“At the dedication of the wall of Jerusalem, the Levites were sought out from where they lived and were brought to Jerusalem to celebrate joyfully the dedication with songs of thanksgiving and with the music of cymbals, harps and lyres.”
Nehemiah 12:27
Last time we saw who was watching over the storerooms of offerings, thankful that we can’t out-give God and He makes us doers of His Word. Today we see the wall being dedicated to Yahweh.
Dedication comes from a word that is likely familiar: chanukah – dedication, consecration; from chanak – to train up, properly “to narrow,” to initiate.
Frankly, in this season of busyness, this concept of narrowing sounds luxurious. I want to lean into the ways He is setting our family apart, training us up to focus on what is most important.
How about you? None of us can do all the things well, and we certainly can’t do everything. But we can be set apart in this difficult but dazzling world to do what He’s made us to do.
And that’s the verb behind this time set aside specifically for praising God for the wall being built. Not that stones and timber were worthy of worship, but the sacredness of God’s presence in Jerusalem was.
You’ll be pleased to know that the word wall means…wall. Smile. But what’s interesting is it comes from cham – husband’s father/father-in-law.
It is not lost on me that the first time I saw my husband’s step-father since my dad’s funeral, I involuntarily began crying. He was dressed in dad clothes, holding his new camera, and there was something calming about his presence. I don’t understand the etymology of why the Hebrew word wall would come from father-in-law, but I’m not going to lie – I like the image.
Next we see who was at this wall dedication. It was the Levites, the Temple workers, who were sought out for it. Sought here is baqash – to seek, aim, beg, concerned, demand, eager, inquired, plead, pursuit, request, ask, beseech, procure; to search out by any method, specifically in worship or prayer.
Well, I definitely prefer pursue, inquire, eager, seek, and ask more than beg, demand, plead. But the truth is we do all that with our Father, yes?
I’m grateful to be invited into such an honest relationship with One Who knows what it’s like to walk on this earth. Who hears every polite request and desperate plea with love. I want my life to look like the latter part of this definition: to seek specifically in worship and prayer. To increasingly let go of my human means for demanding this world meet my needs, and simply ask my Savior. It is not by might, nor by power.
The Levites were sought out because they weren’t already in Temple. I’m not sure if they were in surrounding villages or in their homes in Jerusalem, but either way, they were rounded up from where they lived (maqom – a standing place, direction, ground, place suitable, position, home, space).
And for those whose job description has varied from offering sacrifices to interpreting Scripture to give the sense to the people, it is one more breath of fresh air to realize why they were being gathered: to celebrate joyfully with songs of thanksgiving.
Celebrate is asah – accomplish, do, make, advance, appoint, bear, bestow, bring forth, bruise, be busy.
Joyfully is simchah – joy, gladness, mirth.
And thanksgiving is todah – choir, confession, hymns of thanksgiving, praise, sacrifices of thanksgiving, thank offering; from yadah; properly, an extension of the hand: avowal or adoration; specifically, a choir of worshippers — confession, sacrifice of praise.
And once again we have a beautiful combination of resting and doing; of thanking the Only One worthy and bearing fruit in our lives; of lifting our hands in confession and praise while seeking justice, loving mercy, and walking humbly.
On this Easter Sunday – this Resurrection Day – there is no greater joy than praising Him for overcoming death. May we celebrate by asking and joining Him in bringing forth His Kingdom come, His will done, every place we walk.