Some spell the Hebrew word for voice with a Q and also with a K qol /kol Or qol {kole}; from an unused root meaning to call aloud; a voice or sound — + aloud, bleating, crackling, cry (+ out), fame, lightness, lowing, noise, + hold peace, (pro-)claim, proclamation, + sing, sound, + spark, thunder(-ing), voice, + yell.
Kol
qol
qol: sound, voice
Strongs # 6963
Original Word: קוֹל Part of Speech: Noun Masculine Transliteration:qol Phonetic Spelling: (kole) Definition:sound, voice
Genesis 3:8 HEB: וַֽיִּשְׁמְע֞וּ אֶת־ ק֨וֹל יְהוָ֧ה אֱלֹהִ֛ים NAS: They heard the sound of the LORD God KJV: And they heard the voice of the LORD INT: heard the sound of the LORD God
And we all know that our Heavenly Father speaks to us but many are unsure that they are actually hearing His voice, or if it’s just our own thoughts.
Is there any way we can know for certain?
There are numerous scriptures about thevoiceof God and the more we read in the scriptures
and the longer we walk in obedience with Him
the clearer His voice will become.
The key is by the walk of obedience,
which will always give greater clarity; because the more we are obedient, the more His Spirit of Holiness can fill us and enhance and empower our walk.
To those who are obedient….
In the Book of Acts, Simon Peter said that the Holy Spirit is only given to those who obey God. He put it this way.
And we are witnesses to these things, and so is the Holy Spirit whom God has given to those who obey him (Acts 5:32 NRSV).
Here His Holy Spirit is clearly linked to obedience.
How does Holy Spirit empower obedience?
Romans 8:14 Walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh.
Gal. 5:16 If we live by the Spirit, let us also walk by the Spirit .
Gal. 54:25 Having begun by the Spirit…
By being obedient to His Word because we love Him, we can receive His Holy Spirit Who will help and empower us to walk by the Spirit and to clearly hear His Voice; and as we hear, we do, we obey, completing a cycle of life in Messiah. Yeshua/Jesus is the way the truth and the life. John 14:6.
This is not a new concept as it is part of Gods covenant relationship with His people.
The Hebrew prayer known as theshema, begins with the Hebrew word that means
hear and obey.
It is the daily declaration of faith
Shema Yisrael שְׁמַע יִשְׂרָאֵל “Hear, O Israel ”
The first verse of theShema, fromDeuteronomy 6, is among the best-known in all of Jewish liturgy; and are the first two words of a section of the Torah that is the centerpiece of the morning and evening prayer services, encapsulating the core Hebrew affirmation and admonition.
Shema
שָׁמַע
shaw-mah’
שָׁמַע shâmaʻ, shaw-mah’; a primitive root; to hear intelligently (often with implication of attention, obedience, etc.; causatively, to tell, etc.):—× attentively, call (gather) together, × carefully, × certainly, consent, consider, be content, declare, ×diligently, discern, give ear, (cause to, let, make to) hear(-ken, tell), × indeed, listen, make (a) noise, (be) obedient, obey, perceive, (make a) proclaim(-ation), publish, regard, report, shew (forth), (make a) sound, × surely, tell, understand, whosoever (heareth), witness.
The KJV translates Strong’s H8085 in the following manner:
If we do not listen for His voice, we will not hear it.
If we are not paying attention, we will miss His instructions.
If we have no relationship with Him, we will not care what He has to say to us.
If we have no reverent respect towards Him, we will not even think of listening for His voice.
We will be living our life on our own terms and doing only what pleases us, catering to the fleshly desires of a life lived by natural physical standards; with no recognition of spiritual direction or influence. Our relationship to the Father, Jesus/Yeshua and Holy Spirit is one of love, out of which we desire to please Him and do all He has asked of us. It is not one of a reluctant slave, forced to comply with rules and regulations against their will.
So hearing His voice will become clearer as we follow Him and allow the reciprocal love relationship between us to grow deeper. Just as with any human love relationship. We hear the voice of a loved one and recognize it because we know them, and want to answer and do what they ask or need immediately. It is the same for us with our Savior, there should be no question of our instant response to the one who died in our place…
Are we hearing our Fathers Voice ?
Qaval קול
Exodus 19:5: Now therefore if you will obeymy voice indeed and keep my commandments, Then you will be a peculiar treasure unto me above all the people, for all the earth is mine.
Our Heavenly Father loves us, He loves everybody, but reading the above verse it seems that there are those who He not only loves but He treasures.
How can we be included in those He treasures?
