The Greatest... commandment?
2024.09.05-20
Read to find out how I interpet these few verses.
וְאָ֣הַבְתָּ֔ אֵ֖ת יְהֹוָ֣ה אֱלֹהֶ֑יךָ בְּכׇל־לְבָבְךָ֥ וּבְכׇל־נַפְשְׁךָ֖ וּבְכׇל־מְאֹדֶֽךָ׃
This one verse has completely changed everything. How I viewed religion, how I consolidated (and frankly ended) the trinitarian debates, and how I approached life and witnessing to others. Everything.
So in English, it's pretty clear: Love Yhʋh with your all. It is the core creed for Jews everywhere, to the point where each observant Jew hopes to recite it as their last words. It is number one of the two greatest commandments in all of Christianity. And for me, it is the core purpose for all of Humanity. However, I read it and understand it differently than most. Everyone reads things in their own way, no two understandings are the same.
This is why I laugh at orthodoxy: which belief is the "right" one? How do you know if it's right? If humans cannot comprehend God with our puny mortal-minds, how can we say we have the answers? What if they didn't need to understand, what if they just saw it differently? What if we have been retrojecting ourselves onto this ancient text? What if there is no right or wrong way, but your own way?
I'll keep it simple, but all of Deuteronomy points to the Shema being the Torah of Moses. Yes, there's the 10 commandments and other priestly/legalistic content and mitzvot. But truthfully, in the voice of Moses contained in Deuteronomy, the only commandment that he commands them is contained in the Shema. And frankly, the prophets reflect this.
While the Shema starts with Deuteronomy 6.4 and establishes the singularity of God, Yhʋh, it is not the important part. Perhaps the most important part is Deuteronomy 6.5, and to me, it is. What makes it even better is the usage of the Old Hebrew language itself:
וְאָ֣הַבְתָּ֔ is a compound word comprised of the prefix וְ, the root אָ֣הַבְ, and the suffix תָּ֔. This word is translated into English as "(and) you shall love." Now, at this point, we are obviously thinking that the "you" here is Israel, right? You know, Listen Israel in 6.4? So basically the "you" here is plural, right? Well, nope. Let's take a deeper look at the word itself so we can understand.
First part, the וְ vav prefix. וְ is simple, in this usage it is a conjunction meaning "and." Thus it is continuing the thought from Deuteronomy 6.4.
Next is the אָ֣הַבְ, a transitive verb meaning "love." Now, in this case, "love" can be any general kind of love, such as friendly, familial, and even /irtk/ love. (Bonus points if you can read IPA.) However, while it's like the English "love" it's less about the emotional aspect and more about the mechanism of attraction or focus. For context, this kind of love is also the same kind of love God had for the people of Israel in Deuteronomy 7.8.
The next part is an important part, as it determines what is the subject of the verb "love." The תָּ֔ is a suffix that modifies verbs. However, the kamatz can denote the as being asecond-person, masculine, singular qal-perfect suffix. It's basically making the subject of the verb "you (singular, masculine)." Sorry, ladies. The feminine equivalent has the shva instead of the kamatz at the bottom. But, in your defense, Ancient Hebrew didn't have vowel points, so...
Now, since it is the second person singular, it's "you" as in just the two of us with me talking to you. It is not the plural of "you," for which I shall henceforth use "y'all" in order to clarify. I honestly never thought I'd use that grammatically-uncouth contraction in order to grammatically improve the quality of a scentence or statement. The South has struck again, y'all (durn grammar rebs).
Now you may have noticed something funky in the mix, and I'm not talking about the cake. I'm talking about the "qal perfect." No, it's not a fancy way for saying "perfect call" with a French flair. The qal perfect means easy, simplest form (of the verb) and that the verb is expressed as a completed action or state, whether in the past, present, or future.
Now, back to the "love." All this could mean "you loved" in the sense that you have completed and finished loving, wheter now, in the past, or in the future. In the bible, אהב "sometimes takes a direct object, and other times takes an object using the preposition ל־". From what we know earlier, this officially establishes אהב as a transitive verb.
Another note is that a perfect verb prefixed with ו vav can sometimes be translated in the future tense, if it is in a narrative. So, in this sense, it can kinda sorta also somewhat mean "you shall love." Whether it is "you (completed) love" or "you shall love," we can safely say it's not "y'all (completed)/shall love."
That is a whole lot of meaning compacted into 5 glyphs, 6 diacritics, and 2 cantillation marks.
And that's just the first word...
Honestly, I just want to skip this one. It literally is what marks the direct definitive object of a transient verb.
I like to write this as Yhʋh, as it looks prettier than Yhvh/Yhwh and consolidates that argument on wheter it's a /v/ sound or a /w/ sound. Why can't we all just get along? It's God's name and there was a consonant shift. You think they used to call "God" "Gawhd" or something??? Potato, potato. Tomato, tomato. יהוה יהוה...
אֱלֹהֶ֑יךָ is another complex word that is simpler than before, I think. It's basically the semitic equivalent for english "God," but with the ם that's usually at the end replaced with something completely different.
So what of the ךָ at the end? The ך actually is a type-1, second-person, masculine singular pronomial possessive suffix. Wow, that sounds kinky. Basically it's like me talking to you as an individual and I say your something, or something of you (singular). And ladies, as always, the sheva can also be implied because noooo vowellllls!
