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comfortably to Jerusalem and cry unto her, that her warfare is
…” (Isa.
40:2).
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is used of “filling to overflowing”—not just filling up to the limits of
something, but filling so as to go beyond its limits: “For Jordan overfloweth all his banks
all the time of harvest” (Josh. 3:15).
A special nuance appears when the verb is used with “heart”; in such cases, it means
“to presume.” King Ahasuerus asked Esther: “Who is he, and where is he, that durst
presume [literally, “fill his heart”] to do so?” (Esth. 7:5). To call out “fully” is to cry
aloud, as in Jer. 4:5.
The word often has a special meaning in conjunction with “hand.”
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can connote
“endow” (“fill one’s hand”), as in Exod. 28:3: “And thou shalt speak unto all that are
wisehearted, whom I have [endowed] with the spirit of wisdom.…” In Judg. 17:5, “to fill
one’s hand” is “to consecrate” someone to priestly service. A similar idea appears in
Ezek. 43:26, where no literal hand is filled with anything, but the phrase is a technical
term for “consecration”: “Seven days shall they [make atonement for] the altar and purify
it; and they shall consecrate themselves.” This phrase is used not only of setting someone
or something aside for special religious or cultic use, but of formally installing someone
with the authority and responsibility to fulfill a cultic function (i.e., to be a priest). So
God commands concerning Aaron and his sons: “And thou … shalt anoint them, and
consecrate them, and sanctify them, that they may minister unto me in the priest’s office”
(Exod. 28:41).
In military contexts, “to fill one’s hand” is to prepare for battle. This phrase may be
used of “becoming armed,” as in Jer. 51:11: “Sharpen the arrows, fill the quivers.” (
KJV
,
“Make bright the arrows; gather the shields.”) In a fuller sense, the phrase may signify
the step immediately before shooting arrows: “And Jehu drew [literally, “filled his hand
with”] a bow with his full strength …” (2 Kings 9:24). It can also signify “being armed,”
or having weapons on one’s person: “But the man that shall touch them must be [armed]
with iron and the staff of a spear …” (2 Sam. 23:7).
B. Adjective.
(
, 4390), “full.” The adjective
appears 67 times. The basic meaning
of the word is “full” or “full of” (Ruth 1:21; Deut. 6:11).
TO FIND
(
, 4672), “to find, meet, get.” This word is found in every branch of the
Semitic languages (including biblical Aramaic) and in all periods. It is attested both in
biblical (about 455 times) and post-biblical Hebrew.
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refers to “finding” someone or something that is lost or misplaced, or
“finding” where it is. The thing may be found as the result of a purposeful search, as
when the Sodomites were temporarily blinded by Lot’s visitors and were not able to
“find” the door to his house (Gen. 19:11). In a very similar usage, the dove sent forth by
Noah searched for a spot to land and was unable to “find” it (Gen. 8:9). On other
occasions, the location of something or someone may be found without an intentional
search, as when Cain said: "[Whoever] findeth me shall slay me” (Gen. 4:14).