FRom high priest ELI TO THE RETURN OF THE ARK

http://www.chabad.org/library/article_cdo/aid/463969/jewish/Samuel-the-Prophet.htm Our People: A History of the Jews Published and copyrighted by Kehot Publication Society « Previous Next » Samuel the Prophet The High Priest Eli For some time the Jews lived in peace and were not troubled by the Philistines in the west. Their religious life was centered about Shiloh, where the Mishkan (Sanctuary) stood. There, Eli, the High Priest, had assumed the leadership after Samson's death. In the unbroken chain of Oral Law (Massorah), beginning with Moses and continued through Joshua and Pinehas, Eli was the fourth to receive the teachings of the Oral Law from Pinehas, Aaron's grandson, A kind man by nature, Eli was beloved by all the people who looked to him for spiritual guidance. His two sons, Hophni and Pinehas, however, did not follow in their father's footsteps. Taking advantage of their privileged position, they degraded the priesthood in the eyes of the masses by bribery and corruption. Samuel's Father At this time there lived in Ramathaim-Zophim of Mount Ephraim a man by the name of Elkanah of the tribe of Levi, who helped greatly in focusing the attention of the Jews on their spiritual center. As prescribed in the Torah, he made a pilgrimage to Shiloh during each of the three annual festival seasons. Together with him, his family spent the holiday in a religious atmosphere at Shiloh. When the people saw Elkanah's caravan making its way to Shiloh, many of them joined him. A closer bond thus developed between Israel and their Religious Center, thanks to Elkanah's influence. Early Years of Samuel Of Elkanah's two wives, Hannah was childless. Silently she suffered many humiliations at the hands of the more fortunate Peninnah, who did have children. Once, while in Shiloh, Hannah vowed that if she had a son, she would consecrate his whole life to G-d. That year her prayer was heard. A son was born whom she named Samuel. Hannah's joy knew no bounds. The first few years Hannah kept him at home. Then true to her promise, she took him to Shiloh where she turned him over to Eli. From time to time she would come to visit her son. Under Eli's guidance, Samuel grew up in a wholly religious environment and soon showed himself an apt pupil. Samuel received his first Divine revelation when he was still very young. One evening, when he lay down to rest at the Tabernacle in Shiloh, he heard a voice calling his name. He sprang up and ran to the aged Eli, thinking he had called him. But Eli told him to go back, for he had not called him. This was repeated three times, and then Eli became aware that it was a Divine summons. He then told the lad that when he heard the voice again, he should reply, "Speak, O L-rd, for Thy servant hears.' The message Samuel received was a very sad one; 'Behold, I will do a thing in Israel, at which both ears of every one that hears it shall tingle. In that day I shall perform against Eli all the things which I have spoken concerning his house... I will punish his house for ever, for the offense that he knew that his sons made themselves accursed, and restrained them not... The iniquity of Eli's house shall not be purged with sacrifice nor offering for ever.' Reluctantly, Samuel related the Divine message to Eli, and the old man humbly replied, 'It is the L-rd, let Him do what seems good to him.' Samuel grew up full of faith and courage, strengthened by the spirit G-d bestowed upon him. The people recognized a future leader in him. Eli, too, had no doubt that his own two sons were not worthy to succeed him in carrying on the tradition. Eli was now old and could not exert any influence over them. He knew that his successor would be Samuel. War with the Philistines Again there were rumblings of war, and again it was with the Philistines. At Aphek, a battle was waged, and the Jews were driven back after losing four thousand men. Now the elders of Israel remembered that in the days of Joshua, the Ark of the L-rd had been triumphantly carried at the head of the army and had always ensured success. So they went to Shiloh and demanded that the Ark should be brought to them out of the Tabernacle. Hophni and Pinehas, the two priests, came themselves to the camp, accompanying the sacred shrine. Its presence wonderfully restored the drooping courage of the Israelites. As soon as they beheld it they raised a great cry, so that the earth rang and seemed to tremble. The Philistines heard the shouting and were sorely afraid. Yet they ventured out in battle, and fought with desperate courage. The Israelites were again routed; this time thirty thousand of their soldiers were slain and the rest fled in wild confusion to their tents. Hophni and Pinehas were among the dead, and the pride of Israel, the Ark of the Covenant, was in the hands of their heathen enemy. Eli's Death The people, assembled at Shiloh, were awaiting news of the battle. At last there came swiftly running from the camp to the city a Benjaminite, with his clothes rent and earth upon his head. Eli sat watching by the wayside as the messenger entered the gates of the town; he heard a loud wail arise. "What does the voice of this tumult mean?" the old man asked, full of evil forebodings. His failing sight did not let him perceive the messenger's rent clothes and his earth-covered head, which told their own tale. Then the Benjaminite approached him and said, "I come out from the battlefield, and I have fled today from the battlefield." Eli, anxiously interrupting him inquired, "What is there done, my son?" Then the messenger related fully his sad tidings: "Israel is fled before the Philistines, and there has been a great slaughter among the people, and thy two sons also, Hophni and Pinehas, are dead, and the Ark of G-d is taken." When Eli heard of the fate of the Holy Ark, he fell backwards from his seat, overcome with grief, and there died, ninety-eight years old, after having judged the Hebrews for forty years. The Holy Ark in Captivity Meanwhile the Philistines carried the Ark of the Covenant exultingly to Ashdod, and placed it in the temple of their god Dagon. On the following morning, they found the image of the idol fallen prostrate upon his face before the Ark. They lifted up the statue and replaced it; but on the next day Dagon had again fallen before the Ark: this time his head and hands were broken off and were lying upon the threshold. But greater trials were in store for the people of Ashdod. They were severely afflicted with boils and ulcers; and they knew that this was their punishment for trying to keep the Ark of the L-rd. Therefore they sent it from Ashdod to Gath; but it had scarcely arrived when the people of Gath were smitten with the same diseases. It was next taken to Ekron, another great city of the Philistines. The inhabitants of Ekron, warned by the troubles of Ashdod and Gath, were terrified when they saw the Ark. They anxiously desired to send it away at once. Return of the Holy Ark When the Philistines had been in possession of the Ark for seven months and had been visited with calamities and misfortunes, they determined to restore the Ark to the Israelites. The Ark was, therefore, carried out and placed upon a new cart drawn by two cows which had never borne the yoke before. The priests ordered their countrymen to let the kine go on by themselves. The animals proceeded, lowing as they went, taking the straight road to Beth-Shemesh, never turning either to the right or to the left. The chiefs of the Philistines followed after them. The wheat-harvest had commenced, and the reapers of Judah who were at work among the corn, saw the procession as it came winding from afar. As they beheld the Ark, they were full of rejoicing; it was as if the glory of their G-d were returning to them. The beasts stopped in the field of Joshua, a Bethshemite. The Levites lifted the Ark from the cart, and placed it on a great stone that was in the field. They speedily prepared a sacrifice, breaking up the cart for firewood and slaughtering the kine as a burnt-offering. When the Philistine chiefs had witnessed all this, they returned to Ekron. From Beth-Shemesh, the Ark was removed to Kiryath Ye'arim, where it stayed until the time of King David. Eli The High Priest 2772 - 10 Iyar 2870/2871 The 10th day of Iyar is the anniversary of the death of Eli the High Priest. We bring you here the story of his life. Eli was a descendant of Ithamar, the fourth and youngest son of Aaron the High Priest. He became High Priest (Kohen Godol) after the death of Pinehas, the son of Elazar, Ithamar's older brother. We are not told why Eli succeeded to the High Priesthood, instead of Pinehas's son. The last descendant of Ithamar's line to be High Priest was Evyathar, who was a grandson of Eli's grandson Achituv. Evyathar was High Priest during the reign of King David. However, he was banished by King Solomon (Shlomoh) for his siding with Adoniyah, Solomon's older half-brother who tried to capture the succession to the throne. The High Priesthood then reverted again to the line of Elazar ben Aaron, in the person of Tzadok the High Priest and his descendants. Eli was also the only one in those early days in the history of our people who wore two crowns, for he was both Judge (Shofet) and High Priest. He became judge at the age of 58 years, after the death of Samson (Shimshon) in the year 2830 (or 2831), holding this office for forty years, until his tragic death at the age of 98 years stayed until the time of King David.

