6th month of God's year - Elul

After sunset on Tuesday (3rd September) we enter the 6th month of God’s calendar. Named by man Elul. The name of the month, like most of the others, was adopted during the Babylonian Exile, and originates from the Akkadian word for Harvest. Just to remind any new reader that God never named the days of the week, OR the months of the year.

In Jewish “tradition,” and I always like to make it very clear when something is a tradition, and something is a command of God, the month of Elul is known as the month when “The King is in the Field.” Believing it was a time when the King would come out of his palace and go and speak to the people harvesting the fields.

Also traditionally this month is a time of repentance, in preparation for the High Holy Days of The Feast of Trumpets, and Yom Kippur. The word Elul is also similar to the root of the Aramaic verb “to search,” which can signify a time to search our hearts. It is called the “Season of Teshuva,” to turn “shuv” toward God, these 40 days are also called ימי רצון Yemai Ratzon, Days of Favour. 

Some liken the 40 days to the 40 weeks it takes for a human fetus to be formed within the womb, so a time or sort of death and rebirth within each one of us. Of course, 40 days occurs many times in the scriptures:

• 40 days of rain during the flood

• Moshe was up on Mount Sinai for 40 days.

• The 12 spies were 40 days reconnoitering in Canaan

• In Jonah, we read the people of Nineveh were given 40 days to repent

• And, of course, Yeshua was in the wilderness for 40 days being tempted

So 40 days can be seen as very significant.

Another Jewish tradition during this month is to blow the shofar every morning (except on Shabbat) from the first day of this new month until the day before The Feast of Trumpets, Yom Teruah – what is more commonly and wrongly now called Rosh HaShana. 

These blasts are to help awaken our spirits and inspire us to begin this soul searching, which it is hoped will lead to the process in our lives of asking for, and granting forgiveness where needed, to one another as well as to The Lord – certainly, I see it as a very healthy discipline indeed, knowing that part of the prayer Yeshua gave us clearly states: “Father forgive us AS we forgive those who sin against us….”

It is also customary to recite Psalm 27 every day from Rosh Chodesh Elul through to HaShanna Rabbah, the last day of Sukkot, which takes us into the 7th month, Tishrei: “The Lord is my light and my salvation; whom do I need to fear? The Lord is the stronghold of my life; of whom should I be afraid? One thing I have asked of The Lord, only this will I seek, that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life. To look upon the beauty of the Lord and to enquire in His temple…..” These two well-known verses sum up the whole of this beautiful psalm. It may be a tradition but one I am very happy to embrace.

Another observance is reciting selichot, special penitential prayers, every morning before sunrise. In the synagogues the Selichot Service is built upon the recitation of the 13 merciful attributes of the Lord found in Ex. 34:6-7

Just to remind you of the background of this, when Moshe ascended the mountain again with a second pair of cut stones after the Children of Israel had committed the grievous sin of the golden calf, he had despaired of being able to find favour in God’s eyes again, but after he ascends we read: “Yud Hah Vav Hah, The Lord, The Lord God is merciful, and compassionate, slow to anger, rich in grace and truth; showing grace to the thousandth generation, forgiving offences, crimes and sins;…..”

These attributes of God are picked up many times by King David, but especially in Psalm 103. “Bless The Lord my soul, everything in me, bless his holy name. Bless The Lord my soul, and forget none of his benefits. He forgives your offences, heals your diseases, redeems your life from the pit, surrounds you with grace and compassion, ……”

Another custom during this month is to begin or end all letters (well I guess these days that would be emails, texts, and WhatsApps and tweets maybe) with the standard blessing, “K’tiva chatima tova.”

Literally translated, “a good writing and sealing,” meaning that the person should be written and sealed in the Book of Life for a good year.

So after all those traditions and customs, I finish with the only three times I could find in the scripture when the 6th month is mentioned. In Hagai 1:1, Ezekiel 8:1 and Nehemiah 6:15

First Ezekial chapter 8: “On the fifth day of the sixth month of the sixth year as I was sitting in my house, and the leaders of Y’hudah were sitting there with me, the hand of The Lord fell on me… So to summarise, 400 years after Israel took possession of the land, they were instructed to build a House for the presence of God in Jerusalem. Solomon completed this Temple in 960 before Yeshua, and we read that the presence of God, the Glory of The Lord, affirmed and blessed the House, by filling it with His presence.

Here in Ezekial chapters 8 -11 it is revealed how the presence of God leaves His Temple because of the sin taking place. Ezekial is brought to the Temple to witness why God’s presence is leaving. God shows him the idolatry taking place in secret, how the nation’s leaders are worshipping abominations in the Temple. We read in 8:12 “Human being, did you see what the leaders of the house of Israel are doing in the dark..”

