Pathways Of The Prophetic- Tools Of Bonding

Before Israel lies the ever present command to bond with God.  This state of being and commandment of bonding is epitomized in what is called the Shema:

"Hear, Yisra'el: the LORD is our God; the LORD is one: and you shall love the LORD your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your might." (Deuteronomy 6:4-5)

YHVH is one (echad).  Here the word echad not only states the singular but the idea of unity or bonded oneness.  This state of being and command to be bonded with God is further expressed in the instructions that are tied with this first statement of the Shema:

"These words, which I command you this day, shall be on your heart" (Deuteronomy 6:6) The planting of the word (Wisdom) into the heart (the place of understanding) wherein conscious and organized thought occurs is the pathway to this bonded state with God.

"and you shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, and when you walk by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise up" (Deuteronomy 6:8)

We are to teach his words (wisdom) to our physical children but in a spiritual sense the children also being referred to here are those thoughts of our hearts that are the product of our daily affairs. Like children our minds are often dancing and playing about with the things of the world going from one idea to another-never quite staying on any single activity or idea for very long.  As we talk or meditate upon the wisdom of God (whatever its form), we engage in the process of bonding with God. We take in ourselves the life of the Ruach and resonate with Higher Worlds even Worlds Without End (Ayn Sof).

You shall bind them for a sign on your hand, and they shall be for symbols between your eyes.You shall write them on the door-posts of your house, and on your gates." (Deuteronomy 6:8-9)

In this bonding process with God and his wisdom we begin to transform into the image of God.  It is in this new birth that the works of our hands become of the works of God.  It is in this new birth that we see, hear, and understand whether in the physical or realms of prayer with the eyes of God. In writing or engraving Chokmah (wisdom) with the tools of Binah (understanding) on the entryways to our individual conscious minds our spiritual judgment transforms and our cities become a New Jerusalem.

While our thoughts and minds remain like a dancing child going from one thought to another without real function or form we find ourselves in a state of chaos. In this chaos of consciousness no focus is ever accomplished and no real power of the mind and spirit developed.  In ancient Israel, the schools of the prophets were instituted to teach students that pathway by which one matured from spiritual childhood to maturity; the idea of being perfect- or the idea of a seed sprouting into a mature tree that is able to produce desirable fruit.  The idea of being like a child was taught in ancient Israel as THE DESIRE TO RECEIVE FROM GOD.  The idea of being holy, perfect, or mature was taught as THE DESIRE TO RECEIVE FROM GOD TO BESTOW-- or perhaps the better way to express the divine principle of passion- TO LOVE GOD AND TO LOVE YOUR NEIGHBOR AS YOURSELF.

MUSIC- A TOOL OF THE PROPHETIC

It is often mentioned in the scriptures that when a prophet desired revelation he would have music played. Music as a tool of the spirit would arouse the faculties of the spirit and as a result of this form of contemplative meditation we have before us the Psalms of Israel.  The use of music would be used as part of the prophetic process to engage the physical mind and bring it to the realm of the spiritual. In this process and using this tool, prophets would then contemplate the names of God, words from the Psalms, scriptures, or other revelations.  Once elevated the music would cease and the mind and heart of the prophet would then be in the right disposition of spiritual submission to proceed into the worlds of the spiritual.

In the temple in Jerusalem music and cantors (i.e. singers) would be found using this tool of the prophetic as a tool to separate the temple, its environment, and its listeners from the world of the mundane and elevate them to the world of the spirit. With the destruction of the temple the use of music as a tool of the prophetic became somewhat of a lost art.  But while its use in the prophetic became obscured in some circles, there were other traditions that preserved this knowledge.  In fact, among some Israelite traditions it was taught that God did not speak creation into existence but that he sang creation into existence.

Music as a tool of the prophetic and the creative was seen as an important tool of the prophetic.  But not all music can be used in the prophetic.  As there is music that connects the soul to the celestial  there is music that can open the soul to that which is profane or unholy.  The same tool used to elevate and encourage life in the Ruach Elohiym (Holy Spirit) can also lower the consciousness of man and destroy life in the Ruach Elohiym.

Music is a valuable tool that can enable the mind to walk in a state of extreme focus and contemplation. Music arouses the passion or desire but as with any faculty desire can be focused toward the things of God or the things of the Adversary.  We see music as a tool to draw near God demonstrated in the Tanakh:

Psalm 104:33-34 I will sing unto the LORD as long as I live: I will sing praise to my God while I have my being. My meditation of him shall be sweet: I will be glad in the LORD.

Psalm 146:1-2 Praise the LORD. Praise the LORD, my soul. I will praise the LORD all my life; I will sing praise to my God as long as I live.

Psalm 95:1-2 Come, let us sing for joy to the LORD; let us shout aloud to the Rock of our salvation. Let us come before him with thanksgiving and extol him with music and song

A vividly portrayed example of the opposite usage of music is recorded in The Books of Adam and Eve numbered among the books of the Pseudepigrapha:

"After Cain had gone down to the land of dark soil, and his children had multiplied therein, there was one of them, whose name was Genun, son of Lamech the blind who slew Cain.

 But as to this Genun, Satan came into him in his childhood; and he made sundry trumpets and horns, and string instruments, cymbals and psalteries, and lyres and harps, and flutes; and he played on them at all times and at every hour.

