This week, I decided to look in (a LOT of ) detail at the Hebrew background to one phrase in D&C 6: 'sharper than a two-edged sword.'
Doctrine and Covenants 6:2 Behold,
I am God; give heed unto my word,
which is quick and powerful, sharper than
a two-edged sword, to the dividing asunder of both joints and marrow; therefore
give heed unto my words.
3 Behold,
the field is
white already to harvest; therefore, whoso desireth to reap, let him thrust in
his sickle with his might, and reap while the day lasts, that he
may treasure up
for his soul everlasting salvation in the kingdom of God.
4 Yea,
whosoever will thrust in his sickle and reap, the same is called of
God.
Where does the metaphor of God’s word as “sharper than a two-edged sword” come from and what does it mean?
The immediate sources for these words are two
verses from the New Testament, which all of Joseph Smith’s friends and family
would have recognized:
Heb 4:12 For the word of God is quick, and
powerful, and sharper than any twoedged sword, piercing even to the dividing
asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of
the thoughts and intents of the heart.
Rev 1:16 And
he had in his right hand seven stars: and out of his mouth went a sharp
twoedged sword: and his countenance was as the sun shineth in his strength.
So why a TWO-EDGED sword?
If you say that something
is a double-edged sword, you mean that it has positive effects as well as negative
effects.
A sword is a ROD of IRON, an expensive piece of metal
which could be beaten into a sword in times of war, into plowshare or pruning
hook (scythe) in time of peace. (see below for the PLOWSHARE].
[ see Isa 11:3-4 And shall make him of quick understanding in the fear of the
LORD: and he shall not judge after the sight of his eyes, neither reprove after
the hearing of his ears: But with righteousness shall he judge the poor, and
reprove with equity for the meek of the earth: and he shall smite the earth
with the rod of his mouth,
and with the breath of his lips shall he slay the wicked.]
But, both Paul, in Hebrews, and John, in Revelation, were
using a well-known metaphor from the Old Testament. See for example, Psalm 149:6, Proverbs 5:4,
Job 1:15. What you cannot tell from the
English, is what the original metaphor was in Hebrew. Most of the time, the word “edge” – when used
of a sword – translates the Hebrew word,
פֶּה peh or MOUTH, probably
from the image of TEETH, which are sharp and biting. So if you have a TOOTHED
sword, it logically comes out of your mouth.
Let’s look more closely at the Hebrew of some of these OT
verses.
Proverbs 5:4
חַדָּה כְּחֶרֶב פִּיּֽוֹת
Pro 5:4 But
her end is bitter as wormwood, sharp as a twoedged [פִּיּֽוֹת peyote
feminine plural] sword.
Job 1:15 לְפִי־חָרֶב
Job 1:15 And
the Sabeans fell upon them, and took them away; yea, they have slain the
servants with the edge [לְפִי l’pey] of the sword; and
I only am escaped alone to tell thee.
Psalm 149 is particularly interesting because the English translation has both a word for MOUTH (for the HB גְרוֹנָם garonim which actually means “throat, gargle; to roar or shout) and ‘twoedged” for the HB , פֶּה peh or MOUTH)
Psalm 149:6 וֹמְמוֹת אֵל
בִּגְרוֹנָם וְחֶרֶב פִּֽיפִיּוֹת בְּיָדָֽם׃
Psa 149:6 Let the high praises of God be in their
mouth [גְרוֹנָם ], and a twoedged [פִּֽיפִיּוֹת : peypeyot : peh here is doubled and
then made plural] sword in their hand;
Sometimes the word “twoedged” is not an adjective,
but the MOUTH still gets referenced in describing God’s (or a prophet’s) sword.
This is particularly true of poetic portions of the OT.
Isa 49:2 And he hath made my mouth like a sharp sword;
in the shadow of his hand hath he hid me, and made me a polished shaft (or
arrow); in his quiver hath he hid me;
The psalmist
(David?) in Psa 57:4 uses alliteration –
ch repeated 4 times- (like Neal A Maxwell) in describing teeth as weapons, tongue
as sword.
Psa 57:4 My soul is among lions: and I lie even among
them that are set on fire, even the sons of men, whose teeth are spears [חֲנִ֣ית chaniyth ] and arrows [ חִצִּ֑ים chetsim] , and their tongue a sharp [ חַדָּֽה chadah ] sword [ חֶ֣רֶב chereb].
Psa 64:3 Who whet (sharpen) their tongue like a sword,
and bend their bows to shoot their arrows, even bitter words:
Psa 89:43 Thou
hast also turned the edge [ צ֣וּר tsuwr
rock, sharp, edge] of his sword, and hast not made him to stand in the
battle
Isa 1:20 But if ye refuse and rebel, ye shall be
devoured [תְּאֻכְּל֔וּ אָכַל 'akal to eat or devour] with the sword [חֶ֣רֶב חֶרֶב chereb] : for the mouth [פִּ֥י פֶּה peh] of the
LORD hath spoken it.
 |
Statue : sword into plowshare :
What is the connection between the SWORD and the PLOW? Plowshare is an old-fashioned way of talking
about the hard metal tip attached to a wooden plow allowing it to break earth
more effectively.
