ABCs of Praise Part 1

A Plan of Restoration

Zephaniah 3:17 ESV

The Lord your God is in your midst, a mighty one who will save; he will rejoice over you with gladness; he will quiet you by his love; he will exult over you with loud singing.

The real word used for “quiet” here is harash חרש meaning rest or to inscribe letters on a tablet.

Just as there is nothing by chance in creation, there is nothing by chance in the life surrendered to the Lord. There is refuge in the life that daily acknowledges His Lordship through praise.

Have you ever noticed in Psalms 119 the words above each divided section? Each of these 22 words are each a letter of the Hebrew Alef-Beit or what you would call the alphabet.

These are not there by accident. Each section is relevant to the Hebrew letter as it’s header. Each Hebrew letter tells us something about God and His plans for us.

We will not be able to dive into the depths of these. But we will look at the relevant applications to our daily walk with the Lord.

The first five letters speak to us about the intent and expectations, from the beginning, of our Heavenly Father in our relationship with Him.

ALEPH (א). Aleph is the first of the Hebrew alef-beit. “It has the numerical value of one. Yet, it’s gematria in it’s cognate form is 111 (אלף) meaning a thousand. Which in Scripture is often used as an idiom meaning innumerable” (Haralick, Robert M., The Inner Meaning of the Hebrew Letters; 1995; Jason Arson, Inc.; New Jersey) Such as in Deuteronomy 1:11, Deuteronomy 7:9, Deut 32:30, Psalms 90:4, and 2 Peter 3:8.

It is historically referred to as the Father of all the others. It’s sound to the physical ear is silence but it speaks volumes of the Creator.

It consist of a Vav (ו) and two Yods (י) Historically, the Sages taught that these represent “the higher and lowers waters and the firmament between them in the story of creation. The higher water is water of joy, the experience of being close to God, while the lower water is water of bitterness, the experience of being far from God” (Rabbi Ginsburgh, Yitzchak; Alef-Beit, 1991; Jason Arson, Inc. New Jersey). Together, they also reveal to us a story of redemption. One yod represents the hand of the Father and the other man created by the hand of the Father. The Vav represents a divide between the two where once was a connection. But that divide was sin and Yeshua became that sin that we might be restored to unity with our Father.

As such, Psalms 119:1-8 (Read) declares that those whose way or walk of life (halak) and hearts motives (kavanah) are blameless before the Father (Aba אבא) because they love His Law (Torah תּוֹרָה). They pursue, long for, desire, and seek Him out with their whole hearts like a lost child looking for their father with heart pounding. And when they have found Him they cling (dabaq דָּבַק) to Him and His righteous ways with exuberant praise, for within them are eternal life with the Father.

BEIT (ב). This brings us to the next section. The Beit represents a house, a dwelling place for a family where the Father abides, protects, instructs, and provides. The word beit means “house”. In fact, within the first word of Genesis, Berishit (beginnings) we see the word beit or house. The root word for Genesis, r’sh ראש means “head” as in the head of the house. “When the righteous man welcomes God as the head of his house, it becomes a house of true and eternal blessing” (Rabbi Ginsburgh, Yitzchak; Alef-Beit, 1991; Jason Arson, Inc. New Jersey).

In Genesis 1:1 it refers to God’s house. This is Yeshua’s reference when He says, “My Father’s house shall be a house of prayer” (Isaiah 56:7; Matthew 21:13). Genesis 1:1, Berishit (Beginnings) begins with an enlarged Biet revealing to us the intent and desire of the Father in creation. From the beginning He desired a family, sons and daughters. Not more angels, but us who were created in His image (salem צֶלֶם; protection and provision) and likeness (demut דְּמוּת; to think like God). Thus, God says in Exodus 25:8, “Let them build Me a sanctuary, and I will dwell in them (בְּתוֹכָֽם b’to-kam)”, not just among them. This is why, when God created man He breathed into him a portion of Himself. From the beginning God intend for His presence to dwell in the earth through you, not just the earth in His presence and you taking up space. “Beit is numerically (בית =412=תאוה) equal to the word ta’avah תַּאֲוָה, ‘desire’ or ‘passion’. Ta’avah denotes the positive passion of the tzadik, the righteous man” (Rabbi Ginsburgh, Yitzchak; Alef-Beit, 1991; Jason Arson, Inc. New Jersey).