And when he played on them, Satan came into them, so that from among them were heard beautiful and sweet sounds, that ravished the heart. Then he gathered companies upon companies to play on them; and when they played, it pleased well the children of Cain, who inflamed themselves with sin among themselves, and burnt as with fire; while Satan inflamed their hearts, one with another, and increased lust among them."  ( Book of Adam and Eve, Chpt. 20)

This same duality can also be demonstrated in the Book of Mormon where Nephi's brothers and some of the other families began to make merry:

"And after we had been driven forth before the wind for the space of many days, behold, my brethren and the sons of Ishmael and also their wives began to make themselves merry, insomuch that they began to dance, and to sing, and to speak with much rudeness, yea, even that they did forget by what power they had been brought thither; yea, they were lifted up unto exceeding rudeness." (1 Nephi 18:9)

It was not the making merry, dancing and singing that was evil but upon the unrefined natural man whose heart is not upon the things of God music arouses the passion or desires of the natural man causing them descend into the depths of the carnal thereby separating themselves from the spiritual. In doing so they bind the spiritual within themselves as Laman and Lemuel bound Nephi on their ship. The result was that their compass of direction ceased to function and they began to descend to the point of being swallowed up in the depths of the sea. (1 Nephi 18:12-15)

In contrast to the episode with Nephi and his brothers upon the waters of the great deep, we see Alma encouraging his people evoking the Song of Moses to stir up the desire and passion of his people to the things of righteousness:

"And now behold, I say unto you, my brethren, if ye have experienced a change of heart, and if ye have felt to sing the song of redeeming love, I would ask, can ye feel so now?" (Alma 5:26)

The Song of Redeeming Love is the first recorded song of praise in the Bible. The Prophet Isaiah tells us that this song of redeeming love was sung on the night of Passover:

You shall have a song as in the night when a holy feast is kept, and gladness of heart, as when one sets out to the sound of the flute to go to the mountain of the LORD, to the Rock of Israel. (Isaiah 30:29)

This song was sung by Moses as they left slavery in Egypt and is portrayed in Exodus 15. It is a song of hope and faith as Israel looked to God after his promised deliverance from Egypt and the armies of Pharaoh.  This song that was sung by the Red Sea was so precious to Israel that even to this day this song is still sung and remembered by Israel. It is a song of celebration and awe at God's delivering right hand.  It is perhaps one of the greatest songs ever written. In the book of Revelation it becomes not only the song of Moses but the victory song of the Messiah who has brought each one of us out of slavery to sin and praises Him as the author of life and salvation.

Music is a powerful tool as it has the ability to arouse within us feelings and emotions that can lead us to bonding with God or falling into the pathways of darkness. In the mind of an Israelite the passion it arouses is like fuel that can propel one into the Heavens above or to descend into the depths of darkness.  Once our feelings or passions combine with our thoughts we begin to subjectively or objectively engage in the prophetic experience.

When music was played and one's heart was engaging in contemplative meditation upon the things of God, the music aroused the inner part of men and women to release emotions.  The release of this fuel of emotion or passion enabled the student of the prophetic to experience the things of God being contemplated in a very personal experience. The music being played allowed or opened the student of the prophetic to cultivate a deep desire and passion for the things of God.  While passion or desire to receive was the fuel it was the focus of the thought that directed the prophetic experience. It was in this state of spiritual consciousness that enabled one to begin to ascend the Mountain of the Lord's House or to descend into the depths of hell.

(To be continued)


© 2018 Robert Kay

All rights reserved. No portion of this article may be reproduced in any form without permission from the author, except as permitted by U.S. copyright law.

Pathways of the Prophetic- Contemplative Meditation

"For it came to pass after I had desired to know the things that my father had seen, and believing that the Lord was able to make them known unto me, as I sat pondering in mine heart I was caught away in the Spirit of the Lord, yea, into an exceedingly high mountain, which I never had before seen, and upon which I never had before set my foot." (1 Nephi 11:1)

In the ancient School of the Prophets prophetic disciplines and meditation were established on the basis of balancing wisdom (Chokmah) and understanding (Binah).  Unlike our western definition of wisdom where wisdom is often defined as the correct application of knowledge, the Israelite definition of wisdom is the idea of pure knowledge, data, sudden strokes of pure knowledge, or even intuitive knowledge.  Their definition of understanding (Binah) is related to discernment, the organization, and classification of said knowledge or intelligence.  Where wisdom is considered the feminine attribute, understanding is considered the male or masculine attribute. This principle was stated in ancient Israel as follows:

"Understand with Wisdom, be Wise with Understanding" (Sefer Yetzirah)

Or as was attributed to the teachings of Enoch

""The lips of wisdom are closed, except to the ears of Understanding"

It is in these principles that lay the secret between balancing the spiritual with the physical.  Just as a spirit (wisdom) without a body (understanding) cannot function in this physical world so too is a physical body (understanding) lifeless without the spirit (wisdom). Obtaining wisdom from God or pure intelligence/information is one of the disciplines of the ancient prophetic training, but no less important is the taking of that knowledge and organizing it with understanding so that it may be functionally relevant in this physical world.

The ancient disciplines were designed to allow the conscious mind to descend into the world of the spirit and draw from this eternal well like a bucket.  One of these disciplines involved the idea of contemplative meditation or what we would call pondering. Contemplative mediation requires one to penetrate the veil between the physical and the spiritual from intentional thought in the conscious mind.  The solemn though backed by true intention/desire (kavanah) is the first step on the path.  One thinks, ponders, or examines a thing with intense conscious thought.  In Israel this concept is called hitbonenut or absolute contemplation.

