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How Do We “Eat” Jesus Christ, and What Does That Even Mean?

30 March, 202430 March, 2024Marissa

As we approach Passover (Pesach) and the Feast of Unleavened Bread (Chag HaMatztot), I like to think about Jesus Christ’s sacrifice and the symbolism associated with that. For New Covenant believers, the principal symbols of Passover are foot washing, eating unleavened bread, and drinking red wine. Those are the three things Jesus did at His last Passover here on earth that He told His followers to continue doing (John 13:1-17; Luke 22:14-20).

Today, I want to specifically focus on the bread that symbolizes Jesus’s body. At first, I’d intended to study altars in the New Testament to dig into Hebrews 13:10 more deeply, but I was only a few minutes into that study when I felt prompted to take things in a different direction this week. We’ll still go to Hebrews, but from a different direction than I’d expected when I first started thinking about the topic.

The Bread of Life

Because of my focused interest in covenants, I typically spend more time in my Passover studies focused on the wine that Jesus described as “the new covenant in my blood” (Luke 22:20, NET). Today, though, let’s take a look at the bread part of the Passover service. Matthew and Mark’s accounts are nearly identical, so I’ll just quote one of them and Luke.

So the disciples did as Jesus had instructed them, and they prepared the Passover. When it was evening, he took his place at the table with the twelve. … While they were eating, Jesus took bread, and after giving thanks he broke it, gave it to his disciples, and said, “Take, eat, this is my body.”
Matthew 26:19-20, 26 NET

Now when the hour came, Jesus took his place at the table and the apostles joined him.And he said to them, “I have earnestly desired to eat this Passover with you before I suffer. …Then he took bread, and after giving thanks he broke it and gave it to them, saying, “This is my body which is given for you. Do this in remembrance of me.”
Luke 22:14-15, 19, NET

Here, Jesus and His disciples were observing the first holy time of the year on God’s sacred calendar. As commanded, they’re eating the Passover meal on the evening that begins Nisan 14 on the Hebrew calendar. Per Exodus 12:8, that meal includes “bread made without yeast” or “unleavened bread.” The bread was already there, but Jesus assigned a new, deeper meaning to it. Now when we take Passover, the unleavened bread we eat reminds us of Jesus’s body and His sacrifice. It might also remind us of a discussion recorded in John’s gospel.

Jesus’s miraculous feeding 5,000 people is recorded in every gospel (Matt. 14:13-21; Mark 6:30-34; Luke 9:10-16; John 6:1-13). Interestingly, John includes an extra piece of information: “Now the Jewish Feast of the Passover was near” (John 6:4, NET). This would be the Passover one year before Jesus’s death (NET footnote on John 6:4). John also goes on to describe what happened after the miracle. The crowds followed Jesus to the other side of the lake, hoping for more food. Jesus used the opportunity to talk to them about “food that remains to eternal life—the food which the Son of Man will give to you” (John 6:27, NET). Now, they thought this sounded like a pretty good deal, maybe even better than the manna in the wilderness (Ex. 16.4-36; John 6:28-34). They challenged Him to perform a miracle, and He challenged them to understand at a deeper level.

“I tell you the solemn truth, the one who believes has eternal life.I am the bread of life.Your ancestors ate the manna in the wilderness, and they died. This is the bread that has come down from heaven, so that a person may eat from it and not die. I am the living bread that came down from heaven. If anyone eats from this bread he will live forever. The bread that I will give for the life of the world is my flesh.”

Then the Jews who were hostile to Jesus began to argue with one another, “How can this man give us his flesh to eat?” Jesus said to them, “I tell you the solemn truth, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you have no life in yourselves. The one who eats my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up on the last day.For my flesh is true food, and my blood is true drink. The one who eats my flesh and drinks my blood resides in me, and I in him.Just as the living Father sent me, and I live because of the Father, so the one who consumes me will live because of me. This is the bread that came down from heaven; it is not like the bread your ancestors ate, but then later died. The one who eats this bread will live forever.”
John 6:47-58, NET

My guess is that Jesus was thinking ahead one year, to the next Passover when He would tell His disciples the unleavened bread represented His body and the red wine His blood. He wants us to understand how much we need Him. Physical food keeps us alive for a while, but “eating” Him–taking Him inside us and accepting His sacrifice–is far more important. A real relationship with Jesus will keep us alive forever.

Image of a cup of wine and piece of flatbread overlaid with text from 1 Cor. 10:16, AMPC, version: “The cup of blessing [of wine at the Lord’s Supper] upon which we ask [God’s] blessing, does it not mean [that in drinking it] we participate in and share a
fellowship (a communion) in the blood of Christ (the Messiah)? The bread which we break, does it not mean [that in eating it] we participate in and share a
fellowship (a communion) in the body of Christ?” — Image by Linda from Pixabay

Inheritance and Sacrifice

The author of Hebrews spends a lot of time explaining how the Old Testament sacrifices, tabernacle/temple, and priesthood all pointed to Jesus. Near the end of the book, the author says, “We have an altar that those who serve in the tabernacle have no right to eat from” (Heb. 13:10, NET). This hearkens back to an Old Covenant practice: the priests serving in the tabernacle or temple ate from the meat of the sacrifices offered in the temple (Lev. 10:10-18; Num. 18:22-24; 1 Cor. 9:13-14).

The priests and the Levites—all the tribe of Levi—shall have no portion nor inheritance with Israel. They shall eat the offerings of Yahweh made by fire and his portion. They shall have no inheritance among their brothers. Yahweh is their inheritance, as he has spoken to them. This shall be the priests’ due from the people, from those who offer a sacrifice, whether it be ox or sheep, that they shall give to the priest: the shoulder, the two cheeks, and the inner parts. You shall give him the first fruits of your grain, of your new wine, and of your oil, and the first of the fleece of your sheep. For Yahweh your God has chosen him out of all your tribes to stand to minister in Yahweh’s name, him and his sons forever.
Deuteronomy 18:1-5, WEB

The Levites–the tribe that all priests came from under the Old Covenant–didn’t inherit land with the rest of the tribes of Israel. Instead, they inherited a special relationship with Yahweh God. New Covenant believers do not directly correlate to the Old Testament priesthood, but we do have similarities with them and the Levites. Peter tells us we’re part of a “priesthood” and Revelation describes the saints as “priests” (1 Pet. 2:5, 9; Rev. 1:5-6; 20:5-6). We also don’t have an inheritance or citizenship on this earth; our citizenship is in heaven and our inheritance is connected with Jesus Christ (Rom. 8:16-17; Phil. 3:20). The verse we opened with from Hebrews indicates we have another similarity with them as well: we’re allowed to “eat from” the altar.

Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever! Do not be carried away by all sorts of strange teachings. For it is good for the heart to be strengthened by grace, not ritual meals, which have never benefited those who participated in them. We have an altar that those who serve in the tabernacle have no right to eat from. For the bodies of those animals whose blood the high priest brings into the sanctuary as an offering for sin are burned outside the camp. Therefore, to sanctify the people by his own blood, Jesus also suffered outside the camp.We must go out to him, then, outside the camp, bearing the abuse he experienced.
Hebrews 13:8-14, NET

The author of Hebrews just spent a huge section of this letter explaining that Jesus Christ is both the High Priest and the perfect, once-for-all-time sacrifice offered for sins (Heb. 8-10). If we get to “eat from” the altar where He offered His sacrifice, then we’re eating from Jesus Himself. It’s about partaking of His sacrifice, just like we do at Passover.

Our Participation in Passover

Image of small, round flatbreads, overlaid with blog's title text and the words, "When we participate in
Passover, symbolically taking in the body of Jesus that He
sacrificed for us, we're part of something much bigger than ourselves." — Image by Sofia Terzoni from Pixabay

1 Corinthians is a letter closely tied to Passover and the Feast of Unleavened Bread. In that letter, Paul asks a rhetorical question about the Israelite priesthood: “Are not those who eat the sacrifices partners in the altar?” (1 Cor. 10:18, NET). The Greek word translated “partners” is koinonos (G2844), which also means “associate, comrade, companion … sharer, in anything” (Thayer’s Dictionary). It is the root word of “fellowship,” the Greek word koinonia (G2842), which describes a believer’s proper relationship with God and His whole family as a “fellowship, association, community, communion, joint participation” (Thayer’s Dictionary; see 1 John 1:3-7). It’s the word that’s translated “sharing” in the verses leading up to the one we just quoted:

I am speaking to thoughtful people. Consider what I say. Is not the cup of blessing that we bless a sharing in the blood of Christ? Is not the bread that we break a sharing in the body of Christ? Because there is one bread, we who are many are one body, for we all share the one bread. Look at the people of Israel. Are not those who eat the sacrifices partners in the altar?
1 Corinthians 10:15-18, NET

When we “eat” Jesus Christ’s symbolic body, we’re participating in the altar. Our part in the Passover service is to accept deliverance from God and confirm our covenant commitment to Him. Jesus is the only way to salvation; His sacrifice atones for our sins (Acts 4:11-12; 1 John 2:1-3; 4:9-10). It doesn’t just happen automatically, though: we’re expected to participate to a certain degree, namely, by repenting and believing and committing to follow Him (Mark 1:14-15; 16:16; Acts 2:37-38; Rom. 10:8-11). Once we do that, our lives should change. Passover reminds us of that every year.

