- Came here from note מעשׂה Work, which will likely find its way here soon. This is a long blog entry, so you may want to break into sessions. I have marked potential ”pauses,” if you so desire.
In that note, we began a look at three words for work, h4639. מַעֲשֶׂה ma‘ăśeh, h4399. מְלָאכָה melâ’ḵâ, and h5647. עָבַד ‘âḇaḏ. h5647. עָבַד ‘âḇaḏ is featured in this Deuteronomy passage in the middle of the discussion of “blessings” and “curses.”. It appears to be a discussion of our attitude toward h5647. עָבַד ‘âḇaḏ, translated here as serving. The idea is not very well accepted these days. But we may find we have a great deal to learn if we listen to the words of God in this passage.
Deuteronomy 28:47-48
47 “Because you did not serve (h5647. עָבַד ‘âḇaḏ) the LORD your God with joy and gladness of heart, for the abundance of everything, 48 therefore you shall serve(h5647. עָבַד ‘âḇaḏ) your enemies, whom the LORD will send against you, in hunger, in thirst, in nakedness, and in need of everything; and He will put a yoke of iron on your neck until He has destroyed you.
Devarim 28:47-48
47 תחת אשר לא־עבדת את־יהוה אלהיך בשמחה ובטוב לבב מרב כל׃
48 ועבדת את־איביך אשר ישלחנו יהוה בך ברעב ובצמא ובעירם ובחסר כל ונתן על ברזל על־צוארךעד השמידו אתך׃
① working purposefully
Genesis 2:4-6
4 This (is) the history of the heavens and the earth when they were created, in the day that the LORD God made the earth and the heavens, 5 before any plant of the field was in the earth and before any herb of the field had grown. For the LORD God had not caused it to rain on the earth, and (there was) no man to till (h5647. עָבַד ‘âḇaḏ) the ground; 6 but a mist went up from the earth and watered the whole face of the ground.
||
Psalms 2:1-3
1 Why do the nations rage,
And the people plot a vain thing?
2 The kings of the earth set themselves,
And the rulers take counsel together,
Against the LORD and against his anointed (h4899. מָשִׁיחַ mâšiyaḥ), (saying),
3 “Let us break Their bonds (h4147. מוֹסֵר môsêr) in pieces
And cast away Their cords (h5688. עֲבֹת ‘ăḇôṯ) from us.”
- (One of the words in the Work note, h4639. מַעֲשֶׂה ma‘ăśeh, appears to be related to the marked words here. We will keep in mind.)
② giving service
Genesis 29:15-17 NKJV (for h7390. רַךְ raḵ, ESV says weak (or soft))
15 Then Laban said to Jacob, “Because you (are) my relative, should you therefore serve (h5647. עָבַד ‘âḇaḏ) me for nothing? Tell me, what (should) your wages (be)?” 16 Now Laban had two daughters: the name of the elder (was) Leah, and the name of the younger was Rachel. 17 Leah’s eyes (were) delicate (h7390. רַךְ raḵ), but Rachel was beautiful of form and appearance.
||
Exodus 28:31-35
31 “You shall make the robe of the ephod all of blue. 32 There shall be an opening for his head in the middle of it; it shall have a woven binding all around its opening, like the opening in a coat of mail, so that it does not tear. 33 And upon its hem you shall make pomegranates of blue, purple, and scarlet, all around its hem, and bells of gold between them all around: 34 a golden bell and a pomegranate, a golden bell and a pomegranate, upon the hem of the robe all around. 35 And it shall be upon Aaron when he ministers, and its sound will be heard when he goes into the holy (place) before the LORD and when he comes out, that he may not die. This is a Tabernacle connection.
Exodus 28:35
35 וְהָיָ֥ה עַֽל־אַהֲרֹ֖ן לְשָׁרֵ֑ת וְנִשְׁמַ֣ע קֹ֠ולוֹ בְּבֹאֹ֨ו אֶל־הַקֹּ֜דֶשׁ לִפְנֵ֧י יְהוָ֛ה וּבְצֵאתֹ֖ו וְלֹ֥א יָמֽוּת׃ ס
- Not certain what EDBH is pointing to here. “Minister” certainly fits the heading of “giving service,” but does not seem to have root connections. וּבְצֵאתֹ֖ו, “in coming out” could have cognate permutation connections with עבד, and could tie into the thoughts below of coming out of bondage. ובצאתו also has cognate permutation connection with טוב, “good.”
③ being a slave
Exodus 6:5-9
5 And I have also heard the groaning of the children of Israel whom the Egyptians keep in bondage (h5647. עָבַד ‘âḇaḏ), and I have remembered My covenant. 6 Therefore say to the children of Israel: I am the LORD; I will bring you out from under the burdens of the Egyptians, I will rescue you from their bondage (h5656. עֲבֹדָה‘ăḇôḏâ), and I will redeem you with an outstretched arm and with great judgments. 7 I will take you as My people, and I will be your God. Then you shall know that I am the LORD your God who brings you out (הַמּוֹצִ֣יא h3318. יָצָא yâṣâ’) from under the burdens (h5450. סְבָלָה seḇâlâ) of the Egyptians. 8 And I will bring you into the land which I swore to give to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob; and I will give it to you as a heritage: I am the LORD.'” 9 So Moses spoke thus to the children of Israel; but they did not heed Moses, because of anguish of spirit and cruel bondage (h5656. עֲבֹדָה ‘ăḇôḏâ).
- As in the note after Psalm 2:1-3 above, there are connections in הַמּוֹצִ֣יא with h4899. מָשִׁיחַ mâšiyaḥ and h4639. מַעֲשֶׂה ma‘ăśeh. Also, see cognate permutation connections of h5450. סְבָלָה seḇâlâ burden with clothing (h3830. לְבוּשׁ leḇûš from h3847. לָבַשׁ lâḇaš – see Gn3:21, to be clothed).
||
Leviticus 25:39-43
39 ‘And if (one of) your brethren (who dwells) by you becomes poor, and sells himself to you, you shall not compel him to serve (h5656. עֲבֹדָה ‘ăḇôḏâ) as a slave (h5650. עֶבֶד ‘eḇeḏ). 40 As a hired servant (h7916. שָׂכִיר śâḵîyr) (and) a sojourner (h8453. תּוֹשָׁבtôšâḇ) he shall be with you, and shall serve (h5647. עָבַד ‘âḇaḏ) you until the Year of Jubilee. 41 And then he shall depart (h3318. יָצָא yâṣâ’) from you—he and his children with him—and shall return to his own family. He shall return to the possession of his fathers. 42 For they (are) My servants (h5650. עֶבֶד ‘eḇeḏ), whom I brought out of the land of Egypt; they shall not be sold as slaves (h5650. עֶבֶד ‘eḇeḏ). 43 You shall not rule over him with rigor, but you shall fear your God.
- From such connections, משיח would know יצא would be part of the service.
||
Deuteronomy 15:1-6
1 “At the end of every seven years you shall grant a release (h8059. שְׁמִטָּה šemiṭâ) (of debts). 2 And this is the form of the release: Every creditor who has lent (h5383. נָשָׁהnâšâ) (anything) to his neighbor shall release (h8059. שְׁמִטָּה šemiṭâ) it; he shall not require it of his neighbor or his brother, because it is called the LORD’s release. 3 Of a foreigner you may require (it); but you shall give up your claim to what is owed by your brother, 4 except when there may be no poor among you; for the LORD will greatly bless you in the land which the LORD your God is giving you to possess as an inheritance— 5 only if you carefully obey the voice of the LORD your God, to observe with care all these commandments which I command you today. 6 For the LORD your God will bless you just as He promised you; you shall lend (h5670. עָבַט ‘âḇaṭ) to many nations, but you shall not borrow (h5670. עָבַט ‘âḇaṭ); you shall reign over many nations, but they shall not reign over you.
- As with “brings you out” and “depart,” so “release” שמטה (think of ט as related to ת, “the mark,” and שמה a permutation with משח, root for משיח). A release might be the mark of Messiah.
④ directing energies to another’s goal
Exodus 5:17-19
17 But he said, “You are idle! Idle! Therefore you say, ‘Let us go and sacrifice to the LORD.’ 18 Therefore go now (and) work (h5647. עָבַד ‘âḇaḏ); for no straw shall be given you, yet you shall deliver the quota of bricks.” 19 And the officers of the children of Israel saw that they were in trouble after it was said, “You shall not reduce any bricks from your daily quota.”
