Hand in Hand
You shall remember that you were a slave in the land of Egypt, and the LORD your God brought you out from there with a mighty hand and an outstretched arm. Therefore the LORD your God commanded you to keep the Sabbath day. Honor your father and your mother, as the LORD your God commanded you, that your days may be long, and that it may go well with you in the land that the LORD your God is giving you. Deuteronomy 5:15-16 ESV
Hand – (Today’s Word edition is by Roderick Logan of Arizona) The Hebrew word for hand is, YaD.[1] Depending on the context, it can represent a variety of expressions, including a hand, finger, taking possession of something owned, a demonstration of strength, to show care for, to come along the side of another, or to provide support. In many ways western culture understands this with phrases like: “hand it to me”; “It came into my hands”; “The matter is at hand”; “I have the papers in hand”; and “Give him a handout.”
In the passage cited above the indication is that the LORD’s deliverance of Israel from Egypt is likened to a strong hand. It is easy to imagine a compassionate God with a giant appendage appearing from the heavens and scooping up His children in peril. He is taking possession of those who belong to Him. Of course. What might not be so obvious is a play on words that can only be seen in the Hebrew text.
The larger context of this passage is Moses bringing instructions to Israel on how to behave as a nation inside the Promised Land. Specifically he is addressing the children of the generation that left Egypt thirty-eight years before. These lessons are for them and their children, and their children’s children. In other words, these words are to be handed down from one generation to the next, an unbroken chain from this day forward. These are instructions that begin in the home between parents and their children, but will have lasting consequences throughout the community and in the many years to come.
The Hebrew word for child is, YeLeD.[2] Do you see it? The word for child is the same word for hand, but with the insertion of a lamed (L). Hebrew is first a pictograph language and is transliterated into a phonetic structure as a means of accommodating western readers. In order to appreciate the language, one must come to understand the story that the pictures tell. Each letter is its own picture and when assembled they create a story. The lamed is the picture of teaching, discipling, and learning. In general it is a reference to Torah, which means teaching (not law). When the lamed is inserted into the word for hand it begins to tell an interesting story of what it means to be a child. A child is the boy or girl whose hands are being taught, trained, and mentored on what to do. Hands are for doing things. Hands create, build, mend, repair, sow, reap, gather, and scatter. Hands can elevate and bring down. They can receive and they can reject. Hands are essential to living life and accomplishing one’s purpose. The role of the child is to learn and to emulate those lessons. The role of parents is to be the teachers of those little hands. Mothers and Fathers bear the responsibility of showing what hands – that belong to the LORD – are supposed to be doing. It is also defines what it means to be a child of God; one that is learning and putting into practice lessons taught by Word of the LORD – His Torah.
The presence of the lamed in the center of the word for child demonstrates the importance that teaching is to the center and focal point of the child’s life. Meaning, that as the child grows and matures his behavior and actions will stem from what is in his heart – the central core of his being. This is a universal biblical truth as much as gravity. Whatever the child comes to learn – good or bad, right or wrong – those lessons learned and mentored in front of him become the basis for what his hands will engage in the future. This serves as a great insight for parents wanting to know how to raise their children to fear and love God. As well, it is a principle to be embraced when one is trying to repair and return from a life of chaos and disappointment.
Topical Index: Deuteronomy 5:15-16, hand, yad, child, yeled, training
Thank you, Roderick. I appreciate your thoughts, words and insight. May I be once who is continually learning, as you suggest.
Thank you Roderick.
As a follow up, which arm and hand did the LORD use? Left, right or both?
Great post Roderick. I have a special sense of urgency as my children near the age of independence. My wife and I keep discussing what the kids need from us in preparation and training as they reach college age – and more than academics, I keep thinking of the kind of example I’ve been setting all along now. It’s more scary than encouraging. But we are all children of God, so my hope is that, at least for the next couple of years, my kids will see me retraining my hands.
Gabe,
My wife, Melody, and I raised three children. We are also involved with our seven grandchildren. I certainly do understand your concern; even your fears. We had them too, and still wrestle with them yet. Our hope and faith is in the One who holds us all in His hands.
BEAUTIFUL ; especially the word in HEBREW Child and Hand the same.
Nicodemus went to Jesus for a helping hand.
He found out he needed a new heart.
One from above and newly opened
upon arrival.
This personal meeting between Nicodemus and Jesus
pictures how we all should personally examine
Jesus for ourselves.
This new heart, wrapped up in God’s loving and mighty hands,
makes for a great Book!
As with Gabe…as we read this message this morning…I knew what was coming … the end result is that our children (and us) are a product of our upbringing, our culture, our baggage, our goals and on and on and on .. and then they add to that package that they leave home with – their own views, peer pressure, and on and on…. and now…in this day, as we are trying to serve YHVH and His Holy Word as best we can .. we are still reaping the whirlwind from ‘not knowing’ how to serve Him. May Abba give us, His children, more mercy and grace and wisdom than we truly deserve. May it be so.
Pam
I am right there with Pam and Gabe. I just have to take comfort in the fact that He is doing a work in us as their parents at this stage so they at least are aware much sooner than we were. We tell our kids that we are doing the best we can, but we don’t want them to do “as good as we have done”, that our hope is that they will do better than we have done.
Thanks for this great post.
“Hebrew is first a pictograph language and is transliterated into a phonetic structure as a means of accommodating western readers.”
Hmmm… something seems a little off with that statement. Didn’t the transition of the language take place long before there were Western readers.
Something I often think about in regard to the mentoring and teaching of children: Even God’s children chose chaos and disappointment. We can chose to set a good example and create an environment for a positive outcome, but we cannot control the outcome.
