Hebrew God

Contents

Meaning Of God

Each Hebrew word has a circle of meaning based upon the function of what it describes. The word for God in Genesis chapter 1 is “Elohim”. It is plural not because God is plural but because “Elohim” means powerful and the plurality of “Elohim” was emphasis on power. It actually meant “powers” or “the powers that be”. Its circle of meaning included God, gods, judges, rulers, greatness (as in a great struggle), angels and divine beings. At Saul’s request, the Witch of Endor woke the dead prophet Samuel and she said that she saw an “elohim” rising from the grave. She was saying that she saw Samuel as a judge or god or powers, not that he was Almighty God. So it says in 1 Samuel 28:13-14 “ And the king saith to her, ‘Do not fear; for what hast thou seen?’ and the woman saith unto Saul, ‘Gods I have seen coming up out of the earth.’ And he saith to her, ‘What is his form?’ and she saith, ‘An aged man is coming up, and he is covered with an upper robe;’ and Saul knoweth that he is Samuel, and boweth – face to thee earth – and doth obeisance.” Yehovah made Moses as god or power to Pharaoh, Exodus 7:1-2 “And Yehovah saith unto Moses, ‘See, I have given thee a god [“elohim”] to Pharaoh, and Aaron thy brother is thy prophet; thou – thou dost speak all that I command thee, and Aaron thy brother doth speak unto Pharaoh, and he hath sent the sons of Israel out of his land. .” The shortest Hebrew name for God is “El” and it represents a yoked bull. It was used for God but also gods, power, idols, strength and might within nature or people. When referring to actual gods, there were many so called “gods” in scripture and the Hebrews added additional words to better describe the character and nature of the true God. Words like El-Elyon (God-the-ascended), El-Olam (God-the-everlasting), El-Roi (God-who- sees) and many others, were expressions of his name and behaviour. Laban said to Jacob (KJV): Gen 31:29 It is in the power [“el”, god] of my hand to do you hurt: but the God of your father spake unto me yesternight, saying, Take thou heed that thou speak not to Jacob either good or bad. The symbols commonly associated with God were a lightning bolt and the horns of a bull. In Exodus 34 when Moses spoke to God face to face it is commonly translated that his “face shone” but in the original Hebrew the word used was “horns”. Exod 34:29 And it cometh to pass, when Moses is coming down from mount Sinai (and the two tables of the testimony are in the hand of Moses in his coming down from the mount), that Moses hath not known that the skin of his face hath shone [“qaran”, shine, push out horns] in his speaking with him In Genesis 22 when Abraham offered Isaac as a sacrifice and God provided a ram, Abraham said: Gen 22:14 Abraham calleth the name of that place ‘Yehovah-Yireh [Yehovah-Sees To It],’ because it is said this day in the mount, ‘Yehovah doth provide [that which is seen].’ On the earliest Dead Sea Scroll fragments of Genesis found in Cave 4 in the Qumran desert which predate the commonly accepted Leningrad Codex by at least 1,000 years, Abraham used the word “Elohim-Yireh” rather than “Yehovah-Yireh”. Abraham said on this scroll “On the mount of Elohim, it shall be seen”.

God, Power, Strength and Idols

Within the ancient world, the people felt weak. They felt that they were at the mercy of things like drought, famine, pestilence and war and were constantly seeking sources of power or strength to overcome the problems of daily life. The people saw god or gods as a source of strength. They fashioned images and idols of the god or gods that were a shadow or reflection of the invisible god’s that they worshipped and these were considered to be filled with their breath or strength or power. As they gazed upon these foolish, worthless and empty idols or images they sought to be filled by the strength or breath of these gods. Hosea 13:2 says “And now do they add to sin, And make to them a molten image of their silver, By their own understanding – idols, A work of artisans – all of it, Of them they say, who are sacrificers among men, ‘The calves let them kiss.’” The idol or image that they looked upon created a “shadow” or wide open space of the image of the idol within their personality that the power or breath of the false or “nothing” or foolish god could enter into and occupy and dwell within them. Jeremiah 10:14 states “Brutish is every man by knowledge, Put to shame is every refiner by a graven image, For false is his molten image. And there is no breath [“ruach”, spirit] in them. ” Habbakuk 2:18-19 states “What profit hath a graven image given That its former hath graven it? A molten image and teacher of falsehood, That trusted hath the former on his own formation – to make dumb idols? Woe to him who is saying to wood, ‘Awake,’ ‘Stir up,’ to a dumb stone, It a teacher! lo, it is overlaid – gold and silver, And there is no spirit [breath] in its midst. ” For instance, the goddess Ishtar (sex and war) would have had shrines, temples, images and sacred prostitutes and the people would go and bow down and worship. They would offer themselves and their personalities as servants or slaves to this goddess and hope to be filled or indwelt or inspired by the strength or power of breath of the goddess as they gazed upon the images and lay with the prostitutes. Nowadays, this would be called by the label “lust” but the ancient people called it power or breath of the gods. It was hoped that this power would bring fertility to the field and family. These pagan gods were called demons in the New Testament, demon simply meant “deity” or power in the Greek. So it says in Deuteronomy 32:17 “They sacrifice to demons – no god! Gods they have not known – New ones – from the vicinity they came; Not feared them have your fathers! ” They were false gods not because they were not powerful but were worthless, nothingness and empty of anything good despite what they promised. The Apostle Paul said in 1 Corinthians 10:18-22 “See Israel according to the flesh! are not those eating the sacrifices in the fellowship of the altar? what then do I say? that an idol is anything? or that a sacrifice offered to an idol is anything? But that the things that the nations sacrifice – they sacrifice to demons and not to God; and I do not wish you to come into the fellowship of the demons. Ye are not able the cup of the Lord to drink, and the cup of demons; ye are not able of the table of the Lord to partake, and of the table of demons; do we arouse the Lord to jealousy? are we stronger than He? ” Pagan religion was a deception and a form of witchcraft which promised freedom and success or salvation in life but inadvertently forced people to submit to, serve and come into fellowship with demons and drink from their cup. The worship and inspiration of these idols did not bring about the desired benefit to those who were deceived into worshipping these powers or gods. The same powers are at work within society and culture today, they have different labels but the same character behaviour or name. Things like intimidation, fear, control, anger, rejection, rebellion and hatred were seen as powers or gods and the people were keen to harness these strengths in their battles against their enemies. For instance in 2 Kings 3 the king of Moab sacrificed his son, who was the crown prince, in the sacred fires of Molech and this released a great breath or spirit of anger that rose up within his army and the Israelite army who were winning the battle against the Moabites withdrew. That is why it says in 2 Kings 3:26-27 “And the king of Moab seeth that the battle has been too strong for him, and he taketh with him seven hundred men, drawing sword, to cleave through unto the king of Edom, and they have not been able, and he taketh his son, the first-born who reigneth in his stead, and causeth him to ascend – a burnt-offering on the wall, and there is great wrath against Israel, and they journey from off him, and turn back to the land. ” This pagan king released the power of his god which brought victory at the cost of the life of his firstborn son. The Moabite Stone describes the behaviour of these kings who considered themselves to be the sons of Chemosh and who killed Israelites for the “pleasure of Ashtar-Chemosh”.

