The Four Words (1)
But with you there is forgiveness, that you may be feared. Psalm 130:4 ESV
Forgiveness – Just four words in Hebrew. Ki-imka has-liha’ lema’an tivare’. But the world on my black desolation changes with these four words. Each one is crucial for my rescue.
Ki-imka (but with you) opens the thought. The divine alternative. YHWH is not simply the policeman and the accountant. He is also Father, Creator, Great Hunter, the One Who Sees, the lover of my soul. “But with You” says the psalmist. The glimmer of another reality has become a living hope. There is another side of the coin of wrath. For the first time, I am able to see light. The glory of the Lord invades my self-enclosed prison of twisted disobedience and I think, “Yes, maybe YHWH is able to straighten this pretzeled existence.”
The very thought of it causes my enemy, my own yetzer ha’ra, to recoil and resist. Do I really want forgiveness? Forgiveness will require change and this change will demand denying myself. Is today the day of crucifixion for my desires? Would it not be easier to wait while I am yet on this moral vacation? The subtlety of the serpent is just as powerful today as that day in the Garden. The hissing of its voice is familiar music, providing me with yet one more excuse for procrastination. Pain must come to my rescue. I must recall the terror and the absent-loneliness of life without the Father of lights. I cannot overcome the serpent’s suggestions without feeling the horror of my bent condition, and when I feel it, I must act – immediately – before once more the words can be used as a disguise for another delay. Ki-imka means “Now!” for in this world there is no “Later.” “No man knows” is the by-line of “But with You.”
“There is forgiveness.” Has-liha’. Actually, the verb is implied. The phrase literally says, “With You the forgiveness.” In other words, Hebrew equates this noun (forgiveness) with the essential character of YHWH. It is not as though YHWH exists and the attribute of forgiveness is attached to Him. No, Hebrew suggests that forgiveness is what it means to be YHWH.
The noun, s’liha’, is derived from the verb salah. The verb underscores the essential connection between YHWH and the act of pardon. This verb is only a God-verb. It is never applied to human action. Only God can forgive with salah. We can emulate God’s forgiveness with nasa’ (see Exodus 34:7), but not with salah. Why? Because only God can grant pardon! The scribes understood this perfectly when they questioned Yeshua’s claim in Luke 5:20. Their reaction demonstrates that Yeshua used the Hebrew verb salah, not nasa’. By the way, the psalmist’s insight shows us once more that the distinction between “Law” and “grace” is theological fabrication. There is no indication here that God cannot pardon because Christ has not yet been crucified, nor is there any suggestion that God’s forgiveness is limited because the Tanakh knew only the sacrificial system. No, pardon is YHWH’s prerogative and it seems available whenever He wishes to show it.
That is a hallelujah word! YHWH forgives! YHWH pardons! He is able to unbend me. He can straighten the twisted character of my life. He desires His paths to be straight so that I might follow Him in confidence. O battered soul of mine. O broken body, broken mind. Take consolation in this. Salah is YHWH’s deliverance.
Topical Index: salah, pardon, forgiveness, Luke 5:20, Psalm 130:4
But so you may know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins”–He told the paralyzed man, “I tell you: Get up, pick up your mat, and go home.”
In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God’s grace.
… Unto Him that loved us, and washed us from our sins in His own blood.
Far dearer than all that the world can impart
Was the message that came to my heart.
How that Jesus alone for my sin did atone,
And Calvary covers it all.
Calvary covers it all,
My past with its sin and stain;
My guilt and despair
Jesus took on Him there,
And Calvary covers it all.
The stripes that He bore and the thorns that He wore
Told His mercy and love evermore
And my heart bowed in shame as I called on His Name,
And Calvary covers it all.
Calvary covers it all,
My past with its sin and stain;
My guilt and despair
Jesus took on Him there,
And Calvary covers it all.
How matchless the grace, when I looked in the face
Of this Jesus, my crucified LORD;
My redemption complete I then found at His feet,
And Calvary covers it all.
Calvary covers it all,
My past with its sin and stain;
My guilt and despair
Jesus took on Him there,
And Calvary covers it all.
How blessed the thought, that my soul by Him bought,
Shall be His in the glory on high;
Where with gladness and song, I’ll be one of the throng
And Calvary covers it all.
Calvary covers it all,
My past with its sin and stain;
My guilt and despair
Jesus took on Him there,
And Calvary covers it all.
But God forbid that I should glory, save in the cross of our LORD Jesus Christ, by whom the world is crucified to me, and I to the world.
“It is not as though YHWH exists and the attribute of forgiveness is attached to Him. No, Hebrew suggests that forgiveness is what it means to be YHWH.”
I have been chewing on this idea of understanding YHWH as a list of attributes vs how he actually is. I want to bullet point all the things I know about him rather than relate to him as spirit comprised of the many traits I learn individually. It is difficult at times to see YHWH wholly all at one time. I suppose the difficulty lies in trying also to understand sin apart from death. Sin isn’t a cause of death, but the other side of the same coin, right? Separation from God isn’t an effect of the cause of sin, they are both sides of the same coin, right? If I jump off a cliff and fall, I can’t separate the jumping from the falling, they are both sides of the same coin, right?