We become this treasure IFweobey His voice.. If we really heard our Heavenly Fathersvoice and knew without a shadow of a doubt it was His voice, would we honestly do anything other than obey? A common saying amongst christians is: God told me the other day…
probably we’ve all said it at one time or another?..but
was it really God’s voice we heard, and if it was, would we question our mental health?
Does it depend on what the Voice says as to whether we believe and act upon it? If the Voice told us to go to a persons house and pray for them would we do it or would we reason it away in our minds?
Already noted in Hebrew a word for hearing God’s
voice is qaval
which is
speaking, calling, voice etc.,
but it is also used for
nonverbal communication.
There are three Hebrew letters in
qaval.
קול
The first letter
Qop ל
represents:God speaking through a natural or human instrument like a preacher or teacher.
The second letter
Vav ו
is God speaking through an inward connection, that strong impulse, impression or feelingand
the last letter
Lamed ל
is God speaking through the Word of God, the Bible.
One definition ofqaval is:
as an outward expression of one’s thoughts.
It is closely associated with the word
qalahor
restraining
and qalal – to diminish.
We could say that, as we control our natural human desires and lusts of this flesh and restrain ourselves, by not walking after the flesh but walking after the spirit and crucifying the flesh life according to Galatians, then the voice of God becomes clearer.
To truly live in the presence of God 24/7 we would need to spend each day lessening our personal desires and putting a stop to our physical impulses, then we would really begin to hear our Heavenly Fathers’ qaval.
There are many ways that thevoiceof the Lord can speak to us, e.g:
It can be first through His Word, in a scripture He shows us.
It can be a prompting to our thoughts, a direction, an answer.
Hearing the audible voice of God is not an everyday occurrence but we can hear Him all around us in Scripture, in our thoughts as we walk among His creation. When we choose to humble ourselves, less of us and more of Him; when we restrain our cravings, desires and impulses; then we will hear Hisqavalin more ways than we can imagine.
Voice – Qol
Exodus 19:5: ” Now therefore if you will obey my voice indeed and keep my commandments, then you will be a peculiar treasure until me above all the people, for all the earth is mine.” Voice: Hebrew – qol:
sound, cry, thunder, rumor or report.
In its primitive form – to disclose an idea.
The Fathers voicewas heard at Jesus/Yeshuas immersion and some thought it thundered!
It’s all about how we hear!
those who have ears to hear.
We many times speak of those with ‘selective hearing’, hearing only what we want to; or how we hear it in order to suit our own agenda and motives, twisting truth to fit ourselves. Jesus/Yeshua talks about His sheep knowing His voice in John 10:27. Paul heard the voiceof Messiah Jesus on the road to Damascus and Moses heard Hisvoice many times.
At Messiah’s baptism in John 12:29: When the crowd heard the voice, some heard it said it had thundered; others said an angel had spoken to him.
The thunder of heaven was the voice of God, and a direct answer to Yeshua/ Jesus’s petition came: “I have glorified it, and I will glorify it again” (v. 28).
The Father’s voice was heard on two very important occasions in Messiah’s ministry: the baptism and the transfiguration. At each of these events the Father’s voice, was very distinct and unique.Matthew 17:5; Luke 9:35-36.
Is this word voice, referring to an impression, thought or feeling as we might interpret it today? We know that the word for voice is
qol
which is
speaking, calling, voice etc.
The Greek word here in the New Testament is
phone
it’s obvious which English word comes from that one!
All of them give the idea of a noise, tone or sound.
gol is spelledקוֹל
ק Qof which represents God speaking through a natural or human instrument,
ו Vav is a connection between heaven and earth and
ל Lamed represents divine instruction.
In other words this is telling us that this voice of God
can come from:
a natural instrument, e.g. a minister, pastor, preacher, teacher, prophet, friend etc.,
or through a natural event, such as a voice, noise, sound, thunder, proclamation, etc..
This voice is also heard as we spend time alone with our Heavenly Father, this is when we make that connection between heaven and earth.
This voice can be heard while studying His Word.
This is where we receive inspiration and revelation from being taught by His Holy Spirit.
Ultimately the word in Hebrew, qol,
simply carries the idea of a disclosure/revealing.
It can be an impression, thought or feeling which is so powerful, it actually seems like an audible voice.
Qol /voice, by its very nature is a Semitic word and can be very poetic, i.e., when used as a simile or metaphor.
Lastly, Qol /voice, can be just that, an actual, audible voice.
We can be certain of this, that when our Heavenly Father desires to speak to us individually, He’ll do it in a way where we will not be afraid, or think we are losing our sanity; because He is the Creator of His universe, He has countless ways to disclose/reveal His thoughts to us. We should never try to put Him in a box or limit how and where He can speak to us.
