The Scarlet Thread

[duxrow]

The Scarlet Thread

The scarlet thread identified the first-born twin, Zarah, whose descendants would eventually (4 generations later) be destroyed by fire after the thievery at Jericho. The second born, Pharez, was in the genealogy of Jesus.

Gen38:28 "And it came to pass, when she travailed, that the one put out his hand: and the midwife took and bound upon his hand a scarlet thread, saying, This came out first, v29: And it came to pass, as he drew back his hand, that, behold, his brother came out: and she said, How hast thou broken forth? this breach be upon thee: therefore his name was called Pharez. v30: And afterward came out his brother, that had the scarlet thread upon his hand: and his name was called Zarah.The Firstborn were special: Exodus13:12 “That thou shalt set apart unto the LORD all that openeth the matrix, and every firstling that cometh of a beast which thou hast; the males shall be the LORD's”.

Josh7:1 But the children of Israel committed a trespass in the accursed thing: for Achan, the son of Carmi, the son of Zabdi, the son of Zerah, of the tribe of Judah, took of the accursed thing: and the anger of the LORD was kindled against the children of Israel.
Josh7:24: And Joshua, and all Israel with him, took Achan the son of Zerah, and the silver, and the garment, and the wedge of gold, and his sons, and his daughters, and his oxen, and his asses, and his sheep, and his tent, and all that he had: and they brought them unto the valley of Achor.

Note how Achan is called 'son of Zerah', when he would really be the great-grandson. Does this imply a direct association of some kind between these two?

The 5 sons of Judah contrast with 5 daughters of Zelophehad – one ‘special’.



Another Scarlet Thread is connected to the story of Rahab the harlot, who gives protection to the two spies sent out by Joshua, and whose house is identified by the thread.
Josh2:18 Behold, when we come into the land, thou shalt bind this line of scarlet thread in the window which thou didst let us down by: and thou shalt bring thy father, and thy mother, and thy brethren, and all thy father's household, home unto thee.

Jos:6:25: "And Joshua saved Rahab the harlot alive, and her father's household, and all that she had; and she dwelleth in Israel even unto this day; because she hid the messengers, which Joshua sent to spy out Jericho".

Ps119:11 "Thy word have I hid in mine heart, that I might not sin against thee".
John 10:30 “I and my Father are one”, Jesus said.

[duxrow]

Thought maybe you'd criticize my needlework, or ask something like ' did the order of their birth
have anything to do with the "New Birth?"
Is this an 'old hat' subject that you covered in Bible 101 ?

The firstborn Zarah goes into the fire -- similar message to the tenth plague where "all the firstborn die!"

When Isaiah goes to tell Hezekiah he's going to die (didn't Hezekiah already know that?) Don't we all?
Did Isaiah mean that Hez. would be dying that day, or that week?

[duxrow]

Why was the color 'scarlet' in both cases? Reminds us of "The Scarlet Letter" no doubt, but wouldn't
you think they'd have different colored threads in these periods between Genesis and Joshua, huh?

[sylvius]

Why was the color 'scarlet' in both cases? Reminds us of "The Scarlet Letter" no doubt, but wouldn't
you think they'd have different colored threads in these periods between Genesis and Joshua, huh?

The name is "shani". a color obtained from a kind of worm, "tola'at shani"
http://www.templeinstitute.org/tola-at_shani.htm

THE SHANI - RED DYED WOOL OF THE ANCIENT WORLD, along with the biblical techelet and argaman, (blue and purple), was among the most prized and valuable fabrics of its day. Naturally, it fulfilled an important function in the Holy Temple, where, aside from the ritual purposes mentioned about, it was copiously employed in the various curtains and tapestries that adorned the Holy Temple.

PROFESSOR AMAR EXPLAINED TO HIS AUDIENCE, which included representatives from the Temple Institute, and well as fifty students from two nearby yeshivas, the art of identifying and removing the five millimeter tola'at shani from the bark of the oak trees to which it attaches itself. The worm is actually not a worm at all, but a tiny insect. The female attaches herself to the trunk and branches of the oak, and as its eggs develop during the early summer it grows from the size of a pinhead to its maximum of five to seven millimeters in diameter. It is essential to harvest them at this point, before the red eggs hatch and leave the mother, taking with them their red pigment.

[duxrow]

Thanks, Sylvius, sounds good, 'cause I was thinking more like 'blood' derived.. ha.

Ex:28:4: And these are the garments which they shall make; a breastplate, and an ephod, and a robe, and a broidered coat, a mitre, and a girdle: and they shall make holy garments for Aaron thy brother, and his sons, that he may minister unto me in the priest's office.
Ex:28:5: And they shall take gold, and blue, and purple, and scarlet, and fine linen.

a metal, 3 colors, and cloth.. ?

