m
AV-mark 2, desire 1; 3
1) desire,
mark
1a) mark (as a sign of exemption from judgment)
Then when we examine this subject in the Talmud we find clarification:
Shabbath 55a R. Zera
said to R. Simeon, Let the Master rebuke the members of the Resh Galutha's
suite. They will not accept it from me, was his reply. Though they will not
accept its returned he, yet you should rebuke them. For R. Aha b. R. Hanina
said: Never did a favourable word go forth from the mouth of the Holy One,
blessed be He, of which He retracted for evil, save the following, where it is
written, And the Lord said unto him, Go through the midst of the city, through
the midst of Jerusalem, and set a mark [ת tav] upon the foreheads of the men
that sigh and that cry for all the abominations that be done in the midst
thereof, etc.(Ezek. IX, 4) The Holy One, blessed be He, said to Gabriel,
Go and set a ת tav of ink upon the
foreheads of the righteous, that the destroying angels may have no power over
them;
and a ת tav of blood
upon the foreheads of the wicked, that the destroying
angels may have power over them.
Said the Attribute of Justice before
the Holy One, blessed be He, ‘Sovereign of the Universe! Wherein are these
different from those?’ ‘Those are completely righteous men, while these are
completely wicked,’ replied He. ‘Sovereign of the Universe!’ it continued,
‘they had the power to protest but did not.’ ‘It was fully known to them that
had they protested they would not have heeded them.’ ‘Sovereign of the
Universe!’ said he, ‘If it was revealed to Thee, was it revealed to them?’
Hence it is written, [Slay utterly] the old man, the young and the maiden, and
little children and women; but come not near any man upon whom is the mark; and
begin at my Sanctuary [mikdashi]. Then they began at
the elders which were before the house.(Ezek. IX, 6) R. Joseph recited: Read
not mikdashi but mekuddashay [my sanctified ones]: this refers to the people
who fulfilled the Torah from alef to taw. And straightway, And behold, six men came from the way of the upper gate, which lieth
toward the north, every man with his slaughter weapon in his hand; and one man
in the midst of them clothed in linen, with a writer's inkhorn by his side. And
they went in, and stood beside the brazen altar. Was then the brazen altar
[still] in existence? — The Holy One, blessed be He, spake thus to them; Commence
[destruction] from the place where song is uttered before Me. And who were the
six men? — Said R. Hisda: Indignation [Kezef], Anger [Af], Wrath [Hemah],
Destroyer [Mashhith] Breaker [Meshabber] and Annihilator [Mekaleh]. And why a ת tav?
— Said Rab: , Tav [stands for]
tihyeh [thou shalt live], ת
tav [stands for] tamuth [thou shalt die]. Samuel said: The ת tav denotes, the merit
of the Patriarchs is exhausted [tamah]. R. Johanan said: The merit of the
Patriarchs will confer grace [tahon]. While Resh
Lakish said: ת Tav is the end
of the seal of the Holy One, blessed be He. For R. Hanina said: The seal of the
Holy One, blessed be He, is emeth [truth]. R. Samuel b. Nahmani said: It denotes
the people who fulfilled the Torah from א alef to ת
tav.
Jerome and many others have thought that the letter ת tav was that which was ordered to be placed on the foreheads of those mourners; and Jerome says, that this Hebrew letter ת tav was formerly written like a † cross. So then the people were to be signed with the sign of the cross! This ancient Hebrew character also had a meaning: Mark, Sign, Signal, or Monument.
At this point I will
point out why some of the common definitions for the mark of the beast cannot
possibly be correct. Some of the common sensationalized concepts of the mark of
the beast present it as being:
There is a common problem
shared by all such concepts, which proves them to be incorrect. That problem is
that NONE of these imply rebellion against HaShem! None of these are forbidden by the
Torah! How does the use of a debit card show one to be sinful? How does
accepting an ID card indicate spiritual rebellion? How can it be shown that an
implanted chip proves one to be practicing willful disobedience to HaShem?
Look at what happens to
those who take this mark:
Revelation 19:20 And the beast was
taken, and with him the false prophet that wrought miracles before him, with
which he deceived them that had received the mark of the beast, and them that
worshipped his image. These both were cast alive into a lake of fire burning with brimstone.
Those who take the mark lose their place in the world to come. Where in the Torah does it tell you that it is a very serious sin to have a credit card or chip put under your skin? I can not find any such command, nor do I hear our Hakhamim ruling against such things. So whatever this mark is, it must be something forbidden by the Torah with extreme consequences (what ever a lake of fire turns out to be.)
Both tefillin and the blood of Pesach are called signs. This clearly links tefillin to Pesach:
Shemot (Exodus) 12:12 For I will pass through the land of Egypt this
night, and will smite all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, both man and
beast; and against all the G-ds of Egypt I will execute judgment: I HaShem. 13
And the blood shall be to you for a sign upon the houses where ye are: and when
I see HaShem, I will pass over you, and the plague
shall not be upon you to destroy, when I smite the
Twice in Shemot 19, the daily mitzva of tefillin is linked
to the exodus from Egypt. First the Torah commands,
"It shall be for you a sign on your arm and a reminder between your eyes.
