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The
Salt Covenant |
- Imagine,
being a friend to YHWH, (Jam.2:23).
- Or
story picks up with just such a person...
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The First
Theocratic Covenant
The
Abrahamic Covenant
YAHWEH many times relied only
on the faith of one person to whom HE could entrust HIS plan of salvation,
which was built upon faith. These eternal principles are still valid
today, because in this one person a-l-l the families of the Earth will be
blessed. YAHWEH puts it like
this, “. . . He brought him outside and said, “Look now toward heaven,
and count the stars if you are able to number them. So shall your
descendants be,” Genesis 15:5.
While you are thinking about the stars,
you can also see the formal beginning of the
Jerusalem Church of Higher Education, which is made of the faithful of
these stars. This Covenant is
called a Theocratic Covenant, because it involves the direct hand of our
CREATOR carefully guiding a group of people on how to live a righteous
life, thereby beginning HIS Jerusalem School of Higher Learning.
(Most of the world lives under the Noahic Covenant.
If you are a seeker of the higher spiritual knowledge of our
CREATOR then you have to follow the path of these next five Covenants
which begins a direct and personal “working relationship” with HIS
Kingdom.)
The Arabs, the Hebrew people, and most of the western world owe
this personal friend of YAHWEH a debt of ancestral honor.
Seven generations after Noah, YAHWEH chooses a man from the family
root of Noah's son Shem, who is called Abram.
Mentioned earlier, he was a sinner, but he was also a Believer who
had a righteous heart, and he was pure in his genetic heritage (Gen.6:9;
Jas.2:23).
In the country-city of Ur, which would be in today’s Iraq, Abram,
a gentile, and “heir to the promise” (Heb.11:8-19), was called by
YAHWEH and commanded to leave his city for a new area in which he would
father the Hebrew nation. “.
. . for he waited for the city which has foundations, whose builder and
maker is GOD.” There are
promised blessings, and beware - there are curses.
The people of this “city” must live according to the Laws of
the Government of YAHWEH in order to prosper, and to have peace and
happiness.
Abram was a sinner. He was a bit of a rogue and a con man, but he
got points for original thinking. And he even had the chutzpah to bargain
with GOD. His life is recorded in Genesis ch.11-25. He also was a
man of great faith, and he lived life by two great commandments, he loved
and honored YAHWEH, and he showed love and compassion for his neighbors.
Hebrews ch.11 gives the definition of faith, and Abraham gets a big write
up, verse 8-19. He proved his faith when He left his homeland for a
new land based only on YAHWEH’S command. He confirmed his faith by
“offering up” his full blood son Isaac.
Abram was by no means a perfect man,
but he had a lot of faith, and he agreed to
the Covenant (Rom.4:3). YAHWEH called him a friend, and changed his name
to Abraham, which means “a father of many nations.”
[4]
The Abrahamic
Covenant
is recorded in Genesis 12:1-3, and outlined in Genesis
13:14-17, 15:1-7, 17:1-8, 18:21. Here YAHWEH produces the first of five
Theocratic Covenants directly with a specific human of the tribe of
Shemites (and it is inherited by all humanity - that means any one
with a belly-button). This Covenant address' the evolving
administration of all of humankind on this planet Earth. It works like
this, Abraham's family will be specially Blessed by our CREATOR, through
which, all the families of the Earth will be Blessed.
It is important to remember, that
this promise to Abraham is unconditional, immutable and unchangeable
(Gen.17:19), because it is the root of today’s problems in Israel. A
Covenant once spoken by YAHWEH, and accepted, is an everlasting document.
It is then recorded in the Throne Room of YAHWEH, witnessed by the Angels
of Light, Satan and his angels of darkness. This is the First Covenant
made with an individual human being, carrying over to his family, and his
succeeding generations.
This first Theocratic Covenant is the foundation for the
following Covenants. It promises a blessing in three areas, with both a
personal and universal aspect.
- [A]
National: Abraham will father a great nation, and designates the
land area that is the “promised land” for the Hebrew nation
(Gen.17:8).
- [B]
Personal: To receive a personal blessing; and a blessing of
personal honor and reputation; and to be a source of blessing to
others. Those people who bless his name [Abraham and his descendants]
will in turn be blessed.
