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11^th of the 12^th month 2020/2021.

Shalom all,

Tehillah/Psalm 111:2 “Great are the works of יהוה, searched for by all who delight in them.”

Tehillah/Psalm 111 is a great psalm of praise for our Master יהוה, and has, in its 10 verses, the 22 letters of the Hebrew Alphabet, written in bold before each statement of boasting praise!

Previously, I did a message that looked at each of these statements that are contained in this ‘alphabetic song of praise for יהוה’, looking at the ‘Aleph to Taw’ of praise for יהוה.

While we are not going to take a look at this Tehillah/Psalm 111 in this message, I have chosen to open with this verse, in order to highlight something that is very important for us to take time to consider and assess ourselves with.

In this powerful declaration of the great works of יהוה, the psalmist makes it clear that these great works are searched for by all who delight in them!

This searching implies an intense seeking, which would not necessarily take place if the one who was seeking did not delight in that which he was seeking! .

In a message called, ‘MY DELIGHT!’ I want us to take a closer look at the meaning of what it is to delight in something and make something a delight, along with what that entails..

What is ‘delight’?

This English word is defined in various ways by many different dictionaries and carries the basic meaning of, ‘having a strong feeling of joy’ or, ‘something that gives you great pleasure and satisfaction’.

‘A’ delight is a source of joy; and ‘to delight’ is to take pleasure in something!

To give delight to is to affect with great pleasure or please highly.

As a noun it is used to express a high degree of satisfaction or something that gives one great pleasure.

As a verb it expresses the concept of taking great pleasure in something and the giving of keen enjoyment. In other words what one delights in can be clearly seen in the pleasure and enjoyment that one shows!.

What do you take pleasure in?

What is your delight?

The psalmist here, expresses how the one who delights and takes pleasure in the works of יהוה search them out.

The one who delights in the works of יהוה takes great effort and time to seek out and know the great works that our Master and Elohim has done, and it is done so with great pleasure and joy!

The works of יהוה have been given to us through His Word and has been wonderfully revealed to us through the life, death and resurrection of our Master and Elohim, יהושע Messiah!.

In speaking of those who overcome the beast and his mark, we see in;

Ḥazon/Revelation 15:3 “And they sing the song of Mosheh the servant of Elohim, and the song of the Lamb, saying, “Great and marvellous are Your works, יהוה Ěl Shaddai! Righteous and true are Your ways, O Sovereign of the set-apart ones!”

Those who delight in the works of יהוה are also those who joyfully praise יהוה! .

Once again, I ask you, ‘what do you take pleasure in and what is your delight?’

What are you searching for?

Before looking at the Hebrew word that is translated as ‘delight’, I just want to highlight what it means to be properly seeking יהוה and His Word that we, as His treasured possession, ought to be delighting ourselves in, through a diligent seeking..

Tehillah/Psalm 111 declares that the works of יהוה are great and are Searched for by all who delight in them.

The Hebrew word that begins this phrase, searched for by all who delight in them, is – דְּרוּשִׁים derushiym, which is written in the plural, derived from the root word דָּרַשׁ darash – Strong’s H1875 which means, ‘to resort to, seek out, ask, avenge, consult, investigate, search carefully, make inquiry, question’. .

This word דָּרַשׁ darash – Strong’s H1875 carries more than simply just taking a quick peek, but rather, it emphasises the need to be digging deep, in seeking out carefully and with great diligence, through consultation, and asking.

A proper delighting in יהוה and His works, entails a proper seeking to be done!

Mattithyahu/Matthew 6:33 “But seek first the reign of Elohim, and His righteousness, and all these matters shall be added to you.”

When we are told to ‘seek’ first the Kingdom, we must recognise that this is not an instruction that gives the notion that you look just take a quick look at it and now that you have seen it you can go on your merry way, NO! .

To seek His Kingdom requires hard work and discipline each and every day.

We need to ‘seek’ Him and this implies an inquiry after knowledge, advice, and insight into any situation or circumstance we find ourselves in, and this kind of seeking highlights a pure form of praise unto יהוה..

A word that is derived from the root word דָּרַשׁ darash is מִדְרָשׁ miḏrash – Strong’s H4097 means, ‘a study, record, writings or story, commentary’.

This word, מִדְרָשׁ miḏrash – Strong’s H4097, speaks of the ability to search out something and often refers to that which is written to teach, and later became known as a Hebrew word relating to the in-depth study of the word, often done together.

The point is that we are to be a people who are earnestly growing in wisdom and understanding of the Scriptures so we can remember what we look like when we look intently into the mirror of His Word!.

Seeking Him, while He is to be found, implies that there will be a time when the window, or door, of being able to find Him will be closed, as it was when He closed the door of the ark after Noaḥ and his family entered in and was saved from the flood!.

We cannot sit around saying, “Oh I’ll get to it sometime soon!” That may be too late and that kind of response indicates that there is no true delight in the Word of יהוה.

All too often, most people are simply seeking their own ways and desires and are trying to accomplish their goals before attending to the need of making יהוה and His Word a priority in their lives, which reveals what they actually are delighting in.

יהושע tells us not to worry about tomorrow, not to worry about what we will eat, what we will drink or what we will wear, for that is what the pagans run after.