Consuming Fire

In Deuteronomy 4, it says that Yehovah the God of the Israelites is a consuming fire and a jealous God, Deuteronomy 4:23-24 “Take heed to yourselves, lest ye forget the covenant of Yehovah your God, which he hath made with you, and have made to yourselves a graven image, a similitude of anything concerning which Yehovah thy God hath charged thee: for Yehovah thy God is a fire consuming – a zealous God. ” In Hebrew the word for fire is similar to the words for father, and god. The word for father is the head of a bull and a house and means literally the strength of the house. The word for god is the head of a bull and a staff and means yoked strength or power. The word for fire was the head of a bull and teeth and means literally a “strong pressing or bite”. Its circle of meaning included burn, press, foundation, despair and hopelessness. The word for consuming meant to eat, burn, devour, plenty and food. It meant literally to “tame the yoke” and the bending or subduing of the will. The word for jealous was related to the words for nest or home, possession, zealous, gather, herd and branch meant literally “gathering the seeds”. Putting all of these together in the context of ancient Hebrew culture it means that God wanted an inheritance within his son or sons by them being inspired by his breath or Holy Spirit to behave like Him and so bear his name. God was therefore consumed or burned with jealousy against any other gods or powers or strengths or breaths or idols that attempted to steal away his place or home or inheritance within the hearts of his sons. Later in Deuteronomy 4 God predicted that once the Israelites entered the land of promise and began to prosper, they would soon forget him and become corrupt and make idols and do evil right in his face and provoke him to anger. So it states in Deuteronomy 4:25-26 “When thou begettest sons and sons’ sons, and ye have become old in the land, and have done corruptly, and have made a graven image, a similitude of anything, and have done the evil thing in the eyes of Yehovah, to provoke Him to anger: – I have caused to testify against you this day the heavens and the earth, that ye do perish utterly hastily from off the land whither ye are passing over the Jordan to possess it; ye do not prolong days upon it, but are utterly destroyed. ” The word for corrupt was related to the word for rotten and the word for evil meant to cry out in terror. Instead of becoming God’s inheritance they chose their souls or life’s breathings to be knit or tied to the breaths of wickedness that indwelt the idols that they had made, bowed down to and honoured. This wicked and ultimately murderous behaviour resulted in most of them being destroyed, but for the sake of his name, a remnant was spared from destruction.

Fire Worship

In ancient Hebrew culture fire was intimately associated with the gods. Fire was both good and bad, beneficial but also harmful, depending upon how it was treated. Fire brought warmth and light and was used for lighting, cooking and heating – but it could also destroy, consume and burn. Fire needed to be in the right place and be treated with respect. Abraham was called out from Ur of the Chaldeans. The Chaldeans worshipped the sun, moon and stars, each was considered to be a divine spark of fire. The Israelites turned away from God and bowed down and worshipped these gods when Moses went up Mount Sinai to get the Ten Commandments from God. Their descendants continued to worship these gods and burned their children in the fires of Molech. So, it says in 2 Kings 17:16-17 “And they forsake all the commands of Yehovah their God, and make to them a molten image – two calves, and make a shrine, and bow themselves to all the host of the heavens, and serve Baal, and cause their sons and their daughters to pass over through fire, and divine divinations, and use enchantments, and sell themselves to do the evil thing in the eyes of Yehovah, to provoke Him” Molech was the god of the Ammonites and the name Molech is related to “Melech” meaning king and “Bosheth” meaning shame. This deity was also called Chemosh, Rephan, Chiun or Saturn (the star of the sun) and was the solar deity represented by the golden calf, the solar or heavenly bull and the constellation Taurus. This god was later seen as a brass statue of a man with the head of a bull, possibly a solar disc above its head, and with outstretched arms to receive the babies and children into the fire kindled within its lap. Sometimes these statues were hollowed out inside and had women’s breasts. The priests put milk within the statues and wax in the nipples of the breasts. As the fires heated up the statues and the children were burnt to death the wax melted, and the milk poured forth from the breasts to indicate to the worshippers that the offerings of their children had been received by the gods. In Hebrew these statues or high places were called “topheth” and the word was related to the word for the striking of a drum. The priests would hit the drums to stop the parents from hearing the cries of the children as they went to their deaths. So, it states in 2 Kings 23:10 “And he [Josiah] hath defiled Topheth, that is in the valley of the son of Hinnom, so that no man doth cause his son and his daughter to pass over through fire to Molech. ” The later Israelite kings often sacrificed their sons and daughters in these fires in the valley of Ben Hinnom near Jerusalem. Ben Hinnom means “son of lamentation” or Gehenna in Greek and was spoken of as a warning to the Pharisees, Scribes and Teachers of the Law by Jesus. It was the local rubbish dump to the East of Jerusalem where their worm will never die and their fires are not quenched. There was no hell in ancient Hebrew culture. The weeping and gnashing of teeth is for those blind guides who could have received an inheritance within God at the End of Days, but who clung to their worthless idols and forfeited the blessing that could have been theirs. They rejected their part in the first resurrection and experienced instead the second death. In their disobedience they did not hear the voice of the son of God when he called like Abraham had done, and they did not rise with him. Instead they were cast out of the light into outer darkness because they had not listened or seen the name or got oil for their lamps until it was too late. They lost their inheritance and as such were “rubbish” fit for the dump because they had no oil or guarantee or deposit of that inheritance. Jesus said to them in Matthew 7:16-19 “From their fruits ye shall know them; do men gather from thorns grapes? or from thistles figs? so every good tree doth yield good fruits, but the bad tree doth yield evil fruits. A good tree is not able to yield evil fruits, nor a bad tree to yield good fruits. Every tree not yielding good fruit is cut down and is cast to fire: Matt 7:20 therefore from their fruits ye shall know them. ” Hebraically the lake of burning sulphur spoken of by John in Revelation is actually the disc of the sun, and those who gave themselves over to worshipping this ultimate symbol of pagan idolatry were thrown into it and were burnt up or consumed by the fire and incensed pride of their own cravings and eaten by the worms of their own offended regret. It says in Proverbs 1:30-33 “They have not consented to my counsel, They have despised all my reproof, And they eat of the fruit of their way, And from their own counsels they are filled. For the turning of the simple slayeth them, And the security of the foolish destroyeth them. And whoso is hearkening to me dwelleth confidently, And is quiet from fear of evil!’ ” Those who spurn the wisdom of being inspired to do what is right will eat the fruit of their own devices and be destroyed by willing to become enslaved by the name of their own foolishness. The word for destroy in Hebrew means literally separated, lost, perished, alone or orphaned from a father. This is outer darkness because it is outside the house of God’s behaviour and name-changing fatherhood.

Yehovah

One of the commonest names for the God of Israel in the Bible is spelt YHWH in Hebrew and was probably pronounced Yehovah, Yehowah, Yahweh or something similar. It is traditionally translated as LORD. It is known as the tetragrammaton and it is commonly believed that the priests during the intertestamental period decided that this name was too holy to speak even though it says that Yehovah was to be his memorial for all generations in Exodus 3:14-15 “And God saith unto Moses, ‘I AM THAT WHICH I AM;’ he saith also, ‘Thus dost thou say to the sons of Israel, I AM hath sent me unto you.’ And God saith again unto Moses, ‘Thus dost thou say unto the sons of Israel, Yehovah, God of your fathers, God of Abraham, God of Isaac, and God of Jacob, hath sent me unto you; this is My name – to the age, and this My memorial, to generation – generation. ” It is likely that the real reason that the name was not spoken publicly was fear of persecution. It says in Amos 6:10 “ …… ‘Hush [hold your tongue]! Save [we must not] to make mention of the name of Yehovah.’ ” The pagan governors, kings and overlords that ruled Israel after their return from exile attempted to unite their empires under the worship of gods with generic titles such as “Theos”, “Deus”, “Lord” or “Blessed One” or “the Name”. They attempted to suppress local deities and specifically the name “Yehovah” as this name only applied to the God of Israel. In the Masoretic text, the scribes wrote the consonants YHWH with some of the vowels missing to prevent people from accidentally reading out “The Name”. However, very occasionally (for example 7 times in the Aleppo Codex), they wrote “Yehovah” in full. Some teach that “Yehovah” is a misreading and mistake of the Middle Ages. The Masoretes actually did sometimes use vowels from other words such as Adonai or Elohim to indicate which word to read instead of YHWH. Within ancient Hebrew culture, names were about function and behaviour rather than labels and far more important than pronunciation was a name’s meaning. God explained to Moses the meaning of YHWH in Exodus Chapter 3. If God’s explanation to Moses of the meaning of his name is understood correctly, the root of Yehovah was probably “hayah” which means “to be”. It was a common word and it’s circle of meaning was to breathe, exist, be, become, accomplish, break, cause, come to pass, continue, do, faint, fall, follow, happen, have, last, pertain, quite, require, use, breath, character or name, life and to live. Yehovah is probably a combination of three verb-forms, he was, he is, and he shall be. Its meaning of “He Who Is, he Who Was, he Who Is To Come” is given by Jesus in Revelation 1:7-8 “Lo, he doth come with the clouds, and see him shall every eye, even those who did pierce him, and wail because of him shall all the tribes of the land. Yes! Amen! ‘I am the Alpha and the Omega, beginning and end, saith the Lord [Yehovah], who is, and who was, and who is coming – the Almighty.’ ” The shortened version of Yehovah is simply Yah (He Who Is) as in Y(ehov)ah and included in words such as Halleluyah, there was no J in the Hebrew. In German, Jehovah is pronounced Yehovah. So it says in Psalm 146:1-10 “Praise ye Yah! Praise, O my soul, Yehovah. I praise Yehovah during my life, I sing praise to my God while I exist. Trust not in princes – in a son of Man, For he hath no deliverance, his spirit [breath] goeth forth, he returneth to his earth, In that day have his thoughts perished. O the happiness of him Who hath the God of Jacob for his help, his hope is on Yehovah his God, Making the heavens and earth, The sea and all that is in them, Who is keeping truth to the age, Doing judgment for the oppressed, Giving bread to the hungry. Yehovah is loosing the prisoners, Yehovah is opening (the eyes of) the blind, Yehovah is raising the bowed down, Yehovah is loving the righteous, Yehovah is preserving the strangers, The fatherless and widow he causeth to stand, And the way of the wicked he turneth upside down. Yehovah doth reign to the age, Thy God, O Zion, to generation and generation, Praise ye Yah! ” As with El, Yah or Yehovah was incorporated into other words to further express the character and name of God. Words such as Yehovah-Rohi (He IS my shepherd), Yehovah-Shammah (He IS present with me), Yehovah- Rapha (He IS my healer), Yehovah-Yireh (He IS the one who will be seen to provide) to name just a few. Within scripture, God often repeats the phrase “I am Yehovah your God”. In Leviticus 19, the phrase “I am Yehovah” is repeated about 17 times. So it says in Leviticus 19:2-4 “Speak unto all the company of the sons of Israel, and thou hast said unto them, Ye are holy, for holy am I, Yehovah, your God. Each his mother and his father ye do fear, and My sabbaths ye do keep; I am Yehovah your God. Ye do not turn unto the idols, and a molten god ye do not make to yourselves; I am Yehovah your God. ” The chapter is about Yehovah being holy or special or different and that his people need to be different from other nations by following his commandments. If the word Yehovah is translated “I AM” the verses start to make sense. For instance “Be being holy (different), for holy (different) I AM, I AM (Yehovah) your God. Each his mother and his father be honouring, and My sabbaths be keeping; I AM (Yehovah) your God. Be not turning to the idols, and a molten god be not making for yourselves; I AM (Yehovah) your God. Do not be slandering among your people and be not standing against the blood of your neighbour I AM (Yehovah)”.

