Aramaic Word Study – Angels Singing – ‘Amar Meleka אמר מלכה Aleph Mem Resh – Mem Lamed Kap Hei
Luke 2:13: “ And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God, and saying,”
Growing up in a Baptist church I quickly learned that music played a very important role in your life. If you could not sing or play a musical instrument, then, well what good were you in the church. People would sing solos, sing in the choir, sing in church quartets or quintets. Every room in the church had a piano and by the time I was a teenager carrying a guitar in a guitar case was the ultimate status symbol. I loved the church and I knew the church would be my life, but by an early age, I knew my chances of making a big splash in the church were limited. I was just a good kid with glasses. I was not a former gang member or drug addict with a nifty testimony. I would never be a Hollywood star saved out of the fast life. I was not a yeller or screamer so I would never be a hit as a preacher. My only hope of reaching hero status in the church was music and even there when God was handing out the musical blessings I was, as usual, at the end of the line.
Oh, how I longed to have a musical voice. I would dream of singing Gospel songs that brought tears to the eyes of the brethren and even an Amen from the man himself – the pastor. But, alas, I was doomed to a voice that would clear a room before I could even hit the chorus. I mean when the leader said, “Let’s heist this number” well, I believed in coming on with it. But when I did people all around me turned to look and not with admiring glances. In grammar school when our class was preparing to sing their songs for the annual festival my teachers would always whisper those dreaded words to Glenn Olsen and myself, “Just move your lips, don’t sing.” However, in the sixth grade I had a teacher declare that she never told anyone to move their lips that God gave everyone a voice to sing, all they needed was a little training. If Glenn Olsen and I were willing to give up our recess time she would teach us to sing. Glenn Olsen was another student also cursed with an un-baptist musical voice. Hey, I would give up lunch and gym class if I could learn to sing. Actually, I hated gym class anyways.
Would you like Chaim Bentorah as your personal Hebrew teacher?
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Well come next recess Glenn Olsen and I stationed ourselves at the piano with our beloved teacher sitting between us. She struck a note on the piano and let out a beautiful “Ahhhhhhh.” Then she struck the same note and indicated to Glenn and I to also sing “Ahhhhhhh.” From the look on our teacher’s face, what came out of our mouths was apparently not what she hoped. We tried it a number of times and eventually I got the idea that I was somehow able to match my voice with the sound that the piano was making. She never explained to us how we were to accomplish this and even to this day I have not learned that secret. This lasted for three recesses before we found ourselves out on the playground. I overheard my teacher talking with another teacher when my name and Glenn’s came up. I did not catch all the words but she was saying something about an ulcer and high blood pressure. Anyways, my poor teacher could never again brag as to how she never told any students to just move their lips as Glenn and I became quite the expert at lip sync.
So I must admit that it is not without some bias that I declare to you that nowhere in the Bible does it say that Angels sing. I defy anyone to show me where in the Bible they find angels singing. They are either shouting or saying. But they are never singing. It is only tradition and a plot to embarrass little children during the many church Christmas pageants where you are forced to dress up in a sheet with a coat hanger halo and sing “Glory to God in the highest” that we get the idea of angels singing. Come on, I dare you, look at any translation of this passage in Luke. It clearly says the Angels said, not sing. You want Greek, I will give you Greek. The Greek word is legonton which means to speak, say, tell or command. Oh, but you say, the Book of Luke was written in Aramaic. Well the Aramaic Bible uses the word ‘amar which is also speaking or saying. It does not use the word zamar or shir, which is singing.
Angels are created supernatural beings. They are spiritual so they do not have lips, tongue, vocal cords, lungs and something called a diaphragm without which you cannot sing. Commentators are just a bunch of cowards, they will not point this out as they know they are treading on sacred ground to say angels do not sing. But in this I am no coward, I am going to let the world know you don’t need music to worship and praise God.
The fact that angels do not sing should be very liberating to us who are musically challenged. It means that we can praise and worship God just as much as you musically gifted worship leaders. Hey, we tone deaf Christians with our screeching that we call singing who make an awful noise unto the Lord are just as much able to worship God as you guitar playing angel like voiced worship leaders. Let the world know worship comes from the heart and not a musical sound or beat. I mean not even the angels sing. We pick up on traditions like angels singing and somehow believe they are Scriptural when there is absolutely no Scriptural basis at all for it. Let that be a lesson to us all, that many of our beloved traditions are just that, traditions and there is no Scriptural basis. We must search the Scriptures for even our most cherished traditions. Not these traditions can be wrong, but don’t turn them into dogma if they are not found in the Bible.
Ok, I will admit that I may not be able to make beautiful music but I do like listening to a good worship song now and then when I feel like praising and worshipping my God. I drive a bus for Senior Citizens and the Disabled for the Town of Cicero. The other day as I made my drop at the Cook County Hospital and Rush Memorial, I let my last passenger off at the Chicago Lighthouse for the Blind. This put me right on Ogden Avenue (the old Route 66) and on a fifteen minute journey back to Cicero. As the bus was empty I queued my IPod up to my favorite worship song by Chuck Girard, Sometimes Alleluia and decided to spend some quality worship time with Jesus. Even though Mr. Girard does talk about angels singing in the song, I am willing to overlook this little theological misstep. As I began to lose myself in my little worship time I suddenly heard another voice singing along with Chuck Girard, but it was coming from the back of my bus. It was the most beautiful voice I ever heard, it blended so nicely with Chuck Girard. This person had tremendous breath control as it seems she never took a breath, just one long beautiful melodic accompaniment, almost like a musical instrument, in perfect key and harmony with Chuck Girard. I have listened to this song hundreds of times but I never heard this before, it was just so beautiful but then it hit, “Oh my gosh, who did I forget to drop off?” I pulled the bus to the curb to turn and apologize to my passenger for not letting her off at her destination, but I discovered there was no one else on the bus, only myself and ……………
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Thanks & Blessings, it means a lot to me!