Chana ,Mother of Samuel the Prophet

http://www.chabad.org/holidays/JewishNewYear/template_cdo/aid/4758/jewish/Chana.htm Chana Chana was one of the seven women to whom G-d gave the power of prophecy, for altogether we had seven women prophetesses, and forty-eight prophets, whose prophecies are mentioned in the tanach. The story, as we read it on Rosh Hashanah from the first chapter of the book of Samuel 1, begins with introducing to us Elkanah, Chana's husband. He was a Levite (belonging to the tribe of Levi) and lived in Ramataim Zofim of Mount Ephraim. Elkanah was a man of noble character and of great piety. He saw with sorrow that many of his Jewish brethren were slowly drifting away from G-d, and he took upon himself to create a lively interest in the spiritual center of Shiloh, where Ell the High Priest was the judge of Israel in those days. As prescribed in the Torah, Elkanah made a pilgrimage to Shiloh during each of the Three Festival seasons. Together with him his family spent the holiday in a religious atmosphere in the holy city of the Sanctuary. 'When the people saw Elkanah's caravan making its way to Shiloh in a happy and festive spirit, many of them joined him. A closer bond thus developed between the Jewish people and their spiritual center in Shiloh, thanks to Elkanah's influence. Chana was one of the two wives of Elkanah, and she was childless. Silently she suffered many humiliations at the hands of the more fortunate Peninah, who did have children. On one of the annual pilgrimages to Shiloh, Chana stood in the Sanctuary and poured out her heart before G-d. She prayed that G-d bless her with a son, and vowed that she would consecrate his whole life to G-d. Silently she prayed, swaying slightly. Eli saw her and thought she was drunk. He rebuked her for entering the Sanctuary in a state of drunkenness. But Chana answered with dignity, "No, my lord, I am a woman of a sorrowful spirit; I have drunk neither wine nor strong drink, but have poured out my soul before G-d." Eli realized the deep piety and grief, which had moved this woman, and he said to her, "Go in peace, and the G-d of Israel grant thee thy petition that you have asked of Him." Chana thanked him graciously and went away with happiness in her heart, feeling certain that her prayer was accepted. In due time a son was born to her, whom she named Samuel, meaning, as she said, "I have asked him (borrowed him) of G-d." Chana's joy knew no bounds. The first few years she kept him home. Then true to her promise, she took him to Shiloh with an offering of gratitude to G-d. Turning the boy over to Eli, the High Priest, Chana said, "My lord, I am the woman that stood by thee here praying unto G-d. For this child I prayed, and G-d hath given me my petition." She told Eli of her vow, and left her beloved son in Eli's care, to be brought up in a wholly religious atmosphere in the Sanctuary. You might think that Chana would be heart-broken to part with her son, for whom she had prayed for so many years. But Chana was full of joy as she prayed to G-d and said, "My heart rejoices in Go.” These were the first words of Chana's famous prophecy which reads like a wonderful hymn: "There is none holy as G-d, for there's none beside Thee; neither is there any rock like our G-d. "Talk no more so exceedingly proudly; let not arrogance come out of your mouth, for G-d is an all-knowing G-d; and unto Him all actions are known. G-d brings death and makes life, He brings down to the grave, and He brings up. G-d makes poor, and makes rich; He brings low, and He lifts up. He raises up the poor out of the dust, and lifts up the beggar from the dunghill, to set them among princes, to make them inherit the seat of glory…” As we read the inspiring words of the prophetess, we can see at once how fitting they are for the Day of judgment, Rosh Hashanah, when G-d decides on the fate of each person: who shall live, who shall be rich, who shall be honored --or otherwise. Our Sages tell us that the prophetess Chana has taught us several important things. One of them is the importance of reciting prayer in a whisper. As you know, we have the "quiet" shemone esrei, which is then repeated aloud by the chazan (if the service is held in the synagogue). The "quiet" shemone esrei, which we say in a whisper, our lips moving but our voice hardly audible, in the way Chana prayed, is the most important part of our prayer. When the heart is full and overwhelmed in the presence of the Almighty, then prayer is best expressed in a whisper. Chana also introduced the holy name of G-d, as the "G-d of Hosts," that is, the Master of the whole universe, the hosts of heaven and earth. It is most fitting on Rosh Hashanah, when we proclaim G-d’s kingdom over the whole world. According to the Tarumi (which reveals many secrets hidden in the Holy Scriptures), the first verse of Chana's prayer contains the prophecy that her son Samuel would be a prophet in Israel; that in his days the people of Israel would be delivered from the Philistines; that he would perform many miracles and wonders; and that his grandson Heyman with his fourteen sons would sing and say Psalms in the Beit Hamikdash, together with other fellow Levites. In the second verse, Chana predicts the defeat of Sennacherib at the gates of Jerusalem. Further on she prophesies about Nebuchadnezzar and other enemies of Israel who would pay for their wickedness; among them the Macedonians (Greeks) who would be defeated by the Hasmoneans; the wicked Haman and his sons and their defeat at the hands of Mordechai and Esther." Finally, Chana also prophesies about the great world war, when all the world will be engulfed in a desperate war of self-extermination, and then the Messiah will come and bring complete redemption to the people of Israel, and there will be a new world in which there will be no evil, no destruction, for all the world will be full of the wisdom of G-d.

