Fringe Benefits

Quotes:

Dependence upon God makes heroes of ordinary people like you and me! -Bruce Wilkinson

There are always uncertainties ahead, but there is one certainty--God's is good. -Vernon Paterson

A person who wholly follows the Lord is one who believes that the promises of God are trustworthy. -Watchman Nee

Keep praying, but be thankful that God's answers are wiser than your prayers ! -William Culbertson

Trust is faith that has become fact. –Samuel C.

Every evening I turn my troubles over to God - He's going to be up all night anyway. -Donald J. Morgan

Deuteronomy 22:12

A Tallit (pronounced tal-eet), is a prayer shawl with special fringes called Tzitzit (singular) pronounced “seet-seet” on each of the four corners.

The purpose of the garment is to hold the Tzitzit and acts as a head covering for prayer.

These tassels in the King James Version of the Bible are called “fringes.”

The KJV translates the Hebrew word “kanaph” as “borders” in Numbers 15:38.

The Hebrew word “Kanaph” means:

1) wing, extremity, edge.

Therefore the corners of the prayer shawl are often called wings.

Translated as “Hem” in the Greek: kraspedon (G2899).

The earliest mention of Kanaph is found in Exodus 19:4 : ”Ye have seen what I did unto the Egyptians, and how I bare you on eagles’ wings (kanaph), and brought you unto myself.”

The wearing of the “tallit” also called the “tallis” or “prayer shawl,” was commanded by God.

Each tzitzit consists of five double knots and eight threads, a total of thirteen elements. This number added to six hundred, the Hebraic numerical value of the word tzitzit points to the six hundred and thirteen commandments of the Torah.

TAL-ITH contains two Hebrew words; TAL meaning tent and ITH meaning little.

Thus, you have LITTLE TENT.

Each man had his own little tent. (Tabernacle).

This was their personal prayer closet.

Hebrews under the prayer shawl could be said to be dwelling in the secret place of the Most High and under His wings (Ps. 91:1-4).

Saul:

I Samuel 15:26-28 “And Samuel said unto Saul, I will not return with thee: for thou hast rejected the word of the Lord, and the Lord hath rejected thee from being king over Israel. And as Samuel turned about to go away, he laid hold upon the skirt (kanaph) of his mantle (tallit), and it rent. And Samuel said unto him, The Lord hath rent the kingdom of Israel from thee this day, and hath given it to a neighbour of thine, that is better than thou.”

The kingdom was ripped from Saul.

David:

I Sam 24:3-4 “And he came to the sheepcotes by the way, where was a cave; and Saul went in to cover his feet: and David and his men remained in the sides of the cave. And the men of David said unto him, Behold the day of which the Lord said unto thee, Behold, I will deliver thine enemy into thine hand, that thou mayest do to him as it shall seem good unto thee. Then David arose, and cut off the skirt (kanaph) of Saul’s robe (tallit) privily.”

Saul, who out of jealousy had been trying to kill David, stopped off at a cave to “relieve” himself. Little did he know that David and his men where in that same cave. They told David, here’s you chance to kill your enemy. But David, being a man after God’s own heart, knew that it was wrong for him to kill Saul and opted to cut off the tzitzit of Saul’s kanaph. (Remember: the tzitzit was attached to the kanaph) In that way, David showed Saul that he very well could have killed him if he so desired.

Saul got the message:

1 Sam. 24:20 “And now, behold, I know well that thou shalt surely be king, and that the kingdom of Israel shall be established in thine hand.”

Psalms 17:8 “Keep me as the apple of the eye, hide me under the shadow of thy wings (kanaph).”

Psalm 57:1 “Be merciful unto me, O God, be merciful unto me: for my soul trusts in thee: yea, in the shadow of thy wings (kanaph) will I make my refuge, until these calamities be past.”

Ezekiel 16:8 “and I spread my wing over thee, and covered thy nakedness,” and in Psalm 91 “abide under the shadow of the Almighty ” and “under His wings.”

Ruth And Boaz:

Ruth 2:12 “May the LORD repay you for what you have done. May you be richly rewarded by the LORD, the God of Israel, under whose wings you have come to take refuge.”

Later Ruth approaches him at the threshing floor…

Ruth 3:9 “...spread thy skirt over thine handmaid; for thou art a near kinsman.”

Elijah and Elisha:

The Prophet Elijah passed his “mantle” (Talis) to Elisha in (II Kings 2). This “mantle” that Elijah left behind as he was taken up by a whirlwind into Heaven was what Elisha struck and parted the waters of the River of Jordan with! (2 Kings 2:8).