⑤ Temple service and accompanying music (note two “④’s” in EDBH entry)
- This is actually the Tabernacle (not the Temple), and another Tabernacle connection.
Numbers 4:46-48
46 All who were numbered of the Levites, whom Moses, Aaron, and the leaders of Israel numbered, by their families and by their fathers’ houses, 47 from thirty years old and above, even to fifty years old, everyone who came to do the work (h5656. עֲבֹדָה‘ăḇôḏâ) of service (h5656. עֲבֹדָה ‘ăḇôḏâ) and the work of bearing burdens (h4853. מַשָּׂא maśâ’) in the tabernacle of meeting— 48 those who were numbered were eight thousand five hundred and eighty.
- Is not Messiah’s work to bear burdens?
⑥ deed
Job 34:21-25
21 “For His eyes (are) on the ways of man,
And He sees all his steps.
22 There is no darkness nor shadow of death
Where the workers (h6466. פָּעַל p̱â‘al) of iniquity may hide themselves.
23 For He need not further consider a man,
That he should go before God in judgment.
24 He breaks in pieces mighty men without inquiry,
And sets others in their place.
25 Therefore He knows their works (h4566. מַעְבָּד ma‘ḇâḏ);
He overthrows (h2015. הָפַךְ hâp̱aḵ) (them) in the night,
And they are crushed.
- Does he overthrow the workers of iniquity or “their works,” or are circumstances changed overnight?
- (Not to confuse, but פעל is the word used as the pattern for defining the placement of letters in three-letter roots. An example is seen in the image of EDBH p.295 shortly below the dotted line.)
h2015. הָפַךְ hâp̱aḵ
❶ changing
Deuteronomy 32:15-22
15 “But Jeshurun grew fat and kicked;
You grew fat, you grew thick,
You are obese!
Then he forsook God who made him,
And scornfully esteemed the Rock of his salvation.
16 They provoked Him to jealousy with foreign gods;
With abominations they provoked Him to anger.
17 They sacrificed to demons, not to God,
(To gods) they did not know,
To new (gods), new arrivals
That your fathers did not fear.
18 Of the Rock who begot you, you are unmindful,
And have forgotten the God who fathered you.
19 “And when the LORD saw (it), He spurned them,
Because of the provocation of His sons and His daughters.
20 And He said: ‘I will hide My face from them,
I will see what their end (will be),
For they (are) a perverse (h8419. תַּהְפֻּכָה ṯahp̱uḵâ) generation,
Children in whom is no faith.
21 They have provoked Me to jealousy by what is not God;
They have moved Me to anger by their foolish idols.
But I will provoke them to jealousy by those who (are) not a nation;
I will move them to anger by a foolish nation.
22 For a fire is kindled in My anger,
And shall burn to the lowest hell;
It shall consume the earth with her increase,
And set on fire the foundations of the mountains.
||
Psalms 105:23-25
23 Israel also came into Egypt,
And Jacob dwelt in the land of Ham.
24 He increased His people greatly,
And made them stronger than their enemies.
25 He turned (h2015. הָפַךְ hâp̱aḵ) their heart to hate His people,
To deal craftily with His servants.
- Note this is saying that it is the LORD (יהוה) who changes the heart of the Egyptians.
❷ turning
Leviticus 13:1-6
1 And the LORD spoke to Moses and Aaron, saying: 2 “When a man has on the skin of his body a swelling, a scab, or a bright spot, and it becomes on the skin of his body (like) a leprous sore, then he shall be brought to Aaron the priest or to one of his sons the priests. 3 The priest shall examine the sore on the skin of the body; and if the hair on the sore has turned (h2015. הָפַךְ hâp̱aḵ) white, and the sore appears to be deeper than the skin of his body, it is a leprous sore. Then the priest shall examine him, and pronounce him unclean. 4 But if the bright spot (is) white on the skin of his body, and does not appear (to be) deeper than the skin, and its hair has not turned (h2015. הָפַךְhâp̱aḵ) white, then the priest shall isolate (the one who has) the sore seven days. 5 And the priest shall examine him on the seventh day; and indeed if the sore appears to be as it was, and the sore has not spread on the skin, then the priest shall isolate him another seven days. 6 Then the priest shall examine him again on the seventh day; and indeed (if) the sore has faded, (and) the sore has not spread on the skin, then the priest shall pronounce him clean; it (is only) a scab, and he shall wash his clothes and be clean.
❸ going to and fro
Genesis 3:22-24
22 Then the LORD God said, “Behold, the man has become like one of Us, to know good and evil. And now, lest he put out his hand and take also of the tree of life, and eat, and live forever”— 23 therefore the LORD God sent him out of the garden of Eden to till (h5647. עָבַד ‘âḇaḏ) the ground from which he was taken. 24 So He drove out the man; and He placed cherubim at the east of the garden of Eden, and a flaming sword which turned (h2015. הָפַךְ hâp̱aḵ) every way, to guard the way to the tree of life.
❹ overthrowing
Genesis 19:27-29
27 And Abraham went early in the morning to the place where he had stood before the LORD. 28 Then he looked toward Sodom and Gomorrah, and toward all the land of the plain; and he saw, and behold, the smoke of the land which went up like the smoke of a furnace. 29 And it came to pass, when God destroyed the cities of the plain, that God remembered Abraham, and sent (h7971. שָׁלַח šâlaḥ) Lot out of the midst of the overthrow (h2018. הֲפֵכָה hăp̱êḵâ), when He overthrew (h2015. הָפַךְhâp̱aḵ) the cities in which Lot had dwelt (h3427. יָשַׁב yâšaḇ).
- See ישב as related to p.100 יבש firm up; dry and its variant family, which has everything to do with the Tabernacle and Creation, but we simply cannot go into now. Where God dwells with us we feel shame and disappointment••• ●
❺ lies
Proverbs 2:10-12
10 When wisdom enters your heart,
And knowledge is pleasant to your soul,
11 Discretion will preserve you;
Understanding will keep you,
12 To deliver you from the way of evil,
From the man who speaks perverse things (h8419. תַּהְפֻּכָה ṯahp̱uḵâ),
⬘ ⬙ ⬘ ⬙
Deuteronomy 28:47-48
47 “Because you did not serve (h5647. עָבַד ‘âḇaḏ) the LORD your God with joy and gladness of heart, for the abundance of everything, 48 therefore you shall serve(h5647. עָבַד ‘âḇaḏ) your enemies, whom the LORD will send against you, in hunger, in thirst, in nakedness, and in need of everything; and He will put a yoke of iron on your neck until He has destroyed you.
Devarim 28:47-48
47 תחת אשר לא־עבדת את־יהוה אלהיך בשמחה ובטוב לבב מרב כל׃
48 ועבדת את־איביך אשר ישלחנו יהוה בך ברעב ובצמא ובעירם ובחסר כל ונתן על ברזל על־צוארךעד השמידו אתך׃
Let’s do some dissection of these two verses:
בשמחה ובטוב לבב
▶︎
ב ⇦ from בית
GV p.33 בתת cut off [define]; p.33 בתה destroy [lay waste]; p.26 בית protect [contain]
CM בתת isolate components (B6); בתה react to externals (B5); בית protect/endanger (B3)
Note ב prefix in both בשמחה and בטוב – in the state of or dwelling in h8057. שִׂמְחָה śimḥâ
- Please note שׂמח is a cognate permutation of משח root of משיח. Think of the משיח connections we have pointed out just this far••• work and happiness and and departing. (In the note מעשׂה Work, we show some interesting occurrences – yet to come.)
and h2898. טוּב ṭûḇ
And heart לבב:
לבב heart could also be considered as ל + בב
EDBH p.299 “The ל indicates movement or return to an object.”
