Well I didn't have to look long to find the following information which believe
it or not confirms what the UB says about Melchizedek collaborating with the
prophets. Take a look at the underlined material Sharon and you will see what I
think is a major new find that supports my thesis that Melchizedek in
supramaterial form was many times the Lord of the Old Testament. The Urantia
Book although imperfect (as it states it'self) is what it claims to be.
Shekhinah
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Shekhinah (- alternative transliterations Shekinah, Shechinah,
Shekina, Shechina, Schechinah, שכינה)
is the English spelling of a feminine Hebrew language
word that means the dwelling or settling, and is used to
denote the dwelling or settling presence of God, especially in the Temple in Jerusalem.
[edit] Etymology
Shechinah is derived from the Hebrew verb שכן. In
Biblical Hebrew
the word means literally to settle, inhabit, or dwell, and
is used frequently in the Hebrew Bible.
(See Exodus 40:35 - "Moses
could not enter the Tent of Meeting, for the cloud rested [shakhan] upon
it, and the glory of the Lord filled the Tabernacle."
See also e.g. Genesis 9:27, 14:13, Psalms 37:3, Jeremiah 33:16), as well as the weekly Shabbat blessing recited in the Temple in Jerusalem
("May He who causes His name to dwell [shochan] in this House,
cause to dwell among you love and brotherliness, peace and friendship").
In Mishnaic Hebrew the word is often used to refer to bird's nesting and nests.
("Every bird nests [shechinot] with its kind, and man with its
like, Talmud Baba Kammah 92b.) and can also mean "neighbor" ("If
a neighbor and a scholar, the scholar is preferred" Talmud Ketubot 85b).
The word "Shechinah" also means "royalty" or "royal
residence" (The Greek
word σκήνη - dwelling - is thought to be derived from
שכינה and שכן. [citation needed])
The word for Tabernacle,
mishcan, is a derivative of the same root and is also used in the sense
of dwelling-place in the Bible, e.g. Psalm 132:5 ("Before I find a place for
God, mishcanot (dwelling-places) for the Strong One of Israel.")
Accordingly, in classic Jewish thought,
the Shekhina refers to a dwelling or settling in a special sense, a dwelling or
settling of divine presence, to the effect that, while in proximity to the
Shekhinah, the connection to God is more readily perceivable.
According
to Professor Kern, Shekinah means "the presence of God." [citation needed]
Meaning in Judaism
The
Shekinah is held by many to represent the feminine attributes of the presence of God (shekhinah
being a feminine word in Hebrew), based especially on readings of the Talmud.[1]
Where manifest
The
Shekhinah is referred to as manifest in the Tabernacle
and the Temple
in Jerusalem throughout Rabbinic literature. It is also reported as
being present in the acts of public prayer, ("Whenever ten are gathered
for prayer, there the Shechinah rests" Talmud Sanhedrin 39a); righteous
judgment ("when three sit as judges, the Shechinah is with them."
Talmud Berachot 6a), and personal need ("The Shechinah dwells over the
headside of the sick man's bed" Talmud Shabbat 12b; "Wheresoever they
were exiled, the Shechinah went with them." Megillah 29a).
In the absence of the Temple
The
Talmud expounds a Beraita (oral tradition) which illuminates the
manner in which the Kohen Gadol
(High Priest) is to sprinkle the blood of the bull-offering towards the Parochet (Curtain) separating the Hekhal (sanctuary) from the Kadosh Kadoshim
(Holy of Holies):
"[And so shall he do in the midst of the
Tent of Meeting] that dwells (shokhen) among them in the midst of their impurities (Leviticus 16:16). Even at a time when the Jews
are impure, the Shekhinah (Divine Presence) is with them.
A certain Sadducee said to Rabbi Chanina: Now [that you
have been exiled, you are certainly impure, as it is written: "Her impurity
is [visible] on her hems." (Lamentations
1:9). He [Rabbi Chanina] said to him: Come see what is written regarding them:
[The Tent of Meeting] that dwells among them in the midst of their impurities.