For I received from the Lord what I also passed on to you, that the Lord Jesus on the night in which he was betrayed took bread, and after he had given thanks he broke it and said, “This is my body, which is for you. Do this in remembrance of me.” In the same way, he also took the cup after supper, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in my blood. Do this, every time you drink it, in remembrance of me.” For every time you eat this bread and drink the cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death until he comes.

For this reason, whoever eats the bread or drinks the cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner will be guilty of the body and blood of the Lord. A person should examine himself first, and in this way let him eat the bread and drink of the cup. For the one who eats and drinks without careful regard for the body eats and drinks judgment against himself. That is why many of you are weak and sick, and quite a few are dead.But if we examined ourselves, we would not be judged. But when we are judged by the Lord, we are disciplined so that we may not be condemned with the world.
1 Corinthians 11:23-32, NET

As Thayer’s Dictionary says when defining koinonia, our fellowship with God as part of His body of believers involves “joint participation.” When we participate in Passover, symbolically taking in the body of Jesus that He sacrificed for us, we’re part of something much bigger than ourselves. We’re reminding ourselves of the covenant commitment we made with God, of His sacrifice that we’ve accepted on our behalf, and of the way we ought to live as people transformed by Jesus. That’s one of the reasons we’re supposed to examine ourselves before taking the Passover–to make sure we’re doing so “in a worthy manner” that correctly values Jesus’s sacrifice and the fellowship God invites us into as part of His family.

Featured image by WorldInMyEyes from Pixabay

Song Recommendation: “Master of Life” by Zemer Levav

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5 Ways That We’re Just Like Old Testament Believers

23 March, 202422 March, 2024Marissa

A lot of times, I think we assume that Christianity is a New Testament religion and the Old Testament (OT) is just history or a book that the Jewish people use as their religious text. But if you read a translation of the New Testament (NT) like the New English Translation (NET) that highlights the times when Jesus and the NT writers quote the OT, you’ll see that the believers writing the NT were deeply connected to the OT.

When Jesus died and rose again, He didn’t invent a new religion and name it “Christianity.” He was there as the next step in God’s plan that stretches from Genesis to Revelation and beyond. Our faith is a continuation of what came before. Because of that, we have much more in common with Old Testament believers than we might initially assume. For one thing, we serve the same God. There are some major differences between the Old and New Testaments, but those differences have to do with updates and changes that God made to His relationship with people (and which He prophesied in the OT). God didn’t change, and His basic expectations for people as well as His preferred type of relationship with us didn’t change either.

Image of an open Bible with sunlight shining on it overlaid with text from Romans 15:4, NET version: “For everything that was written in former times was written for our instruction, so that through endurance and through encouragement of the scriptures we may have hope.” — Image by Lamppost Collective from Lightstock

1) We Are In Covenant With God

If you want to understand how God relates to human beings, you have to study covenants. That’s the structure that God uses for His relationships with people in the Old and New Testaments. They are binding agreements with expectations for both parties. Those expectations–the terms of the relationship agreement, if you will–are established by God. We get to decide if we agree to enter the covenant with Him or not, but we don’t get the option to change how the covenant works.

There are multiple covenants in the OT, but the ones we discuss most often are the Abrahamic Covenant and the Sinai Covenant. The “Old Covenant” usually refers to the Sinai Covenant. The laws given alongside that covenant are part of that covenant agreement, but in many cases also pre-date it (e.g. Noah knew about clean and unclean meats and how to build an altar to Yahweh [Gen. 7:2; 8:20]; Abraham and Jacob knew about tithing [Gen. 14:19-20; 28:20-22]; Joseph knew sleeping with Potiphar’s wife was a sin against God [Gen. 39:7-9]).

Just like us today, Old Testament believers were in covenant with God. Some were in multiple covenants (David, for example, was under the Old Covenant and he received a kingship covenant we call the Davidic Covenant). They couldn’t perfectly keep the covenants, though. God always holds up His side of covenants perfectly, but human beings aren’t that reliable and He knows it. That’s why He promised the Messiah would come, end the Old Covenant, die to free everyone from their sins by taking the penalty for them on Himself, and establish a New Covenant (Jer. 31:31-34; Heb. 8). We’re part of that New Covenant, which was one of the promises contained in the Old Covenant.

2) We Fall Short of God’s Standards

Like Old Covenant believers, the covenant agreement we’ve made with God includes expectations for our behavior and the way we properly relate to Him (Rom. 6; Gal. 5). But we’re human, and we all fall short of God’s perfect standards. The only human being who ever perfectly kept covenant with God is Jesus Christ. We might look back at ancient Israel’s example and think we’d never be as unfaithful and ungrateful as them, but NT writers have some stern warnings against such an assumption.

For I do not want you to be unaware, brothers and sisters, that our fathers … were all drinking from the spiritual rock that followed them, and the rock was Christ. But God was not pleased with most of them, for they were cut down in the wilderness.These things happened as examples for us, so that we will not crave evil things as they did. … These things happened to them as examples and were written for our instruction, on whom the ends of the ages have come. So let the one who thinks he is standing be careful that he does not fall.
1 Corinthians 10:1, 4-6, 11-12, NET

By and large, Old Covenant believers didn’t have the holy spirit or a personal relationship with God like we do (though there were exceptions, like David). But they weren’t unaware of God’s law or the covenant agreement they made. Two NT writers even go so far as to say they had the gospel preached to them just like we did (Heb. 4:1-2; 1 Pet. 4:5-6). Yet they still fell short. We have the same human tendencies, and we need to be on guard against making the same mistakes. And when we do sin (“miss the mark,” in Hebrew), we need to repent and ask for forgiveness.

Image of an open Bible and notebook overlaid with text from Deut. 10:12-13, WEB version: “Now, Israel, what does Yahweh your God require of you, but to fear Yahweh your God, to walk in all his ways, to love him, and to serve Yahweh your God with all your heart and with all your soul, to keep Yahweh’s commandments and statutes, which I command you today for your good?” — Image by Alyssa Marie from Lightstock

3) Our Sins Are Purified by Blood

In the Old Covenant, God’s law commanded blood sacrifices of animals to atone for sins. God had very specific requirements for these sacrifices, and they needed to be repeated every time someone became aware of their own sin (see, for example, Leviticus 4:22-35). There was also a yearly sacrifice offered by the high priest on the Day of Atonement (Yom Kippur) to cleanse the people. God promised that if they did these things as commanded, “You shall be clean from all your sins before Yahweh” (Lev. 16:30, WEB).

The writer of Hebrews tells us that those sacrifices were not actually capable of perfecting the people worshiping God in the OT (Heb. 9:9; 10:1). In fact, “it is impossible for the blood of bulls and goats to take away sins” (Heb. 10:4, WEB). That does not mean God was lying when He told OT believers that He would forgive them. It means their forgiveness depended on something other than the animal sacrifices. Some of the OT believers even knew that; David wrote that sacrifices weren’t what God really desired (Ps. 40:6; 51:16-17) and Job knew that the Lord was his redeemer, not sacrificial offerings (Job 19:25-26).

For if the blood of goats and bulls and the ashes of a young cow sprinkled on those who are defiled consecrated them and provided ritual purity,how much more will the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without blemish to God, purify our consciences from dead works to worship the living God.