And בב could be seen as a doubling of ב “in” or from the root בבה
① eyelid
Zechariah 2:8-9
8(12H) For thus says the LORD of hosts: “He sent Me after glory, to the nations which plunder you; for he who touches you touches the apple (h0892. בָּבָה ḇâḇâ) of His eye. 9 For surely I will shake My hand against them, and they shall become spoil for their servants (h5647. עָבַד ‘âḇaḏ). Then you will know that the LORD of hosts has sent (h7971. שָׁלַח šâlaḥ) Me. NKJV footnote says “pupil” for h0892. בָּבָה ḇâḇâ
Zechariah 2:12
12 כִּ֣י כֹ֣ה אָמַר֮ יְהוָ֣ה צְבָאוֹת֒ אַחַ֣ר כָּב֔וֹד שְׁלָחַ֕נִי אֶל־הַגּוֹיִ֖ם הַשֹּׁלְלִ֣ים אֶתְכֶ֑ם כִּ֚י הַנֹּגֵ֣עַ בָּכֶ֔ם נֹגֵ֖עַ בְּבָבַ֥ת עֵינֽוֹ׃
② apple of the eye
Psalms 17:8
8 Keep me as the apple (h0380. אִישׁוֹן ’îyšôn) of Your eye (h1323. בַּת ḇaṯ + h5869. עַיִן‘aiyn);
Hide me under the shadow of Your wings,
Psalms 17:8
8 שָׁ֭מְרֵנִי כְּאִישֹׁ֣ון בַּת־עָ֑יִן בְּצֵ֥ל כְּ֝נָפֶ֗יךָ תַּסְתִּירֵֽנִי׃
- A possible variant family (there is no בבב nor בוב). None are listed as related:
¿ GV p.20 בבה cover a focused point; p.99 יבב ululate; wail; p.147 נבב hollow
DV אבב – p.20 בבה cover a focused point; p.147 נבב hollow > אבב ripen; greedily absorb nourishment from the ground
DV הבב – p.20 בבה cover a focused point; p.99 יבב ululate; wail > p.55 הבה offer sacrifice ?
CM בבה (none listed, but should be) gather in (B14); יבב enclose (C4); נבב move from end to end (D63); אבב and הבב act eagerly (A1)
From these cognate meanings you can probably see the connection to what we call “heart.”
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••
This might be a reasonable break in going through this entry.
Deuteronomy 28:47-48
47 “Because you did not serve (h5647. עָבַד ‘âḇaḏ) the LORD your God with joy and gladness of heart, for the abundance of everything, 48 therefore you shall serve(h5647. עָבַד ‘âḇaḏ) your enemies (h0341. אֹיֵב ’ôêyḇ), whom the LORD will send against you, in hunger, in thirst, in nakedness, and in need of everything; and He will put a yoke of iron on your neck until He has destroyed you.
את־איביך
We have spoken of את previously, and will again below.
▸ h0341. אֹיֵב ’ôêyḇ; or (fully) אוֵֹיב ’owyeb; active participle of h0340. אָיַב ’âyaḇ; hating; an adversary: — enemy, foe.
▸ h0340. אָיַב ’âyaḇ; a primitive root; to hate (as one of an opposite tribe or party); hence to be hostile: — be an enemy.
GV p.1 אבב ripen [greedily absorb nourishment from the ground]; p.1 אבה submit [to existing demand]; p.4 אוב fill [with rainwater]; p.99 יאב desire [long]; ¿ p.8 איב show enmity ?
- Not given as GV in EDBH but fits both ways p.8 איב show enmity CM continue/retard action
- h0340. אָיַב ’âyaḇ; a primitive root; to hate HAPAX Ex23:22.
- h0341. אֹיֵב ’ôêyḇ; or (fully) אוֵֹיב ’owyeb; active participle of 340; hating; an adversary 282 occurrences
¿ DV אהב – p.1 אבב ripen [greedily absorb nourishment from the ground]; p.1 אבהsubmit [to existing demand]; p.4 אוב fill [with rainwater] > p.4 אהב love; devote completely to another ?
CM אבב act eagerly (A1); אבה hide/reveal (A3); אוב fill/empty (A21); יאב open up (C44); איב continue/retard action (A14); אהב (none listed)
- For any who have recently joined, a brief explanation, so you will understand some of the comments here, first the comments about איב just above and how it “fits both ways” (both meaning and pattern). And second, toward the bottom of EDBH p.295, in many cases the root with a Vav ו in the central position in the root has identical meaning with the root with a Yod ‘ in the beginning position. In this case אוב and יאב would have similar meanings. (This is the פעל reference noted before.)
And finally, the reminder,
So, in this case, יאב and איב would have similar meanings. If אוב~יאב and יאב~איב, then אוב~איב. And, of course we have already seen many, many times the interchange of וand י.
ו –
AHLB – to add or secure
TWHA – The symbol of completion, redemption, and transformation
DeviantArt – A nail, a peg, a hook, joining together, making secure, becoming bound(nailed to)
י –
AHLB – work, make and throw, functions of the hand
TWHA – The symbol of creation and the metaphysical
DeviantArt – A hand (closed or closing upon), to work, a deed done, a finished work
- Perhaps you can see these sense in which the meanings are similar, the work of the hand securing or completing something.
Be aware, from the associations in this Variant family as I have listed it here, with those that are not included in EDBH, but appear to fit the guidelines specified in the book, of the inter familial relationship between אהב love and איב enmity; hatred. For any that have been in relationships that have been broken, one may easily see the connection. Intense feelings can flip within the same association. We hear frequently of people having a love/hate relationship with a job or a person.
And then, I hope you will return to many thoughts we have shared about water flowing as teaching, and especially rain as teaching. Perhaps then you may see the way that we are taught by that toward which we have enmity, as well as by those whom we love. And if in love we do not learn, we may of necessity have to learn through the flip side, through enmity, by way of “enemies.” It is indeed through our most intense life encounters that we most learn. Sometimes it is only through an intense negative experience that we learn our most needed lessons. Our loved ones, including God, make many efforts to teach us by loving methods, but sometimes we only learn when things fall apart. This is why the idea of opposition is so important. In addition, it is often the things we focus on in judgment in others, that we most need to change in ourselves. (😳 Log and Speck)
Note in the Variant family above, the root with the central and final consonants the same, p.1 אבב ripen [greedily absorb nourishment from the ground], has as a phonetic cognate:
I share this because its family provides us with the two-letter word אף, which is often translated as anger, but I have tried to encourage readers to think of more as frustration. It is also the word translated as nose. The LORD (יהוה) is described as Exodus 34:6
6 וַיַּעֲבֹ֨ר יְהוָ֥ה ׀ עַל־פָּנָיו֮ וַיִּקְרָא֒ יְהוָ֣ה יְהוָ֔ה אֵ֥ל רַח֖וּם וְחַנּ֑וּן אֶ֥רֶךְ אַפַּ֖יִם וְרַב־חֶ֥סֶד וֶאֱמֶֽת׃
“long of noses” ארך אפים, also meaning longsuffering, slow to anger, and patient. God’s frustration level is very great, but when we just aren’t “getting it,” then sometimes the frustration has to come out in order for us to learn. No doubt it feels like anger to us, but it may well be the only way a loving parent can get a point across.
- Deuteronomy 8:5
- 5 Know then in your heart that, as a man disciplines (h3256. יָסַר yâsar) his son, the LORD your God disciplines (h3256. יָסַר yâsar) you.
- This follows one of the “singular commandment” occurrences in verse 8:1
אשרישלחנויהוהבך
- We saw שלח already in a couple of passages above, “sending out.”
בך
BDB בְּ
GLOSS in, on, at; with; through; among; when; in exchange for
PARSING Hebrew, particle, preposition, pronomial suffix: 2nd person, masculine, singular
- The other way to look at בך is through the following variant family. Remember that the letters have meanings, no matter what the usage. In combination, the letters influence one another in forming the meaning of “words,” but looking from different perspectives (multiple witnesses) helps to understand the nuances.
GV p.26 בכה cry [due to inner or outer impulse]; p.26 בכא weep; p.22 בוך extract; p.147 נבך extract
DV אבך – p.26 בכה cry [due to inner or outer impulse]; p.147 נבך take out > p.1 אבךbillow out No other DVs
CM בכה and בכא open up and give forth (B4); בוך exert/cease outward movement (B16); נבך draw out (D65); אבך pressure (A4)
ב –
AHLB – house, tent, family, in, with, inside or within
TWHA – The symbol of blessing and creation; duality and plurality
DeviantArt – tent or house, the body, household or family, inside, within, amid
כ –
AHLB – bend and curve, to tame or subdue
EDBH – The כ highlights an example for all to emulate
TWHA – The symbol of crowning accomplishment
DeviantArt – A palm of a hand, a wing, to allow, to cover, to open the hand, the powerto suppress or lift up
- As a prefix, כ means as or like, and is derived from the root כון, which fits well with EDBH and TWHA
Throughout this entire passage, the pronoun is “you singular” (all of chapter 28). At the end of chapter 27, the same: Deuteronomy 27:26
26 ‘Cursed is the one who does not confirm all the words of this law by observing them.’
