Bride's Song

 “We’ll Come Running” is a song based on Hosea, Chapter 11.  This song written by Len Douglas and June Schuldt parallels the journeys of Israel and the United States of America.   Israel, God’s chosen nation and America who chose God.  America chose God when the Puritans came to the shores of North America and established covenant in this land with the settlers and with God through the Mayflower Compact in 1620.  Both nations have a stormy history of numerous times falling away and then returning to the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.    This song takes the narrative of God’s relationship with Israel as expressed in Hosea, Chapter 11 and develops a dialogue between God and His people.  It is a dialogue of history, intent and question.  It is a dialogue that requests an answer from God’s people.   In Verse 1 Israel/America is called by God.  God has a divine destiny for these nations and as a result the enemy has plans to d...

Heavens/Heaven Shamayim / Shameh   H-8064   Strong’s# The root of this Hebrew word comes from the root meaning, “to be lofty.”   As a noun it means, “heavens, heaven, sky, aloft and air.” The ancient root means, “breath” and “a place of the wind.”   Heaven often appears as plural in the Old Testament because the Hebrews understood the great expanse and vastness of heaven.   The plural form emphasized this point.   Heaven also referred to God’s dwelling place.   LORD God of Israel, there is no God in heaven above or on earth below like You, who keep Your covenant and mercy with Your servants who walk before You with all their hearts.   1 Kings 8:23 Indeed heaven and the highest heavens belong to the LORD your God, also the earth with all it is this day.    Deuteronomy 10:14 Worship opens the door to heaven.   Worship creates an atmosphere where earth and heaven meet.   Perhaps we can compare it to Jacob’s ladder...

Incense Qatar (Strong's # H-6999)    Qatar as a verb means, “to smoke, to turn into a fragrance by fire, to kindle and to burn.” The noun form qetorith means, “incense or perfume.” You shall make an altar to burn incense on;    Exodus 30:1 Aaron shall burn on it sweet incense every morning; when he tends the lamps, he shall burn incense on it.   And when Aaron lights the lamps at twilight, he shall burn incense on it, perpetual incense before the LORD throughout your generations.   Exodus 30:7-8 These were the instructions given to Moses regarding the altar of incense.   The incense offered twice a day to the LORD on the altar of incense symbolized the prayers offered to God;   the intercession of the priest in the morning and evening for the people of Israel.   The altar of incense was in the Holy Place just in front of the curtain that concealed the Holy of Holies.   As the priest physically offered incense to burn upon...

In the Old Testament, in most translations you will notice that the word Lord will appear in all capitals, LORD or with the first letter capitalized and the following letters in lower case, Lord .    The translators have done this to delineate between the two Hebrew words translated as, Lord.   The later is a general title and the other is the personal name of God revealed by God Himself to man.     Yahveh/Yehovah   Strong's #  H- 3068        The Hebrew word for LORD first appears in Genesis, Chapter 2 just before the creation of man.   Prior to that time the name Elohim was used.    In Genesis, Chapter 2 the writer uses the name LORD God or Yahveh Elohim .   Some Christian writers will attribute this change in name to the creation account being pieced together from many sources.   The more traditional Christian and Jewish view is that Moses wrote the first five books of the Bible or Torah and there is...

Elohim (Strong's # H-430) is the first name of God that appears in scripture in Genesis 1:1.   In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. Elohim is translated as God.    The name Elohim comes from the root, elah or el meaning, “strong or mighty.”   Elohim is associated with the idea of a “strong creator.”    The ancient meaning of El is “one who holds authority over others.”     The ending added to the word elah or el makes this word plural yet it is used with singular verbs and adjectives.    Elohim is plural but used as singular thousands of times in the Old Testament.   When elohim is used in the plural sense it is usually in reference to pagan gods and not referring to the God of Israel.  From a Christian perspective we can see the trinity expressed in this name (Father, Son, Holy Spirit) but the corporate Godhead was also part of the Hebrew understanding from the Tanakh (Old Testament Scr...

  The LORD of Hosts , Yahveh Tsebaot (Strong’s # H-6635) is the plural of tsaba which means, “an army, a company organized for war, soldiers, a mass of persons.”   It originates from the root, “to fight, to mass, to war.”  The ancient meaning is, “mustering of an army as a wall or protection.” This title is used when God sent His heavenly forces to aid His people.  This is the God of victory, who commands the angels, the hosts of heaven.  Awake to help me, and behold!   You therefore, O LORD God of hosts , the God of Israel, awake to punish, all the nations; do not be merciful to any wicked transgressors.  Psalm 59:5 The LORD of hosts leads the host of heaven in battle against the enemy of our souls.   The LORD of hosts will return with His armies as Captain of the hosts and defeat satan forever.  Worship is warfare.   When we worship our God with all our being we are agreeing with the LORD of hosts and His forces in heaven are m...