“There is no indication here that God cannot pardon because Christ has not yet been crucified, nor is there any suggestion that God’s forgiveness is limited because the Tanakh knew only the sacrificial system. No, pardon is YHWH’s prerogative and it seems available whenever He wishes to show it.”
This statement really makes more sense in dealing with the before/after the cross puzzle I’ve struggled with most all my Christian life as well. I’m still trying to figure out the machinations of what the need and result of Yeshua’s death mean as it relates to the whole scheme of things. It’s like finding some puzzle piece you’ve been looking for and finally begin to complete the hole of a section that just wouldn’t come together no matter how good you looked.
Christ was prefigured in the O.T. and is preeminent in the N.T. Christ was foreshadowed in the O.T. and fulfilled in the N.T. The sacrifice of Christ was promised in the O.T. and provided in the N.T. Christ was hidden in the shadows in the O.T. and brought to glorious revelation (light is that which reveals) in the N.T. ~ In Him dwelleth all the fulness of the Godhead bodily ~ (Colossians 2.9)
In “short?” Yeshua is YHWH. He (the One who hung naked upon Calvary’s cross) is God. Fully God.- And fully Man. Look again “Who” is was that was beaten and mocked and scorned and rejected.
The scriptures, the words of God’s inspired writings will come alive and start to blaze in our hearts when we realize and recognize, the Master Theme of tHis Book is “behold the Lamb.”
~ Then Jesus took them through the writings of Moses and all the prophets, explaining from all the Scriptures the things concerning Himself ~ (Acts 24.27)
Yes, it was Christ who stood behind the lattices of the Old Covenant, word-pictured to us as an intense love story. The ceremonial law is called a wall of partition (Eph. 2: 14) and a veil (2 Cor.3: 13). He was that substance near and was not far off from the shadows, (Col.2: 17).
Even our bodies are a wall, but we will see Him face to face shortly. Even now He stands behind the sacraments we partake of. Sights of Him in our hearts, thru revelation, keep us continually hoping for His return.
“Even the mystery which has been hid from ages and from generations, but now is made manifest to the saints.” Col. 1: 26
>>“Even the mystery which has been hid from ages and from generations, but now is made manifest to the saints.”<< Colossians 1:26
A mystery made manifest? and what mystery might this be? that the mighty God, El Elyon, would become a man and be born in a barn in Bethlehem? that the Eternal Word would become flesh and live among us?- that he would humble Himself as a man in total obedience, yet die a sinless substitutionary death upon a Roman instrument of torture?
Why was He "introduced" to the world by John the Immerser and named as "the Lamb of God which takes away the sins of the world?"
Did the cross of Christ serve any purpose at all? Was tHis death necessary?
" and most certainly, the mystery of godliness is great: He was manifested in the flesh, vindicated in the Spirit, seen by angels, preached among the nations, believed on in the world, taken up in glory "
1 Timothy 3.16
May I ask? Who was manifested in the flesh?
“May I ask? Who was manifested in the flesh?”
Hi Carl,
Is not that what they call a “rhetorical” question?
WHo else could it be?
Especially coming from you 🙂
Mi khamoCha? Who is like YOU? Our YAH is wonderful, I get so thrilled with Him every day, as I see His mercies and patience upon mankind, holding back His wrath not willing that any should perish, but many will turn back to Him and to His ancient paths, where the end is revealed from the beginning. Amein!
I sense His grief as mankind degenerate as they are led by ‘shepherds’ not after His heart, who follow after traditions of man, and their erroneous teachings/interpretations.
“There is no indication here that God cannot pardon because Christ has not yet been crucified, nor is there any suggestion that God’s forgiveness is limited because the Tanakh knew only the sacrificial system. No, pardon is YHWH’s prerogative and it seems available whenever He wishes to show it.”
So, how would this statement balance with Hebrews 9:9 and 10:4 seemingly stating that ‘gifts and sacrifices are offered that cannot perfect the conscience,” and “it is impossible for the blood of bulls and goats to take away sins?” (ESV)
TWOT for this word (1505b) סלוחה for ‘forgiveness’ says, “Jehovah himself announces, in response to Moses’ prayers for Israel, that he has forgiven Israel at two of their darkest moments, the golden calf incident and the murmuring at Kadesh Barnea (Ex 34:9; Num 14:19–20). And farther in it states, “The experience of forgiveness in the OT was personally efficacious, although objectively the basis and grounds of that forgiveness awaited the death of Christ.”
I’m still confused on this. This is saying the O.T. forgiveness references in these two incidents was efficacious, in what and how? – effective to the desired end of making the person feel good or completely done and executed, complete in all ways. Is so, then what is meant by the “objective basis and grounds of the forgiveness awaited the death of Christ.” They were forgiven, kind of, sort of? They were forgiven pretty much with the signed, sealed and delivered full forgiveness awaiting Yeshua’s death and resurrection? Forgiven on credit of a future payment? On what basis did YHWH forgive the Israelites in the above two mentioned instances? How can something be efficacious now while still awaiting the objective basis and grounds of a future event? If forgiveness was full, true and complete back then, then what actually did the death/resurrection of Yeshua do, provide, or accomplish?