Throughout Scripture, the house relative to man, represents a general frame of reference in his relation to the world. This is the definition of a worldview. The word beit, ‘house’, is derived either from the root b’nah בנה, ‘to build’ or b’va בוא, ‘to come’. Thus, our worldview should be built on God and His ways alone.

And so we were created. But we sinned against our loving and gracious Father. But in His great love He made a way of return. Not only a return to Him but a way to return to everlasting relationship in covenant with Him. The blood covenant sacrifice of Jesus Christ and His cross made a way for you to be free from the guilty stains and shames of a sinful heart and life. Thus, the Beit speaks of how Father keeps His house. He keeps it clean and pure. And those who abide in His presence must guard their hearts and way of life. They must not wander from the ways of the Lord. There can be no compromise. They cannot bring that which is dirty into their Father’s house. Instead, they must delight in the beauty of His presence and meditate, or let His ways mold and shape them through His instruction and correction in righteousness. They seek to make His Law a remembrance (zikaron; zakar זָכַר) or permanent impression upon their hearts and minds. They meditate on the Law of the Lord day and night such as stated in Psalms 63:6 and Joshua 1:8, to meditate is the word haga הָגָה meaning it will mold and shape a man’s inner most thought and desires and be the only thing that comes out of his mouth, therefore, pleasing to the Lord. Within him shall be the peace of the Father.

As such the Psalmist speaks the way of covenant of a son or daughter of the Most High in Psalms 119:9-16 (Read).

GIMEL (ג). Next we have Gimel. Gimel represents a man walking. It is how man walks that reflects his relationship with the Lord. The man who walks upright before the Lord need not live bent over by the pressures of life. Instead, he willfully bows in surrender, humility and adoration of the Father. The Psalmist thus cries out to the Lord, “Open my eyes, that I may behold wondrous things out of Your Law.”

His flesh reminds his soul of the consequences of rebellion against the ways of the Lord. Instead, the Law of Adonai becomes his counselors, not the ways of man (Read Psalms 119:17-24).

DALETH (ד). Daleth represents a man bent over. This man’s soul is heavy with sorrow and grief. His soul clings to the dirt as if he were close to death. But he cries out to the Lord. He remembers God’s faithfulness to those who love Him and keep His commandments. He reminds his soul that there is strength in the precepts and the principles of Adonai. Rather than clinging to the dirt in sorrow, his soul will cling to the testimonies of the goodness of the Almighty. As his sorrow turns to praise his heart is enlarged with gladness. The Sages taught that within Gimel and Daleth we see a rich man giving and a poor man receiving. The Christ became poor, giving all, that you may receive the riches of the Father’s house. (Read Psalms 119:25-32)

He (ה). This brings us to He which represents a man with his arms raised. Praise is giving back to God the breath He put within you. In the name of God Yahweh, YHVH יהוה there are two He. In Genesis, God creates man from the dust of the earth with His hands then breathes a portion of His breath (he) into man (Ish איש having one He). God then puts man to sleep and takes a portion of that breath (He) from Adam and brings to him Eve (Ishah אישה) having two portions of the He). Here is where profession and praise meet purpose and promise. God’s plan from the beginning, relationship with the Father through a family. The Psalmist lifts His adoration to the Lord in a cry for impartation. Not what God can do for him but in him. It is a plea for presence. It is abasing of ones own understanding and leaning all the way in to the knowledge of God. It is a passionate request for the mind and heart of the Father. It is a man pursuing his Father’s instruction and impartation. Teach me Oh Lord, incline my heart, turn my motives from selfish pursuits and mine eyes from idolatry. Give me Your life in Your ways Oh Lord. These are words of covenant. For in the wisdom of God Almighty does a man realize that there is not life outside of the life of righteousness before the Lord in all his ways. (Read Psalms 119:33-40)