The three weeks from the 17th day of the month fo Tammuz to the 9th day of the month of Av is called between the straits (in Hebrew it is called Bein ha-Metzraim). The term comes from the 3rd verse of the first chapter of Lamentations in which Jeremiah speaks of the place where the persecutors overtook Judah was “between the straits”.
Judah is gone into captivity because of affliction, and because of great servitude: she dwelleth among the heathen, she findeth no rest: all her persecutors overtook her between the straits. (Lamentations 1:3 KJV)
The term of being between the straits has the imagery of being in a narrow place, one which is confined. Being confined, we can think of prison. We are told what time to wake up, when to eat, when to shower, when to sleep, etc. Being confined means we have lost our freedom and are subject to our rulers. This is exactly what happened when the Northern Kingdom of Israel went into exile to the Assyrians, and the Southern Kingdom of Judah was captured by the Babylonians.
At the heart of the matter is the idea that Israel lost the Holy Temple which was destroyed by King Nebuchadnezzar when he captured Jerusalem. The Holy Temple was supposed to have been the heart and soul of the Israelites, but as Jeremiah writes in Lamentations, the Israelites were disobedient, and Judah was destroyed for their unfaithfulness. (Lamentations 1:4-10, 17)
The roads of Zion are in mourning
Because no one comes to the appointed feasts.
All her gates are desolate;
Her priests are groaning,
Her virgins are afflicted,
And she herself is bitter.
5
Her adversaries have become her masters,
Her enemies prosper;
For the Lord has caused her grief
Because of the multitude of her transgressions;
Her little ones have gone away
As captives before the adversary.
6
All her majesty
Has departed from the daughter of Zion;
Her princes have become like deer
That have found no pasture;
And they have fled without strength
Before the pursuer.
7
In the days of her affliction and homelessness
Jerusalem remembers all her precious things
That were from the days of old,
When her people fell into the hand of the adversary
And no one helped her.
The adversaries saw her,
They mocked at her ruin.
8
Jerusalem sinned greatly,
Therefore she has become an unclean thing.
All who honored her despise her
Because they have seen her nakedness;
Even she herself groans and turns away.
9
Her uncleanness was in her skirts;
She did not consider her future.
Therefore she has fallen astonishingly;
She has no comforter.
“See, O Lord, my affliction,
For the enemy has magnified himself!”
10
The adversary has stretched out his hand
Over all her precious things,
For she has seen the nations enter her sanctuary,
The ones whom You commanded
That they should not enter into Your congregation.
17
Zion stretches out her hands;
There is no one to comfort her;
The Lord has commanded concerning Jacob
That the ones round about him should be his adversaries;
Jerusalem has become an unclean thing among them. (Lamentations 1:4-10, 17)
As we think about being in a narrow place, the opposite of this is having freedom and is called being in a large place. We see this terminology used in Psalm 118.
From my distress I called upon the Lord;
The Lord answered me and set me in a large place. (Psalm 118:5)
The word translated in may Bibles as distress is actually the Hebrew word metzar, which means a narrow place (or more loosely translated, a place of distress.)
Egypt
An interesting side note, most English Bibles refer to the place in which Joseph and subsequently Jacob and his descendants spent 210 years as Egypt. This is erroneously. The Hebrew states the name of this place as Mitzraim translated into English as the straits. If we think about all the oppression Israel suffered under the hand of Pharaoh, Mitzraim (or the place of the straits) is a much better description of the land than Egypt.
As the years passed and the rulership of the pharaoh changed (and as the text states in Exodus 1:8, a pharaoh arose who did not know Joseph), the Israelites were harshly oppressed. Year after year, the cruelty increased. Recalling the first chapter of Exodus to mind, the Israelites were required to build storage cities, were told to throw their newborn male sons into the Nile, were given no straw to build bricks, etc.
It you think of Egypt as a place of the straits, we each new decree pharaoh made, the place where the Israelites were dwelling became narrower. Pharaoh kept squeezing and squeezing them until he hoped to ultimately destroy the Israelites and cause them to abandon their ways, give up their faith and forget their heritage.
When God redeemed Israel and brought them through the Red Sea, the Israelites were brought into the wilderness. This was a large, wide open space in which the Israelites were free to re-learn their heritage, receive the Torah at Mount Sinai, build the Tabernacle, develop the Levitical Priest, abandon their pagan ways learned in Egypt, etc. In the wide open space of the wilderness, the Israelites were free to follow God and did not have to fear persecution for their beliefs.
Ideally, this should have encouraged the Israelites to seek God in all that they did, to worship Him and to follow God’s commands. However, after spending 210 years in a land surrounded by intense paganish (and there is probably no place in the world as deeply entrenched in paganish as the land of Egypt was and still is), the Israelites could not leave their pagan ways behind them.
