Below the line of ◈ is my homework from the “assignment” on “act eagerly.” Hopefully you came up with something as well. This was not pre-planned, but it struck me that there is a great, repeated message here, that can be approached from the opposite direction. And perhaps you can see how we meet in the middle.
First I’ll have you either do a “search” in LogAndSpeck for “long of nose,” or go directly toPost #9 Figures of Speech and read about this idiom or figure of speech. In Post #9, I have shared “the party line,” which is accurate for what I knew at the time, but I have expanded my view somewhat since then. ארך אף is translated most often as longsuffering or patient or slow to anger. Rather than look at אף as anger, I think a broader view is “frustration,” which we have mentioned before. There are certainly many times when you in your life when you are frustrated, but not necessarily angry, right? Anger might be one way of expressing frustration. So, in fitting with our discussion of “act eagerly,” we might say ארך (prolong, extend, soften) אף might mean acting not quite so eagerly. Patient, longsuffering fit that well. Many times God is described in that manner, and God’s own definition of himself in an encounter with Moses/Moshe is: Exodus 34:6-7
6 And the LORD passed before him and proclaimed, “The LORD, the LORD God, merciful and gracious, longsuffering, and abounding in goodness and truth, 7 keeping mercy for thousands, forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin, by no means clearing the guilty, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children and the children’s children, upon threes and upon fours.”
I will point out two of the many examples below that may give some clarity. First note in the first passage under אבב, Exodus 9:31-32, the ones that “acted eagerly” אביב were struck down, whereas those “late in coming up” אפיל, were not struck down.
The next one I want to point out to you is Adam’s challenges in life following his “acting eagerly,” without stopping to remember God’s instruction, in the Garden. Genesis 3:19
19 In the sweat of your face you shall eat bread
Till you return to the ground,
For out of it you were taken;
For dust you are,
And to dust you shall return.”
Three words to focus on here. Remember bread is לחם “struggle for existence.” “Face” is really “nose,” אף, and here think of our topic of “acting eagerly.” Finally, “sweat” is from the root זעה, “quiver from exhaustion; exert energy.” His consequences are directly related to his overeagerness in acting, not stopping to think of God’s instruction.
I always like to point to Simon Peter, Kefa כפה (Cephas) as a perfect example of impetuousness. Think of the times he speaks or acts before stopping to think. Here are some:
Toiled all night – Luke 5:5-11
Walks on water (briefly) – Matthew 14:28-33
Transfiguration – Matthew 17:1-9
Wash feet – John 13:6-17
Die with you – Matthew26:31-35 (also Mk14:27-31; Lk22:31-34; John 13:36-38
Interesting, the only time כפה appears as a verb is in conjunction with אף, and I started to include a discussion on this verse, but it has turned into a much larger project••• perhaps another time.
Proverbs 21:14
14 מַתָּ֣ן בַּ֭סֵּתֶר יִכְפֶּה־אָ֑ף וְשֹׁ֥חַד בַּ֝חֵ֗ק חֵמָ֥ה עַזָּֽה׃
ESV translates as Proverbs 21:14
14 A gift in secret averts anger,
and a concealed bribe, strong wrath.
If we are substituting “acting eagerly” for anger, and it is upon this “rock” the church is to be built. (Matthew 16:18)
John 1:42
42 And he brought him to Jesus.
Now when Jesus looked at him, He said, “You are Simon the son of Jonah. You shall be called Cephas” (which is translated, A Stone).
g2786. Κηφᾶς Kēphas; of Aramaic origin (compare h3710. כֵּף ḵêp̱); the Rock; Cephas (i.e. Kepha), a surname of Peter: — Cephas.
AV (6) – Cephas 6; Cephas = “stone”
another name for the apostle Peter
h3710. כֵּף ḵêp̱; from h3721. כָּפַף ḵâp̱ap̱; a hollow rock: — rock.
AV (2) – rock 2;
rock, hollow of a rock
h3721. כָּפַף ḵâp̱ap̱; a primitive root; to curve: — bow down (self).