We are to seek first His Kingdom and His righteousness and all these things will be added to us as well!

Hunger and thirst for righteousness and we will be filled!!!

In seeking out the great works of יהוה, our praise for Him will be greatly ignited with the kind of zeal that true set-apart servants are to have!

When one’s ability to give the proper praise unto יהוה is lacking or is being weakened by trying circumstances, then it may be a clear sign that a proper seeking of Him has been lacking or has been non-existent!.

Dawiḏ says in:

Tehillah/Psalm 63:1 “O Elohim, You are my Ěl; I earnestly seek You; My being has thirsted for You; My flesh has longed for You In a dry and thirsty land without water.”

Dawiḏ starts off by declaring who is Elohim, and who was His Elohim, and he then declares that He earnestly seeks יהוה!

I earnestly seek You!

Can you honestly declare this? Do you earnestly seek יהוה?

Bearing in mind that Dawiḏ was in one of the toughest times of his life – and he was earnestly seeking יהוה!

The Hebrew word that is translated as ‘earnestly seek’ is שָׁחַר shaḥar – Strong’s H7836 which means ‘to long for, diligently seek, strongly desire something with a focus on a relationship with that which you seek’ and is an intensive verb which denotes that is requires exceeding effort and from this we get the noun of the word which means, ‘at dawn, early, daybreak’.

Therefore, it is safe to say that what Dawiḏ was actually declaring here was, “I rise early to diligently seek you”.

The LXX (Septuagint) translates this as ‘I rise early for you’.

What we have here, is the picture of ‘seeking early’ as having the connotation of great diligence – “I am seeking you really diligently” – and this is not done with half-hearted measures!!!

And… this he would do ‘early’, while it was still dark, at the breaking of dawn!!!

How many of you can say that?

Most of the time, the majority of people cannot even get out of bed early on a good day!

What about when you are in a tight spot, when things are all messed up and your circumstances look dismal – getting up early to seek יהוה is, for most, not even a consideration!

Dawiḏ woke up early to praise יהוה:

Tehillah/Psalm 108:1-2 “O Elohim, my heart is steadfast; I sing and give praise – even my esteem. 2 Awake, harp and lyre! I awake the dawn.”

A steadfast heart is not slow is seeking and praising יהוה! 

A true delight in יהוה and His works as given through His Word, is accompanied by a proper seeking of Him!.

This word דָּרַשׁ darash – Strong’s H1875 is a verb that expresses an action of a careful attention and due diligence that is required in order to gain the knowledge sought after.

In the ancient pictographic script, the Hebrew word דָּרַשׁ darash – Strong’s H1875 which means, ‘to resort to, seek out, ask, avenge, consult, investigate, search carefully, make inquiry, question’, looks like this:

.

Dalet – דָּ:

In the ancient script this letter is pictured as , which is a ‘tent door’. It can also have the meaning of a back-and-forth movement, as one goes back and forth through a tent door and so speaks of an access point. It can also carry the meaning of ‘dangle’ or hanging as the tent door would hang from the roof pole of the tent. It speaks a great deal in terms of understanding the door of the tent of appointment as the only means of access.

We also recognise that יהושע Messiah is The Door, and whoever enters through Him, shall be saved, and shall go in and shall go out and find pasture. The commands are also commanded to be put on our doorposts as a continual reminder that we are to guard His commands, as we go out and come in, submitting under the authority of The Door, through which we have been given access to being built up as a spiritual House for Elohim..

Resh – רַ:

The ancient script has this letter pictured as , which is ‘the head of a man’ and carries the meaning of ‘top, beginning, first, chief’, as in being the top of the body or the head of a tribe and the one who rules; and also speaks of possession or inheritance that is decided by the chief. Our true life of praise unto יהוה, our Head, begins when we fear Him, for He is the beginning of our strength, and true separated praise entails a true fear of the One who is Chief over us!.

Shin – שׁ:

This is the letter ‘shin’ which in the ancient script is pictured as, , which is ‘two front teeth’ and carries the meaning of ‘sharp or press, chew or devour’; which is what the teeth do, and also speaks of the sharpened word that comes forth from the mouth as the teeth ‘chew’ or ‘meditate’ on the Truth, making what comes forth pure and sharp! It also carries the understanding of consuming or destroying – as teeth do to food..

Looking at these pictographic letters that make up the root word דָּרַשׁ darash – Strong’s H1875 we can, in terms of the command to seek יהוה and His strength, recognise that we are to come to The Door of the Head and ‘eat’ the Word, so to speak!.

AT THE DOOR OF THE HEAD IS THE WORD!.

When we gather together as commanded, on the Sabbaths and Appointed Times of Elohim then we are able to come and delight ourselves in Him as we meditate on His Word and Submit to our Head, which is Messiah, guarding to do all He has commanded us to, knowing that our coming in and going out shall be in peace!

Those who are not coming to The Head at The Door of Appointment are not truly seeking The Word!

Those who neglect to guard the Sabbaths and Feasts of יהוה are not seeking Him as they should and therefore have not properly heard the command to seek.

Hearing they hear but do not understand and are unable to properly praise YAH!.

