In my book, Adam, the Blueprint of Creation and the Tree of Life, I argue that the Torah reveals a divine code embedded in creation, human DNA, and history. At its center stands the Etz HaChayim — the Tree of Life — representing total dependence on Hashem, covenant fidelity, and the path to redemption.

Parshat Beha’alotecha: The Tipping Point

Right after leaving Mount Sinai — after the “wedding” and honeymoon with God — the people immediately began to complain. Rabbi David Fohrman of Aleph Beta calls this the tipping point. The Ark of the Covenant, with its golden Cherubim facing each other, traveled before the people as a symbol of divine leadership. Yet the people rejected the miraculous manna, God’s direct daily provision.

“Our souls are dried up; there is nothing at all except this manna.” (Numbers 11:6)

This rejection echoes the Garden of Eden. God gave Adam and Chava trees for food, yet they reached for the one tree that represented self-mastery instead of dependence.

Trying to Make the Manna “Ours”

Rabbi Fohrman highlights a profound detail: “The people would go about and gather it, grind it in a mill or pound it in a mortar, boil it in a pot, and make it into cakes” (Numbers 11:8).

God gave them a perfect, ready-to-eat miracle every morning — bread from heaven that tasted like whatever they desired. Yet they took that gift and tried to turn it into something made by their own hands. They ground it, pounded it, baked it — they worked to make it “theirs.”

This is the same sin as the Garden. Instead of gratefully receiving the manna as a daily act of dependence, they tried to possess and control it. It’s not just what we complain about, but how we relate to what God gives us.

meisterdrucke.ie

The Spies and the Question: “Is There a Tree?”

The crisis peaks when Moses sends the spies:

“See the Land… is it good or bad (הַטּוֹבָה הִוא אִם־רָעָה)… Is there a tree in it or not (הֲיֵשׁ בָּהּ עֵץ אִם־אַיִן)?” (Numbers 13:19-20)

Moses asked about one tree — the Tree of Life. Ten spies brought a bad report through the lens of the Tree of Knowledge — fear and self-reliance. Joshua and Caleb answered with the Tree of Life: “The Land is very, very good… Hashem is with us.”

shegznstuff.com

Cherubim, Tov, and Ra — The Hidden Pattern on the Ark

The Ark, topped by the two Cherubim, carries a hidden numerical pattern. In Genesis, “tov” (good) appears four times before man. After the Tree of Knowledge, “ra” (evil) appears five times. A final “tov” appears when the people describe Egypt as good during their complaints — completing 4 tov + 5 ra + final tov. This pattern sits between the Cherubim, where God speaks, holding the memory of humanity’s choice and the hope of repair.

A Personal Giant: My Daughter’s Story

The spies’ dilemma is not ancient history.

In our family right now, we’re facing the same kind of question the spies had to answer. My 23-year-old daughter is bedridden, on oxygen, with a feeding tube. She needs 24-hour care, and we don’t know how much longer we’ll have her. I would leave for Israel tomorrow if I could — but I will not leave my daughter behind.

The spies looked at the giants and said We can’t.’ I’m looking at my daughter and saying the same thing. I understand their fear now in a way I never did before. Sometimes the ‘giant’ in front of you isn’t a walled city — it’s the responsibility to care for someone you love more than your own dreams. I’m learning that trusting God doesn’t always mean moving forward. Sometimes it means staying right where you are and continuing to love with everything you’ve got.

This is the vulnerability Rabbi Fohrman and David Bloch speak about. True faith sometimes looks like trusting God while staying exactly where love requires you to be.

We Are One Family — The DNA Evidence

Dr. Nathaniel Jeanson’s book Traced shows that all human Y-chromosome DNA traces back to three men (Noah’s sons) and mitochondrial DNA to three women (Noah’s daughters-in-law). We are literally one family — the 70 nations are brothers and cousins, all children of Adam. The Tree of Life Blueprint is written in our DNA. The first question — “Am I my brother’s keeper?” (Genesis 4:9) — still echoes.

The Source Code: Jacob, Esau, and the Ten Sayings

Rabbi David Fohrman, in his Shavuot series A Book Like No Other, reveals that the story of Isaac, Rebecca, Esau, and Jacob in Genesis 27 is the source code for the Ten Sayings. He identifies 37 precise textual parallels in the same order. The healing of the human family — repairing “Am I my brother’s keeper?” — is encoded here. The Jewish people carry this code. To erase them would destroy the instructions for healing Adam’s children.

Pirkei Avot and Practical Wisdom

“Who is rich? He who is happy with his portion.” (Pirkei Avot 4:1) “It is not your duty to finish the work, but neither are you at liberty to neglect it.” (Pirkei Avot 2:16)

The wilderness generation had manna but called it “nothing.” We are called to gratitude and faithful action where we stand.

The Question for Us Today

Do Christianity and Islam follow this Torah Blueprint of the Tree of Life — radical dependence, covenant loyalty, and family repair? Or do they represent rewritings of Hashem’s original Torah?

For now, my manna is to love and care for my daughter. That is my act of trust. When her season ends, I will ask again about the Land.

The generation that learned these lessons entered the Land. May we choose the Tree of Life and answer “Yes” to “Are you your brother’s keeper?”

