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Facts,
Traditions and History About Prayer Shawl, Tallit, Tallits,
and Prayer Shawls. THE TALLIT (PRAYER SHAWL) 
Blessed are you our God King of the universe
who has sanctified with His commandments
To Purchase a Tallit Similar to the Red one Click Here The garment that we call the prayer shawl or the Tallit is not necessarily the one spoken of in the book of NUMBERS. It is an adaptation of what people used to wear. Biblical Tallit (prayer shawl) is the four cornered garment. The Tallit (prayer shawl) as the visible symbol of the Word of God is a demonstration of the positional and personal power that is transferred when the mantle passes. In all subsequent generations, the term passing the mantle has come to mean the transfer of authority and anointing from one leader to another, from one generation to another. Colors on the Tallit (prayer shawl) were usually crimson purple and royal blue as outlined in the Torah for the High Priest. Levitical Tribe has the colors of the Blood Red, has white & black stripes in it, and are also in the banners of the tribes.  To Purchase a Tallit Similar to the Red one Click Here Makes reference to the garment Moses had being red, black, and white. Signifying he was from the tribe of Levi.
Biblical Significance to the styling of the Tallit (prayer shawl) { Tallit Katon} smaller like a Tee-shirt
It is possible that the
seamless garment that the soldiers gambled for at the
Little Tent The Tallit (prayer shawl) is known as a prayer shawl or little tent because it can be worn over you like a little tent. Only men were obligated to wear them. Women could wear them if they wanted to. Under garment or robe was called a HALUK it was lighter weight.
Outer garment
was the Tallit (prayer shawl) it was heavier weight. The Tallit (prayer shawl) as a ‘closet’
Greek word for closet is (tameion), which means “an
inner chamber, or a secret room.” Matt 6:6 But when you pray, go into your room and shut the door and pray to your Father who is in secret. And your Father who sees in secret will reward you.
· Jesus being a Jew would have observed the law and worn a Tallit (prayer shawl). Most Notable scripture of Jesus garment. Matt 9:20 And behold, a woman, who had a flow of blood for twelve years, came up behind Him and touched the hem of His garment.
Q. Who was this woman that touched Jesus? Q. What is the Biblical Reference to all the people believing that if they touched Jesus garment, they would be healed? >Jesus had been on the Eastern side of Galilee which was primarily a gentile area, now He is traveling near His home on the western side of the Sea of Galilee. A story is circulating clear across the lake about this man being Jesus with healing power. Matthews Gospel chapter 14:34-36 ..And when they had crossed over, they came to land at Gennesaret. v.35 And when the men of that place recognized him, they sent around to all that region and brought to him all who were sick v. 36 and implored him that they might only touch the fringe of his garment. And as many as touched it were made well.
>The disciples and some others were on their way to the great healing service, or some type of revival service, when something unusual happened. Matthew 9:20-22 .. And behold, a woman who had suffered from a discharge of blood for twelve years came up behind him and touched the fringe of his garment, v.21 for she said to herself, "If I only touch his garment, I will be made well." v. 22 Jesus turned, and seeing her he said, "Take heart, daughter; your faith has made you well." And instantly the woman was made well.
>More key pieces of the story Luke 8:42-43.. for he had an only daughter, about twelve years of age, and she was dying. As Jesus went, the people pressed around him. v. 43 And there was a woman who had had a discharge of blood for twelve years, and though she had spent all her living on physicians, she could not be healed by anyone.
>New fact, doctors could not heal her or do anything for twelve years. I imagine her funds were a little bit low at this point. · Luke says that the crowds were so massive they were almost crushing Jesus, crowding in trying to get around Him. · Matthew basically says that a lady slipped up behind Him. She had to do a little bit of pushing and shoving maybe to get through the crowd. > Many times when we envision this woman with an issue we somehow in our mind think that she was all decrepit and bent down kind of walking through the crowd and the only reason she touched the edge of His garment is because she had back problems. Scripture didn’t say anything about that (back problems) only that she had an issue of blood. Q. So why is this woman moving through this crowd, this sea of men (come to Sunday Revival meeting) Q. Why does she come there and push through them, why doesn’t she call His name out now? Q. What was she saying within herself? LUKE 8:44-46 She came up behind him and touched the fringe of his garment, and immediately her discharge of blood ceased. v. 45 And Jesus said, "Who was it that touched me?" When all denied it, Peter said, "Master, the crowds surround you and are pressing in on you!" v. 46 But Jesus said, "Someone touched me, for I perceive that power has gone out from me."
