Sermon Tone Analysis

Behold in the OT and NT

In the OT

Its simple grammatical use is as a marker in the narrative, designed to liven up a scene and called attention to something specific.

Hebrew in general is a pretty wooden language and, compared to Greek and Latin, pretty wooden.

Narrative makers like this were important when the text was read out loud in the synagogue and Temple.

It signified that an important thing, usually of divine origin was about to take place.

It also has, from my point of view, a pedological aspect to its use.

God uses it when He is about to teach his people something new.

(Quite often through a mediator like an angel or even The Angel of the Lord

Or when He is making a covenant promise:

Humans also use it to show that they understand what God is up to and recognise His activity

,

It’s also words said aloud by characters in the narrative that are meant to be witnessed.

It introduces a kind of verbal contract that the hearers would affirm.

Sarah says that she is giving her servant to Abraham to impregnate.

Pharoah claiming Sarah’s innocence

Theologically it is used as precursor to special revelation, usually from .

It basically says, “look!

God thinks this is important!

He is about to act in a powerful way in the lives of this people!

Pay attention now!“

Here is a search on the main word for “behold” in the OT

[[Search >> https://ref.ly/logos4/Search?kind=MorphSearch&q=lemma:%D7%94%D6%B4%D7%A0%D6%B5%D6%BC%D7%94&match=stem&in=raw:Single%7CResourceId%3dLLS:1.0.204]] | lemma:הִנֵּה | Biblia Hebraica Stuttgartensia: SESB 2.0 Version

The Theological Lexicon of the OT says this about the Theological use:

4. From a theological perspective, the frequent use of hinnēh as an introduction to the prophetic announcement of judgment indicating God’s intervention should be emphasized.

In this position, the attention getter combines readily with 1st-per.

divine speech as hinenî with ptcp.

(cf.

P. Humbert, “La formule hébraïque en hineni suivi d’un participe,” REJ 97 [1934]: 58–64 = Opuscules d’un hébraïsant [1958], 54–59; K. Koch, Growth of the Biblical Tradition [1969], 211f.);

cf. also the so-called challenge formula hinenî ʾēleykā “behold, I want at you” (P.

Humbert, ZAW 51 [1933]: 101–8 = Opuscules 44–53).

As a rule, the formula precedes the causal clause (cf.

H. W. Wolff, ZAW 52 [1934]: 2–6); it frequently stands in the immediate context of the messenger formula (e.g., ; ; ); cf.

BFPS 149; R. Rendtorff, ZAW 74 [1962]: 176f.).

Usually a pf.

cons.

follows.

Less frequently the formula is formed with hinnēh ʾānōkî /ʾanî instead of with hinenî (e.g., ; on this and the use of hinnēh in Amos, cf.

Wolff, Amos, Herm , 142).

A simple (we)hinnēh also introduces the announcement of intervention for judgment (rarely in the divine 1st per.

with a finite verb, e.g., ; ; more often in the 3d per. of God, e.g., ; ; most frequently in the description of God’s activity, e.g., ; ) and in isolated cases the consequences of intervention (e.g., ); a few times it underscores the cause (e.g., ;

Behold in the New Testament

“Behold” in the NT serves a pretty similar function in narrative as its Hebrew cognate in the OT.

The difference would be that many times it intros a prophecy fulfilled.

Here is a link to the word study.

[[Bible Word Study >> https://ref.ly/logos4/Guide?t=My+Bible+Word+Study&hw=behold&lang=en]] | behold

Here is a verse list.

You should be able to open it on Logos but let me know if you have any issues.

[[Search >> https://ref.ly/logos4/Search?kind=MorphSearch&q=%E1%BC%B0%CE%B4%CE%BF%CF%8D&match=stem&in=raw:Single%7CResourceId%3dLLS:NA28%5d%5d]] | ἰδού | Nestle-Aland Greek New Testament, 28th Edition

ἰδού

idou see, behold

Ἰδού

is literally the aor.

mid.

imv.

sg. (

ἰδοῦ

, from

ὁράω

), which is written as a demonstrative particle with the acute accent.

The number of occurrences in the NT writings are (in order of frequency): Matthew 62, Luke 57, Revelation 26, , , James 6, , , Paul (only in 1-2 Corinthians, Galatians, Romans) 9, Jude, and each.

Ἰδού

serves, like Heb.

hinnēh

, to enliven the narrative, either to awaken attention (e.g., ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ), to introduce something new (e.g., after a gen.

absolute in ; , , etc.: καὶ ἰδού

; ; , etc., also Luke-Acts:

ἰδού

), in the middle of a speech (; ; ; , ), to emphasize the importance of a subject (; ; ; ; , etc.), or as a summons to more careful consideration and observation (; ; ; ; ; ).

In connection with a noun or finite vb. the meaning is

here / there is, here / there was, here / there comes / came (; ; ; , ; , in Revelation frequently εἶδον καὶ ἰδού

[4:1; 6:2, 5, 8; 7:9; 14:1, 14]).

BAGD s.v.; P. Fiedler,

Die Formel “und siehe” im NT

(1969); R. Van Otterloo,

OPTAT

2 (1988) 34–64.

).

Ernst Jenni and Claus Westermann, Theological Lexicon of the Old Testament (Peabody, MA: Hendrickson Publishers, 1997), 380.

Some notable messianic passages are:

 “But you, O Bethlehem Ephrathah, who are too little to be among the clans of Judah, from you shall come forth for me one who is to be ruler in Israel, whose coming forth is from of old, from ancient days.”

(, ESV) 

Fulfilled with the “behold” language in:  “Now after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod the king, behold, wise men from the east came to Jerusalem,” (, ESV)  

  “Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign.

Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel.”

(, ESV)  

Fulfilled in -   “Now the birth of Jesus Christ took place in this way.

When his mother Mary had been betrothed to Joseph, before they came together she was found to be with child from the Holy Spirit.

And her husband Joseph, being a just man and unwilling to put her to shame, resolved to divorce her quietly.

But as he considered these things, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, “Joseph, son of David, do not fear to take Mary as your wife, for that which is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit.

She will bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins.”

All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had spoken by the prophet: “Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and they shall call his name Immanuel” (which means, God with us).” (, ESV)  

  “Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion! Shout aloud, O daughter of Jerusalem!

Behold, your king is coming to you; righteous and having salvation is he, humble and mounted on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a donkey.”

(, ESV)  

Fulfilled in -   “The next day the large crowd that had come to the feast heard that Jesus was coming to Jerusalem.

So they took branches of palm trees and went out to meet him, crying out, “Hosanna!

Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord, even the King of Israel!”

And Jesus found a young donkey and sat on it, just as it is written,” (, ESV)  

The most powerful verse, especially in the context of lamb of God things, is definitely -   “The next day he saw Jesus coming toward him, and said, “Behold, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!” (, ESV) 

which is intimately connected with

  “He was oppressed, and he was afflicted, yet he opened not his mouth; like a lamb that is led to the slaughter, and like a sheep that before its shearers is silent, so he opened not his mouth.”

(, ESV) 

You can check out more with the Topic Guide

[[Topic Guide >> https://ref.ly/logos4/Guide?t=My+Topic+Guide&ref=bk.%25LambOfGod_Deity]] | Lamb of God

*if this link doesn’t work in your version, just type “Lamb of God” into the Topic Guide