In his recent lecture to a Christian audience, Rabbi Ephraim Palvanov made a striking claim: Judaism and Christianity are “two sides of the same coin.” He used the biblical image of Jacob and Esau — twin brothers from one father — to suggest that despite centuries of tension, the two faiths are destined to reconcile.

As someone who has been studying and teaching the original blueprint of creation for over two decades, I must respectfully ask: How?

When I apply the same rigorous historical-critical method that Jay Smith uses to examine Islam, Christianity reveals the same pattern of late writings. There is also a lack of early independent evidence. Furthermore, there is a significant departure from the source material provided at the beginning.

The Blueprint Was Given to Adam, Not Invented at Sinai

The Torah is not merely a Jewish book given at Mount Sinai. It is the blueprint of creation itself.

God gave this blueprint to Adam in the Garden of Eden. The moral and spiritual pattern for how humanity should live was embedded from the very beginning. Sinai did not create something new — it revealed and formalized what had already been given to Adam and later to Noah.

This is exactly what Rabbi David Fohrman demonstrates in his powerful series A Book Like No Other. In his Shavuot lectures on the Ten Commandments, Fohrman shows that the Ten Sayings at Sinai are not new laws. They are the full revelation of principles and patterns already present in the Book of Genesis. The Torah at Sinai is the expansion of the original blueprint given to Adam.

This understanding lies at the heart of my book, Adam, The Blueprint of Creation and The Tree of Life.

The only verse in the entire Bible that explicitly promises eternal life is found in Genesis 3:22, where God says:

“Behold, the man has become like one of us… and now, lest he reach out his hand and take also of the Tree of Life and eat, and live forever…”

Eternal life was never meant to come through someone dying for our sins. It was always meant to come by reaching out and taking from the Tree of Life — the original blueprint.

This same universal language appears in Leviticus 26:5. The Torah does not say an Israelite, a Levite, or a Kohen shall live by these statutes. It says, “by which a man (Adam) shall live.” The word ” Adam “ is used deliberately. The blueprint was always meant for all humanity.

The Universal Code: From Adam to Ruth

Rabbi Palvanov made this point beautifully in his lecture. He explained that six of the seven Noahide laws were given to Adam, with the seventh added to Noah after the Flood. These are not a later invention for Gentiles — they are the original moral code for all humanity.

He showed how these laws are derived directly from the early chapters of Genesis. One powerful example comes from Genesis 9:6: “Whoever sheds the blood of a man inside a man (ba’adam), his blood shall be shed.” The Talmud understands this as a clear prohibition against abortion under the Noahide laws. The fetus inside its mother is considered “a man inside a man.”

The same depth appears in Genesis 2:24 — “Therefore a man shall leave his father and mother and cleave to his wife, and they shall become one flesh.” From this single verse, the rabbis derive commandments against adultery, bestiality, and the protection of unborn life.

Rabbi Palvanov also shared a stunning gematria. The name Ruth in Hebrew equals 606. As a righteous Gentile, Ruth was already keeping the 7 Noahide laws. When she joined the Jewish people, she accepted the additional 606 commandments, bringing her total to 613 mitzvot.

606 + 7 = 613. One code. Two paths. Same blueprint.

The Baal HaTurim takes this even further, noting that the Ten Commandments contain exactly 620 letters — 613 for the Jewish people plus 7 for all humanity. The number 620 is also the gematria of keter (crown). When a person fulfills this code, they are crowned by God.

There has only ever been one original code.

The Real Twins: Christianity and Islam

Christianity and Islam: The Two Messiahs That End Judaism

Both Christianity and Islam took the Hebrew Scriptures and built new systems around a central “messianic” figure (Jesus and Muhammad/Isa). Both developed replacement theologies:

• Christianity: The Church becomes the “New Israel,” the Law is fulfilled/abolished in Christ, and Jews must eventually accept Jesus (often after tribulation).
• Islam: The final revelation supersedes previous ones; Jews (and Christians) are relegated to dhimmi status or worse in end-times scenarios involving the Mahdi and returning Isa.

Both change “times and laws” (Daniel 7:25). Both were shaped without the original keepers of the code at key decision points (e.g., Nicaea for Christianity).

When I apply Jay Smith’s historical-critical method (the man, the book, and the land/place) to Christianity the same way he uses it on Islam, I see the same pattern: a new central figure, a new set of writings, and a new story that was shaped long after the events.

Recent scholarship, featured on channels like History Valley and on Rabbi Tovia Singer’s site, shows that large portions of the Book of Acts closely parallel the writings of Josephus, my ancient relative. Some scholars argue that the author of Acts copied material directly from Josephus to create a smoother, more “historical” narrative, especially around the character of Paul.

If that’s true, then much of the Christian story was constructed using a Jewish historian’s work — a man whose writings Judaism would never use to promote a new religion.

Many experts today, including Bart Ehrman and others, are openly saying that significant parts of the Christian Bible were shaped, edited, and in some cases fabricated long after the time of Jesus.

So I ask with sincerity: How can Judaism and Christianity truly be “two sides of the same coin” when one looks so different from the original blueprint given to Adam?

Wouldn’t the true “two sides of the same coin” actually be Christianity and Islam — both emerging from our Bible, both creating new messianic figures, new scriptures, and both teaching that the Jewish people and the original Torah are ultimately replaced or superseded in their end-time vision?

