Koof ~ ק
“The Blessing and The Curse”
Literally Means = “HaKafah” (to encircle or go around) but also Curse (K’lalah)
Gematria = 100
Sound = will always make a “K” sound
Comes from the Hebrew word Kof = Monkey
Recap/Reminder: In the letter Hey ה we learned about our Supervisor as we see a picture in the letter of a larger part watching over a smaller part … we also see a picture of that in the Koof
Example words:
Kahal קהל = community and it comes directly from the Torah
Kesher קשר means connection or a knot, but what is the connection between the letter Koof and a monkey?
Hakafa הקפה = Encirclement; inclusion ( הקפות Jewish Ritual)
- During Simchat Torah (the joy of the Torah) there is the tradition of forming an encirclement in the synagogue, singing and dancing with the Torah scrolls.
- This reminds me of how a bride will encircle her bridegroom during a Jewish wedding ceremony
- The Torah is cyclical and not linear … each year we should be learning something new, something different. The word of G-D is cyclical as is the calendar and the festivals.
What is the significance in the connection with the letter Koof?
- Hey, and koof have a big part and a smaller part ~ the top part is a picture of G-D who is high and above, shadowing over us (Hashgacha or supervision as we already learned about in the letter Hey and what it means to be Kosher)
- Hakafa (or Hakafot) is a reminder for us of who is the master Supervisor as we start another cycle of supervision and instruction (Torah)
The ethics within an example:
The Credit Card user and the Credit Lender
- The one who purchases and doesn’t have to pay is blessed
- However, if he goes and steals or misuses his privilege, it can turn to a curse
- But the lender also has to wait for his "reward" (his returns)
The righteous person receiving a reward:
He/she is going to get their reward in the Hakafa … so that the reward may be great in the world to come.
In essence, the Koof is likened to the one who keeps the leger book so to speak:
The letter Koof also comes from the word Kof …
Which means monkey ~ so why is that relevant?
Let us look at Shir Ha Shirim ~ Song of Songs:
The Hebrew word “kiss” is rooted in the word: Noon, shin, koof = Nashak and it is the key in how we can walk into blessings and not curses.
Part of being disciple of Mashiach is being able to walk into blessing – into all He has for us, and we are not talking about “a prosperity message!”
G-D wants us to walk into blessing … because when the blessing is given to us from above, we have a testimony for the One who is giving us blessings
- Think about when a credit statement comes
- We look at the balance and we see that we are either in negative or positive balance
- None of us want to be left "in the red" (US term), that’s for sure
- BUT WHAT ABOUT IF OUR STATEMENT CAME AND THERE WAS A SURPLUS !!!
- This is a picture of the righteous person receiving their reward in the world to come!
- We don’t just want to scrape past, make do or just get by but we want to be in the surplus on that day
The letter Koof also comes from the word Kof …
Which means monkey ~ so why is that relevant?
- Just as a monkey imitates what we do, we are meant to imitate G-D in all we do “imitation is the greatest form of flattery.”
- This positive balance comes from imitating our Master … not just in studying, hearing or listening about Him, but in doing what He has commanded us to do.
Let us look at Shir Ha Shirim ~ Song of Songs:
- How do we make sure we get the positive balance?
- When we walk into a new cycle … how can we be sure it will be a blessing and not a curse?
- The word wine represents the secrets of the Torah …
- But it suggests in this text that it is more important to know His love … this is the love of our Messiah!
- When we come into this relationship with Him, this intimacy with the Messiah, there is no knowledge – NOTHING – that can compare to the kiss of the Messiah, the touch of the Messiah, the hug of the Messiah … and so on …
The Hebrew word “kiss” is rooted in the word: Noon, shin, koof = Nashak and it is the key in how we can walk into blessings and not curses.
Part of being disciple of Mashiach is being able to walk into blessing – into all He has for us, and we are not talking about “a prosperity message!”
- Think about Ya’akov and his words when he wrestled … he said, “I will not let you go unless you bless me!”
G-D wants us to walk into blessing … because when the blessing is given to us from above, we have a testimony for the One who is giving us blessings
- Genesis 27:27 ~ The greatest stories of blessings …
- Isaac with Jacob & Esau ~ the blessing is given to Jacob instead of Isaac.
- Jacob is trying to do everything he can to be next to his father to receive the blessing.
- The key of receiving the blessing is by being close to the Father
- “And he came near and kissed him. And he smelled the smell of his raiment, and blessed him, and said: See, the smell of my son is as the smell of a field which the L-RD has blessed.”
- The field represents the smell of Gan Eden; but look how the blessing was given to him ~ the blessing was given to him with a holy kiss!
- It is a prophetic picture of the Messiah who will pass His blessing to us with a kiss!
Psalm 2:12-13 … “Do homage in purity (to kiss: nashku bar), lest He be angry and ye perish in the way, when suddenly His wrath is kindled. Happy are all they that take refuge in Him.“ Tehilim 2:12-13
"If we are not kissing the Son, our blessing can actually become a curse."
Torah study: “Who is it we are bringing with us when we study?” Do we ask Mashiach to come along with us and ask us to teach us? If we don’t we are not necessarily receiving the blessing …
Our Supervisor loves us and wants to talk to us and kiss us in a personal and intimate relationship … so that we will walk into Hakafah and then we will walk into the next world with not just a clean bill but a surplus.
This is not talking about simply “being in or out” of the Kingdom, being saved or not …
Yeshua tells us:
“Some of us will be called the least and some of us will be called great!”
- Interesting that in Matthew 5:19 it is referring to what we teach others: “Whosoever therefore shall break one of these least commandments, and shall teach men, so he shall be called the least in the kingdom of heaven: but whosoever shall do and teach them, the same shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven.”
- So as we seek to imitate our King, others will hopefully be drawn to Him so we can share His Kingdom
- The letter Koof represents our desire to become great in the Kingdom of G-D and how do we do this?
- We do this only with the kisses and the fragrance of Messiah!
Let us continue to walk into the blessings that G-D is wanting us to walk into …
And the way we do that is by imitating our Supervisor, not just in word but in our deed
So that when we enter the world to come, our statement (report) will have surplus … !!
Amen v Amen!