- *WARNING
to all: Those people who curse his name, Abraham and his
descendants, will in turn be cursed.
- [C]
Universal: To be a source of universal blessing, by being a father
of many nations. All the humans of the Earth will be blessed, because
sometime in the future, through Abraham, the Messiah will be born and
he will redeem the Earth from the powers of darkness (Gal.3:7-16).
Abraham
had two sons, because his wife Sarai
could not conceive, Ishmael was his first born son by his wife’s
maidservant Hagar who was of Egyptian blood. About five years later YAHWEH
promised Abraham that Sarai would bear him a son called Isaac.
The name Sarai means my princess (or princess of a specific
nation), now YAHWEH changed her name to Sarah, which means princess of the
entire world or the universal princess (Gen.17:15).
YAHWEH promised HE
would make both children into great strong nations, but HE noted in
Genesis 17:21 that HE chose to continue the “Covenant” made with
Abraham to be passed on to Isaac, and on through his descendants - the
Hebrews - which would be Jacob, Moses, and the twelve tribes making up the
nation of Israel.
Special blessing for the Arabs is given: “And
as for Ishmael, I have heard you. Behold, I have blessed him, and will
make him fruitful, and will multiply him exceedingly. He shall beget
twelve princes, and I will make him a great nation,” Genesis 17:20.
The Arabians trace their roots to Ishmael. The promise of the land
(Gen.15:18) passing to Isaac is important to note, because it is a great
point of contention today in Middle-Eastern politics, between the Jews and
Arabs over the right to the land of Israel.
Unfortunately, there has never been peace in the family, resentment
toward Isaac remained, and during the last 4,000 years, this grew into the
mother of all family disputes, still raging on today between the Muslim
Arabs and the Hebrew Judeans.
The
Second Theocratic Covenant
The
Mosaic Covenant
Through Isaac’s son Jacob, the
descendants of Abraham grew and became the children of Israel.
Jacob did not always have it easy, and to receive his blessing from GOD he
had to wrestle an Angel for it. He prevailed, and his name was changed to
Israel, which means “strives with GOD, and prevails” (Gen.ch.32). He
was blessed, really blessed. His twelve sons would eventually grow into
the twelve tribes making up the Israelite nation.
The children of Israel prospered,
but
after a time they strayed. YAHWEH removed HIS Divine protection from the
people, and the Egyptians began to see them as a threat and enslaved them.
In spite of the great hardships of slavery they did not lose faith and
they continuously prayed for deliverance (Gen.ch.49-50). Cecil B.
deMille’s classic movie epic “The Ten Commandments” brought to life
the Bible’s best known story about the man called Moses. In 1445 B.C.E.
he was chosen by YAHWEH to deliver the Hebrew people from bondage as
described in Exodus ch.1-18. It took many great and dramatic miracles to
deliver and protect the Hebrew people from the powerful Egyptians. The
obvious lesson here is that Believers follow great signs and wonders.
A
miracle, is defined as an extraordinary event manifesting
Divine intervention in human affairs. This “time of Moses,” was the
first time a real series of bold and beautiful, in your face, type
miracles were performed for the Believers in the one GOD. It was done like
this for a reason, to teach people the power of righteousness - and now
they should write it down and remember it.
The enslaved Hebrews never lost
their faith in YAHWEH, but they forgot most of the details.
After the Exodus from Egypt most of the knowledge handed down
through the generations since Noah and Abraham had been lost. Working
seven days a week, all year long, for 400+ years they had lost track of
the days of the week, the beginning of the months, and years. YAHWEH would
have to communicate with Moses concerning the laws and rules of how to
live together and turn this rabble into a successful, organized community.
YAHWEH enters into the Second Theocratic Covenant with Moses, who
was a descendant of Abraham. Many would say this is where the Jewish
religion was founded, but this is not true, there is no system of a
theology of doctrine to be found in the Bible.
What Moses received is a carefully circumscribed “Code of Life”
that would sustain the Covenant relationship until YAHWEH HIMSELF returns
to Earth.
The “Code of Life” is how a Believer of the Jerusalem
School of Higher Learning walks the self-governing path of
righteousness, which leads to our everlasting future. It teaches the
followers: personal honor, freedom, self-reliance, self-discipline, and
dignity.