Without going into all the details about the sin of the golden calf, like what was actually the “sin” they committed, while Moses was on Mount Sinai receiving the Torah from God, Israel (under the guidance of Aaron) built a golden calf to worship God.
On the 17th day of the month of Tammuz, Moses descended Mount Sinai with two tablets in his hands. When he saw the golden calf and the atrocious actions of some of the Israelites, Moses throws down the tablets. The tablets break. Without going into all the details, this day was now marked in Israel’s history as a day of doom and gloom.
17 of Tammuz
Since the golden calf incident, five important events have happened to the Israelites on the 17th day of the month of Tammuz.
During the Babylonian siege of Jerusalem, the Jews were forced to cease offering the daily sacrifices due to the lack of sheep.
Apostomos burned the holy Torah.
An idol was placed in the Holy Temple.
The walls of Jerusalem were breached by the Romans, in 69 CE, after a lengthy siege. (Three weeks later, after the Jews put up a valiant struggle, the Romans destroyed the second Holy Temple on the 9th of Av.)
The Jerusalem Talmud maintains that this is also the date when the Babylonians breached the walls of Jerusalem on their way to destroying the first Temple.
The 12 spies and the Bad Report
After the Israelites spent two years in the wilderness, twelve men were sent to tour the land of Canaan. Moses commanded that these mean give a report of the land.
Then the Lord spoke to Moses saying, 2 “Send out for yourself men so that they may spy out the land of Canaan, which I am going to give to the sons of Israel; you shall send a man from each of their fathers’ tribes, every one a leader among them.” (Numbers 13:1-2)
Things to note: The men selected and sent into the land were leaders in Israel. Their status within the community would give their words weight.
What Moses asked to be included in the report
When Moses sent them to spy out the land of Canaan, he said to them, “Go up there into the Negev; then go up into the hill country. 18 See what the land is like, and whether the people who live in it are strong or weak, whether they are few or many. 19 How is the land in which they live, is it good or bad? And how are the cities in which they live, are they like open camps or with fortifications? 20 How is the land, is it fat or lean? Are there trees in it or not? Make an effort then to get some of the fruit of the land.” Now the time was the time of the first ripe grapes. (Numbers 13:17-20)
The Bad Report
When they returned from spying out the land, at the end of forty days, 26 they proceeded to come to Moses and Aaron and to all the congregation of the sons of Israel in the wilderness of Paran, at Kadesh; and they brought back word to them and to all the congregation and showed them the fruit of the land. 27 Thus they told him, and said, “We went in to the land where you sent us; and it certainly does flow with milk and honey, and this is its fruit. 28 Nevertheless, the people who live in the land are strong, and the cities are fortified and very large; and moreover, we saw the descendants of Anak there. 29 Amalek is living in the land of the Negev and the Hittites and the Jebusites and the Amorites are living in the hill country, and the Canaanites are living by the sea and by the side of the Jordan.”
30 Then Caleb quieted the people before Moses and said, “We should by all means go up and take possession of it, for we will surely overcome it.” 31 But the men who had gone up with him said, “We are not able to go up against the people, for they are too strong for us.” 32 So they gave out to the sons of Israel a bad report of the land which they had spied out, saying, “The land through which we have gone, in spying it out, is a land that devours its inhabitants; and all the people whom we saw in it are men of great size. 33 There also we saw the Nephilim (the sons of Anak are part of the Nephilim); and we became like grasshoppers in our own sight, and so we were in their sight.” (Numbers 13:25-33)
When the men came back from the land, ten of the men gave a bad report. Although Joshua and Caleb tried to settle the unrest of the people, the ten men’s words had more weight.
The oral Torah states the day the ten men gave the bad report was on the 8th day of the month of Av. When the sun set, a new day began, the 9th day of the month of Av.
In Numbers 14:1, we read the people of Israel wept all night after they heard the bad report.
Then all the congregation lifted up their voices and cried, and the people wept that night. (Numbers 14:1)
This means, on the 9th day of Av, the people of Israel were weeping over the words of the ten men. They were weeping over nothing. The oral Torah states that due to the Israelites weeping all night over nothing, God was going to give them something to cry about on the 9th day of the month of Av. From this time forward, the 9th day of the month of Av has become the saddest day on the calendar for the Israelites.
9 of Av
The ninth day of the month of Av has become the single day on the calendar which seems to be the day which causes the Israelites a tremendous amount of pain and agony. Here are some of the things which have happened to the Israelites throughout history:
1. Both Holy Temples were destroyed
The First Temple was destroyed on the 9th of Av (423 BCE). Five centuries later (in 69 CE), as the Romans drew closer to the Second Temple, ready to torch it, the Hebrews were shocked to realize that their Second Temple was destroyed the same day as the first.