“And all the people shall say, ‘Amen!'”
These are statements about what occurs in an individual.
● So אשר ישלחנו יהוה בך could mean something along the lines of moving forward, moving to a goal, in you, the individual, OR moving forward, moving to a goal, modifying our actions or our attitudes along the lines of what is seen in this בך variant family: opening up and giving forth or exerting/ceasing outward movement or drawing out or pressuring us as individuals. And recall that it is יהוה that is the “driver” of this moving forward toward a goal. ●
And, not to get too complicated here, just to help understand, looking at the suffix of ישלחנו, the ending נו, here is first the BDB parsing, and then a look from the perspective we have been discussing:
BDB שׁלח
GLOSS qal: send (out, away); stretch out; niphal: be sent; piel: let go; send out; pual: be sent off; hiphil: let loose
PARSING Hebrew, verb, piel, imperfect, 3rd person, masculine, singular, pronomial suffix: 3rd person, masculine, singular, suffix: energic nun
- Gesenius’ Hebrew Grammar (1909) Wilhelm Gesenius
- edited and enlarged by Emil Kautzsch, translated by Arthur Ernest Cowley
- The Pronominal Suffixes of the Verb
- That the forms with Nûn energicum are intended to give greater emphasis to the verbal form is seen from their special frequency in pause. Apart from the verb, however, Nûn energicum occurs also in the union of suffixes with certain particles (§ 100 o).
- “energic” suggests “added energy” or “energetic”
נ –
AHLB – continue, perpetuation, offspring or heir
TWHA – The symbol of faithfulness, soul, and emergence
DeviantArt – A fish, to sprout, to spread, offspring, descendant, action, life, heir to thethrone, faithfulness
ו –
AHLB – to add or secure
TWHA – The symbol of completion, redemption, and transformation
DeviantArt – A nail, a peg, a hook, joining together, making secure, becoming bound(nailed to)
See, then, that the action by יהוה, by way of life circumstances, perpetuates the moving toward a goal and secures it within us. Life circumstances form us, shape us, change our attitudes. שלחנו. In the Masoretic pointing pronunciation this is “shelachnu.” Securing the perpetuation of moving toward the goal in us, and of course we have spoken that the goal is to shape us more and more into God-like beings. You will see the idea below of this having been “set,” “arranged.”
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••
This might be another reasonable break in going through this entry.
ברעב ובצמא ובעירם ובחסר כל
So, first of all, notice
Pwe have “in,” “and in,” “and in,” “and in” – ב, וב, וב, וב
We find ourselves “in the state of” this list of things:
כל – we have been through this one many times••• here I include the more complete discussion of היכל so you see the Tabernacle connection.
GV p.119 כלל complete [by including everything]; p.118 כלה strive [to attain]; p.118 כלאrestrain [prevent]; p.116 כול contain [a measured quantity]; p.104 יכל prevail; p.156 נכלplot [harm; endanger through veiled acts]
DV p.9 אכל – p.119 כלל complete [by including everything]; p.118 כלה strive [to attain] > p.9 אכל consume No other DVs – BUT see היכל just below (for הכל)
CM כלל encircle (C26); כלה and כלא contain/expose (C25); כול express control (C5); יכל (none listed); נכל (none listed); אכל move directly/circularly (A11)
•1 Samuel 1:9
9 So Hannah arose after they had finished eating and drinking in Shiloh. Now Eli the priest was sitting on the seat by the doorpost (h4201. מְזוּזָה mezûzâ) of the temple (h1964. הֵיכָל hêḵol) of the LORD.
▸ CWSBD – H1964. הֵיכָל hēyḵāl: A masculine noun meaning temple, palace. The word derives from the word yāḵōl (H3201), meaning to be able and comes from the idea of capacity. It refers to a king’s palace or other royal buildings (1 Kgs. 21:1; Isa. 13:22) and, likely by extension, to the dwelling of God, whether on earth (Ps. 79:1) or in heaven (Isa. 6:1). The word is used of Solomon’s Temple, the second Temple (Ezra 3:6; Neh. 6:10) and also of the Tabernacle. In reference to foreign buildings, it is sometimes difficult to say whether a palace or the temple of a false god is meant (2 Chr. 36:7; Joel 3:5[4:5]). A special usage of the word designates the holy place of the Temple as opposed to the Holy of Holies (1 Kgs. 6:17; Ezek. 41:4, 15).
- Hopefully, in this you see a list of our desires, our fears, and our seeking “other gods” to fulfill our needs. Instead we are to realize that the LORD (יהוה) is our provider. Genesis 22:8
- 8 Abraham said, “God will provide (h7200. רָאָה râ’â) for himself the lamb for a burnt offering, my son.” So they went both of them together.
- God “sees to it.”
Matthew 6:25-34 – do you then see where this comes from? this “list?”
25 “Therefore I tell you, do not be anxious about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink, nor about your body, what you will put on. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing? 26 Look at the birds of the air: they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they? 27 And which of you by being anxious can add a single hour to his span of life? 28 And why are you anxious about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin, 29 yet I tell you, even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. 30 But if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is alive and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith? 31 Therefore do not be anxious, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ 32 For the Gentiles seek after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them all. 33 But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.
34 “Therefore do not be anxious about tomorrow, for tomorrow will be anxious for itself. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble.
After I wrote the above, I was led to this discussion, which seems to fit in nicely:(retrieved 03/05/2022) https://www.theberean.org/index.cfm/main/default/id/8509/ver/NKJV/john-6-10-14.htm
- But I want to circle back to this one to point out some important points. On of Rabbi David Fohrman’s common teachings on the AlephBeta website is the Sesame Street jingle, “🎵One of these things is not like the others. 🎶”
In the list above, is there one of the first line definitions of these roots that seems not to be the same as the other three? Fohrman generally uses this teaching method to show that it may be that it really DOES fit in with the others; it is only our interpretation of it that makes it seem not so. This word suggests two important points (my interpretation – please feel free to disagree) that fit with the list AND fit in with other Scripture (multiple witnesses). And this is so important because it helps us understand what Torah means when it speaks of “nakedness.” Believe me, I have seen it in action in life numerous times.
① joining subtle ideas; cunning
Genesis 3:1-7
1 Now the serpent was more cunning (h6175. עָרוּם ‘ârûm) than any beast of the field which the LORD God had made. And he said to the woman, “Has God indeed said, ‘You shall not eat of every tree of the garden’?”
2 And the woman said to the serpent, “We may eat the fruit of the trees of the garden; 3 but of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, God has said, ‘You shall not eat it, nor shall you touch it, lest you die.'”
4 Then the serpent said to the woman, “You will not surely die. 5 For God knows that in the day you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.”
6 So when the woman saw that the tree (was) good for food, that it (was) pleasant to the eyes, and a tree desirable to make (one) wise, she took of its fruit and ate. She also gave to her husband with her, and he ate. 7 Then the eyes of both of them were opened, and they knew that they (were) naked (h5903. עֵירֹם ‘êrôm); and they sewed fig leaves together and made themselves coverings.
||
Genesis 2:21-25
21 And the LORD God caused a deep sleep to fall on Adam, and he slept; and He took one of his ribs, and closed up the flesh in its place. 22 Then the rib which the LORD God had taken from man He made into a woman, and He brought her to the man.
23 And Adam said:
“This is now bone of my bones
And flesh of my flesh;
She shall be called Woman,
Because she was taken out of Man.”
24 Therefore a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and they shall become one flesh.
25 And they were both naked (h6174. עָרוֹם ‘ârôm), the man and his wife, and were not ashamed.
||
Genesis 13:10-13
10 And Lot lifted his eyes and saw all the plain of Jordan, that it was well watered everywhere (before the LORD destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah) like the garden of the LORD, like the land of Egypt as you go toward Zoar. 11 Then Lot chose for himself all the plain of Jordan, and Lot journeyed east. And they separated from each other. 12 Abram dwelt in the land of Canaan, and Lot dwelt in the cities of the plain and pitched (his) tent even as far as Sodom. 13 But the men of Sodom (were) exceedingly wicked(h7451. רַע ra‘) and sinful against the LORD.