I would genuinely like to hear your thoughts on this.

When I apply Jay Smith’s method — demanding early manuscripts, contemporary evidence, and honest chronology for “the man, the book, and the place” — both Christianity and Islam show the same weaknesses.

Jay Smith’s recent lecture at Calvary Chapel powerfully demonstrates that Islam lacks 7th-century evidence for its traditional narrative. When the same standard is applied to Christianity, we see late writings, historical and geographical problems (such as those Rabbi Tovia Singer highlights in the Gospel of Luke), and a theology that departs significantly from the original blueprint.

Both religions took material from the Hebrew Bible, introduced new central figures, created new scriptures, and developed end-time scenarios in which the Jewish people and the original Torah are ultimately sidelined or replaced.

Christianity and Islam, not Judaism and Christianity, appear to be the true “two sides of the same coin.”

My Personal Journey

I was born in 1966 to a Black father from Wellington, Texas, with roots in Cameroon and Nigeria, and a Spanish-speaking mother with deep family history in Jalisco, Guanajuato, Durango, Chihuahua, and New Mexico. Our family has carried the cry “We are from Spain” for nearly five hundred years.

After 9/11, my mother told me that we were Jewish. My maternal grandfather was a Cohen. Even though I am not a Cohen on my father’s side, something ancient awakened in me.

As Isaiah 56 promises, the stranger who joins himself to the Lord is brought into the covenant. Almost twenty-five years later, the original blueprint given to my ancestors has been awakened in me. The same code that was given to Adam now burns inside me.

This is the power of the Tree of Life — it can find anyone, anywhere.

The Blueprint of Creation: From Adam to Sinai

This understanding is at the very heart of my book, Adam, The Blueprint of Creation and The Tree of Life.

Rabbi David Fohrman, in his series A Book Like No Other, shows that the Ten Commandments given at Sinai were not new laws. They were the full revelation of the same blueprint that already existed in the Book of Genesis. Sinai didn’t create something new — it revealed and expanded what had been given to Adam from the beginning.

This is why the Torah consistently uses the word “Adam” when speaking of man’s responsibility. In Leviticus 26:5, it does not say an Israelite, a Levite, or a Kohen shall live by them. It says:

“You shall therefore keep My statutes and My rules, by which a man (Adam) shall live.”

The Torah is speaking to Adam — to all humanity. The blueprint was always meant for everyone.

This connects directly to the only verse in the Bible that explicitly promises eternal life. In Genesis 3:22, God says:

“Behold, the man has become like one of us… and now, lest he reach out his hand and take also of the Tree of Life and eat, and live forever…”

Eternal life was never meant to come through someone dying for our sins. It was always meant to come by reaching out and taking from the Tree of Life — the original blueprint of creation.

This is the same Tree of Life that Ruth recognized. It is the same code that the Jewish people have preserved as the firstborn. And it remains available to every human being who is willing to return to the original pattern given to Adam.

Hazan Gavriel ben David

For centuries, Jewish sparks have hidden in plain sight across the world. In America, those sparks have found a unique freedom to reignite. Genetic research, historical records, and thousands of personal stories — including my own — show how deeply intertwined the United States is with Jewish heritage in ways no other country can claim.

The Genetic Evidence

A popular video titled “Geneticists Compared Jewish DNA to American DNA: The Results Surprised Even the Researchers!” highlights real scientific findings. Studies such as:

• Atzmon et al. (2010) and Carmi et al. (2014) document the Ashkenazi Jewish founder effect arising from a small population that existed roughly 600–800 years ago.
• Bryc et al. (2015), using 23andMe data, found detectable Ashkenazi ancestry in some Americans with no known Jewish family history.
• Research in the American Southwest, including Velez et al. (2012), identified Sephardic Jewish genetic signals and founder mutations, such as BRCA1 185delAG, in Hispano families in New Mexico and Colorado. These trace back to conversos (Jews who outwardly converted during the Spanish Inquisition) who came with the Spanish Empire to the New World.

These are not myths. They are measurable DNA patterns showing how Jewish ancestry traveled from Iberia through Mexico into what is now the American Southwest — including New Mexico, where many of my ancestors settled.

America’s Unique Relationship with the Jewish People

No other nation has welcomed and empowered Jewish contributions as the United States has. From the very beginning:

• In 1654, the first Jewish settlers arrived in New Amsterdam (New York). They helped establish the principle of religious liberty that would later define America.
• During the American Revolution, Haym Salomon, a Jewish immigrant, personally financed much of the war effort, lending money to George Washington and the Continental Congress when the cause was nearly bankrupt.
• The U.S. Constitution and Bill of Rights created a society where Jews could participate fully without forced conversion or legal discrimination — a radical departure from Europe and the Inquisition-era New World.

Jewish Americans have shaped the nation disproportionately to their small population:

• Science & Medicine: Albert Einstein, Jonas Salk (polio vaccine), Rosalyn Yalow (Nobel in Medicine).
• Entertainment & Culture: Hollywood pioneers like the Warner brothers, Steven Spielberg, and countless writers, musicians, and comedians who helped define American popular culture.
• Business & Innovation: Levi Strauss (blue jeans), Estée Lauder, Sergey Brin (Google co-founder), and many leaders in finance, technology, and retail.
• Military & Public Service: Over 3,500 Jewish soldiers fought in the Revolutionary War; more than 550,000 served in World War II. Jews have served as Supreme Court justices, senators, cabinet members, and in every major conflict since.
• Philanthropy: From establishing major hospitals and universities to supporting civil rights and humanitarian causes worldwide.