And so he is the mediator of a new covenant, so that those who are called may receive the eternal inheritance he has promised, since he died to set them free from the violations committed under the first covenant.
Hebrews 9:13-15, NET

The NT writers often treat us New Covenant believers as if we were once under the Old Covenant and are now free from it to live under the New Covenant. Paul in particular often talks about us previously living under that Old Covenant law even when he’s writing to Gentiles. He’s including us in the story of the plan of God, like we personally participate in the narrative of making a covenant with God, breaking it, needing redemption, being freed from sin by Christ, and entering a New Covenant with Him (e.g. Rom. 7:1-6). This connects us with the whole plan of God, and indicates that those who died in faith before Christ’s sacrifice are also set “free from the violations committed under the first covenant” by His redemptive work even though it happened after they’d lived and died.

But when this priest had offered one sacrifice for sins for all time, he sat down at the right hand of God, where he is now waiting until his enemies are made a footstool for his feet.For by one offering he has perfected for all time those who are made holy.
Hebrews 10:12-14, NET (italics mark allusion to Ps 110:1)

In Greek, “for all time” is translated from the phrase eis to dianekes. Eis (G1519) is a preposition meaning “into, unto, to, towards, for, among” (Thayer). To is the definite article (i.e. “the,” not always translated because Greek uses it more often than English). Dianekes (G1336) is an adjective meaning “continuously, continuous” (Thayer). The phrase only appears in Hebrews 10:12, 14 and it highlights that Jesus’s sacrifice is “continual, perpetual, protracted” (Zodhiates). Most certainly it covers from Jesus sacrifice onward into the future, but His sacrifice also covered those in the past to whom God had promised forgiveness.

4) We’re Called Out to be Different

We’re likely familiar with the New Testament instruction that Christians should be different from the world around us. We’re supposed to stand out like lights in a world of darkness (Matt. 5:13-16; Phil. 2:15). We’ve been chosen by God to belong to Him, to be different from the world, and to be visible examples of His way of life.

But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people of his own, so that you may proclaim the virtues of the one who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light. You once were not a people, but now you are God’s people. You were shown no mercy, but now you have received mercy.
1 Peter 2:9-10, NET

The NET Bible marks allusions to OT passages with italics and direct quotes with bold italics. Here, Peter uses “various allusions and quotations from Exod 19:5-6; 23:22 (LXX); Isa 43:20-21; and Mal 3:17” and quotes “from Hos 1:6, 9; 2:23” (NET footnotes). He’s making the point that New Covenant believers are called out as God’s special people who belong to Him, and he’s doing that using Old Testament passages like this one:

For you are a holy people to Yahweh your God. Yahweh your God has chosen you to be a people for his own possession, above all peoples who are on the face of the earth.
Deuteronomy 7:6, WEB

In addition to being chosen as God’s own special people, OT believers were also intended to shine as lights in the world. The OT just uses different phrasing to make that point.

Behold, I have taught you statutes and ordinances, even as Yahweh my God commanded me, that you should do so in the middle of the land where you go in to possess it. Keep therefore and do them; for this is your wisdom and your understanding in the sight of the peoples who shall hear all these statutes and say, “Surely this great nation is a wise and understanding people.” For what great nation is there that has a god so near to them as Yahweh our God is whenever we call on him?What great nation is there that has statutes and ordinances so righteous as all this law which I set before you today?
Deuteronomy 4:5-8, WEB

People were supposed to be able to look at ancient Israel living in covenant with God and marvel at their wisdom, understanding, and greatness. We see this happening only very occasionally in Israel’s history (the reign of Solomon is the only example I can think of [1 Kings 4:34]). God’s not giving up on this goal, though (Isa. 62:1-2). People should be able to recognize us as God’s people. Jesus specifically says they’ll know we’re His disciples by the love we have for each other, and Paul says the same thing can happen when someone witnesses us prophesying in church (John 13:34-35; 1 Cor. 14:24-25).

5) The Greatest Thing We Can Do

Image of on open Bible with sunlight shining on it, overlaid with blog's title text and the words, "Modern Christians might not think we have much in common with Old Testament believers, but the New Testament writers had a different perspective." — Image by Lamppost Collective from Lightstock

God’s expectation and purpose for us haven’t changed that much since the time of His very first interactions with human beings. Jesus highlights this by pointing back to the Old Covenant when someone asked Him about the greatest commandment.

Now one of the experts in the law came and heard them debating. When he saw that Jesus answered them well, he asked him, “Which commandment is the most important of all?” Jesus answered, “The most important is: ‘Listen, Israel, the Lord our God, the Lord is one. Love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind, and with all your strength.’The second is: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no other commandment greater than these.”

The expert in the law said to him, “That is true, Teacher; you are right to say that he is one, and there is no one else besides him.And to love him with all your heart, with all your mind, and with all your strength and to love your neighbor as yourself is more important than all burnt offerings and sacrifices.”When Jesus saw that he had answered thoughtfully, he said to him, “You are not far from the kingdom of God.” Then no one dared any longer to question him.
Mark 12:28-34, NET

The NET footnotes on these verses say they’re quoting Deuteronomy 4:35; 6:4-5; Leviticus 19:18, and Joshua 22:5. Because the expert in the law properly understood these commands from the Old Testament, Jesus told him he wasn’t “far from the kingdom of God.” That kingdom is what we’re striving toward as NT believers. We might not think that looking back to God’s commands from the Old Testament would help with that, but Jesus says that they do.

In the Old Testament and the New, God wants a relationship with human beings. Since the very beginning, He’s been working with groups of people that He chose and called out from the world. He welcomes them into covenant with Him, makes provision for when they fall short of His expectations, purifies them from their sins through sacrifice, and asks them to follow Him with their whole hearts. Many of the things that He asks of us today are the same things He wanted in His relationships with people in the Old Testament. Indeed, one of the reasons for the change of covenant was so that He could get closer to achieving that relationship (Eze. 11:17-20; 36:22-28; Jer. 31:31-34; 2 Cor. 6:16-18). Now, just as back then, He wants to be our God and He wants us to be His people, His sons and daughters.

Featured image by Dakota from Lightstock

Song Recommendation: “Am Echad (One People)” by Ted Pearce

What Does It Mean to Worship God?

16 March, 202415 March, 2024Marissa

Years ago when I first studied the topic of “praise,” I remember I immediately wanted to do a follow-up study on “worship.” That’s what I’m doing again this week. We often use “praise and worship” as a connected idea, almost as if they’re the same thing or they’re simply the label for the time during church services when we sing songs to God. But I remember from my last studies on worship that worship in the Bible is a different thing from praise. They can be connected, but they’re distinct ideas.

Praise, as we saw in last week’s post, involves acknowledgement of something God is or does. It includes the ideas of glorifying God, confessing His greatness, blessing and thanking Him, and lifting up His greatness and mighty deeds. In many cases, praise is public, communal, and enthusiastic. It often involves music and singing. Worship, on the other hand, involves bowing before God with humility, respect, and reverence as you offer service to Him. Praise and worship may occur together, but not necessarily.

Worship Words

As usual here on this blog, I like to start topical studies by looking at the Hebrew and Greek words used in the Bible. We’ll also compare them to the English definition, to see where there might be differences that could affect our understanding.

In English, “worship” as a noun means “the feeling or expression of reverence and adoration for a deity.” As a verb (action), it means “show reverence and adoration for (a deity); honor with religious rites” (Google and Oxford Languages). That matches the Hebrew and Greek meanings pretty well, but it’s missing a few points about how we show that reverence, adoration, and honor. We don’t really bow much anymore (at least in modern Western culture), but that sign of humble recognition that we’re entering the presence of someone far superior to us is key to understanding worship in the scriptures.

In Hebrew, “worship” is usually translated from sachah (H7812). This word appears 172 times in the Hebrew Bible, and you can translate it “bow down” or “worship.” Occasionally, English translators may use words like “obeisance” or “reverence” as well. Basically, the word means “to bow down, prostrate oneself” as “before a superior in homage” and “before God in worship” (Brown, Driver, Briggs [BDB]). Strangely (considering how much time they devote to words translated “praise”), the Theological Wordbook of the Old Testament (TWOT) has little to say about sachah. They simply say that the word can mean to “depress” or “weigh down” someone or something, as well as “‘to prostrate oneself’ or ‘to worship'” (TWOT 2360). The meaning seems to be fairly straightforward. There’s also a similar Chaldean word used in the book of Daniel that means to prostrate or “fall down” in worship (H5657; segid).

