Meditate
1) English Definition:
med•i•tate ˈme-də-ˌtāt
-tat•ed; -tat•ing [L meditatus, pp. of meditari, freq. of medēri to remedy — more at medical] vi 1560
1 : to engage in contemplation or reflection
2 : to engage in mental exercise (as concentration on one’s breathing or repetition of a mantra) for the purpose of reaching a heightened level of spiritual awareness vt
1 : to focus one’s thoughts on : reflect on or ponder over
2 : to plan or project in the mind : intend, purpose syn see ponder [1]
2) Hebrew Definition:
MEDITATES. (Ps. 1:2) hagah (hah-gah); Strong’s #1897: To reflect; to moan, to mutter; to ponder; to make a quiet sound such as sighing; to meditate or contemplate something as one repeats the words. Hagah represents something quite unlike the English “meditation,” which may be a mental exercise only. In Hebrew thought, to meditate upon the Scriptures is to quietly repeat them in a soft, droning sound, while utterly abandoning outside distractions. From this tradition comes a specialized type of Jewish prayer called “davening,” that is, reciting texts, praying intense prayers, or getting lost in communion with God while bowing or rocking back and forth. Evidently this dynamic form of meditation-prayer goes back to David’s time.[2]
3) Meditate:
a) Meditate (μελέτα) (Mostly found in Old Testament)
b) New Testament (Acts 4:25) Quotation from O.T.
c) Scholars uphold use of word “meditate”
d) Modern Translations substitute
i) Diligent in
ii) Practice
iii) Take care of
iv) 1897 הָגָה [hagah /haw·gaw/] v. A primitive root [compare 1901]; TWOT 467; GK 2047; 25 occurrences; AV translates as “meditate” six times, “mourn” four times, “speak” four times, “imagine” twice, “study” twice, “mutter” twice, “utter” twice, “roaring” once, “sore” once, and “talk” once. 1 to moan, growl, utter, muse, mutter, meditate, devise, plot, speak. 1a (Qal). 1a1 to roar, growl, groan. 1a2 to utter, speak. 1a3 to meditate, devise, muse, imagine. 1b (Poal) to utter. 1c (Hiphil) to mutter. [3]
4) Meditation:
a) Talking with the mind
b) Similar to worry
c) 90% of self talk is negative
d) Character and Conduct begin in the mind
e) Meditate on God and His Word
i) Phil. 4:8
ii) Ps.5:1 Give aear to my words, O Lord,
Consider my 2meditation.
2 Give heed to the voice of my cry,
My King and my God,
For to You I will pray.
3 My voice You shall hear in the morning, O Lord;
bIn the morning I will direct it to You,
And I will look up.[4]
iii) Ps. 19:14&Ps. 10:4
iv) Josh 1:8
v)
5)
MEDITATION — the practice of reflection or contemplation. The word “meditation” or its verb form, “to meditate,” is found mainly in the Old Testament. The Hebrew words behind this concept mean “to murmur,” “a murmuring,” “sighing,” or “moaning.” This concept is reflected in Psalm 1:2, where the “blessed man” meditates on God’s law day and night. The psalmist also prayed that the meditation of his heart would be acceptable in God’s sight (Ps. 19:14). Joshua was instructed to meditate on the Book of the Law for the purpose of obeying all that was written in it (Josh. 1:8).
The Greek word translated as “meditate” occurs only twice in the New Testament. In Luke 21:14 Jesus instructed His disciples not “to meditate beforehand” in answering their adversaries when the end of the age comes. The word may be understood in this passage as the idea of preparing a defense for a court appearance. Paul, in 1 Timothy 4:15, urged Timothy to meditate, or take pains with, the instructions he gives. The idea of meditation is also found in Philippians 4:8 and Colossians 3:2.
Meditation is a lost art for many Christians, but the practice needs to be cultivated again. [5]
MEDITATION. Josh. 1:8; Psa. 1:2; Psa. 4:4; Psa. 19:14; Psa. 39:3; Psa. 49:3; Psa. 63:5, 6; Psa. 73:12–22; Psa. 77:10–12; Psa. 104:34; Psa. 119:11, 16, 23, 48, 55, 59, 78, 97–99,148; Psa. 139:17, 18; Psa. 143:5; 1 Tim. 4:13–15 [6]
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L Latin
pp past participle
freq frequentative
[1]Merriam-Webster, Inc: Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary. Eleventh ed. Springfield, Mass. : Merriam-Webster, Inc., 2003
[2]Hayford, Jack W. ; Thomas Nelson Publishers: Hayford's Bible Handbook. Nashville : Thomas Nelson Publishers, 1995
v v: verb
TWOT Theological Wordbook of the Old Testament
GK Goodrick-Kohlenberger
AV Authorized Version
[3]Strong, James: The Exhaustive Concordance of the Bible : Showing Every Word of the Test of the Common English Version of the Canonical Books, and Every Occurence of Each Word in Regular Order. electronic ed. Ontario : Woodside Bible Fellowship., 1996, S. H1897
a Ps. 4:1
2 Lit. groaning
b Ps. 55:17; 88:13
[4] The New King James Version. Nashville : Thomas Nelson, 1982, S. Ps 5:1-3
[5]Youngblood, Ronald F. ; Bruce, F. F. ; Harrison, R. K. ; Thomas Nelson Publishers: Nelson's New Illustrated Bible Dictionary. Nashville : T. Nelson, 1995
[6]Swanson, James ; Nave, Orville: New Nave's. Oak Harbor : Logos Research Systems, 1994