Proclaiming the Name Yehovah

Moses wanted to know and understand Yehovah’s ways better to enable him to become a more effective leader to succeed in leading the people to the land promised by Yehovah to Abraham and his sons or seed, so it says in Exodus 33:13-14 “’And now, if, I pray Thee, I have found grace in Thine eyes, cause me to know, I pray Thee, Thy way, and I know Thee, so that I find grace in Thine eyes, and consider that this nation is Thy people; and he saith, ‘My presence [faces] doth go, and I have given rest to thee.’ ” For the Hebrews to “see the face” was to actually enter into a personal relationship with someone and to experience their many “faces” as the face changes as an outward expression of the inward personality or soul or the breathings of life. In scripture the “faces” of God is often translated “presence” because to experience the presence of God is, to a greater or lesser extent, to see or experience his faces. Within Hebrew culture, the name is an outward expression of inner character or one’s life’s breath and behaviour and can often be seen on people’s faces. For instance, angry people often go red in the face and flare their nostrils – their anger is written all over their face. Moses had already spoken to Yehovah face to face and yet in Exodus 33 Yehovah said that no man can see his face and live. So it says in Exodus 33:18-23 “And he saith, ‘Shew me, I pray Thee, Thine honour;’ and he saith, ‘I cause all My goodness to pass before thy face, and have called concerning the Name of Yehovah before thee, and favoured him whom I favour, and loved him whom I love.’ he saith also, ‘Thou art unable to see My face, for man doth not see Me, and live;’ Yehovah also saith, ‘Lo, a place is by Me, and thou hast stood on the rock, and it hath come to pass, in the passing by of Mine honour, that I have set thee in a cleft of the rock, and spread out My hands over thee, until My passing by, and I have turned aside My hands, and thou hast seen My back parts, and My face is not seen.’ ” Moses went up Mount Sinai and Yehovah came down in a cloud, hid Moses in the cleft of a rock and declared to him the Name of Yehovah, which in Hebrew culture is an expression of the character, and behaviour of God’s very own life’s breath or Holy Spirit. What Moses actually saw and experienced was described in Exodus 34:5-9 “And Yehovah cometh down in a cloud, and stationeth Himself with him there, and calleth in the Name of Yehovah, and Yehovah passeth over before his face, and calleth: ‘Yehovah, Yehovah God, merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and abundant in kindness and truth, keeping kindness for thousands, taking away iniquity, and transgression, and sin, and not entirely acquitting, charging iniquity of fathers on children, and on children’s children, on a third generation, and on a fourth.’ And Moses hasteth, and boweth to the earth, and doth obeisance, and saith, ‘If, I pray Thee, I have found grace in Thine eyes, O my Lord, let my Lord, I pray Thee, go in our midst (for it is a stiff-necked people), and thou hast forgiven our iniquity and our sin, and hast inherited us.’ ” Yehovah’s name or character, seen upon his face by those who experience the truth and reality of his almighty indwelling presence within their hearts, is his mercy and grace, slowness to become angry and his abundant kindness and established reliable truthfulness. This is the Name Yehovah. In Revelation 4:8, the living creatures also proclaimed His Name: “And the four living creatures, each by itself severally, had six wings, around and within are full of eyes, and rest they have not day and night, saying, ‘Holy, holy, holy, Lord God Almighty, who was, and who is, and who is coming;’ ” In Hebrew, Yehovah means “He who was, and who is, and who is coming”

Oil

In Hebrew the word for oil is related to the word for shine and sunlight. It was also related to the word for prosperity, fatness and richness. Olive oil in particular was prized in the ancient world and when properly made could be stored for many months. It was the most important commodity and life was difficult without it. It was used as a form of currency, a cosmetic and covering for the body, a medicine, as food and as a fuel for lamps. It could also be perfumed and perfumed oil was often associated with the consecration of priests, the anointing of kings, sacrifices and burials. So, it says in Proverbs 27:9 “Ointment and perfume rejoice the heart, And the sweetness of one’s friend – from counsel of the soul. ” The very wide range of uses and benefits of oil made it a valuable type for the anointing or inspiration or empowerment of God’s breath (or Holy Spirit). Oil was also symbolic of blessing, in Deuteronomy 32:12-13, Moses declared that Yehovah would make barren rocks drip with honey and oil “Yehovah alone doth lead him, And there is no strange god with him. he maketh him ride on high places of earth, And he eateth increase of the fields, And he maketh him suck honey from a rock, And oil out of the flint of a rock. ” In Deuteronomy 33:24 Moses blessed Asher with sons and with oil “And of Asher he said: – Blessed with sons is Asher, Let him be accepted by his brethren, And dipping in oil his foot. ” Oil was often used as a symbol for joy and in Psalm 45 it says that Jesus was anointed (“mashach”) with the oil of joy above his companions because he loved to do what was right, so it says about Jesus in Psalm 45:6 “Thy throne, O God, is age-during, and forever, A sceptre of uprightness Is the sceptre of Thy kingdom. Thou hast loved righteousness and hatest wickedness, Therefore God, thy God, hath anointed thee, Oil of joy above thy companions. ”

