Strange sayings in the scriptures
What does that really mean?
In the process of reading the Scriptures there are moments when the clarity of the sentences is somewhat blurred and the meaning is unclear and often does not seem to make any sense at all.
For doubters and scoffers these are the hooks they hang on, to bring doubt and confusion to the minds of believers.
Although in our heart of hearts we don’t waver in faith; we still desire some answers to help our understanding so as to fully comprehend what has been written for our benefit. If it doesn’t make sense it’s of little value and our education is hampered.
Again we see how the language and its translation, the mind sets, cultures, and lifestyles can cause a misunderstanding and mistranslation and in this process, totally change the context of a parable bringing a partial picture and an incorrect image to that which God is telling us.
We looked at the Greek and Hebrew mind sets and some of the idioms click the link below for more…
https://www.minimannamoments.com/idioms/
https://www.minimannamoments.com/its-raining-cats-and-dogswhat/
As Daniel 12:4: Tells us that knowledge shall increase in the end days.
Choose Life
NOT
human knowledge and intellect.
The tree of knowledge of good and evil seems to have blossomed in the form of a world wide web better known as the Internet. Notice that every address has www before it, the meaning of which includes the word web.
And the Word Internet has the word net in it.
It’s interesting to note that both a web and a net are designed to catch something, like a snare or trap. We quickly assimilate new names of things and they become mundane and normal and we don’t pay attention to their roots and meanings.
The letters WWW in the Hebrew language are:
VAV VAV VAV
and the numerical value of the letter VAV (W) is 6…is this indicating that the world wide web www (666) is part of the beast system/kingdom?
The letter Waw/Vav is the sixth letter of the Aleph-Bet/ alef-beis, having the numeric value of six.
The pictograph for Vav looks like a tent peg, whereas the classical Hebrew script (ketav Ashurit) is constructed of a vertical line and conjoined Yod.
The meaning of the word vav is “hook,” as a connecting hook used when the mishkan (tabernacle) was assembled.
In the Bible, the number 6 symbolizes man and human weakness, the evils of Satan and the manifestation of sin. As such, it represents “Adamic man,” who was created in Genesis 2.
Man was created on the sixth day. Men are appointed 6 days to labor. A Hebrew slave was to serve six years and be released in the 7th year.
If you are new to mmm link below for the pictographs:
https://www.minimannamoments.com/ancient-pictographic-hebrew-language/
Is this in fact a type of manifestation of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil?
Everything is literally at our fingertips with keyboards and touch screens.
Knowledge is unlimited and it encompasses the whole Earth. The prince of the power of the air (waves) which includes all manner of long distance communication, it has produced the web (www); a virtual net that sends the knowledge across the earth by means of sounds and signals transmitted through the air, (his domain).
Like all knowledge it can be used for good or evil; like all power whether as fuel, (electricity) or control (governments). The choice is ours, what we will do with what we have been given; and we have now no excuse not to be able to glean the fields of life and it’s knowledge, and put into practice the very words of life – imparted to us by His Holy Spirit/Ruach HaKodesh.
We have access to original texts of the Scriptures in the original language; plus copious aids to translate from the Greek, Latin, Hebrew and Aramaic. So we can now understand for ourselves the words He spoke and not just rely on and read a man’s best attempt to translate and interpret what He meant, by aligning it to cultures other than that in which it was written.
Not that it was done on purpose, simply interpreted from what they understood and knew from their own experience. Many versions of the text simply fit a certain culture; and understanding it from a cultural mindset other than the one from which was written.
We do not have to be Jewish to have a Hebrew mindset because the Hebrew mindset is the biblical mindset.
This is probably why so many sayings/ Scriptures and parables seems so strange and make no sense to us.
Here are some sayings in the parables explained from the middle eastern cultural aspect; taking into consideration their mindset and understanding.
Here their way of life was obvious to all who were listening to Jesus/Yeshuas’ teaching at the time. He had no need to explain or interpret in most instances and if He did need to, He took the time to break down the meaning to His disciples when they asked Him.
Through A Glass Darkly
The meaning of these words written by Paul can be understood after seeing the mirrors of the Bible days.