AV (5) – bow down 4, bow 1;
to bend, bend down, bow down, be bent, be bowed
(Qal) to bend down, bow down
(Niphal) to bow oneself down
GV p.122 כפף bend [make crooked]; p.122 כפה subdue [force]
DV אכף – p.122 כפף bend [make crooked]; p.122 כפה subdue [force] > p.10 אכף force No other DVs
CM כפף enclose (C4); כפה concentrate (C3); אכף continue/retard action (A14)
Where I do not want to mislead is that there are many words for “rock” and “stone,” and trying to go with the Greek intermediary does not help. In Mt16:18, “rock” is g4073. πέτρα petra, the feminine form of the word for Peter. In the Septuagint, I can only find πέτρα referring to h5553. סֶלַע sela‘ and to h6697. צוּר ṣûr, different kinds of “rock.” In George Howard’s Hebrew Gospel of Matthew, the word is אבן, which is stone, Strongs h0068. אֶבֶן’eḇen; from the root of h1129. בָּנָה ḇânâ through the meaning to build. אבן makes for good logic since the discussion is about “building” the church, and בנה is also the root for בן, which is “children” or “son,” the ones under our influence.
Again, more work to be done, and the Greek doesn’t help me much here. If someone has some solid evidence, please let me know.
Peter is a perfect example if we are talking about averting acting impulsively. He is also a perfect example if we are talking about bowing down כפף, as he was put in the position (humbled) in response to his rash oath in John 13:36-38, by his own actions in Mt26:69-75, and his being restored in John 21:15-19. This is all just food for rumination 🤔 as I have no answers. You may have drawn your own conclusions from the word study of “acting eagerly.”
Remember God is “long of nose,” very patient. As we strive to be more Godlike, perhaps we, too, are to avoid acting too eagerly, but to pause and seek God’s input. And isn’t the end result a great example of mercy and longsuffering and grace and all of those amazing attributes of God? I see Peter tendencies in myself sometimes. Do you? Perhaps the church can be built on such.
◈ ◈ ◈ ◈ ◈ ◈ ◈ ◈ ◈ ◈ ◈ ◈ ◈ ◈ ◈ ◈ ◈ ◈ ◈ ◈ ◈ ◈ ◈ ◈ ◈ ◈ ◈ ◈ ◈ ◈ ◈ My “homework:”
① ripening; completing development
Exodus 9:29-33
29 Moses said to him, “As soon as I have gone out of the city, I will stretch out my hands to the LORD. The thunder will cease, and there will be no more hail, so that you may know that the earth is the LORD’S. 30 But as for you and your servants, I know that you do not yet fear the LORD God.” 31 (The flax and the barley were struck down, for the barley was in the ear (h0024. אָבִיב ’âḇîyḇ) and the flax was in bud. 32 But the wheat and the emmer were not struck down, for they are late in coming up (h0648. אָפִיל ’âp̱îyl).) 33 So Moses went out of the city from Pharaoh and stretched out his hands to the LORD, and the thunder and the hail ceased, and the rain no longer poured upon the earth.
h0648. אָפִיל ’âp̱îyl; from the same as 651 (in the sense of weakness); unripe: — not grown up.
AV (1) – grown up 1;
late, ripe
h0651. אָפֵל ’âp̱êl; from an unused root meaning to set as the sun; dusky: — very dark.
AV (1) – very dark 1;
gloomy, dark
h0652. אֹפֶל ’ôp̱el; from the same as 651; dusk: — darkness, obscurity, privily.
AV (9) – darkness 7, privily 1, obscurity 1;
darkness, gloom
spiritual unreceptivity, calamity (fig.)
h0653. אֲפֵלָה ’ăp̱êlâ; feminine of 651; duskiness, figuratively, misfortune; concrete, concealment: — dark, darkness, gloominess, x thick.
AV (10) – darkness 6, gloominess 2, dark 1, thick 1;
darkness, gloominess, calamity
wickedness (fig.)
h0654. אֶפְלָל ’ep̱lâl; from 6419; judge; Ephlal, an Israelite: — Ephlal.
AV (2) – Ephlal 2; Ephlal = “intercessor”
a descendant of Pharez
② stalk greedily sucking up nourishment
Song of Songs 6:11-12
SHE
11 I went down to the nut orchard
to look at the blossoms (h0003. אֵב ’êḇ) of the valley,
to see whether the vines had budded,
whether the pomegranates were in bloom.