The Race of Life

http://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=6671724644852957271#editor/target=post;postID=2812895976870895031 http://www.lds.org/general-conference/2012/04/the-race-of-life?lang=eng Where did we come from? Why are we here? Where do we go after this life? No longer need these universal questions remain unanswered.10485_000_46monso My beloved brothers and sisters, this morning I wish to speak to you of eternal truths—those truths which will enrich our lives and see us safely home. Everywhere people are in a hurry. Jet-powered aircraft speed their precious human cargo across broad continents and vast oceans so that business meetings might be attended, obligations met, vacations enjoyed, or families visited. Roadways everywhere—including freeways, thruways, and motorways—carry millions of automobiles, occupied by more millions of people, in a seemingly endless stream and for a multitude of reasons as we rush about the business of each day. In this fast-paced life, do we ever pause for moments of meditation—even thoughts of timeless truths? When compared to eternal verities, most of the questions and concerns of daily living are really rather trivial. What should we have for dinner? What color should we paint the living room? Should we sign Johnny up for soccer? These questions and countless others like them lose their significance when times of crisis arise, when loved ones are hurt or injured, when sickness enters the house of good health, when life’s candle dims and darkness threatens. Our thoughts become focused, and we are easily able to determine what is really important and what is merely trivial. I recently visited with a woman who has been battling a life-threatening disease for over two years. She indicated that prior to her illness, her days were filled with activities such as cleaning her house to perfection and filling it with beautiful furnishings. She visited her hairdresser twice a week and spent money and time each month adding to her wardrobe. Her grandchildren were invited to visit infrequently, for she was always concerned that what she considered her precious possessions might be broken or otherwise ruined by tiny and careless hands. And then she received the shocking news that her mortal life was in jeopardy and that she might have very limited time left here. She said that at the moment she heard the doctor’s diagnosis, she knew immediately that she would spend whatever time she had remaining with her family and friends and with the gospel at the center of her life, for these represented what was most precious to her. Such moments of clarity come to all of us at one time or another, although not always through so dramatic a circumstance. We see clearly what it is that really matters in our lives and how we should be living. Said the Savior: “Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon earth, where moth and rust doth corrupt, and where thieves break through and steal: “But lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust doth corrupt, and where thieves do not break through nor steal: “For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.”1 In our times of deepest reflection or greatest need, the soul of man reaches heavenward, seeking a divine response to life’s greatest questions: Where did we come from? Why are we here? Where do we go after we leave this life? Answers to these questions are not discovered within the covers of academia’s textbooks or by checking the Internet. These questions transcend mortality. They embrace eternity. Where did we come from? This query is inevitably thought, if not spoken, by every human being. The Apostle Paul told the Athenians on Mars’ Hill that “we are the offspring of God.”2 Since we know that our physical bodies are the offspring of our mortal parents, we must probe for the meaning of Paul’s statement. The Lord has declared that “the spirit and the body are the soul of man.”3 Thus it is the spirit which is the offspring of God. The writer of Hebrews refers to Him as “the Father of spirits.”4 The spirits of all men are literally His “begotten sons and daughters.”5 We note that inspired poets have, for our contemplation of this subject, written moving messages and recorded transcendent thoughts. William Wordsworth penned the truth: Our birth is but a sleep and a forgetting: The soul that rises with us, our life’s Star, Hath had elsewhere its setting, And cometh from afar: Not in entire forgetfulness, And not in utter nakedness, But trailing clouds of glory do we come From God, who is our home: Heaven lies about us in our infancy!6 Parents ponder their responsibility to teach, to inspire, and to provide guidance, direction, and example. And while parents ponder, children—and particularly youth—ask the penetrating question, why are we here? Usually it is spoken silently to the soul and phrased, why am I here? How grateful we should be that a wise Creator fashioned an earth and placed us here, with a veil of forgetfulness of our previous existence so that we might experience a time of testing, an opportunity to prove ourselves in order to qualify for all that God has prepared for us to receive. Clearly, one primary purpose of our existence upon the earth is to obtain a body of flesh and bones. We have also been given the gift of agency. In a thousand ways we are privileged to choose for ourselves. Here we learn from the hard taskmaster of experience. We discern between good and evil. We differentiate as to the bitter and the sweet. We discover that there are consequences attached to our actions. By obedience to God’s commandments, we can qualify for that “house” spoken of by Jesus when He declared: “In my Father’s house are many mansions. … I go to prepare a place for you … that where I am, there ye may be also.”7 Although we come into mortality “trailing clouds of glory,” life moves relentlessly forward. Youth follows childhood, and maturity comes ever so imperceptibly. From experience we learn the need to reach heavenward for assistance as we make our way along life’s pathway. God, our Father, and Jesus Christ, our Lord, have marked the way to perfection. They beckon us to follow eternal verities and to become perfect, as They are perfect.8 The Apostle Paul likened life to a race. To the Hebrews he urged, “Let us lay aside … the sin which doth so easily beset us, and let us run with patience the race that is set before us.”9 In our zeal, let us not overlook the sage counsel from Ecclesiastes: “The race is not to the swift, nor the battle to the strong.”10 Actually, the prize belongs to him or her who endures to the end. When I reflect on the race of life, I remember another type of race, even from childhood days. My friends and I would take pocketknives in hand and, from the soft wood of a willow tree, fashion small toy boats. With a triangular-shaped cotton sail in place, each would launch his crude craft in the race down the relatively turbulent waters of Utah’s Provo River. We would run along the river’s bank and watch the tiny vessels sometimes bobbing violently in the swift current and at other times sailing serenely as the water deepened. During a particular race we noted that one boat led all the rest toward the appointed finish line. Suddenly, the current carried it too close to a large whirlpool, and the boat heaved to its side and capsized. Around and around it was carried, unable to make its way back into the main current. At last it came to an uneasy rest amid the flotsam and jetsam that surrounded it, held fast by the tentacles of the grasping green moss. The toy boats of childhood had no keel for stability, no rudder to provide direction, and no source of power. Inevitably, their destination was downstream—the path of least resistance. Unlike toy boats, we have been provided divine attributes to guide our journey. We enter mortality not to float with the moving currents of life but with the power to think, to reason, and to achieve. Our Heavenly Father did not launch us on our eternal voyage without providing the means whereby we could receive from Him guidance to ensure our safe return. I speak of prayer. I speak too of the whisperings from that still, small voice; and I do not overlook the holy scriptures, which contain the word of the Lord and the words of the prophets—provided to us to help us successfully cross the finish line. At some period in our mortal mission, there appears the faltering step, the wan smile, the pain of sickness—even the fading of summer, the approach of autumn, the chill of winter, and the experience we call death. Every thoughtful person has asked himself the question best phrased by Job of old: “If a man die, shall he live again?”11 Try as we might to put the question out of our thoughts, it always returns. Death comes to all mankind. It comes to the aged as they walk on faltering feet. Its summons is heard by those who have scarcely reached midway in life’s journey. At times it hushes the laughter of little children. But what of an existence beyond death? Is death the end of all? Robert Blatchford, in his book God and My Neighbor, attacked with vigor accepted Christian beliefs such as God, Christ, prayer, and particularly immortality. He boldly asserted that death was the end of our existence and that no one could prove otherwise. Then a surprising thing happened. His wall of skepticism suddenly crumbled to dust. He was left exposed and undefended. Slowly he began to feel his way back to the faith he had ridiculed and abandoned. What had caused this profound change in his outlook? His wife died. With a broken heart he went into the room where lay all that was mortal of her. He looked again at the face he loved so well. Coming out, he said to a friend: “It is she, and yet it is not she. Everything is changed. Something that was there before is taken away. She is not the same. What can be gone if it be not the soul?” Later he wrote: “Death is not what some people imagine. It is only like going into another room. In that other room we shall find … the dear women and men and the sweet children we have loved and lost.”12 My brothers and sisters, we know that death is not the end. This truth has been taught by living prophets throughout the ages. It is also found in our holy scriptures. In the Book of Mormon we read specific and comforting words: “Now, concerning the state of the soul between death and the resurrection—Behold, it has been made known unto me by an angel, that the spirits of all men, as soon as they are departed from this mortal body, yea, the spirits of all men, whether they be good or evil, are taken home to that God who gave them life. “And then shall it come to pass, that the spirits of those who are righteous are received into a state of happiness, which is called paradise, a state of rest, a state of peace, where they shall rest from all their troubles and from all care, and sorrow.”13 After the Savior was crucified and His body had lain in the tomb for three days, the spirit again entered. The stone was rolled away, and the resurrected Redeemer walked forth, clothed with an immortal body of flesh and bones. The answer to Job’s question, “If a man die, shall he live again?” came when Mary and others approached the tomb and saw two men in shining garments who spoke to them: “Why seek ye the living among the dead? He is not here, but is risen.”14 As the result of Christ’s victory over the grave, we shall all be resurrected. This is the redemption of the soul. Paul wrote: “There are … celestial bodies, and bodies terrestrial: but the glory of the celestial is one, and the glory of the terrestrial is another.”15 It is the celestial glory which we seek. It is in the presence of God we desire to dwell. It is a forever family in which we want membership. Such blessings are earned through a lifetime of striving, seeking, repenting, and finally succeeding. Where did we come from? Why are we here? Where do we go after this life? No longer need these universal questions remain unanswered. From the very depths of my soul and in all humility, I testify that those things of which I have spoken are true. Our Heavenly Father rejoices for those who keep His commandments. He is concerned also for the lost child, the tardy teenager, the wayward youth, the delinquent parent. Tenderly the Master speaks to these and indeed to all: “Come back. Come up. Come in. Come home. Come unto me.” In one week we will celebrate Easter. Our thoughts will turn to the Savior’s life, His death, and His Resurrection. As His special witness, I testify to you that He lives and that He awaits our triumphant return. That such a return will be ours, I pray humbly in His holy name—even Jesus Christ, our Savior and our Redeemer, amen. Hide References Notes 1. Matthew 6:19–21. 2. Acts 17:29. 3. Doctrine and Covenants 88:15. 4. Hebrews 12:9. 5. Doctrine and Covenants 76:24. 6. William Wordsworth, Ode: Intimations of Immortality from Recollections of Early Childhood (1884), 23–24. 7. John 14:2–3. 8. See Matthew 5:48; 3 Nephi 12:48. 9. Hebrews 12:1. 10. Ecclesiastes 9:11. 11. Job 14:14. 12. See Robert Blatchford, More Things in Heaven and Earth: Adventures in Quest of a Soul (1925), 11. 13. Alma 40:11–12. 14. Luke 24:5–6. 15. 1 Corinthians 15:40.

