Language

“There are many different languages in the world, and every language has a meaning.” (I Corinthians 14:10)

Are you aware that there are approximately seven thousand languages in the world?  I have a difficult time trying to master the English one.  Reid once worked with a man who was from Greece.  He asked his co-worker what the most difficult part about learning the English language was for him.  His friend told him that our American slang was difficult.  There is no other language where “slim chance” and “fat chance” mean the same thing.  How true!

If you are familiar with the biblical account of The Tower of Babel, you will understand where all these different languages came from.  We learn in Genesis chapter 11 that at one time “The whole world had one language and a common speech.”  Then one day someone got the bright idea to build a tower that would reach the heavens, so the people could make a name for themselves.  Turned out to be a bad idea – a very bad idea.  The Lord came down and paid these proud souls a visit.  That visit resulted in the necessity for God to confuse their language so they could not understand one another.  He then scattered them all over the face of the earth.  And today, that confusion has developed into nearly 7,000 languages.

Now, in our English language a noun (that which describes person, place, thing; or the name of a person) usually comes first in a sentence.  However, in the Hebrew language, the verb (that which expresses an action, state of being, or behavior) comes first in a sentence.  A good example of this is found in Genesis 22:3.  In English this verse reads “Abraham rose early in the morning,” placing the noun first.  However, in the Hebrew the verse reads, “early rose Abraham,” placing the verb first.   

So, why is this important and how does this grammar affect us, you ask.  We tend to live our lives in a world of nouns, thinking everything consists primarily of things, or people, or places we are in.  We tend to focus on what directly affects us.  But in the Hebrew language, life isn’t so much about earthly things or what we have; but it is about the verbs in life.  It is about what God is doing in one’s life.  It’s not about what one owns, but where one is going.  It’s not about status, but about what one is doing with God. 

Our English language seems to move us in the wrong direction.  Perhaps that’s because we are moving in the wrong direction.  The lesson for us is this – let’s not get wrapped up and weighed down in things, in our selfish lives and goals.  We need to move with God in his direction and follow his ways.  Our focus should be on divine verbs like loving, giving, believing, worshiping, overcoming.  It’s about what we are doing for God’s glory that needs to come first in our lives. 

A different look at language can give us a different perspective on life.

                                                             Darlene