Tanya, funny you bring this up, I was just reading here:
http://ancienthebrewpictographs.blogspot.com/
plus the first thoughts to my mind on this TW was that some mighty bad people bring up mighty bad kids, — but then God comes along and the life is changed!
God overrules.
more investigations to do . . .
Thank you, Dorthy for sharing the blog. I found it a helpful addition to my continued inquiry into the topic. Last year I addressed a brief question to Bob Gorelik about Pictograph Hebrew. I thought others might find his answer useful so I pasted it bellow.
“Dear Mr. Gorelik, What is your opinion of the Pictograph Hebrew Alphabet? Is this a sound method of drawing meaning from scripture? I understand the idea that Hebrew as well as other ancient languages were once pictures before they transitioned into a phonetic alphabet, but can we know with certainty the meaning behind these ancient symbols?
Thank you for your time. Shalom> Tanya Predoehl”
“Shalom Tanya,
The Hebrew alphabet, like the written alphabet of many ancient languages evolved from pictographs. The first “phase” of the transition, i.e., from pictographs to an non-pictographic alphabet, is known as Paleo-Hebrew. This was the alphabet used by the Jewish people until the time of the Babylonian Captivity (586 BCE), when Aramaic Square-characters were adopted.
Although it may be helpful to understand what each pictograph “behind” each letter of the Hebrew alphabet meant at one time, the most important principle that applies to properly understanding the Bible is to know what the original author meant when he was writing (or speaking) to the original audience. The earliest books of the Bible were written in Paleo-Hebrew (they do not contain pictographs) – and what the words meant when they were originally written or spoken (by whatever author employed them) is still what the words mean even for us today. It is one of the reasons why the authorship of Biblical books is so important. And, why it is so important that we do not impose our Western perspective on Biblical texts which were written by Jews primarily for Jewish audiences.
Hope this helps. Be well. Bob”
As I have mentioned in a few places, pictographs can be very useful, but they are subject to the N. R. Hanson “duck-rabbit” issue, that is, since each consonant carries more than one pic to-meaning, it is possible to derive multiple meanings from any given pictograph. Therefore, while the pictographs help me see some of the ancient connections, I don’t think they can BY THEMSELVES provide evidence for theological positions. As Bob said, in the end it comes down to “What do these words mean to the author who wrote them?”
This is one of the reason why we have such intense debates about the “law.” Our idea of “law” comes from the Roman world (via Greek philosophy) while the Hebrew idea of “law” (Torah) comes from the world of ancient Egypt in the 16th Century BC. There is a VERY BIG DIFFERENCE! The meaning of the biblical terms Torah and Nomos do not arise from Roman thought. To interpret them as if they did is a very big mistake.
Tanya, here is a bit more explanation to clarify my statement. The Hebrew language, both ancient and modern, does not use an alphabet like western languages. If you consider the message that I am typing out right now you will notice I am using a phonetic-based alphabet (English) that we both recognize. If I was communicating in Hebrew the letters of my text would have a very different appearance. Not only that; but their representation would also differ. The letter “A” in English represents a sound, as it would in French, or Spanish. In Hebrew, the “aleph”, does not represent a sound; but an image. So too do the other letters of the Hebrew alpeh-bet. These images carefully arrange not only form words; but concepts and principles. That is what I meant by the difference between the Hebrew language and western languages; one is phonetic (sound-based) and the other is a pictograph (image-based).
Technically speaking, transliteration is not a translation. Transliteration is a mechanical linguistic tool used to help those who do not know how to read pictographs. It is a conversion of a pictograph text into a phonetic text. Translation is the conversion of the message of the text from one language to another. I hope this helps clarify my point. Thank you.
Our children have rightly been referred to as “God’s little spies!” Yes, our “attitudes AND our actions” are ALL witnessed by those little wide eyes and tender trainable hearts within the crucible of the home. It is the parents responsibility (not the state!) to “train up a child in the way he (or she) should go.” How disastrous for the children of our culture, when either mom or dad (or both) are Missing In Action, relegating their children’s education to someone (anyone) outside of the home. What we desperately need is parental involvement in the “rearing” of our children.
We certainly have ~ sown the wind and are now (just beginning) to reap the whirlwind. Dad, I especially am charging you with this crime. Where were you while during the growth of your child into “manhood?”
Did you (do you?) lead (or teach) by example? Do they “see” you love and respect your wife? Did they see you with your face in your Bible or hear you as you prayed together “at God’s Table?”
From an early age, we train and discipline our children,- but their training (and discipline) will be no better than ours. We must (we MUST) beg God to be the father, to be the mother- He wants us to be!, – for He has said (we do pay attention to His words, -right?) ~ without Me you can do nothing! ~
Friends, as a father, this is my goal. To raise my children (all my children) to love the LORD their God with all their heart-soul-mind and strength, and to do this, to accomplish this great task, I must, I shall be -by the grace of God, and “only” with and by His help, the godly father and loving husband He has called me to be.
“What if?”- What if our children “grew up” to be exactly like their father? -Friends, it all starts in the home (and ends in our final “home!”)
Okay, so where do “I” begin? ~ And He said: ~ Truly I tell you, unless YOU change and become like little children, you will never enter the Kingdom of Heaven ~ And if you want to be “great” in God’s Kingdom, “learn” to be the servant of all! And where does the “best” learning take place? We learn (without a doubt!) by doing. Now go.. – and ~ serve one another in love! ~ Be followers of God as dear children – and walk in love! ~
~ He said to them, “I can guarantee this truth: unless you change/turn (straphēte) and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of Heaven ~ (Matthew 18.3)
And He said, “Let the little children come to Me, don’t stop them, for the Kingdom of Heaven belongs to such as these.”