Willing and Worthy to Serve

Willing and Worthy to Serve Thomas S. Monson




President of the Church



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Miracles are everywhere to be found when the priesthood is understood, its power is honored and used properly, and faith is exerted.10485_000_36monso

My beloved brethren, how good it is to meet with you once again. Whenever I attend the general priesthood meeting, I reflect on the teachings of some of God’s noble leaders who have spoken in the general priesthood meetings of the Church. Many have passed to their eternal reward, and yet from the brilliance of their minds, from the depths of their souls, and from the warmth of their hearts, they have given us inspired direction. I share with you tonight some of their teachings concerning the priesthood.



From the Prophet Joseph Smith: “Priesthood is an everlasting principle, and existed with God from eternity, and will to eternity, without beginning of days or end of years.”1



From the words of President Wilford Woodruff, we learn: “The Holy Priesthood is the channel through which God communicates and deals with man upon the earth; and the heavenly messengers that have visited the earth to communicate with man are men who held and honored the priesthood while in the flesh; and everything that God has caused to be done for the salvation of man, from the coming of man upon the earth to the redemption of the world, has been and will be by virtue of the everlasting priesthood.”2



President Joseph F. Smith further clarified: “The priesthood … is … the power of God delegated to man by which man can act in the earth for the salvation of the human family, in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Ghost, and act legitimately; not assuming that authority, nor borrowing it from generations that are dead and gone, but authority that has been given in this day in which we live by ministering angels and spirits from above, direct from the presence of Almighty God.”3



And finally from President John Taylor: “What is priesthood? … It is the government of God, whether on the earth or in the heavens, for it is by that power, agency, or principle that all things are governed on the earth and in the heavens, and by that power that all things are upheld and sustained. It governs all things—it directs all things—it sustains all things—and has to do with all things that God and truth are associated with.”4



How blessed we are to be here in these last days, when the priesthood of God is upon the earth. How privileged we are to bear that priesthood. The priesthood is not so much a gift as it is a commission to serve, a privilege to lift, and an opportunity to bless the lives of others.