The ancient script has this letter ד (Dalet) pictured as a ‘tent door’, as already discussed above, and when we consider that יהושע Messiah is The Door, then we further see how vitally important it is for us to be continually looking at Him, and in doing so, praising Him as we diligently serve Him in spirit and truth, by diligently and joyfully guarding to do all His commands.

This we are able to do, as we look continually into the perfect Torah of Freedom and not forget what we look like, because our delight is in Him!

We are told that we should seek and in doing so, we are given the promise that we shall find, and we are told to knock, with eth assurance that it will be opened for us..

In our proper seeking and knocking, there is a proper searching of the Great works of יהוה, as we guard our duty of coming to the Door of His Appointed Times, which include His weekly Sabbaths, which opens up for us a very satisfying discovery of His great works!

Yoḥanan/John 10:9 “I am the door. Whoever enters through Me, he shall be saved, and shall go in and shall go out and find pasture.”

Tehillah/Psalm 100:4 “Enter into His gates with thanksgiving, and into His courts with praise. Give thanks to Him; bless His Name.”.

Now let’s take a closer look at what it means to ‘delight’ in our Master and His Word!

The Hebrew word that is translated as ‘delight’ in Tehillah/Psalm 111:2 is חֵפֶץ ḥephets – Strong’s H2656 which means, ‘delight, pleasure, desire, longing, purpose’, and comes from the root verb חָפֵץ ḥaphets – Strong’s H2654 and means, ‘to delight in, desire, take pleasure in’.

The root word חֵפֶץ ḥephets – Strong’s H2656 is also used in:

Tehillah/Psalm 1:1-2 “Blessed is the man who shall not walk in the counsel of the wrong, and shall not stand in the path of sinners, and shall not sit in the seat of scoffers, 2 but his delight is in the Torah of יהוה, and he meditates in His Torah day and night.”

The blessed man’s delight is in the Torah of יהוה, and we are able to clearly see that the one whose delight is in the Torah, does not walk, in wrong counsels, nor does he stand in sinful paths or sit in scoffing seats!

The one who delights in the Torah of יהוה, meditates in it day and night because it is his pleasure, that he does with exceeding joy and satisfaction!

Those who are of the world and walk, in fleshly ways, take no delight in meditating on the Torah, as they have no interest in it whatsoever and to do so would seem boring, dull and too much hard work to do. .

What you delight yourself in will never become boring or feel like it is too hard to do, even though it may take much effort, time and much energy.

Tehillah/Psalm 119:35 “Make me walk in the path of Your commands, for I have delighted in it.”

In this verse, the psalmist cries out with urgency a great plea for יהוה to make him walk in the commands of יהוה that he has greatly delighted in.

The wording that is used in the Hebrew for ‘make me walk’ is written in the ‘hiphil’ tense which expresses the ‘causative action’, and so here the psalmist is asking יהוה to cause him to walk in His commands that he has delighted in.

As we know that this Tehillah/Psalm 119 is the longest of all the Psalms and can even be seen as being the longest chapter in Scripture.

This Psalm is a powerful and well-constructed song of praise for the Torah, commands and instructions of Elohim.

We will be taking a look at a few of the verses contained herein, as we look deeper into that which we ought to delight ourselves in, as the beloved children of the Most–High!.

The root word חֵפֶץ ḥephets – Strong’s H2656 is also used in:

Tehillah/Psalm 112:1 “Praise Yah! Blessed is the man, who fears יהוה, who has greatly delighted in His commands.”

This is another verse that highlights for us the blessing of the one who fears יהוה.

The one who fears יהוה delights greatly in His commands!

Delighting in the commands of Elohim is an identifying mark of one who fears יהוה.

When people have no time for the Word and lack the energy and excitement to search out, study and meditate on the Torah and commands of יהוה, then it is clear that they have no true fear of יהוה and clearly do not delight in Him either..

Tehillah/Psalm 40:8 “I have delighted to do Your pleasure, O my Elohim, and Your Torah is within my heart.”

In this psalm of Dawiḏ, he makes the clear declaration of how he has delighted to do the pleasure of Elohim, and recognises that he is able to do so because the Torah of Elohim is within his heart!

The Torah of יהוה is to be upon our hearts and it is the Torah that causes us to do the pleasure of Elohim!

Pilipiyim/Philippians 2:12-13 “So that, my beloved, as you always obeyed – not only in my presence, but now much rather in my absence – work out your own deliverance with fear and trembling, 13 for it is Elohim who is working in you both to desire and to work for His good pleasure.”.

Tehillah/Psalm 147:11 “יהוה takes pleasure in those who fear Him, in those who wait for His loving-commitment.”

The Hebrew word that is translated here as ‘pleasure’ is from the root verb רָצָה ratsah – Strong’s H7521 which means, ‘to be pleased with, accept favourably, delight, approved’, and we see this verb being translated as ‘delighted’ in:

Diḇre haYamim Aleph/1 Chronicles 29:3 “And also, because I delighted in the House of my Elohim, I have treasure of gold and silver; I give for the House of my Elohim even more than all that I have prepared for the Set-apart House:”

These are some of the words that Dawiḏ spoke to all the assembly, when speaking about the great work that lay ahead for Shelomoh, in building the House of יהוה and how it had delighted him greatly to give in great abundance toward the work..