Before diving into the depths of the spiritual one must prepare the conscious mind for the journey.  If the conscious mind has given no thought or contemplation on the matter then there are no prophetic discplines or techniques that will be effective to enable one to approach and draw from the Spirit of God.

Lest we think this principle was isolated to the ancient School of the Prophets, we find this same principle given to Oliver Cowdery when he attempted the process of translation and failed:

"Do not murmur, my son, for it is wisdom (Chokmah) in me that I have dealt with you after this manner.

Behold, you have not understood (Binah); you have supposed that I would give it unto you, when you took no thought save it was to ask me.

But, behold, I say unto you, that you must study it out in your mind (contemplative meditation); then you must ask me if it be right, and if it is right I will cause that your bosom shall burn within you; therefore, you shall feel that it is right. But if it be not right you shall have no such feelings, but you shall have a stupor of thought that shall cause you to forget the thing which is wrong; therefore, you cannot write that which is sacred save it be given you from me. Now, if you had known this you could have translated; nevertheless, it is not expedient that you should translate now." (D&C 9:6-10)

When conscious thought is focused as in contemplative meditation it becomes a means of opening to the divine.  Through analytical thought the conscious mind is greatly empowered.  Like light, thought can be diffused as in the case of a lamp that spreads light around in general but is not in any particular sense focused.  It can also be highly focused and concentrated like a laser beam.

As the Prophet Nephi engaged in contemplative meditation (pondering) on a specific subject his conscious mind became keenly focused on the vision that his father related.  His desire or intention (kavanah) to receive to bestow was the fuel for his contemplative meditation that focused his conscious mind.  In doing so he opened a door to spiritual revelation.  It is in this state that a person can perceive or understand (the eyes of understanding) information about the thing being contemplated or pondered upon.  This information is not necessarily visible to the physical eyes or obtainable by any other method. In doing the person comes to the realization that the dimension of thought is more than just the conjuring of mental pictures and related facts but can be a pathway to receive Wisdom (Chokmah) by which true understanding (Binah) can operate.  This discipline is not done in a willy nilly fashion but must be done with passion (true desire and intention) as this is the fuel that allows for the true bonding (devekut) with God.

So then the question comes, "How does one cultivate this passion or desire?"

(To Be Continued)

The Pathway Of The Prophetic- Lessons From the Ancient School Of The Prophets

The scriptures record that from the Fathers down to Israel the practice of praying prayers at set times of the day was a common practice. While set and ritualistic prayers were passed down through varying Israelite traditions, the prayers of the Fathers were not the many varying forms of rote prayers many recite today.  What is termed “prayer” in the scriptures is more closely related to our present forms of meditation. 

One recorded instance in scripture of meditation is cited in relation to Isaac the son of Abraham:

“And Isaac went out to meditate in the field at the eventide: and he lifted up his eyes, and saw, and, behold, the camels were coming.” (Genesis 24:63)

The word meditate here comes from the Hebrew word “suach”-being derived from the root word “siha” which means a conversation. Here we see Isaac going out to the field to have a two-way conversation with God.  In our day, many are used to a one way conversation with God but we rarely see a two-way conversation with God with actual words being exchanged by both parties involved.  This divine conversation took place in a field.  In Hebrew the word for field is sadeh which means to spread out just as in a flat ground.  The idea of the field is to convey the understanding of the wide, panoramic, or revelatory view which a spread out view of a field would give to someone in the field.  As such, Isaac’s siha or conversation was not only two –way but revelatory in nature- his consciousness and understanding being opened or spread out.

In similar vein, The Book of Mormon also communicates this same principle.  In a visionary experience, the Prophet Lehi receives a two-way communication with God.  In doing this he communicates the same concept of meditative prayer as with Isaac:

“And it came to pass after I had prayed unto the Lord I beheld a large and spacious field.” ( 1 Nephi 8:9)

Like Isaac, Lehi’s visionary experience communicates the same type of prayer/meditation with the accompanying revelatory consciousness expanding view communicated in the Torah through the symbolism of the field.  The detail and instruction that often goes unnoticed is the first lesson of Separation and Silence.  Like Isaac who we finding meditating in a field which offers separation and silence we also see Lehi in vision praying and then opening up in the separation and silence of a field where he experiences his connection with God.  Whenever the Fathers wished to connect with God the first rule they followed was to separate themselves from the noise and hustle of the world and go into a place of silence and seclusion.

This lesson of separation and silence is further reinforced in the case of Lehi where Nephi states:
“And all these things did my father see, and hear, and speak, as he dwelt in a tent, in the valley of Lemuel, and also a great many more things, which cannot be written upon these plates.” (1 Nephi 9:1)

Lehi received his two-way communication that he both saw, heard, and spoke as he dwelt in a tent. The tent was a place of separation and silence in similarity to the Mishkan or Tabernacle in the Wilderness. In Israel a holy man or Tsaddik would often resort to separation and silence by going into a cave (like Elijah) or often in more common practice resorting to a tent where he could commune with God.  This teaching is preserved in Israel to this day with the tradition of the Tallit, the four cornered covering worn by men, which is taught to be a personal Mishkan or Tabernacle.  It is this same concept to which the Messiah alludes when he said, “But thou, when thou prayest, enter into thy closet, and when thou hast shut thy door, pray to thy Father who is in secret; and thy Father, who seeth in secret, shall reward thee openly.” (3 Nephi 13:6)

While the word used in English is closet it comes from the idea of the secret place.  For an Israelite the Tent, the Mishkan, or even a tallit could serve as a secret place.  It is to the secret place of separateness or silence that one resorts to traverse the passage of your spirit and to connect with the divine.