With these opportunities come responsibilities and duties. I love and cherish the noble word duty and all that it implies.



In one capacity or another, in one setting or another, I have been attending priesthood meetings for the past 72 years—since I was ordained a deacon at the age of 12. Time certainly marches on. Duty keeps cadence with that march. Duty does not dim nor diminish. Catastrophic conflicts come and go, but the war waged for the souls of men continues without abatement. Like a clarion call comes the word of the Lord to you, to me, and to priesthood holders everywhere: “Wherefore, now let every man learn his duty, and to act in the office in which he is appointed, in all diligence.”5



The call of duty came to Adam, to Noah, to Abraham, to Moses, to Samuel, to David. It came to the Prophet Joseph Smith and to each of his successors. The call of duty came to the boy Nephi when he was instructed by the Lord, through his father Lehi, to return to Jerusalem with his brothers to obtain the brass plates from Laban. Nephi’s brothers murmured, saying it was a hard thing which had been asked of them. What was Nephi’s response? Said he, “I will go and do the things which the Lord hath commanded, for I know that the Lord giveth no commandments unto the children of men, save he shall prepare a way for them that they may accomplish the thing which he commandeth them.”6



When that same call comes to you and to me, what will be our response? Will we murmur, as did Laman and Lemuel, and say, “This is a hard thing required of us”?7 Or will we, with Nephi, individually declare, “I will go. I will do”? Will we be willing to serve and to obey?



At times the wisdom of God appears as being foolish or just too difficult, but one of the greatest and most valuable lessons we can learn in mortality is that when God speaks and a man obeys, that man will always be right.



When I think of the word duty and how performing our duty can enrich our lives and the lives of others, I recall the words penned by a renowned poet and author:



I slept and dreamt

That life was joy

I awoke and saw

That life was duty

I acted and behold

Duty was joy.8

Robert Louis Stevenson put it another way. Said he, “I know what pleasure is, for I have done good work.”9



As we perform our duties and exercise our priesthood, we will find true joy. We will experience the satisfaction of having completed our tasks.



We have been taught the specific duties of the priesthood which we hold, whether it be the Aaronic or the Melchizedek Priesthood. I urge you to contemplate those duties and then do all within your power to fulfill them. In order to do so, each must be worthy. Let us have ready hands, clean hands, and willing hands, that we may participate in providing what our Heavenly Father would have others receive from Him. If we are not worthy, it is possible to lose the power of the priesthood; and if we lose it, we have lost the essence of exaltation. Let us be worthy to serve.



President Harold B. Lee, one of the great teachers in the Church, said: “When one becomes a holder of the priesthood, he becomes an agent of the Lord. He should think of his calling as though he were on the Lord’s errand.”10



During World War II, in the early part of 1944, an experience involving the priesthood took place as United States marines were taking Kwajalein Atoll, part of the Marshall Islands and located in the Pacific Ocean about midway between Australia and Hawaii. What took place in this regard was related by a correspondent—not a member of the Church—who worked for a newspaper in Hawaii. In the 1944 newspaper article he wrote following the experience, he explained that he and other correspondents were in the second wave behind the marines at Kwajalein Atoll. As they advanced, they noticed a young marine floating facedown in the water, obviously badly wounded. The shallow water around him was red with his blood. And then they noticed another marine moving toward his wounded comrade. The second marine was also wounded, with his left arm hanging helplessly by his side. He lifted up the head of the one who was floating in the water in order to keep him from drowning. In a panicky voice he called for help. The correspondents looked again at the boy he was supporting and called back, “Son, there is nothing we can do for this boy.”



“Then,” wrote the correspondent, “I saw something that I had never seen before.” This boy, badly wounded himself, made his way to the shore with the seemingly lifeless body of his fellow marine. He “put the head of his companion on his knee. … What a picture that was—these two mortally wounded boys—both … clean, wonderful-looking young men, even in their distressing situation. And the one boy bowed his head over the other and said, ‘I command you, in the name of Jesus Christ and by the power of the priesthood, to remain alive until I can get medical help.’” The correspondent concluded his article: “The three of us [the two marines and I] are here in the hospital. The doctors don’t know [how they made it alive], but I know.”11



Miracles are everywhere to be found when the priesthood is understood, its power is honored and used properly, and faith is exerted. When faith replaces doubt, when selfless service eliminates selfish striving, the power of God brings to pass His purposes.



The call of duty can come quietly as we who hold the priesthood respond to the assignments we receive. President George Albert Smith, that modest but effective leader, declared, “It is your duty first of all to learn what the Lord wants and then by the power and strength of His holy Priesthood to [so] magnify your calling in the presence of your fellows … that the people will be glad to follow you.”12



Such a call of duty—a much less dramatic call but one which nonetheless helped to save a soul—came to me in 1950 when I was a newly called bishop. My responsibilities as a bishop were many and varied, and I tried to the best of my ability to do all that was required of me. The United States was engaged in a different war by then. Because many of our members were serving in the armed services, an assignment came from Church headquarters for all bishops to provide each serviceman a subscription to the Church News and the Improvement Era, the Church’s magazine at that time. In addition, each bishop was asked to write a personal, monthly letter to each serviceman from his ward. Our ward had 23 men in uniform. The priesthood quorums, with effort, supplied the funds for the subscriptions to the publications. I undertook the task, even the duty, to write 23 personal letters each month. After all these years I still have copies of many of my letters and the responses received. Tears come easily when these letters are reread. It is a joy to learn again of a soldier’s pledge to live the gospel, a sailor’s decision to keep faith with his family.



One evening I handed to a sister in the ward the stack of 23 letters for the current month. Her assignment was to handle the mailing and to maintain the constantly changing address list. She glanced at one envelope and, with a smile, asked, “Bishop, don’t you ever get discouraged? Here is another letter to Brother Bryson. This is the 17th letter you have sent to him without a reply.”



I responded, “Well, maybe this will be the month.” As it turned out, that was the month. For the first time, he responded to my letter. His reply is a keepsake, a treasure. He was serving far away on a distant shore, isolated, homesick, alone. He wrote, “Dear Bishop, I ain’t much at writin’ letters.” (I could have told him that several months earlier.) His letter continued, “Thank you for the Church News and magazines, but most of all thank you for the personal letters. I have turned over a new leaf. I have been ordained a priest in the Aaronic Priesthood. My heart is full. I am a happy man.”



