Word for Word: Episode 1

By -
בְּרֵאשִׁ֖ית
In the beginning

The first word in the Bible is the preposition בְּ (B´) which is translated "in". According to a standard lexicon, the basic meaning is "local and instrumental, in, at." However, context determines both the vocalization (vowel) and meaning. With persons, this can be with or among. It can also mean according to,  because of or by means of. The phrase בְּרֵאשִׁ֖ית appears here and four times in the historical record of Jeremiah. In those cases, some translations have "at the beginning."

Re´shiyth (רֵאשִׁ֖ית) is a demonstrative form of רֹאשׁ (rosh) and means, "head, chief or first." With no definite article, the phrase might be translated conversationally as "At first" or simply "First".

Having said this, it is significant that Jeremiah's scribe uses the phrase in connection with the reign of the king. This reminds us that the Bible records the sovereign rule of the LORD from start to finish. Everything, within and outside of the Bible, is part of God's plan. He is in control.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

The Twelve Curses: Deuteronomy 27:15-26

By -
Image
 Everyone has heard of the Ten Commandments but have you ever heard of the “Twelve Curses?” Throughout the Bible, we see lists of the good we ought to do (like the fruit of the spirit, the beatitudes, various blessings, etc.) and sins that God abhors (woes against the Pharisees, seven abominations, etc). In the closing portions of Deuteronomy, we find a list of twelve curses that have many similarities to the Ten Commandments. These specific curses were given to the Israelites alongside a lengthy description of punishments for breaking God’s law. While they function similarly to the Ten Commandments, they serve as an indictment against sinful behavior; warning what will happen if wrong is committed.  This curse tablet was discovered on Mount Ebal, the same mountain where the Israelites pronounced curses. Its discovery was announced in 2023, with research findings published in May of 2023. The Curses Idolatry “Cursed is the man who makes a carved idol or molten image—an abomina...
Read more

12 Stones at the Jordan River – A Miracle to Remember (Joshua 3-4)

By -
Image
 This is the first post in a multi-post series on the 7 Memorials found in the Book of Joshua. See part 2 . The two spies had just returned from scouting out the city of Jericho with promising news–according to Rahab, who secretly professed faith in Yahweh, the people of Jericho were deeply afraid (their “hearts melted”) because of Israel (Joshua 2:9-11). With confidence from this report and at God’s direction, it was now time for Israel to move into their promised land.  But to do this, they would have to cross the Jordan River. In a miracle reminiscent of the parting of the Red Sea, the Lord stops the flow of the Jordan River and allows the Israelites to cross it on dry ground. When the team of priests carrying the Ark of the Covenant stepped into the river’s overflowing waters, the river dried and the Israelites crossed the river about a half-mile away (2,000 cubits) from the Ark. The power of this narrative is not simply the miracle of stopping water demonstrating God’s po...
Read more

Soul-Searching: Psalm 139

By -
Image
What does it mean to search for something? A search is not a low-energy effort to find something. A search is a deep, intense probing that will not stop until something is found.  How do we search? We pour through our environment intently looking to find that which we are seeking. That is what we must ask God to do in our own hearts, “Search me, O God, and know my heart! Try me and know my thoughts! And see if there be any grievous way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting!”- Psa 139:23-24 In Psalm 139, David is both asking God to and recognizes that he searches the heart. This idea of God searching our heart sandwiches (inclusio) the body of the Psalm, which describes God’s intimate knowledge of us in great detail, “You know when I sit down and when I rise up; you discern my thoughts from afar. You search out my path and my lying down… and are acquainted with all my ways.”-  Psa 139:2 “Where shall I go from your spirit? Or where shall I flee from your presence? If I ascen...
Read more