We have a gulf which separates the world from the divine. This practice of separateness and silence became known in later writings as hitbodedut.  The root meaning isolated or alone.  As a result of the fall we can no longer easily cross over the gulf between the worlds to experience the physical and the spiritual at the same time.  While we experience the physical world the spiritual world is like a dream.  While we experience the spiritual world, the physical world is also like a dream.  One is unclear even as the other is clear until the point of balance and connection is established.   In many ways, the gulf between the two and the disability it brings that was caused by the fall is great, but it is still traverseable. This awful gulf is represented in true Israelite fashion by Nephi in his vision:

"And they said unto me: What meaneth the river of water which our father saw?

And I said unto them that the water which my father saw was filthiness; and so much was his mind swallowed up in other things that he beheld not the filthiness of the water. And I said unto them that it was an awful gulf, which separated the wicked from the tree of life, and also from the saints of God.

And I said unto them that it was a representation of that awful hell, which the angel said unto me was prepared for the wicked." (1 Nephi 15:26-29)

This awful gulf is symbolic of the divide which separates the holy from the profane or the carnal from the spiritual.  To begin the journey across the divide is to commence a discipline or walk through the strait or navigated pathway step by step ascending unto the Tree of Life.

This strait or navigated path is a pathway of the discipline of spiritual submission as taught in the ancient schools of the prophets.  This same discipline of submission or spiritual navigation across the gulf is communicated by Nephi in the Book of Helaman:

“Yea, we see that whosoever will may lay hold upon the word of God, which is quick and powerful, which shall divide asunder all the cunning and the snares and the wiles of the devil, and lead the man of Christ in a strait and narrow course across that everlasting gulf of misery which is prepared to engulf the wicked— And land their souls, yea, their immortal souls, at the right hand of God in the kingdom of heaven, to sit down with Abraham, and Isaac, and with Jacob, and with all our holy fathers, to go no more out.” (Helaman 3:29-30)

The passage of the spirit being encoded in his words thus:

"And he hath power given unto him from the Father to redeem them from their sins because of repentance; therefore he hath sent his angels to declare the tidings of the conditions of repentance, which bringeth unto the power of the Redeemer, unto the salvation of their souls.

And now, my sons, remember, remember that it is upon the rock (Malkhut) of our Redeemer (Tipheret), who is Christ, the Son of God, that ye must build your foundation (Yesod); that when the devil shall send forth his mighty winds, yea, his shafts in the whirlwind, yea, when all his hail and his mighty storm shall beat upon you, it shall have no power over you to drag you down to the gulf of misery and endless wo, because of the rock upon which ye are built, which is a sure foundation, a foundation whereon if men build they cannot fall." (Helaman 5:11-12)

(To Be Continued)

The School of the Prophets- Pathways Of The Prophetic

“But you who bond to YHVH your Elohiym are all alive today.” (Deuteronomy 4:4)

It is said by the sages of Israel that the prophets were bound to God through the Torah.  This teaching  communicated that as one studied the words of the scriptures they partook not only of the spirit of the Prophet who wrote the scripture but also of the Spirit of God that flowed through the prophet which gave utterance in the first place.  This understanding was one teaching communicated by the Fathers and preserved through ancient schools which taught and preserved the prophetic science of Israel. 

Throughout the ages and in the wisdom of God there were noble and great spirits who were sent down as links of salvation to maintain or restore the ancient wisdom given to Adam.  Among these noble and great ones were Enoch, Noach, Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Moses, and many of the prophets of Israel. These more advanced brothers and sisters were held in strategic reserve to come down in varying times and circumstances, but their mission was none the less the same-to implement the Plan of Salvation and to educate others in the science and principles of this redemptive plan:

“Now the Lord had shown unto me, Abraham, the intelligences that were organized before the world was; and among all these there were many of the noble and great ones; And God saw these souls that they were good, and he stood in the midst of them, and he said: These I will make my rulers; for he stood among those that were spirits, and he saw that they were good; and he said unto me: Abraham, thou art one of them; thou wast chosen before thou wast born.” (Abraham 3:22-23)

Even today we have those souls whose spiritual focus and development was such that they were predisposed to the revelatory enabling them to experience the visions and presence of God.  For example a young Joseph Smith who had not been schooled in the prophetic science and yet experiences a vision of the divine:

“At length I came to the conclusion that I must either remain in darkness and confusion, or else I must do as James directs, that is, ask of God. I at length came to the determination to “ask of God,” concluding that if he gave wisdom to them that lacked wisdom, and would give liberally, and not upbraid, I might venture. So, in accordance with this, my determination to ask of God, I retired to the woods to make the attempt. It was on the morning of a beautiful, clear day, early in the spring of eighteen hundred and twenty. It was the first time in my life that I had made such an attempt, for amidst all my anxieties I had never as yet made the attempt to pray vocally. After I had retired to the place where I had previously designed to go, having looked around me, and finding myself alone, I kneeled down and began to offer up the desires of my heart to God. I had scarcely done so, when immediately I was seized upon by some power which entirely overcame me, and had such an astonishing influence over me as to bind my tongue so that I could not speak. Thick darkness gathered around me, and it seemed to me for a time as if I were doomed to sudden destruction. But, exerting all my powers to call upon God to deliver me out of the power of this enemy which had seized upon me, and at the very moment when I was ready to sink into despair and abandon myself to destruction—not to an imaginary ruin, but to the power of some actual being from the unseen world, who had such marvelous power as I had never before felt in any being—just at this moment of great alarm, I saw a pillar of light exactly over my head, above the brightness of the sun, which descended gradually until it fell upon me. It no sooner appeared than I found myself delivered from the enemy which held me bound. When the light rested upon me I saw two Personages, whose brightness and glory defy all description, standing above me in the air. One of them spake unto me, calling me by name and said, pointing to the other—This is My Beloved Son. Hear Him!” (Joseph Smith History 1: 13-17)