Genesis 13:13
13 וְאַנְשֵׁ֣י סְדֹ֔ם רָעִ֖ים וְחַטָּאִ֑ים לַיהוָ֖ה מְאֹֽד׃
- Note this is one of those very clear examples used in EDBH showing the “permutation” concept, similar letters, different order, similar meaning.
② stacking small particles
Exodus 15:3-10
3 The LORD is a man of war;
The LORD is His name.
4 Pharaoh’s chariots and his army He has cast into the sea;
His chosen captains also are drowned in the Red Sea.
5 The depths have covered them;
They sank to the bottom like a stone.
6 “Your right hand, O LORD, has become glorious in power;
Your right hand, O LORD, has dashed the enemy in pieces.
7 And in the greatness of Your excellence
You have overthrown those who rose against You;
You sent forth Your wrath;
It consumed them like stubble.
8 And with the blast of Your nostrils
The waters were gathered together (h6192. עָרַם ‘âram);
The floods stood upright like a heap;
The depths 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 be satisfied on 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.
- God knows the thoughts of man (see Ps139; Ps94:11; Jb11:11; 1Co3:20) and may gather them together against him
③ being sharp minded
Proverbs 1:1-7
1 The proverbs of Solomon the son of David, king of Israel:
2 To know wisdom and instruction,
To perceive the words of understanding,
3 To receive the instruction of wisdom,
Justice, judgment, and equity;
4 To give prudence (h6195. עָרְמָה ‘ormâ) to the simple,
To the young man knowledge and discretion—
5 A wise (man) will hear and increase learning,
And a man of understanding will attain wise counsel,
6 To understand a proverb and an enigma,
The words of the wise and their riddles.
7 The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge,
But fools despise wisdom and instruction.
④ chestnut; grayish-colored tree
Genesis 30:37-40
37 Now Jacob took for himself rods of green poplar and of the almond and chestnut trees (h6196. עַרְמוֹן ‘armôn), peeled white strips in them, and exposed the white which was in the rods. 38 And the rods which he had peeled, he set before the flocks in the gutters, in the watering troughs where the flocks came to drink, so that they should conceive when they came to drink. 39 So the flocks conceived before the rods, and the flocks brought forth streaked, speckled, and spotted. 40 Then Jacob separated the lambs, and made the flocks face toward the streaked and all the brown in the flock of Laban; but he put his own flocks by themselves and did not put them with Laban’s flock.
- What two messages have I seen that I wanted to pass along? Again, you do not hurt my feelings if you do not accept my interpretation here. Make your own decisions.
- First, fitting in with other discussion in this particular blog entry, is the idea of judgmentalism, as in looking at behaviors in another person and “stacking the small particles” to build a case against them in our mind. We tend to notice the differences in others from how we do things, and either learn from them or reject them. And stacking a number of small items may lead to an overall rejection. This activity God can do, as in Exodus 15:8, because God knows our thoughts. We, however, are unable to read thoughts, motivations, and intentions in others••• we tend to project our own biases on them.
- HaSatan noted the different “small particles” that Eve pointed out about the Tree, and added another to the stack, ”making wise.” This is cunning, stacking bits of circumstantial evidence against another, and it is, as above, exceedingly wicked. It is important for us to be wary, to be cautious (Matthew 10:16), in our defense, but not in offense. (“Walk softly and carry a big stick.”)
- The second point I make will be unpopular with a certain group of potential readers here. There is a large group of believers out there that call themselves “preppers.” These are people who are preparing for the “end times” or troubles ahead by hoarding survival supplies. You may see how this fits with the list of desires for food, drink, and other desires. It fits in with the other concepts here, in that it is “stacking up small particles,” and is a way of thinking that we might be able to outsmart God. God always wins the the “contest” of cunning. We may wrestle with God and man, but will limp afterwards. The LORD (יהוה) has his way. God is in control. We will learn what we are expected to learn, the easier way or the harder way. The numerous passages that speak of “being ready” (some examples: Mt24:44, 25:10; Lk1:17, 12:35-48) speak of spiritual readiness, not physical readiness. (Mt 6:26; Lk12:18) When we ever pull all the pieces of the discussion of the Tabernacle together, you will hopefully see that the instruction by the LORD (יהוה) on the mountain to Moshe/Moses on building the Tabernacle was instruction in creating parables, physical representations of things unseen, to help people understand. Speaking of hunger, thirst, nakedness, and needs are representations of the desires we have in our souls, the desires expressed in Eve in Genesis 3:6. They are very, very real, though unseen. We project our own desires upon others. God knows the desires of our hearts and works to shape our desires in a more Godly direction. The elements in the Tabernacle, as we progress, you will see, express the elements of living in a Godly world, a place where the LORD can dwell with us. You may not like all that you see in that world, as it is a world where the angels and the light are “hammered work,” EDBH p.234 קשה harden;; CM emerge and separate (C18). The world where God can dwell with us is a world where we must be hardened; it is not a world for sissies.
ונתן על ברזל על־צוארך
The usage of this word is pretty consistent throughout as “give; put; set.” (The word תן appears multiple times and is said to come from נתן and is translated as “give.” In each of the passages there does seem to be a sense of not only “give,” but a sense of the more complete definition of תנן, emit sounds of calmness, as in giving to appease a person or appease a concern. But the two letter word is not used here; this is only a comment for your further study. This particularly poignant occurrence may lead you to draw parallels in the Greek Scriptures:)
על appears twice here, in על ברזל and על-צוארך. The first is given as:
h5923. עֹל ‘ôl; or עוֹל ‘owl; from h5953. עָלַל ‘âlal; a yoke (as imposed on the neck), literally or figuratively: — yoke.
AV (40) – yoke 40;
yoke
The second is listed as:
▸ h5921. עַל ‘al; properly, the same as h5920. עַל ‘al used as a preposition (in the singular or plural often with prefix, or as conjunction with a particle following); above, over, upon, or against (yet always in this last relation with a downward aspect) in a great variety of applications (as follow): — above, according to(-ly), after, (as) against, among, and, x as, at, because of, beside (the rest of), between, beyond the time, x both and, by (reason of), x had the charge of, concerning for, in (that), (forth, out) of, (from) (off), (up-)on, over, than, through(-out), to, touching, x with.
AV (48) – upon, in, on, over, by, for, both, beyond, through, throughout, against, beside, forth, off, from off; prep
▸ h5920. עַל ‘al; from h5927. עָלָה ‘âlâ; properly, the top; specifically, the highest (i.e. God); also (adverb) aloft, to Yhwh: — above, high, most High.
AV (6) – above 3, most High 2, on high
▸ h5927. עָלָה ‘âlâ; a primitive root; to ascend, intransitively (be high) or actively (mount); used in a great variety of senses, primary and secondary, literal and figurative (as follow): — arise (up), (cause to) ascend up, at once, break (the day) (up), bring (up), (cause to) burn, carry up, cast up, + shew, climb (up), (cause to, make to) come (up), cut off, dawn, depart, exalt, excel, fall, fetch up, get up, (make to) go (away, up); grow (over) increase, lay, leap, levy, lift (self) up, light, (make) up, x mention, mount up, offer, make to pay, + perfect, prefer, put (on), raise, recover, restore, (make to) rise (up), scale, set (up), shoot forth (up), (begin to) spring (up), stir up, take away (up), work.
AV (889) – (come, etc…) up 676, offer 67, come 22, bring 18, ascend 15, go 12, chew 9, offering 8, light 6, increase 4, burn 3, depart 3, put 3, spring 2, raised 2, arose 2, break 2, exalted 2, misc 33;
GV p.186 עלל develop [move to original goal]; p.185 עלה rise [up; develop]; p.181 עולmisuse [power]; p.106 יעל progress [flourish]; p.158 נעל stem motion [stem movement or entry] No DVs
CM עלל encourage/deny growth (A34); עלה develop/decline (A33); עול restrain (A5); יעל activate/deactivate (C2); נעל initiate/arrest movement (D77)
As you see, both revolve around the idea of developing. Circumstances in our lives will develop us, teach us, harden us if necessary, to be effective in God’s world.
ברזל
For this one, we have multiple options for gaining insight.
