Exodus 17:14 And the Lord said unto Moses, Write this for a memorial in a book, and rehearse it in the ears of Joshua:

These are the first words in the bible indicating that what Moses wrote was God inspired and that it was to be shared with those who needed to hear it. Rehearse breaks down to re-hear, over and over again.

Isaiah 30:8 Now go, write it before them in a table, and note it in a book, that it may be for the time to come for ever and ever:

The prophets were also inspired by God to write what they were given, as a memorial that would last through all time.

Isaiah 10:1 Woe unto them that decree unrighteous decrees, and that write grievousness which they have prescribed;

The enemy, being one to copy God’s methods, helped author grievous prescriptions. I am not going to name names or make recommendations about what to read and what not to read. I will however suggest how to read the bible.

Romans 10:17 So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.

You have access to the author by faith. He has given you His translator.

John 14:26 But the Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost, whom the Father will send in my name, he shall teach you all things, and bring all things to your remembrance, whatsoever I have said unto you.

What is your favorite bible translation? If your primary language is English you have many to choose from. There are many translations and if you are fluent in other languages you have the rare opportunity to do bible studies with others in their native tongue. Why do you have a favorite? Is it authorized by a foundation of great reputation with many learned scholars that have studied Hebrew and Greek for decades and dedicated their lives to truth, accuracy and clarity?

Do you know anything about the author of your favorite? If it were Satan, would you recognize his influence?

An idiom is a group of words established by usage as having a meaning not deducible from those of the individual words. (Source Google)

If an idiom was established four thousand years ago, in a difficult language to translate into English, would we understand its meaning? Usage is key in establishing the understanding and since its meaning was in use in a different language, we lose the clarity of understanding that comes along with being part of that original conversation.

“Although we do not have any of the original manuscripts today, we do have thousands of ancient and accurate copies of the Scriptures in the original languages.  And from these original languages, the Bible has been translated directly into English (and into many other languages) for our benefit.  In the ancient world, one of the most well-known and respected translations was the Septuagint (often abbreviated LXX).  This was a translation of the Old Testament Hebrew into the common Greek language of the day.  The work began as a translation of the Torah (the first five books of the Bible) by roughly seventy scholars (hence the Roman numeral: LXX) in the third century B.C.  The rest of the Septuagint was translated in the second century B.C.”

Source biblicalscienceinstitute.com

Given that these seventy scholars were two thousand years closer to the original usage of the idioms within the Old Testament, it is possible they had a better understanding of those spoken words than we do today. I don’t know that for a fact but trust that they knew more about translations than I ever will.

So why am I bringing this up today? It is because there was an idiom used in yesterday’s devotional on the use of the word must. Here is the idiom.

 מוּל מוּל or Muwl Muwl as it would sound in English.

They are the same word and have the same meaning if used alone in the spoken language but together form a common use understanding called an idiom. The idiom is “must needs be circumcised”.