Jesus: the Almond Tree and the Bread

In Luke chapter 24 Jesus meets the disciples on the road from Jerusalem to Emmaus.  Their conversation went something like this:

And He [Jesus]  said to them, "O foolish men and slow of heart to believe in all that the prophets have spoken! Was it not necessary for the Christ to suffer these things and to enter into His glory?"  Then beginning with Moses and with all the prophets, He explained to them the things concerning Himself in all the Scriptures.

And they approached the village where they were going, and He acted as though He were going farther. But they urged Him, saying, "Stay with us, for it is getting toward evening, and the day is now nearly over." So He went in to stay with them.  When He had reclined at the table with them, He took the bread and blessed it, and breaking it, He began giving it to them. Then their eyes were opened and they recognized Him; and He vanished from their sight.  They said to one another, "Were not our hearts burning within us while He was speaking to us on the road, while He was explaining the Scriptures to us?"  (Luke 24:25-32, NASB)

The Hebrew word for almond is shaqed.  It means to awaken early from winter's sleep.  The almond tree is the first tree to blossom.  Shaqed comes the Hebrew word shaqad, which means to keep watch; be wakeful over.  It is the word used in Jeremiah 1:12 - "Then the Lord said to me, "You have seen well, for I am watching over My word to perform it."

Exodus chapter 25 describes the ark, table, and lampstand in the tabernacle:

Put the bread of the Presence on this table to be before me at all times.  Make a lampstand of pure gold. Hammer out its base and shaft, and make its flowerlike cups, buds and blossoms of one piece with them. Six branches are to extend from the sides of the lampstand—three on one side and three on the other. Three cups shaped like almond flowers with buds and blossoms are to be on one branch, three on the next branch, and the same for all six branches extending from the lampstand. And on the lampstand there are to be four cups shaped like almond flowers with buds and blossoms. One bud shall be under the first pair of branches extending from the lampstand, a second bud under the second pair, and a third bud under the third pair—six branches in all. The buds and branches shall all be of one piece with the lampstand, hammered out of pure gold.  Then make its seven lamps and set them up on it so that they light the space in front of it.   (Exodus 25:30-37)

So, now we have a better picture of why the disciples suddenly realized it was Jesus who was before them.  After explaining the scriptures, they suddenly saw him as the fulfillment of those prophecies.  Jesus, the first to awaken (shaqed) to eternal life, was the light of the world, and it was when he broke bread with the disciples that they recognized him.  In the tabernacle, the lampstand, which was shaped as a golden almond tree, provided light for the bread on the table and watched over it (shaqad).  This light specifically watched over bread that was to be broken; and that brokenness is the work of the Lord which was to be performed.

How rich are the scriptures, which point to Christ.

Grace=Peace,

Jeremy