I have no qualms against the idea that singing is not inherently scripturally from Angels, though might I point out any verse that may suggest to make a joyous shout to God? I’m currently lacking brain power this morning about where exactly a verse like that is, and I’m not saying it’s “singing” exactly, but it does sound similar to King David dancing and being partly seen naked due to it; he was just so joyous that he started dancing. And so it might be with singing. Aren’t there also parts in the Psalms that read about King David playing the Lyre and perhaps singing?
And since the word “Angel” is Greek and the older word is something like “Malak” which means “Messenger” (you’d know the word better than I would,) there’s that to consider.
Then there’s how some Angels are such as the ones who went to Sodom and Gomorrah; they gave off the impression of just being men. Then there’s the one who spoke to Samson’s Mother who just gave off the impression of being a man. It sounds as if perhaps they could sing, but didn’t since there was no purpose in it.
I’m in no way trying to say singing is “always required” or that it’s found from Angels in Scripture, unless King David somehow counts as one (and I’m not saying that he definitely does.) If singing works, use it. If it doesn’t, don’t. And sometimes silence may be better.
Love your thought about worship, which express: ‘worship comes from the heart and not from a musical sound or beat’ and I understand, that angels didn’t sing in Luk 2:13.
But can you help me for my understanding … how do you interpret Rev. 15,1-4. In these verses seven angels (Rev 15:1) and those who had been victorious over the beast (Rev 15:2 NAU) sang (greek: ᾄδω ado {ad’-o}) a song.
Same in Rev 5,3, the four living creatures and the twenty-four elders (Rev 5:8 NAU) sang (greek: ᾄδω ado {ad’-o}) a new song.
Are in these verses only men singing? What about the four living creatures and de seven angels? Would be glad, if you could help me in this.
Thank you for the word study and the story. I was about to debate with you on how praise can be accompanied with singing and other times not. And that there are angels that do have mouths like Gabriel or Michael that spoke. So if they can speak why wouldn’t they be able to sing. Yet there are angels like seraphims and others that have body parts of different creatures that don’t sing. But I laughed at the end of your anecdote where I did not have to debate with you. God appointed an angel to show you otherwise. Blessings and thank you, Chaim!
Love the insight. So interesting how tradition often becomes truth. Worship is one such subject. While listening to beautiful worship music, feeling the “anointing ” I decided to turn the music off and see if the “anointing ” was still there. To my surprise, God had left the building. No music, no God. Beautiful music releases a chemical which stimulates pleasure. I told my wife, the ultimate worship is, no preaching, worship music, or talking to someone about God, just total silence and feeling His presence in the realm of imagination. When I sit in silence, dwelling on Him only, no outside distractions, and begin weeping from adoration, to me this is the ultimate worship. So, the American church tradition of worship may be different from the Bible. Maybe not wrong but far from right. The teaching on silence has totally transformed my life. Thank you Chaim for your dedication to Him.
The true story depicted in the movie, “Heaven is for Real”, the little boy who went to heaven said the angels sang to him! You can watch this film on Youtube.
Thank you for the wonderful and beautiful lesson.
Sometimes I feel that it takes a special talent just to appreciate music even if you can’t sing or play a musical instrument. I love all kinds of music. I like to close my eyes and imagine what the music is telling me. There is a song that i s sing in the Synagogue that I can imagine a caravan of camels crossing the desert when I hear it.
What I am wondering is if Angels have no mouth,voice,lips or vocal cords. How did they speak with Abraham,Jacob and many others in the Bible?
I can’t believe that the God I know and love that gave us music would not give music in heaven as well!
LOL, Beautiful Surprise, I’m sure!
We’re never too old to change our minds when God shows us something different.
Enjoy your musings immensely!
Happy Thanksgiving and God Bless!
Amen. What a rich experience to hear the supernatural
Have you ever listened to Paul Wilbur who did two albums as Israel’s Hope, then a number of performances in Jerusalem.Lot’s of Fun, Messianic Jewish sung in Hebrew and English. Have you ever listened to Michael Card who grew up in Youngstown Ohio, and was influenced by the Amish, the Catholic, the Jesuits and modern Charismatic. If you haven’t heard either of these please take a stroll into Youtube Music and type in Michael Card, and also Paul Wilbur Shalom Jerusalem Live. I have in recent months plowed through 5 of your books and 2 of them twice through, after losing my left leg to a Covid shot which caused many bad reactions.
Are you joking me man?! 🤣😂 I LOVE your Way to express and explain your histories Chaim , I have family in Detroit and Texas but not enough money to spend travel again but if I decide to return someday I will visit you if YAH Will and you let me of course … ALELUYAH 🙌🏻
I loved this story. I think it is amazing that you can translate Hebrew and Greek. I’m doing a bible study discipleship program with Jim Richards and that’s how I came across your work. There is quite a bit of listening/study time with the program so I don’t always get to other people’s posts but just wanted to tell you I really appreciate and respect the work you share and love your stories of encounters on your bus. Dianne
I’m so glad somebody finally spoke up, as I’m paid “not to sing in church or choir”. LOL, but truthfully thank you for your study this morning was very enlightening. Have a Blessed Day.