2. The Battle at Betar was lost
When the Hebrews rebelled against Roman rule, they believed that their leader, Simon bar Kochba, would fulfill their messianic longings. But their hopes were cruelly dashed in 133 CE as the Jewish rebels were brutally butchered in the final battle at Betar.
3. The Romans destroyed and completely leveled the Holy Temple
One year after their conquest of Betar, the Romans plowed over the Temple Mount, the nation's holiest site.
4. The Israelites were expelled from England in 1290 CE
5. The Israelites were expelled from Spain
In 1492, the Golden Age of Spain came to a close when Queen Isabella and her husband Ferdinand ordered that the Hebrews be banished from the land. The edict of expulsion was signed on March 31, 1492, and the Hebrews were given exactly four months to put their affairs in order and leave the country.
6. The beginning of World War I
World War II and the Holocaust, historians conclude, was actually the long drawn-out conclusion of World War I that began in 1914. And yes, amazingly enough, Germany declared war on Russia, effectively catapulting the First World War into motion, on the 9th of Av.
The Month of Av
The month of Av is he fifth month of the Hebrew calendar. Av means father. The full name of the month is menachem av which means comforting or consoling father. The idea is that even though God has chastened Israel for their bad behavior and has caused much hardship to the Israelites, God will comfort His people and will again bring joy to the land.
Then he said to them, “Go, eat of the fat, drink of the sweet, and send portions to him who has nothing prepared; for this day is holy to our Lord. Do not be grieved, for the joy (hedvah) of the Lord is your strength. Nehemiah 8:10
The background to this verse is this: In order to rid the Israelites of their idolatry, God brought them to exile and near destruction using the Babylonians. That’s a hard situation to be in! But now, Nehemiah has returned to rebuild Jerusalem, and the people are recognizing that they need to recover their lost heritage, which is the Torah of God - they are covenant people with responsibilities before their King. No more rebellion!
When the priest and teacher Ezra stand to read Torah, there is great weeping. They weep because they finally understand the magnitude of the tragedy of the fall of their once great nation. The reason for the Babylonian captivity became clear – their idolatry was behind it all. They weep for what should have been, could have been...if only...They weep as they mourn their sin.
And they wept because God restored them. God indeed brought comfort, consolation, compassion. Our Menachem Av. God has not abandoned them, after all; He preserved a remnant. They can experience revival. But it took a large toll to get the message.
Menachem Av brings joy (hedvah), which brings strength. Only two times in all of the scriptures is this word hedvah, joy, found; here in Nehemiah 8:10 and in 1 Chronicles 16:27. This isn’t the word for the kind of joy associated with what we would think of as rejoicing or joy in English. That word is simchah, which is found dozens of times. The uniqueness of hedvah is that it is directly connected to God, joy-of-the-LORD. It is His joy.
'Simchah’ is that kind of rejoicing that involves human participation, usually in the form of expressing gladness and gratitude to God for what He has and is and will do for us. The biblical festivals are great examples of ways to express this joy/simcha. But what the Israelites of Nehemiah’s day needed was different. They needed, as do we when we are struggling under the weight of our sins and the sins of others, a kind of unique joy that we cannot manufacture ourselves. This hedveh is totally dependent upon God. He bestows it, we receive it.
Comfort is Coming
Despite being chasten for their sins, Israel is promised comfort. God promises their rebuke will soon end.
“Comfort, O comfort My people,” says your God.
2
“Speak kindly to Jerusalem;
And call out to her, that her warfare has ended,
That her [c]iniquity has been removed,
That she has received of the Lord’s hand
Double for all her sins.” (Isaiah 40:1-2)
In Zechariah chapter 8, Israel is promised a future restoration. Moreover, the fast days of the fourth month, the fifth month, the seventh month and the tenth month will become days of joy.
Then the word of the Lord of hosts came, saying, 2 “Thus says the Lord of hosts, ‘I am exceedingly jealous for Zion, yes, with great wrath I am jealous for her.’ 3 Thus says the Lord, ‘I will return to Zion and will dwell in the midst of Jerusalem. Then Jerusalem will be called the City of Truth, and the mountain of the Lord of hosts will be called the Holy Mountain.’ 4 Thus says the Lord of hosts, ‘Old men and old women will again sit in the streets of Jerusalem, each man with his staff in his hand because of age. 5 And the streets of the city will be filled with boys and girls playing in its streets.’ 6 Thus says the Lord of hosts, ‘If it is too difficult in the sight of the remnant of this people in those days, will it also be too difficult in My sight?’ declares the Lord of hosts. 7 Thus says the Lord of hosts, ‘Behold, I am going to save My people from the land of the east and from the land of the west; 8 and I will bring them back and they will live in the midst of Jerusalem; and they shall be My people, and I will be their God in [i]truth and righteousness.’