. .that HaShem removed you from
What is the connection between the wearing of tefillin and
the exodus from
To fully understand the connection
between tefillin and the exodus, we must first grasp the meaning and symbolism
of these two concepts individually. The exodus from
Similarly, the mitzva of tefillin acts as a reminder of our
connection with HaShem. Tefillin are the physical
manifestation of the Jewish people's bond with the Creator. As the Talmud says, "Man always needs a sign of his bond
with G-d. . . on weekdays this sign is tefillin".[5]
Rabbi Aryeh Kaplan, in his book entitled Tefillin,
explains that the windings around the middle finger symbolize the bond of love
between HaShem and
The Torah In The Tefillin
Shemot (Exodus) 13:1-10
Shemot (Exodus)
13:11-16
A cursory examination of the Torah portions which speak of the Tefillin, show that in every case they are associated with Pesach (Passover):
Shemot (Exodus)
13:1-16 And HaShem spoke unto Moses, saying: 2 ‘Sanctify unto Me all
the first-born, whatsoever openeth the womb among the children of
Twice in the above Torah portion, the daily mitzva of
tefillin are linked to the exodus from
The first words that HaShem spoke to the people after
bringing them out of
The Torah In The Tefillin
Devarim (Deuteronomy) 6:1-9
Devarim (Deuteronomy) 6:1-9 Now these are the commandments, the statutes, and the judgments, which
HaShem your G-d commanded to teach you, that ye might do them in the land
whither ye go to possess it: 2 That thou mightest fear HaShem thy G-d, to keep
all his statutes and his commandments, which I command thee, thou, and thy son,
and thy son’s son, all the days of thy life; and that thy days may be
prolonged. 3 Hear therefore, O Israel, and observe
to do it; that it may be well with thee, and that ye may increase mightily, as HaShem G-d of thy fathers
hath promised thee, in the land that floweth with milk and honey. Hear, O
From the above passage we can see that
tefillin are associated entering the
The Torah In The Tefillin
Devarim
(Deuteronomy) 11:13-21
Devarim
(Deuteronomy) 11:13-21 And it shall come to pass, if ye shall hearken diligently unto my commandments
which I command you this day, to love HaShem your G-d, and to serve him with all your heart and with
all your soul, 14 That I will give you the rain of
your land in his due season, the first rain and the latter rain, that thou
mayest gather in thy corn, and thy wine, and thine oil. 15 And I will send
grass in thy fields for thy cattle, that thou mayest eat
and be full. 16 Take heed to yourselves, that your heart be not deceived, and
ye turn aside, and serve other G-ds, and worship them; 17 And then HaShem’s wrath be kindled against you, and he
shut up the heaven, that there be no rain, and that
the land yield not her fruit; and lest ye perish quickly from off the good land
which HaShem giveth
you. 18 Therefore shall ye lay up these my words in your heart and in your
soul, and bind them for a sign upon your hand, that they may be as frontlets
between your eyes. 19 And ye shall teach them your children, speaking of
them when thou sittest in thine house, and when thou walkest by the way, when
thou liest down, and when thou risest up. 20 And thou shalt write them upon the
door posts of thine house, and upon thy gates: 21 That your days may be
multiplied, and the days of your children, in the land which HaShem sware unto your fathers to give them,
as the days of heaven upon the earth.
Shabbat Chol
HaMoed Pesach
The Torah reading for Shabbat Chol HaMoed Pesach includes Moshe's poignant plea for Divine revelation:
Shemot (Exodus) 33:18 And he said,
I beseech thee, shew me thy glory.
HaShem's response gives rise to a fascinating perspective. HaShem has instructed Moses to shield himself in the cleft of a rock as HaShem's Presence passes by:
Shemot (Exodus) 33:23 And I will take away mine hand, and thou shalt see my
back parts: but my face shall not be seen.
What could it mean to see "HaShem's back?" The Talmud provides a small explanation:
Berachoth 7a And I
will take away My hand, and thou shalt see My back. R. Hama b. Bizana said in
the name of R. Simon the Pious: This teaches us that the Holy One, blessed be
He, showed Moses the knot of the tefillin.
Thus, on Chol HaMoed Pesach, we contemplate the mitzva of
tefillin and its relevance to the exodus from
Shemot (Exodus)
As we reflect upon this association between tefillin and our
salvation from
Berachoth 15a R.
Johanan also said: If one desires to accept upon himself the yoke of the
kingdom of heaven in the most complete manner, he should consult nature and
wash his hands and put on tefillin and recite the Shema’ and say the tefillah:
this is the complete acknowledgment of the kingdom of heaven.
In other words, we submit ourselves to HaShem's dominion through the binding of tefillin.
This is the great paradox of Pesach. HaShem has freed us from service to Pharaoh so that we may devote ourselves to HaShem’s service. In fact, the Hebrew word for slavery, Avodah, is the same exact word we translate as worship. Thus we have a single Hebrew word which means slavery and its opposite, freedom. Avodah literally means “service”. The laws for the recitation of the Shema note the important difference between these two types of service. According to the Talmud Yerushalami, we know that a slave is exempt from reciting the Shema, because the Shema states, "The Lord is One". This refers to one who has no other lord than the Holy One. This excludes the slave who has more than one master[6]. Thus, every time we recite the Shema, which includes the mitzva of tefillin, we are proclaiming our great freedom: HaShem alone is our Master.
The Jews had light, gladness, joy, and honor. (Esther 8:16)
Chazal, when analyzing this posuk (verse), derive that the word "honor" refers to tefillin. The simple interpretation is that during the period of persecution that preceded the miracle of Purim the Jewish people were unable to publicly wear tefillin. However, in the aftermath of the miracle of Purim, there was a renewed commitment to the performance of this mitzva (commandment). Let us suggest a homiletic relationship between tefillin and Purim.
Chazal have instructed us to fulfill four mitzvot on Purim. They are:
|
PURIM |
TEFILLIN |
|
|
Devarim 6:4-9 |
|
Sending food presents to our friends |
Devarim |
|
Distributing gifts to the poor |
Shemot 13:1:10 |
|
Eating a Purim meal |
Shemot |
We may suggest that the four mitzvot of Purim correspond to the four parshiot the tefillin.