Anointing

There were two primary words in Hebrew used for anointing, “yatsaq” which meant to pour out, and “mashach” which meant to spread out or rub. In 1 Samuel when the people rejected God as their reigning King, God gave them Saul. Saul was a farmer who amongst other things looked after his father’s donkeys. In order for Saul to become a king, God had to change him from a farmer into the leader and deliverer of a whole nation who could lead God’s people into victory. God did this through the anointing. The anointing was in effect the blessing of a father (Yehovah God) upon his adopted son (Saul) and changed his name practically from having the character or breathings or of a simple farmer into a man who felt and thought like a king. The anointing was in effect the word of God “King” and power of God’s breath or Holy Spirit within that word which changed his name from “farmer” to God’s “Mashiyach Melech” or anointed king to deliver God’s people from the oppressive hand of their enemies. However, unlike a word that is spoken and dies in the ears of the listener, the anointing was the continual inspiration or breath of the word “King” which continually changed Saul’s character or behaviour to reign in victory. God breathed himself into the fragrant oil and God reigned by being “upon” the head of the king. The anointing oil was symbolic of this change of heart, character and name. In effect everything that Saul needed for him to succeed in his calling and destiny in God was included within the anointing. Yehovah anointed (“mashach”) him as the commander over (on behalf of) Yehovah’s inheritance. Just as the blessing of Abraham changed Abraham and enabled him to walk into and achieve his destiny by inheriting sonship, so the anointing of Saul supercharged Saul’s natural breath with the Holy Spirit or breath of God, which changed his heart and the breathings of his personality into the heart, feelings and thoughts of a king (a reigning one) to reign on behalf of, and to rescue, save and protect God’s inheritance. So it says in 1 Samuel 10:1 “And Samuel taketh the vial of the oil, and poureth on his head, and kisseth him, and saith, ‘Is it not because Yehovah hath appointed thee over his inheritance for leader?’ ” This was instead of him having the heart, feelings and thoughts of a donkey- chaser or farmer. Hebraically, blessing was for sons, the anointing was for priests and kings. However, it says in Psalm 105:15 that the Patriarchs were also God’s “anointed”, “Strike not against Mine anointed, And to My prophets do not evil. ” Hebraically, the anointing and blessing of Yehovah were the same thing as being in Christ Jesus (“Mashiyach Yehoshua”) and they functioned as gifting enabling those who were chosen and blessed by God to fulfil their destiny. This changed their hearts, personalities and the breath of their lives with God’s breath or Holy Spirit and so changed how they behaved. God gathered people around the blessed and anointed to share that blessing and anointing and to corporately fulfil God’s purpose of inheritance for themselves and his people.

Full of the Holy Spirit

Remarkably, the term Holy Spirit is only actually used three times in the whole of the Old Testament. The first is by King David in Psalm 51:11 as he confessed his sin and asked that the Holy Spirit would not be taken away from him, “Cast me not forth from Thy presence, And Thy Holy Spirit take not from me. ” The other two references are from Isaiah 63:10-11 as the prophet remembers that the Israelites grieved or vexed the breath of the heart of the Holy One who was in their midst, “And they have rebelled and grieved his Holy Spirit, And he turneth to them for an enemy, he Himself hath fought against them. And he remembereth the days of old, Moses – his people. Where is he who is bringing them up from the sea, The shepherd of his flock? Where is he who is putting in its midst his Holy Spirit? ” In Hebrew the word Holy in “Holy Spirit” is not an adjective that describes the Spirit but a noun. Holy here means literally the “Different or Special One”. Hebraically, “Holy Spirit” would be better translated “breath of the Holy One”. God’s breath is his life and an expression of this breath is his character, behaviour and name. How God behaves is an expression of his life’s breath, the breath of the Holy One or Holy Spirit. Paul used the word “pneuma” in Greek for breath, not spirit because it involves speaking. That is why Paul says in 1 Corinthians 12:3 “wherefore, I give you to understand that no one, in the Spirit [“pneuma”, breath] of God speaking, saith Jesus is anathema [cursed], and no one is able to say Jesus is Lord, except in the Holy Spirit. ” God originally created Adam to bear the image of the invisible God by being filled with God’s Holy Spirit or indwelling breath and to reflect God’s image into the created and visible world in the way that he behaved. So, it says in Genesis 1:27 “And God prepareth the man in his image [reflection, shadow]; in the image of God he prepared him, a male and a female he prepared them. ” Such reflection was an expression of the indwelling presence of the breath of God’s fatherhood within his heart and so he could be called by the name “the son of God”. God created Adam as a “breathing-being” and Adam’s life’s breath was being filled with God’s breath (“pneuma” or spirit in Greek), the Holy Spirit. He was a God-breathing man, a “pneumatikos” or spiritual man, from the Greek, “pneuma” to blast, blow or breathe. Following the fall of man when Adam lost God’s breath and became a natural air-breathing or “psuchikos” (from the Greek “psuche” gentle breathing) man, God chose special people at special times to be filled with the Holy Spirit or inspired by God’s breath for specific purposes. Scripture is full of examples of priests, prophets and kings who, to a greater or lesser extent, experienced the almighty breath of God or Holy Spirit coming upon them and into their personalities or breaths to achieve God’s purposes for their lives and his people. For instance it says in Judges 3:9 “and the sons of Israel cry unto Yehovah, and Yehovah raiseth a saviour [“yasha”] to the sons of Israel, and he saved [“yasha”] them – Othniel son of Kenaz, Caleb’s younger brother; and the Spirit of Yehovah is upon him, and he judgeth [delivered] Israel, and goeth out to battle, and Yehovah giveth unto his hand Chushan-Rishathaim king of Aram, and strong is his hand against Chushan-Rishathaim. ” And in Luke 1:67-75 “And Zacharias his father was filled with the Holy Spirit, and did prophesy, saying, ‘Blessed is the Lord [Yehovah], the God of Israel, Because he did look upon, And wrought redemption for his people, And did raise an horn of salvation to us, In the house of David his servant, As he spake by the mouth of his holy prophets, Which have been from the age; Salvation from our enemies, And out of the hand of all hating us, To do kindness with our fathers, And to be mindful of his holy covenant, An oath that he sware to Abraham our father, To give to us, without fear, Out of the hand of our enemies having been delivered, To serve Him, in holiness and righteousness Before Him, all the days of our life. ” People’s life’s breath was lived out or expressed in the way they behaved, and the infilling of God’s very own life’s breath into people changed the way that they thought and behaved for a short time. For a particular purpose they were changed by God’s breath to become the living personality of God’s ideal son. Such was the experience of King Saul whose name or personality was changed by God’s breath or Holy Spirit when he was anointed by Samuel, 1 Samuel 10:9 states “And it hath been, at his turning his shoulder to go from Samuel, that God turneth to him another heart, and all these signs come on that day” Such was the experience of King David who was the father and fore- shadowing or reflection of Jesus his son and who spoke by the inspiration of God’s breath or Holy Spirit many of the life experiences of Jesus and recorded by David in the Psalms. Abraham’s blessing was the gift of the Holy Spirit, or inspiration of God’s breath and fatherhood, just like the anointing of King David. In the Old Testament, God spoke his living word many times by the breath of his mouth. Many of God’s people, Kings, Prophets, Priests and often common people became living expressions of God’s word by being animated, filled or blessed by the breath of the Holy One. This was for specific purposes or special times or seasons. Joel 2:28-29 describes a time when Yehovah Elohim will pour out his breath or Holy Spirit upon all flesh, not just upon a few, enabling them to become the sons of God by reflecting in their behaviour his indwelling breath “And it hath come to pass afterwards, I do pour out My Spirit on all flesh, And prophesied have your sons and your daughters, Your old men do dream dreams, Your young men do see visions. And also on the men-servants, and on the maid-servants, In those days I do pour out My Spirit. ” This promise was fulfilled at Pentecost. Jesus said in Luke 11:11-13 “Luke 11:11 ‘And of which of you – the father – if the son shall ask a loaf, a stone will he present to him? and if a fish, will he instead of a fish, a serpent present to him? and if he may ask an egg, will he present to him a scorpion? If, then, ye, being evil, have known good gifts to be giving to your children, how much more shall the Father who is from heaven give the Holy Spirit to those asking Him!’ ” From Abraham’s perspective, the Holy Spirit poured out is the river of living water, the corporate life’s breath of God that comes from the Holy One in his Fatherhood and dwells corporately within the word “son of God”, a corporate body of many, seen as a totality of one. So it says in John 7:37-39 “And in the last, the great day of the feast, Jesus stood and cried, saying, ‘If anyone doth thirst, let him come unto me and drink; he who is believing in me, according as the Writing said, Rivers out of his belly shall flow of living water;’ and this he said of the Spirit [breath, blast, breeze], which those believing in him were about to receive; for not yet was the Holy Spirit, because Jesus was not yet glorified”. The son of God has a corporate body with a corporate life, a corporate anointing, a corporate victory and a corporate breath. That is why Paul says in 1 Corinthians 6:13-20 “…… and the body is not for whoredom, but for the Lord, and the Lord for the body, And he who is joined to the Lord is one spirit [breath]; flee the whoredom; every sin – whatever a man may commit – is without the body, and he who is committing whoredom, against his own body doth sin. Have ye not known that your body is a sanctuary of the Holy Spirit in you, which ye have from God? and ye are not your own, for ye were bought with a price; glorify, then, God in your body and in your spirit, which are God’s. ” John the Baptist said in John 3:34-35 “for he whom God sent, the sayings of God he speaketh; for not by measure doth God give the Spirit [“pneuma”, breath or blow]; the Father doth love the Son, and all things hath given into his hand”