Qoheleth/Ecclesiastes 5:4 “When you make a vow to Elohim, do not delay to pay it, for He takes no pleasure in fools. Pay that which you have vowed.”

While we take note that יהוה takes pleasure in those who fear Him we also recognise that He takes no pleasure in fools.

Mishlĕ/Proverbs 8:11 tells us that wisdom is better than rubies and that all delights are not comparable to her.

Having said that, it becomes abundantly clear that our delight should be in the wisdom of Elohim, lest we be found to be fools that He takes no pleasure in!.

With Dawiḏ having delighted in the House of Elohim, we take note that he could do so, as He delighted in the wisdom of Elohim, through the proper meditating upon His Torah day and night, learning how-to walk-in Elohim and please Him as a wise servant, equipping him to be joyfully generous in preparing for the work of the House!.

When the Torah is a person’s delight then doing what the Word commands is a pleasure to follow.

The Greek word that is used in the LXX (Septuagint – Greek translation of the Tanak) for ‘delighted’ in Diḇre haYamim Aleph/1 Chronicles 29:3 is συνήδομαι sunēdomai – Strong’s G4913 which means, ‘delight, to rejoice together, to rejoice in or feel satisfaction concerning’, and we see this word συνήδομαι sunēdomai – Strong’s G4913 being used in:

Romiyim/Romans 7:22 “For I delight in the Torah of Elohim according to the inward man”.

Our ability to truly delight in the Torah according to the inward man equips us to walk according to the Spirit and take great joy and satisfaction in guarding to do all that our Master has commanded us.

When we delight in His Torah, then doing His Torah is a delight and it is not a heavy burden or something that is too hard, for His yoke is easy and His burden is light!.

The Torah is only hard to those who do not delight in it.

Those who find no satisfaction in studying, meditating and learning the Word, in order to joyfully do it, find it hard and boring, and in doing so render themselves as being fools who lack the necessary oil in their jars and will be shut out from entering into the Reign of our King!

When we delight in the Truth, it is a pleasure to do it, be it the delight in guarding the Sabbaths and Feasts of Elohim or by simply guarding to do all that He commands, including a cheerful giving of tithes and offerings!

When these things become a burden to do, and are not a delight that one has the privilege of doing, then clearly the Torah is not a delight and the fear of Elohim is not present!.

Tehillah/Psalm 43:3-4 “Send forth Your light and Your truth! Let them lead me, let them bring me to Your set-apart mountain and to Your dwelling places. 4 That I might come to the slaughter-place of Elohim, to Ěl, the joy of my delight, and praise You with the lyre, O Elohim, my Elohim.”

Here the Psalmist is asking for the Light and Truth of Elohim to come and lead him to set-apartness for Elohim is the joy of his ‘delight’.

יהושע Messiah, the Word made flesh, is the Light and Truth who leads us and in whom we delight, for He is the joy of our delight!

The Hebrew root word that is used here for ‘delight’ is גִּיל gil – Strong’s H1524 which means, ‘a rejoicing, exultation, joy’, and comes from the root verb גִּיל gil – Strong’s H1523 – ‘rejoice, be glad, be joyful’- ‘to circle around or spin around’, and is used in;

Tehillah/Psalm 9:14 “So that I declare all Your praise in the gates of the daughter of Tsiyon. I rejoice in Your deliverance.”

This is an expressive rejoicing, that can clearly be seen in the physical actions of one’s life! .

As you go about you day – how are you expressing the joy and gladness of Elohim?

Can you honestly declare that Elohim is the joy of your delight?.

The Hebrew word that is translated as ‘joy’ in Tehillah/Psalm 43:4 is שִׂמְחָה simḥah – Strong’s H8057 which means, ‘joy, gladness, delight, festival, pleasure’, and comes from the root שָׂמַח samaḥ – Strong’s H8055 and means, ‘to rejoice, be glad, be joyful, delight in and be elated’..

In the ancient pictographic script this word שִׂמְחָה simḥah – Strong’s H8057 looks like this:.

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Shin – שָׂ:

This is the letter ‘shin’ which in the ancient script is pictured as, , which is ‘two front teeth’ and carries the meaning of ‘sharp or press, chew or devour’; which is what the teeth do, and also speaks of the sharpened word that comes forth from the mouth, as the teeth ‘chew’ or ‘meditate’ on the Truth, making what comes forth pure and sharp!

It also carries the understanding of consuming or destroying – as teeth do to food.

This can give us the meaning of WORD or Words..

Mem – מַ:

The ancient script has this letter as and is pictured as ‘water’, and also carries the meaning of ‘chaos’ (from the storms of the sea) and can also picture that which is mighty or massive as well as the unknown.

We are also able to understand this letter as representing the nations, for the nations are often likened to the seas in Scripture.

This also carries for us the picture of washing, as we understand the function of water being that which cleanses us and sustains us, showing us how we are washed and sustained by the Living Waters of the Word!

This letter also can represent any liquid, especially blood!