They were briefly mentioned in a previous post concerning the furniture of the mishkan
The word
glass
in this verse was not in the original text
however the word
mirror
was…
HEBREW WORD for mirror
מראה mar’ah (noun)
mem reysh hey
Strong’s #4759 – מַרְאָה
Transliteration
mar’âh
Phonetics
mar-aw’
Root: ר – א – ה
מַרְאָה
Original Word: רְאִי
Transliteration: rei
Phonetic Spelling: reh-ee’
Definition: a mirror
Brown-Driver-Briggs’ Definition
1) vision
1a) mode of revelation
2) mirror
Greek Equivalent Words:
Strong #: 545 ‑ ἀπειθής (ap‑i‑thace’);
3701 ‑ ὀπτασία (op‑tas‑ee’‑ah);
4088 ‑ πικρία (pik‑ree’‑ah)
When the Hebrews left Egypt they brought with them their mirrors. These mirrors were made of bronze. Copper alloyed with tin, this was the brass of the Bible.
They were so well made that they had a wonderful luster.
Some examples in the picture below.
Archaeologists digging around the tombs at Thebes found a great many mirrors which were always round in shape and had a metal handle.
Some ancient Israelite mirrors were made of polished rock
מראה עגולה
mar’a agulah
round mirror
and although they had been buried in the earth for many centuries once cleaned and polished they again gave a very clear reflection.
The account given to us in the Scriptures of the Israelites sacrificially donating their mirrors Is quite revealing, for then the women would have had no way to see what they looked like.
So they were willing to relinquish an aid to beautifying self, which focused on the carnal flesh life and showed that they were choosing to put the things of the Lord before their natural desires.
The Hebrew Bible contains just two references to mirrors:
And he made the laver of bronze and its base of bronze, from the mirrors (מַרְאֹת) of the ministering women who ministered at the door of the tent of meeting. (Exodus 38:8)
Can you, like him, spread out the skies, hard as a molten mirror (רְאִי)? (Job 37:18)
Although two different Hebrew words
mar’eh and re’i
are used in these verses, both use words that are based off the same root
RAH (ראה),
meaning
to see.
It would be appropriate to translate these words literally as
vision or spectacle,
just as the word
mirror
derives from the Latin verb
mirare – to look at
in the description of items to be constructed by the chief artisan, Bezalel,
Exodus 30 describes the laver (or basin):
שמות ל:יח וְעָשִׂיתָ כִּיּוֹר נְחֹשֶׁת וְכַנּוֹ נְחֹשֶׁת לְרָחְצָה וְנָתַתָּ אֹתוֹ בֵּין אֹהֶל מוֹעֵד וּבֵין הַמִּזְבֵּחַ וְנָתַתָּ שָׁמָּה מָיִם.
Exod 30:18 And you shall make the laver of copper and its base of copper, for washing, and place it between the tent of meeting and the altar, and put water there.
The text continues with the importance of
priests using the laver and washing their hands and feet before doing any service at the altar,
however, no further details are offered about how the laver should be constructed. .
Then, in the following description of the sanctuary furnishings, we find something very interesting:
שמות לח:ח וַיַּעַשׂ אֵת הַכִּיּוֹר נְחשֶׁת וְאֵת כַּנּוֹ נְחשֶׁת בְּמַרְאֹת הַצֹּבְאֹת אֲשֶׁר צָבְאוּ פֶּתַח אֹהֶל מוֹעֵד.
Exod 38:8 And he made the laver of copper and its base of copper, from the mirrors of the ministering women
ha-marʾot ha-tzovʾot ’asher tzav’u
at the entrance to the tent of meeting.
From where did these
mirrors – marʾot
come?
They were not mentioned in Ex. 35, with the list of all the raw material that was donated towards the making of the Tabernacle, or in Ex. 30:18 with the original instructions to make the basin?
Another question is,
who are these women crowding around the Mishkan/Tabernacle?
ha-tzovʾot ’asher tzav’u ?
Or is it simply the
mirrors – marʾot
that are the subject here?
The word
marʾot
(מַרְאֹת, sg. מראה),
is found nowhere else in the Hebrew Bible.
Nevertheless, it is easy to explain because
it comes from the root
to see
ר א ה
and means
mirrors.
Next, who are these women crowding around the Tent of Meeting/Mishkan/Tabernacle?
ha-tzovʾot ’asher tzav’u ?
the
women who performed tasks.
va-YA-as AYT ha-kee-YOR n’-KHO-shet v’-AYT ka-NO n’-KHO-shet b’-mar-OT ha-TZO-v’-OT a-SHER tza-v’-U PE-takh O-hel mo-AYD
ח וַיַּעַשׂ אֵת הַכִּיּוֹר נְחֹשֶׁת וְאֵת כַּנּוֹ נְחֹשֶׁת בְּמַרְאֹת הַצֹּבְאֹת אֲשֶׁר צָבְאוּ פֶּתַח אֹהֶל מוֹעֵד׃
Who were they
and
what tasks were they performing?