In the modern NET Bible, the translators sometimes render the Hebrew words abad (H5647; “serve” in KJV) and yare (H3372; “fear” in KJV) as “worship.” They’ll also translate whole phrases like “set their hearts to seek” or “call on the name” as “worship.” The NET isn’t my preferred translation for the Old Testament (I think they sometimes lose the important, poetic word pictures of Hebrew by reducing them to a single English word), but abad is an important word to look at when we’re studying worship. It blends the meanings of several roots, including “to do or make” and “to worship, obey” (TWOT 1553). It involves service offered to someone, often a king or deity. In a proper sense, it includes the “joyous and liberating experience” of serving the one true God (TWOT). Our worship can include obedient service as well as humble and reverent bowing before God.

In Greek, “worship” can be translated from a wide variety of different words. In the KJV, translators chose “worship” to represent all of these words: proskuneo (G4352; prostrate/worship), sebomai (G4576; revere/adore/worship), doxa (G1391; glory), latreuo (G3000; minister/serve), eusebeo (G2151; be pious toward/respect), therapeuo (G2323; wait upon, worship), threskeia (G2356] ceremonial observance/religion), and also a few single-use derivatives of those words (note: worship is not the only translation for most of these words [e.g. doxa is typically translated “glory”]). Most often (54 out of 73 verses), “worship” comes from proskuneo. The NET also translates these words as “worship,” and they translate latreuo as worship more often than the KJV does (which typically uses “service”).

Taking the Hebrew and Greek together, the ideas that come into the English language as “worship” typically involves either 1) prostration and bowing down before God, and/or 2) service given to God. It also includes nuances of respect, adoration, and reverence. With that background, let’s look at how these words (particularly the Hebrew sachah and abad and the Greek proskuneo and latreuo) are used by Bible writers.

Image of a man sitting at a table with his head bowed over an open Bible, overlaid with text from Psalm 95:6, WEB version: "Oh come, let’s worship and bow down. Let’s kneel before Yahweh, our Maker" — Image by WhoisliketheLord Studio from Lightstock

Kneeling in Worship

The earliest record we have of worship comes from Abraham, the Friend of God (Isa. 41:8; Jam. 2:23). When “Yahweh appeared to” Abraham before the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah, Abraham “ran to meet them from the tent door, and bowed himself to the earth” (Gen. 18:1-2, WEB). Here, “bowed himself” is translated from sachah. Abraham also used this word when God commanded him to sacrifice Isaac, explaining to his servants, “We will worship, and come back to you” (Gen. 22:5, WEB). Just in these examples, we see that worship involves humility, respect, and actions that serve God obediently. Sachah may involve literal bowing, but not always.

Oh come, let’s worship (sacha) and bow down (kara).
    Let’s kneel (barak) before Yahweh, our Maker,
    for he is our God.
We are the people of his pasture,
    and the sheep in his care.
Psalm 95:6-7

Here, “worship” is translated from sachah. It’s paired with kara (H3766) and barak (H1288). Kara specifies literal bending and bowing. It’s used 36 times in scripture, and at least 13 are for bowing to the knees and bending the back in worship (TWOT 1044). Barak is one of the words that we looked at last week; it is more typically translated “bless” and can be translated “praise” in some contexts. The use of these three words together makes it clear sachah isn’t always synonymous with kneeling (there wouldn’t be need for another word to clarify it if that was the case). Worship always involves the attitude of humbly prostrating oneself before God, but doesn’t always mean literally falling to your knees (though it can and often does include that).

Like Hebrew, Greek also has separate words for “bow/kneel” than the word for “bow/worship.” One of them is kampto (G2578), which Paul uses to talk about one of his prayers (Eph. 3:14-19) and to express the proper reaction people should have–and eventually all will have–to Jesus the Messiah.

As a result God highly exalted him
and gave him the name
that is above every name,
so that at the name of Jesus
every knee will bow (kampto)
—in heaven and on earth and under the earth—
and every tongue confess
that Jesus Christ is Lord
to the glory (doxa) of God the Father.
Philippians 2:9-11, NET

You’ll see something similar in the gospels, too, where people “bow down” and “worship” Jesus. The same thing is happening before God’s throne in heaven (Matt. 2:11; Rev. 5:14; 19:4). In these verses, the words are pipto (G4098; literally “fall down”) and proskuneo (G4352; worship). Zodhiates says that proskuneo comes from a root meaning to kiss, which references an “ancient oriental mode of salutation … when one was much inferior, he fell upon his knees and touched his forehead to the ground or prostrated himself, throwing kisses at the same time toward the superior” (The Complete Wordstudy Dictionary: New Testament, entry 4352). This isn’t necessarily literally happening in the New Testament (though, as we’ve seen, people do fall down or bow before God as well as worship), but it’s a custom underlying the action of showing reverence, adoration, and worship to a deity.

Image of hands clasped on an open Bible overlaid with text from Joshua 23:16, NET version: “If you violate the covenantal laws of the Lord your God which he commanded you to keep, and follow, worship, and bow down to other gods, then the Lord will be very angry with you” — Image by Jantanee from Lightstock

Service As Worship

31 times in the Old Testament, you’ll find sachah and abad in the same verse. Over and over again, God’s people are warned not to bow down to, worship, or serve any other gods (Ex. 20:5; Deut. 11:16; 2 Kings 17:34-35). Doing so violates the covenant ancient Israel made with Yahweh (Josh. 23:16; Jer 22:9). Jesus reiterated the importance of worshiping and serving God alone during His confrontation with Satan following His baptism.

Again, the devil took him to a very high mountain, and showed him all the kingdoms of the world and their grandeur.And he said to him, “I will give you all these things if you throw yourself to the ground and worship me.” Then Jesus said to him, “Go away, Satan! For it is written: ‘You are to worship the Lord your God and serve only him.’”
Matthew 4:8-10, with a quotation from Deut 6:13

Here, because Jesus is quoting from the Old Testament, we can see how he aligned the Hebrew and Greek words for worship. We’re to worship (Greek proskuneo; Hebrew yare) God and serve (Greek latreuo; Hebrew abad) Him. Like the Hebrew abad, the Greek verb latreuo (noun form latreia) involves serving someone greater than you. The root word means “one hired,” indicating this service is voluntary and involves some kind of reward. When worshipping God, it’s not a transactional hiring process, but there are great rewards for those who faithfully serve Him.

Therefore I exhort you, brothers and sisters, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a sacrifice—alive, holy, and pleasing to God—which is your reasonable service (latreia).
Romans 12:1, NET

Presenting our entire lives to God as if we’re serving in His temple offering ourselves as a sacrifice to Him is a reasonable service. Reading Hebrews can provide a fascinating study of latreuo. It’s used of temple service under the Old Covenant, which was commanded as part of worshiping God but couldn’t make the worshippers perfect the way that Jesus’s sacrifice does (Heb. 9:1, 6, 9; 10:2). Because of what Jesus did, “the blood of Christ” cleans “your conscience from dead works to serve the living God” (Heb. 9:14, WEB). I said earlier this service isn’t a transactional hiring process, but it is a reciprocal relationship. When we accept Jesus’s sacrifice, we’re supposed to respond with worship and service.

So since we are receiving an unshakable kingdom, let us give thanks, and through this let us offer worship (latreuo) pleasing to God in devotion and awe. For our God is indeed a devouring fire.
Hebrews 12:28-29, with a quotation from Deut 4:24; 9:3.

The Bible gives us a few concrete examples of what this service looks like. Anna the prophetess served God by staying in the temple, fasting, and praying (Luke 2:36-37). Paul served God by following Jesus, believing in the law and the prophets, worshiping in the spirit, and preaching the gospel (Acts 24:10-14; Rom. 1:9; Phil. 3:3). Serving God voluntarily and wholeheartedly is a key aspect of how we worship Him.

Spirit and Truth

Image of a man sitting in a church pew with his head bowed, overlaid with blog's title text and the words, "Worship involves bowing before God (literally or figuratively) with humility, respect, and reverence and serving Him in spirit and in truth." — Image by Shaun Menary from Lightstock

Returning to the Greek word most often translated worship, proskuneo (G4352), we can fill in a little more of our picture of what it means to worship. In the gospels, people worshiped when they learned that Jesus is the Messiah (Matt. 2:1-2, 11; 14:33; John 9:38). People also worshiped when they ask Jesus for something (Matt. 8:2; 9:18; 15:25). We can continue both these practices today, worshiping Jesus and the Father as we recognize who they are and what they do, and also approaching them with our requests in a humble, worshipful way.

