Moses knew and understood about the spiritual symbolism of the dust. He knew that the dust can be considered a blessing or a curse to mankind. He knew the connections between man and dust, the adversary and the dust, and of the dust itself.
When G-d told Moses to strike the ground during one of the plagues, Moses knew what it meant.
Back to the Beginning/ When the Earth Became Cursed.
When dust and earth were created, it was initially a good thing. When G-d first made the dry land, He declared it good. Genesis 1:10, “God called the dry land Earth, the gathering together of the water he called Seas, and God saw that it was good.”
G-d created man from the dust, a man that was to be in G-d’s image. This also was a good thing. Genesis 2:7 “Then the Lord God formed a man from the dust of the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man became a living being.”
But the earth became cursed when sin entered. G-d didn’t curse the ground initially. When Adam and Eve finally confessed what they did, blaming the serpent, G-d turned to the serpent and cursed him first. G-d cursed the serpent to eat the dust (which represents man).
Genesis 3:14-15, “Adonai, G-d, said to the serpent, “Because you have done this, you are cursed more than all livestock and wild animals. You will crawl on your belly and eat dust as long as you live. 15 I will put animosity between you and the woman, and between your descendant and her descendant; he will bruise your head, and you will bruise his heel.”
The earth (dust) became a lowly humiliating symbol when G-d cursed the serpent, forcing him to crawl on his belly and eat the dust.
The second person cursed was Eve by giving her painful childbirth. G-d then turned to Adam and proclaimed that the earth was cursed because of Adam.
Genesis 3:17b, 19 , “the ground is cursed on your account; you will work hard to eat from it as long as you live. (19) You will eat bread by the sweat of your forehead till you return to the ground — for you were taken out of it: you are dust, and you will return to dust.”
Adam and Eve’s mortality was established.
Instead of it being a glorious thing, formed from the dust into the image of G-d, meant to live for eternity, mankind was cursed to die and return to the dust.
This is one reason why the serpent feeds on man (dust). The day the serpent was punished by G-d, he was forced to crawl on his belly.
We all have a relationship with the dust.
Dust Represents a Curse.
Dust symbolizes damnation or accursed. It signifies what is profane and condemned.
G-d used dust to condemn the Egyptians. G-d had Moses curse Egypt twice in direct correlation with the dust. Several other plagues were related to the earth as well (livestock and vegetation).
Exodus 8:17 (NIV), “They did this, and when Aaron stretched out his hand with the staff and struck the dust of the ground, gnats came on people and animals. All the dust throughout the land of Egypt became gnats.”
Exodus 9:8-9, Adonai said to Moshe and Aaron, “Take handfuls of ashes from a kiln, and let Moshe throw them in the air before Pharaoh’s eyes. They will turn into fine dust over all the land of Egypt and become infected sores on men and animals throughout Egypt.”
The curse of the dust became a curse for the Egyptians.
When Agents of Darkness Use Dust Against Us
Agents of darkness (which includes the demonic and humans that worship the demonic) are aware of this hidden secret of the dust. It is a powerful weapon used often by agents of darkness, and they don’t want you to know. These wicked agents (in the physical and spiritual realm) use the dust or the sand of the earth against targeted believers.
Agents of darkness use sand to inflict destruction and havoc on people. They will fight their battles using the dust as arrows to unsuspecting believers. They understand and know what the Word of G-d means by dust.
According to cultists, the dust has magnetic power. They use it to track down and attach itself to targeted human beings that are a threat to the dark kingdom. The dust may look normal and ordinary, but it’s put to harmful and destructive uses by agents in the dark realm.
They use the dust as a weapon of attack. Agents of darkness pour a libation drink offering (a ritual pouring) on the dust. The dark practitioner will go to their altar of affliction and summon incantations and spells with dust. If they can collect the dust, the person has walked on, all the better. They use the dusk to target people, placing them in bondage and torment. They draw evil spirits from the sand and use it against the targeted individual.
They can bewitch the ground (dust), wherever the targeted person walks. They may collect dirt (dust) in front of the person’s business or where ever the person routinely walks. Agents of darkness learned the secret of the dust and have put it to work. Agents of darkness can pick sand from the front of your business place, use it to cast spells and incantations, to bring destruction and torment to you and your business. They pick dust from under someone’s feet, speak into it and blow it into the air releasing a cloud darkness in the form of incantations and spells over the destiny of the person.
