SET-APART TO YAHWEH

Scriptures abound with references to the fact that Yahweh is set-apart and that the things and the people and the actions associated with him, should also be set-apart. Most of us have not always known and used the word “set-apart”. Instead, we were taught to refer to this aspect as “holy” or “holiness”. Even in Messianic circles the word “holy” is still very much in use: the holy days, a holy life, the Holy Spirit, holy men, holy meetings, a holy place, etc. But, as we may all know, this word “holy” may not be without its problems. Etymological dictionaries indicate that “holy” developed from Old English words like “holi” and “halig”. “Holi” is known to be a pagan concept, among others, the name of a Hindu spring festival and this festival was named after “holika”, a legendary female demon. This may well be the origin of the seemingly innocent English word, “holiday”, as one can clearly see from this clarification of the word “holiday” in the Encyclopaedia Brittanica:

(from “holy day”), originally, a day of dedication to religious observance; in modern times, a day of either religious or secular commemoration. Many holidays of the major world religions tend to occur at the approximate dates of more ancient, pagan festivals. In the case of Christianity, this is sometimes owing to the policy of the early church of scheduling Christian observances at dates when they would eclipse pagan ones – a practice that proved more efficacious than merely prohibiting the earlier celebrations.

So, due to the fact that “holy” and “holiness” comes from an extremely dubious background and, moreover, has been given a meaning within the church arena that does not do justice to the pure Scriptural concept of “qodesh”, we prefer to use the word “set-apart” when referring to Yahweh and the things and the people and the actions related to Him. Why would we run the risk of defiling the Name of the Almighty with a concept like “holy” when we can use a more descriptive word like “set-apart” that brings out the full meaning of the original Hebrew concept?

In the Torah portion of this week, one may read about the garments, and the accessories in addition to these garments, that were to be made for the high priest. Because the high priest was required to serve in the presence of Yahweh, he, himself, was required to be set-apart. But so also his garments: Exo 28:2 “And you shall make set-apart garments for Aharon your brother, for esteem and for comeliness.” Interestingly enough, the word “qodesh” is used seven times in Shemot (Exodus) 28, with the highlight being verse 36-37, where we read: “And you shall make a plate of clean gold and engrave on it, like the engraving of a signet: SET-APART TO YAHWEH. And you shall put it on a blue cord, and it shall be on the turban – it is to be on the front of the turban.”

This commandment is followed up by a very interesting remark, in verse 38: “And it shall be on the forehead of Aharon, and Aharon shall bear the guilt of the set-apart gifts which the children of Yisraél set apart in all their set-apart gifts. And it shall always be on his forehead, for acceptance for them before Yahweh.” What does it mean when it says “Aharon shall bear the guilt of the set-apart gifts”? The translation of WeG is as follows: “Aharon moet die skuld dra met betrekking tot die afgesonderde dinge”. Some of the more free translations have put it this way: “Aaron will be responsible for any error in all the holy offerings made by the children of Israel”. Is this correct? And what does it mean?

We find a reference, similar to this one, in Bemidbar (Num) 18:1 “And Yahweh said to Aharon, “You and your sons and your father’s house with you are to bear the crookedness against the set-apart place, and you and your sons with you are to bear the crookedness against your priesthood.” The word translated here as “crookedness” is the very same one translated as “guilt” in Shemot 28:38. As a matter of fact, the Hebrew construction here in Bemidbar is exactly the same as in Shemot, which means it may be translated exactly the same way as in Shemot: “You shall bear the guilt of the set-apart place … and you shall bear the guilt of the priesthood”. When we put these two chapters together, the question may now be asked: Why is Aharon (and the other priests) required to bear the guilt of things that are supposed to be good things, things that one would not normally bring in connection with sin and guilt, things like the set-apart gifts of the people, and the set-apart place of assembly and the set-apart priesthood?