[5]
The Mosaic
Covenant
recorded in Exodus 19:5-8 announces the Second
Covenant and is conditional (Lev.ch.26). The chosen people of YAHWEH were
to receive HIS Laws. They believe in the power of YAHWEH, and now they
will be given instruction on how to conduct themselves. This Covenant is
the foundation of our “working relationship” with our CREATOR. As
always YAHWEH cuts the Covenant, HE establishes its terms, and HE enforces
it. All under
the watchful eyes of
the angels, the elders and the general audience of the Great White Throne
Room.
This Covenant’s theme is a teaching / working relationship of a
FATHER - who knows best - to HIS children, who must learn the higher order
of life. The Covenant is not revoked if the children do not obey,
the children understood they would be punished if they do not learn
the lessons and obey (Lev.ch.26).
Because of this higher spiritual knowledge they would be blessed,
above all people. But the condition is, the people must obey the higher
Spiritual Laws, and live by example, to teach the rest of the world on how
to have prosperity and have peace in the community. In that sense, the
course of their history was predetermined or prophesied.
In simple terms, the idea is to become a better person today
then you were yesterday, and when you have learned, then turn around and
help the one behind you - no matter who it is.
- [A] The
Commandments governed their personal lives (Exo.20:1-26; Lev.19:18,
ch.20).
- [B] The
Judgments is a legal system that governed their community life
(Exo.ch.21).
- [C] The
Ordinances governed their spiritual life (Exo.24:12-18).
- *WARNING:
Lest ye forget! If you keep the contract I will multiply..., but if
you do not, beware..., Deuteronomy 8:11-18.
Today, we are a product of the past - no one just beamed in! In our
evolution of improving ourselves, we learn from history not to make the
same mistakes which destroyed the ancient societies. YAHWEH used the
Hebrews as an example of what sinful ways (or bad religion) do to a
community, and the rest of the world should see it as an example. The
lesson here is, how quickly the pendulum swings. After the people were
lead to safety and freedom, Moses had to go up a mountain to receive some
Divine dictation. Down below it didn't take long for the people to
back slide into their evil ways. And as a result they had to suffer
wandering in the wilderness for forty years, before settling into the
promised land.
The Third
Theocratic Covenant
The
Land Covenant
After the forty years of wandering in the desert,
the Hebrew people were ready to enter the
promised land (Num.ch.26-36).
Under Moses, the Israelites were one people, subdivided into twelve tribes
according to their fathers’ houses, originally conceived from the
descendants of the twelve sons of Isaacs son Jacob (Gen.49:16, 28;
Exo.24:4). Standing at the
gates of the promised land, Moses hands over leadership to his faithful
second in command, Joshua (Deu.34:9).
YAHWEH now makes another Covenant with the Hebrew people. Part of
the Covenant would be conditional, if the Hebrew people lived in the land,
they must obey, and as a reward they would be blessed and prosper. If they
did not obey, they would be cursed and punished, they would be disbursed,
destined to live in other lands running from place to place never having
real peace (Deu.28:15-68). It is important to remember the Covenant is not
cancelled and the people do not get thrown out of Heaven for disobedience;
the people are "Divinely" chastised, punished, forgiven, and
then returned to their land.
Unfortunately history tells us that the Hebrew people choose the
latter option and suffered greatly throughout the centuries. But things
are getting better. In spite of great hardships the Judeans - the Jewish
people - kept their faith, and today, since 1948, they are living in the
age of the regathering. The restoration of the first of Hebrew people, the
Judeans, are returning back from over 108 different nations to their
ancient homeland and they will not be removed again (Deu.30:10;
Eze.37:11-14; Amo.9:13-15).
[6]
The
Land Covenant
recorded in Deuteronomy 29:10-15, 30:11-20.
Reaffirms the land given in the Abrahamic Covenant (Gen.15:18). This
Covenant and has two aspects.
- [A] The
Legal aspects that are immediate and conditional, if the children
listen and obey (Deu.ch.30).
- [B] The
Grace aspects are in the future and are unconditional, YAHWEH will
restore Israel (Deu.ch.30).
YAHWEH’S Covenants are not static.