One way to look at “iron” ברזל obviously is Strongs.
▸ h1270. בַּרְזֶל ḇarzel; perhaps from the root of h1269. בִּרְזוֹת ḇirzôṯ; iron (as cutting); by extension, an iron implement: — (ax) head, iron.
AV (76) – iron 73, (axe) head 2, smith + h2796 1;
▸ h1269. בִּרְזוֹת ḇirzôṯ; probably feminine plural from an unused root (apparently mean to pierce); holes; Birzoth, an Israelite: — Birzavith (from the marg.).
AV (1) – Birzavith 1; Birzavith or Birzath
- This “derivation” is of very little help. There is also another person (or persons), Barzillai, which is probably a name of the same derivation as our word. There is much more written about him (them):
▸ CSWBD H1271. A. בַּרְזִלַּי barzillay masc. proper noun
(Barzillai: a Gileadite)
2 Sam. 17:27; 19:31-34(32-35),39(40); 1 Kgs. 2:7.
B. בַּרְזִלַּי barzillay masc. proper noun
(Barzillai: a Meholathite)
2 Sam. 21:8.
C. בַּרְזִלַּי barzillay masc. proper noun
(Barzillai: a priest)
Ezra 2:61; Neh. 7:63.
- Interesting to read the passages about the Gileadite.
Another direction to take is to look at בר + זל
GV p.32 ברר cleanse [eliminate unfit material]; p.31 ברה rejuvenate [restore physical health]; p.31 ברא open [actualize]; p.23 בור dig [clear pit]; p.26 ביר isolate [tall structure]
DV p.20 באר – p.32 ברר cleanse [eliminate unfit material]; p.31 ברה rejuvenate [restore physical health]; p.31 ברא open [actualize]; p.23 בור dig [clear pit] > p.20 באר clarify; go from dark to light
DV p.2 אבר – p.32 ברר cleanse [eliminate unfit material]; p.31 ברא open [actualize]; p.23 בור dig [clear pit]; p.26 ביר isolate [tall structure] > p.2 אבר soar above protectively
DV בהר – p.32 ברר cleanse [eliminate unfit material]; p.31 ברה rejuvenate [restore physical health]; p.23 בור dig [clear pit] > p.22 בהר enlighten; shine
DV הבר – p.32 ברר cleanse [eliminate unfit material] > p.55 הבר analyze
CM ברר separate out (B42); ברה and ברא emerge from constraints (B37); בורundermine (B20); ביר free from control (B27); באר and בהר highlight/expose (B1); אברand בהר expose/conceal (A8)
+
GV p.67 זלל lower [debase]; p.65 זול degenerate [diminish]; p.153 נזל flow [move liquids]
DV p.6 אזל – p.67 זלל lower [debase]; p.65 זול degenerate [diminish] > p.6 אזלdisappear; go away
CM זלל raise/lower (E20); זול descend (E6); נזל release (D82)
- And finally, in looking at both ב and ל as potential prefixes (via permutation) with meaning, and a word רז to see if there are roots from which רז might be derived. There is a small variant family:
GV p.(no EDBH entry) רזז rule; p.242 רזה deprive [be lean]; p.241 רוז rule with restraint
DV ארז – p.(no EDBH entry) רזז rule > p.16 ארז root firmly for strong growth No other DVs
CM רזז (no entry, but would be) break into small pieces (E90); רזה satisfy/harm (E84); רוז control (E70); ארז focus decisively (A52)
- If thinking along the lines of this family, there is also a town, Meroz מרוז in Judges 5:23, which is seen nowhere else, but it and its inhabitants are cursed by the Angel of the LORD for not coming to help.
We have looked at ב already in this blog. And we know, basically it is “in.”
ל –
AHLB – authority, yoke, tie or bind; as prefix – to, toward
EDBH – The ל indicates movement or return to an object
TWHA – The symbol of teaching and purpose
DeviantArt – A staff, cattle goad, rod, to control, prod, urge forward, go toward orforward, teach, learn, tongue
Both the ב and the ל are pointing toward either moving toward a certain state or being in a certain state. The lamed ל even has a hint of being very firmly fixed, “bound,” or “goaded into” a certain state (our many-times-discussed “assumptive reasoning”). What is this “state?” By the context in Deuteronomy 28:47-48, I lean more toward the nuance of p.242 רזה deprive [be lean];; CM satisfy/harm (E84) because each of these, “in hunger, in thirst, in nakedness, and in need of everything,” suggests we are “in the state of feeling deprived.” Adam and Eve were feeling deprived of eating of the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil. The serpent played (and still plays) directly to that state of being. Do you feel deprived? Do you feel the necessity to “keep up with the Joneses?”
① wasting away
● Psalms 106:8-15
8 Nevertheless He saved them for His name’s sake,
That He might make His mighty power known.
9 He rebuked the Red Sea also, and it dried up;
So He led them through the depths,
As through the wilderness.
10 He saved them from the hand of him who hated them,
And redeemed them from the hand of the enemy.
11 The waters covered their enemies;
There was not one of them left.
12 Then they believed His words;
They sang His praise.
13 They soon forgot His works;
They did not wait for His counsel,
14 But lusted exceedingly in the wilderness,
And tested God in the desert.
15 And He gave them their request,
But sent leanness (h7332. רָזוֹן râzôn) into their soul. ●
- This is precisely that of which we speak.
② being lean and deprived
Numbers 13:17-20
17 Then Moses sent them to spy out the land of Canaan, and said to them, “Go up this (way) into the South, and go up to the mountains, 18 and see what the land (is) like: whether the people who dwell in it are strong or weak, few or many; 19 whether the land they dwell in (is) good or bad; whether the cities they inhabit (are) like camps or strongholds; 20 whether the land (is) rich or poor (h7330. רָזֶה râzeh); and whether there are forests there or not. Be of good courage. And bring some of the fruit of the land.” Now the time (was) the season of the first ripe grapes.
||
Exodus 20:13
13 “You shall not murder (h7523. רָצַח râṣaḥ).
Exodus 20:13
13 לֹ֥֖א תִּֿרְצָֽ֖ח׃ ס
- If I may extrapolate here for you, “no feeling deprived!” (And this is what Moshe told Aharon upon the loss of his two sons Nadab and Abihu; he was not to mourn their loss (Lv10:3-7).)
צוארך –
▸ h6677. צַוָּאר ṣawwâ’r; or צַוָּר tsavvar (Nehemiah 3:5), tsav-vawr; or צַוָּרן tsavvaron (Song of Solomon 4:9), tsav-vaw-rone; or (feminine) צַוָּארָה tsavva’rah (Micah 2:3), tsav-vaw-raw; intensively from h6696. צוּר ṣûr in the sense of binding; the back of the neck (as that on which burdens are bound): — neck.
▸ h6696. צוּר ṣûr; a primitive root; to cramp, i.e. confine (in many applications, literally and figuratively, formative or hostile): — adversary, assault, beset, besiege, bind (up), cast, distress, fashion, fortify, inclose, lay siege, put up in bags.
- As noted before, this is the root for Egypt/Mitzrayim.
See there are numerous phonetic cognates. I will point out two, one of which is not listed in the EDBH entry.
This is the regulation of our actions, the pressure from all sides. Our responses are ruled by consequences and pressures from people around us, our society, our community. These are the “pressures.” At some point God’s “seeing” the path we are taking and where it is leading must lead to intervention. Most of God’s work is done inside us, within us. (There are a few places we are told about what is “within you,” none more striking than:
Luke 17:20-21 (these are the heading and the references in the NKJV –
The Coming of the Kingdom – Gen. 6:5—8:22; 19:12–14 – read; consider•••)
20 Now when He was asked by the Pharisees when the kingdom of God would come, He answered them and said, “The kingdom of God does not come with observation; 21 nor will they say, ‘See here!’ or ‘See there!’ For indeed, the kingdom of God is within you.”
