Water deriving from a natural spring is considered a valid mikveh if it complies with halakhic conditions. Also
quite proper is immersing in the ocean, where there is no mikveh available, given the satisfaction of certain
halakhic conditions.
Parameters of the Mikveh Experience
The ceremony must take place on a weekday (and not on Shabbat, the Sabbath) and during daylight, as do
all other Jewish court procedures. In cases when a full circumcision has to be performed (unlike the touch of
blood for previously circumcised males), enough time will have to elapse to be certain that the wound has
healed completely.
The only assurance that the immersion will accord with halakhic requirements for a male convert is the
presence of the rabbi at the mikveh; a female is to be accompanied by a person familiar with the practice
(such as a rabbi's wife), the mikveh escort, or a very knowledgeable friend who herself uses the mikveh.
The body must be thoroughly cleansed immediately before the immersion. The convert should be careful that
there are no adhesions such as bandages, Band-Aids, or ointment; that the hair is thoroughly brushed; the
nails of the hands and feet are pared; and that no traces of cosmetics or nail polish remain. The whole body
must be immersed at one time (not sequentially); and the submerging must be total without even a single
hair remaining above the water.
The custom in Y‟shua‟s daysThe ancient Jewish sages also taught that the word Mikveh has the same letters as Ko Meh, the Hebrew
word for "rising" or "standing tall‖; therefore, we have immersion or being completely submerged in water
followed by standing straight up out of the water.
The custom of Mikveh in Y‘shua‘s days was that the Mikveh was to be performed in the presence of a
witness—usually a priest or someone from the Sanhedrin. The person being immersed or baptised prepared
themselves by praying and focusing on YHWH. The candidate would completely undress and make a fresh
profession of their faith before the designated "witnesses of the immersion‖. The candidate entered the
water, standing straight up with their feet spread and hands held out in front of them. The candidate would
totally immerse themselves by squatting in the water three times with the witness or immerser doing the
officiating.
The New Covenant points out that Y‘shua came up straightway out of the water in Matt 3:16 ―And Jesus,
when he was baptized, went up straightway out of the water: and, lo, the heavens were opened unto him,
and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove, and lighting upon him‖ (KJV). Yochanan the Immerser
(John the Baptist) was Y‘shua‘s witness and was of priestly lineage (Luke 1:8-23).
The performance of Mikveh is an ancient Jewish custom that is referred to as a new birth and is the basis of
today‘s modern Baptism. Mikveh or Baptism is a powerful spiritual act that we as believers can perform as a
testimony of our faith in Y‘shua, as a commitment to YHWH‘s Word, and as a spiritual re-birth into the
Kingdom of YHWH. Contrary to many theologies, salvation cannot be found in the Mikveh or Baptism.
Salvation only comes from the acceptance of Y‘shua as one‘s Saviour and acknowledging that His blood has
washed away your sins.
Most of today‘s Baptism customs are taken directly from the Mikveh. In Y‘shua‘s time, the Mikveh candidate
preceded their immersion with exhortations and benedictions. They would declare their acceptance of the
Torah (YHWH‘s Word) by declaring, "I will do and I will hear" portions of an oath spoken by the priests not to
forsake the Torah (Deut 29:9- 14). The concept of total immersion comes from Lev 15:16 when it says, "he
shall wash all his flesh in the water‖. The Mikveh candidates immersed themselves in the water three times
because the word Mikveh occurs three times in the Torah—and also because it is explained in the section,
―Why immerse three times from a traditional Jewish point of view?‖
Through this we see the pattern of repentance, cleansing, and in-filling of the Ruach HaKodesh (Holy Spirit)
and the Triune nature of YHWH in these three submergings! The person performing Mikveh was not touched
in Y‘shua's day because Lev 15:16 says, ―He shall wash all his flesh in the water‖.
Mikveh in rabbinical writings, as said, gives us the concept of Mikveh as the ―womb of the world‖. As the
Mikveh candidate comes out of the water, they are considered a ―new birth‖, separating them from the world
and worldly ways. They are referred to as "a little child just born" or "a child of one day". The New Covenant