September 1993 Newsletter (5753:11)

Visit a Saturday morning synagogue service, and you will notice that all the men and many of the boys are draped in white, fringed prayer shawls that are bordered with either blue or black stripes.
The prayer shawl is the tallit. Jewish people who use the East European Hebrew dialect usually pronounce the word TAH-liss" (plural tallesim, "tah-LAY-sim"). The modern Israeli pronunciation, however, is "tah-LEET" (plural tallitot, "tahlee-TOHT"). The tasseled fringes on the tallit are the tzitzit (pronounced TSI-tsit).
<h3>The Origin and Significance of the Tallit and Tzitzit</h3>
Originally the tallit was a four-cornered outer garment to which were attached the fringes, or tzitzit. Though the wearing of the tallit has its basis in Old Testament Scripture, the word itself is not found in the Bible. The tzitzit (tassels), however, are:
<blockquote>
Again the LORD spoke to Moses saying, "Speak to the children of Israel: Tell them to make tassels on the corners of their garments throughout their generations, and to put a blue thread in the tassels of the corners. And you shall have the tassel, that you may look upon it and remember all the commandments of the LORD and do them…and be holy for your God"
(Numbers 15:37-40)
</blockquote>
<blockquote>
You shall make tassels on the four corners of the clothing with which you cover yourself
(Deuteronomy 22:12)
</blockquote>
The real significance of the tallit is not in the garment itself, but in the fringes. In modern terms, it might be likened to a sweatshirt or stadium jacket, where the importance lies not in the actual piece of clothing, but in the slogan or school emblem it carries.
Like many objects of Old Testament times, fringed garments were also found in non-Hebrew cultures such as Egyptian, Mesopotamian and Midianite. The fringes of the other nations probably were worn as decorations or amulets to keep away evil spirits. But, as with many other Old Testament laws, God took the already known and gave it a new significance for Israel. The tassels or fringes were to remind Israel of His commandments.
Along with the primary purpose of the tzitzit based on the Pentateuch, we find another, later meaning. In ancient times, tassels were part of the hem of a garment, and the hem symbolized the wearer's authority. When David spared Saul's life in the cave at En Gedi, he cut off the comer of Saul's robe, symbolically demonstrating that the king's authority would be cut off. This is seen in Saul's response:
<blockquote>
And now I know indeed that you shall surely be king, and that the kingdom of Israel shall be established in your hand
(1 Samuel 24:20)
</blockquote>
Tassels added to the hem were not worn by commoners, but by the nobility or royalty.<a href="#_edn1" name="_ednref1">1</a> The second significance of the tzitzit, then, is that they showed the wearer to be more than a commoner. He was a noble, or a royal personage.
Not just the presence of the tzitzit but their colors also carried meaning. The color was white, but among the white cords on each tassel there was to be one blue strand. This color combination was part of the trappings of royalty, as were the colors blue and purple:
<blockquote>
…Who were clothed in purple, captains and rulers, all of them desirable young men…of Assyria…
(Ezekiel 23:6-7)
</blockquote>
<blockquote>
There were white and blue linen curtains fastened with cords of fine linen and purple on silver rods and marble pillars; and…couches…of gold and silver on a mosaic pavement of alabaster, turquoise, and white and black marble
(Esther 1:6)
</blockquote>
<blockquote>
Now Mordecai went out from the presence of the king in royal apparel of blue and white, with a great crown of gold and a garment of fine linen and purple…
(Esther 8:15a)
</blockquote>
Blue was also used in settings where God's kingship was proclaimed. Blue was to cover the ark (and other tabernacle objects) whenever they were moved, and blue was also used with the curtains of the tabernacle where God dwelt "enthroned" between the cherubim (<a href="https://biblia.com/bible/esv/1-samuel/4/4">1 Samuel 4:4</a>; <a href="https://biblia.com/bible/esv/2-samuel/6/2">2 Samuel 6:2</a>; <a href="https://biblia.com/bible/esv/2-kings/19/15">2 Kings 19:15</a>; <a href="https://biblia.com/bible/esv/1-chronicles/13/6">1 Chronicles 13:6</a>; <a href="https://biblia.com/bible/esv/psalm/80/1">Psalm 80:1</a>; <a href="https://biblia.com/bible/esv/psalm/99/1">99:1</a>; <a href="https://biblia.com/bible/esv/isaiah/37/16">Isaiah 37:16</a>).
