THE HEBRON PURCHASE - The first part of the land of Israel to belong to the Jewish people in the actual and legal sense was the “Machpelah field and its cave” in the heart of Hebron, which Abraham purchased from Ephron the Hittite. In Genesis 23, we read of the first tract in the Land of Israel to enter into Jewish possession. Sixty years earlier, G‑d had told Abraham: “The entire land that you see, I will give to you and your descendants forever . . . Arise and traverse the land, in its length and in its breadth, for to you I shall give it” But this was a promise concerning the future; the land was not yet his, and Abraham took care not to even allow his sheep to graze on Canaanite property. The first part of the land of Israel to belong to the Jewish people in the actual and legal sense was the “Machpelah field and its cave” in the heart of Hebron, which Abraham purchased from Ephron the Hittite. As our sages point out, there are three parts of Israel over which the Jewish right of ownership is most powerfully established. Even one who denies the divine promise quoted above — and reiterated by G‑d tens of times throughout the Bible — cannot contest the Jewish right over the Temple Mount in Jerusalem, purchased by King David from Aravnah the Jebusite; the section of Shechem (Nablus) purchased by Jacob from the family of the Canaanite ruler Hamor; and the Machpelah field of Hebron, of which we read: “And Abraham weighed to Ephron the silver, which he had named in the hearing of the sons of Heth, four hundred shekels of silver in negotiable currency . . . “Then Abraham buried Sarah his wife in the cave of the field of Machpelah before Mamre, that is Hebron, in the land of Canaan.”

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The Hebron Purchase
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The first part of the land of Israel to belong to the Jewish people in the actual and legal sense was the “Machpelah field and its cave” in the heart of Hebron, which Abraham purchased from Ephron the Hittite

By Yanki Tauber

In chapter 23 of Genesis, we read of the first tract in the Land of Israel to enter into Jewish possession.

Sixty years earlier, G‑d had told Abraham: “The entire land that you see, I will give to you and your descendants forever . . . Arise and traverse the land, in its length and in its breadth, for to you I shall give it” (Genesis 13:15,17).

But this was a promise concerning the future; the land was not yet his, and Abraham took care not to even allow his sheep to graze on Canaanite property.

(Indeed, this was the cause of the split between Abraham and his nephew Lot — see Rashi on Genesis 13:7.)

The first part of the land of Israel to belong to the Jewish people in the actual and legal sense was the “Machpelah field and its cave” in the heart of Hebron, which Abraham purchased from Ephron the Hittite.

As our sages point out, there are three parts of Israel over which the Jewish right of ownership is most powerfully established.

Even one who denies the divine promise quoted above — and reiterated by G‑d tens of times throughout the Bible — cannot contest the Jewish right over the Temple Mount in Jerusalem, purchased by King David from Aravnah the Jebusite (as related in the closing verses of II Samuel); the section of Shechem (Nablus) purchased by Jacob from the family of the Canaanite ruler Hamor (Genesis 33:19); and the Machpelah field of Hebron, of which we read:

“And Abraham weighed to Ephron the silver, which he had named in the hearing of the sons of Heth, four hundred shekels of silver in negotiable currency . . .

“Then Abraham buried Sarah his wife in the cave of the field of Machpelah before Mamre, that is Hebron, in the land of Canaan.”

The Torah recounts the Ephron-Abraham sale in great detail, including the sum of the purchase price — four hundred silver shekels.

Based on this figure, the thirteenth-century sage Rabbi Yitzchak bar Yehudah (author of Paaneach Raza) makes an interesting calculation.

According to Leviticus 27:16, the value of land in biblical times was 50 silver shekels for a beit kor, or 75,000 square amot (cubits).

Thus, the area purchased by Abraham was eight beit kor, or 600,000 square cubits.

A square cubit is the approximate area occupied by an upright human being. 

The generation of Jews which left Egypt and received the Torah at Mount Sinai numbered some 600,000 heads of households.

Our sages tell us that the Jewish nation consists of 600,000 souls, and that the soul of every Jew who ever lived is an offshoot of one of these 600,000 “general” souls.

Thus, the Torah contains 600,000 letters (counting the spaces between letters), for each Jew possesses something of the Torah.

The same is true of the Land of Israel. Israel is the eternal inheritance of the Jewish people, equally the property of every individual Jew.

And so, it has been from the very first moment of Jewish ownership of the Holy Land: the first plot of land obtained by the first Jew included a share for every Jewish soul. 

By Yanki Tauber; based on the teachings of the Rebbe.

Yanki Tauber served as editor of Chabad.org

https://www.chabad.org/library/article_cdo/aid/588238/jewish/The-Hebron-Purchase.htm

RESTORING THE ROAR OF GOD’S SPIRIT WITHIN - God will often whisper a message to you that eventually becomes a public proclamation. We are called to be bold as lions! You and I are called to roar! Regardless of how exhausted and weary we become we must seek the Lord once again. We must once again take our rightful place of authority. And when we do, God will provide what we need for the battle. "The lions may grow weak and hungry, but those who seek the Lord lack no good thing." The Lord is saying the restoration of the roar is when His Spirit arises once again from the depths of our bellies, where the roar has been caged under lock and key by low expectations, wounded spirits and lack of hunger. He desires to awaken our prophetic voices once more. See your fear as a ploy of the enemy and allow your faith to overcome it as you increase your trust in God and in His Word. The wicked run away when no one is chasing them, but the godly are as bold as lions.

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Restoring the Roar of God’s Spirit Within

Why God Calls Us to 'Restore the Roar' of His Spirit Within

Pat and Karen Schatzline

God is eager to awaken you once again to go deep in Him.

"Deep calls to deep at the noise of your waterfalls; all Your waves and Your billows passed over me. Yet the Lord will command His lovingkindness in the daytime, and in the night His song will be with me, a prayer to the God of my life" (Psalm 42:7-8).

