The Bible has been translated into thousands of different languages through many generations, but if we go back to when the Bible was originally written, we find that it started in the Hebrew language. Almost the entire Old Testament was written in Hebrew, followed by the New Testament being in Greek. Out of the translation of these languages, all other versions of the Bible were created. The translation of the Bible is a truly incredible thing that has allowed us to impact people groups that may not have been reached without it. But something I’ve been realizing more and more is the truth that the complete meaning and impact of reading the Bible can be lost in translation if we’re not careful.
It is so eye-opening to look back at how people would’ve understood the Bible at the time it was written. It’s not uncommon for there to be 5 different words in Hebrew that are boiled down and translated to 1 single word in English. For example, when the English Bible says “praise,” there are seven different Hebrew words with unique meanings that it may have been translated from: Halal, Yadah, Towdah, Barak, Shabach, Zamar, and Tehillah. The word I want to focus on here is Halal. Halal means to praise, to boast, to shine, to celebrate, or to act madly or clamorously foolish. It’s the primary Hebrew root word for praise, and it’s where we get the word Hallelujah.
There is a particular part of Paul’s journey with Silas where you can see the impact of the word Halal. This is a story found in Acts 16 which takes place in Philippi (a Roman colony). While Paul and Silas were in Philippi spreading the news of Jesus, they encountered a slave girl that had an evil spirit by which she could predict the future. The men who owned this girl earned a great deal of money through her fortune telling. For a few days, the slave and her masters followed Paul and Silas around, and Paul eventually cast the spirit out of her. This angered the girl’s masters because they had lost their source of income.
These men dragged Paul and Silas into the marketplace before the authorities and accused them of breaking the law. It was ordered that they be stripped down and beaten with rods. At this time, the Jews had a limit of only whipping someone 39 times, but the Romans had no such limit. Who knows how many times Paul and Silas were beaten- all it says is that they were “severely flogged.” They were then thrown into the “inner cell” of the prison. This refers to a room with no windows, light, fresh air, or bathroom. Stocks were put on their feet stretching their legs apart as far as possible to induce cramping, and their wrists were chained to the wall. They were in immense pain, bloody, bruised, cramping, and stuck in a stinking dark room. Then at midnight, they prayed and sang hymns to God.
The word that is translated to hymns here means to sing praises. Those reading it when it was written would’ve also understood it as a reference to the Great Halal (or the high praises) which is found in Psalms 113-118. In these Psalms, God is praised for His mercy, kindness, deliverance, trustworthiness, and righteousness among many other things. These are the qualities of the Lord Paul and Silas are proclaiming. Keep in mind, they did absolutely nothing wrong. They had obeyed God in going to Philippi, they cast a demonic spirit out of a young girl, and they were severely beaten and thrown in jail because of it. I don’t know about any of you reading this, but if I was in their sandals, I would’ve been enraged. Probably the only communication I’d be doing with God right about then is yelling in anger and questioning why the heck I was in so much pain for doing something good and following Him exactly where He had led me.
Yet, somehow in their pain, Paul and Silas managed to Halal. They praised the Lord to the point of acting foolish. They trusted Him; they trusted that He was in control and would work everything for good. They knew God was sovereign even in their pain, and they were able to find joy not despite their suffering, but alongside it. The truth is, the pain they were feeling probably made them cling to that joy more than they ever had before. It’s yet another reminder that we won’t be able to feel the fullness of joy without feeling the pain in our lives.
Now going back to the story. It’s midnight, and Paul and Silas are foolishly praising the Lord. It says in the end of verse 25 that the prisoners were “listening” to them. This is the only time in the Bible where we see this Greek word (epakroaomai) used. The type of listening this word refers to is a careful and attentive listening. I’m sure the prisoners hadn’t experienced anything like what they were hearing. They’d probably heard a lot of complaining, cursing, and pleading, but celebrating the Lord’s goodness and foolishly praising? I don’t think so. These prisoners knew what had happened to Paul and Silas, and they couldn’t help but listen to every word being sung.
This is such a beautiful example of how it is in our weakness and pain that God’s glory shines the brightest. It so clearly shows us that worship is not about us in the slightest. It’s not about our circumstances or feelings; it’s all about who God is. Are there days when I don’t feel like the Lord is good and kind and just? Yes, more than I’d like to admit. But does that change the fact that He is good and kind and just? Not at all. Me believing he’s not good on a given day doesn’t actually change who He is. I don’t have the power to change the character of God just because I’m in a difficult season. It’s all about choosing to worship God for His character no matter what we may be feeling or thinking in the moment. In fact, instead of our feelings and circumstances affecting our worship (or lack thereof), our worship has the power to change how we’re feeling as well as our circumstance and the circumstance of those around us.
After Paul and Silas praised God, there was an earthquake in the prison which caused every chain to break and every door to open. Not only were Paul and Silas freed, but every other prisoner around them. When the prison was shaken, the jailer who was carefully guarding Paul and Silas, I’m sure listening to their praises, fell to the floor and asked how he could be saved. They tell him to be saved he must believe in Jesus. He believes, and this leads the rest of his family to believe. They are all baptized later that day… Dang. That’s nuts. Had Paul and Silas not gone through that pain and ended up in the jail cell singing praises to the Lord, the jailer and his entire family probably wouldn’t have been saved that night, and the chains in the prison wouldn’t have been broken. The Lord intended the pain for good; He was able to shine His light in such a dark place because Paul and Silas were willing to proclaim joy and hope in the midst of it. Only because these men were put through suffering were they able to save the people they did.
What would it look like if we learned to find joy alongside our pain? To be able to foolishly praise God for his kindness and goodness even when we’re suffering? How would it change us? How would those around us be changed by our worship? What if we learned to worship like someone else’s freedom depended on it?