America became the largest and freest Jewish community in history after the Holocaust. Today it is home to roughly 6–7 million Jews — second only to Israel — and remains the strongest ally of the Jewish state. This relationship is unique: a nation founded on biblical principles of liberty where Jews could thrive openly and contribute fully.

The Southwest Return Movement

In the American Southwest, particularly New Mexico and Texas, a quieter but profound story has unfolded over the last 40 years. Many families with Spanish surnames carry hidden Jewish traditions — lighting candles on Friday nights, avoiding pork, observing special spring cleanings, and passing down Ladino phrases in secret for generations.

Hundreds, perhaps thousands, of descendants of conversos (anusim) are now returning to Judaism. DNA tests, family stories, and genealogical research are confirming what was once whispered in private.

Rabbi Stephen Leon of El Paso stands as one of the great testimonies to this movement. Upon arriving in El Paso in 1986, he began encountering families engaged in these hidden practices. Through decades of compassionate outreach, education, and the establishment of the Anusim Center, Rabbi Leon has helped countless individuals and families return home to the Jewish people. His work over more than 35 years has been instrumental in the Southwest return movement, guiding people with patience and deep Torah knowledge.

Many of these families, including mine, settled in New Mexico generations ago. Today, more and more are studying, converting formally when needed, and openly embracing their heritage.

My Personal Journey Home

I am living proof of these genetic and cultural realities.

Raised in a Christian home in the Texas Panhandle with Baptist and Catholic influences, I served as an altar boy from age seven. Around age 35, my mother revealed our family’s hidden Jewish practices: secret Shabbat candles, no pork in the home, special spring cleaning rituals, and Ladino-influenced traditions. She traced our lineage through Halevi/Levite lines from Spain in 1064, through Mexico, and into Texas and New Mexico with surnames including Lucero, Vigil, Almanzar, Díaz, Ramírez, Jiménez, and Hunnicutt.

DNA testing later confirmed what family memory suggested. My paternal line carries J-FT235823 Cohen/Levite markers with deep priestly connections. After extensive genealogical research (building a tree of over 76,000 entries), I formally returned to the Conservative movement in 2012 under the guidance of Rabbi Stephen Leon in El Paso.

Today I serve as Hazan at Esnoga Beit HaShoavah in the Amarillo area. I teach Torah, including through prison ministry, and continue to document and share this reclaimed heritage. What was once hidden is now a source of light, study, and service.

A Living Tapestry

The United States has become a unique stage for the ingathering of hidden sparks. From Revolutionary financiers to Southwest converso descendants, Jewish contributions and returns are woven into the American story like nowhere else.

If you carry unexplained family traditions, mysterious DNA results, or a pull toward Judaism, you may be part of this story too. The lights are returning.

May we all merit to see the full redemption and ingathering, as prophesied.

Hazan Gavriel ben David

Christians often point to Daniel chapter 9 as proof that Jesus fulfilled the exact timing of the Messiah’s arrival. They calculate 483 years from the decree to rebuild Jerusalem and claim it lands perfectly on Jesus’ ministry and crucifixion.

But when you apply the same rigorous historical criticism that Jay Smith uses to expose the foundations of Islam, Christianity shows the same weaknesses.

Jay Smith demands early manuscripts, contemporary records, and honest chronology. He shows that Islam has no 7th-century Quran manuscripts and that its key traditions were written centuries later. Rabbi Tovia Singer applies that same standard to Christian claims about Daniel 9 and the resurrection.

In recent lectures, Rabbi Singer dismantles the popular Christian reading of Daniel 9. He shows how missionaries mistranslate the Hebrew, ignore context, and force the text to fit a narrative that isn’t there. He also addresses claims of Jesus’ resurrection, pointing out that the often-repeated idea of the disciples dying as martyrs for their eyewitness testimony has no solid support in the earliest sources.

This lines up with what Daniel himself warned about in Daniel 7:25 — a power that would “think to change the times and the law.” Rome changed calendars, dates, and interpretations.

The Council of Nicaea in 325 CE happened after Jews had been expelled from Jerusalem. No Jewish voices were present when major decisions were made. The original blueprint was rewritten without the people commanded in Exodus 12:1 to keep and record time.

Rabbi Ephraim Palvanov explained it clearly: a person repents and turns to Hashem because he is created in the image of God and is fundamentally good. We are not born in sin. We do not need someone to die for our sins. The original blueprint given to Adam is inside every human being.

Daniel didn’t just prophesy the coming of the Messiah. He also prophesied the rise of a movement that would become the greatest stumbling block to Israel — a religion built on altered times, changed interpretations, and a rewritten code.

The same critical eye Jay Smith uses on Islam and Rabbi Tovia Singer uses on Christian claims reveals the pattern.

Mishna Torah

(Note: This is Rambam’s Mishneh Torah — his comprehensive code of Jewish law, often called “Mishna Torah” in conversation — not the Mishna itself, though he also wrote a famous commentary on the Mishna. These two chapters close out the entire Mishneh Torah and lay out his vision of the Mashiach, the Messianic era, and his candid assessment of Jesus and Christianity.)

