Steadfast

The English Bible is certainly overwhelmed with translations. And while many will get up in arms about which one is the "best," the reality is that each one has its issues and they are all quite far from the original text. One must read the Bible this way.

I use the English Standard Version (ESV) for the most part, but I'm not here to fight about it.

I'm writing to talk about the word, "steadfast." Each of my mornings as a now married man of routine begin this way: make coffee, shower, get coffee and a bite to eat and sit down to read my Bible. I once heard someone say, "Seek the face of God before you seek the face of man," and I liked that.

In my daily reading of the Christian Scriptures, I gravitate toward the Psalms. Along with the Epistles, these holy songs were meant to be read and sung over and over again. They were written with a heart for them to last generations, that many people would sing and read these words for a long time. I like to start my day with a Psalm and something else that I've been reading in the Scirptures.

In the ESV translation of the Psalms, the scholars use this English word, "steadfast," constantly. In a quick word study, I found that for most of its uses, it is inserted in order to modify the word, "love," when describing God's capacity for love.

Honestly, this was an issue for me when I first started reading the ESV about 4 years ago. However, in studying the Hebrew and the Greek and even the English word itself, I've begin to wait for that word in the Psalms.
Resolute. Loyal. Constant. Dependable. Dutifully firm. Determined. Solid. Unwavering.

The Hebrew word can be separated into two words: "sure/enduring" and "statute."

It's probably best to read the Scriptures with a solid English vocabulary. Most ancient languages worked like this: use as little amount of words to say as much as possible. That's why we have so many issues with translating ancient documents. One word could mean so many things.

If you approach repetitive words with a better understanding of that particular word, you understand that God's love is not just steadfast. It is Resolute, Constant, Dutifully firm, and Unwavering. It is a determined type of love, fixed in perfection for eternity.