Many scholars and commentators have said that the women at the Tent of Meeting only performed menial tasks, that they were just cleaning servants.
Interestingly the technical Hebrew word used for
tasks
has a military implication
in a startling contrast to the more usual terms for
work and serving
and also the same word is used
concerning the Levite priests when discussing the tasks they performed.
In Hebrew these women are called
hatzov’oth asher tzave’u.
Elsewhere the root of
tzave’u
is used, its’ primary definition is
to wage war.
This term seems to indicate there were women warriors who were stationed at the entrance to the Tent of Meeting. In the context of the time when Yahweh’s title was the Lord of Hosts (of heavenly warriors), the military role these women played would have also been a religious duty.
But,why would these military women have mirrors?
History suggests that in Ancient Israel, the sanctuary guardians used the
mirrors
mar’ot
מַרְאֹת
as signaling devices in combat.
A primary meaning of
mar’ot is vision.
Another way of translating mirrors could be calling them vision plaques,
Which was in this instance a way to communicate.
Research indicates that although the mirrors were remade into vessels; (bronze laver, etc.,) for the Mishkan/Tent of Meeting; there is no indication that afterwards this order of women ceased to exist; and 1 Sam. 2:22 suggests that this professional class of sanctuary guardians continued for some time in Israel’s history.
Final interesting thought on this issue is a quote
“The fact that these serving women are said to be at the entrance to the ‘tent of meeting’ rather than the tabernacle (or temple) may reflect a separate and old sacred tradition, in which the tent was not a ritual space but rather the site of oracular contact between God and a prophetic figure. It is thus possible that the old tradition of the tent of meeting was more gender-inclusive than the tabernacle-temple tradition into which it was absorbed.”
from (Carol Meyers, Women in Scripture, p. 202.)
A similar linguistic construction for mirror is the Akkadian term
namaru,
which comes from the root
amāru, to see.
Based on archaeological findings dating from the mid-2nd millennium until the 7th c. BCE, we know that ancient mirrors were traditionally slightly convex and made of copper, bronze, or brass (both alloys of copper)—highly polished to allow for the reflection of a face.
Images from Ancient Egyptian painting and carvings suggest that they were used by both men and women who spent a great deal of time working on their appearance, especially in the application of makeup.
in some Ancient middle Eastern sources, the mirror became
a symbol both for woman and femininity.
The Egyptian word for
mirror was ankh,
which also means
life,
and the term has strong female associations,
The ankh was originally a female symbol associated with images of goddesses in the ancient Near East. Many hand-held mirrors from the ancient Near East were shaped remarkably like the ankh, and the symbol is widely used in contemporary culture to designate woman or female.
Ancient Silver and copper alloy Egyptian Mirror, Reportedly From: Aswan Egypt ca. 1478-1390 B.C.E
For now we see in a mirror dimly, but then face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall understand fully, even as I have been fully understood.
What sort of mirror is Paul referring to?
Likely he is talking about a small disk made of polished metal such as brass, silver, or gold.
These mirrors were very beautiful luxury items used by the wealthy, but they did not provide a very sharp reflection when compared to modern glass mirrors. This is why Paul used them as an example of a not very sharp/clear image.
Here are two examples of ancient Roman mirrors:
Instead these mirrors were melted and used as the metal for the construction of the bronze laver in the court of the Tabernacle in which the priests washed themselves would have no doubt seen their reflection in the deep water.
The huge lavers in the pictures above are the ones Solomon had built for use in the Temple in Jerusalem.
At the time of the translators, it would have been natural to translate the word mirror as glass, however, the archaeological finds from the Bible times prove otherwise.
As they were all made of metal.
Now we see through
or
by means of a
Mirror darkly
but then
face-to-face.
Glass-making started thousands of years ago in Mesopotamia and eventually spread to the land of Israel. At the time of the Bible, it was a very highly prized material. This is clear from the single reference found in the Bible to glass, found in Job 29:17 where wisdom is praised as so valuable that:
Gold and glass cannot equal it, nor can it be exchanged for jewels of fine gold.