Here is the complete, clear English translation by Rabbi Eliyahu Touger (Chabad.org edition). (prison ministry, synagogue, or your own notes).

Chapter 11 – The King Messiah

Halacha 1 In the future, the Messianic king will arise and renew the Davidic dynasty, restoring it to its initial sovereignty. He will build the Temple and gather the dispersed of Israel. Then, in his days, the observance of all the statutes will return to their previous state. We will offer sacrifices, observe the Sabbatical and Jubilee years according to all their particulars as described by the Torah.

Anyone who does not believe in him or does not await his coming denies not only the statements of the other prophets, but those of the Torah and Moses, our teacher.

The Torah testified to his coming, as Deuteronomy 30:3-5 states: “God will bring back your captivity and have mercy upon you. He will again gather you from among the nations… Even if your Diaspora is at the ends of the heavens, God will gather you up from there… and bring you to the land.” These explicit words of the Torah include all the statements made by all the prophets.

Reference to Mashiach is also made in the portion of Bilaam, who prophesies about two anointed kings: the first anointed king, David, who saved Israel from her oppressors; and the final anointed king, who will arise from his descendants and save Israel at the end of days…

The Instruction

Halacha 2 Similarly, with regard to the cities of refuge, Deuteronomy 19:8-9 states: “When God will expand your borders… You must add three more cities.” This command was never fulfilled. Surely, God did not give this command in vain…

Halacha 3 One should not presume that the Messianic king must work miracles and wonders, bring about new phenomena in the world, resurrect the dead, or perform other similar deeds. This is definitely not true. Proof can be brought from the fact that Rabbi Akiva… was one of the supporters of King Bar Kozibah [Bar Kochba] and would describe him as the Messianic king… Once he was killed, they realized that he was not the Mashiach. The Sages did not ask him for any signs or wonders.

The main thrust of the matter is: This Torah, its statutes and its laws, are everlasting. We may not add to them or detract from them.

Halacha 4 (the section highlighted in the video) If a king will arise from the House of David who diligently contemplates the Torah and observes its mitzvot as prescribed by the Written Law and the Oral Law as David, his ancestor, compels all of Israel to walk in the way of the Torah and rectify the breaches in its observance, and fights the wars of God, we may, with assurance, consider him Mashiach.

If he succeeds in the above, builds the Temple in its place, and gathers the dispersed of Israel, he is definitely the Mashiach. He will then improve the entire world, motivating all the nations to serve God together…

Jesus of Nazareth, who aspired to be the Mashiach and was executed by the court, was also alluded to in Daniel’s prophecies, as ibid. 11:14 states: “The vulgar among your people shall exalt themselves in an attempt to fulfill the vision, but they shall stumble.”

Can there be a greater stumbling block than Christianity? All the prophets spoke of Mashiach as the redeemer of Israel and their savior who would gather their dispersed and strengthen their observance of the mitzvot. In contrast, Christianity caused the Jews to be slain by the sword, their remnants to be scattered and humbled, the Torah to be altered, and the majority of the world to err and serve a god other than the Lord.

Nevertheless, the intent of the Creator of the world is not within the power of man to comprehend, for His ways are not our ways, nor are His thoughts our thoughts. Ultimately, all the deeds of Jesus of Nazareth and that Ishmaelite [Muhammad] who arose after him will only serve to prepare the way for Mashiach’s coming and the improvement of the entire world, motivating the nations to serve God together as Tzephaniah 3:9 states: “I will transform the peoples to a purer language so that they all will call upon the name of God and serve Him with one purpose.”

How will this come about? The entire world has already become filled with the mention of Mashiach, Torah, and mitzvot… When the true Messianic king arises and proves successful, his position becomes exalted and uplifted, and they will all return and realize that their ancestors bestowed upon them a false heritage and that their prophets and ancestors caused them to err.

Chapter 12 – The Times of the Messiah

Halacha 1: Do not presume that in the Messianic age any facet of the world’s nature will change or that there will be innovations in the work of creation. Rather, the world will continue according to its pattern. Although Isaiah 11:6 states: “The wolf will dwell with the lamb…,” these words are a metaphor and a parable. The interpretation of the prophecy is as follows: Israel will dwell securely together with the wicked Gentiles who are likened to a wolf and a leopard… They will all return to the true faith and no longer steal or destroy…

Halacha 2 Our Sages taught: “There will be no difference between the current age and the Messianic era except the emancipation from our subjugation to the gentile kingdoms.”… A person should not occupy himself with the Aggadot and the exegesis of verses concerning these and similar matters, nor should he consider them as essentials, for study of them will neither bring fear nor love of God. Similarly, one should not try to determine the appointed time for Mashiach’s coming. Our Sages declared: “May the spirits of those who attempt to determine the time of Mashiach’s coming expire!” Rather, one should await and believe in the general conception of the matter as explained.

