Adam-אָדָם‎

One of my favorite Christian preachers who I like listen to often over the net is JD Farag. He is an Arab Christian who pastors a church in Kaneohe, Hawaii. One of the important principles he repeatedly affirms in his teachings concerning the names of Bible characters is that “the name is the nature”. Unlike our generic names like Tom, Doug or Brian that have little to do with one’s personality or nature, biblical names are reflective of a person’s character.

Today let’s explore the name of the first human that G-d created, Adam. Adam is the root word for the Hebrew adamah which means “earth” or “soil”. This makes perfect sense given that the scripture states that “the LORD God formed a man[c] from the dust of the ground.” The scripture also states the following:


“By the sweat of your face you shall eat bread, till you return to the ground, for out of it you were taken; for you are dust, and to dust you shall return.” ...

I think there are quite a few things that can be gleaned from these verses and Adam’s name. First, contrary to what the new agers or pantheists proclaim, a clear line of demarcation has been drawn between the Creator and His creation. While we may be created in the image of G-d, we are not little gods nor will we ever be little gods. We come from the ground of the earth and we are finite. Our L-rd is spirit and He is eternal.

Second, knowing that we all originate from the same ancestor who was formed from the dust of the ground should serve to keep us humble. No person is superior to another. Although the psychologists and psychiatrists of the world frequently stress the importance of high self-esteem, I would stress that a healthy identity is built on the foundation of “proper self-esteem”, which is having a correct biblical understanding of who we are and our origins.

Hence,

"Let nothing be done through selfish ambition or conceit, but in lowliness of mind let each esteem others better than himself.”-Philippians 2:3

Amen

YHWH-יהוה‎)

Let me start off today’s post by mentioning an interesting fact that is not in any way disputed by Christian and Hebrew scholars. Practically over 95 percent of the time that we come across the word “Lord” or its Hebrew equivalent “Adonai” or just “God” in the Old Testament, the original Hebrew word is YHWH (suggested pronunciation is either Yahweh or Yehoveh). In fact it is used over 6000 times in the Old Testament. For example, let’s look at a well-quoted verse known as the SHEMA.

“Hear o Israel, the Lord our God, the Lord is one!”-Deuteronomy 6:4

Now let’s take a look at the transliteration of the original Hebrew.

“ šüma` yiSrä´ël yhwh´élöhêºnû yhwh ´eHäd”

Now the reason I am emphasizing this point is because we are presently immersed in a political climate whereby unity is being stressed at the expense of truth. The common refrain frequently echoed is “It doesn’t matter whether somebody is Mormon, Christian, or Muslim. Basically, they are all worshipping the same god anyway.” Absolutely NOT! There is no way that the G-d of Israel can be the same as the god of Islam. The G-d of the Bible is called YHWH whereas the Islam’s god is known as Allah. Different names with different attributes.

With regards to Allah and Islam, I feel compelled to share the following research quote taken from http://www.biblebelievers.org.au/moongod.htm:

“The Muslim's claim that Allah is the God of the Bible and that Islam arose from the religion of the prophets and apostles is refuted by solid, overwhelming archeological evidence. Islam is nothing more than a revival of the ancient Moon-god cult. It has taken the symbols, the rites, the ceremonies, and even the name of its god from the ancient pagan religion of the Moon-god. As such, it is sheer idolatry and must be rejected by all those who follow the Torah and Gospel.”

So in closing, let us remember and affirm with confidence that the one and only G-d, the Creator of the heavens and earth, has given us His Name in His Word. That name is YVHW. It is singular and only refers to the G-d of the Hebrew Scriptures (including the Brit Hadashah New Covenant). We should not be shy in sharing this name with others.

“ I am YHWH your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery; you shall have no other elohim before me.” Exodus 2:2-3

Amen

Elohim-אֱלֹהִים

Today I’m going to explore the meaning of a Hebrew word that is used over 2500 times in the Bible, the word Elohim. It is the word used for G-d in the very first verse of Genesis where it reads, “In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth.” However, this word is not to be confused with G-d’s name as given to us in the Bible. That is a totally different word that we will look at in another lesson.

Depending on the context, Elohim can refer to:

1) The plural majesty of the G-d of the Bible
Example:
“In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth.”-Genesis 1:1

2) The gods or divine rulers of other nations.
Example:
"Thou shalt have no other gods before me."-Exodus 20:3

3) In a pagan context, spirits that reside in the underworld.
Example:
“And the witch said unto Saul, I saw gods ascending out of the earth.”
1 Sam 28:13

As a quick one-point Hebrew lesson, understand that whenever you want to pluralize a noun in Hebrew, all you have to do is add the letters “IM”. However, there is another usage of the Hebrew “IM” ending known as the “plural of majesty” which denotes greatness.”

