Selah Moments
When, in the course of packing for vacation, it becomes necessary to remove Zucchini from one’s suitcase more than once, it can be assumed that the Zuke is suffering from separation anxiety. Zucchini, our Abyssinian/Bengal feline, doesn’t worry about much. She doesn’t think about the food she’ll eat. She doesn’t worry about the clothes she’ll wear. Or where she’ll sleep. Juxtaposed with the cares that we mere mortals contend with, Zucchini leads a carefree life. The same is true with my other five cats, and I’d venture to say, it’s the same with your pets, too. We pet owners know this truth to be self-evident- our fur babies don’t worry.
There is only one thing that concerns Zucchini. This one thing will drive her to awaken the moment I step foot out of the room so she can follow me or climb into the evil suitcase when it makes its dread appearance on the bed. She wants to be where I am. If I’m writing in the bedroom, she’s sleeping beside our bed in front of the sliding glass door or, sometimes, on my lap. If I’m writing in the living room, she’s curled up on the couch beside me. If I’m puttering in the kitchen, she’s sitting at my feet. Wherever I am, that’s where she wants to be, too
When I’ve been gone all day or away on a trip, the moment I come home, she runs to meet me. Maybe she grumbles a bit with a few mews, but then it’s all about the pets. Heck, sometimes she will climb on me during the night or in the early morning because she’s been denied her pets for too long. She wants her selah moment, and sometimes she can be downright demanding about it. And there’s a profound lesson in that.
Selah is most often encountered reading through the Psalms. David used it generously, and given the tumult that shepherd boy turned king encountered while he walked the earth, he needed his selah moments, indeed.
But what is selah exactly? Is it merely a metrical device? A look at the Hebrew illuminates the purpose eloquently.
Selah is comprised of three Hebrew letters. Samech Lamed Hey. In the Hebrew alphabet, each letter has a corresponding pictograph that gives greater depth of meaning to the word.
There are several interpretations for the pictograph for Samech, but recurring in studies is either that of a thorn or a shield. Indeed, when interpreting the word SELAH through the eyes of a shepherd, both a shield or thorn actually work interchangeably. The understanding derived from the thorn is that of acting as a shield. In Israel, shepherds used thorn bushes to build walls around their flocks at night to shield them from danger. However, thorns grab hold. They imbed in your flesh; they get under your skin. Thorns are tenacious.
Samech means to lean upon, support, or uphold. And, within the root of the word, is reference to the Jewish concept of semikhah, which is the laying on of hands upon the head of the sacrificial animal in a blood ritual in the Jewish temple for the consecration of the priesthood. Furthermore, without getting into a whole lot of gematria, Samech is strongly correlated with the Priestly Blessing or the Aaronic Blessing found in Numbers.
Lamed is a picture of a shepherd’s staff. A shepherd uses his staff for three main purposes which all illustrate intimacy. The first is during lambing season. Ideally, a shepherd wants to be present during each birth, making sure the ewe has not complications, but also to ensure that the lamb finds its mother. In a large flock, the lamb can become confused. When that happens, the shepherd hooks the crook of the staff around the lamb, lifts it up, and deposits it beside its mother where it can suckle. The second purpose of the staff is pluck a sheep from the group for closer inspection. The third purpose is for gentle guidance. Sheep have a tendency to wander, and the shepherd uses the staff to keep the flock together and going in the correct direction. Like the scepter of a king, the staff represents the final authority and is welded for the good of the subjects.
When translated, Lamed means to prick, sting, incite or goad. This mimics the understanding of the pictograph. But, there’s more. Isn’t there always in the Hebraic? Haha.
Lamed is the tallest letter in the Hebrew alphabet, and it is also the twelfth letter, which is considered the center or ‘heart’ of the Hebrew alphabet. The Hebraic scholar John Parsons says it this way:
Since Lamed towers over the other letters from its central position, it is said to represent melekh hamelakhim- the King of Kings. This idea is supported by the idea that the preceding letter stands for kisei hakavod- the throne of Glory, and the following letter, malkhut- kingdom. The sages also point out that the three central letters spell the word, melekh, KING.
The root of Lamed means to teach or to learn. And many scholars see Lamed as an acronym for a Hebrew phrase which means a heart that understands knowledge.
The picture associated with the letter Hey is that of a person with arms upraised. Immediately, my mind goes to worship, a votary with her hands upraised in praise or supplication. That association is not wrong, either. The immediate translation of Hey is behold, as in calling attention to a great sight. It can also be translated divine breath, revelation, and light. In fact, in Genesis 1:3-4, where the word light is mentioned five times, it corresponds to hey. Furthermore, hey is strongly linked to the concept of God’s creative power, as in the breath of His mouth or the out breathing of the Spirit. Hey is a very rich letter in the Hebraic alphabet, but don’t worry. I won’t nerd out on you. For the purpose of this post, these insights are more than enough.