Halacha 3 During the era of the Messianic king… the entire nation’s line of descent will be established on the basis of his words and the prophetic spirit which will rest upon him… He will purify the lineage of the Levites first…

Halacha 4 The Sages and the prophets did not yearn for the Messianic era in order to have dominion over the entire world, to rule over the gentiles, to be exalted by the nations, or to eat, drink, and celebrate. Rather, they desired to be free to involve themselves in Torah and wisdom without any pressures or disturbances, so that they would merit the world to come…

Halacha 5 In that era, there will be neither famine nor war, envy nor competition… The occupation of the entire world will be solely to know God. Therefore, the Jews will be great sages and know the hidden matters, grasping the knowledge of their Creator according to the full extent of human potential, as Isaiah 11:9 states: “The world will be filled with the knowledge of God as the waters cover the ocean bed.”

This completes Hilchot Melachim and the entire Mishneh Torah.

These chapters are pure gold for teaching emunah (faith) in the coming of Mashiach — especially the clear criteria (Davidic king who succeeds in rebuilding the Temple, gathering the exiles, and restoring Torah observance) and the powerful closing vision of a world filled with knowledge of God.

Ruth Was Always The Blueprint

An Analysis of Rabbi Efraim Palvanov’s Lecture “Understanding Noahide Laws (for Christians).”

Delivered in July 2025 at the Villa Maria Education and Spirituality Center (an interfaith venue founded by Rev. George Balasko), this talk distills profound layers of Jewish wisdom for a Christian audience. Rabbi Palvanov—known for weaving Torah, history, science, mysticism, and gematria—moves far beyond surface-level explanations. He reveals connections, corrections of misconceptions, and a vision of reconciliation that emerges only after decades of deep immersion.

This is the kind of teaching that feels like the fruit of 40 years of sermons: not merely what can be written in a book or a single d’var Torah, but the living, interconnected, oral-dimension insights that rabbis carry and transmit. The “what could not be written down” surfaces in the Oral Torah’s living application, the gematria that unlocks hidden structure, the historical integrations, and the prophetic typology that only becomes visible when sources speak to one another across centuries.

The Noahide Laws are not a modern invention, conspiracy, or minimal “gentile version” of Judaism. They are the universal pre-Sinai moral code given to humanity (rooted in Adam and expanded for Noah), affirmed in the New Testament, explained in depth by the Oral Tradition, and, by Maimonides, positioned as part of God’s plan for the rectification of the world. Judaism and Christianity are “two sides of the same coin,” destined for reconciliation (Jacob & Esau typology), and together they have civilized the world and spread knowledge of the one God. The ultimate goal: universal recognition of Hashem as King, with peace and prosperity (Zechariah).

1. Judaism & Christianity: Two Sides of the Same Coin (Jacob & Esau) Rabbi Palvanov opens with the shared foundation: both traditions affirm the Torah/Tanakh as the word of God. Christianity emerged from Judaism—Jesus and all his disciples were Jews; the Talmud and Zohar are in Aramaic, preserving the same linguistic and legal world.

The Jewish lens on the relationship is the story of the twin brothers Jacob and Esau. Esau (“complete”) came first; Jacob (“heel-grasper”) followed. Esau represents the Christian world in classical Jewish typology. After years of tension, they reunite and weep (Genesis 33). Esau invites Jacob to live with him in Seir; Jacob says he will come later. The sages saw this as prophetic: a future day of full reconciliation when “Jacob and Esau will live together.”

Palvanov notes we are witnessing this reconciliation unfolding after 2,000 years. Shared prayers (Psalms, Kedushah), shared scripture, and shared moral vision make cooperation not only possible but necessary.

2. The Purpose of Torah & Law God created the world through speech (“Let there be light”). The covenant and Torah are the sustaining force of creation (“If it were not for My covenant day and night, I would not have created heaven and earth”). The laws are not burdensome but elevating: they make the world more moral and spiritual so that the nations see and want to walk in God’s ways—bringing world peace. Abraham chose God in an idolatrous world; his descendants are to be “a light unto the nations.”

3. The Noahide Laws: Origins, Details & Misconceptions This is the heart of the lecture. The seven universal laws (with ~30 sub-points) are:

Ezekiel 33 Return

When requesting how to return to the land of Israel in the book of Ezekiel, we see the same laws that must be kept:

Now the word of the Lord came to me, saying:		כגוַיְהִ֥י דְבַר־יְהֹוָ֖ה אֵלַ֥י לֵאמֹֽר:
24“Son of man, the dwellers of these ruins on the soil of Israel speak, saying: Abraham was one, and he inherited the land, and we are many-the land has surely been given to us for an inheritance.		כדבֶּן־אָדָ֗ם יֹֽ֠שְׁבֵי הֶֽחֳרָב֨וֹת הָאֵ֜לֶּה עַל־אַדְמַ֚ת יִשְׂרָאֵל֙ אֹֽמְרִ֣ים לֵאמֹ֔ר אֶחָד֙ הָיָ֣ה אַבְרָהָ֔ם וַיִּירַ֖שׁ אֶת־הָאָ֑רֶץ וַֽאֲנַ֣חְנוּ רַבִּ֔ים לָ֛נוּ נִתְּנָ֥ה הָאָ֖רֶץ לְמֽוֹרָשָֽׁה:
25Therefore, say to them: So said the Lord God, You eat on the blood and you raise your eyes to your pagan deities, and you shed blood-and you should inherit the land?		כהלָכֵן֩ אֱמֹ֨ר אֲלֵהֶ֜ם כֹּֽה־אָמַ֣ר | אֲדֹנָ֣י יֱהֹוִ֗ה עַל־הַדָּ֧ם | תֹּאכֵ֛לוּ וְעֵֽינֵכֶ֛ם תִּשְׂא֥וּ אֶל־גִּלּֽוּלֵיכֶ֖ם וְדָ֣ם תִּשְׁפֹּ֑כוּ וְהָאָ֖רֶץ תִּירָֽשׁוּ:
26You stood on your sword, you committed abominations, and you contaminated each man his neighbor’s wife, and you should inherit the land?		כועֲמַדְתֶּ֚ם עַל־חַרְבְּכֶם֙ עֲשִׂיתֶ֣ן תּֽוֹעֵבָ֔ה וְאִ֛ישׁ אֶת־אֵ֥שֶׁת רֵעֵ֖הוּ טִמֵּאתֶ֑ם וְהָאָ֖רֶץ תִּירָֽשׁוּ:

