“Experience is what you get while looking for something else.” — Federico Fellini [1]
So I got some "experience" while I was researching idolatry for my last post American Idols [2]. I was puzzled by the way that different people translated Exodus 20:5. Notice how different parts of the verse are translated as worship.
Exo 20:5 NIV You shall not bow down to them or worship them; ...Exo 20:5 NASB You shall not worship them nor serve them; ...
It doesn't appear to be a question of word order chosen by the translators. They chose to translate two different Hebrew words as worship. You can't translate both of them as worship, otherwise you would get "Your shall not worship them or worship them". Is one of the words really worship? If so, which one?
It reminded me of something else that's always puzzled me - verses in the book of Matthew that contain the phrase "worshipped him, saying". For example:
Mt 8:2 And behold, a leper came and worshiped Him, saying, “Lord, if You are willing, You can make me clean.”
I thought that the words the leper spoke WAS the act of worship, which didn't make sense. At least, it didn't make sense according to my understanding of the word worship. (And it appears OK to spell it "worshiped" or "worshipped".)
It reminds me of the scene out of Princess Bride [3], where Inigo tells Vizzini
You keep using this word. I do not think it means what you think it means.
Can we make sense of these verses? I think so, but we need to learn what worship actually means.
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Define Worship
Let's start with a dictionary definition of worship, American Heritage [4] lists several meanings, these seem most relevant.
1. v. To honor and love as a deity.
2. v. To regard with ardent or adoring esteem or devotion.
3. v. To participate in religious rites of worship.
1b. n. The ceremonies, prayers, or other religious forms by which this love is expressed: a chapel where worship is held daily.
None of those really fit the leper saying "If you are willing". How do religious people define worship? Here are some statements about worship.
Worship Definition: How Does the Bible Define Worship? - Worship Deeper [5]
Put simply, worship is declaring the greatness of someone or something.The act of worship can be just about anything that honors God.In Christian circles, worship has also morphed to mean a certain type of music.
The inner essence of worship is to know God truly and then respond from the heart to that knowledge by valuing God, treasuring God, prizing God, enjoying God, being satisfied with God above all earthly things.
Worship is loving God
Judging from the titles of these articles, it seems to be a question that comes up, something that people (like me) are unsure of. In researching this, I learned that North Central University in my home state of Minnesota offers a B.S. degree in Worship Leading. Worship Leading is a music position where "Students will be prepared to use music to worship, bring God’s Word to life, evangelize, disciple others, and further God’s work." - North Central University [8]. Of course, many other universities offer such a degree.
What Does The Bible Say About Worship?
Many verses are quoted in these articles that contain the word worship. So let's look at what words are actually being used, and what those words mean. Back to Inigo.
In the Old Testament, three words are translated as worship.
Shachah [9] – to bow down, prostrate oneself (worship 99 times)
Abad [10] – to serve (worship 5 times)
Sagad [11] – to fall down, prostrate oneself (worship 3 times in very few translations)
 |
Abraham saw three men |
So bowing down seems to be the appropriate action when meeting with the Creator. - Worship Deeper [5].
Abad is translated as serve over 200 times, but only 5 times as worship, so to me there is much less confusion about this word.
And for the Greek New Testament, four words are translated as worship.
Proskuneo [13] – ie to prostrate oneself (worship 60 times)
Sebomai [14] – to revere, ie to adore, devout (worship 6 times)
Latreuo [15] – to minister to (worship 4 times)
Therapeuo [16] – to serve, to heal (worship 1 time)
Worship is translated from proskuneo the vast majority of the time. Just like in the Old Testament, shachah is translated as worship the vast majority of the time. And the meaning of the both words is bow down. Look at this example from the New Testament where a few translations, notably the King James, use the word worship.
Mt 18:26 The servant therefore fell down, and worshipped him, saying, Lord, have patience with me, and I will pay thee all.
 |
| Lord, have patience with me |
I chose this because it uses the phrase "worshipped Him saying", but the servant is speaking to a man, not God. Meaning that "worship" here is not directed to God. It just means bow down. Look at the various ways others translated Mt 18:26 - *Bible Hub [17].
New International Version - fell on his knees before him.New American Standard Bible - fell to the ground and prostrated himself before him,Christian Standard Bible - fell facedown before himContemporary English Version - got down on his kneesNET Bible - threw himself to the ground before him
Final Thoughts
The origin of the word worship is from Old English and simply meant "condition of being worthy", synonyms being "dignity, honor, glory". Worship in the sense of "reverence paid to a supernatural or divine being" is first recorded around 1300AD - Online Etymology [18]. In modern Hebrew [19], worship translates as sagad, one of the words mentioned above, which again means bow down. While God is in a "condition of being worthy", that is, He is dignified and honorable, worship doesn't seem like a good translation for shachah or proskuneo or any of the words translated as worship. In fact:
It is not clear why the shachah came to be translated as “worship” - Ecclesia Koinonia [20]
Whatever meaning the word worship has taken on in modern English, I'm more comfortable with the more literal, more Biblical definition. When I read or hear the word worship, I want to think of it Biblically, as the commandment said, "You shall not bow yourself down to them, nor serve them". I find that easier to understand than the definitions I quoted above. And when the book of Revelation warns those that worship the Beast or the image of the Beast, it uses proskuneo, a warning not to bow down to it. If you obey (serve) the Beast, you are a slave of the Beast. It might become important to keep that in mind someday.
* Tools for Bible study are more accessible than ever. Two that I use often are Bible Hub and ESword. Bible Hub [21] is a web site that has features to show multiple translations of a verse, Bible Commentaries on that verse, the Hebrew or Greek for that verse, plus more. Esword [22] is a free Bible app I downloaded to my computer, making it available without Internet. The free version only displays King James, but it can show the Hebrew or Greek as well.
References
1. https://www.goodreads.com/quotes/7575280-experience-is-what-you-get-while-looking-for-something-else
2. https://jlfreeman-1.blogspot.com/2023/02/american-idols.html
3. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D9MS2y2YU_o
4. https://www.ahdictionary.com/word/search.html?q=worship
5. https://worshipdeeper.com/91/worship-definition-from-bible-define-worship/
6. https://www.desiringgod.org/interviews/what-is-worship
7. https://www.crosswalk.com/faith/spiritual-life/what-is-worship-and-what-isnt-it.html
8. https://www.northcentral.edu
9. http://lexiconcordance.com/hebrew/7812.html
10. http://lexiconcordance.com/hebrew/5647.html
11. http://lexiconcordance.com/hebrew/5456.html
12. https://afaithfulversion.org/exodus-20/
13. http://lexiconcordance.com/greek/4352.html
14. http://lexiconcordance.com/greek/4576.html
15. http://lexiconcordance.com/greek/3000.html
16. http://lexiconcordance.com/greek/2323.html
17. https://biblehub.com/matthew/18-26.htm
18. https://www.etymonline.com/word/worship
19. Webster's NewWorld Hebrew/English Dictionary 1992, p823
20. https://ekklesiakoinonia.wordpress.com/2012/12/27/worship-etymology/
21. https://biblehub.com/
22. https://e-sword.net/
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