Remember, a sword is made from a ROD of IRON, an expensive
piece of metal which could be beaten into a sword in times of war, then back
into a plowshare or pruning hook (scythe) in time of peace
Isa 2:2-5 And
it shall come to pass in the last days, that the mountain of the LORD'S house
shall be established in the top of the mountains, and shall be exalted above
the hills; and all nations shall flow unto it. And many people shall go and
say, Come ye, and let us go up to the mountain of the LORD, to the house of the
God of Jacob; and he will teach us of his ways, and we will walk in his paths:
for out of Zion shall go forth the law, and the word of the LORD from
Jerusalem. And he shall judge among the
nations, and shall rebuke many people: and they shall beat their swords into
plowshares, and their spears into pruninghooks: nation shall not lift up sword
against nation, neither shall they learn war any more. O house of Jacob, come
ye, and let us walk in the light of the LORD.
Or Joel’s opposite warning to the wicked:
Joel 3:10 Beat your plowshares into
swords, and your pruninghooks [אֵת ʼêth, ayth ] into
spears: . . .
This is an interesting Hebrew word: it is spelled the same as את, or ote which means
sign, ensign, miracle, plague. It is
spelled with two letters: aleph which is the FIRST letter of the HB
alphabet, and tav, which is the LAST letter of the HB alphabet. The first and the last, in GK alpha and
omega.
MIRRORING GOD'S ACTIONS
Doctrine and Covenants 6:2 Behold, I am God; give heed unto my word, which is quick and powerful, sharper than a two-edged sword, to the dividing asunder of both joints and marrow; therefore give heed unto my words.
3 Behold, the field is white already to harvest; therefore, whoso desireth to reap, let him thrust in his sickle with his might, and reap while the day lasts, that he may treasure up for his soul everlasting salvation in the kingdom of God.
4 Yea, whosoever will thrust in his sickle and reap, the same is called of God.
Notice that God is using a sharp, two edged sword to HARVEST souls. ALL will be CUT, but the covenant-keeping wheat is brought into the storehouse and the disobedient tares will be CUT OFF and cast into the fire.
One of the purposes of D&C 6 is to say that whosoever wants to help God is welcome to step into the field which is white and use their own blade/tool/weapon to assist with the harvest. Remember, the TEMPLE is the storehouse (literally, in the OT, foods - tithes and free-will offerings - were stored inside the temple walls to feed the people in times of FAMINE, PESTILENCE, or WAR).
CUTTING COVENANT WITH A TWO-EDGED SWORD
In Hebrew, the verb karat (כָּרַ֧ת )- meaning to make or seal a covenant - translates literally as "to
cut".
2 NEPHI 4:4 For the Lord
God hath said that: Inasmuch as ye shall keep my commandments ye shall prosper
in the land; and inasmuch as ye will not keep my commandments ye
shall be cut off from my presence.
Covenants in biblical times were often sealed by killing
and cutting up an animal, with the implication that the party who breaks the
covenant will suffer a similar fate (see Jer 16:4
They shall die of grievous deaths; they shall not be lamented; neither
shall they be buried; but they shall be as dung upon the face of the earth: and
they shall be consumed by the sword, and by famine; and their carcases shall be
meat for the fowls of heaven, and for the beasts of the earth.).
(See also Deu 28:20 The LORD shall send upon thee cursing . . .
21 The LORD
shall make the pestilence cleave unto thee
22 The LORD
shall smite thee . . . the sword
23 And thy
heaven that is over thy head shall be brass, and the earth that is under thee
shall be iron. (FAMINE)
25 The LORD shall cause thee to be smitten before
thine enemies:
26 And thy carcase shall be meat unto all fowls of
the air, and unto the beasts of the earth, and no man shall fray them away.)
When God offers His covenant, His words become like
a two-edged sword, whose edges represent Blessings and Mercy to those who
accept and live His commandments, or Cursings and Justice to those who choose
iniquity.
In the Old Testament, Isaiah uses powerful metaphors of this offered
BLESSING / CURSING. Objects can either
bless or curse you, depending upon your choices. “[T]he rod of his mouth . . . (Isa 11:4)” becomes either a cursed sword, or a
blessed plowshare. In ancient times, the same expensive metal rod was beaten
into a sword in times of war, then into a plowshare or pruning hook (scythe) in
time of peace
BLESSING / CURSING in ISAIAH
When my daughter, Heather, was a student at BYU, she studied Isaiah with Victor Ludlow, who required students to create a special project as the final exam. Heather chose to make a book of verses from Isaiah, illustrating objects with interesting textured paper. If you read the book from left to right – the English way – the verses depict curses upon the wicked. If you read the book from right to left – the HEBREW way – the same objects become covenant blessings. After the class ended, Heather gave me the book: I treasure it.
Here are some of the objects /verses she contrasts:
WATER
+ Isa 44:3 For I will pour water upon him that is
thirsty, and floods upon the dry ground: I will pour my spirit upon thy seed,
and my blessing upon thine offspring:
-
Isa
28:2 as a flood of mighty waters
overflowing, shall cast down to the earth with the hand.
+ Isa 60:20 .
. . the LORD shall be thine everlasting light,
-
Isa
10:16-17 Therefore shall the Lord. . . kindle a burning like the burning of a
fire . . . and his Holy One for a flame:
and it shall burn and devour . . . in one day;
PEACE
+ Isa 9:6 For unto us a child is born . . . and his
name shall be called . . .The Prince of Peace.
Isa Isa 32:17 And the work of
righteousness shall be peace; and the effect of righteousness quietness and
assurance forever.
- Isa 48:22 There is no peace, saith the LORD, unto the wicked.
how cool is that! what a treasure. she's definitely following in your footsteps.
ReplyDeleteRebecca, this is so much better than what I had developed, I am going to steal it (and cite you).
ReplyDeleteWow, I love your daughter's project. My wife took Ludlow's class a couple three decades ago. Her project is a stained glass window of a temple. It is the first thing you see when you enter our front door. (I am posting with her account for convenience.)