HEBREW WORD STUDY – MOVING FORWARD – ‘AVER – עבר Ayin Beth Resh

Psalms 51:4: “Against thee, thee only, have I sinned, and done this evil in thy sight: that thou mightest be justified when thou speakest, and be clear when thou judgest.”

David is crying out to God confessing his sin with Bathsheba, resulting in the death of Uriah and the baby that was conceived through that union with Bathsheba.  You catch the depths of his grief in the first words leka lebadeka literally it is to you and to you only.  Yet, God has already forgiven him.

Consider this, if David is saying he only sinned against God, then what about Uriah, the loyal warrior to David that he purposely had killed so the scandal of his infidelity would not be known.  How about Bathsheba, the wife of Uriah, she surely had affection for Uriah and suffered grief over his death. Then there was a baby that was conceived in this union resulting in its death. Also, how about his nation, how did that affect his people?  So how can David dare say that He sinned against God alone? 

I believe the answer lies in his use of the word badad which is curious. It does mean only but it is really rooted in the idea of separation.  I believe a more accurate understanding of David’s prayer to God would be to render this in English not “against you, you only” but “Against you, I have been separated by this sin.”

What is really inconceivable to understand is how David deluded himself as to the nature of his sin.  He not only committed two sins but two crimes that carry a capital offense, murder, and adultery.  Yet, David went on his merry way trying to cover up his sin without even considering the fact that he had separated himself from God. First and foremost on his agenda was to cover up the impending scandal and then he would get around to the business of his relationship with God. This man, after God’s own heart, this man who loved God with all his heart, soul, and might, who loved to meditate on the Word of God day and night seeks to cover up his sin before even confessing it to the God he loved.  Yes, even the best of us must be on guard for the subtle change in our relationship with God when we sin lest it goes totally unnoticed. 

The prophet Nathan could have condemned David on the spot and ordered his execution by the Sanhedrin.  David had his enemies and I am sure there were those on the Sanhedrin would have called for his scalp. Yet, read what Nathan said to David; II Samuel 12:13: “And David said unto Nathan, I have sinned against the LORD. And Nathan said unto David, The LORD also hath put away thy sin; thou shalt not die.” Once again he speaks not of sinning against Uriah or Bathsheba, but just against the Lord.  Nathan tells David that God has “put away” his sin.  The word for put away in Hebrew is he’ebir which is in a Hipal perfect infliction.  Before David even asked to be forgiven, God had already put his sin away.  It is interesting Nathan didn’t say God forgave him, but God put it away. The root word is ‘avar which means to pass over, or through, or to move on.  The Semitic root describes this word as breaking into small pieces.  It is used for a wave crashing on a rock.  Once a wave hits a rock it shatters and disappears.  The rock prevents the wave from landing on the beach causing any destruction. God not only forgave David he shattered the sin so it could not cause any further damage to their relationship.  There was damage, however, God would not allow the child to live as it was conceived in sin and that child would have carried the seed to the Messiah. I believe the damage that Nathan was referring to was David’s relationship with God. God forgave David and He would not allow these great sins to hinder his relationship with God.  God would never again bring it up, He would never hold it against David.  His relationship with David remained unchanged and just as intimate as before his sin. 

There was a lot of damage done by David’s sin, but because he repented, there was no damage to his relationship with God. That is why it doesn’t say God just forgave David.  You can forgive someone but somehow that offense the person did to you sometimes has a way of surfacing and being thrown back in the face of the offender.  So, God used the word ‘avar to show that as far as the sin against Him goes, it will never be raised again. God passed through it and over it and just moved on.  David, however, had a little problem moving on.  The consequences of the sin against the others, well that is another matter that God leaves with the offender.  

David knew he would face the consequences but God would not allow him to suffer the capital punishment and in God’s eyes, it was as if David never committed adultery or murder and he and God could go back to their loving relationship with each other. 

The problem is that David could not let go of it and thus we have Psalms 51:4 where David is weeping before God over his sin.  But God assures us that one day He will wipe away all his tears and all ours as well. Revelations 21:4. 

We will have to pay the consequences for our sins against others but against God, well that was nailed to a cross 2,000 years ago and as far as He is concerned, it never happened.  I had an email from someone who had an abortion. She regrets it now, often dreams of the child she once had, she feels an emptiness in her heart and many times weeps. She is suffering the consequence of her actions, but she confessed it to Jesus who nailed it to the cross, and as far as He is concerned that abortion never happened and He wants to be just as close to her as if it never happened. God did His part in forgiveness now she needs to do her part like David and ‘aver, – move forward.

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