Hebrew Study
The Hebrew word עוֹלָם olam is often translated as eternal, everlasting, or forever, all of which have a meaning of a “continual existence”. By extension olam means “universe” or “world”, i.e., the whole creation of YHVH, known today better by the Greek word kosmos, rather than by the Hebrew olam. As such olam appears in the Hebrew texts to represent the physical dimension of the universe relating specifically to its infiniteness. Thus,...
Read More »In Hebrew, the seeming different words “womb” and “mercy” have nothing in common. But for the native speaker they are one and the same, because רֶחֶם rechem, “womb”, and רַחַם racham, “mercy”, “compassion” are derived from the same verbal root רָחַם racham, which has the meaning of “to caress”; by implication to love, especially to compassionate. Notice how these three words are spelled in Hebrew without vowel points, which do not exist...
Read More »Only if the sons of Ishmael recognize that they and the sons of Israel are all children of Avraham (Arabic, Ibrahim), and they are brothers. And if they do, then they should also recognize that the sons of Israel have the right to exist as they do. If the sons of Ishmael recognize that they and the sons of Israel have common history, they should also recognize that they have common future. If the sons of Ishmael recognize the Creator of the earth as the God of Avraham, as...
Read More »Some make the curious argument that the difficulty of offering any rational reason or explanation for the minute details of an analyzed text “proves” that the text must be a metaphor about something else and thus requires a metaphorical explanation. This kind of logic is somewhat akin to how some scholars “study” the Scripture. They say that since the literal reading is unsatisfying, another level of interpretation is required. And they while...
Read More »In English, a very clear distinction exists between murder and manslaughter. The legal term “murder”, as in “You shall not murder”, is defined as an unlawful premeditated killing of a human being by a human being, wherein “killing” is the act of terminating a human life. The English translations of the Tanak render the Sixth Commandment of the Covenant by using the English words “murder” or “kill”: “Thou...
Read More »There was a time in the first century Judea, when the Pharisees usurped upon the domain of the Levites and the judges, and a new term was largely used to denote the authority the Pharisees usurped: “the Seat of Mosheh”, as it appears in the opening of Chapter 23 of Matthew. But what does “the Seat of Mosheh” mean because the text goes on to include even the command to do whatever the Pharisees say? One cannot argue that if the Messiah has told us to...
Read More »The Almighty is very clear in His Word that He does not show partiality and that there is one law for the Hebrew and for the stranger who has joined Israel. Yet, there is a law in the Torah that has perplexed the strangers, who observe the Torah in obedience to the Eternal. At first reading of that verse, it seems to the reader that Mosheh our teacher has departed from this fundamental principle in the Torah putting the stranger in an awkward position to eat what otherwise...
Read More »Hebrew language being set-apart from all other languages has no particular names for the terms of intimate relation between man and woman. Torah highly regards intimacy and carefully choose Hebrew words to describe things in a figurative manner to completely avoid vulgar language. In the following article, we will continue what we have started in the earlier article How Hebrew Addresses Delicate Matters and explain words and passages which have either been misunderstood or...
Read More »We have a reason and cause for calling Hebrew language set-apart without any exaggeration, and this will not be an overstatement but a fact, as we will show it in the following. A careful reading of the Hebrew Scripture will show that the Hebrew language has no particular names for the private organ in males or in females, nor for the act of reproduction itself, nor for other things in that matter. Hebrew has no original words or expressions for these things, and only...
Read More »In the ancient Babylon, the Scripture indicates that the Sumerians used natural bitumen (asphalt) deposits for mortar between bricks and stones, and for waterproofing. The Greek historian Herodotus further testifies that bitumen (asphalt) was first used as mortar in the walls of Babylon (Herodotus, Book I, 179). (Refer to the source for the complete quote). The elements of life or death Asphalt, also classified as a pitch, is a dark bituminous substance found in natural...
Read More »The phrase “the fear of the Lord” or “the fear of God” is quite common in the translations. But what is the Hebrew word for “fear”, as in “the fear of the Lord”? And what does it really mean to fear the Lord in the Hebrew mindset? In the following, we will explain what one needs to know about the Hebrew word and concept of “the fear of the Lord”. The wording “the fear of the Lord” is capable of two interpretations....
Read More »There is a story in the Bible that is perhaps one of the strangest stories ever told: the Bil’am story. Bil’am the prophet was about to be killed by the messenger of Elohim for doing what he was told to do. Had the Bible been written in English, Bil’am would indeed have had the reason to be confused. However, if we read closely the English translation of Numbers 22 applying textual criticism, we must agree that it makes no sense at all. In the following, we will explain a...
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