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The dry climate of the Middle East makes
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a most important word, since it
expresses the act of “irrigating” or “watering” crops (Deut. 11:10). God “waters” the
earth and causes plants to grow (Ps. 104:13-14). Figuratively, He “irrigates” His
vineyard, Israel (Isa. 27:3).
A frequent use of
%
is to express the “giving of water to drink” to animals (Gen.
24:14, 46; 29:2-3, 7-8, 10). Men are given a variety of things to drink, such as water
(Gen. 24:43), wine (Gen. 19:32; Amos 2:12), milk (Judg. 4:19), and vinegar (Ps. 69:21).
In a symbol of divine judgment, God is said to give “poisoned water [
KJV
, “water of
gall”] to drink” to Israel (Jer. 8:14; 9:15; 23:15). In this time of judgment and mourning,
Israel was not to be given “the cup of consolation to drink” (Jer. 16:7).
A healthy person is one whose bones “are moistened” with marrow (Job 21:24;
literally, whose bones “are watered” or “irrigated” with marrow).
GLORY
A. Noun.
(
!
, 8597), “glory; beauty; ornament; distinction; pride.” This word
appears about 51 times and in all periods of biblical Hebrew.
The word represents “beauty,” in the sense of the characteristic enhancing one’s
appearance: “And thou shalt make holy garments for Aaron thy brother for glory and for
beauty” (Exod. 28:2—the first occurrence). In Isa. 4:2, the word identifies the fruit of the
earth as the “beauty” or “adornment” of the survivors of Israel.
(or
) means “glory” in several instances. The word is used of one’s
rank. A crown of “glory” is a crown which, by its richness, indicates high rank—Wisdom
will "[present you with] a crown of glory (
NASB
, “beauty”)” (Prov. 4:9). “The hoary head
is a crown of glory” (Prov. 16:31), a reward for righteous living. In Isa. 62:3, the phrase
“crown of glory (
NASB
, “beauty”)” is paralleled by “royal diadem.” This word also
modifies the greatness of a king (Esth. 1:4) and the greatness of the inhabitants of
Jerusalem (Zech. 12:7). In each of these instances, this word emphasizes the rank of the
persons or things so modified. The word is used of one’s renown: “… And to make thee
high above all nations which he hath made, in praise, and in name, and in honor
[distinction]” (Deut. 26:19).
In another related nuance,
(or
) is used of God, to emphasize His
rank, renown, and inherent “beauty”: “Thine, O Lord, is the greatness, and the power, and
the glory, and the victory, and the majesty …” (1 Chron. 29:11).
This word represents the “honor” of a nation, in the sense of its position before God:
"[He has] cast down from heaven unto the earth the beauty [honor or pride] of Israel …”
(Lam. 2:1). This nuance is especially clear in passages such as Judg. 4:9: “I will surely go
with thee: notwithstanding the journey that thou takest shall not be for thine honor [i.e.,
distinction]; for the Lord shall sell Sisera into the hand of a woman.”
In Isa. 10:12,
(or
) represents a raising of oneself to a high rank in
one’s own eyes: “… I will punish the fruit of the stout heart of the king of Assyria, and
the glory of his high looks.”
B. Verb.