“But a time is coming—and now is here—when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for the Father seeks such people to be his worshipers.God is spirit, and the people who worship him must worship in spirit and truth.”
John 4:23-24, NET

This conversation that Jesus has with a Samaritan woman is probably the most direct discussion anyone in the Bible has about how we’re supposed to worship. Most of the time, we see examples of people worshipping or instruction to worship God without a specific explanation of how to do that. Here, Jesus gives us a “must” statement for how we need to worship God.

Thoroughly examining what it means to do something in spirit and truth could fill at least one more whole blog post. But I think the easiest way to understand it is to think about Paul’s letters that contrast walking in the flesh to walking in the spirit (e.g. Romans 8). Lives transformed by God are spirit-led, and that should affect our worship as well. For the “truth” aspect, I think of the letter where Paul said we should be “practicing the truth in love” (Eph. 4:15, NET). In this passage, truth is a verb. We don’t think of “truthing” as an action in English, but it is here. The NET notes that we can think of it as “being real or truthful in both conduct and speech” (footnote on Eph. 4:15).

Worship involves bowing before God (literally or figuratively) with humility, respect, and reverence. It also involves the service that you offer to Him. All of this must be done in spirit and in truth for it to qualify as true worship in our New Covenant relationship with God the Father and Jesus the Son.

Featured image by Pearl from Lightstock

Song Recommendation: “Here I Am To Worship” by Hillsong Worship

Praising God With All That You Are

9 March, 202411 March, 2024Marissa

Several years ago, I did a study on Hebrew words for praise and discussed six different words translated “praise” in the KJV (yadah, zamar, todah, halel, tehillah, and barak). Last year, when I was studying song in connection to prophecy, I also started collecting scriptures related to singing praise. Finally, this spring, I collected those scriptures into a list of 30 to share with my ladies’ scripture-writing group at church.

One of the things I worried about when I shared this list was that 22 out of 30 were from Psalms. Typically, I like to draw from all over the Bible but for this one, most of the on-topic verses were in Psalms (not surprising, considering what we’re studying). I worried it might start to seem monotonous to write out verses from psalms over and over each day that basically all read as “sing praise to God.” But there’s a lot more variation in those verses than it seems when writing them in English. As I wrote these scriptures throughout February, I also wrote down the Hebrew words translated “sing,” “praise,” and occasionally “thanks.” It’s just two or three words in English, but in Hebrew there’s zamar, zamiyr, zimral, shur, shiyr, yadah, halel, tehillah, tephillah, ranan, renanah, todah, anah, and shaback.

I find the wide variety of Hebrew words that surround the concept of praise and song fascinating, particularly since Hebrew has a far smaller pool of words than English. There are “about eight thousand words” in the Hebrew language, in contrast to “one hundred thousand or more in our language” (Reading the Bible with Rabbi Jesus: How a Jewish Perspective Can Transform Your Understanding, Lois Tverberg, p. 61). Given that vast difference between the two languages, you’d expect that English would be the one with tons of words that are synonymous with praise (it does to a certain extent, but you don’t often see words like commend, compliment, extol, applaud, etc. used in English scripture). Praise must be extremely important to the Hebrew people for them to devote so many of their words to this concept.

To help illustrate this point, let’s look at a concept that the English language places a high value on: the legal system and government. There are a ton of different words for government, branches of government, and the systems of government. But Hebrew doesn’t have words for separating the legislative, executive, and judicial functions of government. They combine everything into one word shapat/mishpat, which Bible translators often render as “justice.” It’s a reflection of a culture where all that authority is centered in God and the king as His representative on earth. In contrast, English reflects a culture where government functions are divided up among different people and conceptualized differently.

It’s similar with praise. In English, we think of praise and worship together and mostly associate it with singing Christian music. We might also include praise in the sense of thanking or acknowledging God for good things that He has done. But praise in Old Testament Hebrew culture is much more varied and vital a concept, and that’s reflected in the number of words the language uses to denote specific types of praise.

Image of a group of people in church singing praises, overlaid with text from Psalm 149:1-3, WEB version: "Praise Yahweh! Sing to Yahweh a new song, his praise in the assembly of the saints. Let Israel rejoice in him who made them. Let the children of Zion be joyful in their King. Let them praise his name in the dance! Let them sing praises to him with tambourine and harp!" — Image by StockSnap from Pixabay

Halal–glorifying God with praise

Even if you know nothing about Hebrew, you probably know this word because of our English “hallelujah” (literally, praise Yah[weh]). The root word halal (H1984) appears 165 times in the Old Testament. It can mean to shine, boast, or even “act like a madman” (Brown, Driver, Briggs [BDB]) but most often it means praise. Basically, it “connotes being sincerely and deeply thankful for and/or satisfied in lauding” something or someone (Theological Wordbook of the Old Testament [TWOT], entry 500). One noun form, tehilla (H8416), also appears fairly often in the Old Testament (57 times). It “represents the results of halal as well as divine acts which merit that activity” (TWOT 500c). Tehilla can also be linked specifically to a “song or hymn of praise” (BDB, H8416).

Praise (halal) Yah!
    Praise Yahweh from the heavens!
    Praise him in the heights! …

let them praise (halal) Yahweh’s name,
    for his name alone is exalted.
    His glory is above the earth and the heavens.
He has lifted up the horn of his people,
    the praise (tehilla) of all his saints,
    even of the children of Israel, a people near to him.
Praise (halal) Yah!
Psalm 148:1, 13-14, WEB

Typically in the Bible, halal is used to praise and glorify God. It’s linked with joy, speaking, singing, dancing, and intelligent expression. Interestingly, “most of these occurrences are plural … [showing] that the praise of Jehovah was especially, though by no means uniquely … congregational” (TWOT 500). We can and should praise when we’re alone, but praise is something that’s expected when God’s people gather together. That’s why so many churches sing songs that glorify God as part of their formal services.

Praise (halal) Yah!
    Praise God in his sanctuary!
    Praise him in his heavens for his acts of power!
Praise him for his mighty acts!
    Praise him according to his excellent greatness!
Praise him with the sounding of the trumpet!
    Praise him with harp and lyre!
Praise him with tambourine and dancing!
    Praise him with stringed instruments and flute!
Praise him with loud cymbals!
    Praise him with resounding cymbals!
Let everything that has breath praise Yah!
    Praise Yah!
Psalm 150, WEB

Song Recommendation: “Hallelu Et Adonai” (Praise the Lord) by Ted Pearce

Yadah–confessing God is worthy of praise

Another very common Hebrew word for praise is yadah (H3034). It appears 114 times in the Old Testament. This one is often translated “give thanks,” though it’s also translated “praise” or “confess.” The “thanks” translation can be misleading, though, because there really isn’t an Old Testament equivalent to our concept of “to thank” (TWOT 847). In the Bible, thanks “is a way of praising” God rather than something we do, such as say “thank you” to other people. “Confession” is probably the best English equivalent to yadah (TWOT).

Oh, send out your light and your truth.
    Let them lead me.
    Let them bring me to your holy hill,
    to your tents.
Then I will go to the altar of God,
    to God, my exceeding joy.
I will praise (yadah) you on the harp, God, my God.
Why are you in despair, my soul?
    Why are you disturbed within me?
Hope in God!
    For I shall still praise (yadah) him:
    my Savior, my helper, and my God.
Psalm 43:3-5, WEB

In the sense of praise or thanks, yadah has to do with acknowledgement, “‘recognition’ and ‘declaration’ of a fact” (TWOT 847). The word can be used in a good or bad sense: for example, confessing sin or acknowledging God’s goodness. The noun todah (H8426) has basically the same meaning, and is often associated with offerings (e.g. “thank offering” or “praise offering”) (TWOT 847b).

Barak–blessing or praising

Barak (H1288) is used 285 times in the Old Testament (or 415 if you include all the root’s derivatives), and it’s usually translated “bless.” The basic meaning may be “to kneel” (TWOT 285). It’s often used of God blessing people, but when it’s used of people blessing God it can be seen as a type of praise.

Praise (barak) our God, you peoples!
Make the sound of his praise (tehilla) heard,
Psalm 66:8, WEB

When we looked at yadah earlier, one of the things I didn’t mention is that the root word is likely related to throwing or casting something with the hands (BDB). It makes me think of Paul’s desire that “the men in every place pray, lifting up holy hands” (1 Tim. 2:8, WEB). Lifting hands when praising God can be controversial (some churches discourage or even forbid it, while in others it’s normal), but it’s definitely Biblical. In psalms, lifting hands is linked with praise.

