Chapter 2 - One Listen Israel, Yahweh is our God, Yahweh is One
Deuteronomy 6:4
Just as the Hebraism of the word “~X” (shem) is lost through its translation into the English word “name,” the Hebraism of the word “dxa” (ehhad) is lost through its translation into the English word “one.” By examining the parent and child roots related to “dxa,” we can again find the Hebraic meaning of this word just as we did with the word “~X.”
Hhad The child root “dxa” (ehhad) is derived from the parent root “dx” (hhad). Up to this point we have seen the Hebrew words written with the “modern” Hebrew alphabet (see appendix A). The ancient Hebrew alphabet was originally written with pictographs (meaning picture writing) similar to Egyptian hieroglyphs (see appendix A). Over the centuries, these ancient pictographic letters evolved into the Modern Hebrew alphabet.
These original pictographs supplied meaning to the word. As an example the Hebrew word for “son” is “!b” (ben) and is written as “nb” in the original pictographic script. The first letter is “b” (b). This is a picture of the floor plan of a common nomadic tent as would have been used by Abraham. The tent is divided into two parts, one side for the males of the household and the other for the females. A wall separates the two sides with an opening in the back allowing for passage between the two sides. The entrance into the tent is on the male side, as seen at the top left of the pictograph. The meaning of this letter is tent, house and family. The second letter, “n” (n) is a picture of a germinating seed. A seed is the offspring of the previous generation, which grows producing seeds for the next generation. This concept of perpetuity, or continuance is the meaning of this letter. When these two letters are combined the parent root “nb” (ben) is formed, with the original Hebraic meaning being “the house that continues.” The function of a “son” is to continue the family line to the next generation. The Hebrew parent root word “dx” (hhad) is written as “dh” in the ancient Hebrew pictographs. The first letter in this word is “h” (hh), representing a tent wall, such as that which divides the male from the female sides, and means to separate or divide. The second letter, “d” (d), represents a door or entrance, such as that which allows passage between the two sides of the tent, and means to enter. Our parent root “dh” (hhad) has the pictographic meaning of “a wall with a door” or “a wall for entering.” The Hebraic idea being expressed in this word is that one thing, or person, serves more than one function. Just as the wall separates the two sides, the door in the wall unites them. This Hebraic imagery can be clearly seen in the following passage:
“And you son of man, the sons of your people are speaking about you next to the walls and in the doors of the houses; and one (dx) speaks at one (dxa) man and at his brother saying please come and hear what the word of the one coming from the LORD is saying. And they come to you like they are coming of a people, and my people sit before you. And they listen to your words but they do not practice it; adoration is in their mouths but their hearts walk after their greed.”
Ezekiel 33:30-31. In this passage we see the two opposite actions of the people. While they go to hear from the LORD, they practice evil in their hearts, “one” individual with two opposite manifestations. It is also interesting to note that Ezekiel shows that these people are speaking about him at the walls and doors, a direct connection to the word “dx/dh,” whose pictographs are of a wall and a door.
Riddle The child root “dwx” (hhud), derived from the parent root “dx” (hhad), has the meaning of a riddle.
“Son of man, give a riddle (dwx) of a riddle (hdyx - hhiydah, feminine form of hhud); and give a parable of a parable to the house of Israel.”
Ezekiel 17:2 From the Hebrew poetry of this verse we can see that the word dwx (hhud) is similar to a parable. A riddle or parable presents a story to an audience, using events and people familiar to the listeners. Then, the one giving the parable presents a twist that cannot be understood easily. Keeping in mind the pictographs of the word “dx” (hhad), this “twist” in the story is the wall that separates the listener from the meaning of the parable. When the speaker explains the parable, the door is opened and the listeners are united with the meaning.
“The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field. When a man found it, he hid it again, and then in his joy went and sold all he had and bought that field.”
Matthew 13:44
Jesus used this form of teaching frequently as in the example above. While the idea of selling all possessions in order to buy a field with an even larger value due to the treasure, is easily understood, its connection to the kingdom of heaven is a bit more mysterious. Those who understood the teachings of Jesus easily understand that the kingdom of heaven is of greater value than any worldly possessions and these people are united with Jesus in its meanings, while those who do not understand the meaning are separated. When asked why he spoke in parables, he said;
“The knowledge of the secrets of the kingdom of heaven has been given to you, but not to them.”
Matthew 13:10
Unity
Another child root derived from the parent “dx” (hhad) is “dxa” (ehhad). The word “dxa,” keeping with our foundational meaning in the parent root, means those that are separated come together in unity. While this word is often translated as “one,” where the actual Hebraism is lost, it is better translated as a “unity.” The Western mind sees “one” as a singular, void of any connection to something else. For instance, “one” man is an individual entity to himself, just as “one” tree is an entity to itself. To the ancient Hebrew Eastern mind, nothing is “one”; all things are dependent upon something else. A man is not “one,” but a unity of body, mind and breath that is expressed in the Hebrew word “Xpn” (nephesh). The man is also in unity with his wife and family as well as with the larger community. Even a tree is a unity of roots, trunk, branches and leaves, which is also in unity with the surrounding landscape. “One” year is a unity of seasons. The first use of “dxa” (ehhad) is found in Genesis 1:5 where “evening” and morning,” two states of opposite function, are united to form “one” day.
“And there was evening and there was morning, one day”
Genesis 1:5