Horns of Anointing and Salvation

Within ancient Hebrew culture horns were a common symbol of physical power, strength and honour. They represented someone’s ability to defend themselves, to fight and to win success in life. The word for horn was related to the rays of the sun and for shining light. Hannah speaks an amazing prophesy in 1 Samuel 2 and says: 1 Sam 2:1 And Hannah prayeth, and saith: ‘My heart hath exulted in Yehovah, My horn hath been high in Yehovah, My mouth hath been large over mine enemies, For I have rejoiced in Thy salvation. 1 Sam 2:2 There is none holy like Yehovah, For there is none save Thee, And there is no rock like our God. She goes on to say: 1 Sam 2:10 Yehovah – broken down are his adversaries, Against them in the heavens he thundereth: Yehovah judgeth the ends of earth, And giveth strength to his king, And exalteth the horn of his anointed. When she said this, the only King of Israel was Yehovah himself. Later on in 1 Samuel 16 Samuel anointed David with oil from a horn and the breath or Holy Spirit of Yehovah came mightily upon him: 1 Sam 16:13 And Samuel taketh the horn of oil, and anointeth him in the midst of his brethren, and prosper over David doth the Spirit of Yehovah from that day and onwards

Jesus

The name Jesus is a transliteration of the Greek form ‘Iesous which in turn is a transliteration of the form Yehoshua in Hebrew. Yehoshua is a combination of the name of Yehovah, and the word “yasha” in Hebrew. “Yasha” originally meant literally “the arm or strength that watches out for and destroys the enemy” and was related to words for a watching shepherd. The circle of meaning of this word is victory, open spaces, wide or free, safety, rescue, deliverance, overcoming, avenge and defend. As a name, Yehoshua (Yehovah Is Salvation) is sometimes dissimilated into the word Yeshua Ye(ho)shua, (I AM Salvation). Yehovah (“He Who Is, Was and Is To Come”) is the one that brings overcoming power and victory in every circumstance of life. The pronunciation of the name is not important because in ancient Hebrew culture names were not labels but a description of function or purpose and a way of behaving. The word Jesus is simply a label, whereas “He Who Is continually rescues me” better describes his name for you, if that for you is true. In Psalm 27:1 King David said, “Yehovah is my light and my salvation [“yasha”], Whom do I fear? Yehovah is the strength of my life, Of whom am I afraid?” It was the anointing and light of Yehovah’s love as a father that brought David into the realm or reach or kingdom of victory and overcoming strength. Jesus was the son of David and so Hebraically David had the same relationship with Yehovah as David’s son, Yehoshua. Was it King David or Jesus who said “My God, my God why have you forsaken me”? It was both. Being fully God and fully man, Jesus was both the Saviour (Yehovah-yasha or Yehoshua), and the Saved One (“Yeshu’ah”). Isaiah means the same as Jesus, Isaiah is Yeshayah or “Yehovah has saved”. Joshua is the same and is “Yehoshua”, again, “saved by Yehovah”. It says in Deuteronomy 3:21-22 “And Yehoshua (Joshua) I have commanded at that time, saying, Thine eyes are seeing all that which Yehovah your God hath done to these two kings – so doth Yehovah to all the kingdoms whither thou are passing over; fear them not, for Yehovah your God, he is fighting for you.” For the Israelites, the man Joshua led them into the land of the promised blessing. The man Yehoshua was in effect God leading them personally because God was within or upon him by his almighty breath or Holy Spirit. Joshua knew instinctively how to behave in bringing Yehovah’s people into the blessing of their inheritance.

Christ

The word Christ in Greek means exactly the same as the word “Mashiyach” (Messiah, Anointed One) in Hebrew. The word “mashach” in Hebrew, and “chrio” in Greek means to smear or rub with oil. The word Christ appears in Bibles usually as an untranslated Greek word and the function of the meaning of anointing can easily be missed. In the Epistles, the apostle Paul commonly reverses the words to make Christ Jesus, which means literally “The Anointed-Yah-Saved One” or “the one whom Yah saves and brings to the overcoming victory through the endowment and empowerment of being changed by the anointing”. Hebraically, being “In Christ Jesus” means experiencing the same life-changing, heart-changing and name-changing anointing of power that enabled Yehoshua (Jesus), as the heir or seed or son of Abraham, to inherit all things. It means to co-inherit with him for those who behave like him and so bear the same name. When priests and kings were anointed in the name of Yehovah, the anointing was always for a purpose. It was said of Jesus in Isaiah 61:1-3 “The Spirit [breath] of the Lord Yehovah is on me, Because Yehovah did anoint me To proclaim tidings to the humble, He sent me to bind the broken of heart, To proclaim to captives liberty, And to bound ones an opening of bands. To proclaim the year of the good pleasure of Yehovah, And the day of vengeance of our God, To comfort all mourners. To appoint to mourners in Zion, To give to them beauty instead of ashes, The oil of joy instead of mourning, A covering of praise for a spirit of weakness, And He is calling to them, ‘Trees of righteousness, The planting of Yehovah – to be beautified.’” Hebraically, the purpose for which Jesus was anointed was actually salvation, and following his anointing, Jesus or Yeshua or Yehovah Is Salvation was continually filled by the power and breath of God to become the living fulfilment of these words of salvation spoken by Isaiah, symbolised by the fragrance of the anointing oil that was continually upon him. God’s supernatural breath entered in to the fragrant anointing oil and symbolically represented a continual blowing, breathing or breath of the words or promises of God. Jesus as the Anointed One is the continual living fulfilment of Isaiah’s words by God’s continual inspiring breath, becoming a light to the Gentiles and bringing salvation to the ends of the earth and practically binding the broken-hearted and setting the captives free.

Immanuel

In Hebrew the word Immanuel means “God among us” and it meant literally for God to be overshadowed or hidden by the huddling together of a mass of people. This was fulfilled practically by Jesus and described in passages such as Luke 8 where he was almost crushed by the crowds when Jairus’ daughter was raised by Jesus from the dead. In the same passage the tassels or the wings of his garment described in Malachi 4 were touched by a woman who was cursed with the uncleanness of bleeding and she was healed. So it says in Malachi 4:2 “And risen to you, ye who fear My name, Hath the sun of righteousness – and healing in its wings, And ye have gone forth, and have increased as calves of a stall.” In Luke 7 when Jesus raised a widow’s only son from the dead, the people said that God had visited his people. So it says in Matthew 1:23 “Lo, the virgin shall conceive, and she shall bring forth a son, and they shall call his name Emmanuel,’ which is, being interpreted ‘With us he is God.’”