Brother Bryson was no happier than was his bishop. I had learned the practical application of the adage “Do [your] duty; that is best; leave unto [the] Lord the rest.”13



Years later, while attending the Salt Lake Cottonwood Stake when James E. Faust served as its president, I related that account in an effort to encourage attention to our servicemen. After the meeting, a fine-looking young man came forward. He took my hand in his and asked, “Bishop Monson, do you remember me?”



I suddenly realized who he was. “Brother Bryson!” I exclaimed. “How are you? What are you doing in the Church?”



With warmth and obvious pride, he responded, “I’m fine. I serve in the presidency of my elders quorum. Thank you again for your concern for me and the personal letters which you sent and which I treasure.”



Brethren, the world is in need of our help. Are we doing all we should? Do we remember the words of President John Taylor: “If you do not magnify your callings, God will hold you responsible for those whom you might have saved had you done your duty”?14 There are feet to steady, hands to grasp, minds to encourage, hearts to inspire, and souls to save. The blessings of eternity await you. Yours is the privilege to be not spectators but participants on the stage of priesthood service. Let us hearken to the stirring reminder found in the Epistle of James: “Be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves.”15



Let us learn and contemplate our duty. Let us be willing and worthy to serve. Let us in the performance of our duty follow in the footsteps of the Master. As you and I walk the pathway Jesus walked, we will discover He is more than the babe in Bethlehem, more than the carpenter’s son, more than the greatest teacher ever to live. We will come to know Him as the Son of God, our Savior and our Redeemer. When to Him came the call of duty, He answered, “Father, thy will be done, and the glory be thine forever.”16 May each of us do likewise, I pray in His holy name, the name of Jesus Christ, the Lord, amen.



Hide References

Notes



1. Teachings of Presidents of the Church: Joseph Smith (2007), 104.





2. Teachings of Presidents of the Church: Wilford Woodruff (2004), 38.





3. Joseph F. Smith, Gospel Doctrine, 5th ed. (1939), 139–40; emphasis added.





4. Teachings of Presidents of the Church: John Taylor (2001), 119.





5. Doctrine and Covenants 107:99; emphasis added.





6. 1 Nephi 3:7; see also verses 1–5.





7. See 1 Nephi 3:5.





8. Rabindranath Tagore, in William Jay Jacobs, Mother Teresa: Helping the Poor (1991), 42.





9. Robert Louis Stevenson, in Elbert Hubbard II, comp., The Note Book of Elbert Hubbard: Mottoes, Epigrams, Short Essays, Passages, Orphic Sayings and Preachments (1927), 55.





10. Stand Ye in Holy Places: Selected Sermons and Writings of President Harold B. Lee (1976), 255.





11. In Ernest Eberhard Jr., “Giving Our Young Men the Proper Priesthood Perspective,” typescript, July 19, 1971, 4–5, Church History Library.





12. George Albert Smith, in Conference Report, Apr. 1942, 14.





13. Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, “The Legend Beautiful,” in The Complete Poetical Works of Longfellow (1893), 258.