It is talking about our perceptions, what lies “within us.” I have found in my long life that I move in certain directions and keep going and going until I become disgusted with myself. Then must come a thorough washing out or burning out of where I am headed, with a new direction unfolding. I’ve shared before that I am a slow learner. Hopefully the reader looks at his or her own log sooner rather than later and does not do great damage to others in pointing out specks•••
So, our perceptions are what drive us. We see ourselves as lacking, deprived. We lack food or drink or clothing or what the other person has, abilities, knowledge, skills, possessions. We are driven by our desires. God must work on those desires and turn our desires more toward who the LORD wants us to be, for our own good: joyful and glad of heart and not judgmental, not seeing from a perception of what is lacking, but from a perspective of abundance. We must look around and see the beauty in those around us and not how they are somehow not meeting our “standards.” Godliness is not self-righteousness, but joyfulness and gladness of heart. We must serve from a perspective of joy, or we perceive all that is lacking, in need of “everything,” until it becomes our destruction. The yoke of iron is a heavy burden. (See Matthew 11:28-30.) We are weighed down by our own desires. These become the idols in our lives. If we do not serve the LORD (יהוה), we then serve our enemies, that is those desires that are harmful to us, our wants our needs. Instead of saying in our own minds, “I wish everyone were like me,” we must learn to see the beauty in each and every difference in those around us. There is God in each one.
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••
This might be another reasonable break in going through this entry.
עד השמידו אתך׃
- Here, before looking at the word meanings, I simply want to share an insight/a warning. In Biblical Hebrew there is no “neuter,” as in Greek, only masculine and feminine gender. What that means is that sometimes something might be translated as “he,” but intended to be understood as “it.” For example, here, the meaning really could be not that until “he” has destroyed you, but until “it” has destroyed you. What? The yoke of iron, that feeling of deprivation that makes you want more, more, more. (See Proverbs 30:15-16)
עד –
GV p.179 עדד tear off [pieces]; p.180 עדה decorate [adorn]; p.180 עוד endure [continue]; p.106 יעד arrange [set specifics] No DVs.
CM עדד pierce (A31); עדה retain/relinquish (A57); עוד constrain by external force (A2); יעד bring together (C49)
Strongs gives the derivation as from h5710. עָדָה ‘âḏâ; a primitive root; to advance, i.e. pass on or continue; causatively, to remove; specifically, to bedeck (i.e. bring an ornament upon): — adorn, deck (self), pass by, take away.
Note each word in the variant family gives some nuance of “arranging,” making things “just so.” I would have thought Strongs would have given the derivation as h5749. עוּד‘ûḏ, from what is shown here in EDBH, endure; continue; but the sense of עוד is more one of testifying; witnessing, as in repeating something. Combining the senses here, for עד, perhaps it makes sense that all things are “pre-arranged,” i.e. built-in to the fabric of Creation, and that what occurs to us testifies to what is in our hearts. Again, see Proverbs 30:15-16. Until••• until it has “destroyed” us. Let’s look at “destroyed.”
השמידו –
Not much wiggle room here, folks. Seems rather definitive. It definitely brings to mind the parable of the Rich Man and Lazarus in Luke 16:19-31. Notice in verse 26, “a great chasm has been fixed.” Fixed = pre-arranged. Read the parable closely. There are many important details. And note its tie-in to our topic.
The final word is:
אתך –
BDB אֵת
GLOSS (untranslatable; marker of the direct object)
PARSING Hebrew, particle, object-marker, pronomial suffix: 2nd person, masculine, singular
א –
AHLB – oxen, yoke and learn
TWHA – The symbol of God’s oneness and mastery
DeviantArt – ox, bull, gentle, tame, the leader, strength, what is first, Adonai (my lord), thousand, teach
EDBH says three things of א: p.298 it can be added as a prefix to a three lettered root to form a noun or adjective; p.295 “Other forms that interchange are the ל״ה root (קרה) and the ל״א root (קרא); p.296, both ה and א can be used in creating Derivational Variants, “individualizing or targeting the new action.”
ת –
AHLB – mark, sign or signature
TWHA – The symbol of truth and perfection
DeviantArt – a mark, sign “x” or cross, ownership, to seal, covenant, join two thingstogether, the last
EDBH says only of ת, p.297, that it can be added as prefix or suffix to a three-lettered root to form a noun or adjective
We looked at כ/ך before:
כ –
AHLB – bend and curve, to tame or subdue
EDBH – The כ highlights an example for all to emulate
TWHA – The symbol of crowning accomplishment
DeviantArt – A palm of a hand, a wing, to allow, to cover, to open the hand, the powerto suppress or lift up
- As a prefix, כ means as or like, and is derived from the root כון, which fits well with EDBH and TWHA
- Noted in other blog entries has been the point that some make, that the את refers to the Messiah, and that when in Revelation, there is reference to the Alpha and Omega (in Greek) it indicates the Aleph and the Tav. We will not resolve that here, but as you review the letter definitions you can see why some people would discern that.
So, is the message that one who was condemned by a small group of the Jewish leadership acting out of their own perspective and intended to “destroy completely and irreversibly” based upon their viewpoint of blasphemy, that man cannot be the one to “destroy completely and irreversibly?” Is that only possible in what was pre-arranged? If an individual person (you singular) is “like” the את, a leader in truth/perfection, is subdued, tamed, the “crowning accomplishment,” for them is there reprieve from “destroying completely and irreversibly?” That is definitely the belief that sustains many: there is hope in following that one.
Deuteronomy 28:47-48
47 “Because you did not serve (h5647. עָבַד ‘âḇaḏ) the LORD your God with joy and gladness of heart, for the abundance of everything, 48 therefore you shall serve(h5647. עָבַד ‘âḇaḏ) your enemies, whom the LORD will send against you, in hunger, in thirst, in nakedness, and in need of everything; and He will put a yoke of iron on your neck until He has destroyed you.
Devarim 28:47-48
47 תחת אשר לא־עבדת את־יהוה אלהיך בשמחה ובטוב לבב מרב כל׃
48 ועבדת את־איביך אשר ישלחנו יהוה בך ברעב ובצמא ובעירם ובחסר כל ונתן על ברזל על־צוארךעד השמידו אתך׃
Recall, we got here from the idea of “work,” and our purpose to serve God, work subject to the will of God, and I point out a driver in this avoidance of working subject to another’s will (even God’s will). A cognate of עבד is p.1 אבד, lose valuable possession;; CM constrain by external force (A2). Subheading ③ losing hope of independence (Dt26:5 with || Gn2:5). We may avoid serving God because we fear our loss of independence. But the yoke is much lighter than the iron yoke of serving our desires.
•••
Now I am going to go back to some points in the translation that may lead in directions not necessarily intended. I’m talking about the words beginning the two verses, the words translated as conjunctions, “because” and “therefore,” and look at what is there in the Hebrew and some alternatives.
① being underneath
Genesis 18:6-8
6 So Abraham hurried into the tent to Sarah and said, “Quickly, make ready three measures of fine meal; knead it and make cakes.” 7 And Abraham ran to the herd, took a tender and good calf, gave it to a young man, and he hastened to prepare it. 8 So he took butter and milk and the calf which he had prepared, and set it before them; and he stood by them under (h8478. תַּחַת ṯaḥaṯ) the tree as they ate.
② in place of; instead of
Exodus 21:22-25 (read about lex talionis below in TWOT)
22 “If men fight, and hurt a woman with child, so that she gives birth prematurely, yet no harm follows, he shall surely be punished accordingly as the woman’s husband imposes on him; and he shall pay as the judges (determine). 23 But if (any) harm follows, then you shall give life for (h8478. תַּחַת ṯaḥaṯ) life, 24 eye for (h8478. תַּחַתṯaḥaṯ) eye, tooth for (h8478. תַּחַת ṯaḥaṯ) tooth, hand for (h8478. תַּחַת ṯaḥaṯ) hand, foot for (h8478. תַּחַת ṯaḥaṯ) foot, 25 burn for (h8478. תַּחַת ṯaḥaṯ) burn, wound for (h8478. תַּחַת ṯaḥaṯ) wound, stripe for (h8478. תַּחַת ṯaḥaṯ) stripe.
||
Deuteronomy 19:16-21
16 If a false witness rises against any man to testify against him of wrongdoing, 17 then both men in the controversy shall stand before the LORD, before the priests and the judges who serve in those days. 18 And the judges shall make careful inquiry, and indeed, if the witness (is) a false witness, who has testified falsely against his brother, 19 then you shall do to him as he thought to have done to his brother; so you shall put away the evil from among you. 20 And those who remain shall hear and fear, and hereafter they shall not again commit such evil among you. 21 Your eye shall not pity: life (shall be) for life, eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot.