12 Before I was aware, my desire set me
among the chariots of my kinsman, a prince.
||
Genesis 2:7
7 then the LORD God formed the man of dust from the ground and breathed into his nostrils(h0639. אַף ’ap̱) the breath (h5397. נְשָׁמָה nešâmâ) of life, and the man became a living creature.
||
Exodus 15:8
8 At the blast (h7307. רוּחַ rûaḥ) of your nostrils (h0639. אַף ’ap̱) the waters piled up;
the floods stood up in a heap;
the deeps congealed in the heart of the sea.
③ springtime when stalks ripen
Exodus 13:3-5 – (The Feast of Unleavened Bread)
3 Then Moses said to the people, “Remember this day in which you came out from Egypt, out of the house of slavery, for by a strong hand the LORD brought you out from this place. No leavened bread shall be eaten. 4 Today, in the month of Abib (h0024. אָבִיב ’âḇîyḇ), you are going out. 5 And when the LORD brings you into the land of the Canaanites, the Hittites, the Amorites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites, which he swore to your fathers to give you, a land flowing with milk and honey, you shall keep this service in this month.
④ ripened stalk
Leviticus 2:14-16
14 “If you offer a grain offering of firstfruits to the LORD, you shall offer for the grain offering of your firstfruits fresh ears (h0024. אָבִיב ’âḇîyḇ), roasted with fire, crushed new grain. 15 And you shall put oil on it and lay frankincense on it; it is a grain offering. 16 And the priest shall burn as its memorial portion some of the crushed grain and some of the oil with all of its frankincense; it is a food offering to the LORD.
① panting greedily
Exodus 15:4-10
4 “Pharaoh’s chariots and his host he cast into the sea,
and his chosen officers were sunk in the Red Sea.
5 The floods covered them;
they went down into the depths like a stone.
6 Your right hand, O LORD, glorious in power,
your right hand, O LORD, shatters the enemy.
7 In the greatness of your majesty you overthrow your adversaries;
you send out your fury; it consumes them like stubble.
8 At the blast (h7307. רוּחַ rûaḥ) of your nostrils (h0639. אַף ’ap̱) the waters piled up;
the floods stood up in a heap;
the deeps congealed in the heart of the sea.
9 The enemy said, ‘I will pursue, I will overtake,
I will divide the spoil, my desire shall have its fill of them.
I will draw my sword; my hand shall destroy them.’
10 You blew with your wind; the sea covered them;
they sank like lead in the mighty waters.
② overwhelming
Psalms 18:4-5
4 The cords of death encompassed (h0661. אָפַף ’âp̱ap̱) me;
the torrents of destruction assailed me;
5 the cords of Sheol entangled me;
the snares of death confronted me.
③ oppressing
Psalms 116:1-4
I Love the LORD
1 I love the LORD, because he has heard
my voice and my pleas for mercy.
2 Because he inclined his ear to me,
therefore I will call on him as long as I live.
3 The snares of death encompassed (h0661. אָפַף ’âp̱ap̱) me;
the pangs of Sheol laid hold on me;
I suffered distress and anguish.
4 Then I called on the name of the LORD:
“O LORD, I pray, deliver my soul!”
④ yearning countenance
Genesis 3:17-19
17 And to Adam he said,
“Because you have listened to the voice of your wife
and have eaten of the tree
of which I commanded you,
‘You shall not eat of it,’
cursed is the ground because of you;
in pain you shall eat of it all the days of your life;
18 thorns and thistles it shall bring forth for you;
and you shall eat the plants of the field.
19 By the sweat of your face (h0639. אַף ’ap̱)
you shall eat bread,
till you return to the ground,
for out of it you were taken;
for you are dust,
and to dust you shall return.”
||
Psalms 10:1-7
1 Why, O LORD, do you stand far away?
Why do you hide yourself in times of trouble?
2 In arrogance the wicked hotly pursue the poor;
let them be caught in the schemes that they have devised.
3 For the wicked boasts of the desires of his soul,
and the one greedy for gain curses and renounces the LORD.