The first mitzva is the reading of the megillah. This corresponds to the first parshah of tefillin. The first parsha of tefillin is the first parshah of shema that we recite twice daily. In this parsha, we accept upon ourselves the yoke of heaven. Our acceptance of the yoke of heaven includes an awareness that HaShem has created this world and continues to guide and govern every detail of its existence without interfering with our free will. By reading the megillah we similarly express our recognition that it was HaShem who brought about the details of the Purim miracle in a hidden and miraculous way.
The second mitzva is the obligation to send food gift packages to our friends. This corresponds to the second parsha of tefillin. The second parsha of tefillin is the second parsha of Shema that we recite daily. The major theme of this parsha is the reward that HaShem bestows upon us for fulfilling His commandments. The rewards are described as gifts of material blessing, which can be further used to serve HaShem. On Purim we similarly send gifts to our friends so that they can use them to enjoy the holiday and incorporate them in the mitzva of the Purim meal.
The third mitzva is the obligation to distribute gifts to
the poor. This corresponds to the third parsha of the tefillin. The third
parsha of tefillin focuses on the commandment to eat matza on Pesach. Chazal teach us that matza
is the bread of a poor man. We eat matza on Pesach to remember that we were
spiritually and physically poor in
The fourth mitzva is the Purim meal. This corresponds to the fourth parsha of the tefillin. The fourth parsha of tefillin focuses on the mitzva of redeeming the firstborn son. It is noteworthy the there are major similarities between this mitzva and the miracle of Purim. Just as the firstborn boy is redeemed so too we were redeemed from death on Purim. Just as shekalim are used to redeem the firstborn, likewise the shekalim of Haman and the mitzva of machtzis hashekel that preceded them played an important role in the Purim miracle.
We can further elaborate the connection
between the fourth parsha of the tefillin and the festive meal of Purim. Chazal
ascribe unusual importance and significance to the meal that accompanies the
mitzva of redeeming the firstborn. An early source for this meal is the Gemara[8].
The commentators explain the spiritual power of participating in such a meal
can have an effect that is equivalent to fasting for eight-four days. Some
explain that it is for this reason that garlic is customarily distributed to
the guests at this meal. Garlic has the characteristic that even a small amount
can give taste to a large pot of food. One can preserve
the holiness of this meal by saving a small amount of garlic. The garlic can be
used to flavor an ordinary meal with the holiness of the redemption of the firstborn. An in-depth explanation
of the significance and importance of this meal and especially the meaning of
"eighty-four fasts" is beyond the scope of this devar Torah, however
it is evident that chazal did attribute extra special significance to the meal
that accompanies the redemption of the firstborn. On Purim we are similarly
obligated to enjoy a lavish meal to commemorate the Purim miracle where the Jewish people who are called the firstborn child of
HaShem (Shemot
It is noteworthy that the parshiot of the tefillin contain numerous mentions of HaShem's name. The parshiot are written with great care, precision and holiness. They are tightly rolled and covered with a piece of parchment. They are then inserted in a small compartment, which is stitched and sealed shut. It is also noteworthy that color of tefillin is black. The combination of the double enclosure of the parshiot and darkness that envelop them is symbolic of the posuk "I shall surely hide my face of that day" (Devarim 31:18).
Chazal teach us that this posuk was fulfilled in the time of
Purim. This occurred when Haman and Achashvayrosh decreed that every Jew be executed and the Jewish nation be totally
annihilated (Esther
The parshiot of the tefillin all year round remain wrapped and sealed in darkness. Few have seen even what their own parshiot look like. This is symbolic of how HaShem's ways are hidden from us. However, Purim is the day when the parshiot of the tefillin are revealed in a magnificent way. The major themes of what the four parshiot represent are transformed into the commandments of the day, which are observed in public with great joy and excitement.
The Jews had light, gladness, joy, and Tefillin.
How are tefillin like a wedding ring, expressing mutual commitment between two parties?
When two people get married, they "seal" their commitment with a sign the wedding ring. By laying tefillin each day, we bind ourselves anew to HaShem. In fact in the tefillah that one recites when laying tefillin, one says: “I will betroth you to Me forever, and I will betroth you to Me with righteousness, justice, kindness, and mercy. I will betroth you to Me with fidelity and you shall know HaShem”[9].
When is this said? While wrapping the strap of the tefillin shel yad (arm tefillin) around the middle finger three times. One lays tefillin shel yad and wraps the strap around one's fingers the way a chassan, a groom, would put the betrothal ring on his kallah's, the bride’s, finger.
When a Jew dons his tefillin each morning, he is putting on a wedding ring:
Hosea 2:21-22 "I
shall betroth you to Me forever; I shall betroth you to Me in righteousness and
justice, in loving kindness and compassion; I shall betroth you to me in
faithfulness, and you shall know HaShem."
This experience represents our placing the wedding ring of HaShem on our finger, portraying our perfect relationship with Him. But Chazal inform us that HaShem also wears tefillin. In proof of this they cite a passage which states:
Yeshayahu (Isaiah) 62:8-9 HaShem hath sworn by his right
hand, and by the arm of his strength, Surely I will no more give thy corn to be meat
for thine enemies; and the sons of the stranger shall not drink thy wine, for
the which thou hast laboured: 9 But they that have gathered it shall eat it, and praise HaShem; and they that have
brought it together shall drink it in the courts of my holiness.
Chazal explain that the words, "the strength of His arm" refer to the tefillin worn on the left arm. The Maharsha expounds upon this concept and explains that HaShem actually binds Himself to the Jewish people. HaShem’s tefillin, like ours, represent devotion and commitment, His commitment to His beloved people. HaShem cherishes His relationship with us and as an expression of His commitment to us, He also wears a betrothal band. Eventually our boundless love for HaShem will find its expression together with HaShem’s boundless love for us and together we will enjoy this indescribable relationship forever and forever.
