TESHUVAH OF TRUTH AND THE TONGUE

Song of Solomon chapter 5

Psalms chapter 27




Today we are walking in: TESHUVAH OF TRUTH AND THE TONGUE







Today we look to the word-TONGUE- H3956 lashown--tongue (of men); tongue (literal); tongue (organ of speech)





The Torah testifies............…


Exodus 4:10


And Moses said unto the LORD, O my Lord, I am not eloquent, neither heretofore, nor since thou hast spoken unto thy servant: but I am slow of speech, and of a slow tongue. H3956




The prophets proclaim..................




2 Samuel 23:2


The Spirit of the LORD spake by me, and his word was in my tongue. H3956





The writings bear witness............




Joshua 10:21


And all the people returned to the camp to Joshua at Makkedah in peace: none moved his tongue H3956 against any of the children of Israel.





TESHUVAH OF TRUTH AND THE TONGUE


"Many people love falsehood and only a few love truth. For it is possible to love falsehood truly, but it is impossible to love truth falsely" help us to love truth truly, then, with all our hearts, since love and truth characterize The Most High Yah's rule: As it is written, "Righteousness and justice are the foundation of your throne; love and truth go before you" (Psalm 89:14).


Truth springs up everywhere; righteousness shines down over all the earth. This primarily concerns the sacrificial work of the Messiah, of which it is rightly said: "Steadfast love and faithfulness meet; righteousness and peace kiss each other" (Psalm 85:10). Because of the great reconciliation we have through Yahauah, the truth of The Most High Yah shall prevail among men. The "Seed" that was planted in Zion and becomes a Tree of Life throughout all the earth. "Deliverance goes before the LORD, and prepares a pathway for Him" (Psalm 85:13).


We have a moral imperative, given by The Most High Yah Himself, to receive the truth and to live according to the nature of spiritual reality. Those who reject or suppress the truth, however, are responsible for their actions, as it is written, "No one who practices deceit shall dwell in my house; no one who utters lies shall continue before my eyes" (Psalm 101:7).


"O LORD, who shall sojourn in your tent? Who shall dwell on your holy hill? He who walks blamelessly and does what is right and speaks truth within his heart." (Psalm 15:1-2)


Note that the word tamim, translated "blamelessly," might better be rendered "perfectly," that is, complete in all its parts; where no part is missing. The person who walks perfectly, then, means one who is wholehearted in their faith and trust.... Note that this person does what is right – that is, practices tzedakah and performs good deeds; he uses the "good eye" to bless others. Speaking truth "within the heart" is critical since it implies that the person is sincere, honest, without ulterior motives, and so on... He is a "true" person with a heart that can be trusted. The phrase also implies the person is free from self-deception or the need to pretend to be something he isn't.


The Hebrew word for truth is composed of the first, middle, and last letters of the alphabet, whereas the three letters that spell "falsehood" stand next to one another. Truth creates a firm foundation, secure, strong, and trustworthy, while falsehood is unstable... As it is written, "truth stands forever, falsehood has no legs."


We are commanded to keep distant from falsehood (Exod. 23:7; Prov. 4:24). People often lie when they want to manipulate reality to serve their desires. In that sense the lie is similar to lust, since lust seeks its own inner satisfaction regardless of the moral duty of the moment... Lying is also like stealing, since it reports reality to be something it isn't, and that difference robs another person of what is needed to navigate their lives properly... "A worthless person, a wicked man, goes about with crooked speech" (Prov. 6:12). Truth is the foundation of reality, and lying is therefore a form of denial of reality – a dangerous denial - since reality invariably proves self-authenticating (John 3:18). "The lip of truth will stand forever; but a lying tongue is but for a moment" (Prov. 12:19).


It requires moral courage to speak the truth to others... A hypocrite is one who wears a mask, who pretends to think or feel one thing when he really thinks or feels something else. The law, "you must not set a stumbling block before the blind" (Lev. 19:14) includes the implication that you must not hide part of your intention while giving someone advice or when offering someone a benefit. It is important to understand that a sin of omission regarding speaking the truth is as serious as practicing deceit itself. (On the other hand, every bride and newborn is beautiful, regardless of conventional perceptions, and there are times when we might be constrained to lie for the sake of preserving life; for example, responding "no" to the question, "are there any Hebews hiding in your house?" when indeed a Hebrew family was knowingly concealed in the attic during the time of WWII. In that sense we note the connection between the word "truth" and "trustworthiness").