He is an infinite spirit being and Qol /voice, expresses this infinity. He created each of us with an internal voice/Qol, building into us a way of hearing His Voice as any child knows and recognizes their parents voice. It may come to us from the physical nature around us e.g. a bird flying to the window and singing each morning, or a deer, a rabbit or squirrel coming into our garden. Any number of experiences speak to us, like a clear night sky, filled with stars,a song or melody, a sunset, a smile from a stranger; these are all things that may activate that inner ability to hear Him.
When you know Him and are intimate with Him, that Qol within you will be tuned into Him and that is the Qol, the voice of our Heavenly Father speaking to us.
In John 10:27 Messiah said “My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me:” so we shouldn’t we expect to hear Him? Especially IF we are following Him?
Maybe someone reading this has heard the audible voice of God. Some people say they have, folks usually hear it during times of great distress, so perhaps it ‘s just an emotional reaction?
When we do hear His voice, it will always bear witness in our spirit, and we know it was the qol or voice of God, just like the voice Isaiah heard in his vision some 2,600 years ago.
Isaiah 6:8: “Also I heard the voice of the Lord, saying, Whom shall I send, and who will go for us? Then said I, Here [am] I; send me.”
Other verses that speak of the voice of the Lord is Psalms 29:7 and
there are more than a few interpretations of this Psalm.
A Voice – QOL קול
Psalms 29:7: “The voice of the Lord divided the flames of fire.”
One interpretation is that it is referring to God making a covenant with man. Other commentators say David is making a reference to the three Hebrew children in the fiery furnace, although this is not likely as David lived long before this event. The most usual one is that, David wrote this Psalm before a thunder storm and the flames of fire represent the lightning, and the voice of God the thunder.
One 19th century Rabbi indicates that the word for voice/qol doesn’t have to be a physical audible voice. It is really anything that communicates a message. A thunder storm conveying a message to the Psalmist would be a qol or voice.
So what was David implying about the nature of God and His relationship with man in this verse?
In ancient times lightning and thunder were said to be the gods/fallen angels, battling against each other. Lightning and thunder cannot be ignored and does remind us of how powerful our Heavenly Father really is. Messiah said Himself that He would return as the lightning is from east to west meaning: there will be no question in anyones mind as to Who it is that is returning.
David was the king of one of the most powerful nations in the world and maybe he envisioned himself as the flames of fire being divided by Gods voice?
In Hebrew
divide is chesev
which also means
to cut, destroy or hew,
Was David imagining that he would flash his lightning and then God responds with His thunder which promptly crushes the pride in him? The word divide is spelled
Cheth – joining with God,
Sade – humility and
Beth – the heart.
This would suggest that God’s voice draws him away from his own splendor, and humbles him before God.
The word for fire is ’esh which has a numerical value of 301. The word for fear and distress is yara’ which also has a numerical value of 301; so fire can also represent fear and distress.
Blazing or flame comes from the word lehev, which in it’s Semitic root comes from the glittering of the sun off a sword. The flames of fire could be a picture of those fears and distresses that constantly wear us down. Maybe David sat watching the thunderstorm and seeing the lightning flash, it caused him to think about how he could be so at peace one moment and then like a flash of lightning, he is reminded of some serious problem or situation that he had to confront? Immediately after that flash of lightning came the noise/thunder, the voice of God cutting or destroying that fearful or distressful situation. Maybe that will help us the next time a thunder storm erupts.
The voice of God could represent an intimate knowledge of God, in that this knowledge of Him and Who He is, overcomes and destroys all our fears and distresses. When David heard the thunder, was he reminded of the closeness, the intimate relationship he had with a powerful God Who could destroy the flash of lightning which represented his fear and distress?
Another perspective of voices is recorded in Exodus 20:18:
And all the people were seeing the thunder voices and the torches and the voice of the shofarand the mountain smoking; and when the people saw it, they trembled and stood at a distance.
This is a very strange description!
How was it possible for the children of Israel to
SEE the thundering voices?
Seeing Voices – Raim Qol
ראים קול
Resh Aleph Yod Mem Qop Vav Lamed
Many of the translations describe this as thunder and lightning.
the words here are
raim eth equloth
and they literally mean:
see the voices.
Because we know that we
can’t see voices
there must be something metaphoric about these words!
interestingly the Jewish sages teach that this is expressing a sensory experience beyond the normal operation of the five senses. They say it is an overflow of experience that activates all the senses merging them together. In this case, a person is actually
seeing a sound.
Your eyes are hearing and your ears are seeing!
Then there was the sound of the shofar and the people
yarah the sound of the shofar.
They saw the sound of the shofar.