I believe that if we ignore the "deep calls to deep" moments, we will soon believe the shallow end of the pool is deep.

If you want to go deep, take off the floaties and dive in where you cannot stand up on your own. I must warn you, though, that when you try to go deep in God, someone will always try to throw you a rope called settling.

You cannot settle in the depth of God.

I have learned that the longer you are away from the place of encounter with God, the more satisfied you become with being normal according to the world's standards.

In fact, it is much like what happened to the prophet Elijah when he ran into the cave in fear for his life.

God said to him, "Why are you here, Elijah?" (1 Kings 19:9b).

Remember, Jezebel had threatened Elijah after he had killed the prophets of Baal, telling him through one of her servants, "So let the gods do to me and more also, if I do not make your life as one of them by tomorrow about this time" (1 Kings 19:2b).

Elijah ran for his life and was now hiding in a cave. God was not really asking him, "What are you doing here?"

Rather, He was reminding him of his mission.

Leonard Ravenhill once said, "A man who is intimate with God is never intimidated by man."

We must no longer be intimidated by man or accusations or threats.

Early one morning in a hotel room in Pennsylvania, I was awakened by the voice of the Lord.

He said to me, "Pat, where did your roar go? Where is the roar of my lions?"

Startled, I sat up in bed. And immediately began to pray.

The whisper of God had shaken me to the core, bringing to mind one of my favorite verses in the Bible, Matthew 10:27 (NIV): "What I tell you in the dark, speak in the daylight; what is whispered in your ear, proclaim from the roofs."

God will often whisper a message to you that eventually becomes a public proclamation. This was one of those times.

The Lord went on to say to me, "My people are perishing for lack of knowledge. They have lost their will to fight. Fear, exhaustion and culture have taken their roar away. They must awaken and realize they must be voices of truth that carry freedom in their hearts and fire in their spirits. Restore the roar! Tell My lions to roar once again!"

I must admit I was perplexed and confused, and I began to weep before the Lord.

In fact, I stood in my hotel room that day, praying and crying out for over an hour with the realization that I too had become quiet.

One of my heroes, Salvation Army general William Booth, said, "We must take the message of 1 Corinthians 16:13-14 (MSG) and make it our marching orders: "Keep your eyes open, hold tight to your convictions, give it all you've got, be resolute and love without stopping’"

Karen and I had just spent a year in fear. The battle had been intense.

Just as a parent awakens a child from sleep to get ready for school or a teacher raps a ruler on your desk to end a daydream, God was saying, "Wake up, Pat! Your mission is not over. Put your armor on once again and enter the fight."

I had been wandering a bit aimlessly since our battle, and God was calling me back to the field.

Many who are reading this right now wear nothing but the helmet of salvation.

The Bible tells us that God has a whole suit of armor for us (see Ephesians 6:19-18.)

He provides all we need for any battle we face. We just have to equip ourselves.

With God's word ringing in my heart, I immediately began to search the Scriptures concerning lions.

Proverbs 28:1 (NLT) says, "The wicked run away when no one is chasing them, but the godly are as bold as lions."

Did you hear that? We are called to be bold as lions! You and I are called to roar!

Regardless of how exhausted and weary we become we must seek the Lord once again.

We must once again take our rightful place of authority.

And when we do, God will provide what we need for the battle. "The lions may grow weak and hungry, but those who seek the Lord lack no good thing" (Psalm 34:10, NIV).

I believe the Lord is saying the restoration of the roar is when His Spirit arises once again from the depths of our bellies, where the roar has been caged under lock and key by low expectations, wounded spirits and lack of hunger.

He desires to awaken our prophetic voices once more.

Just look at Amos 3:8: "The lion has roared — who will not fear? The Sovereign Lord has spoken — who can but prophesy?"

Prayer Power for the Week

This week, see your fear as a ploy of the enemy and allow your faith to overcome it as you increase your trust in God and in His Word.

Continue to pray for our nation, its allies and our leaders.

Remember those who serve us as first responders, be they in the military, law enforcement, border security, fire and rescue or medical personnel.

Continue to pray for our president and those working with him to lead our country into peace, prosperity and security.

Pray for those who have suffered losses through crime and domestic terrorism.

Pray that the Lord would pour out His Spirit on the land and bring revival that spreads worldwide.

Read: 2 Chronicles 7:14, Amos 3:8, 1 John 4:18.

Adapted from Restore the Roar by Pat and Karen Schatzline, copyright 2019, published by Charisma House. Having lived through a year of battles and great fear, the authors have compiled a handbook that will help you find peace in the storm, be courageous in battle, defeat the lies of the enemy and increase your faith in God. To order your copy, click on this link.

For more on the Schaztlines' message of restoring your roar, listen to the podcast included here.

Patrick and Karen Schatzline founded Remnant Ministries International (RMI) in 1997 after serving as youth pastors at three incredible churches. Pat and Karen launched RMI in order to fulfill the great commission. Since the launch of RMI in 1997, Pat and Karen have become two of America’s leading church speakers, revivalists, youth communicators, and university and conference speakers.
With a schedule that stays full year-round, Pat & Karen have established a reputation for bringing purpose through the power of Christ, and a longing to grow deeper in the presence of God. They minister in churches, schools, universities, stadiums, outreaches, retreats, camps, leadership conferences, men’s & women’s conferences, and marriage retreats. They both travel globally seeing salvations, miracles, and signs & wonders. They have ministered at some of the largest youth conferences in the world. They travel often to Australia, Singapore, New Zealand, Venezuela, and Canada fulfilling the great commission.

https://www.charismamag.com/blogs/power-up/42413-why-god-calls-us-to-restore-the-roar-of-his-spirit-within