A Teaching on M ikvah/Immersion/Baptism

A Teaching on M ikvah/Immersion/Baptism

A Teaching on M ikvah/Immersion/Baptism

It simply began by wanting to re-familiarize myself with what I always considered to be one of the first acts of obedience after a new Believer accepts Messiah into their spiritual heart —the act of baptism. I felt that this task should be easy enough to refresh myself during a quiet day of Shabbat! But from the beginning of settling into my spiritual feeding, what I thought I knew began to unravel itself, and what I thought I understood became only a shadow of what should be known. The teaching of baptism has haphazardly been taught throughout many generations of the Church Age. But Yahweh, in His love and concern for this last Church Period, is restoring those who deeply seek out His pure ways of worship. Ahhhh . . . how I love His timely teachings! It began in Hebrews, where I read:

Heb 6:1-3

1 Therefore, leaving the discussion of the elementary principles of Christ, let us go on to perfection, not laying again the foundation of repentance from dead works and of faith toward God, 2 of the doctrine of baptisms, of laying on of hands, of resurrection of the dead, and of eternal judgment. 3 And this we will do if God permits.

What Yahweh permitted on this day was the intrigue that caught my eye concerning the wording of verse two which states, “the doctrine of baptisms.”

e     Baptism(s)! —Plural!

At that point a flood of other verses started to come into my head.

Luke 3:16

16 John (the baptizer) answered, saying to all, "I indeed baptize you with water; but One mightier than I is coming, whose sandal strap I am not worthy to loose. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire.

1 Cor 12:13

13 For by one Spirit we were all baptized into one body — whether Jews or Greeks, whether slaves or free — and have all been made to drink into one Spirit.

In those two verses alone, it speaks of four types of baptisms:

e     water

e     the Holy Spirit

e     fire

e     identification of Yeshua within the body of Believers

I always considered baptism a one-time event in life. But now I am realizing that there are different baptisms, indeed! Just as Hebrews 6:2 has now revealed in “the doctrine of baptisms.”

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In Hebrews 6:2, the Amplified version reads just a bit different referring “the doctrine of baptisms” as being “ teachings about purifying;” having the word ‘teachings’ pluralized. Along with ‘teachings’ was the word, ‘purifying,’ which brought together for me where I needed to begin. For everything taught in the New Covenant will and should have its foundation laid within the Old.

I began my search by looking up all the verses that I could find pertaining to baptism and purification. I then remembered that a writing had already been done for another study on the historical aspect of purification, so I re-read what had been put together years ago. Once I felt satisfied that I could go no further, I then turned my attention toward other Believers who, like myself, have searched this matter out before me.

My first stop was with Michael Rood, a Messianic evangelist, who has done a three-part series of what he collectively calls, “The Mikvah - Doctrine of Baptisms.” His teaching included six types of mikvah-ings:

e     Purification

e     Repentance

e     Identification with Yeshua

e     Spirit

e     Fire

e     Suffering

Yet, I clearly see a seventh that was not mentioned in his teaching:  Sanctification

Having had the word mikvah previously introduced in my life, the element that there were many different types took me off guard and still had me a bit puzzled after completing the teaching from Michael Rood. For me, a mikvah was the contained place that pooled the water; whereas, Michael Rood used the word ‘mikvah’ as also the act of being mikvah(ed). I came to accept it to

be similar to the wording that we baptize in a baptismal. I had not ever given thought of the place and the act of mikvah being so similarly used, but it simply became a matter of wording within his teaching. This is not to criticize, but to give a bit of explanation to anyone else researching water purification from the Old Covenant and the elements of ‘types’ that are found within the New Covenant.

Because of the teaching from Michael Rood, a door was opened for me to walk through and the understanding was astounding. Very briefly, let me share with you what was gathered directly from his teaching; along with what I understood prior to this research. The act of Mikvah, as related in the first three, have everything to do with the covering over with water:

e     Purification

e     Repentant obedience; as in the immersion spoken of in Matthew 28

e     Identifying with Messiah through His act of burial and resurrection into a new life

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The final four have to do with our spiritual walk as we are covered over, immersed, and engulfed with the Holy Spirit sent from both, the Father and the Son! They are:

e     Receiving the Holy Spirit; sealing each Believer for the day of redemption

e     Being Spirit-filled by holy fire through His teachings, fruit-bearing, and gifts

e     Sufferings; as we learn His ways by laying down our own self-will

e     Sanctification; being set apart from this world; walking a Spirit-filled life

I am very appreciative of Michael Rood’s teaching and through it have become intensely aware that there is so much more to baptism than that of being immersed completely into water as a new Believer through obedience. I now understand it also to be the immersion of teachings, the fruit-bearing and the gifts that are received from the Holy Spirit; and not to be left unmentioned, our sealing!