The lie is a type of violence. Martin Buber once said, "What is accomplished through lies can assume the mask of truth; what is accomplished through violence can go in the guise of justice, and for a while the hoax may be successful. But soon people realize that lies are lies at bottom, that violence is violence - and that both lies and violence will suffer the destiny history has in store for all that is false."


"There are many ways to offend against the truth. One way is to deny it: the way of the liar. Another way is to keep silent when the truth should be spoken: the way of the coward. At the other end is the cruel use of the truth - pointing out failure when silence is the way of honor, or by distorting 'little truths' for the sake of a supposed capital "T" truth, that is, lying for the sake of an ideology or dogma: the way of the politician" (John Cogley).


Being honest with ourselves is absolutely essential for any sort of authentic spiritual life... "No person is saved except by grace; but there is one sin that makes grace impossible, and that is dishonesty; and there is one thing The Most High Yah must forever and unconditionally require, and that is honesty" (Kierkegaard). Confession means "saying the same thing" about ourselves that The Most High Yah says - and that means not only acknowledging our various sins, transgressions, and iniquities, but also affirming our new identity as the beloved children of The Most High Yah. Saying that The Most High Yah doesn't love you is a lie as damning as denying His very existence...


May The Most High Yah help us never to "trifle" with Him, to play "religious games," and thereby fool ourselves... "The Most High Yah chose you from the beginning for salvation through sanctification by the Spirit and faith in the truth 2 Thess. 2:13. It is the truth that sets us free, and for the truth Yahauah gave Himself up for us: "For this purpose I was born and for this purpose I have come into the world -- to bear witness to the truth. Everyone who is of the truth listens to my voice" (John 18:37). May it please the LORD our The Most High Yah to fill us with the Spirit of Truth and to help us be honest with ourselves at all times. Amen.


Let the words of my mouth, and the meditation of my heart, be acceptable in thy sight, O LORD my Rock and my Redeemer (Psalm 19:14)







Our words reveal what is hidden within our hearts, and therefore - because words and thoughts are intimately connected - we must be very careful about how we think, and especially about how we esteem others. The Chofetz Chaim wrote that the foundational principle of shemirat ha-lashon (guarding our speech) is to always judge others in the best possible light. This involves hakarat tovah, that is, recognizing the good in others, and choosing to see with ayin tovah, a "good eye." It is better to judge favorably - even if we are in error - than it is to judge critically -- even if we are telling the truth.


The Torah says that our judgments carry great weight in heaven. The words we say, whether good or bad, call for a response in the realm of spirit. This is hinted at by the Hebrew word for "thing," i.e., devar, which also means "word." When we defend someone and speak favorably of him or her, our words mean something and favorably dispose heaven itself; on the other hand, if we accuse them or are critical of them, we align our thoughts with Satan, and the opposite effect is produced. Moreover, there is great danger when we accuse others of wrongdoing, since we thereby open ourselves up to reciprocal judgment (Matt. 7:3-5). It takes great chokhmah (wisdom) and humility to offer godly correction to others, and it is vital that we approach this matter with fear and trepidation. Our motive always must be love for the other person, never vindictiveness or pride.


Listen to the words of your heart and understand that they are devarim, "things" that are defining the course of your life right now. Proverbs 4:24 says, "more than all else, guard your heart, because from it are the bounds of your life." Our thoughts and words are ultimately "prayers" we are constantly offering... How you think/pray determines the "bounds" or course of your life. As Yahauah said, "According to your faith be it done unto you" (Matt. 9:29).


Yahauah spoke of "good and evil treasures of the heart" that produce actions that are expressed in our words (Luke 6:45). The focus here is not so much on the externals (for example, the use of profanity), but rather on the underlying condition of the human heart. Our inward motive determines our thinking, which in turn affects the way we act and use words. We must be on guard to keep away from lashon hara (evil speech) by focusing on what is worthy, lovely, and of good report (Phil. 4:8).


May the words of our mouth and the meditation of our hearts be acceptable to the Lord, our strength and our redeemer. Amen.