They are a series of evolutionary spiritual steps up the
mountain of knowledge, and here, the very large spiritual step of
“Grace” is introduced. Grace is the advanced virtue of mercy. To this
day, this major evolutionary step, from living under the harshness of the
letter of the Law, to living under “Grace,” is still a major stumbling
block in many religious circles. The popular song “Amazing Grace”
stems from this Covenant.
Joshua was a strong political leader,
and generally speaking, the people did obey during his lifetime, and
during the lifetime of the leaders which he had trained (Book of Joshua).
After Joshua and his following leaders died, things began to go wrong.
The Israelites began to drift from their righteous teachings, every man
did what seemed right in his own mind. They started making idols,
worshiping pagan gods, and transgressed the Laws given by YAHWEH.
In this time, the ancient Hebrews lived
under a theocracy, meaning they were directly governed by our
CREATOR according to the Order
of Melchizedek. There was no centralized earthly authority.
There were no men-in-black. There was no central high church,
synagogue, or high priest, rendering moral decisions. And home
worship was commonplace. The national
leadership came from individuals called Judges, they were special people
of the Jerusalem Church who were called out by YAHWEH to guide the people
in HIS ways, feelings and opinions.
YAHWEH practices tough love, and uses the “three strikes you’re out,
a-l-l the way out,” technique in disciplining HIS Children of Israel:
First used is the love-oriented discipline - reasoning and removal of
privileges. Two: The power-oriented discipline - hitting and yelling
(lighting and thunder). Lastly: When the people did not respond to
diplomacy, they suffered dreadfully and died - by disease, drought or at
the hands of their enemies.
The Book of Judges, and the two Books of the Prophet Samuel, recount the
Israelites up and down relationship with YAHWEH as their KING. These
people through disobedience to YAHWEH would fall captive to surrounding
kings. Then they would repent and cry out to YAHWEH for help and HE
would raise up a leader to free them. After a time they would drift
from the righteous path, then they were punished again and saved again,
and punished and saved, again and again this process was repeated.
Through a series of men and women Judges they received their guidance from
YAHWEH, and they corrected the Israelites each time.
Even with all the problems these 450 years were probably the most peaceful
years for the nation of Israel. Two great stories come out of this
time, a story of a strong woman Judge named Deborah in Judges ch.4-5, and
the great love story of Samson and Delilah in Judges ch.13-16.
The last person to rule as a Prophet was Samuel apx. 1025 B.C.E., as he
grew older, the people no longer felt secure in their system of government
and asked Samuel to appoint them a human king modeled after their pagan
neighbors. Samuel was distraught, he felt the people had rejected
him. “Liberty means responsibility, which is why people hate
it.” YAHWEH reassured him, they have not rejected him (Samuel),
but rather have rejected YAHWEH and HIS rule over them.
YAHWEH hears the people, so be it - they will have their king. But
first HE instructed Samuel to warn the people as to what having a King
would do to theirs or any society that chooses such a cultural
system, 1Samuel 8:11-18.
In the previous governmental system YAHWEH granted rights directly to all
the people equally. What GOD grants, no man can take away.
Essentially what happened here is that the people choose to put a human
king between them and their GOD. The spiritual character of this
pagan system is that the king receives power from GOD and then the king
grants rights to his people. The problem is, what the king gives,
the king can take away, and this system of government will always take
more then it gives in return. Not our CREATOR’S idea of an
everlasting system, but so be it.
The Israelites heard the warning but they did not care. Because of
pride (they wanted to be like their pagan neighbors’ nations), they soon
found out that it was a mistake to reject YAHWEH’S will. HE gave
the rebellious, ungrateful, and unfaithful people the king they cried for.
The Israelites got their first human king who was called Saul, history
records him as an inconsequential fool and a bungler, a poor substitute
for the charismatic Judges of the past, a king befitting the people who
demanded him.
This is the first Biblical lesson on government, the people will get the
leaders they deserve. This lesson is still valid in today’s
government and political leadership.
The
Fourth Theocratic Covenant
The
Davidic Covenant
King David rises to power in
approximately 1000 B.C.E., and he was one of the high points in the
Israelites’ history. He
even made the front page of the NY Times a few years ago when
archeological discoveries proving his dynasty was found, until then King
David was only considered to be some Jewish myth. After David defeated the
giant Philistine Goliath, he becomes king (1Sam.ch.17). King David was a
military genius who loved YAHWEH. He was not without sin, but every time
he saw his sin he repented and turned from each transgression; he became
“a man after YAHWEH’S own heart.”
