Page 52 - Coincidences in the Bible and in Biblical Hebrew
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CHAPTER 2 CASES OF DESIGN IN THE HEBREW
LANGUAGE
CHAPTER 2
Cases of Design in the Hebrew Language
2.1 Information in a Hebrew Word: Visible and Hidden
The notion that there are Hebrew words that carry hidden information seems like
an outrageous proposition. This book is not about Gematria; nor does it address
Jewish mysticism. So what is intended when we relate to Hebrew words as mes-
sengers of visible, and possibly also hidden, information?
The key word for the reply is in the title of the book: coincidences. On many
occasions (perhaps, one may argue, too many to be perceived as coincidental),
Hebrew words seem to carry visible or hidden information in addition to the
obvious revealed meaning of the word. Whether the cases demonstrating this prop-
osition and displayed throughout the book are coincidences or otherwise is left
open (except when proper and rigorous statistical analysis is applied—for exam-
ple, in chapters 8 and 12). Since many of the coincidences outlined throughout
the book rely on the structure of the Hebrew words and the sum of the numerical
values of the letters comprising them, it is perhaps appropriate that we provide,
even this early in the book, some instances that demonstrate coincidental design
in the Hebrew language. These examples seem to deliver evidence that Hebrew
words can, on the one hand, convey the obvious (as revealed in the meaning of
the word), and, on the other hand, provide additional hidden information tightly
related to the exposed sense of the word.
In this section, we demonstrate several instances of revealed and hidden infor-
mation in Hebrew words, some of which relates to time periods.
2.1.1 Designed Words with Visible Information (and Message)
In this subsection, we address some Hebrew words displaying structure, which
may be perceived as indicative of preconceived design. By “design,” we refer to the
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