The Shekhinah is the outward appearances of the presence or glory
of God. While it is used like a noun it is actually derived from the verb שָׁכַן shakan or שָׁכֵן shaken
(1014d); a prim. root; to settle down, abide, dwell. [i] The
vast majority of words in the Hebrew language can be boiled down to a
three-consonant root word that contains the essence of the word's meaning.[ii] This is the case
with the word Shekhinah. The root of the word gives it its primary meaning “to
dwell”. In each of the following verses
it is the word “shaken” that is translated “dwell” or “abide”.
“And
let them make Me a sanctuary, that I may dwell שָׁכֵן
among them. ”
(Exodus 25:8, NKJV)
“I
will dwell שָׁכֵן among the children of Israel and will be their God. ” (Exodus 29:45,
NKJV)
“You
shall put out both male and female; you shall put them outside the camp, that they
may not defile their camps in the midst of which I dwell .” ”
(Numbers 5:3, NKJV)
“then
there will be the place where the Lord your God chooses to make His name abide.
There you shall bring all that I command you: your burnt offerings, your
sacrifices, your tithes, the heave offerings of your hand, and all your choice
offerings which you vow to the Lord. ” (Deuteronomy 12:11, NKJV)
“Then
Solomon spoke: “The Lord said He would dwell in the dark cloud. ” (1
Kings 8:12, NKJV)
““Thus
says the Lord: ‘I will return to Zion, And dwell in the midst of
Jerusalem. Jerusalem shall be called the City of Truth, The Mountain of the
Lord of hosts, The Holy Mountain.’ ” (Zechariah 8:3, NKJV)
The word “shaken” is found 123 times in the Bible and
it is translated primarily as dwell or a derivative of that word.
In
Exodus the Lord appeared to Moses and the Israelites in a pillar of cloud and a
pillar of fire. When the tabernacle was built, God appeared as a pillar of
cloud and rested “shaken” on it. Moses was unable to enter into the tabernacle
because of the visible presence of God.
“And
Moses was not able to enter the tabernacle of meeting, because the cloud rested
above it, and the glory of the Lord filled the tabernacle. ” (Exodus 40:35,
NKJV)
In the
New Testament the ultimate visible presence of God is seen in the Son, Yeshua.
He is the ultimate expression of who God is.
“Jesus
said to him, “Have I been with you so long, and yet you have not known Me,
Philip? He who has seen Me has seen the Father; so how can you say, ‘Show us
the Father’? ” (John 14:9, NKJV)
“For in Him dwells all the fullness of the Godhead bodily; ”
(Colossians 2:9, NKJV)
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