The Seven Laws For All Humanity

• Establish courts of justice
• No blasphemy (cursing God’s name)
• No idolatry
• No sexual immorality
• No murder
• No robbery
• No eating flesh torn from a living animal (and related blood prohibitions)

Key clarifications (things many do not know):

Insights:

• Six were given to Adam; the seventh (prohibition of eating limb from a living animal) was added for Noah after the Flood, when meat-eating was permitted.
• Sexual immorality derives from Genesis 2:24 (“cling to his wife… one flesh”) — prohibiting adultery, bestiality, and same-species violations.
• Bloodshed includes abortion (“shofekh dam ha’adam ba’adam” — spilling the blood of a human inside a human).
• The New Testament (Acts 15) gives Gentiles exactly these core requirements: abstain from food sacrificed to idols, blood, strangled animals, and sexual immorality. Jesus explicitly affirmed the eternal nature of the law (Matthew 5:17-18): “Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law… not the smallest letter will disappear.”

Palvanov strongly dispels conspiracy theories: Chabad’s global Noahide outreach is an act of voluntary inspiration, not domination. “We’re all Noahides” when fulfilling these basics.

Judah and Ephriam

4. Jews as Light Unto the Nations: Historical Contributions. Jews have disproportionately civilized the world:

• ~22% of Nobel Prizes despite being 0.2% of the population.
• Haym Salomon: Major financier of the American Revolution; without his support, the United States might not have materialized.
• Samuel Gompers: Pioneer of the American labor movement (weekends, 8-hour workday).
• Waldemar Haffkine: Developed early vaccines for cholera and malaria, saving millions; later became a devout Orthodox Jew devoted to education.

America’s founding has deep parallels with ancient Israel (13 colonies / 13 tribes). Jews came to America for freedom and helped build it.

5. Deeper Layers: Gematria, Oral Torah & Universal Access to Inspiration Gematria (Jewish numerology) is demystified as a tool for revealing structure, not magic. The Baal HaTurim notes that the Ten Commandments contain exactly 620 letters. This equals the 613 mitzvot for Jews + the 7 Noahide laws, for a total of 620 (also the gematria of keter / crown). The full moral code for humanity is revealed at Sinai.

The Mishna

Rabbi Meir (Talmud, Sanhedrin 59a): Even a gentile who studies Torah is considered like a High Priest. The verse says “a man” (ADAM) shall live by the statutes, not “a priest, Levite, or Israelite.”

A Midrash teaches that ruach hakodesh (Divine inspiration / holy spirit) is available to every person according to their deeds. Spiritual elevation and closeness to God are not closed off; “salvation is in your own hands.”

These points illustrate the “Oral Torah” dimension—the living tradition that connects written texts across time and reveals what a flat reading misses.

6. Maimonides (Rambam) on Christianity & the Shared Mission. In his code of law, Maimonides acknowledges Christianity as distinct from Judaism, yet recognizes its significant historical role: Christians spread the Torah to the farthest corners of the earth and taught the basics of God to the nations. This is part of God’s plan. Jews should appreciate it and work together with Christians against evil, insanity, and immorality to bring the perfect world we all yearn for.

7. The Eschatological Vision (Zechariah) The lecture closes with Zechariah: On that day, God (Hashem) will be King over the whole world. The whole world will recognize the one true God—“the One God who is One and His Name is One.” We will be united under one God and enjoy the peace and prosperity we all yearn for. God willing, soon.

Sources Referenced: Notes & Key Insights

• Torah / Tanakh (Genesis 2:24; Jacob & Esau narratives; Abraham; Noah; Zechariah’s prophecy of universal recognition of God).
• New Testament — Matthew 5:17-18 (Jesus affirms the eternal law); Acts 15 (Gentile requirements = Noahide Code).
• Talmud — Sanhedrin 59a (Rabbi Meir on gentile Torah study equaling High Priest merit).
• Midrash — On Ruach Hakodesh is available according to deeds.
• Maimonides (Rambam) — Mishneh Torah (Laws of Kings / Repentance sections): Christianity’s historical role in spreading Torah concepts as part of divine providence; positive appreciation alongside recognition of differences. Also, classic statements on Noahides performing additional mitzvot and receiving reward.
• Baal HaTurim — Commentary on Exodus 20: the 620 letters of the Ten Commandments encode 613 + 7 = the full moral code for humanity.
• Historical figures — Haym Salomon, Samuel Gompers, Waldemar Haffkine (as above).
• Chabad (Lubavitch) — Modern voluntary global effort to inspire observance of the seven laws.
• Gematria — As a structural and mystical tool (exemplified via Baal HaTurim).
• Oral Torah concept — The living interpretive tradition that makes these connections visible.