King David set his sights on and defeated the land inhabited by the
Jebusites, today it is known as Jerusalem. The area known today as Mount
Moriah or the Temple mount, was a threshing floor and he purchased it from
its Jebusite owner Araunah for the fair market value of fifty shekels of
silver. He did not want blood spilt where he planned to build the Temple
to YAHWEH (2Sam.24:16-24).
He planned a beautiful city there and called it the “City of
David” and he moved the nation’s capital there from Hebron. King David
was a sinner, and because he had blood on his hands YAHWEH would not let
him build the First Temple, that project would fall to his son Solomon
(2Sam.ch.11-12). He had great faith and wrote most of what some call the
most important book in the Bible, the mystical Book of Psalms.
YAHWEH secures Israel’s spiritual development by making an
unconditional and unbreakable Covenant with David, assuring that his
dynasty, ruling over the Israelites, would continue unbroken forever. This
would be the last Covenant made with the complete nation of Israel.
[7]
The Davidic
Covenant
recorded in 2Samuel
7:4-17. This Covenant shows
that YAHWEH will use the Judeans to prepare the way for the Messiah.
This Covenant has three very simple everlasting promises,
disobedience does not cancel this Covenant, it is everlasting. Here YAHWEH
also predicted King David’s son Solomon, would be his successor to the
throne of Israel.
- [A] A
Land Forever (vs.10).
- [B] An
Unending Dynasty (vs.16).
- [C] An
Everlasting Kingdom (vs.13, 16).
The Fifth
Theocratic Covenant
The
New Covenant
"...who
also made us sufficient as ministers of the new covenant..."
-
2Corrinthians
3:6
King Solomon’s wisdom was unmatched in
his time, and he built
Israel into a mighty nation. As the rabbis say, he wrote the Song of
Solomon when he was young and passionate; during his conservative middle
age he wrote the Book of Proverbs; when he was old and rich he wrote the
Book of Ecclesiastes. The theme of Ecclesiastes is "What makes Life
Worthwhile," and it is still current today. In spite of all his
wealth, (he was pulling in about 13 tons of gold per month for Israel),
King Solomon knew that it was not the answer to the happiness of
life. A lifetime of wealthy material accomplishment brought him no
more than a handful of wind (Ecc.ch.2). Today’s "I want it all and
I want it now" material world could learn a lot from his
3,000-year-old message.
Unfortunately, when
King Solomon died the nation of Israel died with him. The leaders of
Israel became busy building treasures for themselves. Huge armies,
huge taxes, huge homes for the wealthy, and slave labor for stripping the
Earth to support such efforts (see the Books of 1&2 Kings; 1&2
Chronicles). In addition to the corruption of the leadership, the people
turned further and further away from YAHWEH’S teachings, while slipping
deeper and deeper into sin.
In 931 B.C.E. the Israelites had a family
feud, and the southern tribes broke
from the northern tribes because of civil and religious differences, and
an ever increasing tax burden. Ten Tribes made up the Israelites of the
Northern Kingdom, and they built a new northern capital at Samaria. The
Southern Kingdom of Judah was made up by the tribes of Judah, Benjamin and
Levi. (The tribe of Levi was not one of the twelve landholding tribes,
they were the priestly tribe whose lives were dedicated to the work of the
Tabernacle and Temple.)
The Northern Kingdom slipped into the ways of their pagan neighbors
first. As a result of their national sin and rebellion, YAHWEH withdrew
HIS Divine protection from Israel. The Northern Kingdom suffered a series
of devastating attacks by the Assyrian Empire. Finally in 72l B.C.E. the
House of Israel was conquered by Shalmaneser, the King of Assyria, the rod
of YAHWEH’S anger.
The northern Israelites became the poster children for the symbol
of the fleeting nature of power and riches. They suffered horribly, and
they lost everything. It is a
tragic story of slavery, executions, and through forced relocation their
land was resettled by their pagan conquerors. The northern Israelites were
moved out of their land of Samaria, north of Jerusalem, into an area to
the south shore of the Caspian Sea (1Kgs.17:7-23).
