Isaiah 40:31

Today in Bible study I was thinking about Isaiah 40:31.

KJV:
31But they that wait upon the LORD shall renew their strength;
they shall mount up with wings as eagles;
they shall run, and not be weary;
and they shall walk, and not faint.
NAS:
31Yet those who wait for the LORD will gain new strength;
They will mount up with wings like eagles,
They will run and not get tired,
They will walk and not become weary.

Other translations say "Trust" or "Hope". I wanted to know exactly what word this was. The Hebrew word used for "Wait" in this passage is "Qavah". The literal meaning of the word is "to bind together like a cord." The figurative definition of the word "Qavah" is "to wait, to hope, to expect."

Most people are familiar to the figurative meaning. But, think about the literal one...Think about the process of making a rope (cord) by twisting or weaving (binding) many strings together to form the rope. The more strands that are twisted or woven together in a rope, the greater its strength.

So what does "waiting" have to do with strength as it is listed in Isaiah 40:31.And what is the idea of the cord or rope? A rope's strength comes from the amount of strands it is composed of. A rope's strength is constant even when it is not being used. As strange as that last sentence may sound, it is actually the key to this verse. When a rope is not being used, what is it doing? The rope is "waiting." It "waits" for its owner to put it to use. When the rope is attached to a load, it draws its strength from all the strands and goes to work. So how exactly do we "wait" upon the Lord? A good idea is the one of the rope. A rope is made up of many strands and so is our relationship with God. The more "strands" that one weaves into our relationship with God, the more strength He gives to you.

A thank you to a Mr. Wickstrom for some good food for thought.

A house

So we made an offer on a house. They initially turned down our counter offer. Then they called back and asked if we were still interested. We renegotiated. It was a done deal. Our realtor and their realtor new it was going to happen! The owner called and said he was verbally accepting our offer! Then, they allowed our offer to expire. The current owner does not want to move twice. So since he could not get the home he wanted, he would not sell us his.

So again with a different way of not buying a house. I wonder to myself, do I blog about each home we make an offer on, or do I just blog when we are moved into the new home? Hmmm.