Hebrew Word Study – Obsessed – Charash – Cheth Resh Shin
Zephaniah 3:17: “The Lord your God in the midst of you is mighty. He will save you, and He will rejoice over you with joy. He will rest in his love, He will joy over you with singing.
If you read my book Hebrew Word Study A Hebrew Teacher’s Call to Silence you may recall where I made a deal with God that if He would weep when my heart was broken, I would weep when His heart was broken. Yesterday was one of those days where I wept and knew I had entered God’s heart and felt His grief.
I listened to an interview from British television, a counterpart to our 60 Minutes, with a fifteen-year-old girl who was taken to a Satanic cult by her grandmother at the age of two and for thirteen years was tortured and sexually -abused by these Satanists. Up until four years ago before I made my deal with God, I had heard of such rituals and was pretty much unaffected. I do have Asperger’s Syndrome and I am not easily affected by gory sights or descriptions, but this time I just found a deep grief well up in me and I could not stop weeping, I know it was God who was weeping and I was feeling His heart.
This young fifteen-year-old girl told how from the age of 2 until her rescue at the age of 14 she and others were continually sexually violated by adult men and women. She became pregnant at the age of eleven. When the baby was almost full term a Satanist doctor performed an abortion and before her eyes, they killed her baby as a sacrifice to Satan. Then they ate the baby and forced this young child, the mother, to also eat her own child.
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As I said, I worked many years in a deliverance ministry under Dr. Lester Sumrall and I have similar stories before. However, as I listened to this story, I was instantly reminded of a remark by a woman who came through our ministry, had been a Satanist priestess and revealed that she also gave a baby up to be sacrificed to Satan and she said: “The baby was just total love and we had to destroy it.” The enemy wants to destroy love because that is what God is all about. He is more total love than a baby. The enemy wants to destroy that racham love.
Intellectually, I have a hard time believing in an eternal hell of fire and brimstone. Not that I don’t believe it, but that I just can’t wrap my brain around an eternity of a physical fire tormenting a spirit that has no physical body. But if this is what the Bible teaches I am going to believe it, all I am saying is that I personally cannot wrap my brain around it. But I will tell you what I can wrap my brain around and for me, it is worse than eternity in a lake of fire. For me, hell would be to have to spend eternity with such evil as I heard in that interview and with such an evil entity that would cause men and women to do such horrific things and never know or experience the loving presence of God for eternity, that this would more horrible than a fiery torment. You imagine your hell, I will imagine mine but I guarantee we are both imagining our idea of the worst possible fate a human soul could experience.
It is with that thought that I come to this verse in Zephaniah 3:17. Someone on our ministry Facebook page mentioned this verse in response to a meme I posted on God singing to us. I did a study on this some time ago but decided to revisit it after listening to this interview. I just could not get this evil out of my mind and so I needed to focus on the love of God for a while. For me, this verse is the best expression of God’s love, next to the sacrifice of His Son, in the Old Testament. I mean read this carefully. He is saying that He will rejoice over us with joy, He will rest in His love, and He will joy over us with singing. Reading this in the Hebrew I get a picture of God almost like some giddy little school girl experiencing her first love.
Let me ask you a question, what in the blazes does it mean when God says He will rest in His love? This phrase is a very troubling one for translators as it has a variety of meanings many of which fit nicely in the context. I believe there is more than one English word to use here. The Hebrew word that is rendered for rest is charash which in its root meaning is to be silent. That fits the context and I will explain that in my next study. However, there is a very troubling meaning which also fits nicely in the context that I would like to address first in this study as I love the implication. Charash also means to be enchanted or bewitched. Those are not words we like to associate with God. I mean in its literal sense the English word enchant and bewitched implies putting a spell on someone. We obviously do not put a spell on God. However, if we trace this word charash to its Semitic root it does not really imply a real spell but the idea of being so taken with an object or person that you become obsessed with them. In other words, the word charash really means an obsession. So we could say: “He will rejoice over you with joy. He will be obsessed with His love for us, He will joy over us with singing.” I like to use the word enchanted: “He will be enchanted with His love for us.”
You see God just loves to be in love. Just like a young teenage girl with her first love. Like you and like me, we love to be in love. No matter what age we are. I heard on the radio today about a place called The Village in Florida, a retirement community. These are people in their so-called Golden years. They have a practice that if you are available then on a certain day you wear a certain color. If you wear that color you will likely have some elderly gentleman or lady hit on you. No matter what age we humans love to be in love.
Never forget we are created in the image of God and He is the granddaddy of romance, he created us to love romance, probably because it is something He Himself desires. He loves to be in love and when we return that love, he is charash, enchanted.
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A further comment on re- reading your study.
My belief is that there is no eternal hell but all unbelievers are thrown into fire to be destroyed.
We have to agree that God is love.
Such abounding love would not permit Him to perpetuate eternal torment on souls. That would be a cruelty He would never allow.
Oh my goodness
I had just read your previous word study and left a comment about witchcraft and satanism and then this is the very next word study involving the very same topic.
This happens to me a lot – for example at a prayer meeting last year I had been reading that day about Jewish prayer shawls especially the blue cord and its meaning. At the prayer meeting that evening that topic was raised including the connection between the blue cord and the Torah written on sapphire.
Anyway, as I mentioned in my previous response I will be at a prayer conference next month where a guest is a man (now Christian) who was previously ge head of all African witches before being brought to Europe to be abused and trained into satanism.
Some of his testimony explains a lot about the real dark forces that surround us.