Ḥet – ח:

The ancient script has this letter as which is a ‘tent wall’, and carries a meaning of ‘SEPARATION’, as a tent wall separates two halves of the tent; or it can also reflect the outside walls that separate the people inside from that which is outside and so can also symbolise protection and security to those inside, while picturing a cutting off of those who are outside. Hence this letter can mean ‘established, secure’ as well as ‘cut off, separated from’. As a tent wall we are also able to recognise the picture of stones being built up to make a complete wall, having been separated from the world and built up in the master!.

Hey – ה:

The ancient script has this letter pictured as , which is ‘a man standing with his arms raised out’. The meaning of the letter is “behold, look, breath, sigh and reveal or revelation”; from the idea of revealing a great sight by pointing it out. It also carries for us the meaning of surrender, as we lift up our hands and submit to יהוה as we lift our hands in praise, declaring His authority under which we humbly submit!.

When looking at this word in its pictographic form, in terms of our command to rejoice, we are able to see why we are able to rejoice as we recognise the following:.

BEHOLD, THE WORD THAT WASHES US HAS SEPARATED US

AND SECURED US AND IS TO BE PRAISED!.

This is a clear reason to serve with gladness, for as long as we allow the Word to wash us and keep us clean, we are able to confidently make our boast in Elohim, whom we give continual thanks and praise to, with much gladness, as we are built up as living stones in the Master; living stones that offer up our lives as a daily living offering with rejoicing praise and obedient thanksgiving!.

When Elohim is the joy of our delight, then it can clearly be seen in our lives, through a confident boasting in His Goodness, reflected in the joy that is expressed in diligently seeking Him and delighting in Him, always!.

What is your delight and what do you delight in?

As we consider the delight we ought to have, as a verb, we can learn much from that which Dawiḏ expresses in what he delighted himself in or what delighted him:

Tehillah/Psalm 94:19 “When anxiety was great within me, Your comforts delighted my being.”

The Hebrew word that is translated as ‘comforts’ is תַּנְחוּם tanchum – Strong’s 8575 and comes from the root verb נָחַם naḥam – Strong’s H5162 which means, ‘to comfort, console, to be comforted’, and this root often seems to reflect the idea of ‘breathing deeply’. .

In Yeshayahu/Isaiah 40:1 we see the following term/phrase that is translated as “comfort, comfort, My people…”:

נַחֲמוּ נַחֲמוּ עַמִּי

naḥamu, naḥamu, ami.

The repetition of the word used for ‘comfort’, is for emphasis and this word is from the root word נָחַם naḥam – Strong’s H5162.

The term נַחֲמוּ naḥamu, which is a derivative of נָחַם naḥam, can give the understanding of ‘to cause to breathe again’.

In other words, it is יהוה Himself that would bring the ‘recovery of breath’, and this is His comforting words that are being spoken to His people – and in a sense could render the encouragement of knowing that Elohim Himself is declaring to a people in exile:

“I am bringing you a recovery of breath”.

This recovery of breath that was surely needed is sufficient for His people to get strengthened and prepare the way for His soon return!

We are told at the end of the Tehillim/Psalms, in Tehillah/Psalm 150:6, to let all that has breath praise יהוה.

Only when you truly delight in יהוה and fins the true comfort of seeking Him as one should, can you confidently praise Him with great joy, accompanied by the clear display of pure set-apartness that is pursued with great zeal!.

The Psalmist, in Tehillah/Psalm 94, is expressing the comfort of the recovering breath of Elohim that he delighted in, while dwelling in the midst of a wicked and corrupt people!

When you are filled with great anxiety, what do you delight in?

Do you delight in the comforts of Elohim, that He brings through His word that strengthens your being?.

The Hebrew root verb that is used in Tehillah/Psalm 94:19 for ‘delighted’ is שָׁעַע sha’a – Strong’s H8173 which means, ‘take joy in, delight in, have a feeling or attitude of taking pleasure in, having fondness for an object’.

This verb is written here in the causative or reflexive tense, teaching us that, when in anxiety, he was caused to delight himself in the comforting breath of Elohim!

This verb שָׁעַע sha’a – Strong’s H8173 is also used in:

Tehillah/Psalm 119:16 “I delight myself in Your laws; I do not forget Your word.”

As the psalmist meditated on the orders and ways of Elohim, he expressed how he delighted himself in the laws and took great pleasure in them, having shown a proper attitude toward them! .

We again see this root verb שָׁעַע sha’a – Strong’s H8173 being used in:

Tehillah/Psalm 119:70 “Their heart has become like fat, without feeling; I have delighted in Your Torah.”

While the wrong have fattened hearts of deceit without feeling, the psalmist declares that he takes great pleasure in the Torah of Elohim!

How about you?

Does the Torah give you great pleasure and do you have great fondness and delight for it? Or, has your heart become calloused by the worries of this age and the deceit of wealth that chokes out the Word, rendering one fruitless?.

What is interesting to take note of, is that this root verb שָׁעַע sha’a – Strong’s H8173 can also carry the meaning of, ‘to be smeared over or blinded, to smear the eyes shut’, and is translated as ‘shut’, in:

Yeshayahu/Isaiah 6:10 “Make the heart of this people fat, and their ears heavy, and shut their eyes; lest they see with their eyes, and hear with their ears, and understand with their heart, and shall turn and be healed.”