14. Teachings: John Taylor, 164.





15. James 1:22.





16. Moses 4:2.

Psalms of David

http://www.chabad.org/dailystudy/tehillim.asp?tDate=5/2/2012 Lesson for Wednesday, May 2, 2012 - 10 Iyar, 5772 « May 1, 2012 May 3, 2012 » Available Options: English Version | Hebrew Version Share this: Psalms for Day 10 Chapter 55 David composed this psalm upon escaping from Jerusalem in the face of the slanderers, Doeg and Achitofel, who had declared him deserving of death. David had considered Achitofel a friend and accorded him the utmost honor, but Achitofel betrayed him and breached their covenant. David curses all his enemies, so that all generations should "know, and sin no more." 1. For the Conductor, with instrumental music, a maskil by David. 2. Listen to my prayer, O God, do not hide from my pleas. 3. Pay heed to me and answer me, as I lament in my distress and moan - 4. because of the shout of the enemy and the oppression of the wicked; for they accuse me of evil and hate me passionately. 5. My heart shudders within me, and the terrors of death have descended upon me. 6. Fear and trembling penetrate me, and I am enveloped with horror. 7. And I said, "If only I had wings like the dove! I would fly off and find rest. 8. Behold, I would wander afar, and lodge in the wilderness forever. 9. I would hurry to find shelter for myself from the stormy wind, from the tempest.” 10. Consume, O Lord, confuse their tongue; for I have seen violence and strife in the city.1 11. Day and night they encircle her upon her walls, and iniquity and vice are in her midst. 12. Treachery is within her; fraud and deceit never depart from her square. 13. For it is not the enemy who taunts me-that I could bear; nor my foe who raises himself against me, that I could hide from him. 14. But it is you, a man of my equal, my guide and my intimate. 15. Together we took sweet counsel; we walked with the throng to the house of God. 16. May He incite death upon them, let them descend to the pit alive; for there is evil in their dwelling, within them. 17. As for me, I call to God, and the Lord will save me. 18. Evening, morning and noon, I lament and moan-and He hears my voice. 19. He redeemed my soul in peace from battles against me, because of the many who were with me. 20. May God-He who is enthroned from the days of old, Selah-hear and humble those in whom there is no change, and who do not fear God. 21. He extended his hands against his allies, he profaned his covenant. 22. Smoother than butter are the words of his mouth, but war is in his heart; his words are softer than oil, yet they are curses. 23. Cast your burden upon the Lord, and He will sustain you; He will never let the righteous man falter. 24. And You, O God, will bring them down to the nethermost pit; bloodthirsty and treacherous men shall not live out half their days; but I will trust in You. Chapter 56 David composed this psalm while in mortal danger at the palace of Achish, brother of Goliath. In his distress David accepts vows upon himself. 1. For the Conductor, of the mute dove1 far away. By David, a michtam, 2 when the Philistines seized him in Gath. 2. Favor me, O God, for man longs to swallow me; the warrior oppresses me every day. 3. My watchful enemies long to swallow me every day, for many battle me, O Most High! 4. On the day I am afraid, I trust in You. 5. [I trust] in God and praise His word; in God I trust, I do not fear-what can [man of] flesh do to me? 6. Every day they make my words sorrowful; all their thoughts about me are for evil. 7. They gather and hide, they watch my steps, when they hope [to capture] my soul. 8. Should escape be theirs in reward for their iniquity? Cast down the nations in anger, O God! 9. You have counted my wanderings; place my tears in Your flask-are they not in Your record? 10. When my enemies will retreat on the day I cry out, with this I will know that God is with me. 11. When God deals strictly, I praise His word; when the Lord deals mercifully, I praise His word. 12. In God I trust, I do not fear-what can man do to me? 13. My vows to You are upon me, O God; I will repay with thanksgiving offerings to You. 14. For You saved my soul from death-even my feet from stumbling-to walk before God in the light of life. Chapter 57 David composed this psalm while hiding from Saul in a cave, facing grave danger. Like Jacob did when confronted with Esau, David prayed that he neither be killed nor be forced to kill. In the merit of his trust in God, God wrought wonders to save him. 1. For the Conductor, a plea to be spared destruction. By David, a michtam, when he fled from Saul in the cave. 2. Favor me, O God, favor me, for in You my soul took refuge, and in the shadow of Your wings I will take refuge until the disaster passes. 3. I will call to God the Most High; to the Almighty Who fulfills [His promise] to me. 4. He will send from heaven, and save me from the humiliation of those who long to swallow me, Selah; God will send forth His kindness and truth. 5. My soul is in the midst of lions, I lie among fiery men; their teeth are spears and arrows, their tongue a sharp sword. 6. Be exalted above the heavens, O God; let Your glory be upon all the earth. 7. They laid a trap for my steps, they bent down my soul; they dug a pit before me, [but] they themselves fell into it, Selah. 8. My heart is steadfast, O God, my heart is steadfast; I will sing and chant praise. 9. Awake, my soul! Awake, O harp and lyre! I shall awaken the dawn. 10. I will thank You among the nations, my Lord; I will praise You among the peoples. 11. For Your kindness reaches till the heavens, Your truth till the skies. 12. Be exalted above the heavens, O God; let Your glory be over all the earth Chapter 58 David expresses the anguish caused him by Avner and his other enemies, who justified Saul's pursuit of him. 1. For the Conductor, a plea to be spared destruction; by David, a michtam. 2. Is it true that you are mute [instead of] speaking justice? [Instead of] judging men with fairness? 3. Even with your heart you wreak injustice upon the land; you justify the violence of your hands. 4. The wicked are estranged from the womb; from birth do the speakers of falsehood stray. 5. Their venom is like the venom of a snake; like the deaf viper that closes its ear 6. so as not to hear the voice of charmers, [even] the most skillful caster of spells. 7. O God, smash their teeth in their mouth; shatter the fangs of the young lions, O Lord. 8. Let them melt like water and disappear; when He aims His arrows, may they crumble. 9. Like the snail that melts as it goes along, like the stillbirth of a woman-they never see the sun. 10. Before your tender shoots know [to become] hardened thorns, He will blast them away, as one [uprooting] with vigor and wrath. 11. The righteous one will rejoice when he sees revenge; he will bathe his feet in the blood of the wicked. 12. And man will say, "There is indeed reward for the righteous; indeed there is a God Who judges in the land." Chapter 59 This psalm speaks of the great miracle David experienced when he eluded danger by escaping through a window, unnoticed by the guards at the door. The prayers, supplications, and entreaties he offered then are recorded here. 1. For the Conductor, a plea to be spared destruction, By David, a michtam, when Saul dispatched [men], and they guarded the house in order to kill him. 2. Rescue me from my enemies, my God; raise me above those who rise against me. 3. Rescue me from evildoers, save me from men of bloodshed. 4. For behold they lie in ambush for my soul, mighty ones gather against me-not because of my sin nor my transgression, O Lord. 5. Without iniquity [on my part,] they run and prepare-awaken towards me and see! 6. And You, Lord, God of Hosts, God of Israel, wake up to remember all the nations; do not grant favor to any of the iniquitous traitors, Selah. 7. They return toward evening, they howl like the dog and circle the city. 8. Behold, they spew with their mouths, swords are in their lips, for [they say], "Who hears?” 9. But You, Lord, You laugh at them; You mock all nations. 10. [Because of] his might, I wait for You, for God is my stronghold. 11. The God of my kindness will anticipate my [need]; God will show me [the downfall] of my watchful foes. 12. Do not kill them, lest my nation forget; drive them about with Your might and impoverish them, O our Shield, my Master, 13. [for] the sin of their mouth, the word of their lips; let them be trapped by their arrogance. At the sight of their accursed state and deterioration, [people] will recount. 14. Consume them in wrath, consume them and they will be no more; and they will know that God rules in Jacob, to the ends of the earth, Selah. 15. And they will return toward evening, they will howl like the dog and circle the city. 16. They will wander about to eat; when they will not be sated they will groan. 17. As for me, I shall sing of Your might, and sing joyously of Your kindness toward morning, for You have been a stronghold to me, a refuge on the day of my distress. 18. [You are] my strength, to You I will sing, for God is my stronghold, the God of my kindness.