So when the G-d of Israel is being referred to as “Elohim” in the Bible, should we interpret elohim as referring to the plurality of G-d or His greatness? The answer is both. G-d’s essence consists of both his greatness and plurality. His plurality is commonly expressed via the doctrine of the trinity in reference to the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. However, throughout history G-d has also appeared in different ways outside of these particular manifestations. Having stated that, even though the nature of G-d may be plural, don’t ever, ever, ever, ever, get the idea that G-d is more than one.

In a nutshell, simply remember that the word “elohim” is either a generic and plural term referring to a god, any god or it denotes “plural majesty” where in that case it would mean just “G-d”, the God as we Christians or Messianic believers know him.

Therefore, when a non-Hebrew refers to the G-d of Israel as Elohim in the Bible, in his mind, he is basically saying “Those gods of Israel.” However, when a Hebrew uses the word Elohim to refer to the G-d of Israel”, he really means the one and only G-d of Israel.” It is exactly the same word but with a different meaning depending on the context. One usage reflects a pagan and polytheistic mindset while the other reflects a Hebrew monotheistic mindset.

So let us thank our Elohim that we have been given the grace to know the true and only Elohim of Israel and let us not worship the elohim from other nations.

Amen

“Darkness” חֹ֫שֶׁך-choshek versus לַיְלָה-layil

In my last post, I explored the origins behind the word light or owr (אור ) in Hebrew and went into how this word embodies not only the physical properties of brightness but also has strong spiritual overtones associated with joy and G-d’s glory. Today I would like to explore its opposite, the word “choshek”. The dictionary defines this word as darkness or obscurity and as with owr also has strong spiritual significance but in a very negative sense.

Have you ever committed a great sin and then woke up the next morning feeling very depressed as if a dark cloud had descended upon you? If so, then you have some idea of the spiritual sense of this word. In the book of Exodus, when G-d was casting plagues on the land of Egypt, this is the exact same word used in the following verses:

“And the LORD said unto Moses, Stretch out thine hand toward heaven, that there may be darkness over the land of Egypt, even darkness which may be felt. And Moses stretched forth his hand toward heaven; and there was a thick darkness in all the land of Egypt three days.” Exodus 10:21-22

or

“I form the light, and create darkness: I make peace, and create evil: I the LORD do all these things.”- Isaiah 45:7

At this juncture, it should be mentioned that “choshek” does not translate into the neutral opposite of daytime. That Hebrew word is “layil”which simply means night or nighttime and is devoid of any spiritual significance.

It should also be noted that choshek is naturally what occurs when G-d’s owr or light is absent. Metaphorically speaking, think of a glass filled with water. All though you can fill a glass with water, you can’t fill it with emptiness so to speak can you? Emptiness is just what results when the water is gone. Hence, if we’re not filled with G-d’s owr, the resulting outcome is a depressing dark emptiness of gloom and doom with no hope.

Therefore, let us put our hope in Jesus who sacrificed himself to save us from eternal choshek, so that we may forever be surrounded by his eternal owr.

Amen

"Light" אור (owr) versus "Night" מארת (meorot)

In the first chapter of Genesis from verse 3, G-d commands “Let there be light”. If we were to substitute the appropriate Hebrew word for light in this verse, it would read “Let there be owr.”

Now what's interesting is that a few sentences down from verse 14, we have G-d again commanding “Let there be lights in the vault of the sky to separate the day from the night, and let them serve as signs to mark sacred times, and days and years, and let there be lights in the vault of the sky to give light on the earth. And it was so. God made two great lights—the greater light to govern the day and the lesser light to govern the night”

However, the "light" mentioned several times here from verse 14 actually comes from a different Hebrew word. It is the word maorot. What is the difference? Here are the definitions as taken from a standard Hebrew-English dictionary.

אור (owr):
a) to become light
b) to shine
c) to become bright

מטאורים (maorot):
d) meteors

Owr basically refers to illumination or to become enlightened whereas maorot refers to actual physical objects that emanate light. Do you also notice the pronunciation similarity between the Hebrew “maorot” and the English word “meteor”? Though not generally taught, it is true that the Hebrew word maorot gave birth to the medieval Latin meteōrum which become our English meteor. Pretty cool eh?

However, there is more to the difference between these words than meets the eye. When we speak of G-d’s light in the owr sense, although it also refers to physical brightness like maorot, there is also a strong and positive spiritual sense inherent in this word. It is a word that expresses the wonderful glory of G-d. When Jesus said, “I am the light of the world,” this was the type of light He was referring to. Minus the owr of G-d, there is no way we can ever have peace and fulfillment in this life. Hence, let us pray that we may be illumined by G-d’s owr so that we may in turn be an owr for a spiritually dying world.

"Let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven." Matthew 5:16

Amen