Sunday, 27 August 2017

Be still and know

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Psalm 46:11(10) "Be still, and know that I am God. I am exalted among the nations. I am exalted in the earth." (TLV)

To begin a devotional on this verse we need look no further than the first Hebrew word, Harpu. This word (or a form of this word) is used 46 times in the Hebrew Scriptures. It is given 35 different translations in the NASB Translation. The short definition in Strong's Exhaustive Concordance is something totally different, "fail".

The common translation used here is "be still" although that is not one of the 35 NASB translations. The NASB uses words like abandon, alone, become helpless, collapse, (be) lazy, relax, (and even) wait. So the connotation is to stop what youâ doing and KNOW. However, contrary to most translations, this verse never tells us what we are to know. A better translation would be, "Stop what you're doing and KNOW, because (or on account of) I AM the LORD (Elohim)."

Apparently we are supposed to just KNOW. God gives us knowledge as recipients of grace. The rest of the verse "lifts up" (in fact that word is mentioned twice in Hebrew) the name among gentiles (nations) and the earth.

The Lord is exalted as we stop what we're doing and just know God's plan, God's purposes, and the details of His Kingdom.

Sunday, 27 August 2017
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Only last night I was struck by a particular prayer in our congregation's siddur. It was a prayer acknowledging HaShem as "Master of the Universe." In the prayer, the words that caught my attention went something like this, "You, Adonai, will continue to exist long after all else is gone. You have always existed." My wording is not nearly as profound as the actual prayer, I wish I could refer to the siddur but I am home and it is miles away. But I am greatly comforted and assured to know I worship the Creator of the Universe! And to know He has created me with cells which are micro-universes! How can I do anything else but be still when I contemplate this knowledge?

Posted By R. Wayne Fournier 04:16am