40 DAYS OF HEBREW DEVOTIONS

 

400 YEARS = 40 YEARS = 40  DAYS

I dont know what the root meaning, if any, of  אַרְבָּעִים (arba'im) but I live in the symbolism of the "40" in the title.  It is what caught my eye.  Now that I have begun to meditate on the truths that come home to me from the pages of this deeply spiritual trove, It has already become a daily prayer routine.

It is a series of 40 words/concepts that are devotional keys in the Bible.  Each one is analyzed as to its root meaning in order to make it more deeply appreciated by the reader.  This analysis delves into to Hebrew cionstruction of the "word of the day."  This analysis is all the more meaningful because the Hebrew language does not have any vowels.  This simply means that a series of like symbols could be the root of more than one word with a related meaning.    e.g.   4 (ר) =  arba'  -  ארבע  Now we go to  40 (ם) =  arba'im  =   ארבעים (Read right to left) This happens a lot in Hebrew.

This analysis is the first part of all forty of the reflections.

The second part is a comparative reflection of the related meanings of the root and its offshoots. I consider this the core of the meditation.

Finally there is a prayer for the reader. I find myself using this section as an invitation to develop a personal prayer from all the above before devoting myself to the tasks of my day.

I will keep this at my bedside as I go through life.