Today’s Old Testament chronological reading is in Exodus 13 and 14.
The Psalms/ Proverbs reading is in Psalm 53.
The New Testament reading is in Mark 9.
Today’s notes.
Mark 9, The kingdom coming with power, is new for today.
Hebrew root word parables.
Psalm 53 contrast the foolish man with the man of understanding.
The fool has said in his heart: There is no God. {n} Psa 53:1a
God looked forth from heaven upon the children of men, {n} to see if there were any man of understanding, who seek after God. Psa 53:2
FOOL. Strong’s H5036 נבל nabal, an adjective meaning, “stupid, foolish, abandoned;” from Strong’s H5034 נבל nabal, a primitive root meaning, “to become withered, to be foolish.”
nun נ ן = seed, thus continue, heir, son
bet ב = house, thus house, household, family, in, within
lamed ל = shepherd’s staff, thus teach, yoke, to, bind
According to the Ancient Hebrew Lexicon, the primitive root is found in the bet + lamed pair, the heart of the verb, “to flow.” The home (bet) is the center of authority (lamed), and carries the idea of something flowing from a source as a river, which is another cognate word. The negative spin is “nothing,” as when water is poured out and it flows away until nothing is left.
Incidentally, there are five different Hebrew words for “fool,” progressing in order from simple naivety, to perverse, and nabal is the 5th or worst fool. To understand how nabal comes to mean a depraved fool, we have to understand something about the history of this word in ancient Hebrew. The bet + lamed pair is at the root of the word used for bestiality, according to the Ancient Hebrew Lexicon (pg 66-67), in the sense of confusion, an action that lacks results. In bestiality, the seed (nun) flows (bet + lamed) to no result. Bestiality is a practice of a depraved fool.
Nor shall you mate with any animal, to defile yourself with it. Nor shall any woman stand before an animal to mate with it. It is perversion. Lev 18:23
The man who loves what is perverse, is a depraved fool, who says in his heart, “There is no God” (therefore I can do whatever I please is the implied thinking).
The fool has said in his heart, “There is no God.” They are corrupt, they have done abominable works, there is none who does good. Psa 14:1
They have corrupted themselves; they are not His children, because of their blemish: a perverse and crooked generation. Do you thus deal with YHVH, O foolish and unwise people? Is He not your Father, who bought you? Has He not made you and established you? Deu 32:5-6
They have provoked Me to jealousy by what is not God; they have moved Me to anger by their foolish idols. But I will provoke them to jealousy by those who are not a nation; I will move them to anger by a foolish nation. Deu 32:21
Then his wife said to him, “Do you still hold fast to your integrity? Curse God and die!” But he said to her, “You speak as one of the foolish women speaks. Shall we indeed accept good from God, and shall we not ac-cept adversity?” In all this Job did not sin with his lips. Job 2:9-10
Arise, O God, plead Your own cause; remember how the foolish man reproaches You daily. Psa 74:22
He that begets a fool does so to his sorrow: and the father of a fool has no joy. Pro 17:12
Man of UNDERSTANDING. Strong’s H7919 שכל shakal, a primitive root meaning, “to be prudent, to wisely understand.” The Ancient Hebrew Lexicon defines it as, “the ability to consider a situation with comprehension in order to be successful or prosperous.”
shin ש = two front teeth, thus sharp, press, eat, two, again
kaph כ ך = the open palm, thus bend, open, allow, tame
lamed ל = the shepherd’s staff, thus teach, yoke, to, bind
The story: To press in (shin) and tame (kaph) that which is unruly, gaining mastery (lamed) over it. So a wise man presses into chaotic thoughts, discourse, or policy; a wise husbandman gains mastery over an unruly landscape or wild creatures; a prudent craftsman brings a thing of beauty from common clay or other raw materials, and a prudent businessman presses into an organic economy to harness it to his profit.
A foolish man denies there is a God to whom we owe worship and obedience, a man of understanding seeks after God, acknowledging that we owe Him worship and obedience.
TO SEEK AFTER. Strong’s H1875 דרש darash, a primitive root meaning, “to seek, to frequent;” that is, to enter the door (dalet) of a man (resh) again and again (shin).
Chiastic struuctures.
Links to previous studies.
Exodus 13 and 14, The fear of God and man
Exodus 13 and 14, Strong themes
Exodus 13:1-16, Strong theme
Exodus 13:17-22, Chiastic structure
Exodus 13, Hebrew root words
Exodus 14, Chiastic structure
Psalm 53, Bookends
Psalm 14 compared to Psa 53
Psalm 53, Wisdom
Mark 9, The causes of sin
Mark 9, Elijah preceding His return
Mark 9, The transfiguration
Mark 9, Chiastic structures
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