Good Morning Yamon Ki Yesepar;
Psalms 150:6: “Let everything that has a soul praise God – Hallujah.”
The Talmud teaches that the word “soul” (neshama) and “breath” (neshima) are related. The soul fills the entire body, and when a person sleeps, it rises to draw down life from above. Over each and every breath that a person takes, he should praise God. For the breath leaves him from below to above, and returns to him from above to below. God renews one’s breath every minute, not just during sleep.” Bereishis 14:9
I Thessalonians 5:17: “Pray without ceasing, in everything give thanks for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus toward you.”
The word pray here is proseuchomai in the Greek. It is used 87 times in the New Testament for prayer and yet we don’t get too much insight into what this prayer is. There are many types of prayer. There is Harim “extol,” berek “bless,” gil “rejoice” “hagah “meditate” histahawah “adore” or to lay prostrate “’anah” to sigh or express deep feelings and of course there is Halah which is to praise. There is one other word “palal” in the Hebrew which is often translated as prayer but means to offer supplication to God or a humble praise to God. The Septuagint uses the Greek word proseunchomai for “palal.”
Thus when Paul said we should pray without ceasing he was saying we should offer a humble praise to God without ceasing. Now Paul didn’t throw this verse in here to just take up space or to sound pious and make people buy his books. This was a command from God, this is His Word. How is it that we can praise God without ceasing even when we are asleep.
Perhaps the Talmud was on to something here. In Exodus 4:10 we learn that Moses confessed to a speech problem. In the Hebrew he was saying that he was “thick of tongue.” The Talmud teaches that this problem with his tongue made it impossible to correctly speak the name of God for all the names of God required the use of the tongue. So God gave him a name which did not require the use of the tongue but only his breath, YHWH (Yahwha). You speak the name with your Neshima (breath) or neshama (soul).
Perhaps that is what Paul was speaking of. With every breath you take and release you speak the name of God. Even in your sleep you speak the name of God. Now let’s say I am looking up a name in an address book, say the name “Paul.” As I go through the book I am muttering the name; “Paul, Paul, Paul……” Next to me happens to be a person named Paul. Paul looks at me and ask: “Yes?’ I respond, no not you, I was just muttering.” So too with every breath we take we are saying “Yah-wah, Yah-wah” God says: “Yes?” and we respond “No, I was just muttering, just pondering my problem, just fretting over that bill, that relationship that whatever.” Or “No, I was just watching that movie, looking at that picture…”
This is why David grabbed his soul (neshama) and commanded it to bless the Lord. “Soul when call out to God you bless him.” When you go to sleep at night, try this, command you soul to bless or praise the Lord. The every breath you take at night will be a praise to God. You may find yourself waking up speaking in tongues or praising God.
May every breath (neshima) you take today be a praise to God.
Recent Comments