I am really, really charash with what I’ve just read. May God bless you even more. Thank you
I know satan is real. He came to me in my dreams the night I accepted Christ as my Savior. He was trying to frighten me. I told him to leave me alone. The next day as I was working, the Holy Spirit revealed to me that satan was mad because I didn’t belong to him anymore. Your story is heartbreaking and so evil that people don’t want to believe but I know it’s true because I met a lot of women who were saved from covens. We are indeed to hate the things that God hates and love what He loves. 🙏
Hallelujah! Thanks for your willingness to share what has been given in the secret/dark places. Letting everybody know. What a joy.
I am sitting here tonight waiting to be entranced by His Love
Thank you for all the teachings on His love. The more I learn, the more I love Him.
Thank you for every teaching on His love!!! It so feeds my soul, I cannot express it in words!!! I have seen, know, and wept over too many evil things in this world, they have broken me, and Father knows that. It is His love, that lifts my soul and comforts me. I am so anxious for Him to come, and this world to be totally back under His control. The more I learn of His love, the more Iong to draw close to Him and the more I love Him!! What a more than beautiful teaching!!!
What a wonderful way to start my day. Thank you again dear Chiam just getting myself ready for a new day and talking to the Lord about my physical situation, I could not have asked for a better uplifting word. Oh it is such a joy to read your wonderful gold nuggets that you dig up each day. I pray you have a glorious day with awesome experiences to share with us. Yes evil is horror beyond understanding Praise the Lord for the girl’s rescue. Lots of love to you and Laura. Bountiful blessings always. Monique. Australia
Amen. I’ve recently been thinking that the word rapture has been misinterpreted when it was written. I’m thinking we are to be enraptured by Him. 😊
Just a thought. Thank you for these teachings. They are a blessing ❤️
So good! I had the same thing happen to me this week. I cried and knew at that moment that my heart and God’s heart were one. Oh, that we would always connect to His heart so we would know Him. He is willing, are we?
WOW!! Very amazing expression. The KJV call it simply ‘ rests ‘
It’s a very, very great exposition!! Charash -Obsessed is a very very amazing expression. The KJV calls it ‘rests’ which’ too weak.
keep up writing
May the Lord bless you
Really amazing!! Thank You, Lord!! I was just thinking about this verse the other day, how the Lord sings over us, and how God’s ways are like artwork, like artistic expression – singing, dancing, painting… So beautiful!! ❤️🕊
It’s a very, very great exposition!! Charash -Obsessed is a very vey amazing expression. The KJV calls it ‘rests’ which’ too weak.
keep up writing
May the Lord bless you
As I read your study today, it reminded me of what I posted on my Facebook page 2 days ago
Hosea 2:6,20,23b
“In that day,” declares IAH, “you will call Me ‘my Husband,’ and no longer call Me ‘my Master.’
“And I will betroth you in faithfulness, and you will know IAH.”
I will say to those called ‘Not My People,’‘You are My people,’ and they will say, ‘You are my ALmighty’ ”
Hallelu IAH! We are IAH‘s special people, whom He made, and we are the sheep of His pasture.
Psalm 100:3 “Know that IAH is ALMighty. It is He who made us, and we are HIS PEOPLE, and the sheep of His pasture.”
1 Peter 2:9-10a “But you are a CHOSEN PEOPLE, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a PEOPLE for IAH’s OWN possession, to proclaim the virtues of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light. Once you were not a people, but NOW YOU ARE THE PEOPLE of IAH;…..”
Titus 2:14
“He (IAHsha) gave Himself for us, to deliver us from ALL LAWLESSNESS and to purify for Himself a PEOPLE for His OWN POSSESSION, zealous for RIGHTEOUS deeds.”
Are you aware that we are a colony of people with real citizenship in heaven. We are a society living under IAH’s ADMINISTRATION,(If you are obeying IAH) although not in the land of our citizenship. We’re sojourners here on earth.
Philippians 3:20
“But OUR CITIZENSHIP is in HEAVEN, and we eagerly await our Savior from there, IAH IAHsha M’Shikha….”
Those who are enemies of M’SHIKHA (Philippians 3:18), do not submit to IAH’s rulership, and Commandments. They live by the flesh, doing (celebrating) what pleases them, not caring if it goes against IAH’s Commandments. They set their minds on earthly things.(Philippians 3:19)
In contrast, those who belong to IAH’s household, obey IAH and His Commandments. They meet with Him on His Sabbath, NOT SATURNSday nor SUNSday — which are TRADITIONS of men. Mark 7:6-8
Although you have the choice to live the way you want, satisfying yourselves, and going against IAH’s Commandments; IAH says that living that way will end in destruction. (Philippians 3:19)
However, if you are sorrowful and turn away from your flesh satisfying behavior, and RESPECT IAH‘s RULERSHIP, by keeping His Commandments, IAH reassures that He has the Will and POWER to bring you into ONENESS with Him.(Philippians 3:21)
Ephesians 2:19
“Therefore you are no longer strangers and foreigners, but fellow citizens with the saints and members of IAH’s HOUSEHOLD, built on the FOUNDATION OF THE APOSTLES AND PROPHETS, with M’SHIKHA IAHsha Himself as the cornerstone. In Him the whole building is fitted together and grows into a holy temple in IAH. And in Him you too are being built together into a dwelling place for IAH Spirit.”
Hallelu IAH!, Alelu IAH!, Alala IAH!
I’ve known about the blood of Jesus and the covenants for years, but for the last 5 months the Lord has let me look at nothing else. In these truths there is a passion and obsession with loving us. For over 40 years, all of my ministry has revolved around the love of God. At 73, He’s putting me back out because I have never seen such lack of love in the Earth and so little teaching on it in the church. Thank you for your exposition on one of my favorite verses.
Thank you! I often wonder if there are people that have no God given soul.
I like to believe that when people that have a soul from God die that Jesus meets them and gives them one last chance to accept Him. Someone may not have accepted Him because they were never truly taught, lied to or had never heard of Him!
Perhaps Hell will be for soulless people!