I have witnessed this happen to me. I was going to church, walking up to the building, where the meeting was taking place. I felt an uneasiness, an unsettling in my spirit as I was walking. Other people were walking toward the front door as well, but the Holy Spirit quickened my spirit to turn around. I noticed this one man within a small group of people. He was several feet behind me. This individual stood out from the others. I turned around a few times because of the uneasiness in my spirit. I noticed that this person was picking up the dirt (dust) wherever I walked and then speak to it and blow it into the air. I thought this was odd. Before I went into the church building, the Holy Spirit impressed upon me to break off all attachments from agents of darkness. I prayed this immediately before I crossed the threshold of the church doors. I broke this off in Jesus Christ of Nazareth’s name. As soon as I did, the person following me stopped abruptly, turned around, gave me a bad look, and walked off. He never entered the building. I thwarted his efforts for me to carry a curse into the building from the dust off my shoes.
Man has a future with the dust, but the dust can be manipulated to summon dark forces against you. This is the secret that agents of darkness use. They wish evil destruction and death upon believers who are a threat to them.
Agents of the dark kingdom use dust and sorcery as a device of manipulation to block and prevent progress with G-d in your life. They make a decree and satanic proclamations over the dust.
As believers, we must not let our religion get into our head, thinking that this thing doesn’t exist. They are happening. Shake the dust! As a child of G-d, we must release ourselves from the bondage of the dust. When you are under the dark cloud of dust, there will be a hindrance, manipulation, and stagnation.
Dust can also be a form of humiliation or humility
Dust and the earth represent a lowly status. It can be both a bad and good thing. You can be cursed to a lowly status, such as the serpent was, but one can willingly subject oneself by lying prostrate on the ground. This is a choice to surrender. It is an acknowledgment that we need to be humble. Being willing to be humble is a blessing.
As a curse:
Isaiah 47:1 “Come down, and sit in the dust, you virgin daughter of Bavel!
Sit on the ground, not on a throne, daughter of the Kasdim! No longer are you to be called dainty and delicate
As a blessing:
Genesis 50:18 and his brothers too came, prostrated themselves before him and said, “Here, we are your slaves.”
Matthew 17:6 When the talmidim heard this, they were so frightened that they fell face down on the ground.
Revelation 4:10-11, the twenty-four elders fall down before the One sitting on the throne, who lives forever and ever, and worship him. They throw their crowns in front of the throne and say, “You are worthy, Adonai Eloheinu, to have glory, honor and power, because you created all things —yes, because of your will they were created and came into being!”
Shaking the Dust from Your Feet
This verse has so much symbolism that it could be another article. The best representation of shaking the dust off your feet is that you are not taking their rejection, or cursing with you. Don’t take their indifference with you. Just move on.
Matthew 10:14, “But if the people of a house or town will not welcome you or listen to you, leave it and shake its dust from your feet!”
In closing, after looking more deeply at the symbolism of the dust, I wanted to present a scripture that hopefully brings more symbolic power than ever before. It is the time when Yahshua washed his disciples’ feet. Please note that He did this the night before He was crucified.
John 13:5-7 (NIV), After that, he poured water into a basin and began to wash his disciples’ feet, drying them with the towel that was wrapped around him. He came to Simon Peter, who said to him, “Lord, are you going to wash my feet?” Jesus replied, “You do not realize now what I am doing, but later you will understand.”
Initially, we see this verse as Yahshua being the humble servant, washing His disciples’ feet. But when we look closer, now understanding the significance of dust, we can see something more powerful. Yahshua was not ashamed of their dirty feet. He was not ashamed of the curse (dirt) that was all over their feet. He knelt and washed their curse away, symbolically representing that He, being the Son of G-d, was the only one capable of washing their curse (sins) away. He purified His disciples’ dusty feet with water (Mikvah). The very next day, while on the cross, He washed our sins with his blood! Water then blood! That’s what Yahshua meant when He said, “later, you will understand.”
Shalom,
EliyahuPraise