[sylvius]

Thanks, Sylvius, sounds good, 'cause I was thinking more like 'blood' derived.. ha.

Ex:28:4: And these are the garments which they shall make; a breastplate, and an ephod, and a robe, and a broidered coat, a mitre, and a girdle: and they shall make holy garments for Aaron thy brother, and his sons, that he may minister unto me in the priest's office.
Ex:28:5: And they shall take gold, and blue, and purple, and scarlet, and fine linen.

a metal, 3 colors, and cloth.. ?

via google you can find things:

http://www.oztorah.com/2007/04/scarl...ange-ttzavveh/

(...)
“shani is one of the most valued colouring materials of the ancient world, often mentioned in the Bible together with the more familiar t’chelet (blue) and argaman (purple), (but) we never knew what it was. It was thought that it was some kind of coccid from outside the Land of Israel, but we have now shown that it is made from something commonly found in the Land of Israel, right under our noses”.

Dr Amar says he has extracted the colour from a coccid (scale insect) he discovered in N’vei Tzuf in south-western Shomron. He learned from medieval Arab manuscripts that they would harvest the coccids at the right time, dry them and boil them up with certain other materials.



From this procedure he found that the shani was orange, not scarlet. This accorded with what was said by Josephus, who described the shani in the Temple and said its colour symbolised fire, which is orange, not red as commonly thought. Dr Amar is understandably excited that his work has solved a Biblical problem after 2000 years

[sylvius]

its colour symbolised fire, which is orange, not red as commonly thought.

This fits iwith the name Zerach:

Rashi on Genesis 38:30

and he named him Zerah: because of the shining appearance (זְרִיחַת) of the crimson.

(Note that "crimson" is just translation of "shani")

ויקרא שמו זרח: על שם זריחת מראית השני

"zarach" = to shine, rise (sun), glow, appear, bloom, phosphoresce.

To be found f.e. in Genesis 32:32,
And the sun rose for him when he passed Penuel, and he was limping on his thigh

וַיִּזְרַח לוֹ הַשֶּׁמֶשׁ , "vayizrach lo hashemesh"

Rashi:

And the sun rose for him-to heal his limp, as it is said: (Mal. 3:20): “the sun of mercy, with healing in its wings”; and those hours that it hastened to set for him when he left Beer-sheba, it hastened to rise for him.

"for him", לוֹ, "lo", written "lamed-vav" = 36.

Rabbi Winston from thirtysix.org saw in this a reference to the hidden light of the first day, "the light of thirtysix"

[duxrow]

Off topic, Sylvius, but am wondering..
Should Ruth and Boaz have named their baby 'Mahlon' after her dead husband IAW Deut25:6 ? Any thoughts on why they chose 'Obed' instead? (short for obedient, is what I've decided.. ha)

Strikes me that you may have knowledge of this that eludes me so far.

[sylvius]

Off topic, Sylvius, but am wondering..
Should Ruth and Boaz have named their baby 'Mahlon' after her dead husband IAW Deut25:6 ? Any thoughts on why they chose 'Obed' instead? (short for obedient, is what I've decided.. ha)

Strikes me that you may have knowledge of this that eludes me so far.

I think it was not custom to name the baby after the deceased husband.
And Boaz was kinsman of Elimelech, so he had to raise seed for him.
Ruth 4:3,
. And he said to the near kinsman, "Naomi, who has returned from the field of Moab, is selling the portion of the field that belonged to our brother, to Elimelech.
And more, the names Machlon and Chilion are not real names.
"machlani" = morbid, hypochondrial.
"choli" =sickness, illness.

Root of both names "chet-lamed" gematria 38.
John 5:5 seeming to be about it.
"chol" can also mean profane.
38 years captured in your illness = captured in the profane world.

[sylvius]

Any thoughts on why they chose 'Obed' instead?

Maybe after the "suffering servant", Isaiah 53.

Obed ="oved"= servant.

Despised and rejected by men, a man of pains and accustomed to illness, and as one who hides his face from us, despised and we held him of no account.
Indeed, he bore our illnesses, and our pains-he carried them, yet we accounted him as plagued, smitten by God and oppressed.
But he was pained because of our transgressions, crushed because of our iniquities; the chastisement of our welfare was upon him, and with his wound we were healed .
(...)
And the Lord wished to crush him, He made him ill; if his soul makes itself restitution, he shall see children, he shall prolong his days, and God's purpose shall prosper in his han. offering (אָשָׁם).” :
11. From the toil of his soul he would see, he would be satisfied; with his knowledge My servant would vindicate the just for many, and their iniquities he would bear.