DOUBLED AND REDOUBLED LOVE TO THE LOWLY

Today's Tanya Lesson Likutei Amarim, middle of Chapter 46 Listen Online | MP3 Download והנה ככל הדברים האלה, וככל החזיון הזה, וגדול יתר מאד בכפלי כפליים לאין קץ, עשה לנו אלקינו In a manner corresponding in every detail to the said figure and image of the love shown by the mighty king to this most lowly individual, but to a much greater degree, doubled and redoubled infinitely more than in the parable, has our G‑d dealt with us. כי לגדולתו אין חקר For His greatness is beyond comprehension, Just as G‑d is infinitely greater than any physical king, so too does his kingdom extend over an infinitely greater territory, so to speak. ואיהו ממלא כל עלמין וסובב כל עלמין and He pervades all worlds and encompasses i.e., transcends all worlds; ונודע מזהר הקדוש והאר״י ז״ל ריבוי ההיכלות והעולמות עד אין מספר, ובכל עולם והיכל, ריבוא רבבות מלאכים לאין קץ ותכלית and from the holy Zohar, as also from our Master, Rabbi Isaac Luria of blessed memory, it is known of the multitude of Heichalot — these being the specific levels within each spiritual world — and worlds which are infinite, and of the myriads of myriads of angels found in each world and Heichal, countless and without end. וכמו שכתוב בגמרא: כתיב, היש מספר לגדודיו, וכתיב, אלף אלפין ישמשוניה, וריבו רבבן קדמוהי גו׳ So does the Gemara note:1 “It is written:2 ‘Is there any numbering His regiments of angels?’ Yet it is also written:3 ‘A thousand thousands minister unto Him, and ten thousand times ten thousand stand before Him....’” The second verse indicates that there is indeed a finite number of angels, albeit a very great number, while the rhetorical question in the first verse implies that the number is truly infinite. ומשני: אלף אלפין וכו׳ מספר גדוד אחד, אבל לגדודיו אין מספר The Gemara answers: “‘A thousand thousands...’ is the quota of one regiment, but His regiments are innumerable.” The second verse, then, speaks of the number of angels within one regiment, while the first verse alludes to the number of regiments, which is truly infinite. וכולם קמיה כלא ממש חשיבי, ובטלים במציאות ממש, כביטול דבור אחד ממש לגבי מהות הנפש המדברת ועצמותה, בעוד שהיה דיבורה עדיין במחשבתה, או ברצון וחמדת הלב, כנ״ל באריכות Yet, before Him, all of them are accounted as nothing at all and are nullified in their very existence, just as one word is truly nullified in relation to the essence and being of the articulate soul, the soul possessing the power of speech, while the speech of the soul was still present in [the soul’s] faculty of thought, or in the will and desire of the heart, as has been explained above at length. In chs. 20 and 21 the Alter Rebbe explained at length how a single utterance is as absolutely nothing when compared to the infinite capacity of the articulate soul. This is so even when the word has already been uttered and has thereby become a distinct entity. Even more so, in the case when the person’s speech is in potentia in the person’s thought or heart’s desire (which are the sources of speech, since a person thinks before he speaks, and speaks about things that he desires). In such an instance, the single word is totally nullified in its source and is not at all perceptible as an entity separate from it. So too with Divine speech that creates and animates angels, the various worlds, and all creatures. Divine speech is always absolutely united with its source, and is therefore always in a state of total nullification to it. וכולם שואלים: איה מקום כבודו, ועונים: מלא כל הארץ כבודו, הם ישראל עמו All these [angels] ask: “Where is the place of His glory?” And they answer:4 “The whole physical earth is full of His glory”; that is — i.e., How is this world “full of His glory?” — because of His people, Israel. כי הניח הקב״ה את העליונים ואת התחתונים For the Holy One, blessed be He, forsook the higher and lower creatures that are not the ultimate purpose of His creation, ולא בחר בכולם, כי אם בישראל עמו, והוציאם ממצרים, ערות הארץ, מקום הזוהמא והטומאה choosing none of them but Israel His people, whom He brought out of Egypt5 — “the obscenity of the earth,” the place of filth and impurity — Like the lowly and disgraceful individual who was raised from the dunghill by the king in person, the Children of Israel were brought forth out of Egypt by the King Himself: ולא על ידי מלאך ולא על ידי כו׳, אלא הקב״ה בכבודו ובעצמו ירד לשם “not6 through an angel which is a created being whose abode is in the World of Beriah, Yetzirah or Asiyah, nor through a messenger from the level of the World of Atzilut, but the Holy One, blessed be He, Himself in His glory” descended there. כמו שכתוב: וארד להצילו וגו׳ as it is written:7 “And I descended to save him from the hand of the Egyptians,” Just as the king in the parable, after raising the individual from the dungheap, takes him into his palace and shares with him the closest companionship, in a like manner did G‑d treat His people. כדי לקרבם אליו בקירוב ויחוד אמיתי, בהתקשרות הנפש ממש in order to bring them near to Him in true closeness and unity, with a real attachment of soul — so that the Jew’s soul will be truly bound up with the Almighty, This is also so regarding the Torah, concerning which G‑d says: “I have written and given My ’soul‘*” to the Jewish people, by giving them the Torah. Thus, not only is the Jew’s soul truly bound up with G‑d, but G‑d’s “soul”, too, is united with the Jew. בבחינת נשיקין פה לפה, לדבר דבר ה׳, זו הלכה on the level of “kisses” of mouth to mouth, so that the Jew’s mouth be united with the “mouth” and speech of G‑d, by uttering “the word of G‑d, namely, the Halachah,” When a Jew speaks and studies the words of the Torah his speech is united with Supernal speech in a manner of “kisses” of mouth to mouth. This unity, however, is external in comparison with the deeper and more inward “union of spirit and spirit,” as explained in the previous chapter. This deeper level of unity is also attained through Torah study: ואתדבקות רוחא ברוחא, היא השגת התורה, וידיעת רצונו וחכמתו and the fusion of “spirit” of man with “spirit” of G‑d, namely, the comprehension of the Torah and the knowledge of His Will and wisdom, When Torah is studied with comprehension, the person knows both G‑d’s Will and wisdom. Knowing the halachah, the law that determines that an object is (say) either kosher or non-kosher, constitutes the knowledge of G‑d’s Will, while comprehending the reason for the halachah relates to G‑d’s wisdom. דכולא חד ממש which are truly one; G‑d’s Will and wisdom are truly one with Him. Hence, through Torah study, Jews become united with G‑d in a manner of “union of spirit and spirit”; וגם בבחינת חיבוק also with a form of “embrace”, for Torah and mitzvot also effect the unity of an “embrace”, similar to a person embracing his friend with his body and arms, הוא קיום המצות מעשיות ברמ״ח אברים namely, the fulfillment of the positive precepts with the 248 organs which the human being possesses. Performance of the 248 positive commandments brings about a state of “embrace” wherein G‑d’s 248 “organs” embrace man’s, דרמ״ח פיקודין הן רמ״ח אברין דמלכא, כנזכר לעיל for the 248 ordinances are the 248 “organs” of the King, as mentioned earlier, in ch. 23. Each organ of the body is an appropriate vessel for the particular faculty of the soul that resides therein, such as the eye for the faculty of sight, the ear for the faculty of hearing, and so on. So too, each mitzvah is an appropriate vessel for the specific emanation of the Divine Will that desires the Jew to perform the particular commandment. ודרך כלל נחלקין לשלש בחינות: ימין ושמאל ואמצע, שהן חסד דין ורחמים In a general manner, these 248 positive mitzvot are divided into three categories — right, left, and center — namely, Chesed (“kindness”), Din (“stern justice”), and Rachamim (“mercy”). There are mitzvot which are in the category of the “right side” — Chesed; others in the category of the “left side” — Din; still others, in the category of the “center” — Rachamim. These are: תרין דרועין וגופא וכו׳ the two arms and the body. Chesed is the right arm; Gevurah, or Din, is the left; and Rachamim represents the body (the center). Just as when a person embraces another he does so with both arms and his body, so too, do the “two arms” and “body” of the mitzvot embrace the Jew who performs them. FOOTNOTES 1. Chagigah 13b. 2. Iyov 25:3. 3. Daniel 7:10. 4. Yeshayahu 6:3. 5. Bereishit 42:9. 6. Haggadah of Passover. 7. Shmot 3:8.