keep-calm-because-this-too-shall-pass

Daniel 2:21 “And he changes the times and seasons; he removes kings and sets up kings: he gives wisdom unto the wise, and knowledge to those who have understanding.”

 

“This too shall pass.”  Attar of Nishapur

 

Attar of Nishapur, a Persian Sufi Poet, told the story of a great and powerful king who assembled all his wise man and demanded that they create a ring with an inscription that would make him happy when he is sad and sad when he is happy.  After some deliberation the sages handed the king a ring with the inscription: This too shall pass.  It is believe that this was a reference to Daniel and King Nebuchadnezzar.  Although not found in Scripture I thought I would just deviate from usual study of Biblical words and examine this old Hebrew phrase Gam Zah Yavur which is so engrained in  the Jewish culture.

 

In Jewish folklore it is told that Solomon was humbled when this phrase was passed to him.  Throughout Jewish history as the people of God went through captivity, persecution and the holocaust, the Hebrew phrase  Gam Zah Yavur   (this too shall pass) has been spoken and often inscripted with just the first letter of each word Gimmel, Zayin, Yod.   In this inscription I once read how a rabbi expanded on this proverb with the meaning behind each letter.  The Gimmel represented the lovingkindness of God, the Zayin, represented the protection of God and the Yod pictures that radical change is beginning to take place.

 

Daniel was living in captivity.  Daniel was a prince, a noble in Israel.  He was in the line to be a king of Judah, but Babylon had other ideas and when they conquered Judah, Daniel was carried off into another land, removed from his family, his position and worst of all the beloved temple where the presence of God rested.  He was forced to serve and train in the court of a pagan king to eventually return to his homeland to lead a puppet government for King Nebuchadnezzar, to do his bidding and turn the Hebrew culture into a Babylonian culture.   God, of course, never allowed this happen and afflicted King Nebuchadnezzar with illness, domestic problems and foreign invasion to prevent this from happening.

 

Still, in the midst of all this, things got worse for Daniel and his friends.  This king had a dream that no one could interpret and so the order was given to kill all the “wise” men which included Daniel and his friends.   Daniel and his friends fasted and prayed and God not only revealed the dream to Daniel but also its interpretation.   What Daniel saw and what he related to King Nebuchadnezzar was   “Gimmel Zah Yavur (this too shall pass).  God was planning great changes to take place and no matter how powerful a king might be, they would be unable to prevent it.  He saw the rise of the Persian Empire which would bring an end to the Babylonian empire; he saw the rise of the Greek empire which would bring an end to the Persian Empire and the rise of the Roman Empire which would bring an end to the Greek empire.  He also saw the fall of the Roman Empire which would be brought down by God Himself.   Technically, the Roman Empire never really fell.  Even today the most powerful nation on Earth, the United States is based upon the governmental system of the Roman Empire.   It wasn’t so much the empires themselves that were being brought down, but the governmental systems that man creates to rule and control.  In the final days, after man has had the opportunity to establish the best possible governmental systems, God is going to come along and set up His own governmental system which will be perfection against man’s imperfection.

 

Today as we look at the news and grumble about all the events going on in our government we need to never lose sight of Gam Zah, Yavurthis too will pass.  Yes, God will eventually even bring our own governmental system down  but one day He will establish His perfect government.  In that government II Timothy 2:12 tells us that we will rule and reign with Him, if we endure the sufferings we are going through now.

 

So, the next time your car breaks down, you job disappears, a bill is due that you can’t pay just remember: Gam Zah Yavur (this too will pass).  But more important remember the first letters of each word: Gimmel – the lovingkindness of God will (Zayin) protect and defend you until the “Yod” or great changes that God is planning comes.

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