Even in a time that they are impure, the Divine Presence is among them. Talmud Tractate Yoma 56b
Forms of manifestation in Jewish
sources
The Talmud reports that the
Shekhinah is what caused prophets to prophesy and King David to
compose his Psalms The Shechinah manifests itself as a form of joy, connected
with prophecy and creativity: Talmud Pesachim 117a) The Talmud also reports
that "The Shechinah does not rest amidst laziness, nor amidst laughter,
nor amidst lightheadedness, nor amidst idle conversation. Rather, it is amidst
the joy associated with a mitzvah that the Shechinah comes to rest upon people,
as it is said: 'And now, bring me for a musician, and it happened that when the
music played, God's hand rested upon him' [Elisha] [2 Kings 3:15]" (Pesachim 117a). Thus the Shekhinah is
associated with the transformational "Spirit of God"
regarded as the source of prophecy:
After that thou shalt come to the hill of God,
where is the garrison of the Philistines; and it shall come to pass, when thou
art come thither to the city, that thou shalt meet a band of prophets
coming down from the high place with a psaltery, and a timbrel, and a pipe, and
a harp, before them; and they will be prophesying.
And the spirit of the LORD will come
mightily upon thee, and thou shalt prophesy with them, and shalt be turned into
another man. (1 Samuel 10:5-6 JPS).
The
prophets made numerous references to metaphorical visions of the presence of
God, particularly in the context of the Tabernacle or Temple, particularly
visions of thrones or robes that fill the Sanctuary, that are traditionally
associated with and described as visions of the Shekhinah. Isaiah wrote "I saw the Lord sitting upon
a throne high and lifted up, and his train filled the Temple." (Isaiah
6:1). Jeremiah implored
"Do not dishonor the throne of your glory" (Jeremiah 14:21) and
referred to "Thou throne of glory, on high from the beginning, Thou place
of our sanctuary" (Jeremiah 17:12). Ezekiel spoke of "the glory of the God of
Israel was there [in the Sanctuary], according to the vision that I saw in the
plain."
Meaning in Hassidic Judaism
Hassidic Judaism
regards the Kabbalah, in which the
Shekhinah has special significance, as having scriptural authority. The word 'Matronit'
is also employed to represent this usage.
The Shekhinah as the Sabbath Bride
This
recurrent theme is best known from the writings and songs of the legendary
mystic of the 16th century, Rabbi Isaac Luria. Here is
a quotation from the beginning of his famous shabbat hymn :
"I sing in hymns
to enter the gates
of the Field
of holy apples.
"A new table
we prepare for Her,
a lovely candelabrum
sheds its light upon us.
"Between right and left
the Bride approaches,
in holy jewels
and festive garments..."
A
paragraph in the Zohar starts: "One must
prepare a comfortable seat with several cushions and embroidered covers, from
all that is found in the house, like one who prepares a canopy for a bride. For
the Shabbat is a queen and a bride. This is why the masters of the Mishna used to go out on the eve of Shabbat to
receive her on the road, and used to say: 'Come, O bride, come, O bride!'
And one must sing and rejoice at the table in her honor ... one must receive
the Lady with many lighted candles, many enjoyments, beautiful clothes, and a
house embellished with many fine appointments ..."
The
tradition of the Shechinah as the Shabbat Bride, the Shabbat Hamalka,
continues to this day.
In Jewish prayers
The
17th blessing of the daily Amidah
prayer said in Orthodox,
Conservative,
and Reform services
is "Blessed are You, God, who returns His Presence (shekhinato) to
Zion."
The Shekhinah in
Christianity
In
addition to the various accounts indicating the presence or glory of God
recorded in the Hebrew Bible,
many Christians also consider the Shekhinah to be manifest in numerous
instances in the New Testament.
The
public domain Easton's Bible Dictionary, published in 1897, says:
Shechinah – a Chaldee word meaning resting-place, not found
in Scripture, but used by the later Jews to designate the visible symbol of
God's presence in the Tabernacle,
and afterwards in Solomon's
temple. When the Lord led Israel out of
Egypt, he went before them "in a pillar of a
cloud." This was the symbol of his presence with his people.
God also spoke to Moses through the 'shekhinah' out of a burning bush. For
references made to it during the wilderness wanderings, see Exodus 14:20;
40:34-38; Leviticus 9:23, 24; Numbers 14:10; 16:19, 42.
It is probable that after the entrance into
Canaan this glory-cloud settled in the tabernacle upon the ark of the covenant
in the most holy place. We have, however, no special reference to it till the
consecration of the temple by Solomon,
when it filled the whole house with its glory, so that the priests could not
stand to minister (1 Kings 8:10-13; 2 Chr. 5:13, 14; 7:1-3). Probably it
remained in the first
temple in the holy of
holies as the symbol of Jehovah's presence so long as that temple
stood. It afterwards disappeared. [1]
References
to the Shekhinah in Christianity
often see the presence and the glory of the Lord as being synonymous,[2] as
illustrated in the following verse from Exodus;
And Moses went up into the mount, and the
cloud covered the mount. And the glory of Jehovah abode upon mount Sinai, and
the cloud covered it six days: and the seventh day he called unto Moses out of
the midst of the cloud. And the appearance of the glory of Jehovah was like
devouring fire on the top of the mount in the eyes of the children of Israel. (Exodus 24:15-17 ASV)
The Spirit of the Lord
The
Shekhinah in the New Testament is commonly equated to the presence or
indwelling of the Spirit of the Lord (generally referred to as the Holy Spirit, or Spirit of Christ)
in the believer, drawing parallels to the presence of God in Solomon's Temple.
