The Art of Repentance:
A Hebrew Lesson for Yom Kippur

by

Dr. Douglas A. Wheeler, Ph. D.

Guilt is far too prevalent in the Body of Christ today. This is not the kind of guilt that a person feels when he has committed a sin or made a mistake. It is an unhealthy type of guilt, the guilt that seems to hang on long after one has repented from sin.

We, as believers, should be concerned with living pure lives before the Lord. We should be concerned about sin; however, it is not realistic to think that life can be lived totally free from mistakes and failures. The fact of the matter is that Christians do sin. In our minds we know that when we sin we have an advocate with the Father and that if we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us of our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. But what about this guilt?

Perhaps rather than continually focusing on the sin, we should focus on repentance. Is there more to repentance than simply saying that you’re sorry? Is there more to this than just turning around and going a different direction? If not, why do so many Christians feel that they must "work" their way back into the good graces of the Lord after an act of sin has been committed? Maybe if we were taught more about repentance we would not be quite so ready to be involved in sin.

Jewish Understanding of Repentance

The Jews before and around the time of Jesus had a system of evaluation in place called the "Prerequisites of Repentance."1 We know that because of the atoning sacrifice of Jesus, there is no prerequisite of repentance, that forgiveness for sins is instantly given; however, if we would consider this "art of repentance," we might find that we would not suffer from "hang-on guilt." We would also find that we would not spend as much time wondering about whether or not we are forgiven, and we certainly would not try to "buy our repentance with our good works." Let’s consider this "art of repentance."

Early believers looked at repentance as a return to "life." They viewed life as abudah, complete and not broken down into compartments. This term is from the root meaning to disjoin, to divide, to separate, containing the idea of cutting or tearing apart, and hence dividing.2 Not only was God the beginning of all life but disobedience to Him also resulted in a diminished quality and fragmented form of life. For life to be lived in fullness there must be recognition that everything in life proceeds from God. He is the head of all that is life. For the Hebrews this meant that they did not live their lives one way in the secular world and a different way in the synagogue. They lived all of life under the authority of God. There was a recognition that even something as simple as tying a shoe was a spiritual act because it was God that gave them the ability to breathe air and muscles to bend down and tie that shoe.

Consider this idea of abudah another way. The Rabbis taught that life means "divine essence in physical reality, and our ability to transcend the limitations of physical existence. Therefore, when we do or think or dwell on something, if this is not dedicated to our service to God, if this is not done with our intention of bringing down Godliness, then it is not done for the purpose of sanctifying God. And those moments that we so live are dead moments for us. They do not encompass eternity . . . That is the reason that David said I have set the Lord always before me. But when we forget God and we do not set God before us, we lead ourselves into sin."3 Abudah then is the recognition that the Lord is our head, our leader, and our guide, and we are His servants. We are also His worshippers.

The Effects of Sin

Sin interrupts abudah. When a person sins, they must repent if they want the face-to-face relationship with the Lord to stay intact. In Hebrew, one word for repent is (nacham) which means, "to draw breath, to grieve, and to lament."4 This word gives us the idea that sin causes us to draw breath like a sigh, to grieve over our actions, and to lament. This word can also mean to comfort. Does this mean that the Holy Spirit will comfort us as we turn from our sin, come back to Him, and are truly sorry for our actions?

Another Hebrew word that expresses or defines repentance is (teshuva). This word expresses the "essence of repentance," by explaining that there is more to repentance than simply saying I am sorry. When a person sins, there are other questions that go beyond just forgiveness. One of these questions is: What have you learned as a result of your actions or of your sin?

From Repentance to Learning

Let’s go beyond the point of forgiveness to the point of learning. This is what is meant by the "essence of repentance." Jewish believers of the first century knew that this word for repentance (teshuva) formed an acronym for a deeper idea of repentance than just being forgiven. To them, it was just as much a question of learning as it was of forgiveness. It was a question of returning to abudah and returning to the very source of all life. It was a question of how they could live in deeper intimacy (yadah) with Him. It was the visible demonstration of their willingness to be obedient to His authority and leadership. The acronym for teshuva refers to five different passages of Scripture. Each passage of Scripture begins with each of the corresponding letters of the word (teshuva). [Hebrew lettering appears in the magazine article in print only and not on the internet production. If you would like a copy of the article, please order a copy.]

(Deuteronomy 18:13)

(Psalm 16:8)

(Deuteronomy 28:9)

(Proverbs 3:6)

(Micah 6:8)

By taking the first letter of the first Hebrew word in each of these verses of Scripture, we form the word for repentance (teshuva). Following this pattern, there are then five principles that we should learn during repentance. This does not mean that you must work for forgiveness; however, after a person has committed a sin, he/she should examine their behavior or the choices made in light of these five principles (concepts) to see where or why abudah has been breached. We can state this another way. When we break one of these principles or concepts it weakens our relationship with the Lord. To see this clearly, we must examine these five concepts or principles.

. Deuteronomy 18: 13: "Thou shalt be perfect with the Lord your God." This word does not mean, "without error." The word translated perfect in Hebrew is (tamim) from the root (tamam), and it means, "to be complete, whole, sound, upright in conduct, blameless. It also means to be finished."5 It is in the person of Jesus through our relationship with Him that we can be complete, whole, and sound. It is only through the interaction of the Holy Spirit on our lives that we can be upright in our conduct. Likewise, it is only through accepting the atoning sacrifice of Jesus that we will ever be blameless. Paul said it this way: "For in Him we live, and move, and have our being." The starting point of abudah is accepting the sacrifice of Jesus and his atoning work on the cross. It is accepting His leadership in our life even when we do not understand it and even when we question it. Sin is following our own way and becoming our own leader. Either the Lord is running your life, or you are. Part of examining ourselves in repentance is accepting who is in control of our life.

