january 29 bible reading

Today’s Old Testament chronological reading is in Gen 15 and 16.

The Psalms/ Proverbs reading is in Psalm 29.

The New Testament reading is in Matthew 21.

Hebrew root words.

Gen 15:1 shield Strong’s H4043, magen, a concrete noun meaning, “shield;” from Strong’s H1598, גנן ganan, a primitive root meaning, “to defend, protect.” The 3-letter root is gimel + nun + nun.

gimel ג = the foot, thus foot, walk, gather
nun נ, ן = the seed, thus continue, heir, son
nun נ, ן = the seed, thus continue, heir, son

Garden, gan, shares the same root with ganan. The story: To walk (gimel) with the seed (nun) so that it continues (nun).

He that walks with wise men shall be wise: but a companion of fools shall be destroyed. Pro 13:20

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Gen 15:1 reward Strong’s H7939, sakar, a concrete noun meaning, “wages, reward;” from Strong’s H7936 שכר sakar, a primitive root meaning, “to hire.” According to the Ancient Hebrew Lexicon, the shin was originally a sin, transposed over time because of their similar sounds. Thus the 3-letter root is sin + kaph + resh.

sin ס = the thorn, thus grab, hate, protect
kaph כ ,ך = the open palm, thus bend, open, allow, tame
resh ר = the head of man, thus head, first, top, beginning, man

The story: Protective (sin, as thorn bushes were used to protect the flock of sheep out at pasture at night from predators) covering (kaph, as the father’s open palm covers the head of his son when conferring the blessing) over the head of a man (resh). A related word from the sin + kaph pair is booth, sukkot; so that just as a booth is a protective covering over the head of the man from the elements of weather, so a wage, or material compensation, secures a protective covering over the head of the man; that is, it is the substance from which he provides for his house.

Our English words “succor,” and “secure” come the Hebrew sakar.

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It is so interesting to me that both shield, magen, and reward, sakar, in Hebrew, involve protection. The shield that protects the seed, is wisdom, as the seed walks with the wise instead of his own foolish peer group, so that he continues to maturity and is not destroyed. That YHVH God Himself is Abram’s reward, means that He is the One acting as the protective covering over his head.