חֶסֶד "Chesed"

חֶסֶד  "Chesed" pronounced "chess-ed" with the accent on "ed"

The letter  ח "Chet" means "fence," "boundary," or terms of "covenant" or "Torah" as the boundary of the covenant and is pronounced "cH" as in "Bach"
The letter  ס "Samech" means "rod" or "staff" as in a Shepherd's staff, or Rod of Judgement as the situation may call for, and has the "s" sound
The letter  ד "dalet" means "door" or "to go through" and has the "d" sound

"Chesed" is a difficult word to translate into English and is often translated in the Scriptures as "mercy" 149, "kindness" 40, "lovingkindness" 30, "goodness" 12, "kindly" 5, "merciful" 4, "favor" 3, "good" 1, "goodliness" 1, "pity" 1, "reproach" 1, "wicked thing" 1.

The pictograph suggests a Leader (Shepherd's Staff) that goes beyond or out of the "fence" or "boundary" to the "door" or "through the door."  We can definitely see the shadow of Messiah in this Word, as the One that goes out from Heaven with His "rod" or "staff," "rod" of "judgement" or "staff" of "discipline" as the situation would warrant, and goes to the "door" of the "assembly" (specifically Rev. 3:20, but also see Rev. 3:8, and 4:1) and knocks, or through the door to "judgement" as in taking on the "reproach" of the "curse" of the Wrath of our Father for us, or on our behalf.

119 Ministries does an interesting word study on this which can be found here. They show how the word is used in Psalm 136:10-26.  This Psalm actually defines the word "Chesed" if you think about what Messiah has done and will do and the concepts of His actions that the writer of the Psalm says in each line that precedes the words "for his steadfast love (chesed) endures forever."

There is also an interesting connetion between the word "Chesed" and the word "Hebrew."


עברי  "Hebrew"

The letter  ע  "Ayin" means "eye," "watch," "know"
The letter  ב  "Bait" means "house" or "dwelling" "tent"
The letter  ר  "Resh" means "head of a man," "face," "first," "top," "beginning"
The letter   י  "Yod" means "hand" or "forearm and hand" or "the Strong Arm of Elohim"

So the pictograph meaning suggests "to know the Head of the House, the Arm of יְהֹוָה" or "to know Messiah as the Head of the House."

In Genesis 10:21-25 we see the father of the Hebrews, Eber  רבע  , and it is from him that we get the people and the word, "Hebrews."

Therefore Hebrew also means, genetically speaking, any descendant of Ever (Eber).  Ever, an ancestor of Abraham, was the great-great-grandson of Noah.

Spiritually and behaviorally, 'Hebrew' carries further connotations:

• ones who crosses over
• separated,
  
• the other side; those who live on the other side
  
• independent, state-less, not the subjects of any human ruler, foreign to all worldly nations,
  
• migratory, beyond, "that which is beyond"
  
• sojourner on the earth, one who is 'passing through', "passer through" (as distinct from a "settler" in the land or 'resident' of the nations),
  
• descending either behaviorally or genetically from Ever, following the path of Abraham, living according to the separatist (holiness) instructions of Abraham's Elohim, YHVH.

Abraham, Isaac and Jacob all 'crossed over' from their homeland to new territory, even when it meant leaving behind their extended families.

From Strong's Bible Concordance:
5677 `Eber ay'-ber the same as 5676; Eber, the name of two patriarchs and four Israelites:--Eber, Heber. see HEBREW for 05676

5676 `eber ay'-ber from 5674; properly, a region across; but used only adverbially (with or without a preposition) on the opposite side (especially of the Jordan; ususally meaning the east):--X against, beyond, by, X from, over, passage, quarter, (other, this) side, straight. see HEBREW for 05674

Here is a further word study that is interesting: What Is a Hebrew?


So the connection between "Chesed" and "Hebrew" is that of crossing over.  From YHVH's perspective "Chesed" is a merciful act of crossing over for us, and from man's perspective "hebrew" is our going forth and crossing over to Him.

The concepts I have seen from this word study are this:

Hebrew, Chesed, crossing over, beyond the boundary, crossing rivers and seas, new understanding, discipline in kindness, in pain mercy, in hardships in joy, death to life, narrow and difficult, physical to spiritual, Song of Solomon 3:6.

It was no simple or easy thing for Yeshua to bear the Wrath of  יְהֹוָה  on our behalf, Matthew 26:37-44, and it is no easy thing for us to deny ourselves, take up our cross and follow in the footsteps of  יֵשׁוּעַ  Yeshua our Messiah, Matthew 7:14, and 16:24.  Our Salvation is a process beginning with our being begotten; that is of the Holy Spirit, as in conception, when He enters into us, then growing and being formed into His Likeness, which also involves the putting to death of our old man, and our old nature, and putting on the One New Man, Yeshua our Life, until we are born again, Galatians 4:19, into our spiritual bodies, fit for the Kingdom.  In fact, those that have received the Holy Spirit are not yet "born again" as they like to say, but only conceived, hopefully to be born again into a spiritual body, 2 Corinthians 5:1-7.

This is the salvation process;  It is not by the "prayer of salvation" as is taught in modern day churchianity and then living in Torahlessness, Matthew 7:23.    


Hope you enjoyed this word study of "Chesed" and "Hebrew"!

Shabbat Shalom!