Ki Tisa

Parashas Ki Tisa

Exodus 30:11 – 34:35

Please Pray this

Prayer

First before reading.

In the name of Yahushua

Our Messiyah

I pray for the Spirit of Understanding

The Spirit of Knowledge and

The Spirit of Wisdom

As I read through this Parashas

The sages teaches that when anyone read this Torah Portion, we awaken for the individual and the world the specific Light inherent in its passage. Most Torah Portion contain uplifting events, but on the Sabbathh of Ki Tisa, after the instruction on how to construct the Tabernacle, we read about the destruction caused by the sin of the Golden calf.

The obvious question is what is the spiritual significance or objective of Ki Tisa? What type of energy are we awaken on this Sabbath.?

In this Torah Portion is the 21^st in the Cycle, Ki Tisa means when you take, we are told in this Portion of Ki Tisa on how to complete our spiritual objective, and after that we are shown the consequence of sinning.

When believers fall spiritually, it is due to the lack of acknowledge, that the error of their ways surface. However, there is always hope. If a believer falls, and never acknowledge their mistake, there is no opportunity to experience the Laver in the Tabernacle.

On the Sabbath of Ki Tisa, we are awaken to the understanding that there was no negativity in the sin of the Golden Calf. If we view sin for what it is, it is to show us what our faults are and what we need to fix in order to take advantage of the Tabernacle.

Just like there is nothing called darkness, it cannot be measured, darkness exist because there is only a lack or absent of Light.

At the moment we achieve perfection, or the complete light, we will be able to look back on all our failure during our spiritual journey, and realize that they were not that bad after all, that all the mistake we have made, were the tools essential for our perfection. When we are building a house we need scaffolding, when the house is finish we get rid of the scaffolding.

This Torah Portion teaches us that it is forbidden to count the Hebrew people in the ordinary manner, and when it is necessary to conduct a census in the Wilderness, the people rich or poor alike, were called upon to contribute half a shekel each, for the construction of and upkeep of the Tabernacle.

The status of Yisrael is elevated by its contribution to charity, and this is why they were counted by having the entire nation join in contributing to a sacred cause. The literal meaning of the commandment in verse 12 indicates this concept.

When you elevate the heads of the Children of Yisrael, implying that the function of these contributions was not only to facilitate a census and to provide for the Tabernacle, but also to raise the spiritual profile of the contributors.

The equal participation of all the people symbolizes that all Hebrews must share in achieving the national goals, that everyone should pass through the census by giving up his selfish, personal interests for the sake of the nation. One who does so gains infinite benefit, because the mission of Yisrael is dependent on the unity of the whole community.

This Torah Portion also speaks in terms of atonement that is achieved by the participation in this half shekel assessment. There is great power in the unity of a nation or people as they strive towards a common goal. When anyone joins in a constructive cause, the spiritual merits of all the individuals become the merit of the whole, as it were, so that not only their funds, but also their personal attainment come together to assist one another.

A solitary human being can seldom survived Divine scrutiny; what person is free of sins and shortcomings? But when a nation become one, it ascends to higher plane of spirituality, because all its individual members merge their spiritual virtues with one another. As a result, the national collective is judge far more compassionately. This is why it is so important to pray with a quorum, rather than individually.

The word terumoh, or portion, is mention three times in the next five verses, this describe three separate gifts of silver. Two of which were required gifts of half a Shekel each, and the third was a voluntary contribution of any amount of silver. The two compulsory gifts were an annual contribution to cover the cost of all communal Temple offering, and a one-time contribution of silver for the sockets upon which the walls of the Tabernacle rested. The voluntary gift was apart of the general contributions for the construction of the Tabernacle and its utensils.

The compulsory gifts are further illustrations of the theme discussed above: Everyone, whatever his social or economic status, had to be an equal partner in the Tabernacle that existed to bring together EL YAHVEH and His people, and in the offering that represented the nation in achieving that paramount goal.

The annual half shekel gift paid for the communal offering were collected during the month of Adar the twelve month, so that the funds would be ready in time for the month of Nissan, New year. Consequently, this chapter was read in synagogues the Sabbath before Rosh Chodesh Adar, a practice that is still followed in commemoration of the Commandment to participate in the offering.

Exo 30:11 And יהוה  spoke to Mosheh, saying, -

Exo 30:12 “When you take the census of the children of Yisra’ĕl, to register them, then each one shall give an atonement for his life to יהוה , when you register them, so that there is no plague among them when you register them. – When counting them” This phrase is repeated twice in this verse, to teach that this manner of counting was decreed not only for Moses’ census, but that it is forbidden for all time to make a head count of the Hebrew people.

King David erred in this regard, thinking that this passage applied only to Moses. David violates this prohibition by ordering a regular head-count, a sin for which the nation was struck by a plague and for which He repented when he realize his error.

Another example of David’s sin is that it is inconceivable that so great a scholar could have error in the interpretation of Scripture.

Even though David did used coins or some other means to avoid a direct count, but he was still punish, because he did not have a compelling reason to conduct a census.

Exo 30:13 “Everyone among those who are registered is to give this: half a sheqel according to the sheqel of the set-apart place, twenty gĕrahs being a sheqel. The half-sheqel is the contribution to יהוה . – The half shekel was a specific weight of silver that Torah institute as the standard coinage. The verse goes on to specify that a full shekel consisted of twenty gerah.

As long as we are in the flesh we are only at half our potential, for we are both Spirit and flesh. The half shekel is for the atoning of our flesh, which needs constant restriction.

Exo 30:14 “Everyone passing over to be registered, from twenty years old and above, gives a contribution to יהוה . – Twenty is the number of redemption; everyone over the age of redemption is required to pay this half shekel. Under the age of twenty they would be covered under the parent’s atonement.

Exo 30:15 “The rich does not give more and the poor does not give less than half a sheqel, when you give a contribution to יהוה , to make atonement for yourselves. – Regardless of one financial position the price is the same. ½ sheckel weight of silver is about $11.00 canadian. A sheckel is $ 0.25 and ½ shekel is about $ 0.13 Canadian. The paying of this 1/2 sheckel every year symbolizes the reduction of out selfish ego every year.