Exodus 4:30-31, “And Aaron spake all the words which the LORD had spoken unto Moses, and did the signs in the sight of the people. And the people believed: and when they heard that the LORD had visited the children of Israel, and that he had looked upon their affliction, then they bowed their heads and worshipped.”
I was reading in the Midrash (Exodus Rabba 5) this morning the story of Moses and how he convinced the people of Israel that God had sent him to deliver them. The Midrash pointed out something very interesting in Exodus 4:30-31. Read these passages carefully. Moses spoke all the words which the Lord spoke to him and did the signs in the sight of the people and the people believed. The word in Hebrew used for believed is ‘amen. Sound familiar? Of course we say ‘amen all the time, particularly when we pray. We automatically conclude our prayers with ‘amen.
Do you ever stop to wonder just what ‘amen means? Strange how we use words so much but never give any thought to its meaning or the significance of a word. The people were living in misery and slavery looking for their redemption for a deliverer to come. When Moses did all the signs and told what God had said to him the people did what we often do. If some preacher comes along and prophesy’s that this is the year of our breakthrough, this is the year that God is going to do some mighty things, this is the year when God will show his power and pull you out of your boring, mundane life, or get that good paying job so you can buy that house and car you have been praying for what do you do? You shout “Amen, preach it brother, I with you. Bring it on, I’m ready to get rained upon with the showers of blessings.” Then if he happens to do a couple healings or calls someone out by name and tells them their street address which he had no way of knowing except it was revealed to him supernaturally, you are convinced the Lord is going to come through for surely these signs show he is a man of God. You shout “Amen” which simply means, “I believe it and I am standing firm on it.”
So there were probably a lot of ‘amens and praisealleluias when Moses announced that God had spoken to him and back it up with some special effects. But look closely at this passage, it is not until they heard that the Lord had visited the children of Israel and saw their affliction did they bow their heads and worship God. It is sort of like that old song He Was There All the Time.
The word visited in Hebrew is pakad which is not a Hebrew word at all but a loan word from the Canaanite language. For instance do you know what the Arabic word for alcohol is? It is alcohol. A word we use everyday is really not an English word at all, but an Arabic loan word. Do you know what the word Detroit is in French? It is the word Detroit. It is a French loan word. Languages pick up words from other languages. There are linguists who even question if Modern Hebrew or Israeli Hebrew is really a Semitic language. It is rooted in the Classical Hebrew but it has so many loan words from the English, Russian, French and other languages that they question whether or not it is proper to call the Modern Hebrew a Semitic language. Classical Hebrew had only 7,500 words where Israeli or Modern Hebrew has over a million words.
So when a loan word pops up in the ancient Hebrew people would take notice, particularly when it came from the Canaanite region where their ancestors came from. As the word made its way into the Hebrew language it took on the meaning of visitation and even remembering, but in its origins, particularly within the Canaanite language the word pakad meant to provide for, to attend to one’s needs. In past times it used to always be a practice that when you visited someone you brought a gift. Even today if someone invites you over for dinner you feel compelled to bring a dessert. Some people feel that whenever they visit a friend or relative that the need to bring something that will attend to the need of their host. The basic meaning of visitation or pakad is to attend to a need. In this passage in Exodus pakad is found in a perfect form or a completed action. In other words God had been caring for them all this time and when they realized this their cheers turned to worship.
Sure we like to get a little prophecy now and then from a person of God. We like to hear that we will overcome or our breakthrough has come, but you know what? God has pakad all the time. He has been caring for us all along. It is not like God has suddenly woke up from His slumber and thought, “Hooky smokes, that poor Chaim Bentorah fellow has really been struggling and praying while I was off in the land of nod. Sorry old boy, just getting a little shut eye you know, hang on while I pull up a miracle or two and get you out that mess you got yourself into.” God has been there all along waiting for his perfect timing to bring about His wonderful work in your life. Sure, you are in the midst of layoffs, divorce, bankruptcy, health issues or whatever. Someone comes along with a prophesy’s your deliverance and you shout “Amen!”
But check out the people of Israel. They were still in slavery and in their misery when Moses delivered the message of redemption. They shout their ‘amen. But when they realized God was with them all the time that is when they worshipped Him. They did not wait until they were delivered to worship Him because they knew God had His perfect timing and he deserved worship even while they were in the midst of their misery. Some of us get the idea that we will wait for the worship part when God gets around to delivering us. But God is with you even in the midst of your trials and now is the perfect time to worship Him and acknowledge that He is there with you even in the depths of your suffering. He is pakad.
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