In this week’s reading from the Triennial Cycle (
Shemot / Exodus 6:2-7:7) God says to Moshe in
Shemot / Exodus 6:3 and I appeared to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, as God Almighty, but by My
name, Lord, I did not make Myself known to them. 6:4 ‘I also established My covenant
with them, to give them the land of Canaan, the land in which they sojourned. (NASB)
The Hebrew word used by God to describe that he had made Himself known to Avraham,
Yitachak, and Yaakov is written in the Niphal verbal pattern “nodati” meaning
“be made known or be / become known.” It is also interesting to note
according to the marginal mesorah on verse 6:3 there
is a variant spelling in the Targum Onkelos, the Targum Jonathan, the Targum Zakanim, and the Targum
Sori. The variant spelling is written in the Hiphil verbal pattern “hodati”
meaning “make known or declare.” The same form of the word is used in
Jeremiah 11:18, which says
“Moreover, the Lord made it known to me and I knew it; Then You showed me their deeds.”
(NASB) The Hiphil form in Jeremiah, God causatively made it known to him (Jeremiah)
the deeds of the people. In our verses, Shemot / Exodus 6:3-4
, God is explaining that He is revealing Himself, making His name known in a new way to His
people. What is the significance of these verses for our lives today?
Read More here.