>Every one is there and they are all pressing in (all the big time evangelist) and when He says “who touched me?” everyone is like “not me!” “It must have been someone else.” Peter (always the first one to speak up) “Master, the people are crowding and pressing against you.” “But Jesus said… “ >>So basically Peter is saying yes someone touched you, look at the crowd, can’t you see they’re pressing in. But Jesus says, no this was a different type of touch. Someone touched the Power in Me. And the Power in Me was released. >>I am not talking about those that are trying to meet the new Rabbi. Not those that are just here for the fish and bread, not those that are just here to see what’s going on, what’s all the excitement. “Someone in this crowd touched me and Power has flown out of me.” Jesus says to Peter “That is [who] I want to know.” Luke 8:47 continues the story… And when the woman saw that she was not hidden, she came trembling, and falling down before him declared in the presence of all the people why she had touched him, and how she had been immediately healed.
>>Then the woman realized she could not go un-noticed. Picture this she is touching the hem of His garment which we need to see what that really is (bending down) she is down like this to touch that garment, and she’s probably lower than everyone else, and Peter is going “what’s up Jesus, what do you mean someone touched you?” “Can’t you see everybody around?” Then she kind of looks up and realizes there’s no way out. Even though she said within [herself] Even though she pressed in the crowd of unruly men that were all excited to be with Jesus, she knows she has been caught. >>Most likely she did not fear Jesus reaction but the crowd. You see if she had been bleeding for twelve years the Hebrew scripture says she is unclean, in fact she is supposed to announce to you and I “hey, I am unclean” Keep your distance from me, because if you touch me, if you touch my clothes, if you even sit where I have been sitting, you are rendered unclean. So for a certain period of time you will not be able to participate. {WOW, one touch of Jesus has made her clean and acceptable, Also: take into account that Jesus had not died upon the Cross yet and that His redemptive Blood had not yet been shed. So when the woman touched Him, the transfer happened through her faith. He stopped what He was doing to respond to that act of faith. Remember Jesus only did what He saw the Father doing. How wonderful is His Mercy.} >>Touching this woman would render anyone unclean. You cannot go into the Temple. It won’t matter if you’re a priest, it won’t matter if you’re the High Priest, and it won’t matter if you’re the common person. If you touch what I got, you’re unclean. It will break your connection with God. So this woman has lived with a social stigma (what courage it took to go into that crowd, the faith it took!)
She is breaking some
social and religious taboos. Basically she has rendered a
bunch in the crowd, unclean. And you know how people get
when they can’t go to Sunday meeting. This would cause
anger. So she knows she’s caught, it’s one of those moments when everybody’s quiet. Luke 8:47 And when the woman saw that she was not hidden, she came trembling, and falling down before him declared in the presence of all the people why she had touched him, and how she had been immediately healed.
· In the presents of all the people. Matt 9:22 Jesus turned, and seeing her he said, "Take heart, daughter; your faith has made you well." And instantly the woman was made well.
The foundation for this particular garment NUMBERS 15: 37-41 The LORD said to Moses, v. 38 “Speak to the people of Israel, and tell them to make tassels on the corners of their garments throughout their generations, and to put a cord of blue on the tassel of each corner. v. 39 And it shall be a tassel for you to look at and remember all the commandments of the LORD, to do them, not to follow after your own heart and your own eyes, which you are inclined to whore after. v. 40 so you shall remember and do all my commandments, and be holy to your God. v. 41 I am the LORD your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt to be your God: I am the LORD your God."
·
You will
find out that the Hebrews were commanded to make this
Biblical garment with four corners, to attach fringe. Or
Tzizit · All of this was just a visual reminder of setting them apart, sanctifying them. o A visual announcement or reminder to those around them that these are particular people, these are peculiar people. · These are people that God is using for a special mission. · Because they live in a world where there are all kinds of ways to dress. o All kinds of ways to eat. o All kinds of ways to worship. o All kinds of ways to speak. o God Himself carved them out from all the people [making them distinctive]
Sometimes when we read the OT, we read the 613 laws; Many times Christians say well, we’re under grace now, not under law. That is true, however if you would read most of the 613 Biblical commandments in the Torah (first five books of the Bible) you will find that you (Christians) keep them without thinking about it, because it’s more than just not stealing. It talks about what if one of my animals injures someone else’s animals. It talks about how we work out this faith when this happens.