4 In the pride (h1363. גֹּבַהּ g̱ôḇah) of his face (h0639. אַף ’ap̱) the wicked does not seek him; ((need to do a study on גבה ↔︎בגה ↔︎ב+גה))
all his thoughts are, “There is no God.”
5 His ways prosper at all times;
your judgments are on high, out of his sight;
as for all his foes, he puffs at them.
6 He says in his heart, “I shall not be moved;
throughout all generations I shall not meet adversity.”
7 His mouth is filled with cursing and deceit and oppression;
under his tongue are mischief and iniquity.
⑤ nose absorbing breath
Genesis 2:5-7
5 When no bush of the field was yet in the land and no small plant of the field had yet sprung up—for the LORD God had not caused it to rain on the land, and there was no man to work the ground, 6 and a mist was going up from the land and was watering the whole face of the ground— 7 then the LORD God formed the man of dust from the ground and breathed into his nostrils (h0639. אַף ’ap̱) the breath (h5397. נְשָׁמָה nešâmâ) of life, and the man became a living creature.
[[not EDBH, but ESV Ref ➔ Job 27:1-6
1 And Job again took up his discourse, and said:
2 “As God lives, who has taken away my right,
and the Almighty, who has made my soul bitter,
3 as long as my breath (h5397. נְשָׁמָה nešâmâ) is in me,
and the spirit (h7307. רוּחַ rûaḥ) of God is in my nostrils (h0639. אַף ’ap̱),
4 my lips will not speak falsehood,
and my tongue will not utter deceit.
5 Far be it from me to say that you are right;
till I die I will not put away my integrity from me.
6 I hold fast my righteousness and will not let it go;
my heart does not reproach me for any of my days.]]
⑥ even if; adding to previous remarks
Leviticus 26:40-45
40 “But if they confess their iniquity and the iniquity of their fathers in their treachery that they committed against me, and also in walking contrary to me, 41 so that I walked contrary to them and brought them into the land of their enemies—if then their uncircumcised heart is humbled and they make amends for their iniquity, 42 then I will remember my covenant with Jacob, and I will remember my covenant with Isaac and my covenant with Abraham, and I will remember the land. 43 But the land shall be abandoned by them and enjoy its Sabbaths while it lies desolate without them, and they shall make amends for their iniquity, because they spurned my rules and their soul abhorred my statutes. 44 Yet (h0637. אַף ’ap̱) for all that, when they are in the land of their enemies, I will not spurn them, neither will I abhor them so as to destroy them utterly and break my covenant with them, for I am the LORD their God. 45 But I will for their sake remember the covenant with their forefathers, whom I brought out of the land of Egypt in the sight of the nations, that I might be their God: I am the LORD.”
Leviticus 26:44
44 וְאַף־גַּם־זֹ֠את בִּֽהְיוֹתָ֞ם בְּאֶ֣רֶץ אֹֽיְבֵיהֶ֗ם לֹֽא־מְאַסְתִּ֤ים וְלֹֽא־גְעַלְתִּים֙ לְכַלֹּתָ֔ם לְהָפֵ֥ר בְּרִיתִ֖י אִתָּ֑ם כִּ֛י אֲנִ֥ייְהוָ֖ה אֱלֹהֵיהֶֽם׃
① offering
Hosea 8:12-14
12 Were I to write for him my laws by the ten thousands,
they would be regarded as a strange thing.
13 As for my sacrificial offerings,
they sacrifice meat (h1890. הַבְהָב haḇhâḇ) and eat it,
but the LORD does not accept them.
Now he will remember their iniquity
and punish their sins;
they shall return to Egypt.
14 For Israel has forgotten his Maker
and built palaces,
and Judah has multiplied fortified cities;
so I will send a fire upon his cities,
and it shall devour her strongholds.
① loving
Numbers 10:29-32
29 And Moses said to Hobab (h2246. חֹבָב ḥôḇâḇ) the son of Reuel the Midianite, Moses’ father-in-law, “We are setting out for the place of which the LORD said, ‘I will give it to you.’ Come with us, and we will do good to you, for the LORD has promised good to Israel.” 30 But he said to him, “I will not go. I will depart to my own land and to my kindred.” 31 And he said, “Please do not leave us, for you know where we should camp in the wilderness, and you will serve as eyes (h5869. עַיִן ‘aiyn) for us. 32 And if you do go with us, whatever good the LORD will do to us, the same will we do to you.”
