Daily Manna April 17th

Rabbinic Preparations Of The Last Pesah

[Read JN 19:38-42; 20:5-7]

The last two Jewish people to see Jesus before His resurrection were these two rabbi’s, Nicodemus and Joseph Ramathea [Aramathea means from Ramathea], who prepared His body as the manner [custom, procedure] of the Jews is to bury. Little did they know that their labor to prepare Messiah’s body for burial would result in multiple Big Reveals on Bikkurim, the Feast of First Fruits.

That procedure involved a few simple steps, according to a rabbi whom I heard lecture on this subject in the 1980s.

• First the body was cleansed and prepared for wrapping.
• Second each limb was wrapped in strips of cloth, which were dipped in a solution that hardened.
• Third the wrapped arms were placed down by His side, for a complete wrapping around the body from the feet to the neck.
• Fourth the application of myrrh, aloes, nard, etc, to the wrappings, to cover the smell of deteriorating flesh. [Example–Mary of Bethany poured the pure and expensive nard on Jesus’ feet. He told the disciples, She has kept it for the day of my burial.–JN 12]
• Fifth, the Jewish man’s talis [prayer garment, prayer shawl with fringes] was wrapped around his head. The fringes [tzitzit], which spell the name of Yhwh, were tied in front of his face, so that the name of Yhwh would be forever before his eyes.

It’s possible that Nicodemus was one of the first rabbis to believe in Jesus as Messiah. John records [3:2] that he came to Him at night, just after Jesus’ first public Passover in Jerusalem. His statements calling Jesus rabbi, about knowing that you have come from G-d as a teacher, and that no one can do these signs that you do unless G-d were with Him are all at the least seeker statements. During the next 5-10 minutes [3:3-21], Messiah gave him a clear and true [I assure you] presentation of salvation and how to receive it/Him. Later, he did!

G-d gives us hints of His plan and ways–myrrh given to Him at His birth by the magii; spikenard at His anointing at Bethany; myrrh and other spices after His death. God gives us opportunities to publicly declare our allegiance to and relationship with Him.

Follow G-d’s clues, and seize the opportunities He gives you to acknowledge Him as your Adonai. 

Selah…Shalom…