When David used the word selah, he wasn’t just calling for a pause, like a caesura in a stanza. He was saying much more.
The entire framework of how David viewed the Lord is written within that first line of Psalm 23: The Lord is my Shepherd. David knew what it meant to be a shepherd. He understood the love a shepherd had for his flock, how a shepherd wanted to make sure the lambs were with their mothers so they could be nourished and grow into healthy sheep. David knew that shepherds were fiercely protective of their flocks. No doubt he constructed a thorn enclosure more than once in his shepherding days, enduring the discomfort of wrestling with brambles and getting scratched and scraped for his efforts. We know that he encountered predators, too. In his youth, he was called on to engage with bears and lions and smite them. He put himself in harms way for his sheep. While they slumbered, he sat up and kept watch. They rested in perfect peace because he was there. They didn’t worry about where they would graze, they simply followed his lead, implicit in their trust of him. They knew if they were frightened, all they needed to do was call out and he would come to their rescue. Because David was a shepherd, he knew the responsibility and the cost of caring for his sheep. He knew the tender love he bore toward them. He knew that their everything rested on his shoulders, and he knew he was the final authority in their lives.
Selah is rooted in this understanding of the shepherd. Selah begins with the Hey, as Hebrew is a language that is read right to left. Behold. Breathe. Rest in the authority I have as the Shepherd. I will protect and guide you. Grab hold of me. I am your shield.
Every time David used selah, he was crying out to the Lord. Oftentimes, his life was in peril. Sometimes he was heartsick over an injustice or heavy laden under a personal weight he carried. Look at Psalm 3, the first time we see him use selah:
Lord, I have so many enemies, so many who are against me.
Listen to how they whisper their slander against me, saying:
“Look! He’s hopeless! Even God can’t save him from this!”
SELAH
He’s pouring out his heart, his distress, his frustration, his anger. But then he writes selah. This placement is paramount. Just look at what follows the selah in the psalm:
But in the depth of my heart I truly know
that you have become my Shield;
You take me and surround me with yourself.
Your glory covers me continually. You alone restore my courage;
for you lift high my head when I bow low in shame.
I have cried out to you, Yahweh, from your holy presence.
You send me a Father’s help.
So now I’ll lie down and go to sleep—
and I’ll awake in safety for you surround me with your glory.
SELAH
Selah is a reminder: the Lord IS my Shepherd. He protects me. He shields me. Because of His great love for me, He guides me and provides for me. When I am with Him and behold His glorious splendor, I can truly be at rest. Selah is David’s reminder to himself to pause and think on that.
We all need these selah moments. Just like Zucchini when she follows me around the house, we should quest for the selah David talking about.
“Come unto me all ye who are heavy-laden, and I will give you rest.”
Rest. I’m going to do as David did. I’m going to remind myself of the selah. I’m going to labor to be in that rest and immerse myself in the One who loves me. For He is Love. And in Love there is perfect rest.
I’m going to take a page out of Zucchini’s book and be carefree in that Love. Today, dear readers, I hope that you too can take time to rest, to have a selah moment where you bask in that kind of love.
POST SCRIPT:
I couldn’t conclude this post without touching, if only in part, on how selah is a picture of Christ Jesus and what he accomplished for us.
Throughout each letter that comprises SELAH, you can see Jesus’s fingerprints.
The thorn in Samech reminds us of the crown of thorns He wore. He is the High Priest who makes intercession for us. He is the sacrificial lamb who consecrated His royal priesthood. Because of His sacrifice, the Aaronic Blessing is now spoken over those who are in Him. He is the shield about us. He is the Glory and the Lifter of our heads for He took us from our lowly place of shame and lifted us into a place of honor beside Him.
In Lamed, we find Him as the Good Shepherd who not only shields His flock, but guides them gently to green pastures and still waters. He leads them in the paths of righteousness for HIs name’s sake. And when one sheep may find himself in the valley of the shadow of death, that one does not need to fear. He goes into the wilderness to slaughter the bear and the lion, seeking the lost lamb, and when He finds that lost little one, He lifts him up and places him about His shoulders and carries him back to the fold. All the while, He rejoices in that one. Because He did it all for the one. And, as 1 Timothy 6:15 clearly states, Jesus is the King of Kings and the Lord of Lord, emphasizing his supreme authority on earth and in heaven.
And then there’s Hey. There is so much in this one letter. I believe it could be studied for many years to understand the fullness of its symbolism. Quite simply, it points to the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world, the Word that was in the beginning, the Light which is the life of man. As John the Baptist said: BEHOLD! The Lamb of God Who takes away the sins of the world.
Now, dear reader, pause and think on that.
“Because of this my praises rise to the King of all the universe who is indestructible, invisible, full of glory, the only God who is worthy of the highest honors throughout all of time and throughout the eternity of eternities! AMEN!”
