Am I the only one? Or have you ever read a passage in scripture multiple times and then one day - BAM, it comes to life? It speaks to your heart and mind and resonates within you. You ponder these things and are blown away and feel confident that you have NEVER read that verse before.
Well that's what happened to me one day when I read Proverbs 3:3-4
"Let love and truth never leave you;
bind them around your neck,
write them on the tablet of your heart.
Then you will find favor and a good name
in the sight of God and man."
The thing that really stood out to me was "bind them around your neck." And a light went on in my head. And finding favor with God and man is certainly something worth pursuing too. So the seed was planted and the journey began.
Now I know that wearing a necklace isn't going to cause me to find favor with God and man, anymore than wearing aviator glasses will make me to be able to fly an airplane. But I believe the true depth of the meaning is to remember these things, to think on these things, to live these things.
If this Proverb were written using the English alphabet instead of the Hebrew symbols, the words "hesed" and "emet" would translate most closely to read "love" and "truth". To be clear, there is not any one English word that is equal in definition. That's probably why you see other English words offered up in various translations of the Bible. Those Hebrew words encompass more meaning than love and truth (although love and truth have GREAT meaning!)
A brief definition of hesed is lovingkindness; a sense of love and loyalty that inspires merciful and compassionate behavior toward another. And emet is defined as truth, faithful and true, trustworthy and dependable. So you can see why these characteristics would find favor and a good name with God and man. Whether you wear one of these necklaces or not, these are good qualities to practice.
And now this vision has come to life. Each piece comes with a wallet insert card to remind you of the meaning of these words. If you pop in to our online store you will see we have both English and Hebrew versions for you to choose from. Each piece is handcrafted and each recipient is prayed for.
Also proceeds from the sale of each item are donated to help stop human trafficking! You can learn more about this non-profit at In Our Backyard.
So that's the story. Thank you for stopping by.
Comments