In the Bible there are relational titles such as husband and bridegroom in reference to the LORD and Yeshua/Jesus .  The LORD refers to Himself in terms of a husband in reference to His relationship to Israel .  Yeshua alludes to Himself as the bridegroom as He preached about the coming Kingdom of God and in regards to His presence among His disciples.  We see this concept explained and elaborated on also by others writers such as Paul and John in the New Testament in reference to the Church, the bride of Messiah.   The relationship of husband and wife is the most intimate relationship there is. We see this from the very beginning of time.   And Adam said, “This is bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh; she shall be called Woman, because she was taken out of Man. ” Therefore a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and they shall become one flesh.  Genesis 2:22-23 This relationship between husband and wife produces new life...

  The Hebrew word for redeemer is gaal or goel.      Strong’s meaning (H-1350) is, “to be the next of kin, to buy back a relative’s property, marry a relative’s widow, deliver, ransom and purchase.” Then they remembered and sought earnestly for God, then they remembered that God was their rock, and the Most High God their Redeemer .     Psalm 78:34-35 Job makes an amazing statement in the middle of his anguish and loss.   Job declares the coming Redeemer and not only that He will deliver mankind but He will bring a physical resurrection.   Job was a righteous man that God allowed satan to inflict.   He suffered, he was humiliated, lost everything he had and eventually God brought complete restoration. “Oh, that my words were written! Oh, that they were inscribed in a book! That they were engraved on a rock with an iron pen and lead, forever!   For I know that my Redeemer lives, and He shall stand at last on the earth; and aft...

  The Hebrew word, Chalah means, “to grieve, to be rubbed worn, to entreat, travail, to be wounded and to be weak.” (H-2470, Strong’s)  Yes, many peoples and strong nations shall come to seek the LORD of hosts in Jerusalem and to pray before the LORD.   “Thus, says the LORD of hosts. In those days ten men from every language of the nations shall grasp the sleeve of a Jewish man, saying, “Let us go with you, for we have heard that God is with you.”   Zechariah 8:12 There are many Hebrew words for prayer but this word implies an intense seeking of God.   In Zechariah the nations are earnestly seeking the God of Israel; there is desperation and a great need to know Him.   There are times when we pray in desperation for God to reach into our situation and intervene.    We are rubbed worn, even grieved as we cry out to God to answer our deepest need or the deepest need of a loved one, a friend, a nation or even a stranger.   The only thing...

  What kind of sacrifice is pleasing to God?  To answer that we need to look at the root of worship. Hebrew has only one word for the worship of God and that is s hachah . (H-7812, Strong’s)   It appears over 100 times in the Old Testament scriptures.   There are other words in the Old Testament that are translated as worship but they are used in reference to worshipping other gods, not the only true God.   Shachah means, “to bow down, to depress, to prostrate oneself before God in worship and in homage.”   This word infers humility, making oneself low before God.   Exalt the Lord our God, and worship at His footstool- He is holy.   Psalm 99:5 Give unto the LORD the glory due to His name, worship the LORD in the beauty of holiness.    Psalm 29:2 Oh, come, let us worship and bow down; let us kneel before the LORD our Maker.   Psalm 95:6 Throughout scripture we see people fall on their face and worship the LORD.  ...

  As I researched the Hebrew words for commune I found that several of the Hebrew words related to speech, not unlike our word communication.   When researched further I found a word that conveyed the Hebrew idea of communion but was not necessarily translated specifically as the English word communion.   What I found interesting is that the two words have the same parent root in Hebrew and only differ by their last letter. D abar   H-1697 (Strong’s #) Dabar is a verb that means, “to speak, to commune, to say, to speak, to arrange in order, to converse.”   And there I will meet with thee, and I will commune (speak, converse) with thee from above the mercy seat, from between the two cherubim which are upon the ark of the testimony of all things which I will give thee in commandment unto the children of Israel.    Exodus 25:22 KJV This is a Hebrew word where the ancient form is full of imagery.   The dalet   is a pictograph of a door ...