In time they mixed with the people living there, who were people of
the Babylonianish religions. After 100 years the Israelites lost their
religious heritage and they eventually migrated to other areas. They
became known as the lost ten tribes of Israel.
Only the three tribes of the Southern Kingdom of Judea were
collectively nicknamed Jews, short for Judeans or Judahites. The first
time this is recorded in the Bible is in 2Kings 16:6. Judah, the southern
kingdom, was able to maintain its relationship with GOD somewhat longer,
perhaps due to the presence of the Temple.
Eventually even the House of Judah drifted into idolatry.
Again YAHWEH sent more Prophets, but
their pleading fell on deaf ears. There was a brief revival under King
Josiah, but after his death the people continued their moral decline. Make
no mistake, Israel was punished for neglecting the Sabbaths and Holy Days
of YAHWEH. HE determined the length of her punishment by counting the
neglected Sabbaths (2Chr.36:20-21). Seventy years is determined, until
they will return.
The Prophets were special men called
out by YAHWEH over the years to warn the kings of YAHWEH’S impending
punishment if they did not repent of their sins. The Prophets were great
teachers, they denounced the wicked rulers, advocated reforms, and called
the people to return to GOD. The Prophets taught truth, compassion and
justice. In YAHWEH’S manner they mostly taught in small voices, speaking
quietly, changing lives by touching their heart and shaping their souls
(1Kgs.12:1-14). Sadly, few people took them seriously, mostly they were
rejected, resisted, ridiculed, thrown in jail and sometimes put to death
(Books of Hosea, Amos, Joel, Micah, Nahum).
*WARNING:
Prophets have to pass the sniff test. Even today we are admonished to
"test everything . . ." (Act.17:11; 1Ths.5:21). Remember, people
called to be Biblical Prophets, means a person who speaks by Divine
inspiration, specifically YAHWEH’S inspiration. No Prophet of YAHWEH
would dare change what is already known from the Scriptures - lest he
dies!
For example: The Book of Isaiah is like a Bible in miniature, and
YAHWEH’S great Heavenly master plan from chaos to eternity is outlined
in it. True Prophets would only relay additional information dovetailing
into what already is known.
Their job description and a warning of false prophets are in Deu.18:14-22.
YAHWEH rose up a Prophet called Jeremiah
to deliver the final warnings to Judah.
Jeremiah was a heartbroken Prophet with a heart breaking message. He
labored for more then forty years proclaiming his message to the
“stiff-necked people of Judah.” Israel
did not appreciate hearing about the doom and gloom Jeremiah was preaching
about. The people despised and persecuted him. Amid all the judgments and
condemnations Jeremiah was also chosen to deliver a wonderful and a very
important promise from YAHWEH.
[8]
The New Covenant
is recorded in Jeremiah 31:31-35, and is the final Covenant. In this
next step of their spiritual evolution, the promise of the ministry of the
Holy Spirit will become a major stumbling block in religious Judaism. Some call this the Christian Covenant, but remember it was
made with the House of Judah, and it is inherited by the gentiles
who come to believe in the Hebrew Messiah coming out of the House of
Judah. Four provisions are made in this Covenant, then it is signed and
dated:
- [A]
Regeneration: The old Law was written in stone by YAHWEH, now the
new Law HE will write in their hearts and in their conscience.
- [B]
National Restoration: YAHWEH will be their GOD, and the nation
will be HIS people.
- [C]
Promises the personal ministry of the "Ruach HaKodesh," the
Sacred Hebrew Name for the Holy Spirit. *WARNING
misuse of the Sacred Name applies.
- [D]
Full Justification, through the Messiah and the sins of the Earth
will be cleansed.
*WARNING!
Just-in-case you think YAHWEH is finished with Israel, at the
end of this Covenant HE clearly challenges anyone, or anything, to step
forward and tell HIM how HE hung the planets, and how HE set the Universe
in motion, because that will be the day when Israel will cease to be a
nation (Jer.31:35-36). (For more info see the Prophecy
page.)
- ...and
the Universe awaits
- for the revealing of the
Children of YAHWEH
- from
New Earth...
From
the book
The Mystical Rites of our CREATOR
ISBN 0-9675266-0-4
Copyright © 2000-2009 White Stone
Communications - HomeWorship101.com
Last modified: June 09, 2009
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