Sacrifices, Tithes and Offerings

In the ancient world, the gods were feared but also seen as the providers of all things. It was natural for the people to wish to appease the anger of the gods by giving back to the gods a proportion of what the gods had provided. The first-fruit was the first and the best. It was the portion treated differently and set apart for the gods. In Hebrew culture the offering of the tithe or tenth of the first fruit kept the heart of the giver free from greed and also ensured that the rest of the harvest would be bountiful. The first was also called the head, and within the first was the totality of the rest. It was also related to the word for inherit. Gifts were made to the gods because there was the hope that the gods would be obliged by the gift to react in kind and grant the petition asked of them. In Hebrew culture when there was an angelic visitation the people were quick to offer a sacrifice and a meal to honour their angelic visitor and covenant and join with and honour God who had sent them. Sacrifices and offerings to God were in many cases meant to be a gift of honour which if received would obligate God to enter into a form of covenant with the giver. They were not designed to cover rebellion or sin when there was no mercy or love. It says in Proverbs 21:27 “The sacrifice of the wicked is abomination, Much more when in wickedness he bringeth it. ” Sometimes offerings of wine or oil were poured out (libation) in response to an encounter with God. It was important because if the offering was received by God it cemented what was said and made God’s promise or word more secure. God did not receive the offering of Cain because something was wrong with Cain’s heart, not necessarily the bloodless offering that he brought. If Cain had put right what was wrong, God would have accepted his gift and strengthened his relationship with Cain. When the Israelites repented of their sins and the Philistines were gathering to attack, Samuel presented a burnt offering and God responded by thundering a great victory on their behalf. It was natural for the people to burn offerings because God was in the heavens and the fire and smoke carried the sweet smell of the gift up to God. Jesus stated that no offerings would be received by God and responded to with God’s blessing for those who were cursing their brothers in their hearts. Things had to be put right first. God’s response to gifts is what the people were looking for.

The Altar

The altar was a pile of earth or stone, or a properly fashioned brass or metal structure with horns, upon which offerings were made to God. God said to Moses in Exodus 20:24 “An altar of earth thou dost make for Me, and thou hast sacrificed on it thy burnt-offerings and thy peace-offerings, thy flock and thy herd; in every place where I cause My name to be remembered I come in unto thee, and have blessed thee’”. If God’s name was remembered in a place by people honouring Him, God received the offerings made upon the altar. The altar became a place of blessing and the release of God’s power. This was the whole point of altars and offerings and why the people were so quick to offer gifts and sacrifices to God. They wanted something in return, which God was happy to grant if the peoples’ hearts were right in his presence (Hebraically before his faces). However the people were not allowed to chisel or carve images or faces on the altar or stones because this was a common pagan practice. The pagans would gaze upon these images and hope to receive the strength or inspiration or breath of these pagan gods through their devotion. The horns on a horned altar were considered to be the strength of the altar and a place of God’s mercy. People in extreme danger could grab hold of the horns and hope God would save them. Adonijah was temporarily saved from King Solomon by doing so. Joab was struck down because he was a cold-blooded murderer and even grasping the horns of the altar could not save him from the blood-guilt that he brought down upon his own head and descendants or house.

Holiness of God

Whilst holy originally meant special or different, God’s holiness was much more than that. The holiness of God was a place of power. Things that were holy unto God were considered part of his realm and dominion and therefore endued with his soul or breathing-being or name. For example the Ark of the Covenant was holy or separated to God and was filled with power. This incredible power was available to bring victory if hearts of the people were different to other nations and set apart for God just like the Ark. The Israelites took the Ark into battle against the Philistines because they thought it would bring victory. However they had been worshipping and receiving the breath or strength of the gods Baal and Ashtoreth and their hearts were not right in the face of God. Because these idols were the source of their strength or power they were not holy or special or different from the Philistines and therefore could not beat the Philistines in battle. The Philistines captured the Ark and put it in the temple of Dagon. The power of God’s holiness or “different-ness” was released against the Philistines, the idol of Dagon fell and broke and God afflicted the Philistines in their loins with unpleasant sores. God’s holiness is part of his name and needs to be treated with honour. When the Philistines returned the Ark they sent a gift of gold to honour God’s name and holiness. So, it says in 1 Samuel 6:3 “And they say, ‘If ye are sending away the ark of the God of Israel, ye do not send it away empty; for ye do certainly send back to Him a guilt-offering; then ye are healed, and it hath been known to you why his hand doth not turn aside from you.’ ” Their offering was received by God and they were healed. When the Ark was finally returned to the Israelites, 70 of the inhabitants of Bethshemesh (the house of the sun god) died because they didn’t treat the Ark any differently to any other box. As such they treated God with disrespect. Later the Ark stood in the house of Obed Edom for a few months. He was obviously a man after God’s own heart and the Ark brought the strength and blessing of God’s fatherhood and his Holiness into his household. This was the place of power where victory (“yasha”) was assured.

Crowns

In English, the word crown is from the Latin “corona” meaning to encircle like a garland or wreath. In Hebrew, the words for crown meant literally a surrounded or encircled head and the mark of a cupped palm or hand upon the head. It also symbolized something that was set apart as being different for a specific purpose or a sign of dedication. The wearing of a crown represented something that people could see and set the wearer apart or different or holy from or above the people. Crowns were generally worn by those who had the authority and power to wear them and they wore them in the presence of the people in order to display visibly the invested authority and power that was yielded by the wearer of the crown. It was commonly made of gold as a representation of condensed or divine sunlight or fire or the corona or halo of the sun symbolizing that the king was a representative of the gods or God. It was also worn as a symbol or wreath of victory. The crown was also associated with anointing, the people put a crown upon the head of the king but the priests anointed the king with fragrant oil as the reigning one over God’s inheritance. For someone who was unauthorized to put on the crown would have been considered to be an act of presumption at best and treason at worst punishable by beatings or even death. The crown of the king had to be treated with respect as it represented not only the person or name of the king but also his reign, rule and kingdom. In Isaiah 28 God speaks woe to the crowns of presumption and pride worn by the drunkards of Ephraim: Isaiah 28:1 Woe to the proud crown of the drunkards of Ephraim. And the fading flower of the beauty of his glory, That is on the head of the fat valley of the broken down of wine.

Thrones

In Hebrew a throne was simply a covered seat or chair and as such was normally identified by additional words such as the name of the king, or words like high or royal or kingdom. The thrones of kings were often ornate and decorated with gold and ivory and were normally elevated upon a pedestal accessed by steps to symbolize the exalted state of the king and his kingdom. It says in Proverbs 16:12 “An abomination to kings is doing wickedness, For by righteousness is a throne established. ” The kings would often travel within their kingdom with a portable throne which would be set up in the gateway of the city that they visited and the king would sit upon his throne wearing his crown and exercise dominion and authority by administering justice from a place that was lifted up and different or holy and set apart amongst his people.

Kings and Princes

Within Hebrew culture there was a difference between kings and princes. In Hebrew culture names were based upon function and not form. The word king meant literally the “staff in the hand” and meant to walk amongst the people to administer mercy and justice. The word prince meant literally “turn the head” and meant someone who rules by turning the head of the people to follow his direction. It was the role of the princes to turn the heads of the people to follow the king. God changed the name of Jacob to Israel. The name Israel means “prince of God” and to have the power to prevail and turn people’s heads to follow God. This was to be done by the administration of blessing, love, kindness and mercy from the throne of grace with the crown of the anointing. The word for prince in Hebrew is also related to the words for bind, prison, bonds and degenerate and in the New Testament Satan is described as the prince of darkness who deceives and turns the heads and hearts of the people to follow him into darkness to become bound, imprisoned, degenerate and to die.

Fear of God

In Hebrew the word fear originally meant a throwing down, as of water in rain or a river, or the throwing of a finger to show the direction of how to walk or live in life. Within ancient Hebrew culture to fear God was to honor, respect, acknowledge or know God in all of their ways and to respond to God’s blessing by living a life that was pleasing to God. So, it says in Psalm 34:9-15 “Fear Yehovah, ye His holy ones, For there is no lack to those fearing Him. Young lions have lacked and been hungry, And those seeking Yehovah lack not any good, Come ye, children, hearken to me, The fear of Yehovah I do teach you. Who is the man that is desiring life? Loving days to see good? Keep thy tongue from evil, And thy lips from speaking deceit. Turn aside from evil and do good, Seek peace and pursue it. The eyes of Yehovah are unto the righteous, And His ears unto their cry.” Those who did not fear God lived to please themselves by doing what was right in their own eyes. They judged or decided what was right and wrong, good or evil and in their rebellion did not consider or care about the consequences of their behavior or the name that they carried. Jeremiah spoke of Israelites who did not fear God but instead repeatedly turned away, preferring wickedness and committing acts of harlotry amongst sacred trees which ultimately led to their downfall and destruction. That is why it says in Jeremiah 2:19-20 “Instruct thee doth thy wickedness, And thy backslidings reprove thee, Know and see that an evil and a bitter thing Is thy forsaking Yehovah thy God, And My fear not being on thee, An affirmation of the Lord Yehovah of Hosts. For from of old thou hast broken thy yoke, Drawn away thy bands, and sayest, ‘I do not serve,’ For, on every high height, and under every green tree, Thou art wandering – a harlot.”