The sacrificial system, even for Jews today they can’t perform those because there is no Temple. Some are trying to build a third Temple, but right now there’s not a third Temple. So even those laws are not kept (per say) However this garment [Tallit] (prayer shawl) was commanded of God. The Tassels or Tzizizt as they are called in Hebrew look like this: Some New Testament translations put this Hebrew word into Greek, and then into English it comes out all different. It comes out as ‘hem of His garment’ the hem for us is like what is at the bottom of our pants, or at the edge of our sleeve. Folded over and sewn to avoid fraying. That is not what’s talked about in scripture, what was talked about was that the woman touched His (Jesus) tzizit, the fringe. Q. Now why did she do that? Why did she touch the fringe?
The history of the garment There are three important things to remember about these tassels in particular. · They are a mixture of Linen & Wool (which testified that the people had some connection to the priesthood, because of the wool) Realize you may not be called to be the “Pastor”, you may not be called to be the “evangelist” or the “prophet” or the “teacher” but you have a connection to the ministry because everyone is called to share the Good News ( of Jesus Christ)
Some of our roles
are different, but those in the five-fold are here to equip
the others to do the Work of the Lord. · Mixture of Linen & Wool (wool thread in the tassel, wool comes from a sheep or a lamb which testified their connection to the sacrificial system, the sacrificial lamb) wool in the tassel was a reminder of the sacrifice and the atonement and the substitution of an animal for their sin. · The Blue thread reminded them of their connection to Royalty. ( a snail from the Mediterranean is harvested to make this particular blue dye) Not everyone wore the blue, only those most wealthy of the pagan world would have had this Royal blue color.
Blue is also the color of
our sky, making a connection or physical reminder for the
ancient people of the residence of God, in the Heavenlies.
The color is not important, just the purpose. The other colors are for our preference. Even the prayer before you put on your prayer shawl doesn’t have to be present. The whole purpose of the Tallit (prayer shawl) is to hold the fringe on the corners as a reminder to the people about God. That they have been set aside, sanctified and made Holy unto God.
What is the significance of the Four Tassels Q. What is the reason for the four cornered garment, why are there four and not three? In Biblical times the four corners and the tassels represented certain things. There is no particular order to the top corner or the bottom left corner, or any of that. The corners, remember them. #1 The Tallit (prayer shawl) had a family connection. It represented their Identity. Even in certain families that tie these they have their own way. Like a signature card. When you would see a particular fringe could tell who tied that. What family it came from.
{Most people could
remember Jim as the Shofar man. His identity is the Shofar
man.} #2 Status within the tribe or the community was represented in the tying of the tassels. This was becoming a problem in Jesus time. Luke 20:45-47 Jesus made a comment as they were watching people enter the house of Prayer and He said “ Oh, the Pharisees love to stand with their long flowing robes, so everybody will see them praying and worshipping God” So they forgot the purpose of this. The Pharisees would make their tzizit longer and add more blue in it, because then you know I’m wealthy. >Because you poor folks can’t afford this much blue. Look at me. Even though the more ostentatious Pharisees made show of their alms giving their public prayers, the greater percentage of the Pharisees were sincere in their separation and secreting themselves in prayer so that with kavanah (proper attitude and concentration) they approached God and entered into a knowing relationship with Him. · The higher the status and the higher your social structure of the day the longer and more elaborate your tassels would be. Because of this costly blue, it signified a status. There is another history that goes along with it. Remember when David was being chased by Saul, and he didn’t have as many men as Saul but Saul was determined that he was going to kill him. Basically Saul was over on this side of the hill and there was a ravine and he was with his men and there was a cave and Saul went into the cave into the inter recesses of the cave to sleep and was guarded by all his men and everything and we know David is in there. During the night David sneaks over the ravine and instead of killing Saul he cuts the edge of his garment, and he took the tzizit, because everyone would know what King Saul’s would look like. So the next day when David is on the other side of the hill, the mountain with the ravine and calls out to Saul. Saul is telling David how much he is going to kill him, and David basically says “Saul, look at your garment- I could have killed you, but I tried to respect your authority so look at this tassel I have it is a symbol of your authority and one of yours is missing” · So it is a symbol of AUTHORITY.
That it
represented authority and many people missed this piece.
When a prophet had a Word to give to the king, he would
inscribe that prophesy or press in his seal into the tzizit
in a particular pattern, as if to say ‘this is official’
{this would be similar to the wax seal used on fine
stationary. We even will melt the wax on the back of that
envelope and we’ll press our monogram into that wax.
·
Last
thing represented in the tassels is the Priestly purity or
power,
Significance in tying the tassels or tzizit
·
4 tassels, one on each corner. 8 strands – 1
tassel – 5 knots – 4 windings. 1 is numeric equivalent of that is Echad meaning the Lord YHWH, He is one God.
4 windings is numeric equivalent of that
which was taken out of the covenant name.