Yet a point often demonstrated in the scriptures is that while there are those who are predisposed to the things of God there are many who are not so initially predisposed and are not as capable in the revelatory gift of Heaven or direct visionary contact with God:

“And the Lord said unto me: These two facts do exist, that there are two spirits, one being more intelligent than the other; there shall be another more intelligent than they; I am the Lord thy God, I am more intelligent than they all.” (Abraham 3:19)

Just as God knew that every person would have different capacities or gifts he prepared a way and a pattern whereby those who were of greater faculty would descend and lift up those of lesser or not so developed faculty.  The epitome of this being the Messiah himself who was greater than all and yet descended below all things to draw all men unto him; the greater through love and mercy lifting up the lesser into a condition of oneness.

As a result of their divine missions, many of these noble and great ones such as Enoch, Abraham, and Moses established schools or disciplines of learning whereby all could learn the art of redemption and the pathway of the prophetic. In these schools, students or disciples learned how to become spiritual and experience God.  Many of these ancient ones established schools for prophets wherein the newly initiated students were taught and discipled in the principles and science designed to reorient the mind and consciousness.  It was in these schools that awareness was cultivated of the Ruach Elohiym (Spirit of God) including its form and function that is the foundation of all life and reality here on Earth.

In sum, the students of these schools were educated in the laws, principles, and prophetic techniques to experience the dimension of the spirit alongside the reality of this world with the ultimate goal of connecting the two.  Walking in this strait/navigated and narrow path, one discovered that the gate into the spiritual was not accessed by some external means but through the secret of the inner passage- the passage of the neshama (soul/spirit).  Taught in the principles passed down by those who had ascended into the presence of God, these students would follow the same path to experience and ascend into the spiritual worlds- the kingdoms, the blessings, and the dangers.

By accessing the passage way of the spirit, students would travel across the realms of the mind and spirit until the veil between this world and the others would be rent.  It is at this point that the prophet experiences God face to face.  This traversing of this passage way of the spirit is what is termed in Israel as, “Calling upon the Name”. 

An example of this discipline is plainly demonstrated by the Brother Jared in the Book of Ether. After traveling forth during the time of dispersion from the Tower of Babel, the Jaredites pitched their tents in a place they called Moriancumer.  They dwelt the space of four years at which time God visited the Brother of Jared with correction:

“And it came to pass at the end of four years that the Lord came again unto the brother of Jared, and stood in a cloud and talked with him. And for the space of three hours did the Lord talk with the brother of Jared, and chastened him because he remembered not to call upon the name of the Lord.” (Ether 2:14)

Do we really think that the Brother of Jared who had found favor with God, received direct instructions, and obtained deliverance for his people forgot to “say his prayers” for four years?  Hardly!

In prophetic science “Calling Upon the Name” is connected with an ancient spiritual discipline whereby the Prophet accessed the passage way of the spirit and connected with the divine.  This discipline is far more than the act of what has been taught as prayer in the modern world: “Heavenly Father- please bless  (fill in the blank) … I want a (fill in the blank) …  in the name of Jesus Christ.. Amen”.  It is far from the saying of ritualistic prayers out of rote repetition.

After the destruction of the Temple of Solomon, much knowledge and history was lost in regard to the path of the prophetic.  Still while many schools passed away in history, there were those that survived passing on much of this knowledge passed down by the Fathers. With the destruction of the Temple certain some doorways of the prophetic closed even while others were maintained by faithful men and women throughout the centuries.  Schools of the Prophetic continued to exist (some in secret and some by exodus) during the days of Messiah.  Even after the destruction of the Temple in 70 A.D. there were faithful students who continued to teach and preserve this knowledge even upon pain of persecution and death (some of which was brought upon by their own brothers). 

Many of these disciplines exist today and have been well preserved in the scriptures and other related writings passed down in the House of Israel.  These greater things have been hid from the eyes of many Gentiles in plain sight “because seeing they do not see, and hearing they do not hear, nor do they understand.” (Matthew 13:13) This was done because this journey back into the presence of God was not a whimsical journey of intellectual curiosity. It was not a cinematic experience where we delight in 3D Visual Special Effects with popcorn and Jujubes.  It was also not a competition of egos or a path of self-aggrandizement.  It was a PROPHET(ESS) making venture not a PROFIT making venture.

The scriptures record the results of prophets and their connecting with Heaven. At first glance, while the scriptures record their prophetic results it seems as if no mention is made of any of the disciplines or techniques by which this connection was made. The language in which these records were communicated also contained the subtle instructions which have been by and large lost in translation.  The science of the prophetic was concealed in subtle aspects of the Hebrew language in which the texts were written.  The knowledge to unseal these nuances was transmitted in many of these ancient schools.

