Knowledge Series #2 Destroyed for lack of knowledge
You may have heard it was said that "knowledge puffs up, but love builds up." Because the emphasis is often placed on the fact that "knowledge puffs up," many people think that for a Christian, having love is enough—and that possessing knowledge is unimportant. But do you know there are "knowledge" that is "life and death" of our lives?
ENGLISH - BASICS
YTM
5/10/20264 min read
My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge: because thou hast rejected knowledge, I will also reject thee, that thou shalt be no priest to me: seeing thou hast forgotten the law of thy God, I will also forget thy children.
(Hosea 4:6, KJV)
In the verse above, the original word for "knowledge" in Hebrew is daath (also spelled as daat). It appears 93 times in the Old Testament, 81 of which are translated into English as "knowledge."
Before we can understand what this "knowledge" means, let's look at the verb it comes from, yada. Yada appears 645 times in the Old Testament. Its basic meaning is "to know" or "to be acquainted with," but this knowing goes far beyond intellectual understanding and knowing. It includes knowledge that is experiential, intimate, and firsthand. I once read an article whose author pointed out that the first Hebrew letter of yada, yod, is pictured as a hand, representing effort and work, and the second letter, dalet, is pictured as a door, representing a passage, entrance, a door way. So from the standpoint of "knowing," yada emphasizes entering into another person's inner world through deliberate effort, so as to gain deep awareness and understanding of that person. For an easier example, Genesis 4:1 says that Adam "knew [yada]" his wife Eve, and she gave birth to Cain. The word for "know [yada]" refers to the marital union. But the meaning of yada in Scripture is not limited to deep relationships between people. It especially stresses the intimate relationship between people and God. The psalmist David wrote in Psalm 139:1–6: "O LORD, you have searched me and known (yada) me. You know (yada) when I sit down and when I rise up… Even before a word is on my tongue, behold, O LORD, you know it altogether… Such knowledge (daath) is too wonderful for me; it is high; I cannot attain it."
Praise the Lord!
Having read this far, I trust you now understand what daath [knowledge] means. This kind of "knowledge" is not merely knowledge from books or in the intelect. It is the knowledge that comes from fellowship, intimacy, and experience with God in daily life.
Thank you, Heavenly Father, that our Christian faith is not merely a religion but the "knowing and assurance" that comes from the intimate and experiential knowledge of God.
The Lord GOD who created heavens and earth is the God who walked with Adam and Eve in the cool of the day. He is the God who taught Cain not to sin; who sat under the oak trees and ate the food Abraham prepared and spoke about Sarah bearing a child; who spoke with Moses face to face, and who "knew [yada]" David even from afar. From the founding of Israel country to its division, from exile to return, from Moses to the Judges and the Prophets, generations after generations, the people of God lost their yada and daath of God. Finally, after the prophet Malachi, God did not speak to Israel for 400 years, until the voice crying out in the wilderness again, and Jesus, the Son of God, came to dwell among us, "yada-ed" his people and opened the New Testament era.
Jesus Christ is the conclusion of yada and daath between God and His people. He came into the world and, from infancy to adulthood, lived among us. He ate the same food we ate, drank the same water we drank, been tired, wept, and sighed. He is the "way" by which our Heavenly Father invites us to yada, to "know" him.
Once we understand this word, when we go back and read Hosea, perhaps we can better understand the Father's heart. Perhaps we can better see why God had the prophet Hosea marry a prostitute as a way of calling out to the Israelites who had turned away from him. He longed to restore that intimate, loving relationship with them, rather than see them worship Baal and idols. The prophet Hosea warned again and again that if the Israelites did not repent and did not pursue the "knowledge (daath)" that comes from drawing near to God, they would surely perish. God would cast them off and forget (cut off) their children as well. Many people consider "destroyed for lack of knowledge" to mean bad consequences from not knowing certain truths, for example, not knowing that sin brings sickness and ruin, or that not giving the tithe brings unnecessary financial loss. These explanations can indeed be connected to applications of this verse, but they are incomplete. The real root of "destroyed for lack of knowledge" is not knowing [yada-ing] God.
The New Testament word closest to yada is ginosko, usually translated as "to know." in English. For example, in Luke 1:34, Mary said to the angel, "Then Mary said to the angel, “How can this be, since I do not know a man?" The word "know" here is ginosko , which carries the same meaning as the Old Testament yada in the meaning of marital union. And in Matthew 7:23, when the Lord Jesus says, "I never knew you; depart from me, you workers of lawlessness," the word "knew" is ginosko as well. 2 Timothy 2:19 says, "The Lord knows (ginosko) those who are his." So the Christian faith is not a religion but the "knowledge" that comes from fellowship with the Lord. And God knows them personally as well.
What a blessing!
Later in the book of Hosea, the prophet keeps urging the Israelites to turn back to God.
He says:
Come, let us return to the LORD;
for he has torn us, that he may heal us;
he has struck us down, and he will bind us up.
After two days he will revive us;
on the third day he will raise us up, that we may live in his sight.
Let us know (yada) the LORD;
let us press on to know (yada) him.
His going forth is established as the morning;
He will come to us like the rain,Like the latter and former rain to the earth.
(Hosea 6:1–3; NIV)
Lord Jesus, please help us to know you more! I will repent and turn away from my unrighteousness, so that I may be known by you! Such knowledge is wonderful, and my heart is thankful!
Now, if we go back to the "knowledge puffs up" passage. You will find the Greek word for this "knowledge" is "gnosis". The verse 2 and 3 are quite interesting, Paul says such person who puffs up actually do not "ginosko" even they have a lot of "gnosis". But the Lord "ginosko" those who loves Him. Then what is "gnosis"?
If you are interested, you may continue to read: Knowledge Series #3 The True Knowledge.