The Windings Around The Finger
The windings around
the finger are mentioned in the Gemara.[10] There are several minhagim regarding the
method of winding, with the accepted one being to wind the strap once around
the middle segment of the finger, then twice around the bottom one (that which
is closest to the palm).
What is the meaning of
the three coils on the middle finger? One of the
things symbolized by tefillin is the devotion and affection between HaShem and Israel, which are
frequently spoken of in terms of betrothal. Hence the coils around the finger
are symbolic of the wedding ring, and one of the explanations of the triple
coil is the triple reference to the betrothal between HaShem and
HaShem’s Tefillin
Berachoth
6a R. Abin son of R. Ada in the
name of R. Isaac says [further]: How do you know that the Holy One, blessed be
He, puts on tefillin? For it is said: The Lord hath sworn by His right hand,
and by the arm of His strength. ‘By His right hand’: this is the Torah; for it
is said: At His right hand was a fiery law unto them.
‘And by the arm of his strength’: this is the tefillin; as it is said: The Lord
will give strength unto His people. And how do you know that the tefillin are a
strength to Israel? For it is written: And all the peoples of the earth shall
see that the name of the Lord is called upon thee, and
they shall be afraid of thee, and it has been taught: R. Eliezer the Great
says: This refers to the tefillin of the head.
R.
Nahman b. Isaac said to R. Hiyya b. Abin: What is written in the tefillin of
the Lord of the Universe? — He replied to him: And who is like Thy people
Israel, a nation one in the earth. Does, then, the Holy One, blessed be He,
sing the praises of Israel? — Yes, for it is written: Thou hast avouched the
Lord this day . . . and the Lord hath avouched thee this day. The Holy One,
blessed be He, said to Israel: You have made me a unique entity in the world, and I shall make you a unique entity in the
world. ‘You have made me a unique entity in the world’, as it is said: Hear, O
Israel, the Lord our G-d, the Lord is one. ‘And I shall make you a unique
entity in the world’, as it is said: And who is like Thy people Israel, a
nation one in the earth. R. Aha b. Raba said to R. Ashi: This accounts for one
case, what about the other cases? — He replied to him: [They contain the
following verses]: For what great nation is there, etc.; And what great nation
is there, etc.; Happy art thou, O Israel, etc.; Or hath G-d assayed, etc.; and
To make thee high above all nations. If so, there would be too many cases? —
Hence [you must say]: For what great nation is there, and what great nation is
there, which are similar, are in one case; Happy art thou, O Israel, and Who is
like Thy people, in one case; Or hath G-d assayed, in one case; and To make
thee high, in one case.
Finally, keep in mind that the betrothal is not the end of this process. The goal of betrothal is marriage, which comes at Yom HaKippurim.
Luqas (Luke) is written at the remez level. It is all hints without anything literal. Lets see if there is perhaps a hint to the tefillin. Yeshua spoke the following story:
Luqas (Luke) 15:11-32 And he said, A certain man had two
sons: 12 And the younger of them said to his father, Father, give me the
portion of goods that falleth to me. And he divided unto them his living. 13
And not many days after the younger son gathered all together, and took his
journey into a far country, and there wasted his substance with riotous living.
14 And when he had spent all, there arose a mighty famine
in that land; and he began to be in want. 15 And he went and joined himself to
a citizen of that country; and he sent him into his fields to feed swine. 16
And he would fain have filled his belly with the husks that the swine did eat: and no man gave unto him. 17 And when he came to
himself, he said, How many hired servants of my father’s have bread enough and
to spare, and I perish with hunger! 18 I will arise and go to my father, and
will say unto him, Father, I have sinned against heaven, and before thee, 19 And am no more worthy to be
called thy son: make me as one of thy hired servants. 20 And he arose, and came
to his father. But when he was yet a great way off, his father saw him, and had
compassion, and ran, and fell on his neck, and kissed him. 21 And the son said unto him, Father, I have
sinned against heaven, and in thy sight, and am no more worthy to be called thy
son. 22 But the father said to his servants, Bring forth the best robe, and put
it on him; and put a ring on his hand, and shoes on his feet: 23 And bring hither the fatted calf, and kill it;
and let us eat, and be merry: 24 For this my son was dead, and is alive again;
he was lost, and is found. And they began to be merry. 25 Now his elder son was
in the field: and as he came and drew nigh to the house, he heard music and
dancing. 26 And he called one of the servants, and asked what these things
meant. 27 And he said unto him, Thy brother is come; and thy father hath killed
the fatted calf, because he hath received him safe and sound. 28 And he was
angry, and would not go in: therefore came his father out, and intreated him.
29 And he answering said to his father, Lo, these many years do I serve thee,
neither transgressed I at any time thy commandment: and yet thou never gavest
me a kid, that I might make merry with my friends: 30 But as soon as this thy
son was come, which hath devoured thy living with harlots, thou hast killed for
him the fatted calf. 31 And he said unto him, Son, thou art ever with me, and
all that I have is thine. 32 It was meet that we should make merry, and be
glad: for this thy brother was dead, and is alive again; and was lost, and is
found.
Here we have a son
who quits being lawless and returns to his father’s
house and his father’s ways. As a token of his return he is given a talit (robe) to wear and tefillin (ring) on his hand.
As long as he was lawless, he was DEAD. Once he returned to the laws of his Father, he was made alive. Isn’t this exactly
what the Torah teaches?