(Lessons from the Ancient Schools of the Prophets Part 1- Coming soon)

Why We Have Need Of A Restoration: The Path Of The Prophetic

"The world is changed. I feel it in the water. I feel it in the earth. I smell it in the air. Much that once was is lost, for none now live who remember it."
(Lord Of The Rings opening monologue)

Many Ages have past since the civilization of Adam.  The conditions on this earth are but a shadow of the conditions that existed during the age when mankind enjoyed the direct presence of God.  Where there was once harmony there is now division.  Where there was once further light and knowledge we wallow in conditions of darkness and ignorance.  Yet God from the beginning knew the course that mankind would take, and in this foreknowledge he established a perpetual House upon whom would rest the responsibility of preserving the foundation stones of the Ancient Order of things upon which future generations could build upon to elevate and transform the conditions of darkness into brilliant light.  It began in the days of Adam and was passed down through each successive birthright house from Enoch to Noach, from Noach to Abraham, from Abraham to Israel, and from there Israel seeded to to all the nations of the earth.

In this seeding, scriptures have been preserved that record God's dealings with mankind along with their respective cycles of spiritual birth, adolescence, maturity, and decline.  They have been presented to us through the various religious bodies upon the earth; each with their own accompanying traditions, biases, and authority structures- both the good and the bad. Almost like a pendulum, the spiritual state of mankind swings in varying motions of rhythm between polar extremes as if it can never come to state of harmonic balance.  Exposed to the extreme of power and structure mankind flees the resulting tyranny.  Exposed to the extreme of mercy and grace mankind flees the resulting chaos. It is in the tension between these two extremes and the constant struggle mankind exhibits, that our adversary obtains and exerts power either on the one hand or the other, yet neither extreme providing the state of peace and oneness with God that humanity so desperately hungers for.

BONDING WITH GOD

During the time of Adam and the patriarchs, mankind existed in a state with a much greater scope of consciousness than what exists today. According to the teachings of the sages of Israel, prior to the fall, Adam and Eve could visually and physically pass from one world to another.  In other words, Adam and Eve could ascend and descend the various levels of spiritual kingdoms without anything being lost or obscured.   In one sense it was as if Adam had a mental and spiritual I.Q. of say 10,000 compared to the "geniuses" of our day with a mere IQ of 160 or 170.   Much of our capacity was lost during the fall and the subsequent "de-evolution" thereafter.

With each successive age, the distance between man and God grew greater until the cycle of darkness had reached it's darkest depth.  At the point of greatest darkness, a light burst forth and through an infinite and eternal act of Messiah the cycle of return commenced.  In order for us to return to a state of full oneness with God, mankind was once again given the path to return to the full faculty of spirit that existed in the foundation of creation.  Just as the results of the fall created a state where we could no longer fully experience physical and spiritual reality simultaneously, an infinite and eternal sacrifice opened the door where heaven and earth could connect or bond (devekut).

It was only through  God's great plan of healing and rehabilitation could this transformation from fall to ascension take place. The entire plan of redemption revolves around restoring what was once lost.  In doing so we gain the further light and knowledge needed for the transformation of self, mankind, and the earth itself.  From Abraham to the schools of the Prophets in ancient Israel, the science and discipline in the prophetic was preserved and passed down.  The purpose being to prepare as many as would so choose to return to the balance between the physical and spiritual realms thereby connecting heaven and earth.  Once connected, those so connected could unleash both the preservative power and trans formative power of that which exists in the eternal realm following the first law given to Enoch and his Zion-- As Above So Below; As Within So Without.

THE HOLY MANNER OR PATTERN OF ELOHIYM

As disciples of Messiah, we too have chosen to walk this path.  Whether it be called Torah, The Way, the Truth, or the Light- it is nonetheless the same spiritual science and discipline that existed at the foundations of the Earth.

"Now as I said concerning the holy manner (pattern) or this high service
there were many who were prepared
and became kohanim g’dolim of Elohiym
and it was on account of their exceeding faith and repentance
and their righteousness before Elohiym
they choosing to repent and work righteousness
rather than to perish
therefore they were called after this holy manner
and were set apart and their garments were washed white
through the blood of the Lamb
now they after being set apart by the Ruach Elohiym
having their garments made white
being pure and spotless before Elohiym could not look upon sin
except it were with abhorrence
and there were many exceedingly great many
who were made pure and entered into the rest of YHVH their Elohiym" (Almah)

and

"Now Melchizedek was a man of faith, who wrought righteousness; and when a child he feared God, and stopped the mouths of lions, and quenched the violence of fire. And thus, having been approved of God, he was ordained an high priest after the order of the covenant which God made with Enoch, It being after the order of the Son of God; which order came, not by man, nor the will of man; neither by father nor mother; neither by beginning of days nor end of years; but of God; And it was delivered unto men by the calling of his own voice, according to his own will, unto as many as believed on his name.

For God having sworn unto Enoch and unto his seed with an oath by himself; that every one being ordained after this order and calling should have power, by faith, to break mountains, to divide the seas, to dry up waters, to turn them out of their course; to put at defiance the armies of nations, to divide the earth, to break every band, to stand in the presence of God; to do all things according to his will, according to his command, subdue principalities and powers; and this by the will of the Son of God which was from before the foundation of the world.