So I will bless (barak) you while I live.
I will lift up my hands in your name.
Psalm 63:4, WEB

Lift up your hands in the sanctuary.
Praise (barak) Yahweh!
Psalm 134:2, WEB

With the link between barak and kneeling as well as its use with lifting hands in praise, I think it’s safe to say we could classify this as one of the physical types of praise. In many cases, we’ll see that praise involves our voices and bodies as well as our thoughts. You can praise God in your mind, but you’re also supposed to praise Him with your voice and with your body (e.g. kneeling, lifting hands, dancing).

Song Recommendation: “Blessed is the Lord” (Baruch atah Adonai) by Paul Wilbur

Zamar–singing or playing praise music

The word zamar (H2167) basically means to sing or to play an instrument. But it’s used so much in the Old Testament in relation to praise that it’s typically translated “sing praise.” It might not always mean singing, though, as it’s also linked with playing lyre, harp, and tambourine (TWOT 558). This may imply that praise music typically has lyrics, but can also be instrumental. This word appears 45 times in the Old Testament.

I will give thanks (yadah) to Yahweh according to his righteousness,
and will sing praise (zamar) to the name of Yahweh Most High.
Psalm 7:17, WEB

Make a joyful shout to God, all the earth!
Sing (zamar) to the glory of his name!
Offer glory and praise (tehilla)!
Psalm 66:1-2, WEB

Words translated “psalm” or melody, like zimrah and mizmor, are derivatives of zamar. Over and over in scripture, you’ll see praise linked with music and specifically song. Whether we have perfect pitch or we’re just making a joyful noise, we shouldn’t be shy to express our adoration for God through music or even shouts of joy.

Make a joyful noise to Yahweh, all the earth!
    Burst out and sing for joy, yes, sing praises (zamar)!
Sing praises (zamar) to Yahweh with the harp,
    with the harp and the voice of melody (zimrah).
With trumpets and sound of the ram’s horn,
    make a joyful noise before the King, Yahweh.
Psalm 98:4, WEB

Ranan–crying out praises

The basic meaning of ranan (H7442) is “to cry out, shout for joy, give a ringing cry” (BDB). Typically, it’s used of crying out to God for some reason, and in psalms it’s often paired with joy and singing. The word might even mean to sing out joyful praises, depending on the context: “The jubilation which is the main thrust of the root … could equally well be expressed in shouting or song” (TWOT 2179). One of the noun forms, renanah (H733) is “a ringing cry, shout (for joy)” and can be translated “singing” (BDB).

Shout for joy to Yahweh, all you lands!
Serve Yahweh with gladness.
    Come before his presence with singing (renanah).
Know that Yahweh, he is God.
    It is he who has made us, and we are his.
    We are his people, and the sheep of his pasture.
Enter into his gates with thanksgiving (todah),
    and into his courts with praise (tehilla).
    Give thanks (yadah) to him, and bless (barak) his name.
For Yahweh is good.
    His loving kindness endures forever,
    his faithfulness to all generations.
Psalm 100, WEB

Shir–songs, often of praise

The words for “sing” and “song” are not confined to religious music, but they are so often linked with praise that it’s worth mentioning them in this study. The Hebrew word shir or shiyrah (H7892) is often used in the psalms, both to describe what is being written (e.g. “a song of ascents” for Ps. 120-134) and as part of the text of the psalm (e.g. “with my song I will thank him” [Ps. 28:7, WEB]).

Praise (halal) Yahweh! Sing (shir) to Yahweh a new song, his praise (tehilla) in the assembly of the saints.
Psalm 149:1, WEB

Shir is typically used for hymns and psalms of lament. Both can be linked to praise. Many songs of lament “evolve into songs of praise in anticipation of God’s deliverance.” Hymns involve singing to God “in response to something already experienced” (TWOT 23781). Often, this type of song involves praising who or what God is or confessing/thanking Him for things that He has done. As I mentioned earlier, the topic “sing praise” is what prompted this blog post. You can download my free 30-day scripture writing plan and keep studying this topic on your own by clicking here.

Song Recommendation: “Gadol Elohai/How Great Is Our God” by Joshua Aaron

Gadal–praising God’s greatness

The TWOT lists gadal (H1431) or gadol (H1419) in the sense of “to magnify” as one of the synonyms for halel (TWOT 500). You’re not likely to find it if you search for Hebrew words translated “praise” in English Bibles (it’s most often translated “great”), but the usage is linked to praise.

Great (gadol) is Yahweh, and greatly to be praised (halal),
in the city of our God, in his holy mountain.
Psalm 48:1, WEB

I will praise (halal) the name of God with a song (shir),
and will magnify (gadal) him with thanksgiving (todah).
Psalm 69:30, WEB

The root verb gadal means to “grow up, become great or important … praise, (magnify), do great things” (TWOT 315). In certain verb stems, it can mean “to magnify” or “consider great.” It’s often used to speak of God’s greatness or to talk about how God magnifies Himself. The adjective gadol has a similar range of meanings (TWOT 315d). Together, the two words appear a total of 643 times in the Old Testament.

Rum–lifting God high for praise

The TWOT lists rum (H7311) in the sense of “to exalt” as one of the synonyms for halel (TWOT 500). The root has three basic meanings: “literal height,” “height as symbolic of positive notions such as glory and exaltation,” and “height as symbolic of negative notions such as arrogance and pride” (TWOT 2133). We can “exalt God in praising” Him, or lift His name high. One specific derivative, romam (H7319), means “high praises” (TWOT 2133f).

May the high praises (romam) of God be in their mouths,
and a two-edged sword in their hand
Psalm 149:6, WEB

Shabach–praise His mighty deeds

The verb shabach (H7623) only appears 11 times in the Old Testament. It means to praise, laud, or commend (BDB). Typically, it’s “used to praise God for his mighty acts and deeds” (TWOT 2313).

Because your loving kindness is better than life,
    my lips shall praise (shabach) you.
So I will bless (barak) you while I live.
    I will lift up my hands in your name.
My soul shall be satisfied as with the richest food.
    My mouth shall praise (halal) you with joyful lips,
Psalm 63:3-5, WEB

Praise (halal) Yahweh, all you nations!
Extol (shabach) him, all you peoples!
For his loving kindness is great toward us.
Yahweh’s faithfulness endures forever.
Praise (halal) Yah!
Psalm 117, WEB

Why Study Praise Words?

Image of a smiling man playing the piano, overlaid with blog's title text and the words, "One of our purposes for being here as Christians is to praise God. Studying Hebrew words for praise helps us better understand this vital concept." — Image by Ben White from Lightstock

So why did we spend all this time looking at nine Hebrew words (more if you include derivatives from the root words) that all translate into English so similarly?

In an English Bible, “praise” appears hundreds of times, depending no the translation (254 in WEB, 259 in KJV, 328 in NET, 363 in NIV). It’s a vital concept in scripture, and something that we need to understand how to do if we’re to relate properly to God. One of our purposes for being here as Christians is to praise Him. Our lives should praise God, as well as our lips (Phil. 1:9-11; Heb. 13:14-15).

In Christ we too have been claimed as God’s own possession, since we were predestined according to the purpose of him who accomplishes all things according to the counsel of his will so that we, who were the first to set our hope on Christ, would be to the praise of his glory.
Ephesians 1:11-12, NET

If we just looked at the English word for praise, we’d think the definition was limited to “express warm approval or admiration of” and “express one’s respect and gratitude toward (a deity), especially in song” (definitions from Google and Oxford Languages). Studying the variety of Hebrew words related to praise gives us a much broader appreciation of praise. It’s more than just approval, admiration, respect, and gratitude. It’s a whole-life, whole-body, whole-heart expression of God’s glory, our thankfulness, and much more.

Featured image by Pearl from Lightstock

Finding Jesus in the Old Testament

2 March, 20241 March, 2024Marissa

Several times during Jesus’s ministry, He told people that the scriptures they read told them about Him. For example, He told some, “You study the scriptures thoroughly because you think in them you possess eternal life, and it is these same scriptures that testify about me” (John 5:39, NET). Remember, they would have just had the Old Testament at this time. The gospel events were happening in front of them, but they didn’t have written records yet pointing out which prophecies Jesus fulfilled and cross-referencing Old and New Testament writings the way we do today. And yet, Jesus told people that “everything written about me in the law of Moses and the prophets and the psalms must be fulfilled” (Luke 24:44, NET). He expected at least some of the people He spoke with to recognize that the law, prophets, and psalms all pointed to a Messiah and that He was that promised Messiah.