לֹא-יַעַרְכֶנָּה זָהָב, וּזְכוֹכִית וּתְמוּרָתָהּ כְּלִי-פָז
The fact that glass is equated with gold indicates its preciousness to the ancient Israelites.
For modern people glass is something we take for granted, but for ancient people glass was a source of wonder. It was as clear as water and yet as hard as rock. It resembled ice but could be heated. Its unique properties are what gave it its special name in Hebrew: zekhukhit (זכוכית).
This comes from the root
ZCC (זכך)
meaning
clean or pure,
which is also the root of the name of
Zacchaeus the tax-collector (Luke 19).
Why The Lost Coin of Luke 15:8 Was So Important…
HEBREW WORD
כֶּסֶף
keseph: silver, money
Original Word: כֶּסֶף
Part of Speech: Noun Masculine
Transliteration: keseph
Phonetic Spelling: (keh’-sef)
Definition: silver, money
8 “Or what woman, having TEN SILVER COINS, if she loses one coin, does not light a lamp, sweep the house, and search carefully until she finds it?
9 And when she has found it, she calls her friends and neighbors together, saying, ‘Rejoice with me, for I have found the piece which I lost!’ 10 Likewise, I say to you, there is joy in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner who repents.”
When a woman from Bethlehem gets married her husband gives her a wedding gift of
10 pieces of silver
which she west on a chain hanging from her head covering, which has a central pendant.
A lawful Jewish marriage requires
an act of
kinyan
(that the bride be given – and that she accept – something of nominal value from the groom).
In ancient times, coins were typically given and they are still used by many Sephardic and Oriental Jews.
Since the 7th century C.E., rings replaced coins in most of Europe as the gift of choice.
Some commentators suggest that the preference for rings is attributable to their circular form, which symbolizes endless love between a husband and wife. Others see the circle as representing a link to the past and a commitment to the future.
This gift is very much prized
and she guards it very carefully
and due to the fact that if she displays any carelessness concerning this gift it would be regarded as a lack of respect and affection for her husband.
If it was lost or missing he may be inclined to divorce her think that she had paid for a lover with the lost money.
In the Jewish culture these coins were held very sacred and they could not be offered to pay for a debt. The only time that the wife could use the money for herself was if she had become a widow and had needs that had to be met.
There was a portion or property which a wife brings to her husband in marriage. In patriarchal times the dowry was known, and as among all other nations of antiquity, in Israel the bridegroom named a price or ransom
mohar
to the father of the bride
Gen. 24:12; Ex. 22:17; also Hos. 3:2.
נְדֻנְיָה
Dowry or nedunyah,
נְדוּנִיָה
apparently from the word
neden, nedeh
i.e., gift –
Ezek. 16:33
means all property of whatever kind brought by the wife to the husband upon their marriage.
These 10 silver coins were bound together as a dowry and headdress for a woman to wear on her forehead for her wedding day and thereafter.
She would wear this piece of jewelry daily even while she slept. This dowry then became the bride’s personal property.
The coins on the headdress of the Bride of Christ are a symbol of the dowry given to her by Messiah at the Last Supper and later as He stood with His disciples on the hill of ascension and promised to return for His Bride and will take her to the marriage supper.
Before rising into the sky He said that the Holy Spirit would come to them, but that He must go away to send the Holy Spirit.
The dowry sealed the betrothal.
It took several forms.
The bridegroom presented gifts to the bride.
There was the
mohar, dowry
as distinguished from
matttan,
gifts to the members of the family
compare Genesis 24:22,53; Genesis 34:12
When Jesus/Yeshua was using this cultural image in the parable of the lost coin, it was probably in reference to one of the chain of 10 pieces of silver. We can now better understand the deep and anxious concern of the woman when she lost the silver coin and her expending so much energy trying to find it and
furthermore why she rejoiced and called in all her neighbors to rejoice with her when she did. There is another analogy here if we recognize ourselves as the bride of Yeshua/Jesus, and He is our heavenly bridegroom/husband. He has given us a greater treasure, His Holy Spirit, in these earthen vessels. And He has clothed us with garments of salvation and the robe of righteousness.
We may not have silver coins dangling from our head coverings but we have the pearl of great price.
Messiah Himself
Who is worth many many times more
than 10 pieces of silver.
It’s time for us His betrothed to rejoice…
