“The Lord is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear? The Lord is the defense of my life; whom shall I dread? Psalm 27:1 Salvation – The empty desert. The endless plains. The expanse of the sea. What do those images have to do with “salvation”? Read on. Hebrew is a language of…
“The Lord is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear? The Lord is the defense of my life; whom shall I dread? Psalm 27:1 Light – Everything living depends on light. It’s a biological fact. In this universe, light is the fundamental ingredient of existence. This Hebrew word (or) is linked directly to…
“With men it is impossible, but not with God; for all things are possible with God.” Mark 10:27 With – “I can’t see it”, said my son. I told him, “Stand over here next to me and look where I am pointing. Then you will see it.” Stand close to me and see from my…
“If I do not wash you, you have no part with me.” John 13:8 With – There are several Greek words that could be translated by the English word “with”. If we don’t understand the difference between these Greek words, we might think that they mean the same thing. But the nuances are important. Here…
“This I command you, that you love one another.” John 15:17 One another – There is an amazing secret hidden in the grammar of this word. It is never used as a subject and it is never used in the singular. The Greek word allelon is always the object of an action and always plural….
“A pupil is not above his not above his teacher, but everyone, after he has been fully trained, will be like his teacher.” Luke 6:40 Fully trained – A perfect fit! The idea behind this Greek word (katertismenos) is to be shaped so that you are completely adjusted and fit for a purpose. When Jesus…
“It is not so among you, but whoever wishes to become great among you shall be your servant,” Matthew 20:26 Wishes – Jesus was a man of action words. He understood that life changes require strong commitments. The translation “wishes” is not nearly strong enough to convey what Jesus is saying. The Greek verb used…
“But even if I am being poured out as a drink offering upon the sacrifice and service of your faith” Philippians 2:17 Sacrifice – The Greek word thusia cannot be understood without the Hebrew background. Sacrifice was an essential part of the worship of God in the Hebrew culture but it was not for God’s…
“You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind.” Matthew 22:37 Love – We are so familiar with this verse that we have forgotten just how unusual it is. This verse is really a quotation from Deuteronomy 6:5 where the Hebrew word for…
“Return, O faithless sons, I will heal your faithlessness.” Jeremiah 3:22 Heal – The Hebrew word rapa appears over 60 times in the Old Testament. It means restoring or making healthy is almost every case. It is most often used of human subjects but can sometimes be used for the restoration of an object (for…