What, in essence, is being said here, is that those who have not delighted in יהוה and His Torah, and have shut their eyes to the Truth are given over to their own evil that they have delighted in.

This is a negative use of this word that highlights the danger of not delighting in יהוה and being given over to the delights of a fattened and calloused heart!.

Understanding our need to be delighting ourselves in יהוה, His Torah and the comforting breath of His Word, we recognise that this verb teaches us that our delight in Him must express an intensive and intentional action of seeking Him and continually doing so, lest our eyes become smeared shut by deceit!.

To delight in יהוה, is a continual action of a committed obedience, which is required to be done out of a pure pleasure and joy, as opposed to it being a heavy burden that is too hard to bear!

What one delights in, will not be too hard to do, even if it takes hard work and it costs you! Knowing that delighting in our Master and Elohim is a required action, what we also need to learn, is the things of יהוה that we are to delight ourselves in, and this is where the noun, that is derived from this root verb שָׁעַע sha’a – Strong’s H8173, comes into play! .

The noun that is derived from this verb is שַׁעֲשֻׁעִים sha’ashuiym – Strong’s H8191 which means, ‘delight, pleasant, object of delight’, which is an intensive noun that is written in the plural.

When being written as ‘my delight’ it is written as שַׁעֲשֻׁעָי sha’ashuai.

This noun is used 9 times in the Tanak, 5 of which are used in Tehillah/Psalm 119, in the construct of שַׁעֲשֻׁעָי sha’ashuai which means, ‘MY DELIGHT’.

It is this Hebrew word – שַׁעֲשֻׁעָי sha’ashuai that gripped me and led me to dig deeper into what we are to be delighting ourselves in. .

Let us therefore take a look at these 5 verses and see what the object of the psalmist’s delight was, allowing the mirror of the Word to show us whether our delight is the same too:

Tehillah/Psalm 119:24 “Your witnesses also are my delight, my counsellors.”

Tehillah/Psalm 119:77 “Let Your compassions come to me, that I might live, for Your Torah is my delight.”

Tehillah/Psalm 119:92 “If Your Torah had not been my delight, I would have perished in my affliction.”

Tehillah/Psalm 119:143 “Distress and anguish have found me; Your commands are my delight.”

Tehillah/Psalm 119:174 “I have longed for Your deliverance, O יהוה, and Your Torah is my delight.”.

As we can clearly see from these verses, the object of the psalmist’s delight was the witnesses, Torah and commands of יהוה!

As we stop and ponder on this and see exactly what the psalmist took great pleasure in, we have to question the motives of some who claim to follow the Creator yet delight not in His witnesses, Torah and commands..

The Hebrew root word that is used in verse 24 for ‘witnesses’ is עֵדָה eḏah – Strong’s H5713 which is the feminine of the word for ‘witness’, which is עֵד eyḏ – Strong’s H5707 which means, ‘witness, evidence, testimony’, which comes from the root word עוּד uḏ/ooḏ – Strong’s H5749, which means, ‘to return, go about, repeat, do again, encircle, supports’. .

A word that is derived from this root verb and is used to describe the Ark of the ‘witness’, is the noun עֵדוּת eḏuth – Strong’s H5715 which means, ‘testimony, witness, ordinance, warning’..

In the ancient pictographic text, we see the root word for witness – עֵד eyḏ – Strong’s H5707 – being pictured as follows:

.

Ayin – עָ:

The original pictograph for this letter is: and represents the idea of ‘seeing and watching’, as well as ‘knowledge’ as the eye is the window of knowledge..

Dalet – דֶ:

The ancient script has this letter as and is pictured as a ‘tent door’. It can also have the meaning of ‘a back-and-forth movement’, as one goes back and forth through a tent door, and so speaks of an access point. It can also carry the meaning of ‘dangle’ or hanging as the tent door would hang from the roof pole of the tent. It speaks a great deal in terms of understanding the door of the tent of appointment as the only means of access..

When we consider these two pictographs, which represent the idea of being a witness, we can see the following being declared:.

EYE ON THE DOOR / LOOKING AT THE DOOR!.

When we consider that יהושע Messiah is The Door, then we further see our need to continually be looking at Him, and praising Him as we diligently are serving in spirit and truth, guarding to do all His commands – as we look continually into the perfect Torah of Freedom and not forget what we look like! .

The Word of יהוה shall be a witness against those who are not ‘looking’ at His Word and guarding to do it!

We are to be true witnesses of the Good News and the Reign of our Master that is coming, as we hold fast to and possess the witness of יהושע Messiah, for the witness of יהושע is the spirit of prophecy, which means that we bear witness of all that the Torah and the prophets bear witness of, declaring who our Master, Saviour and Elohim is and keeping our eyes fixed on Him, not turning to the left or to the right as we stay in Him and walk in His Word!.

The Hebrew word that is used in verse 143 for ‘commands’ is מִצְוֹתַ mitsvoth and is the plural of the word מִצְוָה mitzvah – Strong’s H4687 which means, ‘commandment, command, obligation, precept’, which comes from the primitive root צָוָה tsavah – Strong’s H6680 which means, ‘to lay charge (upon), give charge to, command, order, appoint, commission, ordain’.

