Deutero-Hebrews

The Lord is the one who goes ahead of you; He will be with you. He will not fail you or forsake you. Do not fear or be dismayed.  Deuteronomy 31:8  NASB

Forsake you– You are probably more familiar with this verse from its citation in Hebrew 13:5: “Make sure that your character is free from the love of money, being content with what you have; for He Himself has said, ‘I will never desert you, nor will I ever forsake you.’”  Of course, the author of Hebrews alters the context and the application, but he is providing a remez, so we would expect him to do just that.  Within Christian circles, we tend to further truncate the verse, retaining only the idea that God will not fail us or leave us. We forget that the original statement was given to the Israelites before they crossed into the Promised Land.  It’s a long way from the Jordan to exhortations about money to applications about safety.  But even these adaptations can help us in crossing our own Jordan river.

Think about the insight of Joe Steenkamp:

“Mostly our minds are preoccupied with the need to be in control at the expense of being and feeling alive.”[1]

“Once you make peace with yourself and become free, you are open to receiving input from any possible stimulant, and you are equally free to choose your contribution to life.”[2]

Moses tells the people that God is with them.  He will not leave them without guidance or protection.  The Hebrew here is yaʿāzbekka. The verb is ʿāzab, “the basic meaning of ʿāzabis clearly seen in its literal use where it has three distinct emphases: to depart, to abandon, and to loose.”^[3]  In this verse, it is preceded by lōʾ, the strong sense of “not.”  TWOT notes that “lōʾwas the primary Hebrew term for factual negation in contrast to ʾal which typically described potential negation.”^[4]  In other words, Moses declares that YHVH will never fail or forsake.  Never!  If ever there were reason to abandon the preoccupation with control, this is it!  And, as Steenkamp notes, once we stop worrying about taking charge of everything, we are free to choose what to take in and what to give out.  Freedom is not found in controlling my world.  It is found in cherishing the world God has given me.

When the author of Hebrews adapts the words of Moses, he uses the Greek ĕgkatalĕipō, a word constructed from a preposition of “place” and a verb meaning, “to leave behind.”  The author might be applying this idea in contrast to the power of money for his purposes, but we can stretch the meaning beyond that. We can discover that we will not be left behind.  We can find respite in God’s faithfulness—and start living instead of grasping.

A few days ago I wrote about the movie Leave No Trace.  I examined the verse in Hebrews, and the same Greek verb.  Today maybe we made some progress over our fear of abandonment. Today maybe God’s promise is enough, because we have His history with Israel as the assurance.  But it still requires emotionally connecting.  The words don’t make much difference until I feel an arm around me.

Topical Index:  forsake, ʿāzab, ĕgkatalĕipō, left behind, Hebrews 13:5, Deuteronomy 31:8

[1]J. Steenkamp, SHIP: The Age-Old Art of Facilitating Healing, p. 173.

[2]Ibid., p. 204.

^[3]Schultz, C. (1999). 1594 עָזַב. In R. L. Harris, G. L. Archer, Jr. & B. K. Waltke (Eds.), Theological Wordbook of the Old Testament.

^[4]Theological Wordbook of the Old Testament. 1999 (R. L. Harris, G. L. Archer, Jr. & B. K. Waltke, Ed.) (electronic ed.) (463). Chicago: Moody Press.