The Word Selah has been debated as to it's meaning for many years. It appears in the Bible 71 times. Tho there are many translations of this word from the Hebrew language, the meaning of each are very close in nature to the others.
The amplified bible is my favorite, it translates the word using all of the others, translating it “pause and calmly think about that”.
That is the heart of Andy's intention. "Story tellers understand the power of silence. Nothing arrests the attention of an audience quite like a well-times dramatic pause, especially if the silence continues just a little longer than expected. By the design of heaven, a long, dramatic paused interrupted the story of God's grace."
Andy, as you will find out while reading this section, is speaking of the 400 years of silence between the Old and New Testaments.
He is leading up to looking at God's grace through a new lens, a "new covenant" or "new testament". Sound familiar?
What about this little pause has touched your heart?
What has been your favorite part of the book so far?
Till next week, read on and comment away!
Ginny Soultz said:
on May 6, 2015 at 7:44pm
I love Andy's statement concerning the period of silence that would come for God's people prior to the coming of the Messiah: "During the bleak years, the Lord assured his covenant people that despite the apparent victory of evil over good, his grace would prevail." He then quoted Jeremiah 29:10-14 which is the very passage that God brought to my attention in the very bleakest moment of my life when I was questioning the goodness of God in my life and wondering why evil had been allowed to triumph. I clung to the promises in these verses, in spite of still not seeing how God would bring about any good from the situation I was in. I simply clung to Him in faith. Over the years, God has proven to me, time and time again, that He IS faithful, His grace IS sufficient, and He DOES have a good plan and hope and future in mind for me. That experience has helped me to trust Him in several other very difficult times of silence, or "Selah", in my life where I couldn't seem to hear His voice. I know that His ways are not our ways, and His thoughts are not thoughts. His time table is also certainly not the same as ours. But He IS faithful and His grace IS sufficient!
Sheila Stewart said:
on June 18, 2015 at 4:34pm
God promised a Savior before his 400 year silence, and He delivered on His promise in His own perfect time. This confirms to me that His promise to return again will absolutely be fulfilled, and I need to trust that it will happen in His own perfect time. I need to be faithful and honor Him and listen as He speaks to my heart.
My favorite thing about the book so far is that it has caused me to examine the difference between how I have come to expect God's grace when I know I have offended Him and how I actually extend or withhold grace from others. God forgives completely and lets me 'move on', but there are times when I think I have forgiven others and then find myself dwelling on their past offenses instead of letting them move on.