<blockquote>
Then they shall put on it a covering of badger skins, and spread over that a cloth entirely of blue; and they shall insert its poles
(Numbers 4:6)
</blockquote>
<blockquote>
You shall make a veil woven of blue and purple and scarlet yarn, and fine linen thread. It shall be woven with an artistic design of cherubim
(Exodus 26:31)
</blockquote>
<blockquote>
You shall make a screen for the door of the tabernacle, woven of blue and purple and scarlet yam, and fine linen thread, made by a weaver
(Exodus 26:36)
</blockquote>
The third significance of the tzitzit, therefore, was in their colors. They spoke of royalty and kingship. Even today we talk of "royal blue" and "royal purple" from the custom of Roman emperors who wore purple mantles.
If the color symbolized royalty, the fabric of the fringed garment stood for priestly holiness. According to <a href="https://biblia.com/bible/esv/deuteronomy/22/11">Deuteronomy 22:11</a> and <a href="https://biblia.com/bible/esv/leviticus/19/19">Leviticus 19:19</a>, the common Israelite was forbidden to wear a garment of mixed wool and linen, a combination called sha'atnez (SHAT-nez). The reason, not stated in the text, is apparently because the priestly garments were made of that blend (the "thread" that is not designated as linen below is wool).<a href="#_edn2" name="_ednref2">2</a>
<blockquote>
…and they shall make the ephod of gold and blue and purple and scarlet thread, and fine linen thread…
(Exodus 28:6)
</blockquote>
<blockquote>
…and a sash of fine linen and blue and purple and scarlet thread woven as the LORD had commanded Moses
(Exodus 39:29)
</blockquote>
Although sha'atnez was a "holy" combination, that did not mean it had special qualities or that the wearer became more spiritual. It simply marked the wearer as being separated for God's service. Early rabbinic sources, perhaps reflecting the still earlier biblical practice, taught that the tzitzit were made of this very combination of wool and linen. The blue cord was wool, the other threads linen. In other words, for this purpose only, the common Israelite would wear a garment similar to that of the priests.
The fourth significance of the tzitzit is that they stood for the priesthood and its holiness. The high priest's garments had a blue thread, again a reminder of the color symbolism:
<blockquote>
And you shall put it on a blue cord, that it may be on the turban; it shall be on the front of the turban
(Exodus 28:37)
</blockquote>
It is understandable that the tzitzit would be used to remind Israel of God and His commandments. But why would a common Israelite wear garments of royalty, priesthood and holiness? God had said:
<blockquote>
Now, therefore, if you will indeed obey My voice and keep My covenant, then you shall be a special treasure to Me above all people;…And you shall be to Me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation…
(Exodus 19:5-6)
</blockquote>
Just as Israel had priests who mediated between God and the people, the people as a whole were to be a "kingdom of priests" to mediate between God and the nations. The continuation of this role, however, depended on Israel's obedience to God, her King. Therefore the tzitzit reminded the Israelites of who they were, who God was and what He required of them.
<h3>New Testament Mention of the Tallit and Tzitzit</h3>
In the New Testament we find the tallit and tzitzit mentioned as an ordinary all-day garment. Condemning the ostentatious religious practices of some people, Jesus referred to the extreme length of their tzitzit.
<blockquote>
But all their works they do to be seen by men. They make their phylacteries broad and enlarge the borders of their garments
(Matthew 23:5)
</blockquote>
Sick people touched the hem of Jesus' garment, that is, the tassels themselves.
