The Other Great
beautiful in elevation, is the joy of all the earth, Mount Zion, in the far north, the city of the great King. Psalm 48:2 ESV
Great – OK, God is great. But so is the king, right? In fact, in our inverted world, kings often get more praise than God (as John Lennon once quipped). Most deserve far less. Perhaps David could be considered praiseworthy, but even he would never compare himself to El Shaddai. So why do we have this accolade to the king, the great king of Zion.
Ah, it’s only a problem in translation. You see, here David avoids the word gadol, also translated “great” but of an entirely different order. Here the word choice is rab, a word that signifies greatness in terms of multiplicity. A great big bunch of something. Lots of people. Lots of money. Lots of power. Lots of pride. From the verb rabab, the word means “much” or “many.” You recall that gadol is never used of God in this sense. Gadol is used for the uniqueness of God, His absolute singularity. Yes, He is great, but never in the sense of lots and lots. He is great in His utter distinctiveness. Nothing and no one is like Him.
The great king of the city is like other kings, only perhaps a bit more elevated, a bit wealthier, a bit smarter. Solomon was such a king. But none of that makes a great king gadol great. His greatness is simply a matter of relative comparison. With God there is no comparison. Got it?
Now you see the problem. Without a lexicon, and a bit of study, the English Bible communicates what appears to be a similarity between the king and the Lord. We don’t see that there are two quite different words involved. This leads us to imagine that we can treat God as we would treat any magnificent King—just a bit better of course. But that mistake overlooks David’s deliberate choice of separate Hebrew words. It’s not that the translation is wrong. It’s just inadequate. English just can’t communicate what is expressed in Hebrew.
If you’ve been a reader for some time, I am sure that by now you realize how hampered we are with translations. Often I am asked, “What Bible would you recommend that translates correctly?” The answer has to be none. Can you see why? Gadol and rab both mean “great.” There really isn’t any other word choice in English. But translating two Hebrew words into one English word, even if it is correct, leaves us panting for understanding. There is no substitute for the original, and that means there is no way to actually read the text unless you know something about Hebrew (and Greek, of course). So get used to it. Get to work. A little at a time. One word a day. Eventually, things will be great (which word would you choose?).
Topical Index: great, gadol, rab, rabab, Psalm 48:2
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Who, (sumdumguy inquired) is a priest forever after the order of Melchizedek? (My God is King). ~ A greater than Solomon is here! ~ Any idea, clue or concept who this “One” (totally unique individual) might be?
~ And when they saw Him, they worshiped Him, but some doubted.. ~
Shall we join “them?” -or shall we side with the doubting Thomas’s?
~ Worthy is the Lamb who was slain and has redeemed us unto God by His blood? ~ When,where and why was this Lamb slain?
~ Who is this King of glory? ~
“Now you see the problem. Without a lexicon, and a bit of study, the English Bible communicates what appears to be a similarity between the king and the Lord. ”
Thank you. In fact, I always assumed the reference to the great King had to do with the Great King since Jerusalem is His. ‘Can’t recall ever hearing anyone teach on it and for sure I didn’t look it up.
Another insightful teaching. Skip mentioned El Shaddai which is often translated God Almighty but isn’t accurate. Since shad is breast, I’ve heard that it means God, multiple /multi breasted One. What’s the best translation Skip?
Of all places, Wikipedia (“el Shaddai”) gives a pretty fair summary of the theories surrounding the etymological origin of the word. Read in conjunction with TWOT #2332 and #2333, we realize that most of this is speculation. No one will know where the word really came from until we can ask the authors.
Oh, dear. Hampered by translations. And still you offer us yet another translation. 🙂
read which ever one you wish, just don’t read “great” as “great”
Oh, great. I might just have to re-define “great” now. Maybe I could start with what it may have meant to the original TRANSLATORS. Wonder what “great” means in paleo-english…
No need to redefine. Just to recognize that there is more than one word in Hebrew and the two words don’t mean quite the same thing. Unfortunately, no one bothered to tell you that when they translated to English.
I truly am excited for yet another way to appreciate and think about Him! Thank you!
Thanks again Skip for another insight, I am however, disappointed with LAZY translations. You point out that with a little creativity “a few word”, there would be less confusion.
EL Shaddai, The Giver/Sustainer/Provider of Life, The One Who Is Sufficient/Enough (dai דַּי )/Abundance/Fruitfulness/Fertility, Exceedingly, The One and Only, The Powerful One of the mountains and also of the plains, The Awesome One.
HE is mi chamochah מִי כָמֹֽכָה !
http://youtu.be/50AN7P39HBA
Shabbat Shalom!