9 “Thus says the Lord of hosts, ‘Let your hands be strong, you who are listening in these days to these words from the mouth of the prophets, those who spoke in the day that the foundation of the house of the Lord of hosts was laid, to the end that the temple might be built. 10 For before those days there was no wage for man or any wage for animal; and for him who went out or came in there was no [j]peace because of his enemies, and I set all men one against another. 11 But now I will not [l]treat the remnant of this people as in the former days,’ declares the Lord of hosts. 12 ‘For there will be peace for the seed: the vine will yield its fruit, the land will yield its produce and the heavens will give their dew; and I will cause the remnant of this people to inherit all these things. 13 It will come about that just as you were a curse among the nations, O house of Judah and house of Israel, so I will save you that you may become a blessing. Do not fear; let your hands be strong.’
14 “For thus says the Lord of hosts, ‘Just as I purposed to do harm to you when your fathers provoked Me to wrath,’ says the Lord of hosts, ‘and I have not relented, 15 so I have again purposed in these days to do good to Jerusalem and to the house of Judah. Do not fear! 16 These are the things which you should do: speak the truth to one another; judge with truth and judgment for peace in your gates. 17 Also let none of you devise evil in your heart against another, and do not love perjury; for all these are what I hate,’ declares the Lord.”
18 Then the word of the Lord of hosts came to me, saying, 19 “Thus says the Lord of hosts, ‘The fast of the fourth, the fast of the fifth, the fast of the seventh and the fast of the tenth months will become joy, gladness, and cheerful feasts for the house of Judah; so love truth and peace.’
20 “Thus says the Lord of hosts, ‘It will yet be that peoples will come, even the inhabitants of many cities. 21 The inhabitants of one will go to another, saying, “Let us go at once to entreat the favor of the Lord, and to seek the Lord of hosts; I will also go.” 22 So many peoples and mighty nations will come to seek the Lord of hosts in Jerusalem and to entreat the favor of the Lord.’ 23 Thus says the Lord of hosts, ‘In those days ten men from all the nations will grasp the garment of a Jew, saying, “Let us go with you, for we have heard that God is with you.”’” (Zechariah 8:1-23)
The fasts of the fourth month, fifth month, seventh month and tenth month are all important days on Israel’s calendar. The fast of the fourth month is the 17th day of the month of Tammuz. As previously discussed, this day is the day Moses came down from Mount Sinai and broke the tablets when he witnessed the sin of the golden calf.
The fast of the fifth month is the 9th day of the month of Av. The fast of the seventh month is the third day of the month of tishei. This fast is in remembrance of the leader Gedaliah. Gedaliah was appointed to be the ruler over the Israelites who remained in Israel. Gedaliah ruled from Mizpah. A coup was formed and Gedaliah was assassinated on the third of tishrei.
In the seventh month Ishmael the son of Nethaniah, the son of Elishama, of the royal family and one of the chief officers of the king, along with ten men, came to Mizpah to Gedaliah the son of Ahikam. While they were eating bread together there in Mizpah, 2 Ishmael the son of Nethaniah and the ten men who were with him arose and struck down Gedaliah the son of Ahikam, the son of Shaphan, with the sword and put to death the one whom the king of Babylon had appointed over the land. 3 Ishmael also struck down all the Jews who were with him, that is with Gedaliah at Mizpah, and the Chaldeans who were found there, the men of war. (Jeremiah 41:1-3)
The fast of the tenth month is in remembrance of the siege of Jerusalem by King Nebuchadnezzar on the tenth day of the tenth month (tevet).
And the word of the Lord came to me in the ninth year, in the tenth month, on the tenth of the month, saying, 2 “Son of man, write the name of the day, this very day. The king of Babylon has laid siege to Jerusalem this very day. (Ezekiel 24:1-2)
According to Zechariah 8, these four fast days will be turned into feast days, which means all the sorrow which is associated with these dates will be wiped away, and joy will once again return to the Israelites.
Aaron the High Priest
One last thing to note about the month of Av, on the first day of the month of Av, Aaron passes away.
Then Aaron the priest went up to Mount Hor at the command of the Lord, and died there in the fortieth year after the sons of Israel had come from the land of Egypt, on the first day in the fifth month. 39 Aaron was one hundred twenty-three years old when he died on Mount Hor. (Numbers 33:38-39)
The time between the 17th of Tammuz and the 9th of Av are times of sorrow. It seems apropos, the first High Priest for Israel dies during this time. The three weeks of being in a narrow place includes the death of the Levitical high priest, the person who teaches and is responsible for guiding Israel through their spiritual walk. In the future, Jesus will return and will lead us on the correct path and will teach us His ways.
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