5 knots are symbolic to the first five books
of Moses; the Torah. (1st-7) (2nd-8) (3rd-11)
(4th -13) Malachi 4:2-3 But for you who fear my name, the sun of righteousness shall rise with healing in its wings. You shall go out leaping like calves from the stall. v. 3 And you shall tread down the wicked, for they will be ashes under the soles of your feet, on the day when I act, says the LORD of hosts.
Q. So what happened to this woman with an issue of Blood? Q. Why did he call her a daughter? Q. And why did she touch His fringe? It is indicated that during Jesus time, during the first century there was a scripture in Zechariah that talks about there is healing in His wings. Many believe that the fringe on the bottom of the prayer shawl is what is being referred to as the “wings” and that there would be healing in His wings. Q. why is that important in connection with Jesus? The reason why it is important with Jesus is because of all the people that day, this woman actually knew who He was! Because the belief was, “you know how there will be a true Messiah? There will be Healing in His wings” Q. What was it Jesus said in the midst of everybody pressing into Him?
“Who touched Me?” “Power
has gone out of Me” · Also, she touched His Authority. · Also she connected with His status. · Also she connected with His Purity. · Also she knew His TRUE Identity. · Because the “True Messiah will have Healing in His wings”
>>Because of that male dominated society, and because she
was unclean, because she was an outcast. Because she had
spent her whole living trying to get healed in scriptures
Luke tells us that no doctor could do anything. This is a
woman that for twelve years carried a burden on her own
shoulder, we don’t even hear about her family. If you can’t
stop bleeding guess what, your husband is going to get rid
of you, because you’re going to render him unclean. The
neighbors are going to talk -why are you still with that
woman, don’t you know that she’s just filthy and unclean?
>She then was caught and everyone was looking at her, so she
shared with them why she did what she did. The Bible
doesn’t let us know exactly what she says, but Jesus lets us
know when He turns to her and says “Daughter, your faith has
made you whole”
>Even today, but
especially in Biblical times only if you were my wife or my
daughter you could touch my ‘Tallit (prayer shawl)’ but if
you weren’t my family, my daughter or my wife you could not
touch. It was not allowed. The grace & mercy of Jesus let’s everyone else know when this woman touched Me, Power flew out of Me because this woman knows Who I AM.
>You need to remember His
identity. And you need to touch a hold of His Power. You
need to touch hold of His Purity. You need to touch hold of
His identity. >It’s all up to you. Sometimes we have to touch who He really is. Regardless of what the crowd says to us.
There is a Hebrew word Kanaph which means wings [Kanaph which can also mean corner. ] Jews have recognized the fact that God’s law symbolized in the tzizit of their prayer shawls is their guardian. Just as the Tallit (prayer shawl) surrounds the praying Jew, so God surrounds His people. “We can intend that when putting on the Tallit (prayer shawl) that it separate us and shield us from outside distractions and from foreign thoughts. The large prayer Tallit (prayer shawl) surrounds one and symbolizes protection.” Exodus 19:4 You yourselves have seen what I did to the Egyptians, and how I bore you on eagles' wings and brought you to myself.
The Ark of the Covenant that was the focal point of the “Most Holy Place” in both the tabernacle in the wilderness and the Temple in Jerusalem demonstrates the fact that even God’s throne itself is overshadowed by the wings of divine protection. The mercy seat on the top of the Ark of the Covenant was the site of the localized material manifestation of the Spirit of God, the Shekhinah. Covering the four corners of the mercy seat were the wings of two cherubim. What powerful imagery: God’s provision of mercy and loving kindness for His people is always overshadowed and protected by the wings of the “living creatures” that both guard His throne and extend perpetual, unceasing worship that extols His Holiness: “Kadosh, Kadosh, Kadosh” (HOLY, HOLY,HOLY)
Quoting from Psalms 36:7 this prayer suggests the full significance of the Tallit (prayer shawl): “How precious is thy loving-kindness, O God! And under the shadow of thy wings so the children of men take shelter…” As you cover yourself with the Tallit (prayer shawl), you have a physical symbolic awareness of the fact that you are secure in the shadow of God’s presence. Being “under the wings” of the Almighty.
Thank You Heavenly Father for covering us in your tender mercies and everlasting loving kindness~ Quicken my heart now to know my identity in You, my new status and right standing in Your Righteousness. Begin to heal me Lord, physically, emotionally and Spiritually. Create in me a new heart and renew in me a right Spirit. I thank you for understanding of this healing You brought forth for the woman with the issue. Touch me Lord and I too shall be made whole. To purchase Tallit - Prayer Shawl - Tallits - Prayer Shawls and accessories Click Here |
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