Deuteronomy 19:21
21 וְלֹ֥א תָחֹ֖וס עֵינֶ֑ךָ נֶ֣פֶשׁ בְּנֶ֗פֶשׁ עַ֤יִן בְּעַ֨יִן֙ שֵׁ֣ן בְּשֵׁ֔ן יָ֥ד בְּיָ֖ד רֶ֥גֶל בְּרָֽגֶל׃ ס
- This is reflected in the so-called Golden Rule. Again notice the explanation in TWOT below. Here the prefix preposition ב is equivalent to תחת in the passage above. It is saying to put yourself in another’s shoes.
- Matthew 7:12 Therefore, whatever you want men to do to you, do also to them, for this is the Law and the Prophets.
③ in return for
Psalms 109:1-4
To the Chief Musician. A Psalm of David.
1 Do not keep silent,
O God of my praise!
2 For the mouth of the wicked and the mouth of the deceitful
Have opened against me;
They have spoken against me with a lying tongue.
3 They have also surrounded me with words of hatred,
And fought against me without a cause.
4 In return for (h8478. תַּחַת ṯaḥaṯ) my love they are my accusers,
But I (give myself to) prayer.
④ lower level
Genesis 6:15-17
15 And this is how you shall make it: The length of the ark (shall be) three hundred cubits, its width fifty cubits, and its height thirty cubits. 16 You shall make a window for the ark, and you shall finish it to a cubit from above; and set the door of the ark in its side. You shall make it (with) lower (h8482. תַּחְתִּי ṯaḥṯiy), second, and third (decks). 17 And behold, I Myself am bringing floodwaters on the earth, to destroy from under heaven all flesh in which is the breath of life; everything that is on the earth shall die.
||Psalms 63:6-10
6 When I remember You on my bed,
I meditate on You in the (night) watches.
7 Because You have been my help,
Therefore in the shadow of Your wings I will rejoice.
8 My soul follows close behind You;
Your right hand upholds me.
9(10H) But those (who) seek my life, to destroy it,
Shall go into the lower parts (h8482. תַּחְתִּי ṯaḥṯiy) of the earth.
10 They shall fall by the sword;
They shall be a portion for jackals.
||
Psalms 139:13-15
13 For You formed my inward parts;
You covered me in my mother’s womb.
14 I will praise You, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made;
Marvelous are Your works,
And that my soul knows very well.
15 My frame was not hidden from You,
When I was made in secret,
And skillfully wrought in the lowest parts (h8482. תַּחְתִּי ṯaḥṯiy) of the earth.
- This is how we are formed, skillfully wrought. We have a past, a place where we have been; a time when we have chosen not to be under God, but under the tree, the idol (whatever it is, and there are many – we all have our Bathsheba). When visitors come, the messengers of God, do we welcome them with great hospitality? Or do we bring them under our roof begrudgingly? Do we place ourselves in the service of God with joy and gladness of heart?
- בת שבע Bathsheba – the mark of being in the house of p.254 שבע submit to God; complete;; CM control movement/action (E5)
- There comes a time in our lives when we must make a choice whether to continue to be controlled by our desires or we take on a lighter yoke, not of iron. And, interestingly, I find that there is always another desire lurking, just when it seems one has been conquered. LORD, how we need you in our lives every moment of every day••• The mark, that turning point. Enough. Content. “I need nothing more than you, O LORD.” This is why David was able to move on after the loss of the son born of Uriah’s wife. He had submitted completely to God; he knew the LORD was in control.
TWOT
2504 תַּחַת (taḥat) beneath, instead of, as, for, for the sake of, flat (Josh 6:5), unto, where, whereas.
Derivatives
2504a תַּחְתּוֹן (taḥtôn) lower, nether.
2504b † תַּחְתִּי (taḥtî), תַּחְתִּית (taḥtît) low.
Although “beneath, instead of, in exchange for” would seem to be the basic meanings of תַּחַת (which is used adverbially and prepositionally), its range has been broadened by recent research, see, e.g., J. A. Fitzmyer in Journal of the American Oriental Society 81:190, and especially J. C. Greenfield in ZAW 73:226-28. When it is combined or compounded with other particles, its meanings are rarely affected to any extent.
The word תַּחַת is attested almost five hundred times in the OT and appears in numerous theologically significant contexts. The phrase “under the sun” wends its doleful way through the book of Eccl and has become common parlance in our own skeptical age, especially in the expression “There is nothing new under the sun” (Eccl 1:9 RSV). The phrase itself seems to signify simply “on this earth” (see especially 7:20; 8:16; 11:2) and perhaps underscores the frequently nonreligious emphasis of the author of Eccl who both describes the apparent futility of life and yet lives by faith in it (see further J. Gammie in JBL 93 (1974), p. 363). “Under the tongue” is a place where something is held temporarily to be released when desired, e.g. sweetness (Song 4:11), evil (Job 20:12; Ps 10:7), or praise (66:17 in The Amplified Bible and marg. of ASV). Although God has given man dominion over everything on earth and has put all things “under his feet” (8:6 [H 7], quoted in Heb 2:8), ultimate dominion, highlighted by the same expression, belongs to Jesus Christ (1 Cor 15:25, 27; Eph 1:22). Thus “under” by itself can mean “under the authority of,” as of a wife under the authority of her husband (Num 5:19-20, 29; Ezek 23:5; cf. similarly the use of ὕπανδρος, literally “under a man,” in Rom 7:2). Likewise, “under the hand of” often means “under the authority/control of,” as in Gen 41:35; Jud 3:30; Isa 3:6. But תַּחַתcan also be used to express the idea of support and stability, as, e.g., in the widely-quoted and well-loved phrase from the Blessing of Moses: “Underneath are the everlasting arms” (Deut 33:27).
תַּחַתin the sense of “in exchange for” finds widespread usage in the OT lex talionis, the law of retaliation, best known in the “eye for eye, tooth for tooth” phraseology of Ex 21:24 and Lev 24:20 (the same expression occurs in Deut 19:21, but there the preposition is בְּ). Far from being cruel and vengeful, the lex talionis was doubtless intended to insure that no more than a just and appropriate penalty would be exacted for crimes committed, whether accidentally or with malice aforethought, in an otherwise relatively cruel age. See further Harris, R. L., “Inspiration and Canonicity of the Bible,” Zondervan, 1969, p. 51-52.
תַּחַת frequently means “instead of,” as, e.g., when a man succeeds to the throne of a dead monarch and is then said to rule “instead of” him (1 Kgs 11:43 and often). In this sense תַּחַת is also used in a passage prefiguring substitutionary atonement where Abraham is pictured as sacrificing a ram as a burnt offering “in the stead of his son” (Gen 22:13). The willingness of Abraham to offer Isaac, if necessary, made a deep impression on Paul, who saw in it the willingness of a greater Father to offer up a greater Son (cf. 22:12, 16 with Rom 8:32).
And the conjunction, if you look at the Hebrew, that has been translated as “therefore” is the prefix Vav ו.
BDB וְ
GLOSS and; also; but; so; then
PARSING Hebrew, particle, conjunction
We looked at our Vav definitions before, but here they are again:
ו –
AHLB – to add or secure
TWHA – The symbol of completion, redemption, and transformation
DeviantArt – A nail, a peg, a hook, joining together, making secure, becoming bound(nailed to)
“Therefore” is not a common way to translate Vav, but in a sense it gets across the same idea of “securing.” If we do not put ourselves “under” the service of God, in joy and gladness of heart, so choosing secures that we will focus on our desires. We are the center of our own universe.
- Matthew 6:24 “No one can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or else he will be loyal to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and mammon.
See Appendix 1 for more discussion on mammon. There are more verses referred to there which will also be helpful.
A possible alternative:
Deuteronomy 28:47-48
47 “In return for not serving (h5647. עָבַד ‘âḇaḏ) the LORD your God with joy and gladness of heart, for the abundance of everything, 48 then you shall serve (h5647. עָבַד ‘âḇaḏ) your enemies, whom the LORD will send against you, in hunger, in thirst, in nakedness, and in need of everything; and He will put a yoke of leanness on your neck until it has destroyed you.
If you read now Deuteronomy 30:15-20, you may find some real similarities in the ideas shared.
I know this entry was long. Hopefully you were able to break it into different sessions. There is MUCH of importance here. Remember the title Attitude.
© March 2022 logandspeck.com please cite if copying