And men having this faith, coming up unto this order of God, were translated and taken up into heaven.  And now, Melchizedek was a priest of this order; therefore he obtained peace in Salem, and was called the Prince of peace. And his people wrought righteousness, and obtained heaven, and sought for the city of Enoch which God had before taken, separating it from the earth, having reserved it unto the latter days, or the end of the world; And hath said, and sworn with an oath, that the heavens and the earth should come together; and the sons of God should be tried so as by fire.

And this Melchizedek, having thus established righteousness, was called the king of heaven by his people, or, in other words, the King of peace."  (JST Genesis 14)

While the language the message is delivered in is designed to both reveal and conceal. The reality is that often in simple words, great knowledge and disciplines from the Fathers are conveyed for those who inquire.

Silencing, Descending, and then the Porch of YHVH:

The first step in this walk is in setting ourselves apart walking in the paths of the holy versus the paths of the profane. Just as Nephi withdrew in his pondering before his Apocalypic Vision, just as Lehi dwelt in a Tent before receiving his Apocalyptic Vision, so too did Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Ezekiel, and Elijah withdraw from the profane before bonding or communing with Elohiym.   While society would have us embrace the path of chaotic mixing like the chattering voice of the monkey mind, God would have us embrace the path of holy solace first by descending in quietness and humility before ascending.  Our minds and lives are going too fast, too chaotic, and too frenzied to hear the voice of the Most High.  Our souls are too undisciplined to adhere to his word while feeling our way along the path to the Tree of Life.  Just as Messiah silenced the questioning voice of Ha Satan so too must we follow suit by silencing his doubts, chatter, and questioning in our hearts and mind to hear the voice of the Most High.

WHY A HEBREW ROOTS BOOK OF MORMON

Voices From the Dust Volume 1: The Record of the Nephiy

The Book of Mormon is an ancient covenant record written and preserved by a remnant of the House of Israel to come forth to a remnant of their posterity in future time to prepare them for a Great and Marvelous Work to come forth by the Hand of YHVH (God).  Knowing that their future posterity here in the Americas would be destroyed and scattered by the Goyim who would come upon this continent, God through his prophets here in the Americas preserved this record and covenant land grant that would be the foundation upon which their scattered posterity and those who would associate themselves with them could once again be restored as a body of the House of Israel.

There are those who ask, "Why a Hebrew Roots Adaptation?"  The answer is that the writers of the the Book of Mormon were Jews or rather citizens and descendants of the Southern Kingdom of Israel. As such the record contains many guiding truths and covenant betrothal gifts from God to his people meant to establish them in the land and prepare them for his coming in Glory.  The Book of Mormon is not the property of any religion but is the birthright of the heirs of the remnants of Israel to who this record was intended.  As the writers were Jewish Prophets and their descendants who were taught the knowledge of Israel and it's ancient prophetic tradition, the record contains the foundational knowledge by which this modern remnant of Jacob, those believing Yehudim, and those believing Gentiles may once again be established as a righteous and covenant keeping people before YHVH (God) on this land of America.

When it was first translated (abt. 1830) the record came forth by the power of God through the hands of a Gentile to a body of Gentiles who were then to take the record to the remnant of Jacob on this land.  As it was a translation, many names, phrases, and terms were translated to engage the people of the day who were primarily people of Christian origin, but who had no real background in the language and culture of the Jews who wrote the record.  As such there were many phrases and names used which English speaking Christians would understand but which would be foreign to those from and Israelite/ Jewish origin.  This is mentioned not to denigrate the Gentiles and people whose additional sacrifices took this record to the world.   It is just that your average christian in the 1800's would not understand or have a religious context for concepts and names in their Israelite form; such as Torah of Moshe, ma'asim, takanot, misphatim, chukkim, etc.  They would however understand the terms Law of Moses, works, ordinances, judgments, statutes, etc.

The purpose of this work is to present the Book of Mormon in a form more closely aligned with the nations and people of Israel.  It is formatted using a Jewish scribal poetic form meant to capture the Hebrew block structure and meaning of the passages contained within the record.  While the intent of the format was meant to capture this block structure this adaptation was not meant to intentionally organize the record into chiastic structures and yet while following some of the Israelite scribal rules that could be applied many of these chiastic structures and Hebrew parallelisms naturally revealed themselves.  In addition, there were other precious gifts and prophecies discovered that were only revealed in the passages once arranged into this format.

It is my hope and intention to build a bridge between the receivers of this records and the Israelite Prophets and culture who spawned the record. For those who seek to understand and embrace the displayed and hidden gifts presented in the Book of Mormon, it is my hope that this adaption will assist in turning the hearts of the Children to the covenant God made with their Fathers:

An abridgment of the record 

of the Nephiy

and also of the Lamaniy 

written to the Lamaniy

which are a remnant of the House of Isra’el

and also to Yehudim and Goyim 

written by way of commandment 

and also by the spirit of prophecy and of revelation 

written and sealed up and hid up unto YHVH

that they might not be destroyed

to come forth by the gift and power of Elohiym

unto the interpretation thereof sealed

by the hand of M’runi and hid up unto YHVH

to come forth in due time by the way of the Goyim 

the interpretation thereof by the gift of Elohiym

an abridgment taken from the book of Ether

which is a record of the people of Yered 

which were scattered at the time YHVH 

confounded the language of the people

when they were building a tower to get to heaven

which is to show unto the remnant of the House of Isra’el

the great things YHVH has done for their fathers

and that they may know the covenants of YHVH

that they are not cast off forever

and also to the convincing of the Yehudim and Goyim

that Yehoshua is the Maschiach

manifesting the Qedem Elohiym unto all nations

and now if there be fault it be the mistake of men

therefore condemn not the things of Elohiym

that you may be found spotless

at the judgment seat of Mashiach 

Hidden Prophecies In The Book Of Mormon - The Ascension of the Remnant of Joseph

There are many plain an precious truths concealed in the pages of the record of the Nephites.  Among these "plain and precious" truths were hidden prophecies recorded by their Prophets concealed in the prose but revealed in the poetic Hebrew block structure and parallelisms.  These hidden prophecies may hold the keys to the Great and Marvelous Works of God yet to come forth.  They may also hold the key to the true purpose and function of the Book of Mormon hidden in plain site in language meant to both reveal and conceal.

