The Meaning of the Word "Shalom"

 

 

The Hebrew word Shalom is comprehended all around the world to mean peace.  However, peace is only one minute component of the meaning of the word Shalom.  In Israel, although there is little in the way of peace, the word Shalom is used on a daily basis.  It is used to greet people with, as well as to bid farewell to people. Furthermore, Shalom means much more than peace, hi, or goodbye.

 

Strong's Concordance 7965 - Hebrew Shalom .... A word study in the New King James Version for Shalom says: Completeness, wholeness, health, peace, welfare, safety, soundness, tranquility, prosperity, perfectness, fullness, rest, harmony, the absence of agitation or discord.

 

Shalom is derived from the root verb Shalom meaning to be complete, perfect and full.  In modern Hebrew the obviously related word Shelem means to pay for, and Shulam means to be fully paid.

 

When the word Shalom is spoken out, in essence, not only peace is proclaimed, but also all of the above meanings of the word are pronounced over the person you are speaking to. 

 

"Death and life are in the power of the tongue..." (Prov. 18:21 KJV)

 

We have adopted to say "Shalom"  instead of the more common greetings of "Hi, Hello, or Goodbye".  Based on application of the Word of Yahveh, we take it very seriously, by praying for you and greeting you with Shalom.

 

"Yahveh bless you and keep you; Yahveh make His face shine upon you, and be gracious to you; Yahveh lift up His countenance upon you, And give you [shalom]."

(Numbers 6:24-26 KJV)

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The Importance of Hebrew in the Tanakh (Old Testament)

 

The Tanakh or "Old Testament"  was revealed by Elohim to the prophets of ancient Israel in Hebrew. Hebrew was not just the language of the earliest Israelites but the original language of all mankind and the language used by Elohim himself doing creation.

The eleventh chapter of the Book of Genesis says that before the sin of the Tower of Babel, "the entire earth was of one language" (Gen. 11:1). As a result of the sin of Babel, "Yehovah confused the language of all the earth" (Gen. 11:9).  Ever since then, mankind has been divided into countless nations, each with its own unique language inconceivable to all others (Gen. 11:7).  The original pre-Babel language spoken by all mankind was the Hebrew language. This is evident from the origin of words and names described in the first ten chapters of Genesis, before the confusion of the languages.  For instance, Genesis 2:23, says:

And Adam said, this time a bone from my bones and flesh of my flesh;

this one shall be called woman because she was taken from man.

 

According to this, the Hebrew word for  "woman" ishah comes from the Hebrew word for "man" ish.  In this particular example the root of the word seems to also work in English. The English word for  "woman" seems to originate from the English word for "man".   However, there are many word and name derivations in the pre-Babel world which only work in Hebrew. For example, the first woman was called Eve, in Hebrew Chavah, because "she is the mother of everyone who lives" (Gen. 3:20).  This explanation is based on the Hebrew word Chai, meaning "one who lives". Chavah (Eve) was given her name because she was the mother of every Chai (one who lives).  Eve's name proves that Adam spoke Hebrew. If she had spoken English he might have called his wife, "Liya" and  said "she is the mother of everyone who lives" but he called her Chavah because he spoke Hebrew.

 

There are several name explanations of this kind in the pre-Babel era.  The name Cain was given because Eve said, "I created a man with Yehovah" (Gen. 4:1) based on the Hebrew word for  "I created" (caniti).  Lamech called his son Noah saying: "this one will comfort us" (Gen. 5:29) based on the Hebrew word for "comfort" (nahem).  Other examples are Abel, Seth, Ham, Japheth, and several others. These names and the explanations given for them prove that Hebrew was the language before the flood.

 

Yehovah Himself used Hebrew when he created the world. On the first day he said in Hebrew yehi or "let there be light" ; then he called the light by that Hebrew name yom (day) and the darkness by the Hebrew name laila (night).  When He created the first man out of the dust of the ground he called him Adam based on the Hebrew word for ground, adamah (Gen. 2:7).  Hebrew is not only the first language of mankind,  it is a divine language used to create the universe.