Song of Solomon 6:3 I am my beloved’s, And my beloved is mine. He feeds his flock among the lilies.
This begins a very special season on God’s calendar — the month of preparation before the Fall Feasts. The month of Elul is unique: it is the 12th month on the civil calendar and the 6th month on the prophetic/biblical calendar. Each day of Elul is marked by the blowing of the shofar, a trumpet call that awakens the soul. These daily blasts prepare our hearts for Yom Teruah (the Feast of Trumpets, Rosh Hashanah) and ultimately for Yom Kippur (the Day of Atonement).
In Jewish tradition, there are two calendars that run side by side. The civil calendar begins in the fall with the month of Tishrei, making Elul the 12th month — the close of a yearly cycle. The prophetic or biblical calendar, however, begins in the spring with Nisan (the month of Passover), which makes Elul the 6th month — the number often associated with man and preparation. In this way, Elul stands at the crossroads of ending and beginning: the closing of one cycle and the preparation for the new.
This devotional is the first in a multi-part series on the significance of Elul — its connection to repentance, the preparation of the Bride, and the mercy of God. In the weeks ahead, we’ll take a deeper dive into each of these themes.
Even the very name Elul carries this meaning. In Hebrew, it is spelled Aleph-Lamed-Vav-Lamed (אלול), which the rabbis saw as an acronym for “Ani L’dodi v’dodi li” — “I am my Beloved’s, and my Beloved is mine” (Song of Songs 6:3). Elul, then, is not only a season of repentance, but of covenant intimacy — a month where the Bride turns her heart toward the Bridegroom.
Historically, Elul is also tied to Moses’ second 40 days on Mount Sinai after Israel’s sin with the golden calf (Exodus 34). During that time, God revealed His mercy and renewed the covenant. That season of intercession and forgiveness has marked Elul ever since as a time of second chances and restored relationship with God.
So as we begin this biblical month, let us heed the sound of the shofar blast. It is a call to awaken from slumber, to return to the Lord, and to prepare our hearts for the days to come. The Bridegroom is preparing us to be spotless and without wrinkle. Let us enter this season with hearts set on intimacy with God, ready for His appearing, and asking for a fresh anointing to draw us ever closer as we seek His face.
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[worthy_plugins_devotion_single_body]In the stillness of a desert night, surrounded by cut offerings and the lingering scent of sacrifice, Abram beheld something utterly sacred — God Himself, in the form of a smoking oven and a burning torch, passing between the pieces of a covenant. It was not Abram who walked through the blood-soaked path. It was God alone. And that changes everything.
Tonight we’ll participate in the Independence Day celebration in Israel — and what a party! — shows, fireworks, music, dancing, everything under the sun!
Yesterday, Israel observed Yom HaShoah—Holocaust Remembrance Day—honoring the memory of the six million Jews who perished. Tragically, a recent poll reveals that nearly half of Israelis fear the possibility of another Holocaust. In light of this sobering reality, I want to share a powerful story of one remarkable woman who rescued 2,500 Jewish children from the ghettos during World War II.
One night a house caught fire and a young boy was forced to flee flames by jumping to the ground from the roof. His father stood on the ground below with outstretched arms, calling to his son, “Jump! I’ll catch you.” But the boy was afraid — he couldn’t see his father — all he could see was flame, smoke, and blackness. He was afraid. Still, his father kept yelling: “Jump son! I will catch you!” But the boy refused, crying, “Daddy, I can’t see you!” His father replied, “It’s ok son — I can see you — and that’s all that matters!”
After forty years of wandering in the wilderness, Israel finally crossed into the Promised Land—on the 10th day of Nissan, the very day they had been commanded to choose their Passover lamb [Exodus 12:3 , Joshua 4:19]. They couldn’t enter into their inheritance until a lamb was chosen—a powerful foreshadowing of the more excellent Lamb to come, in preparation for the Passover [Joshua 5:10], they were about to observe at Gilgal.
In the days of Yeshua (Jesus), the cross was an instrument of death, and crucifixion, a horrible method of torture. Over the next 200 years, in light of the Lord’s resurrection, the cross became identified with Christian faith and was transformed into a symbol of life and hope. Yeshua was able to turn it upside down, transforming an instrument of death into a symbol of life.
The New Testament records that when Yeshua (Jesus) died; there was a great earthquake and the veil of the Temple was torn in two. The size of this gigantic veil is not recorded in the NT…but we read from other sources that it was roughly 60 feet long and 30 feet wide with multiple woven layers the thickness of a man’s hand! It was hung on a crossbeam stone – a lintel – which was over 30 feet long and weighed more than 30 tons! It was not an easy cloth to tear…