Hebrew Definition List
July 12, 2007
Posted by Congregation Zion’s Sake
Abba: Affectionate way to say Father (Daddy)Israeli children call their father Abba.
Adonai: Literally “My Lord”, one of the Hebrew names for God!
Aliya: Ascent, rising up, immigration to Israel of the Jewish in disporia.Also, rising up at synagogue when called to read from the Torah.
Amen: It is true or So be it!
Baruch: BlessedBaruch HaShem”: Blessed be the Name. HaShem being another euphemism for God!
B’rit: Covenant (through cutting and blood)
B’rit HadaShah: New Covenant.
B’rit Milah: Literally “covenant of circumcision”.
Diaspora: The dispersion, the scattering of the Jewish people throughout the world.
El Elyon: God most high!
El Gibbor: Mighty God
El Shaddai: God Almighty
HaShem: The name i.e. Y-H-V-H, euphemism for God.
Mashiach: Messiah, Christ. Literally means “anointed” or “anointed one”.
Ruach HaKodesh: Holy Spirit
Shalom: Peace, tranquility, safety, well-being, welfare, health, contentment, success, comfort, wholeness, integrity, as well as a common greeting.
Shabbat: Sabbath (Erev Shabbat = Sabbath evening)
Shofar: Wind instrument, either a long Yemenite or a Ram’s Horn, referred to as trumpet in King James version bibles!
Tanakh: Old Testament
Yeshua: Jesus
Ma Tovu
The prayer Ma Tovu – “How good are your tents, oh Jacob…” opens the morning prayers at a synagogue. The biblical passage was first uttered by Bilam, a sorcerer who was hired by the Moabite king Balak to curse the children of Israel, who were nearing his territory on their journey to the promised land. Bilam changed his curse to this blessing after a change of heart brought upon by his more enlightened donkey, who thrice saw an angel of God on their way and finally rebuked Bilam, thus becoming one of only two animals ever to speak in the Bible.
Ma tovu, ohalecha Ya’akov, mishkenotecha Yisrael.
How good are your tents, O Jacob; you tabernacles O Israel.
Shema (Hear and Understand) (Deut. 6:4)
Israel, the name used in the Shema, means to struggle with, or encounter G-d. The Shema, then, addresses that part of every human soul that longs to connect with the spiritual, to align themself with G-d’s true purpose. In this way, the Shema’s message is totally universal, addressing every person’s highest self and potential, and urging it to hear the truth, to wake up! With the dispersion of the 10 tribes and the fall of the The Temple, Jewish identity is in a state of confusion and obscurity. Who is a Jew, and who is not, is no longer clear–there are many Jewish souls who are totally unaware of their identity. However, they will always maintain the potential to receive the teachings of G-d’s Oneness in the deepest way, and the Shema contains the power to draw them back to their Soul’s purpose: loving G-d, and sanctifying the Name as One, thus enabling the total healing of the world.
Shema, Yisrael Adoni Eloheynu Adoni Echad.
Baruch shem kavod, malchuto, l’olam vayed.
Hear O Israel, the Lord our God, the Lord is One. Blessed be His name, His glorious kingdom forever. And you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your strength, and love your neighbor as yourself.
Mashiach (Messiah)
Messianic Rabbi Eric Carlson and his wife Rabbitzin Barbara of Newport News Va., have been called to spread the Good News of Messiah Yeshua’s Grace and Glory in the United States and in the countries of the Former Soviet Union (having performed Gods work in Hungary, Russia, and the Ukraine).
Active in Aliyah, the world wide exodus of the Children of Israel back to Israel as prophesied in the Bible, Zion’s Sake has sponsored the return home of over 2,269 Jewish people from Russian and the Ukraine. Through a prophetic vision from God, they were called to spread the “Good News’ of the Jewish Messiah according to the Law of Evangelism; To the Jew First. To provoke the Jewish people to jealousy. To reach the lost and hurting through the Love of Messiah and to feed the starving and clothe the naked in Newport News, Virginia, America, and the Nations.
Rabbitzin Barb Carlson Leads the Zion’s Sake dancers, a “One New Man” (Ephesians 2:15) Messianic Jewish Dance Team. They are dedicated to restoring Jewish and Davidic Dance. Many of their dances consist of the “circle dance” which represents unity. It is also traditional Judaic beliefs that demonic forces cannot penetrate a circle. They dance before the Lord, sowing praise and worship unto the God of Israel!
Click here for Congregation Zion’s Sake’s web site.