Salmos 113

Salmos 113

Clarke - He is present with the highest angels, and with the poorest of his creatures, to help them. His providence, benignity, and bounty, being united with so much majesty, appear the more admirable. The Creator of all lowers Himself from above the cosmos to consider all of His creation. As the psalmist says... The LORD looks from heaven; He sees all the sons of men. From His dwelling place He looks out on all the inhabitants of the earth, (Ps 33:13-14 ) Humbles (08213)(shaphel from Semitic root word which means to be low) means literally to be low or become low (to sink down). Most uses in the OT are figurative and mean to be humiliated or to be abased. To make humble, to humiliate; to bring down. Shaphel is used literally/figuratively of bringing down trees representing the powerful, influential people of a society (Isa 10:33); of humbling persons (Isa 2:9; 5:15); even a city (Isa 32:19). Shaphel describes being humiliated or placed lower (Pr 25:7; 29:23; Jer. 13:18). Shaphel describes a sound as being low in Eccl 12:4. In its causative sense, shaphel means to bring down (Ezek 17:24), to lay something low (Isa 25:12); to put lower (Pr 25:7); to humiliate (1Sa 2:7). God lowers or humbles Himself to observe the things of earth (Ps. 113:6). In the Septuagint (Lxx) shaphel is represented by the word group of tapeinos (see word study) or tapeinoo (see word study). Shaphel - 27x - abase(4), abased(6), been abased(1), bring him low(1), bring down(1), brings down(1), brings low(1), brought low(1), cast down(1), go down(1), humbles(1), laid low(1), lay low(2), lays it low(2), lowly(1), made low(1), make him low(1), placed lower(1), puts down(1). 1 Sam. 2:7; 2 Sam. 22:28; Job 22:29; 40:11; Ps. 18:27; 75:7; 113:6; 147:6; Pr. 25:7; 29:23; Isa. 2:9, 11f, 17; 5:15; 10:33; 13:11; 25:11f; 26:5; 29:4; 32:19; 40:4; 57:9; Jer. 13:18; Ezek. 17:24; 21:26 Vine adds that "Shaphel rarely denotes a literal lowness. Even in passages where the meaning may be taken literally, the prophet communicates a spiritual truth: “the high [trees] of stature shall be hewn down, and the haughty shall be humbled” (Isa. 10:33), or “Every valley shall be exalted, and every mountain and hill shall be made low …” (Isa 40:4). Isaiah particularly presented Judah’s sin as one of rebellion, self-exaltation, and pride (Isa 2:17; 3:16-17). (Isaiah) repeated God’s indictment on human pride. When the Lord comes in judgment, He will not tolerate pride (Isa. 2:11) then "he shall be brought low” (Isa 2:12). Isaiah applied to Judah the principle found in Proverbs (Pr. 29:23). Pride and self-exaltation have no place in the life of the godly, as the Lord “brings low” a person, a city, and a nation (1Sa 2:7). The prophets called the people to repent and to demonstrate their return to God by lowliness but were generally unheeded. Ultimately the (Babylonian) Exile came, and the people were humbled by the Babylonians. Nevertheless, the promise came that, regardless of the obstacles, God would initiate the redemption of His people. Isaiah expressed the greatness of the redemption in this way: “Prepare ye the way of the Lord....Every valley shall be exalted, and every mountain and hill shall be made low....and the glory of the Lord shall be revealed.…” (Isa. 40:3-5)(Vine's Expository Dictionary of Old Testament and New Testament Words) Behold (02009) hinneh is found 1198x in NAS and means to see, to see intellectually (Job 3:16; Ps 34:12, Jdg 2:7), to look at, to inspect, to regard, to perceive (Dt 4:28, Ge 6:2), to look with favor on (Ps 66:18), to show (Ge 12:1). The Lxx translates ra'ah with ephorao (only in NT in Acts 4:29 = "take note") which means to fix one’s glance upon, to look at, to concern oneself with, to gaze upon. Ephorao is in the present tense which pictures the high and lofty one continually gazing upon and concerning Himself with His creation! The Most High God is not asleep or out of touch! That could be good news or bad news, depending on how we are living our lives -- for His eternal glory or our passing "glory." Hinneh is an interjection meaning behold, look, now; if. "It is used often and expresses strong feelings, surprise, hope, expectation, certainty, thus giving vividness depending on its surrounding context." (Baker) Hinneh generally directs our mind to the text, imploring the reader to give it special attention. In short, the Spirit is trying to arrest our attention! And so hinneh is used as an exclamation of vivid immediacy (e.g., read Ge 6:13)! Hinneh is a marker used to enliven a narrative, to express a change a scene, to emphasize an idea, to call attention to a detail or an important fact or action that follows (Isa 65:17, Ge 17:20, 41:17). The first use of hinneh in Ge 1:29 and second in Ge 1:31 - "And God saw all that He had made, and behold, it was very good. And there was evening and there was morning, the sixth day." Hinneh is oftn used in the idiom "Here I am" in Ge 22:1, 7,11 Ge 27:1,18, Ge 31:11, Ge 46:2 Ex 3:4 1Sa 3:4, 3:16, 12:3, 2Sa 1:7, Isa 52:6, Isa 58:9. Hinneh is used most often to point out people but also to point out things (Ge 31:41, 17:4). God uses hinneh to grab man's attention before He brings destruction (Ge 6:13, 17). God uses hinneh when He establishes covenants (Ge 9:9, 15:12, 17 [when Jehovah cut the Abrahamic covenant], Ge 17:4, cp Ge 28:13, 15), when He provided a sacrificial substitute for Isaac (foreshadowing His giving us His only Son!) (Ge 22:13). Hinneh marks the "chance (The Providence of God)" arrival of Boaz at the field where Ruth was gleaning (Ru 2:4-read about this "chance romance" - Indeed, "Behold!"). Hinneh is used to announce the Lord’s sending of a child as a sign and a prophecy of Immanuel-Emmanuel, the Messiah (Isa. 7:14-note). In fact W E Vine says that it is notable that when behold (hinneh) is used in Isaiah, it always introduces something relating to future circumstances.