Hebrew Word Study – Reduction In Material Things – Qalal      קלל    Qop Lamed Lamed

Deuteronomy 28:45: “Moreover all these curses shall come upon thee, and shall pursue thee, and overtake thee, till thou be destroyed; because thou hearkened not unto the voice of the LORD thy God, to keep his commandments and his statutes which he commanded thee: (46) And they shall be upon thee for a sign and for a wonder, and upon thy seed for ever. (47) Because thou servest not the LORD thy God with joyfulness, and with gladness of heart, for the abundance of all things;”

There is not a real commandment in Scripture to be joyful, however, one who fails to fulfill God’s commandments with a joyful heart and fails to appreciate God’s kindness will suffer curses. The word for curses in Hebrew here is haqelalaoth which is from the root word qalal which means a reduction in material things. 

We are encouraged to serve God with joyfulness and gladness of heart. The word joyfulness in Hebrew is simekah which is to rejoice with positive feelings. To feel appreciative and thankful. To have a heart filled with thankfulness for the life He has given us through His Son Jesus Christ. We are also to serve the Lord with gladness of heart.  The word gladness is tov which is to be in harmony.  We are to serve God with a heart that is in harmony with His heart. We do not serve Him out of obligation or duty. We do not serve Him with the hope that He will pay us. 

The story is told of two young shoe salesmen who did the exact same thing every day. They measured customers’ feet, searched for the right size shoe, and patiently work with the customer to make sure he found the right shoe.  By the end of the day, one worker was exhausted and rushed to the door at closing time, glad to be through with his day of work. The other did not rush to the door to go home, he stayed around to sweep up even though it was not part of the job.  He was not exhausted or weary.  Yet, these two employees did the same work.  

There was just one difference between the two workers, one was just an employee, and the other was the owner’s son who loved his father and looked forward to inheriting his father’s business. This explains our study verse.  We could be just an employee who punches a clock or we could be a beloved son serving out of a heart of love.

We can spend hours every day studying the Word of God, praying, witnessing, and soul winning but if it is drudgery then God is saying, “Hey, I don’t need your subservience or service just to promote an endgame for yourself.”  

The whole purpose of our service to God is to draw closer to God.  Sharing his love with others, sharing his message of salvation.  God is giving us an opportunity to bond with Him and draw closer to Him.  If we do not desire to know His heart then we just as well not waste our time trying to serve Him if our only motive is to get a spot on the train to heaven or get some paycheck. 

Song of Solomon 5:2: teaches: I slept but my heart was awake. Listen! My beloved is knocking: “Open to me, my sister, my darling, my dove, my flawless one. My head is drenched with dew, my hair with the dampness of the night.” God is knocking at our door, anxious to draw close to us, offering us opportunities each day to draw closer to Him through the study of His Word, prayer, meditation, and sharing his message of salvation.  Yet how do we respond? Look at verse 3: “I have taken off my robe— must I put it on again? I have washed my feet— must I soil them again?”  Here we have our beloved God knocking on the door of our hearts longing to commune with us and be close to us how do we respond? “Oh, bother, do I have to get up and open that door, get dressed, and have a visit and then I have to undress to get ready for bed again? I am just too tired, too weary to take any guest right now.” 

If God is truly our heart’s joy and loves it will be no bother whatever to jump out of bed, freshen up and open the door and spend all night chatting if that is what He desires. If going to church every Sunday is too much of a bother, then don’t do it. If giving an offering is to much of a sacrifice then don’t give anything. If sharing the Gospel message with one hungry for God is just too heavy a burden, then forget it.  God doesn’t need your help, He owns the cattle on a thousand hills, He doesn’t need your dollar bills.  He doesn’t need you to be a warm body to fill a seat in a church, He has plenty of people shut up in hospitals, prisons, or trapped in their homes with little mobility who would give anything to sit in your seat at church.  He doesn’t need your voice to speak his Gospel message, He can make the rocks cry out.

So don’t do God any favors, he doesn’t need them. What He needs is a heart filled with simchah joy and tov in harmony with His heart over the life He has given you.  You may just find yourself with a qalal – reduction in material things.

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