The Lord then allows Ezekial to see the events in the spiritual realms, God calls His angelic “Guards” to slay the idolaters in the city, and in fact this action is later fulfilled when the armies of Babylon destroy the city and slay its inhabitants in 586 before Yeshua, when the 1st Temple is destroyed. After witnessing the slaughter and judgment in the spiritual realm, Ezekial cries out asking God: “Oh Adonai Elohim, are you going to destroy completely those of Israel who are left?” (Ezekial 11:13)

Thankfully God responds by promising a day of restoration, even though they are judged, they will be restored, God will bring them back to the land and put a New Spirit in them, and they will be given a “Heart of flesh.” They will then be “my people.” Even though the events seem bleak for the nation, God is not done with Israel, they will be restored. Hallelujah. 

The sixth month mentioned in Haggai 1, is also about The Temple:

“In the second year of Darius the king, on the first day of the sixth month, the following word of The Lord came through Hagai, the prophet. Here is what Adonai Tzva’ot says: This people is saying that now is not the time, the time has not yet arrived for The Lord’s house to be rebuilt. Then this word of The Lord came through Hagai the prophet: So is now the time for you to be living in your own paneled houses, while this house lies in ruins? Therefore here is what Adonai Tzva’ot says: ….. Think about your life! You sow much but bring in little; you eat but are not satisfied, you drink but never have enough; you clothe yourselves, but no one is warm; and he who works for a living earns wages that are put in a bag full of holes.

Here is what Adonai Tzva’t says: Think about your life. Go up into the hills, get wood, and rebuild the house. I will be pleased with THAT, and then I will be glorified.” Well, that told them!!!!!

Finally in Nehemiah. Just to summarise the events. Nehemiah is the cup-bearer to the King in Susa (the Persian capital), he learns that the walls of Jerusalem are destroyed. He prays to God, recalling the sins of Israel and God's promise of restoration to the Land, and then asks Artaxerxes for leave to return to Jerusalem and rebuild its walls; the King is receptive and extends his aid to this mission. Nehemiah and the Jews (including the 'High Priest' Eliashib), begin rebuilding Jerusalem.

The enemies of the Jews – Sanballat of Samaria, Tobiah the Ammonite, Geshem the Arab, and the men of Ashdod – plot to attack Jerusalem which necessitates the Jews working with weapons in their hands. 

We read in Nehemiah 6:15 “So the wall was finished on the 25th day of the 6th month Elul, in 52 days. When all our enemies heard about it and the surrounding nations became afraid, our enemies’ self-esteem fell severely. Because they realised that this work had been accomplished by our God.” – Yeah!!!

I love this story, when the people in Jerusalem are overwhelmed with the task Nehemiah asks of them he tells them to “just rebuild the bit of wall in front of you – don’t worry about the rest.” When the work is finished Nehemiah testifies that it had been accomplished by their God. What a picture for us, as we look at the fallen world around us, all the chaos and trouble Israel is facing, we can get overwhelmed, BUT remember, God just calls us to the work in front of us, not in front of others, he also equips us to fight off the enemy, and actually, it's all accomplished by our God, as long as we are willing to listen for His voice, and be obedient to His Word. (A daily challenge indeed!)

So the three times this sixth month is mentioned in scriptures is a warning of the destruction of the Temple and then a nudge from the Lord to not get too comfy with our lives, but be concerned to build His House, His walls. – and reminding us we are never given more than we can carry, never asked to do more than we can.

This sixth month, a time of repentance and preparation for the Fall Feasts, The Feast of Trumpets/Yom Teruah, Yom Kippur and Sukkot. I think it's good to have a discipline of stopping, and taking stock in our lives, as it says in Haggai, THINK ABOUT YOUR LIFE, and this month gives us the opportunity of doing just that. An opportunity to prepare ourselves for the biblical Feasts ahead – the ones that are commanded by our God, the God of Abraham Isaac and Jacob. 

Abba Father we dedicate ourselves afresh to You as we enter this 6th month, as we receive this new portion of time, a beautiful gift from You. As we take time to examine our own hearts. Just as You saw what the leaders of Israel were doing in the dark in the time of Ezekiel, we know we can hide nothing from You. Give us hearts to build Your House, Your Kingdom, not ivory towers for ourselves, and we thank You that You equip us with all we need to do the work You call each of us to do.

יהי רצון מלפנין יהוה אלהינו(ve-lo-hei) ואלהי אבותינו שתחדש עלינו חודש טוב

 באדנינו ישוע המשיח 

May it be Your will Lord our God and God of our fathers, that you renew for us a good month in our Lord Yeshua the Messiah.