What’s It Worth

I have rejoiced in the way of Your testimonies, as much as in all riches.  Psalm 119:14

Testimonies – The bet section of this extended acrostic gives us four terms for God’s instructions in addition to the general category torah.  They are: ḥōq (statute), mišpāṭ (ordinance), miṣwâ (commandment), and ʿēdût (testimony).  The root of “testimony) is עוּד (ʿûd) return, repeat.^[1]  Our word, ʿēdût (testimony), carries the nuance from ʿûd, “to repeat,” “to do again,” has the sense of repetition and permanence.^[2]  Consider the following:

עֵד (ʿēd). Witness. (ASV and RSV similar.) This word, appearing some sixty-seven times in the ot, is also derived from the root ʿûd meaning “return” or “repeat, do again.” The semantic development apparently is that a witness is one, who by reiteration, emphatically affirms his testimony. The word is at home in the language of the court.

A witness is a person who has firsthand knowledge of an event or one who can testify on the basis of a report which he has heard^[3]

(ʿēdût). Testimony, reminder, warning sign. (ASV and RSV are similar but the latter will occasionally use the rendering “warning,” cf. II Kgs 17:15; Neh 9:34, which is justified since the meaning of this word is not simply a corroborative testimony but also a warning testimony.) ^[4]

This word is always used in reference to the testimony of God.^[5]

Now we have some context.  When the poet speaks of God’s testimonies, he doesn’t mean a recounting of all the commandments.  He doesn’t mean a list of God’s governmental orders.  He doesn’t mean a catalog of God’s social statutes.  He means the repeated history of God’s involvement with His people, and all that is included in that history.  God’s faithfulness, His repeated commitment to Israel, His continual dedication to this chosen group, all of this is summarized in ʿēdût.

We often claim that Israel does not have an evangelistic orientation.  Jews don’t preach on the streets.  They don’t hand out tracts.  They hardly ever invite outsiders into the synagogue.  Because we think godly evangelism is defined by public declaration, we think the Christian Church is fulfilling the commandment to spread the Word while the Jews remain a closed community.  But now we recognize the true evangelical direction—recounting God’s commitment to Israel through the ages.  And this happens continuously in Jewish circles: the Parashat, the festivals, the rituals, the daily prayers—year after year, proclaiming God’s faithfulness.  This is biblical evangelism manifest in community.

Topical Index: ʿēdût, testimony, evangelism, Psalm 119:14

^[1] Schultz, C. (1999). 1576 עוּד. In R. L. Harris, G. L. Archer Jr., & B. K. Waltke (Eds.), Theological Wordbook of the Old Testament (electronic ed., p. 648). Moody Press.

^[2] Ibid.

^[3] Ibid.

^[4] Ibid.

^[5] Ibid.