Devarim (Deuteronomy) 30:19-20 I call heaven and earth
to record this day against you, that I have set before you life and death,
blessing and cursing: therefore choose life, that both thou and thy seed may live: 20 That thou mayest love HaShem thy G-d, and that thou mayest obey his voice, and
that thou mayest cleave unto him: for he is thy life, and the length of thy
days: that thou mayest dwell in the land which
HaShem sware unto thy fathers, to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob, to give
them.
YYY
In the Midrash Tehilim[11] it is written:
Rabbi Eliezer declared: ''Israel told the
Holy One, blessed be He, 'Master of the world, we want to labor in the study of
Torah during the day and at night, but we don't have the opportunity.' ''The
Holy One, blessed be He, replied: 'Fulfill the mitzva of tefillin,
and I will consider it as if you had labored in Torah study during the day and
at night.'"
From the Sefer HaBahir:
152. You said [that the
sixth one was] His Throne. Have we then not said that it is the Crown of the
Blessed Holy One? We have said, “
Bamidbar 2:2: "Yachanu bnei
The
Shin with three heads
Tefillin embody the entire Torah. According to the verse, Tefillin enable "the Torah of HaShem to be in your mouth." The two different shins represent the two ways the Torah was written: In stone and upon parchment.
HaShem told Moses to write a Torah scroll
using ink and parchment. This Torah was written as we write it today, with the
normal three-pronged shin
The shin with four prongs
“G-d engraved rather than etched the letters on the two tablets because G-d wanted them to be read
from both sides. Thus the two sides allude to the revealed and concealed
dimensions of Torah.”
The
letter shin
This teaches us that if we learn
Torah (the three-pronged shin of the scroll
written by Moses), HaShem will give us the gift of understanding (the unique
four-pronged shin
ASKING AND EXPOUNDING
A Series
of Halachot According to the Order of the Shulhan Aruch, Based on the Rulings
of Rav Ovadia Yosef shlit"a
by Rav David Yosef shlit"a, Rosh Bet Midrash
Yehaveh Da'at
When to
Remove One's Tefillin
The
prevalent custom is to wear tefillin only during shacharit. The tefillin should
not be removed until after the "kedushah" in "u'va
lessiyon."
Some,
however, maintain according to Kabbalah that tefillin should not be removed
until after the first mourner's kaddish after the "kaddish titkabal,"
in order to ensure that the individual says with his tefillin four
"kaddishim" (the half-kaddish before birchat keri'at shema; the
half-kaddish after the chazzan’s repetition of the Shemoneh
Esre; "kaddish titkabal"; and the first
mourner's kaddish) and three "kedushot" (in the beginning of birchat
keri'at shema; during the repetition of the Shemoneh Esre; and in u'va
lessiyon).
Others,
however maintain that according to the Kabbalistic tradition one must recite
with tefillin three "kaddishim" and four "kedushot." (The
fourth "kedushah" is "borchu" before birchot keri'at shema,
which also constitutes a "kedushah.") According to this view, one may
remove his tefillin after "kaddish titkabal."
The
Ar"i zs"l was accustomed not to take off his tefillin until the
completion of "v'al kein," the second paragraph of
"aleinu," and this is the preferable practice.
Furthermore,
it is proper for everyone to study Torah with his tefillin on after tefillah.
If, however, one fears that he will be unable to maintain the necessary bodily cleanliness throughout the entire tefillah, he
may remove his tefillin earlier.
Those
accustomed to remove their tefillin after the kedushah of u'va lessiyon should
not do so on days when the Torah is read. Rather, they should wait until after
the Torah is returned to the ark, as alluded to in the pasuk, "Their King
passed before them [referring to the Sefer Torah] and HaShem was at their head
[referring to tefillin]" (Micah 2:13).
This,
however, applies only to those communities where the custom is to return the
Torah to the ark after u'va lessiyon. Where the custom is to return the Torah
before u'va lessiyon, one should not remove his tefillin until after reciting
the kedushah of u'va lessiyon. (Similarly, in places where the Torah is
returned before the recitation of "kaddish titkabal," one should not
remove his tefillin until after "kaddish titkabal.")
If one
needs to remove his tefillin while the Sefer Torah is out, he must be careful
not to remove his tefillin shel rosh in the presence of the Sefer Torah so as
not to uncover his head in the presence of the Torah. Rather, he should move to
the side and take off his tefillin shel rosh there.
If, however,
one's head generally does not become uncovered while taking off his tefillin,
such as if his head remains covered by the talit, or while removing the tefillin shel yad, there
is no need for concern in this regard.
Furthermore,
if the Sefer Torah is placed in an enclosed case, one may remove his tefillin
shel rosh in the presence of the Torah.
It is
proper to be careful not to remove one's tefillin during the recitation of
kaddish so as not to divert his attention from the response of "amen yehei
shemeih rabbah." while removing his tefillin.
Two
Positive Commandments
Rambam indicates that we fulfill two positive commandments by laying tefillin:
12 To bind tefillin on the head, as it is written
"and they shall be for frontlets between thine eyes" (Devarim 6:8).
13 To bind tefillin on the arm, as it is
written "and thou shalt bind them for a sign upon thy hand" (Devarim 6:8).
The
Order
What does
the donning of talit and tefillin during shacharit prayers have to do with:
Bereshit
The Gemara says that because Avram refused to take from the
King of Sodom even a thread or a shoestrap, his children (the Jewish people) merited to receive two mitzvot from HaShem: the mitzva of putting a thread of techeilet in
the tzitzith and the mitzva of putting straps in the tefillin.
Sotah 17a Raba expounded: As
a reward for our father
Abraham having said: I will not take a thread nor a shoelatchet, his
descendants were worthy to receive two commandments, viz., the thread of blue
and the thong of the phylacteries. It is right in the case of the thong of the
phylacteries, for it is written: And all the peoples of the earth shall see
that thou art called by the name
of the Lord.