<blockquote>
And suddenly a woman who had a flow of blood for twelve years came from behind and touched the hem of His garment
(Matthew 9:20)
</blockquote>
<blockquote>
…came from behind and touched the border of His garment. And immediately her flow of blood stopped
(Luke 8:44)
</blockquote>
<blockquote>
…and begged Him that they might only touch the hem of His garment. And as many as touched it were made perfectly well
(Matthew 14:36)
</blockquote>
<blockquote>
Wherever He entered, into villages, cities, or the country, they laid the sick in the marketplaces and begged Him that they might just touch the border of His garment. And as many as touched Him were made well
(Mark 6:56)
</blockquote>
These verses support the earlier theory concerning the Old Testament account of David and Saul, i.e. that the hem or edge of a garment stood for the wearer's authority. The woman believed that if she could only touch the hem of Jesus' garment, she would experience the power of His person and authority. Her act was not a matter of superstition, but a silent cry for Jesus to grant her His personal attention and healing power.
In contemporary terms the account might be likened to the public appearance of a popular politician or musician where people want to shake hands or in some way touch and connect with a celebrity. Jesus allowed those who "connected" with Him by touch to experience who He was: the Great Physician.
<h3>Changes to the Tallit and Tzitzit</h3>
Eventually the tallit was no longer worn as an outer garment but an inner one. Some think this change took place after Israel was exiled from the land because the tallit wearer, clearly marked as a Jew, would have been subject to persecution or discrimination. Very religious Jews still wear the "innerwear" tallit, with only the fringes visible. In this way they fulfill the commandment of <a href="https://biblia.com/bible/esv/numbers/15/39">Numbers 15:39</a>, which requires the wearer to "look upon" the fringes. This inner tallit is called the tallit katan (tah-LEET ka-TAN) or small tallit.
The outerwear tallit of ancient times developed in yet another way that is more commonly known today. It is not the all-day inner garment described above, but a shawl to be worn only during certain times of prayer.
In modern Jewry only males wear the tallit and tzitzit, but rabbinic sources tell us that in earlier times tzitzit were also worn by women.
The tzitzit originally contained a cord or thread that was dyed blue. According to some, after the two Roman wars (67-70 and 132-135 A.D.), the dye industry suffered a recession. The community became poor, and the requirement of the blue cord was dropped. According to others, the color was changed to all white because a dispute arose as to what shade of blue the cord should be.
<h3>Rabbinic Laws Concerning the Tallit and Tzitzit</h3>
The rabbis have developed many laws pertaining to the tallit and tzitzit that are not found in the Bible. Among these are:
<ul>
	<li>The minimum size for a tallit is that which can clothe a small child who is able to walk.<a href="#_edn3" name="_ednref3">3</a></li>
	<li>The tallit is generally worn by men during morning prayers and during all Yom Kippur services.</li>
	<li>The following benediction is recited before donning the tallit: 
<blockquote>
Blessed art Thou, O Lord, our God, King of the universe, Who hast sanctified us by Thy commandments, and hast commanded us to wrap ourselves in the fringed garment.
