march 08 bible reading

Today’s Old Testament chronological reading is in Leviticus 4 and 5.

The Psalms/ Proverbs reading is in Psalm 68.

No New Testament reading today.

Hebrew root words.

These are the Hebrew roots and their parables found in the first five chapters of Leviticus.

Speak to the children of Israel, and say to them: ‘When any one of you brings an offering to YHVH, you shall bring your offering of the livestock—of the herd and of the flock.’ Lev 1:2

Offering. Strong’s H7133 קרבן qorban; from Strong’s H7126 קרב qarab, “to draw near:” That which draws the man home.

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If his offering is a burnt offering of the herd, he shall offer a male without blemish; he shall bring it to the door of the tent of meeting, that he may be accepted before YHVH. Lev 1:3

Burnt offering. Strong’s H5930 עלה olah; from Strong’s H5927 עלה alah, “to go up, to ascend:” The smoke ascends as the yoke ascends onto the shoulder of the captive.

To accept. Strong’s H7521 רצה ratsah, a primitive root. The 3-letter pictograph is resh + tsadey + hey.

resh ר = head of man, thus head, first, top, beginning, man
tsadey צ ץ = trail, thus a man concealed, journey, chase, hunt
hey ה = man w/ raised arms, thus look, reveal, wonder, worship, breath

The man (resh) arrives (tsadey, in the sense that a trail has a destination) to the heart (hey) of another. The hey pictograph has a wide range of applications. The man has his arms upraised. He can be looking at something and pointing it out, so looking, behold, revelation or wonderment. It is also associated with a sharp or long intake of breath. He can be exclaiming, so excitement or emotion, rapid breathing. He can be worshiping, so introspection, meditation, that which concerns the heart.

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Then the priest shall bring it all and burn it on the altar; it is a burnt sacrifice, an offering made by fire, a sweet aroma to YHVH. Lev 1:13

Sweet. Strong’s H5207, nichowach, an abstract concept meaning, “soothing, quieting;” from Strong’s H5117 נוח nuwach, a primitive root meaning, “to rest,” that is, to continue securely outside.

Aroma. Strong’s H7381, reyach, a concrete noun meaning, “scent, aroma;” from Strong’s H7306 ריח ruwach, a primitive root meaning, “to smell.” The 3-letter root is resh + yud + chet.

resh ר = the head of man, thus head, first, top, beginning, man
yud י = the closed hand, thus work, throw, worship
chet ח = the wall, thus outside, divide, half

The story: The man (resh) who works (yud) outside (chet) i.e., the nomad, who follows the wind, and its changes, season by season, to move his flocks to pasture. The Spirit is like a wind, and smells are carried on the wind, therefore Spirit, wind, and aroma all share the same root.

*****

When anyone offers a grain offering to YHVH, his offering shall be of fine flour. And he shall pour oil on it, and put frankincense on it. Lev 2:1

Grain offering. Strong’s H4503 מנחה minchah, a concrete noun meaning, “gift;” from an unnamed, unused root meaning, “to apportion, to bestow.” The 3-letter root derived from the Ancient Hebrew Lexicon is nun + chet + hey.

nun נ ן = seed, thus continue, heir, son
chet ח = the wall, thus outside, divide, half
hey ה = man w/ raised arms, thus look, reveal, wonder, worship, breath

The story: The seed (nun) planted outside (chet) provided the grain used to sustain the man’s livestock and household. A blessed grain harvest inspired a sense of wonder, even astonishment, and appreciation (hey) for it as a gift. The grain offering is a gift returned to the original gift-Giver of the grain.

Gesenius says:

A gift offered to a divinity, a sacrifice, Gen 4:3, 4, 5, specially, a sacrifice without blood, opp. to [Strong’s H2076] זבח (zebach) a bloody sacrifice, Lev 2:1, 4, 5, 6; 6:7, seq.; 7:9.

The addition of the mem adds blood to the gift, but as it always denotes a sacrifice without blood, then perhaps in its negative- a non-blood sacrifice.

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When his offering is a sacrifice of a peace offering, if he offers it of the herd, whether male or female, he shall offer it without blemish before YHVH. Lev 3:1

Peace offering. Strong’s H8002 שלם shelem, a concrete noun meaning, “peace offering;” from Strong’s H7999 שלם shalam, a primitive root meaning, “to be whole, sound, or safe.” The 3-letter root is shin + lamed + mem. As per the Ancient Hebrew Lexicon, the shin was transposed from an original sin.

sin ס = thorn, thus grab, hate, protect
lamed ל = shepherd’s staff, thus teach, yoke, to, bind
mem מ ם = the water, thus chaos, mighty, blood

The thorn (sin) which the shepherd (lamed) drew from the sheep, taking away from them whatever was causing pain or trouble (mem), or of the thorns with which the shepherd surrounded the sheep, adding to them whatever would prevent pain or trouble (as a protection from predators while out at pasture at night).

Shalam means, taking away from, or adding to, whatever is necessary to make complete or whole. Thus to be at peace, or to be in a covenant of peace, is to be complete, with nothing missing that should be there, or added that should not be there. The peace offering, then, is a thanksgiving to YHVH for bringing into a state of shalom, or wholeness.

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If the anointed priest shall sin so as to bring guilt on the people, then let him offer for his sin, which he has sinned, a young bull without blemish to YHVH for a sin offering. Lev 4:3

Sin offering. Strong’s H2403, chatta’ath, a concrete noun meaning, “sin offering;” from Strong’s H2398 חטא chata, “to sin,” to be outside of that which affords strength, power, and wisdom.

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And it shall be, when he is guilty in any of these matters, that he shall confess that he has sinned in that thing; and he shall bring his trespass offering to YHVH for his sin which he has committed, a female from the flock, a lamb or a kid of the goats as a sin offering. So the priest shall make atonement for him concerning his sin. Lev 5:5-6

Trespass offering. Strong’s H817 אשם asham, a concrete noun meaning, “that by which anyone contracts guilt; an offense;” also, the sacrifice for such, “trespass offering;” from Strong’s H816 אשם asham, a primitive root meaning, “to be guilty.” The 3-letter root is aleph + shin + mem.

aleph א = the ox head, thus strength, power, leader
shin ש = two front teeth, thus sharp, press, eat, two, again
mem מ ם = the water, thus chaos, mighty, blood

When the wind blows (shin, in the sense of breath that comes through the teeth, so also, wind, or spirit) over a land, it draws the moisture (mem) out of it as it, leaving behind a desolate ruin; thus powerful (aleph) desolation (shin + mem); the fruit wrought in our hearts and lives by guilt.