According
to the Gemara Avraham originated the concept of praying to HaShem each morning.
(shacharit):
Berachoth
26b It has
been stated: R. Jose son of R. Hanina said: The Tefillahs were instituted by
the Patriarchs. R. Joshua b. Levi says: The Tefillahs were instituted to
replace the daily sacrifices. It has been taught in accordance with R. Jose b.
Hanina, and it has been taught in accordance with R. Joshua b. Levi. It has
been taught in accordance with R. Jose b. Hanina: Abraham instituted the
morning Tefillah, as it says, And Abraham got up early in the morning to the
place where he had stood, and ‘standing’ means only prayer, as it says, Then stood up Phineas and prayed.
Therefore,
during Avraham’s tefillah (prayer) we wear the talit and tefillin.
When Avram
spoke to the King of Sodom, he first mentioned the thread and afterwards the
shoestrap; thus, we first don the talit, which has in it the thread of
techeilet, and afterwards the tefillin, which have the leather straps.
The Rules
Menachoth 34a OF THE FOUR PORTIONS
OF SCRIPTURE IN THE TEFILLIN, THE [ABSENCE OF] ONE INVALIDATES THE OTHERS;
INDEED EVEN ONE [IMPERFECT] LETTER CAN INVALIDATE THE WHOLE. Is not this
obvious? — Rab Judah answered in the name of Rab, The law had to be taught in
respect of the tittle of the letter yod. And
is not this, too, obvious? — It was necessary to be taught in respect of the
other statement of Rab Judah; for Rab Judah said in the name of Rab, Any letter
that is not surrounded on all four sides by a margin of parchment is invalid.
Our Rabbis taught: It is written, Letotefeth, letotefeth, and letotafoth,
making four in all. So R. Ishmael. R. Akiba says, There is no need of that
interpretation, for ‘tot’ means two in Katpi and ‘foth’ means two in Afriki.
Our Rabbis taught: I might have said that one
should write [the Scriptural portions] upon four pieces
of parchment and put them in four compartments made out of four pieces of
leather; the verse therefore says, And for a memorial between thine eyes: one
memorial I commanded you, but not two or three
memorials. How then should one do? One should write them upon four pieces of
parchment and put them in four compartments made out of one piece of leather.
If, however, one wrote them upon one parchment and put them in the four
compartments, that is sufficient. There must be a blank space between each
[portion]. So Rabbi; but the Sages say, This is not necessary. They agree,
however, that between each there must be a line or a thread. And if the
divisions [between the compartments] were not noticeable, they are invalid.
Our Rabbis taught: How must one write them? The
portions for the hand-tefillah one should write upon one piece of parchment; if
one wrote them upon four pieces of parchment and put them in one compartment
that is still valid. They must, however, be fastened together, for it is
written, And it shall be for a sign unto
thee upon thy hand and as outside it is one sign, so inside, too, it must be
one sign. This is the opinion of R. Judah. But R. Jose says, This is not
necessary. Moreover, said R. Jose, R. Judah Berabbi concedes to me that if a
man has no hand-tefillah but has two head-tefillahs, he may cover up one of
them with a skin and place it [on his arm]. ‘Concede’, [you say,] but that is
the very issue between them! — Raba answered, R. Jose's statement proves that
R. Judah withdrew his opinion. Surely this cannot be, for R. Haninah sent [from
Palestine] the following ruling in the name of R. Johanan: The hand-tefillah
may be converted for use on the head but the head-tefillah may not be converted
for use on the arm, for one may not bring down what is of a higher sanctity to
a lower sanctity! — This is no difficulty, for one [ruling] refers to an old
one and the other to a new one. And according to him who maintains that the
mere designation [of a thing for a certain purpose] has a certain force, [we
must say that the owner] had made a reservation with regard to it from the very
outset.
Our Rabbis taught: What is the order [of the four
Scriptural portions in the head-tefillah]? ‘Sanctify unto Me’ and ‘And it shall
be when the Lord shall bring thee’ are on the right, while ‘Hear’ and ‘And it
shall come to pass if ye shall hearken diligently’ are on the left. But there
has been taught just the reverse? — Abaye said, This is no contradiction, for
in the one case the reference is to the right of the reader, whereas in the
other it is to the right of the one that wears them; the reader thus reads them
according to their order.
R. Hananel said in the name of Rab, If a man
reversed the order of the Scriptural portions, it is invalid. Abaye said, This
is so only [if he put] a portion that should be inside outside or what should
be outside inside, but if he put what should be inside also inside or what
should be outside also outside, it does not matter. Thereupon Raba said to him,
Why is it that [the placing of] an inside portion outside or of an outside
portion inside is not valid? It is, is it not, because that which should look
out into the open does not do so, whilst that which should not look out into
the open actually does so? Then, likewise, [the placing of] an outside portion
also outside or an inside portion also inside [should also be invalid], since
what should look out into the open on the right looks out on the left, and what
should look out into the open on the left looks out on the right? We must
rather say that there Is no such distinction.
R. Hananel also said in the name of Rab, The
underside of the tefillin is a law given to
Moses at Sinai. Abaye said, The duct of the tefillin is also a law given to
Moses at Sinai.
Abaye also said, The shin of the tefillin is a law given to
Moses at Sinai. The division [between the compartments] must reach as far as
the stitches. But R. Dimi of Nehardea said, As long as it is noticeable it need
not [reach as far as the stitches].
Abaye also said, The parchment [for the Scriptural
portions] of the tefillin must be examined against a flaw, since we require the
writing to be perfect and it would not be so [if it had a flaw]. But R. Dimi of
Nehardea said, This is not necessary, for the pen would detect [any flaw].