The Sins of the Monarchy

In Hebrew various words for sin were used but they all had the same basic meaning. To miss the mark, to break away, to bear the teeth in anger, to twist away, to leave the path. Hebraically, probably the most far-reaching and ultimately disastrous sin or twisting away in the Old Testament was when the Israelites rejected God as their King and requested a man to reign over them instead. God granted their request and within two generations the established monarchy undermined God’s original plan of blessing and family-based culture. The kings appointed rulers or princes (like the Herodians) from their household in the major towns and villages that undermined the authority of the elders. So it says in Isaiah 1:23 “Thy princes are apostates, and companions of thieves, Everyone loving a bribe, and pursuing rewards, The fatherless they judge not, And the plea of the widow cometh not to them.” In Hebrew word used for rulers related to the turning of the head. They twisted and turned the heads of the elders away from God and his community and towards the king. The king appointed corrupted pagan priests who turned the people’s hearts from God towards idolatry and injustice and as such they missed the mark of God’s purpose and destiny. God promised to give Jeroboam, the King of Israel, a sure (established, faith) house and kingdom just like that of David if Jeroboam walked in God’s ways: 1 Kings 11:38 “….and it hath been, if thou dost hear all that I command thee, and hast walked in My ways, and done that which is right in Mine eyes, to keep My statutes and My commands, as did David My servant, that I have been with thee, and have built for thee a stedfast house, as I built for David, and have given to thee Israel.” This would have been possible if Jeroboam had established (faith, believe) what God had promised and sought and trusted God and his promise receiving the blessing of Abraham. Instead Jeroboam feared and set up golden calf idols for the people to worship so that they wouldn’t go back to Jerusalem to worship God. They also defiled the land of promise by breaking up the landed inheritance handed down from the fathers to the sons. They added field to field to make for themselves huge estates. This power system destroyed the culture of the ancient Hebrews and re- established instead the pagan culture of star worship and ultimately the curse of Babylon. Job said regarding star worship in Job 31:26-27 “If I see the light when it shineth, And the precious moon walking, And my heart is enticed in secret, And my hand doth kiss my mouth, Job 31:28 It also is a judicial iniquity, For I had lied to God above.”

Salvation, Overcoming and Victory

In Hebrew the word commonly translated save or salvation was the word “yasha” and was originally related to words for watch, shepherd and delight. The word was also used in combination with the word commonly translated deliver and was the word “natsal” which meant literally to rescue by shaking free. The first mention of the word “yasha” in scripture is in Exodus 2 when Moses saved the daughters of Reuel (Jethro) and delivered them out of the hand of the shepherds. So it says in Exodus 2:16-19 “And to a priest of Midian are seven daughters, and they come and draw, and fill the troughs, to water the flock of their father, and the shepherds come and drive them away, and Moses ariseth, and saveth them, and watereth their flock. And they come in to Reuel their father, and he saith, ‘Wherefore have ye hastened to come in to-day?’ and they say, ‘A man, an Egyptian, hath delivered us out of the hand of the shepherds, and also hath diligently drawn for us, and watereth the flock;’” The word “yasha” or save was also commonly used in conjunction with the words “out of the hand” and meant to be saved, delivered, rescued or shaken free from the hand or grip of anything distressing. So it says in 1 Samuel 10:17-19 “And Samuel calleth the people unto Yehovah to Mizpah, and saith unto the sons of Israel, ‘Thus said Yehovah, God of Israel, I have brought up Israel out of Egypt, and I deliver you out of the hand of the Egyptians, and out of the hand of all the kingdoms who are oppressing you; and ye to-day have rejected your God, who is Himself your savior out of all your evils and your distresses, and ye say, ‘Nay, but – a king thou dost set over us; and now, station yourselves before Yehovah, by your tribes, and by your thousands.’” Yehovah was the original King of Israel who saved the Israelites and shook them out of the grip of slavery within Egypt and out of the hand of all the other kingdoms that oppressed them. He rescued them from all of their evils and distresses and brought them into a spacious land of freedom and contentment. The Israelites rejected Yehovah as their savior and King and so Yehovah chose David to save them through the power of the anointing out of the oppressive hand or grip of their enemies. King David was Yehovah’s anointed who was saved from the oppressive hand of the enemies of Israel by Yehovah everywhere he went: 2 Samuel 3:18 “….. for Yehovah hath spoken of David saying, ‘By the hand of David my servant – to save My people Israel out of the hand of the Philistines, and out of the hand of all their enemies.’“, and 2 Samuel 8:6 “….. and David putteth garrisons in Aram of Damascus, and Aram is to David for a servant, bearing a present; and Yehovah saveth David whithersoever he hath gone.” Whilst there was a time when David’s personal life was a mess and a sword pierced his own household, David was never defeated in battle. His God anointed him and saved him from the hand of all of his enemies on behalf of the whole nation. Because Yehovah blessed David with salvation and victory, all of the people experienced this very same victory no matter who they were. David said in Psalm 20:6-9 “Now I have known That Yehovah hath saved his anointed, he answereth him from his holy heavens, With the saving might of his right hand. Some of chariots, and some of horses, And we of the name of Yehovah our God Make mention. They – they have bowed and have fallen, And we have risen and station ourselves upright. O Yehovah, save the king, he doth answer us in the day we call!” When King David went into battle he already knew that he had the victory because the overcoming saving power was within the blessing that dwelt within him and the crown of the anointing that rested upon him. David said in the Psalm 37:39-40 “And the salvation of the righteous is from Yehovah, Their strong place in a time of adversity. And Yehovah doth help them and deliver them, he delivereth them from the wicked, And saveth [“yasha”] them, Because they trusted in Him!” It says of Yeshua (“Yehovah-yasha”) the son of David in Acts 10:38 “…..Jesus who is from Nazareth – how God did anoint him with the Holy Spirit and power; who went through, doing good, and healing all those oppressed by the devil, because God was with him.” Jesus of Nazareth as Yehovah’s Mashiyach came as the son of David to save Yehovah’s people out of slavery to sinning and rescue them from the curse and shadow and vice-like hand or grip of the devil’s oppression into the freedom of the wide open spaces of the peace (“shalom”) or contented success of God’s fatherhood. So it says in Isaiah 9:1-2 “As the former time made light The land of Zebulun and the land of Naphtali, So the latter hath honored the way of the sea, Beyond the Jordan, Galilee of the nations. The people who are walking in darkness Have seen a great light, Dwellers in a land of death-shade [shadow of death, sickness], Light hath shone upon them.” Just as Jesus, the King of Israel and son of David was granted salvation and victory by God from all of his enemies, the death-shade of sickness and even death itself, so Yehovah’s people or inheritance was granted the very same anointing, blessing and victory. That is why it says in Zephaniah 3:17 “Yehovah thy God is in thy midst, A mighty one doth save, He rejoiceth over thee with joy, He doth work in His love, He joyeth over thee with singing.’” Jesus said in the synagogue in Nazareth in Luke 4:18-19 “‘The Spirit [“Pneuma”, breath or puff] of the Lord [“Kurios” in Greek] is upon me, Because he did anoint me; To proclaim good news to the poor, Sent me to heal the broken of heart, To proclaim to captives deliverance, And to blind receiving of sight, To send away the bruised with deliverance, To proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord.’” This was a quote from Isaiah 61:1 “The Spirit [“ruach”] of the Lord [Adonai] Yehovah is on me, Because Yehovah did anoint me To proclaim tidings to the humble, he sent me to bind the broken of heart, To proclaim to captives liberty, And to bound ones an opening of bands.” For the Hebrews this was salvation. It had absolutely nothing to do with being saved from hell after people were dead because there was no such thing. It was being saved continually from the crippling hand of adversity in every circumstance of life by God himself into the immediate and tangible life-changing blessing of the indwelling breath and presence of God’s fatherhood and sharing in everything that Jesus Is, Was, and Is To Come. It means becoming a son of God together with him and sharing his corporate victory of salvation by sitting at his right hand and having all your enemies a footstool for your feet just like he has.