Psalm 16:8: "I have set the Lord always before me: because he is at my right hand, I shall not be moved." In the first part of this verse there are two very significant words, "set" and "before." In Hebrew "before" is the word (neged), meaning, "to be in the front part of, in the presence of."6 This is speaking of a face-to-

face relationship with the Lord that is eye to eye, nose to nose, mouth to mouth. The word translated "set" is the Hebrew word (shavah), meaning "to set, to place, to be level, to be even."7 This means an intimate face-to-face relationship with God will make you level and even. In other words, your relationship with the Lord will bring you to a place of balance.

When God gave the command, "You shall have no other gods before me," we see this very idea. Do not let anything be exalted to the level in your life that would break this face-to-face relationship. When we sin and ask for forgiveness, God will indeed forgive us and bring us back into this face-to-face relationship; however, it is the second part of the verse that gives us the area of evaluation. David said, "Because he is at my right hand, I shall not be moved." In order to maintain a proper face to face relationship with the Lord, He must be in the position of authority in our life. If we want stability (not being moved), we must give God the responsibility and authority of our life. When we sin, we have assumed the authority of our life.

Deuteronomy 28:9: "The Lord shall establish thee an holy people unto himself, as he hath sworn unto thee, if thou shalt keep the commandments of the Lord thy God, and walk in his ways." We are a holy people. We are (qadosh) clean, set apart for the work and use of God. We are to walk in His ways, with His attributes, the fruit of the Spirit: love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, temperance. When we sin, we are not walking in the Spirit. We need to evaluate our actions and thoughts to see if they line up with the fruit of the Spirit. We should not be content with short-term change (behavior modification) but with long-term, heart and life change that only the Spirit of God can bring.

Proverbs 3:6: "In all thy ways acknowledge him and he shall direct thy paths." The word translated "acknowledge" is the Hebrew word (yadah). This word means to get to know, to become familiar with, and to become intimate. It means to touch and handle with the hands, the same word when the Scriptures said that Adam knew his wife Eve and she conceived and gave birth to Cain. In all of our ways, our deeds, our thoughts, our actions, we should be intimate with the Lord.

To be intimate with someone on this level, there must be the assuming of responsibility.

When we read that Abraham knew Sarah his wife, it is speaking of something much deeper than just physical intimacy. He assumed the responsibility for her life. We are to walk in an intimate relationship with the Lord. He wants to assume the responsibility for our lives. We must allow him to.

When we sin, we take control. Our life is indeed a question of control. Either God is controlling our lives, or we are. If we are in control, then we have in essence become our own God. When we sin, we need not only to ask forgiveness, but also to invite the Lord in to take over absolute control of our life.

Micah 6:8: "He hath shewed thee, O man, what is good; and what doeth the Lord require of thee, but to do justly, and to love mercy, and to walk humbly with thy God." The word translated "humbly" here is the Hebrew word (tzana), meaning, "to be submissive and modest."8 We are to live our lives in submission to the Lord. When we repent from our sin and mistakes, we need to evaluate ourselves to see if we are really walking in submission to Him and to His will for our lives.

These five concepts form what we can call the art of repentance. These are not intended to become "works" but points of examination for your life. These concepts are not intended to help you work your way back to God but can become points of learning and consistent change. These concepts will aid you in continually walking with the Lord in a face-to-face relationship. Evaluating your actions and thoughts by these five concepts, you will be less likely to sin. You will find that your relationship with the Lord takes on a new dimension not only of service, but also of worship. You will not wonder where you stand with the Lord but will be a part of an ever-deepening, ever-growing relationship with Him. Next time you make a mistake or commit a sin and you ask for forgiveness, take a few moments to examine your actions in light of teshuva..

Dr. Douglas Wheeler is founder and president of Mended Wings, a ministry to families. He has an extensive academic background in Biblical Hebrew, which he uses to enlighten believers as to the deeper, often hidden meanings of Holy Scripture. He also teaches with great insight on the Hebrew foundations of Christian faith in seminars and other events. Doug, his wife, Joyce, and their sons, Samuel and Benjamin, live in Bossier City, Louisiana, where they administer Mended Wings Ministries.

Dr. Wheeler Is also Available for Hebrew Seminars and Other Ministry. For complete details, write: Mended Wings, P. O. Box 8538, Bossier City, LA 71112 or Phone (318) 752-5871 Website: http://www.haydid.org/wings.htm

Footnotes:

1 Note: The acronym of hbwvt was taken from Matityahy Glazerson, Building Blocks of the Soul (Northvale, New Jersey: Jason Aronson, Inc.,1997), p. 310.

2 Gesenius’ Hebrew-Chaldee Lexicon to the Old Testament (Grand Rapids, Michigan: Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co., June, 1978), p. 103.

3 Robert Haralick, The Inner Meaning of the Hebrew Letters (Northvale, New Jersey: Jason Aronson, Inc., 1995), pp. 115, 121.

4 Gesenius, p. 544.

5 Ibid., p. 867.

6 Ibid., p. 530.

7 Ibid., p. 809.

8 Ibid., p. 713.

Guestbook | Table of Contents | Restore! Magazine | Restoration Foundation Home