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enemy is recognized to be on a lower plane, one can “go down” (
) to fight (Judg.
1:9). The opposite of “going up” to war is not descending to battle, but “leaving off”
(
), literally, “going up from against.”
Another special use of
is “to overpower” (literally, “to go up from”). For
example, the Pharaoh feared the Israelites lest in a war they join the enemy, fight against
Egypt, and “overpower” the land (Exod. 1:10). “To go up” may also be used of
“increasing in strength,” as the lion that becomes strong from his prey: The lion “goes up
from his prey” (Gen. 49:9; cf. Deut. 28:43).
Not only physical things can “go up.”
*
can be used also of the “increasing” of
wrath (2 Sam. 11:20), the “ascent” of an outcry before God (Exod. 2:23), and the
“continual” sound of battle (although “sound of” is omitted; cf. 1 Kings 22:35). The word
can also be used passively to denote mixing two kinds of garments together, causing one
“to lie upon” or “be placed upon” the other (Lev. 19:19). Sometimes “go up” means
“placed,” even when the direction is downward, as when placing a yoke upon an ox
(Num. 19:2) or going to one’s grave (Job 5:26). This may be an illustration of how
Hebrew verbs can sometimes mean their opposite. The verb is also used of “recording” a
census (1 Chron. 27:24).
The verb
is used in a causative stem to signify “presenting an offering” to God.
In 63 cases, the word is associated with the presentation of the whole burnt offering
(
).
*
is used of the general act of “presenting offerings” when the various
offerings are mentioned in the same context (Lev. 14:20), or when the purpose of the
offering is not specifically in mind (Isa. 57:6). Sometimes this verb means merely “to
offer” (e.g., Num. 23:2).
B. Nouns.
(
, 5945), “the upper; the highest.” This word occurs 53 times. The use of
in Gen. 40:17 means “the upper” as opposed to “the lower.” Where referring to or
naming God,
means “the highest” (Gen. 14:18).
(
- .
, 4699), “step; procession; pilgrimage.” In some of its 47 biblical
appearances,
signifies a “step” or “stair” (cf. Exod. 20:26). The word can also
mean “procession” (Ps. 84:6).
TO COMMAND
(
(
/
, 6680), “to command.” This verb occurs only in biblical Hebrew (in all
periods) and imperial Aramaic (starting from around 500 B C.). Biblical occurrences
number around 485. Essentially, this verb refers to verbal communication by which a
superior “orders” or “commands” a subordinate. The word implies the content of what
was said. Pharaoh “ordered” (“commanded”) his men concerning Abraham, and they
escorted Abraham and his party out of Egypt (Gen. 12:20). This “order” defines an action
relevant to a specific situation.
(
can also connote “command” in the sense of the
establishment of a rule by which a subordinate is to act in every recurring similar
situation. In the Garden of Eden (the first appearance of this word in the Bible), God
“commanded” (“set down the rule”): “Of every tree of the garden thou mayest freely eat: