Bible Geek Word Nerd - Testing Your Patience

May You Pass the Test

July 20, 2022

In the NIV translation of the Jewish Bible, the word “test” occurs 96 times, from Genesis 22:1 (G-d TESTED Abraham) to its final occurrence in Malachi 3:15 (the put G-d to the TEST). In English, the word occurs as a verb and as a noun. Sometimes its connotations are positive (in Psalm 105:19, the word of the LORD TESTED Joseph) and sometimes negative (Psalm 78:41, the Israelites put G-d to the TEST repeatedly).

 

The idea of testing is hugely important to understanding not only the Big Narrative of the Bible, but also to understand our part in it. The great English theologian and scholar CS Lewis wrote: “If you think of this world as a place simply intended for our happiness, you find it quite intolerable: think of it as a place for training and correction and it's not so bad.”

 

But to really understand what Scripture teaches us about TEST, we only need to consider Jesus the Messiah, who endured two famous tests in His journey to the Cross. Diving deeply into those stories is not the point of this page, so we won’t. But we will remind you of the two tests, with which you probably are already quite familiar.

 

The first was after His baptism from John in the Jordan River. The Holy Spirit led him into the wilderness, where He endured testing at the hands of SATAN (this, incidentally, is a Hebrew word which means “adversary”; it occurs 27 times in the Jewish Scriptures, most often being translated as simply “adversary”). SATAN tested Jesus three times, and He passed each one (quoting from the TORAH as He won His victory).

 

The second test Jesus endured was in the Garden of Gethsamane, where He sweated great drops of blood and asked this the Cup be taken from Him (that is, He would not have to endure torture, crucifixion, and death). He also passed that test.

 

So, the concept of the TEST is critical to our own story of faith.

 

We are going to detour from our final three posts on the “say” miniseries to look at five Hebrew words that Jesus would have been considering as He endured His own tests. These are five verbs which occur 117 times in the Text. Each of them offers a slightly different slant on the idea of the TEST and what G-d is about as He brings us into testing.

 

The first word is NASAH (נָסָה). It primarily means “to test, to try, to prove, to tempt”. It is the most frequently used of our five words. You will find it 36 times in the Hebrew Bible.

 

The first example is perhaps the most famous (and the most difficult to read and understand, in our opinion). In Genesis 22:1, we read, “Some time later God TESTED Abraham.” The context of this test is that Abraham and Sarah’s long-hoped-for son, Isaac, has been born. G-d’s promise has been fulfilled. But then G-d puts Abraham to the most excruciating test. G-d tells Abraham: “Take your son, your only son, whom you love – Isaac – and go to the region of Moriah. Sacrifice him there as a burnt offering on a mountain that I will show you.” Abraham is ready to obey this command, but G-d stays his hand.

 

The second word, occurring 33 times, is TSARAPH (צָרַף), which primarily means “to smelt, refine, test”. In Psalm 12:6, we are told: “And the words of the LORD are flawless, like silver PURIFIED in a crucible, like gold refined seven times.” In Psalm 105:19, the sense of testing is found: “till what he foretold came to pass, till the word of the LORD PROVED him true.” And in Isaiah 48:10, we read: “See, I have REFINED you, though not as silver; I have tested (note: the verb here is most often translated as “to choose”, not “to test”) you in the furnace of affliction.”

 

The third word for TEST is BACHAN (בָּחן). It means “examine, try,” and you will find it 29 times in the Jewish Bible. In Genesis 42, Joseph is dealing with his brothers, who do not yet recognize him. He accuses them of being spies. He is sending one of them back to Canaan to retrieve his youngest brother, Benjamin, while the rest stay in prison. He says in Gen 42:15-16, “This is how you will be TESTED: As surely as Pharaoh lives, you will not leave this place unless your youngest brother comes here. Send one from among you to get your brother. The rest of you will be imprisoned so that your words CAN BE TESTED to see if they are true. If they are not, then as surely as Pharaoh lives, you are spies!” And in Psalm 11:5, it says, “The LORD EXAMINES the righteous, but the wicked, those who love violence, He hates with a passion.”

 

The fourth word is BARAR (בָּרַר). BARAR means to purify or select, and it is used 18 times in

the Text. 2 Samuel 22:27 (and Psalm 18:26) says, “to the PURE you SHOW YOURSELF PURE, but to the devious you show yourself shrewd.” Ecclesiastes 3:18, we read, “I also said to myself, ‘As for humans, G-d TESTS them so that they may see that they are like the animals.’” And in Daniel 12:10, we are told, “Many WILL BE PURIFIED, made spotless and refined (TSARAPH)…”

 

The final word in our set of TESTING words is an odd one. And its inclusion in this list only confirms how challenging is the Hebrew Text. The word is AZAN (אָזַן). Used as “test”, it is only found once. And the reason for that is the word is most often translated as “give ear” or “hear”. It is the denominative verb for the Hebrew word which means “ear” (OZEN (אֹזֶן)). Confused yet? Interested in learning to be a translator? Oy vey!

 

AZAN’s use as “test” is in Ecclesiastes 12:9. “In addition to the Teacher being a wise man, he constantly taught the people knowledge; he WEIGHED (with the sense that he tested different theories as would a scientist), explored, and arranged many proverbs.”

 

Understanding the idea of the TEST is crucial to understanding how G-d works with us. He TESTED Abraham. He allowed Jesus to be tested. The TEST is for our benefit, to measure where we are, to stretch us and make us stronger. 

 

We are even encouraged to ask G-d not to lead us into the hard test which we might fail…the test too difficult for us (one can imagine a test such as the one Abraham endured, or the tests Jesus Himself endured). “And do not bring us into TESTING” we read in Matthew 6. The Greek is PEIRASMOS, but Jesus did not teach His disciples in Greek. It is likely He used one of the five words we have discussed here. LORD, deliver us from the hard test…and let us pass it.