R. Isaac said, That the straps [of the tefillin]
must be black is a law given to Moses at Sinai. An objection was raised: The
tefillin must be tied with straps of the same [material as the tefillin
themselves.] The straps may be either green or black or white; but they should
not be red because it is repellent, and also for another reason. R. Judah said,
It is related of one of R. Akiba's disciples that he used to tie his tefillin
with strips of blue wool, and R. Akiba made no comment. But is it possible that
that righteous man actually saw his disciple do so and he did not prevent him?
They said to him, He certainly did not see him do so, for had he seen him he
would not have allowed him. It is related further of Hyrkanos the son of R.
Eliezer b. Hyrkanos that he used to tie his tefillin with strips of purple
wool, and he [R. Eliezer] made no comment. But is it possible that that
righteous man actually saw his son do so and he did not prevent him? They said
to him, He certainly did not see him do so, for had he seen him he would not
have allowed him. Now it is stated here, at all events, [that the straps may
be] either green or black or white! — This is no contradiction, for here it
speaks of the outside of the strap and there of the inside. But if of the
inside, how can it be repellent or give any ground for suspicion? — It might
sometimes become twisted.
A Tanna taught: That the tefillin must be square
is a law given to Moses at Sinai. R. Papa said, [This refers to] the stitching
and the diagonal. Shall we say that the following [Mishna] supports this view?
For we have learnt: If a man made his tefillin round, it is a danger and it is
no fulfillment of the precept! — R. papa said, That [Mishna] deals with the
case where they were made round like a nut.
R. Huna said, As long as the surface of the sides
of the tefillin is whole they are valid. R. Hisda said, If two [sides]
were split they are still valid; but if three, they
are invalid. Said to him Raba, Your ruling that if two [sides] were split they
are still valid is true only if [the rents were] not facing each other, but if
they were facing each other they are invalid. And even if they were facing each
other [they are invalid] only if they were new [tefillin], but if they were old
it would not matter. Abaye asked R. Joseph, What is meant by new, and what by
old? He replied, If when one stretches the leather it rebounds, it is old;
otherwise it is new. Or else, if when one holds up the strap, [the box] hangs
on to it, it is new; otherwise it is old.
Chanukah
It is known that the seven commandments which the
Hakhamim instituted, one of which is the command of the Chanukah lights, derive
ultimately from commandments to be found in the Torah[12]. So there must be
amongst the Torah commandments one which is an analogue of the lights of
Chanukah, one which brings the Divine light into the left-hand side and the
public domain. And this is the mitzva of tefillin. For the hand-tefillin are
worn on the left arm (the weaker arm, i.e. the left if the person is
right-handed), and the reason is, as explained in the Zohar[13], the that evil
inclination (the left side of the heart; the voice of emotional dissent to HaShem’s will) should itself be
bound into the service of HaShem. And the head-tefillin must be worn
uncovered and exposed so that:
Devarim (Deuteronomy) 28:9-10
HaShem
shall establish thee an holy people unto himself, as he hath sworn unto thee,
if thou shalt keep the commandments of HaShem thy God, and walk in
his ways. 10 And all
people of the earth shall see that thou art called by the name of HaShem; and they shall be afraid of thee.
Berachoth 6a R. Abin son of R. Ada
in the name of R. Isaac says [further]: How do you know that the Holy One,
blessed be He, puts on tefillin? For it is said: The Lord hath sworn by His
right hand, and by the arm of His strength. ‘By His right hand’: this is the
Torah; for it is said: At His right hand was a fiery law unto them. ‘And by the
arm of his strength’: this is the tefillin; as it is said: The Lord will give
strength unto His people. And how do you know that the tefillin are a strength
to
Its purpose, then, is to reveal G-dliness to all the
people of the earth and to cause them to be in awe. So it is, that the
tefillin, like the Chanukah lights, are directed to
the left-hand side and the public domain, towards that which lies outside the
recognition of HaShem.
In the light of this we can understand the Rabbinic
saying that the whole Torah is compared to the commandment of tefillin:
Midrash Tehillim 1:2
"Fulfill the Mitzvah of tefillin and I will count it as if you had toiled
in Torah by day and by night.
Kiddushin 35a Now, that is well on the view that two verses
with the same teaching do not illumine [others]: but on the view that they do,
what can be said? — Said Raba, The Papunians know the reason of this thing, and
who is it? R. Aha b. Jacob. Scripture saith, And it shall be for a sign unto
thee upon thine hand, and for a memorial between thine eyes, that the Torah of
the Lord may be in thy mouth: hence the whole Torah is compared to tefillin:
just as tefillin are an affirmative command limited to time,
and women are exempt, so are they exempt from all positive commands limited to
time. And since women are exempt from affirmative precepts limited to time, it
follows that they are subject to those not limited to time. Now, that is well
on the view that tefillin are a positive command limited to time; but what can
be said on the view that they are not? — Whom do you know to maintain that
phylacteries are an affirmative precept not limited to time? R. Meir. But he
holds that there are two verses with the same teaching, and such do not
illumine [others]. But according to R. Judah, who maintains that two
verses with the same teaching illumine [others], and [also] that tefillin are a
positive command limited to time, what can be said? — Because unleavened bread,
rejoicing [on Festivals],
and ‘assembling’ are three verses with the same teaching, and such do not
illumine [others].
The tefillin have, like Torah, the power to effect a
purification even in the real of the profane.
On Chanukah one has to give an extra amount of charity[14], both in money and in
person[15] both material and
spiritual charity.