Yarah can mean both physical seeing and spiritual seeing. It is how we are to walk the walk. Walk by the spiritual senses our Heavenly Father has imparted to us, and not by the natural senses.
It is possible that here the people were seeing into another realm, another dimension; what is normally invisible became the visible, the supernatural realm was open to them. Just like so many examples in the scriptures: 2Kings 6:17-20 God opened his eyes.
And Elisha prayed, “Open his eyes, Lord, so that he may see.” Then the Lord opened the servant’s eyes, and he looked and saw the hills full of horses and chariots of fire all around.
Their five senses were merged into one super sense. They did not like it, it terrified them, so much so that in verse 19 they asked Moses to speak to them, they did not want to hear directly from God. Moses told them not to be afraid, yet inverse 21, the people stood at a distance and only Moses entered the cloud.
This idea of the five senses combining into one sense in the supernatural realm could possibly explain other biblical accounts. We should remember that In our Western culture, we have a greek mindset; which means we are a culture based on science and mathematics, and because of this, we only look for one interpretation. In the Middle Eastern Hebrew/Semitic culture, there can be many interpretations and all of them could be correct. That is why it is essential for our Heavenly Fathers Holy Spirit to guide and teach us as we study the Scriptures. If we seek to know the Father with all our hearts, we will find Him and His Holy Spirit will reveal/disclose to us the interpretation He wants us to know.
What caused the children of Israel to be so terrified?
The word qol for voices is plural.
Could the thundering voices have been the sound of everyone’s thoughts, reactions, and feelings?
Did all five senses became just one sense in the shekinah cloud, in the very presence of the Creator of the universe? And was the result of His presence that there were no secrets, nothing was hidden, no more facades, only unhindered truth?
They had just received the ten commandments, which included serious restrictions and guidelines like Thou shalt not commit adultery. Did a man glance at his neighbor’s wife and suddenly everyone knew what he was thinking? Or was another of the commandments Thou shalt not covet revealed as a woman looked at another woman and instantly knows what she is jealous of.
Imagine what would happen if the cloud of our Heavenly Fathers’ Shekinah Glory filled our meetings today? We may initially be eager to enter into His presence…
But what if those that entered the cloud suddenly found their senses becoming one, and everyone suddenly knew everyone else’s thoughts? We may not want to remain there very long either.
We should ask ourselves, if we are sanctified in our thoughts and motives, in that we wouldn’t mind who knew what is in our hearts? If we answer that we would mind, then is our heart really at one and in unity with our Father and Messiah’s heart? If our heart and motives are one with His heart and motives, then we would not be concerned. However, if there’s something unclean hidden in our heart, and the presence of Gods glory was the same as in the Exodus 20:18 cloud where everyone could
see a voice,
we would maybe be rather reluctant and even a little afraid, just as the Israelites were?
Surely this is how it is in God’s presence. Nothing is hidden from Him. The only reason we want to hide, or make excuses, is because of sin, and the shame we feel. The truth is, we have a Savior, a Redeemer, One who forgives our sins and covers our shame with His very own Blood. Hallelujah!
All He looks for is our prayers of repentance, humbly accepting His forgiveness and when we ask for a clean heart and a right spirit…His answer is always yes and amen.
He is always speaking
but…
are we listening?
We hear the kol/voice of God more times than we realize and we must always be like Samuel, and in obedience answer immediately… Yes Father.
שָׁלוֹם עֲלֵיכֶם,
Shalom aleikhem
chaverim and mishpachah!
Peace to friends and family.
Shavua Tov, Have a blessed week.
Make certain Messiah Jesus/Yeshua is your Redeemer, Savior, Lord and soon returning King and that you have a personal relationship with Him.
It’s all about Life and Relationship, NOT Religion.
You are very precious in His sight.
Not sure ..you can be…
SIMPLY SAY THE FOLLOWING MEANING IT FROM YOUR HEART..don’t delay one more minute,
SAY IT RIGHT NOW…
Heavenly Father I come to you in the Name of Jesus/Yeshua asking for forgiveness of my sins for which I am truly sorry. I repent of them all and turn away from my past.
I believe with my heart and confess with my mouth that Jesus/Yeshua is your Son and that He died on the cross at calvary to pay the price for my sin, so that I might be forgiven and have eternal life in the kingdom of Heaven. Father I believe that Jesus/Yeshua rose from the dead and I ask you to come into my life right now and be my personal Savior and Lord and I will worship you all the days of my life. Because your word is truth I say that I am now forgiven and born again and by faith I am washed clean with the blood of Jesus/Yeshua. Thank you that you have accepted me into your family in Jesus’/Yeshua’s name.
He is always speaking 
Verb tenses are: 