</blockquote>
</li>
	<li>One should not recite this blessing if he has borrowed a tallit for a short period during the service, nor should the lender recite it upon donning the returned tallit.</li>
	<li>The tallit must be removed before using a rest room.</li>
</ul>
<h3>Customs Regarding the Tallit and Tzitzit</h3>
<ul>
	<li>The fabric of the modern tallit is either wool, cotton or silk.</li>
	<li>As a reminder that the tzitzit were to have blue cords, blue stripes are usually seen on modern tallitot. From the time of the final fall of ancient Jerusalem until Israel once again became a state in 1948, however, black stripes were prevalent on the tallit to symbolize mourning.</li>
	<li>In older tradition the usual way to put on the tallit was to cover the head first letting it fall naturally into position. More recently, the tallit has been handled like a scarf, i.e. first placed around the neck, then draped over the shoulders.</li>
	<li>Very observant Jews pray with the tallit covering the head, symbolic of being surrounded by the holiness of God's commandments and submitting to His will. Most Jewish people today, however, pray with the tallit covering only the shoulders.</li>
	<li>Ashkenazim—Jews of East European descent—allow the wearing of child-sized tallitot for children who have not yet reached bar mitzvah age (13). In some cultures only males past the age of 13 wear the tallit, while still others restrict its use to married men. In contemporary America, most boys begin to use the tallit after the bar mitzvah, but some parents and teachers encourage its use even prior to that as a way of educating the children in their Jewishness.</li>
	<li>It is customary to touch the tallit to the Torah Scroll as it is carried in procession around the synagogue, or to touch the tallit to the passage in the Law over which the benediction is recited. One then kisses the tallit to show reverence for the Law.</li>
	<li>Many synagogues provide a tallit, along with a yarmulke (skullcap, pronounced YAR-mul-keh) and siddur (prayer book pronounced si-DUR), for worshipers who do not own these items. These must be returned after the service.</li>
	<li>In some cultures a Jewish bridegroom wears a tallit during the wedding ceremony.</li>
	<li>When not worn, the tallit is kept in a special bag, usually of richly embroidered velvet.</li>
	<li>It is customary to bury a Jewish man in his tallit with the tzitzit removed or torn, symbolizing that the deceased can no longer observe the Law.</li>
</ul>
<h3>Spiritual Lessons From the Tallit and Tzitzit</h3>
One writer compares the tallit with its fringes to an "ethical string-around-the-finger."<a href="#_edn4" name="_ednref4">4</a>Another compares it to a soldier's uniform, which makes us "mindful to whom one owes one's allegiance."<a href="#_edn5" name="_ednref5">5</a> What is seen affects what one does.
The symbolism of the tallit can remind believers in Yeshua of who they are in Christ. Now not only Israel, but all humanity has the opportunity through Messiah Yeshua to become a "kingdom of priests" interceding in prayer on behalf of the world. Of course, as in ancient times, such a privilege is only of effect as we have committed our lives in obedience to God.
Today, God's New Covenant people are not called upon to wear the tallit or tzitzit. Many wear other "garments of identification" such as clothing with Christian slogans, jewelry that bears the name of Jesus or special head coverings for women during worship. Though none of these are the clothes of 20th-century royalty, they can proclaim that Jesus is our King and remind us and others of Him and of the fact that, in the words of Revelation 1:6,
<blockquote>
…[Yeshua] has made us kings and priests to His God and Father, to Him be glory and dominion forever and ever. Amen.
</blockquote>
<h4>End Notes</h4>
<a href="#_ednref1" name="_edn1">1.</a> Jacob Milgrom, Numbers. The Traditional Hebrew Text with the New JPS Translation (Philadelphia and New York: Jewish Publication Society, 1990), p. 411. Much of the following material on the significance of the tzitzit is based on Milgrom's discussion.
<a href="#_ednref2" name="_edn2">2.</a> <a href="https://biblia.com/bible/esv/ezekiel/44/17">Ezekiel 44:17</a> does not contradict this, because many of the regulations described for Ezekiel's temple are different than the laws found in the Five Books of Moses. The Mishnah (Kilayim 9:1) confirms that the priests who served in the Temple in the time around Christ wore the linen-and-wool mixture.
<a href="#_ednref3" name="_edn3">3.</a> Shulchan Aruch, OH 16: 1.
<a href="#_ednref4" name="_edn4">4.</a> Joseph Telushkin, Jewish Literacy: The Most Important Things to Know about the Jewish Religion, its People, and its History (New York: William Morrow and Company, 1991), p. 659.