When I think about these scriptures, I wonder if I could have recognized that there was a coming Messiah from reading the Old Testament (OT). Even with the benefit of New Testament (NT) perspective, I struggle to see Him in the law of Moses. Not even all of the psalms and prophecies that NT writers identify as Messianic seem like something I’d have recognized when just reading the OT. Like the disciples on the road to Emmaus, we need Jesus to intervene in our minds to open our understanding (Luke 24:13-35). In fact, there are scriptures indicating it’s impossible to understand God’s word or have a relationship with Him unless the Father and Jesus take an active role in your life (John 6:44; 14:6).

At this point, we might ask ourselves several different questions, such as, “How much did believers in the Old Testament know?” and “How did salvation through Jesus (since you can’t be saved through anyone else [Acts 4:12]) work for people who lived and died before His sacrifice?” For today, though, I want to focus on the question, “Which verses in the Old Testament clearly point to Jesus Christ?” Or, since we’ll be looking at the OT that was written in Hebrew, to Yeshua the Messiah?

Image of a man studying the Bible overlaid with text from Matt. 16:16-17, NET version: Simon Peter answered, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God." Jesus answered, “Simon, Jonah's son, God has blessed you. No person on earth has showed you this. But my Father in heaven has showed you.” — Image by Matt Vasquez from Lightstock

Clarifying Names

The name “Jesus” is the English transliteration (representing a word from one language with the sounds and alphabet of another) of the Greek name Iēsous, which comes from the Hebrew name Yehoshua or Yeshua (H3091). The name means “Yahweh is salvation,” from the words Yahweh or Yehovah (H3068, God’s proper name [Ex. 4:15-16]) and yasha (H3467, “to save, be saved, be delivered” [BDB]). Yasha is the main root of a group of Hebrew words. Frequently used derivatives include yeshuah (H3444, salvation), teshuah (H8668, help, rescue, salvation) , and names such as Joshua, Hosea, Isaiah (Theological Wordbook of the Old Testament [TWOT] entry 929).

You won’t ever see the name “Jesus” in the Old Testament, but you frequently see the name Yeshua: it is translated into English as Joshua. There’s no prophecy in the Old Testament that says the Messiah will be named Yeshua. When Jesus was born, His name likely wouldn’t have stood out too much. Joshua is a popular name even today, and I doubt it was unusual in Jesus’s day considering the historic Yeshuas that people would have been familiar with (e.g. Moses’s successor Joshua son of Nun and Joshua the son of Josedech who appears in Haggai’s prophecies).

“Christ” is more of a title than a name. It is a transliteration into English of the Greek word christos (G5547), which is a translation (rendering the meaning of a word into the corresponding word in another language) of the Hebrew word mashiyah or Messiah (H4899). Both the Greek and Hebrew words mean “anointed” (Thayer; BDB). The root word mashach (H4886, anoint or rub with oil) is used most frequently of kings and priests sanctified for the Lord, and it’s also used twice of prophets (TWOT 1255). For example, it’s used when Yahweh chose Saul as the first king of Israel.

“Tomorrow about this time I will send you a man out of the land of Benjamin, and you shall anoint (mashach) him to be prince over my people Israel. He will save (yasha) my people out of the hand of the Philistines; for I have looked upon my people, because their cry has come to me.”
1 Samuel 9:16, WEB

Mashiyah (H4899, anointed one) is most frequently used in the Old Testament to refer to kings (TWOT 1255c). It also became closely associated with the God-being we now know as Jesus. By the time Jesus arrived, the Jews of His day were looking for the promised Messiah or Christ (Luke 3:15; 22:67; John 1:41-42; 4:25-29; 7:26). We still call prophecies from the OT that point to Jesus Messianic passages. It might surprise us, then, that if we compare all the verses using yasha and its related words to all the verses using masach and its related words, there are only 5 scriptures that use both and none of them are Messianic prophecies (1 Sam. 9:16; 2 Sam. 22:51; Psalm 8:50; 20:6; 28:8).

Image of a woman studying the Bible overlaid with text from John 4:25-26, NET version: The woman said to him, “I know that Messiah is coming” (the one called Christ); “whenever he comes, he will tell us everything.”
Jesus said to her, “I, the one speaking to you, am he.” — Image by MarrCreative from Lightstock

Prophecies of the Messiah

There actually aren’t as many OT prophecies identifying the coming Messiah/Christ by the title “anointed” as you might think. It honestly surprised me, but when you realize that the Hebrew word mashiyah was “almost exclusively reserved as a synonym for ‘king'” (TWOT 1255c), then it becomes more understandable how OT readers realized that the spirit-filled, victorious, salvation-bringing God-being who would come in the name of the Lord should be called Messiah. We can see this in some of the disciples’ reactions to first meeting Jesus.

One of the two who heard John and followed him was Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother. He first found his own brother, Simon, and said to him, “We have found the Messiah!” (which is, being interpreted, Christ). He brought him to Jesus. …Philip found Nathanael, and said to him, “We have found him, of whom Moses in the law, and the prophets, wrote: Jesus of Nazareth, the son of Joseph.” …

Jesus saw Nathanael coming to him, and said about him, “Behold, an Israelite indeed, in whom is no deceit!”

Nathanael said to him, “How do you know me?”

Jesus answered him, “Before Philip called you, when you were under the fig tree, I saw you.”

Nathanael answered him, “Rabbi, you are the Son of God! You are King of Israel!”
John 1:40-42, 45, 47-49, WEB

Andrew called Jesus “the Messiah.” Phillip called Him the one “of whom Moses in the law, and the prophets, wrote.” Nathaniel called Him, “the Son of God” and “King of Israel.” They knew they were waiting for the Messiah, God’s son and the King of Israel, from reading the law and the prophets. Thanks to the Father’s revelation working in their lives, they could correctly identify that Jesus was the Christ (Matt. 16:13-20). Perhaps they were all thinking of Psalm 2, where the author talks about “Yahweh and … his Anointed,” who is also “King on my holy hill of Zion” and the Son of God.

Daniel also prophesied about “the Anointed One, the prince” (Dan. 9:25-26, WEB). Isaiah spoke of a descendent of David who would be full of God’s spirit and rule on David’s throne (implying an anointing even when it’s not explicitly mentioned) (Isaiah 9:1-7; 11:1-5; 61:1). Psalms talk about a strong, ruling, righteous, and anointed king (Ps. 45:1-7; 110:1-5). With those scriptures, as well as whatever oral traditions might have been passed down (depending on how much the people of God knew about His plan that didn’t make it into official scriptural writings), the people of Jesus’s day had the background needed to know they were looking for a Messiah. Even then, not everyone who met Jesus (Yeshua) was able to recognize that He was the Christ (Messiah). They needed God to give them eyes to see, ears to hear, and hearts to understand (Mat. 13:10-17).

Asking to Understand

Image of two hands holding a small Bible, overlaid with blog's title text and the words, "When you know where and how to look, you can see Jesus all throughout the Old Testament writings." — Image by Maura Griesse from Lightstock

When you know where to look, it’s not that hard to find Jesus in the Old Testament or to read the OT and see that there’s a coming Messiah. But without God working in your mind and heart, you won’t know to look. People can read the Bible over and over, even memorize huge sections, but still miss key truths because they’re just reading on their own with a human perspective. God is the one who makes His Bible come alive.

I think sometimes Christians forget how thankful we ought to be to God for letting us understand His word. And when we do that, we might also forget that we don’t yet know everything fully (1 Cor. 8:1-2; 13:12). For me at least, studying the prophecies of Jesus in the OT helps me realize that. Without God’s help and the records of fulfilled prophecies in the NT, I’d understand much less than I do now. And maybe there’s still more to learn, if I’m willing to ask.

“Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened for you. For everyone who asks receives, and the one who seeks finds, and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened. Is there anyone among you who, if his son asks for bread, will give him a stone? Or if he asks for a fish, will give him a snake?If you then, although you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give good gifts to those who ask him!”
Matthew 7:7-11, NET

We need to remember to thank God for the understanding He has granted us, and keep asking to know Him more deeply. One way we can participate in knowing Him at a deeper level is to prayerfully study His entire Bible. The questions I opened with today–“How much did believers in the Old Testament know?” and “How did salvation through Jesus work for people who lived and died before His sacrifice?”–are the types of questions a speaker at my church invited listeners to study in a message I heard last week.

