“And I will delight myself in thy commandments, which I have loved.
My hands also will I lift up unto thy commandments, which I have loved; and I will meditate in thy statutes” (Psalm 119:47-48).
The picture David paints here is one of worship: delight, hands lifted up. One can almost picture his face with eyes closed lifted upward toward heaven with a gentle smile on his lips, simply basking in the complete satisfaction of God. That’s a beautiful place to be: satisfied, content. It’s reminiscent of another scene of complete contentment, when on the sixth day God “saw every thing that He had made, and, behold, it was very good” (Genesis 1:31). It seems perfect that these two verses would be found under the sixth part, Vav: “As the number six, the VAV denotes physical completion. The world was created in six days, as explained in Genesis: The first word of Genesis, Bereishit, (‘in the beginning’), can be broken up to form ‘He created six’ (Barah Shit)” (“Vav”). Complete satisfaction.
Matthew Henry points out the significance of David mentioning his hands raised and his thoughts meditating on God’s commandments.
“By this it will appear that we truly love God’s commandments, if we apply both our minds and our hands to them” (Henry 569).
Works Cited
Henry, Matthew. “Psalm 119.” Matthew Henry’s Commentary On the Whole Bible: New Modern Edition. Volume 3, Hendrickson Publishers, Inc., March 1996.
Holy Bible: Giant Print with Study Aids. Dugan Publishers, Inc., 1984.
“My soul cleaveth unto the dust: quicken thou me according to thy word” (Psalm 119:25).
In Daleth, David is confessing his weakness and asking God for help. It is truly the station of man in life, to express his need for God and humble himself before Him. What’s beautiful is David’s dependence on the Word of God to enliven him.
Matthew Henry notes that this could be David’s complaint of either his corruptions or his afflictions. Whether it is as in the former situation, corruptions, “The remainders of indwelling corruption are a very grievous burden to a gracious soul” (Henry 565), or, in the latter situation, afflictions, “either trouble of mind or outward trouble” (Henry 565), either would leave the soul cleaving to dust. In this circumstance, the soul pleads that “By thy providence put life into my affairs, by thy grace put life into my affections; cure me of my spiritual deadness and make me lively in my devotion” (Henry 565). Truly the name ‘Daleth’, poor man, is suitable here.
Works Cited
Henry, Matthew. “Psalm 119.” Matthew Henry’s Commentary On the Whole Bible: New Modern Edition. Volume 3, Hendrickson Publishers, Inc., March 1996.
Holy Bible: Giant Print with Study Aids. Dugan Publishers, Inc., 1984.
As mentioned in my previous post, Psalm 119, as the longest psalm, has 22 parts, one part for each letter of the Hebrew Alphabet. The first part is Aleph or Alef.
Many are the meanings of Hebrew words and letters. In my search for a better understanding of Aleph, I found the following post on “Alef” from the “Hebrew Monk: Language Your Mind”, which is very helpful for digging into the history of the letter. It is too much to repost here, but I did want to point out one important aspect of the letter, Aleph, which are the letters that comprise its name. The following image is from the http://www.hebrewmonk.com (Ran):
So, essentially, what is being pointed out in the image above is the meaning behind the two parts that make up the name ‘Alef’: Al, which means ‘God’ in Hebrew, and Peh, which means ‘mouth’. When combined, God and mouth, we hear echoes of Genesis, when God spoke creation into existence. It should not be lost on us, therefore, that Alef is the first letter of the alphabet or the beginning of the alphabet. Its very name suggests beginnings.
Further research on the letter Alef lead me to the following:
The Hebrew alphabet is the only alphabet in the world where order is necessary for meaning and usage. It is related to a complex system named Gematria, whereby each letter has a numerical value.
ALEPH is the first letter in the Hebrew alphabet.
ALEPH has a numerical value of one and implies the oneness of God. The Hebrew words for one, I, and Lord all begin with ALEPH. These are included in the Shema prayer, which is recited every morning.
ALEPH is the root word for aluph, meaning ‘master’, particularly denoting a master of the Torah, which further alludes to God. ALEPH is the initial letter of many of the Attributes and Names of God therefore it embodies Divinity. For example: Adonai – Lord; Adir – the Mighty One; El – God’s Attribute of Mercy; and Elohim – God’s Attribute of Judgment.
The physical structure of the ALEPH (as written) is also very significant. The ALEPH is actually comprised of three other letters: two yuds and a vav. Each yud is equal to the number ten, while the vav has a numeric value of six. The total, 26, is equivalent to the value of God’s four-letter name.
The positioning of the yuds and the vav is highly symbolic. The upper and lower yuds are said to represent the upper and lower waters, while the vav denotes the firmament, as conveyed in the creation. The vav serves to connect the two yuds, therefore emphasising man’s closeness to God, as well as to distance them, instilling God’s omnipotence. As a whole the two worlds form one.
You must be logged in to post a comment.