<a href="#_ednref5" name="_edn5">5.</a> Hayim Halevy Donin, To Pray as a Jew: A Guide to the Prayer Book and the Synagogue Service (New York: Basic Books, Inc. 1980), p. 155.

The Tallit and Tzitzit

The ritual most frequently associated with Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish New Year (in most English translations of the Bible called the Feast of Trumpets*), is the sounding of the shofar (ram's horn) in the synagogue. By Jewish tradition, a person who has not listened to the shofar has not observed the day. Hearing the shofar means obedience to one of God's 248 positive commandments to Israel found in the Pentateuch, or Torah. Rabbis have said that the mitzvah (commandment) is not fulfilled by merely hearing the shofar, as if by accident, but that the hearer must listen with the specific kavanah (intention) of fulfilling the biblical commandment. To enhance this observance of Rosh Hashanah, various rabbis have suggested kavanot, or ideas implied in the sounding of the shofar, upon which to focus.
The biblical command to hear the shofar is expressed in Numbers 29:1:
<blockquote>
And in the seventh month, on the first day of the month, you shall have a holy convocation. You shall do no customary work, For you it is a day of blowing the trumpets ."
</blockquote>
The word "trumpets" does not appear in the Hebrew text, but is implied. Nor does the word shofar ever appear in the Hebrew text of the Torah in connection with the holiday Jewish people call Rosh Hashanah. In the passage quoted above, the holiday is simply called Yom T'ruah, a day of blowing. However, it means more than simply "blowing" a trumpet or ram's horn.
Three basic trumpet calls are sounded in the synagogue during the Rosh Hashanah service. The first is the simple t'kiyah, one long, sustained blast. In ancient Israel, the t'kiyah was a reassuring sound. It signalled that the watchmen guarding the city were on duty and all was well. That sound periodically divided up the watches of the day and night.
The second trumpet call sounded on the shofar consists of three successive blasts called shevarim. In ancient times shevarim signalled some significant event—the changing of the guard, the arrival of an important person such as a king, or a call to assemble and hear welcome news. The sound of shevarim was less routine than the t'kiyah, but it was welcome because it meant good tidings.
The third trumpet call, however—the one mentioned in the Bible in reference to the Feast of Trumpets—is the sound of alarm. It consists of nine rapid bursts on the shofar, referred to as t'ruah. The sound of the t'ruah alerted Israel that they were under attack and that all the fighting men were needed to draw together immediately for battle. The t'ruah might also be sounded for some other calamity that required the immediate and urgent convocation of all the people. Thus in most of the Bible texts where t'ruah appears, the word is translated "alarm." A simpler, better translation of the Hebrew phrase Yom T'ruah, usually rendered "Feast of Trumpets," would be "Day of Alarm." It has the advantage of being a very literal translation, and it also communicates more of the flavor and intent of the holiday.
To use the Bible's own terms, then, Rosh Hashanah is the Day of Alarm. The question arises: Why should Israel be alarmed? The summer harvest season had ended. The barns were full of grain and the storehouses were filled with fruit. What more could be wanted or needed? The Torah (Pentateuch) gives the answer:
"When you have eaten and are full, then you shall bless the Lord your God for the good land which He has given you. Beware that you do not forget the Lord your God by not keeping His commandments, His judgments, and His statutes which I command you today, lest—when you have eaten and are full, and have built beautiful houses and dwell in them…and all that you have is multiplied; when your heart is lifted up, and you forget the Lord your God who brought you out of the land of Egypt, from the house of bondage…then you say in your heart, "My power and the might of my hand have gained me this wealth." And you shall remember the Lord your God, for it is He who gives you power to get wealth, that He may establish His covenant which He swore to your fathers, as it is this day. Then it shall be, if you…forget the Lord your God, and follow other gods…I testify against you this day that you shall surely perish…because you would not be obedient to the voice of the Lord your God (Deuteronomy 8:10-14; 17-20)."