His מִצְוַת mitzvoth (plural for commands) are those rules which apply to specific situations and are tailored for each unique situation in determining the correct action to be taken in a specific circumstance and so we ‘guard’ those carefully to know how to respond and take action for any given situation we may find ourselves in..

3 times in Tehillah/Psalm 119, the Psalmist clearly expresses the delight he has in the Torah of יהוה, and he says, in verse 92, that if the Torah of יהוה had not been his delight, he would have perished in his affliction! ..

If the Torah of יהוה is not our delight we will perish!!!

Think about this for a moment, as many are sadly making the drunken assumption, under the misguided traditions and false teachings of man, that the Torah of יהוה has been done away with and is no longer applicable..

The Hebrew word that is translated as ‘perish’ comes from the root word אָבַד aḇaḏ – Strong’s H6 which means, ‘to perish, destroy, lose, put to death, blot out, do away with, to give up as lost, vanish, be lost or strayed’.

Those who claim this, shall perish in their affliction!

The Hebrew root word for ‘affliction’ is עֳנִי oniy – Strong’s H6040 which means, ‘affliction, great pains, misery’, and comes from the root עָנָה anah – Strong’s H6031, which means, ‘to be bowed down, afflicted, humbled’ and it can also carry the meaning, ‘to be occupied or busy with’.

What do you find yourself ‘being busy with’?

Whatever it is, are you delighting in the Torah that is able to comfort you in every situation?

Tehillah/Psalm 119:50 “This is my comfort in my affliction, for Your word has given me life.”

In the great praise for the Torah, the psalmist certainly expresses that without the Torah we would have no proper direction and would be on a path to destruction. .

The Hebrew word that is translated here as ‘my comfort’ is נֶחָמָתִ֣י neḥamathiy which comes from the root word נֶחָמָה neḥamah which means, ‘comfort, consolation’ and comes from the root word נָחַם naḥam – Strong’s H5162 which means, ‘to comfort, console, to be comforted’, which we have already discussed..

When being surrounded by, or dwelling in, a place of affliction, we have comfort in recognising the fruit of meditating on the Torah day and night, and that, in the working out of our deliverance with fear and trembling, through obedience to the Torah, we are able to set our expectation perfectly upon the favour that is to be brought to us at the revelation of יהושע Messiah, for His Word gives us the comforting recovery of breath, when the choking pressures of afflictions comes against us, …. if we are, in fact, delighting in His Word as we should!.

Instead of making the Torah of יהוה a delight, many are casting it aside and, as a result, become fools, in which יהוה takes no pleasure.

Before we simply label those ‘out there’, that have no regard for the Torah, let us consider for a moment the reality of how some, who are walking in the Torah, are not actually making it their delight, but are simply going through the motions because they know they should!.

יהוה desires obedience and not sacrifice; and what that means, is that He desires a proper obedience that comes from a place of a true delight for Him and His Word. .

When true servants take pleasure in His Torah, then being a daily living sacrifice is a natural occurrence and sacrifice does not need to be ‘manufactured’. .

Are you able to truly say the following, just as the Psalmist declared?

“The witnesses, commands and Torah of יהוה” are:

MY DELIGHT

שַׁעֲשֻׁעָי sha’ashuai.

In Mishlĕ/Proverbs 8, we are told in the parables of Shelomoh, that wisdom is the daily delight of Elohim and His delights are with the sons of men!

Mishlĕ/Proverbs 8:30-31 “Then I was beside Him, a master workman, and I was His delight, day by day rejoicing before Him all the time, 31 rejoicing in the world, His earth; and my delights were with the sons of men.”.

We are also told in:

Yeshayahu/Isaiah 5:7 “For the vineyard of יהוה of hosts is the house of Yisra’ĕl, and the man of Yehuḏah is His pleasant plant. He looked for right-ruling, but see, oppression; for righteousness, but see, weeping.”

The ‘man of Yehuḏah’ is his שַׁעֲשֻׁעָ sha’ashua – His delight, which is written in the Hebrew text as שַׁעֲשׁוּעָיו sha’ashuav.

I find this verse to be a prophetic statement of Messiah, who would come in the flesh and be born from the Tribe of Yehuḏah and dwell among His people, in order to restore His vineyard!

Mattithyahu/Matthew 3:16-17 “And having been immersed, יהושע went up immediately from the water, and see, the heavens were opened, and He saw the Spirit of Elohim descending like a dove and coming upon Him, 17 and see, a voice out of the heavens, saying, “This is My Son, the Beloved, in whom I did delight.”.

Do you see this?

יהוה looked at His vineyard – the House of Yisra’ĕl – and there was no right-ruling or righteousness, as there was only oppression and weeping.

In His great wisdom, it delighted Him to come in the form of man, from the tribe of Yehuḏah, and be planted among His vineyard and become the True Vine, to which we are grafted into and become His branches!.

The reason I am sharing these verses with you, is to highlight the power of understanding what it means to have delight in יהוה and the wonderful blessing of recognising His delight that He has for us, as we see this word being used again in:

Yirmeyahu/Jeremiah 31:20 “Is Ephrayim a precious son to Me, a child of delights? For though I spoke against him, I still remembered him. That is why My affections were deeply moved for him. I have great compassion for him,” declares יהוה.”