Notice something? This is stating "your God," not "y'all's God." Just like the first word, that transative verb. The South has struck again.
So Imma cheat here and fail to cite sources, as we're getting into basic biblical Hebrew territory by now. I'll simply point out that the ב prefix essentially translates as "in" or "with." The כל simply means "all, the whole of, everything" and in this context it's all of לבבך.
לבבך has that ך suffix that we discussed earlier, so it's your, not "y'alls" לבב. לבב is "heart" and can also be used as "understanding" as the heart is the seat of the will and personality of a person and even thought. Considering that the heart is used as meaning the insides and core of a person, you could get a double-entendre from this, to love God "in all of your inner being" which would cover the emotions and love of the heart as well as the thought, will, personality, and logic. Therefore we can ascertain why-in-the-world Jesus adds "all of your mind" to it, as that helps seperate the logical aspects from the emotional aspects of the heart that could be understood at that time.
Know your prefixes and suffixes. Again, ך makes whatever this is "yours, not y'alls." The ו looks like it means "and" in this context, and we just went over בכל so... נפש is a nice one, meaning life, breath, or vitality. James Tabor did an excellent job explaining נפש in some random video I cannot re-find at this point in time, where נפש is like life-breather rather than living soul. Regardless, I see it as the breath of life or vitality, as the heart earlier already did a double-entendre from the logical side of things like will and desire. It also makes sense: with every life-breath you are to love God. This brings Psalm 6.5 to mind:
For in death there is no memory of you. In Sheol, who shall give you thanks? (Psalm 6.5, WEB)
Okay so we can skip the ך at the end and the ובכל at the beginning as it's redundant. מאד means "vehemence, wholly, speedily, might, etc." So essentially strength or ability, with all that you are, essentially. And, as always, "your, not y'alls."
The instuction from God via Moses is simply that we are to love God in our own individual way, to the best of our understanding, capability, and vitality. We love God with our own, individual "all." All of your individual heart, and all of your individual understanding. All of your breath or all of your vitality and life. All of your individual strength or ability. And I do the above, but with my individual heart, understanding, breath/life/vitality, and strength/ability.
You love God to and in the best that you can do. I love God to and in the best that I can do. That's the specific language right there.
That's what changed everything for me. Then I understood Acts 14.16. Then Colossians 2.16 finally made perfect sense. God doesn't and never wanted any rituals, traditions, or sacraments other than those that you give to him on your accord, and me on mine.
That's why the prophets are indifferent to ritual sacrifice and quote God as never instructing that in the wilderness (ie. the giving of Torah). That's why Jesus was concerned about the motivations on the inside over the actions on the outside. That's why the Hellenized Paul and Jewish church at Jerusalem were in agreement and sought to include gentiles rather than convert them. God is truly wanting an individual relationship with you. That's why there is hope for Unitarians, Trinitarians, and people like me that don't care and can never understand or accept what others want me to. That's why the trinity debate is pointless. That's why the sacred name movements are jokes. That's why God answered me whether I said God, Yahweh, Yehovah, Yawa, Yahuah, Jehovah, Jesus, Father, Y'hoʋah, Yah, etc. I prayed to the best of my understanding, and God answered it.
I'm indifferent to the nature of God, I find trinitarian/unitarian arguments to be silly and pointless. I will never accept or pick a side in the matter, because all of my understanding is different to them. But God didn't have Moses instruct me to understand like you do or like they do, but to understand with all that I can and as I do. All of my understanding forbids me from evisioning a bearded dude or a wafting swirl of light. I don't see anything, nor do I hear anything when it comes to God, but I feel It.
I know It. I'm sincere in how I approach these things, and I believe that God will judge us on our arrogance in matters, not our ignorance. God knew us before we were conceived, therefore I find that God knew all of this beforehand, and that God is understanding. Reading this one verse closely answered a lot of questions and concerns I had, and casued them to all fade away. It left me with this understanding of God:
Hear, Israel: Yahweh is our God. Yahweh is one. 5 You shall love Yahweh your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your might. 6 These words, which I command you today, shall be on your heart; 7 and you shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, and when you walk by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise up. 8 You shall bind them for a sign on your hand, and they shall be for frontlets between your eyes. 9 You shall write them on the door posts of your house and on your gates.
10 It shall be, when Yahweh your God brings you into the land which he swore to your fathers, to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob, to give you, great and goodly cities which you didn't build, 11 and houses full of all good things which you didn't fill, and cisterns dug out which you didn't dig, vineyards and olive trees which you didn't plant, and you shall eat and be full; 12 then beware lest you forget Yahweh, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage. 13 You shall fear Yahweh your God; and you shall serve him, and shall swear by his name. 14 You shall not go after other gods, of the gods of the peoples who are around you, 15 for Yahweh your God among you is a jealous God, lest the anger of Yahweh your God be kindled against you, and he destroy you from off the face of the earth. 16 You shall not tempt Yahweh your God, as you tempted him in Massah. 17 You shall diligently keep the commandments of Yahweh your God, and his testimonies, and his statutes, which he has commanded you. 18 You shall do that which is right and good in Yahweh's sight, that it may be well with you and that you may go in and possess the good land which Yahweh swore to your fathers, 19 to thrust out all your enemies from before you, as Yahweh has spoken.
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