Today we begin Exodus Chapter 31.
For the Complete Jewish Bible, click here.
For the King James Version, click here.
At this point in the Torah, keep in mind that Moses is still up on the summit of Mount Sinai.
He will have been there for a total of 40 days basking in God’s holiness and receiving the most mind-boggling knowledge and wisdom any man has ever been subjected to.
As Moses’ time on the mountain is nearing its end for now, the Lord informs him that he has handpicked two men to be responsible for the intricate design and construction of the Tabernacle.
The first person chosen to be the headman was BETZALEL.
In Hebrew, his name means “in the shadow of EL“.
As Betzalel’s 2nd in command, the Lord next chose a fellow named OHOLIAV.
In Hebrew, his name means “in my father’s tent“.
Now I want you to notice something interesting about BETZALEL.
“Adonai said to Moshe, “I have singled out BETZALEL the son of Uri the son of Hur, of the tribe of Judah. I have filled him with the Spirit of God — with wisdom, understanding and knowledge concerning every kind of artistry.”
What?!?!
The Holy Spirit filled BETZALEL?!?!?!?!?!?!
Didn’t the Holy Spirit only begin to dwell inside of man following Pentecost as depicted in the Book of Acts?
Folks, I’ve got a confession to make.
A while back I made an assertion that I now believe is wrong.
I said that in the Old Testament, the Holy Spirit only rested “UPON” men but in the New Testament, at Pentecost, that was the first time in history the Holy Spirit began to dwell “INSIDE” of men.
However, thanks to the loving correction of a Jewish believer, I now believe that assertion was hogwash and I’m going to go back and rewrite that post to properly reflect the theological paradigm shift I’ve undergone.
Now check out some of these “Old” Testament verses.
“And you, speak to all the craftsmen, whom I have filled with a spirit of wisdom, and they shall make the garments of Aharon, to set him apart, for him to serve as priest to Me.-Exodus 28:3
“And Yehoshua son of Nun was filled with the spirit of wisdom, for Mosheh had laid his hands on him. And the children of Yisra’ĕl listened to him, and did as יהוה had commanded Mosheh.”-Deuteronomy 34:9
“There is a man in your reign in whom is the Spirit of the Set-apart Elah. And in the days of your father, light and understanding and wisdom, like the wisdom of the elahin, were found in him. And Sovereign Neḇuḵaḏnetstsar your father, your father the sovereign, made him chief of the magicians, astrologers, Chaldeans, and diviners.”-Dan 5:11
“I have heard of you, that the Spirit of Elah is in you, and that light and understanding and excellent wisdom are found in you.”-Dan 5:14
“And the Spirit of יהוה turned aside from Sha’ul, and an evil spirit from יהוה troubled him.”-1 Samuel 16:14
“Do not cast me away from Your presence, And do not take Your Set-apart Spirit from me.”-Psalms 51:11
“The Spirit of יהוה has spoken through me, And His word is on my tongue.”-2 Samuel 23:2
And these are just a few of the many, many examples in the Tanach on how, at God’s discretion, the Holy Spirit dwelled within man.
I’ve got news for you folks and brace yourselves because what I’m about to say goes against major church doctrine.
The Holy Spirit dwelling within man did NOT begin in the New Testament.
The truth is the Holy Spirit or the RUACH as it’s called in Hebrew is the SAME yesterday, today, and tomorrow.
There is NO change.
The Holy Spirit is the Lord and the Lord does not change.
The Holy Spirit was given to us to be our comforter and give us the “power” to do the will of the Lord.
An objective analysis of Scripture will reveal that there was absolutely no difference between what happened in the Old Testament in comparison to the New Testament.
All of the gifts of the Holy Spirit can be found in the Old Testament.
ALL OF THEM!
I appreciate your looking into this. Ever since God told me to forget what I learned and relearn the definitions of words in scripture I have been discovering similar things. We are taught to believe certain things and we don’t question. We assume what we are taught is correct. I have not looked at the Holy Spirit in the OT. [I use OT for a reference point since this is what we do to distinguish between the writings of before and after Christ. To me there is only one Testament between Torah and Christ] You maybe onto something here. However, there is some form of difference. It appears the Holy Spirit was for some [Leaders and Prophets] and not all in the OT. The Prophecy of Joel [Everyone] appears to be in play in the NT. I’m not saying your wrong. I’m just dissecting through what you are saying since I have not done a study on the subject. Good work though. I feel God is raising people up who are resurrecting [no pun intended] the original teachings of God. I have been working on the original meaning of the Gospel, which is far from what is preached today and closer to the promises given to Israel Deut. 28:1-14.
Hi Pastor Russ, I appreciate your well thought out and reasoned response. The more I study this issue and the more feedback I receive from those more learned than me on this topic, the more I am coming to believe that there is absolutely no difference. To label the TANACH as the “Old” Testament may be one of the biggest mistakes ever made in the history of mankind. Thanks again for reading as well as your thoughtful commentary. Be blessed this Shabbat.