יהוה asks the rhetorical question, of whether Ephrayim is a precious son to Him and a child of delights, where the Hebrew word for ‘delights’ is שַׁעֲשֻׁעִים sha’ashuiym – Strong’s H8191.

The answer is clear – yes Ephrayim is a child of delights.

Ephrayim is often used in Scripture as a metaphor for the scattered House of Yisra’ĕl, who He remembers and works deliverance for, because of His delight for His precious delights!.

יהוה delights so much in us that He came in the flesh in order to die for us and be raised so that we can be restored to Him as a pruned vine and no longer a degenerate one!.

MY DELIGHT – שַׁעֲשֻׁעָי – sha’ashuai – … is…!

How do you complete that sentence?

Like the Psalmist, or has your heart been fattened by deceit and you find that your delight is in other things?

As I meditated on this word שַׁעֲשֻׁעָי sha’ashuai – ‘MY DELIGHT’, I realised how urgent the mirror of this Truth must be, to a Bride who is making Herself ready for Her coming King, in whom she delights!

As mentioned already, when you delight in something or someone, and truly take pleasure in them, then nothing is too hard or difficult, despite what it may cost you.

However, when something is not a delight to you then doing it becomes a sacrifice, for which יהוה does not desire. .

Do you take pleasure in יהוה, His witnesses, His commands and His Torah?

For if you do, then doing His word will be an absolute pleasure! .

There is one other word that I want to mention, as it is also translated as ‘delight’, and that is the noun עֹנֶג oneg – Strong’s H6027 which means, ‘daintiness, exquisite delight, luxurious’, and comes from the root verb עָנֹג anog – Strong’s H6026 which means, ‘to be soft, dainty, delicate, take delight’.

Both the noun and verb is used in:.

Yeshayahu/Isaiah 58:13-14 “If you do turn back your foot from the Sabbath, from doing your pleasure on My set-apart day, and shall call the Sabbath ‘a delight,’ the set-apart day of יהוה ‘esteemed,’ and shall esteem it, not doing your own ways, nor finding your own pleasure, nor speaking your own words, 14 then you shall delight yourself in יהוה. And I shall cause you to ride on the heights of the earth, and feed you with the inheritance of Yaʽaqoḇ your father. For the mouth of יהוה has spoken!”

As we consider these various words for ‘delight’ may we earnestly be stirred to delight ourselves in our Master and Elohim, and take pleasure in serving Him in Spirit and Truth, as we see Dawiḏ telling us in:

Tehillah/Psalm 37:4 “And delight yourself in יהוה, and let Him give you the desires of your heart.”.

When you truly take pleasure in יהוה, then the desires of your heart will be perfectly lined up with His desire, which is our set-apartness!

Tas’loniqim Aleph/1 Thessalonians 4:3-7 “For this is the desire of Elohim: your set-apartness! – that you should abstain from whoring, 4 that each one of you should know how to possess his own vessel in set-apartness and respect, 5 not in passion of lust, like the gentiles who do not know Elohim, 6 not to overstep and take advantage of his brother in this matter, because the Master is the revenger of all such, as we indeed said to you before and earnestly warned. 7 For Elohim did not call us to uncleanness, but in set-apartness.”.

I therefore leave you with the mirror of the Word, into which you ought to be looking intently into, and carefully consider these passages that I have mentioned in this message, and ask yourself if your sentence can be finished like the Psalmist’s, when you say:

שַׁעֲשֻׁעָי – sha’ashuai – ‘MY DELIGHT’… is in….

Consider these questions, as you do an earnest assessment of what you are delighting in:

Has guarding the Sabbath been hard for you at times?

Have you been in the habit of forsaking the proper called for assembling together, on the Sabbaths and Feasts of יהוה, as some have?

Have you forgotten to wear tsitsit, as we are commanded to?

Have you neglected to give the proper tithes and offerings as you should?

Have you neglected to pray as you should?

Have you neglected to rejoice always?

Have you neglected to proclaim the Reign of the Master to others? .

I could go on and on with many similar questions that can cut right to the heart, and if the answer to any of these are ‘yes’, then it is a clear sign that your delight has not truly been in יהוה, His witnesses, His commands and His Torah, as it should! .

May this be a reminder to you all, that true servants and ambassadors of the King delight themselves in Him, no matter the cost, for they take great pleasure in pleasing Him..

In recognising this, may you be greatly encouraged to complete the following declaration with a confident boast of praise in our Mighty Master and Elohim, and His perfect Word:.

שַׁעֲשֻׁעָי – sha’ashuai – ‘MY DELIGHT’… is in… .

May you be able to boldly and truthfully declare what the Psalmist declared and take pleasure in meditating, studying and seeking out the Word, as you walk in the Master each and every day, and embrace His great delight, that He takes in His wise servants who are making themselves ready for His soon return!.

MY DELIGHT

שַׁעֲשֻׁעָי sha’ashuai.

יהוה bless you and guard you; יהוה make His face shine upon you and show favour to you; יהוה lift up His face upon you and give you Shalom!.