Why This Lecture Matters (The “What Could Not Be Written Down”)

A written article or a single sermon can list the seven laws. What cannot be fully written is the web of connections—how Jacob/Esau typology, Jesus’ affirmation of the law, Acts 15, Maimonides’ vision, gematria in the Ten Commandments, historical Jewish contributions, and Zechariah’s prophecy all speak with one voice.

It is the living transmission—the Oral dimension—that turns information into transformation. Rabbi Palvanov models exactly what the user has spent years pursuing: authentic, evidence-based, bridge-building Torah that honors both tradition and the shared destiny of Jews and Christians as partners in revealing God’s word and bringing moral order to the world.

This is not “replacement” or syncretism. It is the mature recognition that we are on the same side of the great struggle for truth, morality, and the ultimate unity under the One God.

May we merit to see the reconciliation of Jacob and Esau in our days, and the fulfillment of Zechariah’s vision—speedily and in our time.

In Rabbi Ephraim Palvanov’s recent lecture to a Christian audience, he shared a beautiful gematria: the name Ruth equals 606. As a righteous Gentile, Ruth already kept the 7 Noahide laws. When she joined Israel, she accepted the additional 606 commandments — totaling the full 613 mitzvot.

Ruth: The Story that Reveals The Torah’s Code

606 + 7 = 613. One code. Two paths. Same blueprint.

This matches the central message of my book, Adam, The Blueprint of Creation and The Tree of Life. There is only one original code — the moral and spiritual blueprint given to all humanity. Israel carries it as the firstborn, staying close to the Father and close to their siblings to transmit the instructions, as Rabbi David Fohrman teaches.

Rabbi Ephraim also spoke about Judah and Ephraim. When you look at Nobel Prize winners, a striking pattern emerges. Jews, representing Judah, win a massively disproportionate share of the prizes despite being a tiny fraction of the world’s population. Christians, representing the larger Ephraim portion, account for the majority of winners. Together, Judah and Ephraim have dominated these prizes that recognize contributions to humanity.

This may be a hidden outline of who the United States really is when viewed through the lens of the blueprint. Rabbi Manis Friedman teaches that America truly is a Jewish nation at its core — modeled after ancient Israel. Three-time Emmy-winning filmmaker Simcha Jacobovici, whom I’ve followed since I found out I was Jewish in 2001, shows how far the West has drifted from that original code, putting us in great danger.

The Rambam

The Rambam writes plainly in Mishneh Torah, Hilchot Melachim u’Milchamot 11:4:

“Can there be a greater stumbling block than Christianity? All the prophets spoke of Mashiach as the redeemer of Israel and their savior who would gather their dispersed and strengthen their observance of the mitzvot. In contrast, Christianity caused the Jews to be slain by the sword, their remnants to be scattered and humbled, the Torah to be altered, and the majority of the world to err and serve a god other than the Lord.”

He also states that Jesus of Nazareth, who aspired to be the Messiah and was executed, is alluded to in Daniel 11:14. If Christians use Daniel 9 to support Jesus, they must also consider the Rambam’s interpretation of Daniel 11 about him.

Yet in God’s mysterious plan, even this has served to prepare the world for the true Messiah.

This brings us full circle to Rabbi David Fohrman’s powerful lectures, A Book Like No Other, specifically Eden 1: The Elephant in the Room.

Rabbi Fohrman begins with three simple but profound questions that most people never ask:

Why are there two trees in the Garden? What is the purpose of those two trees? And why does the Torah make such a big deal about them?

These questions are the elephant in the room. They take us back to the original blueprint God placed in Creation itself — the same blueprint Ruth recognized, the same code Judah and Ephraim are both called to live by, and the same Tree of Life that still stands at the center of everything.

Bonus: Hebrew Lesson

Hebrew Lesson: What Was Lost in Translation

In his lecture, Rabbi Ephraim Palvanov explains how several of the Noahide commandments derive directly from a single verse in Genesis. He says:

“The Talmud says, ‘Very simple. It’s right out of one verse in Genesis chapter 2 verse 24… al ken ya’azov ish et aviv ve’et imo, ve’davak be’ishto, ve’hayu levasar echad.’”

From this single Hebrew verse, the rabbis derive multiple commandments. “Davak be’ishto” — a man shall cleave to his wife — teaches the prohibition of adultery. “Ve’hayu levasar echad” — and they shall become one flesh — teaches that the union must be of the same species, ruling out bestiality. This same phrase is also understood as protecting the life of the unborn child, because the baby in the womb is considered part of that “one flesh.”

Rabbi Palvanov points out that this is exactly why the original Hebrew matters so much.

Two hundred and fifty years ago, at the founding of America, many of the founding fathers could still read the Bible in Hebrew. That knowledge has largely been lost in the Christian world today. When you lose the Hebrew, you lose the precision and depth of the original blueprint.

This is why returning to the original Hebrew words, as Rabbi Palvanov does with the Baal HaTurim and the Talmud, reveals how much of the original code has been hidden in plain sight.

Hazan Gavriel ben David