The last detail needed here is to offer scripture references for each area concerning baptism(s) by what was gathered from the three-part series of Michael Rood’s broadcast called, “A Rood Awakening.”1 Below, I have selected a few scriptures to fit into each category.

TYPE OF BAPTISM	SCRIPTURE REFERENCES
Purification	Acts 21: 15-26 (in particular vss. 23-26); John 11:55
Repentance	Matt 3:11; Mark 1:4; Luke 3:3; Acts 19:4-5
Identification with Yeshua	Acts 2:38; Rom 6:3-4; Gal 3:27-29; 1 Peter 3:21;
Spirit	Mark 1:8; John 14:16, 26; Acts 11:15; Gal 5:22-23; 1 Cor 12:4-11
Fire	Acts 2:3-4, 17-21; 2 Cor 3:18; 2 Cor 4:6
Suffering	Rom 5:3-5; Rom 8:17-18; 2 Tim 3:12;
Sanctification	Romans 8:13-14; 2 Cor 7:1; 1 Thess 4:7-8; 1 John 3:3

Next, I want to bring in the word meanings of mikvah/baptism from the Strong’s Concordance.

MIKVAH:

OT:4723 miqveh (mik-veh'); or miqveh (1 Kings 10:28) (mik-vay'); or miqve' (2 Chron

1:16) (mik-vay'); from OT:6960;* something waited for, i.e. confidence (objective or subjective); also a collection, i.e. (of water) a pond, or (of men and horses) a caravan or drove:

KJV - abiding, gathering together, hope, linen yarn, plenty [of water], pool.

* OT:6960 qavah (kaw-vaw'); a primitive root; to bind together (perhaps by twisting), i.e. collect; (figuratively) to expect:

KJV - gather (together), look, patiently, tarry, wait (for, on, upon).

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MIKVAH:

OT:4724 miqvah (mik-vaw'); feminine of OT:4723; a collection, i.e. (of water) a reservoir:

KJV - ditch.2

The word – MIKVAH – can now be easier discerned as to how it is used scripturally within the Hebrew usage of the word. But mikvah went through a total word translation once its concept was written into the Greek text of Yahweh’s Word; for there was no word-perfect Greek

translation for this word. So the concept of mikvah was then translated into Greek from the many variations of the word – BAPTO –

BAPTIST, BAPTIZE,  BAPTISM, WASHING, DIP

NT:911 bapto (bap'-to); a primary verb; to overwhelm, i.e. cover wholly with a fluid; in the N. T. only in a qualified or specially, sense, i.e. (literally) to moisten (a part of one's person), or (by implication) to stain (as with dye):

KJV - dip.

BAPTIST, BAPTIZE

NT:907 baptizo (bap-tid'-zo); from a derivative of NT:911; to immerse, submerge; to make overwhelmed (i.e. fully wet); used only (in the N. T.) of ceremonial ablution, especially (technically) of the ordinance of Christian baptism:

KJV - Baptist, baptize, wash.

BAPTISM

NT:908 baptisma (bap'-tis-mah); from NT:907; immersion, baptism (technically or figuratively):

KJV - baptism.

BAPTISM, WASHING

NT:909 baptismos (bap-tis-mos'); from NT:907; ablution (ceremonial or Christian): KJV - baptism, washing.

BAPTIST

NT:910 Baptistes (bap-tis-tace'); from NT:907; a baptizer, as an epithet of Christ's forerunner:

KJV - Baptist.3

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From the teaching of Michael Rood to the word comparison of the Strong’s Concordance, I then took a venture onto the internet. There are many who have written on this very subject about baptisms, plural. But one article in particular stood out from the rest. So in conclusion, I would like to introduce some of the introduction which was found on an excellent website which presents a study called, “Mikvah: A Study of Immersion/Baptism” by Peggy Pryor. In part, she states:

“The Greek word for baptism is baptizo meaning to immerse or dip a cloth into a vat of dye. The word is derived from an industry of dying cloth in Lebanon. The vats used to hold the different colors of dye, and the process of placing the cloth into the vats was called baptizo. As time passed the ritual purity process of immersion began to be known

as baptism. The Hebrew word for immersion is tevilah and means literally immersing in a ritual bath known as a mikvah. Immersion is the act of washing performed to correct a condition of ritual impurity and restore the impure to a state of ritual purity. It is never for the purpose of cleaning or bathing the body.

