The emblem which has become known as the “Messianic Seal” was apparently used by Believers in Mashiach in first century Jerusalem in the Messianic Synagogue that was lead by Ya'acov ben Yosef, the half-brother of Yeshua. Discovered on artifacts that were secretly excavated from Mt. Zion prior to the 1967 six-day war by a Greek Orthodox monk who was living as a hermit in the Old City, the Seal consists of a menorah whose base is intertwined with the tail of a fish, creating a Magen David, or Shield (Star) of David.

The artifacts were discovered in a grotto near the Tomb of David and the site of the traditional Upper Room in the Old City, which was apparently used by the Miqra at Yerushalayim for their mikvah and as a place for anointing with oil for healing. It is also speculated that new believers were anointed with oil as part of their mikvah to symbolize the immersion of the believer by the Ruach HaKodesh into the Body of Mashiach.

The menorah reminds us of the Holy Temple (Exod. 25:31-37) and conveys the message of hope and salvation associated with it. Seven is the number of perfection. Its seven-branched shape symbolizes the Tree of Life that stood in the middle of the Garden of Eden, and which will stand again in the New Yerushalayim, and carries the promise of eternal life. Its seven lamps which give the light in its fullest intensity symbolizes the light of God, assurance of God’s enlightening presence in the middle of New Yerushalayim. (Zech 4:1-6; Rev. 22:1-5) It also speaks to us of the light of Torah and the Righteousness of God. (Prov. 6:23; 13:9; Psalm 36:9-10; 37:6; 119:105, 130; Job 29:3; Isa. 2:1-5) It also reminds us that Yisra'el is called by God to be a light to the Goyim (Isa. 42:6-7; 49:6; 6:1-5). The menorah has been used as a symbol for Torah for over 3,000 years.

The fish is a very old symbol taken from biblical tradition where it conveys the idea of resurrection and eternal life. In Ezekiel, the life-giving river flowing from the heavenly temple is to sweeten the waters of the Dead Sea so that fish will abound there (Ezekiel 47:7-10). In the book of Jonah, the fish is a messenger of life and resurrection since it is used to save Jonah from the abyss of water (Jonah 2; cf. Matthew 12:39-41).

In Jewish tradition, the fish has been used as a favorite dish for Shabbat (Shab. 118b) because it was associated in the biblical account of creation with the divine blessings (Genesis 1:22, 28). Fish, man, and Shabbat are thus connected in a threefold blessing.

In the Jewish Aggadah (parables and folklore) the symbol of the fish is loaded with the idea of intense Messianic expectation. A Jewish parable tells us that in the olam haba (world to come) the righteous will be sustained by eating the legendary fish leviathan, the symbol of the forces of chaos and evil defeated by the divine power—a metaphoric manner of affirming the definitive and absolute victory of good over evil.

The fish became the first symbol of Messianic or Nazarene Judaism (to be called “Christianity” [the Greek form of the Hebrew term “Messianic” — A.L.] a little more than a century later). It appears in the art of the oldest Messianic catacombs to symbolize the victory of life over death and was also used as a symbol of Messianic hope. The Greek word for fish, ICQUS (ikthus), became a cipher for the name and identity of the Messiah, and has long been used as a symbol for God’s grace.

The Magen David (Star, or Shield, of David) represents the Jewish hope of the coming of the Messiah. It was first mentioned in Balaam’s vision, “There shall come forth a star out of Ya`akov …” (Num. 24:17). It reappeared in the symbol of David’s Shield, or the Star of David, as a constant sign of hope following one of the most painful periods of Israel’s history, and even paradoxically into the hell of Auschwitz in the unexpected form of the yellow star to remind of the impossible hope. Jewish philosopher Franz Rosenzweig interpreted the Star of David as a symbol of the covenant between God and men—God being represented by the triangle pointing downwards as He reaches for His people, and men represented by the triangle pointing upward as they reach for their God—the “star of redemption,” as he called it. This star now shines forth from the Israeli flag.

The star is also a sign of hope in Christian tradition. The magi from the East associated their search for the Messiah with the star they saw while they were in the East (Matt. 2:2). And in the Brit Chadasha the “morning star” is used as a symbol for the second coming of the Messiah when he will inaugurate the end of the night and the beginning of a new bright day (2 Peter 1:19; Rev. 2:28; 22:16).

Please note in the Messianic Seal that the Star of David, the symbol of Israel’s Messiah, is formed only by the union of the Menorah and the Fish. So we are taught by this symbol that Torah without Grace will not reveal Messiah, and Grace without Torah will not reveal Messiah—Messiah is properly revealed only when Torah and Grace are in perfect balance.

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