One such prophecy that came forth from darkness to light is a prophecy regarding "A Remnant of Joseph".  Note that I did not say a "Remnant of Jacob" but a "Remnant of Joseph".  The nature of this prophecy is very significant it contains a very important prophetic promise to a "Remnant of Joseph" who will be taken unto Elohiym.

It was taught early in the restoration that people such as Enoch, Elijah, Moses, John the Apostle, the Three Nephites, and others were translated. The idea of translation is similar to the Israelite concept of ascension in that a person or persons were taken into Heaven either temporarily or permanently to reside among the hosts that reside in the presence of God.

This idea of ascension or translation was recorded in the Book of Mormon in the account of the Prophet Alma whose death was not recorded but left open as to his fate wherein he was compared to the Prophet Moses:

"And now when Almah had said these words
he blessed the assembly
yes all those who should stand fast in the faith
from that time forward
and when Almah had done this
he departed out of the land of Zarahemla
as if to go into the land of Melek

And it came to pass
that he was never heard of more
as to his death or burial
we know not of
behold this we know
that he was a righteous man
and the saying went abroad in the assembly
that he was taken up by the Ruach
or buried by the hand of YHVH even as Moshe
but behold the scriptures says
YHVH took Moshe unto himself
and we suppose
that he has also received Almah
in the Ruach unto himself
therefore for this cause we know nothing
concerning his death and burial"

(Voices From the Dust: The Record of the Nephiy Volume 2) / Compare Alma 45:18-19)

From the above referenced record, the Nephites suggest that Almah had ascended or had been translated like unto Moses.  This concept is indicated by the phrase "YHVH took Moshe unto himself".  The speculation regarding the fate of Moses and his burial has been a topic of interest, speculation, and debate not only in Mormon circles but also many Jewish circles. Using other ancient interpretive keys, it may just be the prophet writer of the account of Alma may also have given us another when he stated earlier that when Alma had blessed the assembly "he departed out of the land of Zarahemla as if to go into the land of Melek".  The land of Melek was in the north.  When looking more closely at this passage using other Israelite interpretive keys Melek is the Hebrew word for king such that the prophet writer is suggesting that Alma was taken to the Land of the King.

That the Book of Mormon preserves this knowledge and understanding of ascension of individuals like Moses and perhaps Alma is amazing in and of itself. But what is even more amazing is the preservation of a prophecy upon the head of Joseph of Egypt made by his father Jacob regarding the preservation of the seed of Joseph:

“Behold we are a remnant of the seed of Yacov
yes we are a remnant of the seed of Yoseph
whose coat was rent by his brothers into many pieces
yes and now behold let us remember to keep the mitzvot of Elohiym
or our garments shall be rent by our brothers
and we be cast into prison or be sold or be killed

Yes let us preserve our liberty as a remnant of Yoseph
yes let us remember the words of Yacov before his death
for behold he saw
that a part of the remnant of the coat of Yoseph was preserved
and had not decayed
and he said

‘even as this remnant of garment of my son has been preserved
so shall a remnant of the seed of my son be preserved
by the hand of Elohiym
and be taken unto himself 
while the remainder of the seed of Yoseph shall perish
even as the remnant of his garment
now behold this gives my soul sorrow
nevertheless my soul has joy in my son
because of that part of his seed 
which shall be taken unto Elohiym’

now behold this was the language of Yacov

And now who knows
but what the remnant of the seed of Yoseph
which shall perish as his garment are those
who have dissented from us
Yes and even it shall be ourselves
if we do not stand fast in the faith of Messiah”

Couched in the War Chapters of the Book of Alma, an ancient prophecy made by the prophet Jacob/Israel is recorded that a remnant of the seed of Joseph shall also "be taken unto himself";  the same expression "taken unto himself/ taken unto Elohiym" used with Moses and Alma who were taken unto Elohiym.  While Captain Moroni captures this prophecy for us he applies this to his people and those that had dissented from them.  We have no record in the Book of Mormon of any people who were translated, permanently ascended into Heaven, or taken by the Hand of Elohiym.  The prophecy revealed indicates that like Moses and Alma who were "taken by the hand of Elohiym" a remnant of the posterity of Joseph of Egypt will also reach a state of Ascension/ Translation a state similar to those of the city of Enoch who were also taken:

"And it came to pass that the Lord showed unto Enoch all the inhabitants of the earth; and he beheld, and lo, Zion, in process of time, was taken up into heaven. And the Lord said unto Enoch: Behold mine abode forever....And after that Zion was taken up into heaven, Enoch beheld, and lo, all the nations of the earth were before him..." (Moses 7:18-21)

The question then comes, if a Remnant of Joseph is to ascend or "be translated" ie. "taken unto Elohiym" then has this prophecy already been fulfilled or is it yet future?

© 2018 Robert Kay

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