The Difficulties of Tevet
Tevet is the tenth month of the biblical calendar year. The name "Tevet" is the Babylonian name of the month. In the Bible, it is referred to both as "the tenth month" as well as "Tevet," as in Esther 2:16, "And when Esther was taken to King Ahasuerus into his royal palace in the tenth month, which is the month of Tebeth..." As we enter the month of Tevet, we are approaching the end of the celebration of Hanukkah. For the first few days of the month, we are reminded of the victory in the days of the Maccabees. But...
TOPICSfasting, Hanukkah, Maccabees, martyrdom of Peter, siege of Jerusalem, Tevet, tragedies
From Defeat to Victory
Blessed are You, Hashem, our God, King of the universe, the Righteous Judge. (Traditional Prayer) The month of Tevet is one of the darker, lowly months of the year. It is the month in which the siege of Jerusalem began which ended in the destruction of the First Temple. Asarah b'Tevet, the tenth of Tevet is kept as a fast day in commemoration of this horrific event. Almost to help ease the remembrance of such an event, we enter this month still in celebration of the Holy One's victory through the Maccabees over the Greeks during Hanukkah. So, on the...
TOPICSdefeat, faithfulness, fasting, restoration, siege of Jerusalem, Tevet, victory
From Miracles to Persecution
In Messianic Jewish tradition, Hanukkah commemorates both the victory of the Maccabees and Yeshua's discourse in John 10:22-39. The celebration of Hanukkah is unique in that it is the only festival that spans two months, beginning on the 25th of Kislev and lasting until the 3rd of Tevet. There's another side to the Hanukkah story: persecution. Hanukkah memorializes the cruel oppression of the Jewish people under Antiochus Epiphanes; a time when studying Torah was illegal and those who sought to keep the commandments were slaughtered mercilessly. Our Master also was persecuted during Hanukkah. According to John 10:22-39, the Judeans (an...
TOPICSHanukkah, Kislev, martyrdom of Peter, persecution
