Hebrew Word Study – Secret Place – Kanaph – כנף  Kap Nun Pei 

Psalms 91:1-4: “He that dwelleth in the secret place of the most High shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty. (2) I will say of the LORD, [He is] my refuge and my fortress: my God; in him will I trust. (3) Surely he shall deliver thee from the snare of the fowler, [and] from the noisome pestilence. (4) He shall cover thee with his feathers, and under his wings shalt thou trust: his truth [shall be thy] shield and buckler.”

After many years of studying the Jewish Talmud, the Midrash, and Targums I’ve discovered many little tricks of these masters of the Biblical Hebrew language.  In reading these first four verses in Psalms 91 in the original Hebrew,  I am drawn to consider a possible wordplay that many of the Jewish sages discuss in their commentaries. 

Many times a Jewish sage or teacher will interchange an Ayin for an Aleph and a Samek for a Sine.  The Ayin and the Aleph make no sound and the Samek and the Sine make an “s” sound.  Hence when it is spoken the average person may not be able to detect the subtle difference between these letters if indeed there is a difference.  Some purists would say there is, but that would not prevent the words from becoming linguistically related.  

So, in verse four we find that God will cover us with his feathers or ‘avar with an Aleph.  This could also read as ‘avar with an Ayin which means to move away or to change direction from a sudden event. It is like walking through the woods when a tree falls in front of you and blocks your path forcing you to move in another direction to avoid this sudden event or catastrophe. .  Thus,  we could read this as “He shall move us away or in another direction from a catastrophe to  the sakak  or covering.”  Sakak with a Samek means a covering but it could also be read as sakak with a Sine which means calmness. Thus, we would read this as: “He shall move us away from a sudden catastrophe to a place of calmness under His wings or kanaph.”  kanaph also means a secret hiding place.  That is indeed what hiding under the covering of the wings means.  A mother bird will cover her young with her wings to provide them with a hiding place from predators.  

Psalms 91:4 reads in our KJV text: “He shall cover you with His feathers and under his wings.”  We could also read this as: “He shall move you away from a sudden catastrophe to a place of calmness in His secret hiding place.”  Both mean the same thing but the latter reading seems to fit the emotional context as well the context itself because verse one talks of a secret place of the most high and a deliverance from havot midavar or perilous life-threatening situations.  

Back in the later 19th Century Louisa Stead, her husband, and her young daughter were planning to become missionaries to Africa.  One day they were enjoying a picnic on an ocean shore when they heard the cry of a drowning boy. Mr. Stead immediately rushed to save the child while his wife and young daughter watched in helplessness and horror as they watched this husband and father both being pulled down under the water and drowned.  During Louisa Stead’s sorrow and grief she thought of Psalms 91:4 and from her grief-stricken heart came the words:

“Tis so sweet to trust in Jesus, just to take Him at His word,

To rest upon His promise, just to know, ‘Thus saith the Lord.’

Jesus, Jesus, how I trust Him! How I’ve proved Him over and over

Jesus, Jesus, precious Jesus! O for grace to trust Him more.”

William J Kirkpatrick, a composer of hymns took this poem and put it to music creating one of the great hymns of the late 19th and early 20th Century.  I recall singing this hymn over and over as a child in church and always closing my eyes and praying to God those words: “Jesus, Jesus, precious Jesus.” Hardly a day goes by that I don’t find myself speaking those words that were born over 150 years ago through the grief-stricken heart of a young widow.  A widow who, by the way, did make it to Africa as a missionary with her daughter.

After years of study in Bible Colleges and Seminary and graduate school, years of teaching Biblical languages analyzing complex ancient grammar and word origins, those simple words were born out of a deeply human tragedy of a young widow who learned to overcome deep sorrow through simple trust in Jesus has carried me through some of my own very rough times as I simply pray as I did as a child:

“Jesus, Jesus, how I trust You, How I’ve proved You over and over

Jesus, Jesus, precious Jesus! O for grace to trust You more.  

As I sing this song quietly in my heart over and over I am drawn into that secret hiding place of calmness. 

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