② obligate
Deuteronomy 33:2-3
2 He said,
“The LORD came from Sinai
and dawned from Seir upon us;
he shone forth from Mount Paran;
he came from the ten thousands of holy ones,
with flaming fire at his right hand.
3 Yes, he loved (h2245. חָבַב ḥâḇaḇ) his people,
all his holy ones were in his hand;
so they followed in your steps,
receiving direction from you,
① surrounding; protecting
Deuteronomy 33:12
12 Of Benjamin he said,
“The beloved of the LORD dwells in safety.
The High God surrounds (h2653. חָפַף ḥâp̱ap̱) him all day long,
and dwells between his shoulders.”
② harbor; ship’s haven
Genesis 49:13
13 “Zebulun shall dwell at the shore of the sea;
he shall become a haven (h2348. חוֹף ḥôp̱) for ships,
and his border shall be at Sidon.
Recall that we have discussed ships before, and a spiritual meaning for such.
③ chamber
Psalms 19:4-5
4 Their voice goes out through all the earth,
and their words to the end of the world.
In them he has set a tent for the sun,
5 which comes out like a bridegroom leaving his chamber (h2646. חֻפָּה ḥup̱â),
and, like a strong man, runs its course with joy.
① thick beam or plank
Ezekiel 41:25-26
25 And on the doors of the nave were carved cherubim and palm trees, such as were carved on the walls. And there was a canopy (h5646. עָב ‘âḇ) of wood in front of the vestibule outside. 26 And there were narrow windows and palm trees on either side, on the sidewalls of the vestibule, the side chambers of the temple, and the canopies (h5646. עָב ‘âḇ).
① eyelid fluttering
Psalms 11:4-7
4 The LORD is in his holy temple;
the LORD’S throne is in heaven;
his eyes see, his eyelids (h6079. עַפְעַף ‘ap̱‘ap̱) test the children of man.
5 The LORD tests the righteous,
but his soul hates the wicked and the one who loves violence.
6 Let him rain coals on the wicked;
fire and sulfur and a scorching wind shall be the portion of their cup.
7 For the LORD is righteous;
he loves righteous deeds;
the upright shall behold his face.
||
Psalms 104:10-13
10 You make springs (h4599. מַעְיָן ma‘yân) gush forth in the valleys;
they flow between the hills;
11 they give drink to every beast of the field;
the wild donkeys quench their thirst.
12 Beside them the birds (h5775. עוֹף ‘ôp̱) of the heavens (h8064. שָׁמַיִם šâmaiym) dwell;
they sing among the branches.
13 From your lofty abode you water the mountains;
the earth is satisfied with the fruit of your work.
② flying
Isaiah 6:1-3
1 In the year that King Uzziah died I saw the Lord sitting upon a throne, high and lifted up; and the train of his robe filled the temple. 2 Above him stood the seraphim. Each had six wings: with two he covered his face, and with two he covered his feet, and with two he flew(h5774. עוּף ‘ûp̱). 3 And one called to another and said:
“Holy, holy, holy is the LORD of hosts;
the whole earth is full of his glory!”
③ looking quickly
Proverbs 23:4-5
4 Do not toil to acquire wealth;
be discerning enough to desist.
5 When your eyes light (h5774. עוּף ‘ûp̱) on it, it is gone,
for suddenly it sprouts wings,
flying (h5774. עוּף ‘ûp̱) like an eagle toward heaven.
Proverbs 23:5
5 הֲתָ֤עִוף* עֵינֶ֥יךָ בֹּ֗ו וְֽאֵ֫ינֶ֥נּוּ כִּ֤י עָשֹׂ֣ה יַעֲשֶׂה־לֹּ֣ו כְנָפַ֑יִם כְּ֝נֶ֗שֶׁר וָע֥יּף* הַשָּׁמָֽיִם׃ פ
© July 2021 logandspeck.com please cite if copying