Yehovah Is Salvation

In Hebrew, salvation (“yasha”, or “yeshu’ah”) meant to be rescued from the hand of oppression and to be made safe, complete or whole. The equivalent in Greek is “sozo” which means to save, protect, deliver, rescue, heal, make complete, whole or safe. Jesus said to Nicodemus in John 3:16-17 “for God did so love the world, that His Son – the only begotten – He gave, that everyone who is believing in him may not perish, but may have life age-during. For God did not send His Son to the world that he may judge the world, but that the world may be saved through him.” When Nicodemus heard these words of Jesus, he would have understood these in a completely different way to how people understand these words today. Nicodemus was a Pharisee who believed in resurrection at the End of Days, he did not have a modern and culturally Greek understanding of heaven and hell as eternal dwelling places for the wicked and the righteous. A culturally Hebrew interpretation of John 3:16 would be more like this: “God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten son so that those whose identity was established within his name “the son of God” by being filled with the breath of God’s fatherhood would not perish in life but live in the supernatural power of resurrection life…”. It was life in life, not just after death. Nicodemus knew nothing of the culturally Greek concept of hell but he knew about God’s judgement and about those who were judged, condemned and perished in life. Jesus said to Martha in John 11:25-26 “Jesus said to her, ‘I am the rising again [resurrection], and the life; he who is believing in me, even if he may die, shall live; and everyone who is living and believing in me shall not die – to the age” In the same was a culturally Hebraic interpretation of these words would be:“I am the resurrection and the life, those who are established within my identity as the “son of God” will live in resurrection life even though one day they will die, and those who live by being established within my identity as the “son of God” will never die…“. People’s lives are precious to Jesus and he came to save them in life. He said in John 10:9-10 “I am the door, through me if anyone may come in, he shall be saved, and he shall come in, and go out, and find pasture. The thief doth not come, except that he may steal, and kill, and destroy; I came that they may have life, and may have it abundantly“. Jesus saved people from the things that stole, killed, destroyed and made life hell. He saved by imparting to people his very own abundant life. In Mark 6:53-56 He saved all to touched even the fringe of his garment: “And having passed over, they came upon the land of Gennesaret, and drew to the shore, and they having come forth out of the boat, immediately having recognized him, having run about through all that region round about, they began upon the couches to carry about those ill, where they were hearing that he is, and wherever he was going, to villages, or cities, or fields, in the market-places they were laying the infirm, and were calling upon him, that they may touch if it were but the fringe of his garment, and as many as were touching him were saved“. In Mark 10:47-52 He saved Bartimaeus from blindness by speaking the word of healing: “…and having heard that it is Jesus the Nazarene, he began to cry out, and to say, ‘The Son of David – Jesus! deal kindly with me’ …. and answering, Jesus saith to him, ‘What wilt thou I may do to thee?’ and the blind man said to him, ‘Rabboni, that I may see again;’ and Jesus said to him, ‘Go, thy faith hath saved thee:’ and immediately he saw again, and was following Jesus in the way“. In Matthew 9:19-22 a woman who was bleeding was saved when she touched his garment: “And Jesus having risen, did follow him, also his disciples, and lo, a woman having an issue of blood twelve years, having come to him behind, did touch the fringe of his garments, for she said within herself, ‘If only I may touch his garment, I shall be saved.’ And Jesus having turned about, and having seen her, said, ‘Be of good courage, daughter, thy faith hath saved thee,’ and the woman was saved from that hour.” In Luke 8:34-36 He saved the Gadarene demoniac from demons: “And those feeding them, having seen what was come to pass, fled, and having gone, told it to the city, and to the fields; Luke and they came forth to see what was come to pass, and they came unto Jesus, and found the man sitting, out of whom the demons had gone forth, clothed, and right-minded, at the feet of Jesus, and they were afraid; and those also having seen it, told them how the demoniac was saved“. In Luke 8:49-50 He saved from death: “While he is yet speaking, there doth come a certain one from the chief of the synagogue’s house, saying to him – ’Thy daughter hath died, harass not the Teacher;’ and Jesus having heard, answered him, saying, ‘Be not afraid, only believe, and she shall be saved.’” In Luke 17:17-19 He saved the Samaritan leper who returned to give glory to God: “And Jesus answering said, ‘Were not the ten cleansed, and the nine – where? There were not found who did turn back to give glory to God, except this alien;’ and he said to him, ‘Having risen, be going on, thy faith hath saved thee.’” In Luke 19:8-10 He saved Zacchaeus and his house from sinning: “And Zacchaeus having stood, said unto the Lord, ‘Lo, the half of my goods, sir, I give to the poor, and if of any one anything I did take by false accusation, I give back fourfold.’ And Jesus said unto him – ’To-day salvation did come to this house, inasmuch as he also is a son of Abraham; for the Son of Man came to seek and to save the lost.’” In Matthew 14:30 He saved Peter from drowning: “…but seeing the wind vehement, he was afraid, and having begun to sink, he cried out, saying, ‘Sir, save me.’” However, sometimes there was a veil over people’s hearts that prevented them from understanding or establishing Jesus, Yehovah’s great salvation. To the people of Nazareth, Jesus’ home town, Jesus was just a carpenter. They heard the amazing words that came from his lips, heard of the mighty miracles that he did at Capernaum, but their pride, traditions and natural reasonings had blinded the eyes of their hearts. They would not believe or establish the salvation that Jesus was so willing to give them. Jesus could do no mighty miracles there – instead he just healed a few people who were sick and was astounded at their unwillingness to establish him as their savior. So in Mark 6:4-6 it says “Jesus said to them – ’A prophet is not without honor, except in his own country, and among his kindred, and in his own house;’ and he was not able there any mighty work to do, except on a few infirm people having put hands he did heal them; Mark and he wondered because of their unbelief.” John the Baptist was imprisoned by King Herod after he challenged Herod to repent of his adultery and sin. In prison, John became confused and sent messages to Jesus asking if Jesus really was “He Who Is To Come”. Jesus told the messengers to look at what was happening and return to John with the message of the mighty miracles that they saw and heard. Following John’s ministry of baptism into repentance for the forgiveness of sins, Jesus of Nazareth was anointed by Yehovah with the Holy Spirit and power and went through, saving everyone from the oppressive hand of the devil. Peter said in Acts 10:34-38 “And Peter having opened his mouth, said, ‘Of a truth, I perceive that God is no respecter of persons, but in every nation he who is fearing Him, and is working righteousness, is acceptable to Him; the word that he sent to the sons of Israel, proclaiming good news – peace through Jesus Christ (this one is Lord of all,) ye – ye have known; – the word that came throughout all Judea, having begun from Galilee, after the baptism that John preached; Jesus who is from Nazareth – how God did anoint him with the Holy Spirit and power; who went through, doing good, and healing all those oppressed by the devil, because God was with him.” The name Jesus means “Yehovah Is Salvation” and Yehovah as the man Jesus of Nazareth (Yehoshua or Yeshua) is the One that rescues those whose identity is personally established within him, out of every difficult circumstance of life by imparting to them his very own salvation (“yeshu’ah”) or name. Jesus didn’t normally pray for God to heal or save people. Instead in his great love and under the power of the anointing he took upon himself their sorrows, sicknesses, diseases and the corporate responsibility for their sins. In return he imparted to them his relationship with God as his father, his very own eternal or age-during or enduring life. In fact, like the bleeding woman who touched Jesus in secret, often people were saved without Jesus having to do or say anything. Hebraically, those who are part of the corporate son of God have been begotten or born of God’s life’s breath or Holy Spirit. They have changed fathers like Abraham and David, and share in the very same identity and name as Jesus as the son of God. They can freely share in his life and complete healing, the “shalom” of His perfect wholeness in all things. The Hebrews saw things in totality, and instead of the sons of God praying and asking God to save them personally or individually, they corporately dwell within Yehoshua, the “Saved One”, the Son, the House, City or Temple of God. The eyes of their hearts have been enlightened and they know and understand that through the anointing and the power of the resurrection where God’s word has been reunited with God’s breath or Holy Spirit, salvation from the hand of all oppression, loneliness, sickness, unforgiveness, brokenness, depression, misery and death in every circumstance of life already belongs to them just as it belongs to Jesus. Truly, “Yehovah Is Salvation”, personally.

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