Article January 16, 1937 Issue

Bible Notes

"The secret of the Lord is with them that fear him" (Ps. 25:14)—The word "sod," here rendered "secret," means literally either "council" or "counsel" (Brown, Driver, Briggs: Hebrew Lexicon, p. 691), but is regularly used either in the sense of a group of familiar friends or with reference to the "intimacy" of their conversation. Consequently, the margin of the Revised Version has "the friendship of the Lord;" while another rendering is: "Intimacy with Yahweh have those that fear him" (Brown, etc., op. cit., p. 691). Moffatt reads, "Those who revere the Eternal have his confidence;" though Smith prefers: "The secret of the Lord is for those who fear him."

"My doctrine shall drop as the rain" (Deut. 32:2)—The Hebrew noun here rendered "doctrine" can also be translated "learning, instruction, knowledge" (Feyerabend: Hebrew Dictionary, p. 160). Moffatt has: "May my message drop like rain;" while the Septuagint renders: "Let my speech be looked for as the rain, and my words come down as dew."

"A God of truth and without iniquity" (Deut. 32:4)—The Hebrew term "'emunah," here translated "truth," means literally "firmness, fidelity, steadfastness." Other renderings are, "faithfulness, security, honesty" (Feyerabend: op. cit., p. 20); while it may be added that it is this same term which is translated "faith" in Habakkuk 2:4, and "stability" in Isaiah 33:6. Thus in Deuteronomy 32:4 the Revised Version reads: "a God of faithfulness and without iniquity;" and Moffatt: "a God trusty and true."