The only acceptable explanation for these rather strange requirements is that everything from this world, everything earthly, even those things that we offer up to Yahweh, even the things that we do to honour his Name, even the good things that we do out of a sense of righteousness, are defiled and impure and alienated from him, simply because it is contaminated with the impurities of this world. One commentator has correctly noted: “The iniquity which is spoken of in this place does not mean particular sins actually committed, but that condition of alienation from the Almighty in every earthly thing, which makes reconciliation and consecration needful.”

Does that mean that we do not even have to try to do right – it will still come out as impure and unacceptable in the eyes of Yahweh? Does that mean that being set-apart is a goal that we will never reach – at least not here on earth – and that we may just as well give up and stop wasting our time? This would have been true, if there was no such thing as reconciliation, if there was no one qualified to stand up on our behalf and declare out loudly and clearly: Set-apart unto Yahweh. There is such a person, now that the Levitical priests and the physical temple are not around any more. This one is Y’shua, our high priest according to the pattern of Malkitsedek (meaning King of Righteousness), the one sitting at the right hand of Yahweh the Almighty – interceding for us and declaring the words “set-apart unto Yahweh” over all our actions, all our efforts, all our prayers, all our offerings and all our good intentions in the Name of Yahweh.

If Y’shua is set-apart and if He is the only one qualified to declare the words “set-apart unto Yahweh” over our words and deeds, does this mean that the Torah is useless and cannot do anything with regards to our set-apartness before Yahweh? No, this is surely not the case. The Torah in itself cannot set us apart unto Yahweh, because the Torah only urges us to live a life set-apart to Yahweh. But we still have to do it ourselves. And what we do ourselves, is contaminated by the impurities and the defilement of this world. But we still need the Torah. As a matter of fact, Shaúl declares that the Torah and the commandments are set-apart and righteous and good (Rom 7:12). I need to delight in the Torah of Elohim according to the inward man, on a daily basis (Rom 7:22). And whenever I encounter this “other” law that Shaúl spoke about – the law of sin that tends to bring one back into captivity – I should do what Shaúl had done: Rejoice in the knowledge that there is true deliverance from this body of death through Y’shua our Master! (v.25)

We know that Y’shua is set-apart to Yahweh. We know that his life was a life of complete set-apartness and dedication to his heavenly Father. This is what is being written in Ivrim (Hebrews) 7:26: “For it was fitting that we should have such a High Priest – kind, innocent, undefiled, having been separated from sinners, and exalted above the heavens”. Is it enough, simply to know this and to keep it in mind? No, it isn’t. Kepha wrote about this in his first letter: 1 Pet 1:13-16 “Therefore, having girded up the loins of your mind, being sober, set your expectation perfectly upon the favour that is to be brought to you at the revelation of Y’shua Messiah, as obedient children, not conforming yourselves to the former lusts in your ignorance, instead, as the One who called you is set-apart, so you also should become set-apart in all behaviour, because it has been written, ‘Be set-apart, for I am set-apart.’”

Is it not the Jews only that are called to be set-apart? Are we allowed to look at the set-apartness of the Levitical priests and that of the physical people of Yisrael, and apply the same principle and the call to be set-apart, upon ourselves – even though we are not Jews? Yes, we are. This is what Shaúl states very clearly in Rom 11:16: “Now if the first-fruit is set-apart, the lump is also. And if the root is set-apart, so are the branches.” In fact, Shaúl even declared that when non-Jews come to believe in Y’shua as the Messiah, this event may be described as a “set-apart offering, acceptable to Yahweh” (Rom 15:16 I have been favoured to be a servant of Y’shua Messiah to the gentiles, with the priestly duty of bringing the Good News of Elohim, so that the offering of the gentiles becomes acceptable, set apart by the Set-apart Spirit). Knowing, therefore that Yahweh chose us in Y’shua before the foundation of the world, that we should be set-apart and blameless before Him in love (Eph 1:4), let us invest all our efforts and our time to pursue set-apartness and bring honour to our Father!

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