That message focused on Abraham, and it’s fascinating to look at the conversations God had with him and at what the NT writers say about Abraham and God’s relationship. One verse even talks about the gospel being preached to Abraham, and in another Jesus said that Abraham “was overjoyed to see my day” (John 8:56; Gal. 3:7-16). Abraham probably knew a lot more about the Messiah than I’d realized just from reading his story, and he didn’t even have scrolls to study of the law, psalms, and prophets. Perhaps we can also understand more deeply by studying the relationships and revelation that God granted to those Old Testament heroes of faith (the people in Heb. 11, for example) and by asking God to speak into our lives similar to the way that He spoke to them.

Featured image by Inbetween from Lightstock

Song Recommendation: “Psalm 45 (A Noble theme)”

Gentleness as a Fruit

24 February, 202423 February, 2024Marissa

What do you picture when you hear the words “gentleness” or “meekness”? If you’re like most English speakers, you probably don’t think of controlled anger, strength of character, or calm acceptance of God’s will. But those are connotations of the Greek word used in the New Testament that English translators chose to translate as gentleness or meekness (or occasionally humility, though usually that’s a different word).

A couple weeks ago, I realized I’d never finished my 30-Day Scripture Writing series on the fruit of the spirit. There were three left: peace, faith, and today we’re wrapping up with gentleness. You can find the 30-day scripture writing list at the end of this blog post if you’d like to continue studying this topic.

Putting Gentleness in Ancient Context

I’ve written about the Greek word translated “gentleness” or “meekness” before. I find it fascinating that in English, we associate those traits with weakness but in Greek it’s associated with strength of character. Spiros Zodhiates says that praotetos primarily means “an inward grace of the soul, calmness toward God in particular. It is the acceptance of God’s dealings with us considering them as good in that they enhance the closeness of our relationship with Him” (The Complete WordStudy Dictionary: New Testament, entry 4236). In the sense that the meaning is linked to our relationship with God, it is similar to the Hebrew word most often translated “gentle” or “meek.” Anav (H6035) means humble, often as a result of affliction, but also proper humility when recognizing “absolute dependence on God” (Theological Wordbook of the Old Testament, entry 1652a).

Returning to the Greek word praotetos, there’s another difference between it and the English connotations for gentleness or meekness. It is not something passive, but rather “the activity of the blessedness that exists in one’s heart from being actively angry at evil” (Zodhiates). The idea of anger and gentleness being conveyed in the same word seems contradictory, but we see Jesus called meek and responding with anger to wicked things (Matt. 11:29; Mark 3:5; John 2:13-17; 2 Cor. 10:1). As with other godly character traits, we can model our expressions of meekness/gentleness on Jesus’s behavior.

It can also be helpful at times to remember that the Greek language used in the New Testament was used by other people as well. It’s not just a Biblical language, and we can look to other writings to get a sense for how people in the larger world of the time used words. Aristotle said that “praotes is that virtue that stands between two extremes, the orgilotes (n.f.), uncontrolled and unjustified anger … and aorgistia (n.f.), not becoming angry at all no matter what takes place around you” (Zodhiates, entry 4236 [n.f. stands for ‘not found’ in scripture]). That’s very different than how we think of meekness and gentleness today, but it’s in line with how the Biblical writers would have used the word.

For this study, we’ll be looking at New Testament verses that use the word praotes (G4236) as well as the root word praos (G4235) and the synonyms praus (G4239) and prautes (G4240). These words appear a total of 16 times in the New Testament. There are also a few other words that could be translated meek or gentle (e.g. epios [G2261] and epieikes [G1933]) but since we’re focusing on gentleness as a fruit of the spirit, we’ll stick with the praotes words for now since that’s what’s used in Galatians 5.

Image of five Bibles on a table with people's hands tracing over the words, overlaid with text from Col. 3:12, NET version: "Therefore, as the elect of God, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with a heart of mercy, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience" — Image by Inbetween from Lightstock

Instructions to be Gentle

If you read the New Testament start to finish, the first time you’ll encounter the word for gentleness or meekness is in the Beatitudes. Here, Jesus said, “Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth” (Matt. 5:5, NET). It echoes a verse from Psalms: “the humble shall inherit the land, and shall delight themselves in the abundance of peace” (Ps. 37:11, WEB). A phrase like “inherit the land” in the Old Testament typically meant you’d have an inheritance in the promised land among God’s (Old) Covenant people. Now in the New Covenant, the humble/meek/gentle are promised an even greater inheritance. In the Beatitudes, Jesus is likely looking forward to the New Heaven and New Earth promised to all His faithful followers after His second coming (Is. 65:17; 2 Pet. 3:10-14; Rev. 21:1-3).

But you, man of God, flee these things, and follow after righteousness, godliness, faith, love, perseverance, and gentleness. Fight the good fight of faith. Take hold of the eternal life to which you were called, and you confessed the good confession in the sight of many witnesses.
1 Timothy 6:11-12, WEB

We talked last week about how faith is an active, participatory sort of thing. Here, Paul told Timothy that “fighting the good fight of faith” and taking “hold of the eternal life to which you were called” involves cultivating gentleness in your life (among other things). It’s a very important aspect of our character as godly people. In addition to general admonitions like this to cultivate gentleness in our lives, we’re also specifically instructed to use gentleness in our dealings with other people.

I, therefore, the prisoner for the Lord, urge you to live worthily of the calling with which you have been called,with all humility and gentleness, with patience, putting up with one another in love, making every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.
Ephesians 4:1-3, NET

Therefore, as the elect of God, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with a heart of mercy, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience, bearing with one another and forgiving one another, if someone happens to have a complaint against anyone else. Just as the Lord has forgiven you, so you also forgive others.
Colossians 3:12-13, NET

I think these two passages about “putting up with one another” and “bearing with one another” pair well. Humans aren’t always easy to get along with, but regardless of that we need to be patient, humble, merciful, kind, and gentle in our dealings with everyone. That’s particularly true of those in the church (though we’re to live peaceably with everyone as much as we can), where we should be working to build unity and peace within the body of Christ.

Using Gentleness to Correct

Image of a basket full of fruit, overlaid with blog's title text and the words, "Gentleness is part of the fruit of God’s spirit. It involves strength of character and becoming like Jesus Christ" — Image by diapicard from Pixabay

One of the things we need to be careful about as Christians is that we do not judge other people (specifically in the sense of condemning them). At the same time, we need to be able to discern between right and wrong and correct a fellow Christian if need be. That can be a very slippery slope, with a lot of correction sliding too far into judging/condemning. Gentleness is key to appropriately using correction within the church, and the word appears several times in connection to this topic.

Brothers and sisters, if a person is discovered in some sin, you who are spiritual restore such a person in a spirit of gentleness. Pay close attention to yourselves, so that you are not tempted too.
Galatians 6:1, NET

It’s not loving to let fellow believers go on sinning and damaging their relationship with God (Is. 59:2). But we’re admonished to restore them with gentleness and “pay close attention to yourselves” to make sure you’re not sinning as well (Matt. 7:1-5). This is what the Corinthian church should have done rather than being proud of tolerating sin within their congregation (1 Cor. 4:6-5:13). It got so bad there that Paul seemed uncertain if he’d need a “rod of discipline” to correct them or if he could do it with “love and a spirit of gentleness” (1 Cor. 4:21, NET). As a rule, though, correction within the church ought to be done with gentleness. Paul gives that instruction both to church members and to leaders like Timothy.

But reject foolish and ignorant controversies, because you know they breed infighting.And the Lord’s slave must not engage in heated disputes but be kind toward all, an apt teacher, patient, correcting opponents with gentleness. Perhaps God will grant them repentance and then knowledge of the truthand they will come to their senses and escape the devil’s trap where they are held captive to do his will.
2 Timothy 2:23-26, NET

The goal of proper, gentle correction is restoration. We should never want to condemn people, but to see them repent and “come to their senses.” That is, after all, God’s perspective and we’re supposed to become like Him (1 Tim. 2:1-4; 2 Pet. 3:9). It brings us back to the idea of balance that’s inherent in gentleness/meekness (praotetos). This character trait is angry at evil, yet doesn’t lose control. It takes action, yet always trusts and submits to God’s will. When we correct in this way, we’re kind and guide toward restored relationship rather than trying to condemn or prove ourselves right.

As part of the fruit produced by God’s spirit inside us, gentleness should be a product of our lives. As we follow Jesus and live in relationship with Him and the Father, we should become more and more like them and display their character traits and perspectives in our lives. Gentleness is one important aspect of that.

Gentleness Download

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