Furthermore, in the same manner that the Shekhinah is linked to prophecy in
Judaism, so it is in Christianity:
For no prophecy ever came by the will of man:
but men spake from God, being moved by the Holy Spirit. (2 Peter 1:21 ASV)
In
Gnostic sects of Christianity, Shekhinah is
identified with Sophia, the feminine aspect
of God.
The Glory of the Lord
Where
references are made to the Shekhinah as manifestations of the glory of the Lord
associated with his presence, Christians find numerous occurrences in the New
Testament in both literal (as in Luke 2:9 which
refers to the "glory of the Lord" shining on the shepherds at Jesus'
birth)[3] as
well as spiritual forms (as in John 17:22, where
Jesus speaks to God of giving the "glory" that God gave to him to the
people)[4]. A
contrast can be found in Ichabod,
so named as a result of the Ark of the Covenant
being captured by the Philistines
- "The glory is departed from Israel" (1 Samuel 4:22 KJV).
The Divine Presence
By
day the LORD went ahead of them in a pillar of cloud to guide them on their way
and by night in a pillar of fire to give them light, so that they could travel
by day or night, Exodus 13:21.
The Shekhinah in
Contemporary Scholarship
Raphael Patai
Main article: Raphael Patai
Main article: The Hebrew Goddess
In
the work by anthropologist Raphael Patai entitled "The Hebrew Goddess",
the author argues that the term Shekhinah refers to a goddess by comparing and
contrasting scriptural and medieval Jewish Kabbalistic source materials. A
historic distinction is drawn between the Shechinah and the Matronit
Comparative Religion
The
Quran mentions the Sakina, or Tranquility, referring to God's
blessing of solace and succour upon both the Children of Israel and Muhammad. Interestingly, Sakina, or Sakina bint Husayn,
was also the name of the youngest female child of Husayn ibn Ali,
ostensibly the first girl in recorded history to be given the name.
Some
comparative
Religionists have suggested a comparison to Shakti, the female energy of Hindu gods. [citation needed]
Gustav Davidson
Main article: Gustav Davidson
Nineteenth
century American poet Gustav
Davidson listed Shekinah as an entry in his book A Dictionary of
Angels, stating that it is the female incarnation of Metatron.
See also
· Kabbalah
· Elohim
· Yahweh
· Sophia
· Shakti
External links
· The Hebrew Goddess, Raphael Patai (Wayne State University
Press)
· Hymn to the Sabbath by Rabbi Isaac Luria, the 16th
century Kabbalist
Footnotes and References
1.
^ Eisenberg, Ronald L.
The JPS Guide to Jewish Traditions. The Jewish Publication Society, 2004. ISBN 0-8276-0760-1
2.
^ Zechariah
and Jewish Renewal Fred P. Miller
3.
^ Acclamations
of the Birth of Christ, by J. Hampton Keathley, III, Th.M. at
www.bible.org (retrieved 13 August 2006
4.
^ The
King of Glory, by Richard L. Strauss at www.bible.org (retrieved 13
August 2006)
Retrieved
from "http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shekhinah"
Picture of Shekinah (Melchizedek's semi-material presense)
Yes
Sharon I believe he leads one of the remnants from Petra to Jerusalem. The
picture of the Shekinah is probably from a modern artist who is imaginging what
it must of looked like back in those days. I remember from scripture that the
Israelites were lead by and overhead "cloud" by day and was
visible as a "pillar of fire" at night. I wonder if the artist
is drawing this scene from other information sources as well. For
instance, perhaps there is some description of the phenomenon
somewhere in some other Hebrew writings outside of the Bible. I think I
will google Shekinah and see what comes up. -- Ed
Israelites in tents around sacred
place of worship the Tabernacle. Melchizedek's presense(Shekinah) at night was
like a fire and during the day it was a cloud that moved and led the
Israelites.
Picture of the inside of the entire Tabernacle. Melchizedek's presense was over the Holy of Holies. Only the High Priest could enter it once a year on The Day of Atonement.