I still am puzzled. Contradictions abound in my mind.
But if Yeshua, the Lamb, is sacrificed before the foundation of the world, all of this confusion goes away because all are forgiven on the basis of that sacrifice, even if they do not know it as yet.
. . . but what ya gonna do with Galations 4: 4 and Eph. 1: 10 ? (KJB)
Time itself is not full, but it refers to the right, appropriate, or fitting time for an event to occur, and in the light of specific predictive prophecy.
If God could have spared Jesus the cross, then He’s just mean.
But God is good, and no amount of colorful twisty knots will make me color Him as capricious or pointless.
“If God could have spared Jesus the cross, then He’s just mean.”
Hi Dorothy,
I think there is no question that God could have spared Jesus the cross
And figuratively speaking God can be seen as one “mean dog” IMO
But God cannot be seen as a “bad dog” because God is Good
One could argue that God is even meaner to Job than he is to Jesus
Although Job may have been God’s most obedient man on earth
The fact of the matter is, God made Job and his family suffer greatly
So I guess the moral is that if you want to play the role of God’s servant
Suffering is a requirement
Sorry, Michael, but your argument is invalid because you did not touch the question.
Hi Dorothy, glad to see you back, was kind of wondering where you went.
I’ll take a stab at addressing your statement, although it would seem that you regarded it as a question. Maybe that’s where Michael was “confused”.
Even if the death of the Messiah did involve the forgiveness of sins, yet if it didn’t it would not be either “capricious or pointless”, there’s certainly alot going on there that I’m confident we still haven’t got a full grip on, even as of yet. Yet I’m sure of this, death was conquered through His death and resurrection as a man, for our sakes, as men. That’s one thing, another is the positioning of Yeshua as the final authority over men and earth by His placement at the right hand of the Father. (speaking of strength and favor, amongst other things).
The point I would wish you to consider is that even “without” the death of Yeshua procuring forgiveness of sins, death AND resurrection were still needful and certainly not pointless. The scriptures very clearly declare that the “lamb” of God, (read sacrifice) was slain from the foundation(s) of the world. Forgiveness was already procured before the first sin was commited. A Question. Was God’s declarations of forgiveness prior to the cross truthful, or did He leave something out? That certainly wouldn’t be the God that scripture declares.
Just something to consider. If Yeshua died to conquer death which is the result of sin, than He truly died for our sins. (a bit more simply put) In the Hebraic (ie; biblical view) sin and consequences are in fact, one and the same.
I hope this gives you something to consider. YHWH bless you and keep you…..
“Sorry, Michael, but your argument is invalid because you did not touch the question.”
“but what ya gonna do with Galations 4: 4 and Eph. 1: 10 ? (KJB)”
Hi Dorothy,
No problem, I went after the “low hanging fruit” first; ie, your following point:
“If God could have spared Jesus the cross, then He’s just mean.”
You question regarding the NT required a bit of reading and analysis
Of Galations 4: 4 and Eph. 1: 10
4 But when the fullness of the time came, God sent forth his Son, born to a woman, born under the law, 5 that he might redeem those who were under the law, that we might receive the adoption of sons 6 And because you are sons, God sent forth the Spirit of his Son into your hearts, crying, “Abba, Father!” 7 So you are no longer a bondservant, but a son; and if a son, then an heir of God through Messiah.
So in Galations 4 it looks to me like Paul, who had a mystical experience of Christ
Wanted to share this subjective, spiritual, experience with Jews under the Law and Gentiles
To become like Jesus in spirit, a son of God/Man
Ephesians 1:10
Ephesians 1:9 he has made known to us his secret plan, which by his own will he designed beforehand in connection with the Messiah 10 and will put into effect when the time is ripe – his plan to place everything in heaven and on earth under the Messiah’s headship.
In Ephesians 1:10 Paul seems to see Jesus as the Jewish Messiah
Who came to fulfill Yahweh’s secret plan when the time was ripe
As Shakespeare’s King Lear said when his daughter died in his arms
“Ripeness is all”
The only thing I can figure is based on what Skip mentioned previously, I think. That is, forgiveness was delivered by the innate desire of a forgiving YHWH at and when He chooses responding to our returning to him and his way of life depicted in Torah. Yeshua came and died and then conquered the result of our sin, death! He died and rose, defeating this death inevitability that sin wrought causing death itself to die to those forgiven by YHWH. Death no longer lives to kill us in the end anymore having lost it’s power of consumption via Yeshua conquering it once and for all time, never again to be able to allow sin to have its innate effect, separation from YHWH. Sin was an all consuming death, a separation from YHWH in all possible ways because no one could defeat it or conquer it or pass through it unscathed by it consumption. Yeshua, however, having never been defeated by or succumbing to sins effective result, death, died as we will die, yet, rises through death, thus truly eradicating, substitutionally, the death of sin toward us. YHWH sees us in Yeshua as we live by our faith in the Tree of Life, Torah, which in reality is Yeshua’s life, YHWH himself.
So, am I anywhere close?
You got it! Now let this help you interpret Hebrews.