By instituting the fall festivals consisting of the Day of Alarm, the Day of Atonement and the Feast of Booths (forsaking of secure homes to live in flimsy huts), God taught Israel an important lesson: With God on her side, she need not fear earthly calamities or earthly enemies. Likewise, she must not seek security in earthly things but in her relationship with Him.
Rosh Hashanah (Yom T'ruah) was a preparation for Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement. It was intended to turn minds away from the secular affairs of the summer season to focus on spiritual issues: God's holiness, the people's sin and the atonement God had provided.
Ancient Israel needed to be periodically alarmed—by the awareness of sin that separated her from God, and by her need for atonement. In the synagogue today the shofar sound of t'ruah should still alarm people. It should still register as the sound of an alert that points to the danger of remaining in sin without atonement. The Hebrew Bible says, "Your iniquites have separated you from your God" and "The soul who sins shall die" (Isaiah 59:2; Ezekiel 18:4).
For us Jewish believers in Yeshua the kavanah, or central theme upon hearing the shofar, is joy in the knowledge that we have already allowed the seriousness of our sins to alarm us; we have heard and received the good news—that God has atoned for sin, and that He delivers us from calamity through the sacrifice of our righteous Messiah.
*In the Bible this holiday is never called Rosh Hashanah (the New Year). It falls on the first day of the seventh month as Moses reckoned time. Biblically, the Jewish religious year began in spring, in the month of Nisan (the Passover season).

Hearing the Sound of the Shofar

In the Jewish community, young boys learn to read Hebrew so that at the age of 13 they will be able to become a bar mitzvah (son of the commandment). The bar mitzvah is a liturgical rite of passage when Jewish boys publicly read for the first time from the Hebrew scrolls in the synagogue and recite the accompanying prayers. After this, a young man is considered responsible to take on all the obligations and regulations governing Jewish religious life. In the Orthodox Jewish community girls do not do this because they have very little standing with regard to the Law of Moses. But in the Conservative and Reform traditions girls may undergo a similar ceremony called a bat mitzvah (daughter of the commandment). 
 Years have passed since I myself stood before my family and friends and took on the responsibilities of Jewish adulthood. Since then I have found my Messiah and have become a son of the New Covenant. Now my daughter, has come of age. She, too, is a believer in Yeshua as her Messiah and Savior, and not long ago she made her public identification with Him in a ceremony of believer's baptism.
 Along with sound teaching about salvation in Yeshua, she has been taught to value her Jewish heritage. She wanted to have a bat mitzvah, and when she approached me about this I struggled with a dilemma. I was Jewish by birth and by identification, but I was not of the Conservative or Reform tradition. Furthermore, my daughter would not be taking on the ritual obligations of an Orthodox Jew, because she was a Jewish believer in Yeshua. 
 My daugher's bat mitzvah would not be like the confirmation ceremony for young people conducted in some of the liturgical churches. That ceremony, like the bar/bat mitzvah, is the time in the lives of those young adults when they confirm their commitment to their faith. She, however, had already done that at her baptism. What, then, was this bat mitzvah supposed to mean to her and to those who attended? 
 As I planned and put together this service for my daughter, it became clear. The unifying theme of that special event would be that she had made a mature decision to identify herself with her Jewish ancestors. That service would mark her adult resolve to enter the stream of the Jewish people&#8212;a stream that has flowed since God called our father Abraham thousands of years ago&#8212;a stream each participant must decide to enter. 
 My daughter's bat mitzvah took place early in June as planned, and it was a special time of celebration and witness. By this ceremony she declared to her unbelieving Jewish friends and family that by faith in the Messiah of Israel she belonged to Him; and she declared to her believing friends and family that by birth and by choice she was a part of God's ancient people Israel.

September 1993 Newsletter (5753:11)

The Tallit and Tzitzit

Hearing the Sound of the Shofar

Bar Mitzvah, Bat Mitzvah: What Could It Mean to a Jewish Believer?