HEBREW WORD STUDY – OUR SONG ZAMARAH זמרה
Exodus 15:2: “The LORD [is] my strength and song,”
This song was sung, or as I explained in an earlier study they spoke the song at this time but will sing it at a later date which is yet to come. What does really fascinates me is this idea of the Lord being their song. There used to be a little song we sang during a worship service where we quoted this verse and every time I sang that song, I often wondered what it means that the Lord is my song. I understand that the Lord is my strength and my salvation but a song?
Let me share with you something I found interesting. This song was spoken right after the crossing of the Red where the Egyptian army perished in the sea. After many miracles where God demonstrated, not only His love but His power over all the Egyptian gods, the Hebrew were now free of their captivity from the Egyptians. These were people forced to live in an idolatrous land where they were very familiar with the gods of Egypt and the pagan worship, more familiar than we are today. I believe this song spoke of something much more significant to the Hebrew people than we pick up today.
First, let me explain what a song was in ancient times. There were a number of words for singing and songs but the word used in this verse for song is zamar which is a word for a pruning hook or pruning a tree. When used as a song it represents a song of deliverance, a song of victory over having “pruned” your enemies from you. This is why the NIV does not render this as song at all but as a defense. But there is a history here that a simple English translation cannot give. You see song in ancient times were real stories.
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One of the most popular, important, and celebrated god or goddess in Ancient Egypt was the goddess Hathor. She appeared in many different incarnations and was the consort of Ra and Horus. She was the goddess of joy, dancing, and music. In the Book of the Celestial Bovine, the story goes that when Ra was ruling the earth, the humans in the land of Mesopotamia began to plot against him. So Ra sent Hathor in an incarnated form of the goddess Sekhmet, a warrior goddess to destroy them. Her breath was said to have created the desert and she got so into the fight that she became bloodthirsty and she could not stop killing. Ra was so aghast at the slaughter that he poured huge quantities of alcohol colored like blood on the ground. Thinking it was blood she began to drink it and became so drunk that she returned to her former gentle self. However, when she realized what she had done she was so ashamed that she did not return to Egypt. But many pleaded with her to return, so she did. Throughout much of the history of Egypt, her priestess would travel from town to town singing and dancing and encouraging everyone to join in the celebration of Hathor, the protector of Egypt who could perform great wonders.
You see they were singing songs of the accomplishments of Hathor, their goddess protector. The Egyptians claimed the stories of Hathor were their songs. Our modern Christian music tends to shorten lyrics such that they do not tell stories like our old hymns and Gospel songs use to do, so many in our younger generation may find it difficult to understand what it means that God is our song. But the children of Egypt now had a new song, a new story to tell. This story declared Egypt’s goddess Hathor returned but they would not for they had a different god one more powerful than Hator.
Maybe someday we will return to telling stories or testimonies about our God, but no matter, God’s story or song, is our song, our story of deliverance and defense.
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Thanks & Blessings, it means a lot to me!
Love the content. I had never thought of song that way and what you explained makes it more meaningful to me. Thank you!
Thanks Chaim.
I think it’s wonderful that God gave us music and song. There is a song that most Christians are familiar with and it is popular among children . ” Jesus loves me this I know for the Bible tells so”. Now there was some kid that thought it was funny to change the words to” Jesus loves me more than you. The Bible tells me this true! ” . I don’t think he realized that could be understood two different ways. If you understand it using the”devil’s game” ( mine is better than yours) you might see it as Jesus loves me more that He loves you . However if you understand it using God’ s way it could mean that Jesus loves me more than you love me and this is very true .Nobody can love you as much as Jesus can love you . Think about that!
Since I want to learn all I can about the Bible I often watch a Jewish Shabbat Service on line . I have even learned parts of some songs in Hebrew. The psalms are sung and the Torah chanted. I watch it mostly to hear Hebrew spoken . Their Torah scrolls are copied by hand the way they were for over 3 thousand years .The Scrolls are real works of art. Now remember that Jesus was born a Jewish Person for a reason .Get to know God’s Chosen People . There is a reason ! It doesn’t hurt to learn from them believe me. I will soon be 78 years old and I believe that it was God that has put the love for the Jewish people in my very soul that I may learn from them as well as learning from wonderful non Jewish teachers such as Chaim Bentorah