“The mikvah/ritual bath was of great importance to the first century Jew. It was understood that if a community or village had only enough money for a synagogue or a mikvah, the mikvah would be built first. The Torah speaks of numerous things that make a person Tomeh/ritually unclean, and a number of processes of purification. The one act required in all purification processes was immersion  in the mikvah.

“Life for the average Jew, in the average village, depended on access to the mikvah. A man from the tribe of Levi, a son of Aaron could not assume his office as priest until he had gone through a mikvah. Before a person could be tahor/ritually clean to enter the grounds of the Holy Temple in Jerusalem, he must be immersed in the mikvah. The severest punishment was imposed on a person for entering the Temple area in the state of tomeh/ritual impurity. A woman in her monthly cycle was required to wear special clothing so all would know that she was in a state of niddah (ritually unclean due to monthly cycle). She would not be tahor/ritually clean until after entering the mikvah. Immersion in a mikvah is an integral part of conversion to Judaism. Without immersion conversion is not valid. There are many more times an immersion in a mikvah is customary, we will endeavor to explore as many as space permits.

“There are two basic parts of Torah, one is the written Torah consisting of the first five books of the Bible, with which we are all familiar. The second part of Torah is just as important but not as well known. It is what we call the Oral Torah or unwritten law. This was handed down orally from generation to generation for about 1,500 years. About the third century C.E. Oral Torah was put into writing by Rabbi Yehudah the Prince and is the foundation of Mishnah. The Talmud was formed after discussion and commentary was added. All Jewish law is derived from this Oral Torah. We might call it the "how to" book. Detail instructions on how to carry out all worship, the festivals, sacrifices,

commandments, including ritual purification and preparing the mikvah are in Oral Torah.

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“The Mikvah is a ritual bath, the Hebrew word mikvah means a "pool" or "gathering" of water. Two direct references in the Bible to Mikvah are in the Bible. In Leviticus 11:36 it is written:

"Only a spring and a pit, a gathering (Mikvah) of water, shall be clean..."

“The second is Jeremiah 17:12-13 as it is written:

"A glorious high throne from the beginning is the place of our sanctuary. {13} O LORD, the hope of Israel, all that forsake thee shall be ashamed, and they that depart from me shall be written in the earth, because they have forsaken the LORD, the fountain of living waters".

“The word translated hope in verse 13 is Mikvah thus giving us the understanding that

Messiah is the cleansing fountain/Mikvah or hope of Israel.

“While Messiah still hung, on the cross a Roman "soldier pierced His side, immediately there came out blood and water"; John 19:34 NAS the opening of the cleansing fountain or Mikvah for Israel. In Zechariah 13:1 it is written:

"In that day there shall be a fountain opened to the house of David and to the inhabitants of Jerusalem for sin and for uncleanness."4

The entirety of Peggy Pryor’s teaching is very informative. If you are finding that you are benefitting from this study concerning Mikvah/Water Purification/Baptisms, I strongly suggest that you continue on with her five-part series of this subject. Not out of laziness on my part, but I hold a firm opinion that there is no need for me to write further regarding this teaching when Yahweh has already, through His Spirit, used another servant to write the complexity of this

topic down. She covers all that I had originally planned to address. Her website can be found below in the endnotes of this study. May Yahweh bless your continued reading as you pursue to learn more concerning “the doctrine of baptism(s).”

Endnotes:

1. His teaching on this topic can be purchased at:  http://michaelrood.tv/

2.  Biblesoft's New Exhaustive Strong's Numbers and Concordance with Expanded

Greek-Hebrew Dictionary. Copyright © 1994, 2003 Biblesoft, Inc. and International Bible

Translators, Inc.

3. Ibid.

4. The Walk of Purity; A Study of Baptisms; Peggy Pryor; http://www.haydid.org/ledevar.htm