HEBREW WORD STUDY – PEACE LIKE A RIVER – KANAHAR SHALOM כהנר שלום Kap Hei Nun Resh Shin Lamed Vav Mem

Isaiah 48:18: “O that thou hadst hearkened to my commandments! then had thy peace been as a river, and thy righteousness as the waves of the sea:”

“When you put your hand in a flowing stream, you touch the last that has gone before and the first of what is still to come.” Leonardo da Vinci

You have in English various names for different bodies of water. Do you ever stop to think about it? There are streams, springs, creeks, rivers, lakes, seas, waterways, channels, oceans as well as a host of other words. In this verse, if we keep the commandments of God, we have peace like a river and our righteousness as the waves of the sea.

When I think of peace, I think of a little stream of water flowing through a wooded area. I think of sitting by an ocean watching the waves gently lapping against the sands or a romantic, overcast rain swept shore off the coast of Cape Cod, with a lighthouse shining its light over the ocean at dusk. I usually do not think of a river, like the muddy, dead rotting wood strewn shores of the Mississippi River as peaceful.

Secondly, what does righteousness have to do with the waves of the sea? When I think of waves of the sea I think of ships bobbing up and down and rolling against powerful waves splashing onto its decks.

According to Webster the English word river is a large natural stream of water flowing in a channel to the sea, a lake, or another such stream. A sea, on the other hand, is a large body of water, a division of the ocean which is comprised of saltwater and usually landlocked, like the Mediterranean Sea. It is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by the Mediterranean Basin and almost completely enclosed by land: on the north by Southern Europe and Anatolia, on the south by North Africa, and on the east by the Levant.

So, what does all that have to do with peace and righteousness? Well, for one thing, peace and righteousness are related. Righteousness was considered by the Jews as religious prosperity. Righteousness was therefore the parent of peace or national prosperity. We see such parallelism in Isaiah 32:17 Isa 32:17: “And the work of righteousness shall be peace; and the effect of righteousness quietness and assurance forever.”

The word for river is nahar. This could mean a stream or river. It is interesting to note that if you take the Nun away for the word nahar you have the word har which is the word for mountain. You put mountain into a feminine form you have the word harah which is the Hebrew word for a pregnant woman. All have the idea of abundance. A mountain is an abundance of rocks, a pregnant woman an abundance of life, and a river has an abundance or resources or means of transporting resources.

When the people of Israel heard the word nahar or river they would think of the nahar of Euphrates or perath. Perathmeans to be distinguished or honored. The river Euphrates was considered to be honored for it was a key to commerce. In fact, all rivers tended to be a key to commerce like the Mississippi River which connected all the States along it shores and gave birth to the riverboat industry. Thus, this peace is a peace that comes from financial security or just that sense of security. When we obey the laws of God we experience a sense of security from an abundance of blessings from God.,

The word waves of the sea are gali hayim. Gali comes from the root word galil where we get the word Galilee. It does not necessarily mean waves, the emphasis is on the rolling aspect of the waves. Galilee is a mountainous area with the idea of the rolling mountains. Gali is used in reference to scrolls because they were rolled up. When used in relation to the seas it would obviously mean the rolling wave. However, the emphasis is on the natural flowing motion of the seas. The Hebrew word sea is hayim which comes from the root word yamim which is the word for clear water. Clearwater is water that is free of any pollutants. Water running over rocks was believed to be the purest water, the cleanest, or the clearest water.

Righteousness is as flowing water, pure and without blemish of sin. Water that stands still becomes stagnant water, cloudy water that is undrinkable. Righteousness is not a one time act, it is a fluid act, one that keeps moving and moving as you are moving through life. To live a righteous life is to live a peaceful life like a river full of abundance.

The word for river is nahar. This could mean a stream or river. It is interesting to note that if you take the Nun away for the word nahar you have the word har which is the word for mountain. You put mountain into a feminine form you have the word harah which is the Hebrew word for a pregnant woman. All have the idea of abundance. A mountain is an abundance of rocks, a pregnant woman an abundance of life, and a river has an abundance or resources or means of transporting resources.

When the people of Israel heard the word nahar or river they would think of the nahar of Euphrates or perath. Perathmeans to be distinguished or honored. The river Euphrates was considered to be honored for it was a key to commerce. In fact, all rivers tended to be a key to commerce like the Mississippi River which connected all the States along it shores and gave birth to the riverboat industry. Thus, this peace is a peace that comes from financial security or just that sense of security. When we obey the laws of God we experience a sense of security from an abundance of blessings from God.,

The word waves of the sea are gali hayim. Gali comes from the root word galil where we get the word Galilee. It does not necessarily mean waves, the emphasis is on the rolling aspect of the waves. Galilee is a mountainous area with the idea of the rolling mountains. Gali is used in reference to scrolls because they were rolled up. When used in relation to the seas it would obviously mean the rolling wave. However, the emphasis is on the natural flowing motion of the seas. The Hebrew word sea is hayim which comes from the root word yamim which is the word for clear water. Clearwater is water that is free of any pollutants. Water running over rocks was believed to be the purest water, the cleanest, or the clearest water.

Righteousness is as flowing water, pure and without blemish of sin. Water that stands still becomes stagnant water, cloudy water that is undrinkable. Righteousness is not a one time act, it is a fluid act, one that keeps moving and moving as you are moving through life. To live a righteous life is to live a peaceful life like a river full of abundance.

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