The
miracle of Chanukah is apparent not only in the fact that For Your people
Israel You worked a great deliverance and redemption as at this day,[16] a deliverance from a people who were impure,
wicked and arrogant, and despite their being strong and many; but also in the
result that afterwards Your children came into Your most holy
house, cleansed Your Temple, purified Your Sanctuary, and kindled lights in Your holy courtyards.
And
so it is with tefillin. By the observance of this mitzvah, not only is a
deliverance and redemption achieved from all the people of the earth;
for since they will be afraid of you they will no longer stand in opposition to
Israel, but will be as if our hearts melted, and
there was no courage left in any man because of you[17]. But also, and as a consequence of the
mitzvah, Your children (will come) into Your most holy house, into the Temple which will be revealed speedily on earth, as
a sign of the Messianic Age.
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23 |
If you wear a Talit, it is put on before the Tefillin is put on. Tefillin is usually put on just before the morning prayer. If possible you should say the Shema with the Tefillin on. Tefillin are not worn at night, on the Sabbath, or on the festivals.
It is customary to stand while putting on Tefillin. The Tefillin are put on the arm first. A right handed person puts them on the left arm, and a left handed person puts them on the right arm. The Tefillin is placed in the exact center of the biceps muscle. Before tightening the strap, you should say:
I
am now about to fulfill HaShem’s commandment to put
on Tefillin.
Baruch
atah Adonai, Elohenu Melech ha-olam, asher kidishanu bemitzvotav vetzivanu
le-haniach tefillin
Blessed
are You HaShem our G-d, King of the universe, Who has sanctified us by His
commandments and instructed us to put on Tefillin.
The strap is then tightened by pulling it towards the body. The strap is wrapped seven times around the forearm. The black side of the strap must always be on the outside.
[The tefillin consist of two parts, one placed on the left arm facing the heart, the
other on the head, the seat of intellect. One of the
basic teachings implied in this is that the head should rule the heart. The
heart is considered the seat of emotions-attributes, which are generally
divided into seven branches. Of the seven, the following three,
namely: chesed (kindness), Gevurah (might-severity), and Tiferet (beauty) are
the basic ones, and the other four, Netzach
(endurance), Hod (splendor), Yesod (foundation), Malchut (sovereignty) are
secondary and offshoots of the first three. Hence, the seven
coils on the forearm are symbolic of these seven emotions, which should be controlled
by the intellect.]
Now, wrap the strap once or twice around the palm of the hand, so that it can be held. Now put on the head Tefillin:
The head tefillin should be centered in the middle of the head and worn just above the hairline. It is important that no part of the box protrude below the hairline. If the hairline has receded, then the Tefillin should be worn just above the point of the original hairline.
The knot of the head Tefillin must be centered at the base of the skull, just above the hairline in back of the head. The straps are then allowed to hang in front. Here again, it is most important that the straps be worn with the black side out This is especially true on the head itself.
[The two straps that hang down from the head tefillin
symbolize the flow of influence from the head to the rest of the body, on the right and left side. Hence, the two straps
are a continuation of the strap that surrounds the head, and that begin to
branch off from the special knot at the back of the head, which is the meeting
place of the cerebrum and cerebellum, which is also the beginning of the spine.
All this is to indicate that, just as physically, the
brain is the most vital nerve center that vitalizes and controls the entire
body, so, spiritually, the intellect is to vitalize and guide the entire life
of the Jew, and the body with all its limbs and organs must be functionaries to
carry out the Divine commandments and precepts in daily life.]
Very long hair may make it difficult
to wear the head Tefillin correctly. For this reason, some religious Jews wear their hair short.
Then tighten the straps and say:
Baruch shem kvod Malchuto le-olam va-ed
Blessed is the name of His glorious kingdom forever
You are now ready to complete the windings of the hand tefillin:
Wind the strap around your hand, passing it between your thumb and forefinger. Then wind it around the middle joint on the middle finger, and then twice around the lower joint.
[One of the things symbolized by
tefillin is the devotion and affection between HaShem
and Israel, which are frequently spoken of in terms
of betrothal. Hence the coils around the finger are
symbolic of the wedding ring, and one of the
explanations of the triple coil is the triple reference to the betrothal
between HaShem and Israel in Hosea 2:21-22. In fact, it is customary in many
Jewish communities to quote this Scriptural text as one winds the straps around
the finger, after having put on the head tefillin.]
As you do this, say:
I
will wed You to me forever.
I
will wed You to me with right and justice, with love and mercy.
I
will wed You to me with faith … and you shall know G-d.
* * *
This study was written by Hillel ben David
(Greg Killian).
Comments may be submitted to:
Greg Killian
7104 Inlay St SE
Lacey, WA 98513
Internet address: gkilli@aol.com
Web page:
http://www.betemunah.org/
(360) 584-9352
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Send comments to Greg Killian at his email address: gkilli@aol.com
[2] Devarim 28:10
[3] One interpretation
suggests that the prongs represent the three patriarchs and four matriarchs of
the Torah. According to Gematria the shin equals 300. There is an opinion that
this is representative of the 300 days of the year out of 354 that the tefillin
is worn. The four-pronged shin
[4] Halley's and Unger's Bible Handbooks make this identification.
[5] Tractate Eruvin 96a
[6] PT Berachoth 25a
[7]Adapted from an article in Jewish America: http://www.jewishamerica.com/ja/content/hadrash/hadrash_vehaiyun_Shemos.cfm
[8] Bava Kama 80a
[9] Hosea 2:21-22
[10] Menachoth 35a
[11] Tehilim 1:2.
[12] Tanya, Part IV, 29
[13] Part III, 283a.
[14] Magen Avraham, in Shulchan Aruch, beg. Hilchot Chanukah.
[15] Peri Megadim, 4:2.
[16] V’al Hanissim prayer.
[17] Joshua 2:11
