Hanukkah LIGHTS
A Short Introduction to the
Maccabees
and Why We Use Hanukkah Lights
 Maccabees
means
“sons of hammers”; you can read about their tremendous victory against all
odds in the book that bears their name.
First Maccabees is found in the apocryphal section of the Bible, if you have
it. It is worthwhile reading.
There is a nice Messianic Hanukkah section at New Jerusalem Gifts.
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1 Maccabees 2:15-28
20. “I, my sons and my brothers will still follow the covenant of our
ancestors.”
Listen to "Children of the
Maccabees" from the Royal Klezmerenes
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Hanukkah is a holiday that most of
us have heard about but of it we know little.
What we do know is that it is celebrated by the Jews and that it comes
along somewhere around Xmas time.
Hanukkah lasts eight days. As
children, I remember that some of us were a little jealous of the Jewish kids in
town because they had eight days of ‘Xmas’ and we only had one. That means seven more days of presents.
Hanukkah means “dedication.” It is a remembrance of the recapture and
rededication of the Temple in Jerusalem after the King of Greek Syria had a
pig sacrificed on the altar. This
event was recorded in prophetic form in the Book of Daniel as the “Abomination
of Desolation” and the King is therein referred to as “a contemptible person” in
Daniel 11:21.
A small contingency of righteous
Jews known as “the Maccabees” was able to wrest
Jerusalem
from this powerful King one hundred sixty-five years before Yahshua was born.
Maccabees means
“hammers”; you can read about their tremendous victory against all odds in the
book that bears their name. First
Maccabees is found in the apocryphal section of the Bible, if you have it. It is worthwhile reading.
The temple had to be cleansed and
rededicated before worship could again commence. Within the Temple was found only one cruet of the sacred
oil used in the rededication ceremony.
There would be no more until the next growing season. One cruet was enough to burn for one day. Unfortunately, the cleansing and
rededication ceremony, referred to in 2 Chron 7:9ff,
was an eight day affair. Hanukkah is
also called the Feast of Lights because during the eight-day rededication, a
miracle of light occurred. That one
cruet of oil should have lasted only a day, but it burned for the entire eight
day feast. In commemoration of this
miracle of lights, Jews of all ages light nine candles and give gifts during the
eight days of Hanukkah. Why nine
candles for eight days? I’ll tell
you later.
So what does Hanukkah have to do
with us? We’re not Jews and we’ve
never celebrated Hanukkah, the Feast of Dedication, the
Feast of Lights. Well, here’s why. First off, the re-conquest of Jerusalem and the
Temple
by the Maccabees is a prophetic type of the coming of the Messiah. In like fashion, Yahshua will soon return
with the host of heavenly hammers, and where is he going? To Jerusalem
to remake it and rededicate its new
Temple, just as the Maccabees had.
Second of all, Yahshua celebrated Hanukkah!
We find that recorded in John 10:22:
John 10:22.
And it was at Jerusalem
the feast of the dedication, and it was winter. 23.
And Yahshua walked in the temple in Solomon's porch. 24.
Then came the Jews round about him, and said unto him, How long dost thou make us to doubt? If thou be the Messiah,
tell us plainly. 25. Yahshua answered them, I told you, and ye
believed not: the works that I do in my Father's name, they bear witness of me.
26.
But ye believe not, because ye are not of my sheep, as I said unto you.
27. My sheep hear my voice, and I know them,
and they follow me: 28. And I give unto them eternal life; and
they shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck
them out of my hand. 29. My Father, which gave them me, is greater
than all; and no man is able to pluck them out of my Father's hand. 30.
I and my Father are one.
It was during Hanukkah that Yahshua
revealed his promise to be a shepherd to his sheep, granting them eternal life. Hanukkah was also the Feast in which
Yahshua revealed his true identity to the world -- that he was the Son of the
Mighty One of Israel, and that he and his Father were of one work and one
accord.
So tonight we follow the
practice of Yahshua in lighting the Hanukkah candles.
In the first part of our program we remember the Mighty Elohim of Israel,
Yahweh Sabaoth, who will win the battle of battles and restore our fortunes,
like the brave Maccabees of old. In
the second part of our program, we remember the wonderful child who came into
this world as a helpless babe to endure the struggles and passions of our world
and die on our behalf. In the final
section, we want to instill you with the hope of his return, that it is soon to
happen, and that your fate as a member of his flock, is eternal life in the City
of Gold. May Yahweh Sabaoth bless you as you
participate in our program. May Yahshua Messiah descend like a dove upon
your hearts.
Please accept our thanks for your “dedication” to him and his church.
The Ninth Hanukkah Candle
I promised to tell you why there are nine candles for lit for eight days. Well
here goes. It is known as the Shammah. It is
the candle from which all other candles receive their flame. Though it is the
ninth candle, it is actually the first candle to be lit, reminding us that in
the Kingdom of Yahweh, the first shall be last and the last first, the servant
of all will be King, the stone which the builders has rejected will become the
cornerstone.
The number nine is also
representative of death. Our ninth candle descended to earth as a light
for the whole world. Though the darkness tried to snub out his life, it was by
means of death and resurrection that his light shines brighter still, bringing
hope to a dark and dying generation.
The
Shammah
reminds us that he was here at the very first, he will also be here in the
last days -- that the Light of the World will soon make
his appearance public, make a mockery of the kings who rejected light, and take
upon himself the reins of government forever. Let me ask you a personal
question. Everything is now lined up exactly as the prophets of old once
forecast: So are you ready for his return? Have you made your garments white in
the light of the Lamb of Yahweh? Has the first candle become your candle of
eternal life and light? We hope
you have.
Jackson Snyder
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