“He who has pity on the poor lends to the Lord, And He will pay back what he has given.”
(Prov. 19:17, NKJV)
We are currently discussing Jesus’ very important statement in Luke 18:25, about the camel which needs to go through the eye of a needle. This appears to be important for three reasons. The first is that Jesus interprets wealth in a much wider context than we do – in verse 24 He qualifies that you and I are also in the company of the rich man: “How with difficulty will the ones having possessions enter into the kingdom of God!” (ALTNT). Secondly, the serious warning found in James 5:1-3, also then to us: “Come now, you rich, weep and howl for your miseries that are coming upon you! Your riches are corrupted, and your garments are moth-eaten. Your gold and silver are corroded, and their corrosion will be a witness against you and will eat your flesh like fire. You have heaped up treasure in the last days.” And thirdly, as we learnt from the previous teaching – through the ages this expression has been bullied by ridiculous language and cultural hermeneutics to eventually mean something completely different from what it originally says in a very straight and unperverted manner.
The last few teachings were specifically focussed on pointing out that one can prove anything by referring to the Bible, even the complete opposite of the original statement. A lot of time was spent on this to try and sensitise readers to the way in which human wisdom can be abused when it comes to reading the Word (1 Cor. 2:4 & 13; James 3:15). This story of the rich young man does however have a much more complex meaning than most of us Western readers initially realise, but which carries deeper implications for all believers, “the ones having possessions” (Luke 18:25b, ALTNT). We should consistently remember the warning Jesus offers earlier in Luke 12:15: “And He said to them, ‘Take heed and beware of covetousness, for one’s life does not consist in the abundance of the things he possesses.’”
Back to the two specific core aspects of this story: camel and eye of a needle. In antiquity camels were a sign of wealth (see Gen. 12:16; 24:35; 30:43; 32:15; Job 1:3; 42:12). Throughout history they carried connotations of financial riches (Judg. 8:21 & 26). Interestingly enough then the third letter of the Hebrew alphabet, the letter gimel (reproduced above), actually means camel! In a story in which Jesus is teaching the Hebrews (2 Cor. 11:22; Phil. 3:5) about wealth it is of utmost important that one notices that the story has roots that extend to the language of the Jews and Hebrews, even though they found themselves in a Greek-speaking world (Acts 6:1).
Another important element to consider is the fact that the Talmud (a central text in Rabbinical Judaism which contains the writings of rabbis over the ages) explain that the letter gimel symbolises a rich man running to the next letter, the dalet, which according to them symbolises an arm, in an effort to offer tzedakah, or charity, and thus fulfil his needs. Although dalet is symbolised by a door in pictorial Hebrew (read: a door of opportunity), the root is similar to the root word of dalut, which means very poor, or impoverished.
In contrast the root of the word gimel is linked to the gamal, which means to give, or to hand out! The extent to which you’re willing to give determines your blessing. (Take note that him who is in need does not ask for anything, but it is instead the one who gives who takes up the active role.) This is indeed what Jesus meant when he said: “It is more blessed to give than to receive.” (Acts 20:35). The gematria of the word gimel is similar to the phrase “to be”, which points out that a spirit of generosity is part of the believer’s being (1 Tim. 6:18), and which is the exact opposite of the spirit of covetousness. Selah.
Therefore the person who saves the poor is also called a saviour, and thus the camel/gimel points to all believers (Lev. 25:26; Num. 5:8; 35:19, 21-7; Deut. 19:6, 12; Joshua 20:5, 9; Ruth 3:9, 12; 4:14; 2 Sam. 14:11; Isa. 49:7), and obviously also to the Saviour Jesus Christ (Acts. 13:23). Remember, He primarily came to earth “to preach the gospel to the poor” (Luke 4:18). That this not only refers to those who are financially needy is very clear from Luke 6:20: “Then He lifted up His eyes toward His disciples, and said: ‘Blessed are you poor, for yours is the kingdom of God.’” Please selah about this Scripture.
You can only become a saviour (Obad. 1:21) if you follow the example of the Saviour: “that though He was rich, yet for your sakes He became poor, that you through His poverty might become rich” (2 Cor. 8:9). In Jesus’ own words – “And whoever desires to be first among you, let him be your slave— just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life a ransom for many.” (Matt. 20:27-28).
The letter gimel is formed when two smaller letters are placed together: a zayin and a yod. Zayin is pictorially indicated by a sword and yod by a hand. Typologically hand points to the five-fold ministry (read again the teaching of Days 647-649), and according to Eph. 6:17 the sword points to “the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God” (read again the teachings of Day 743-745), which also typologically points to your rhema-word in God’s poem. We have thus far learnt that on earth God only works through his hand, the five-fold ministry, as well as the particular nature of your word within the larger context of God’s poem. Together it forms the camel, the vehicle through which you are poured out (Phil. 2:17; 2 Tim. 4:6), become poor, a serving spirit “sent forth to minister for those who will inherit salvation …” (Heb. 1:14).
Our covetousness and unawareness of our spiritual poverty leads to the warning found in Rev. 3:17: “Because you say, ‘I am rich, have become wealthy, and have need of nothing’—and do not know that you are wretched, miserable, poor, blind, and naked’” James 2:5 remains a pressing statement that needs to be considered: “Has God not chosen the poor of this world to be rich in faith and heirs of the kingdom which He promised to those who love Him?”
Interestingly enough, in the Sepher Yetzirah (“Book of Formation,” or “Book of Creation”) of the Jews, it is explained that God “made the letter Gimel king over Wealth”. This statement is a very accurate synthesis of the common symbolic function the camel takes up within Scripture. See for instance how beautifully it is illustrated in Isa. 60:6: “The multitude of camels shall cover your land, the dromedaries of Midian and Ephah; all those from Sheba shall come; they shall bring gold and incense, and they shall proclaim the praises of the Lord.‘”
The long Ps. 119 is divided into different parts that each stand under one of the Hebrew letters. From verse 17-24 it is the gimel‘s turn, and in the opening verse the core word of gimel is presented, namely bountifully, which according to Webster means “Free to give; liberal in bestowing gifts and favors; munificent; generous.” (Remember, the root word of gimel is gâmal, which means bountiful!)
This trend is continued in the New Testament. In 2 Cor. 9:6-8 the word is specifically used in terms of believers who have been freed of covetousness, and can freely give, and whom will thus receive in bountiful terms: “But this I say, He that soweth sparingly shall reap also sparingly; and he that soweth bountifully shall reap also bountifully. Let each man do according as he hath purposed in his heart: not grudgingly, or of necessity: for God loveth a cheerful giver. And God is able to make all grace abound unto you …”
And God is able to make all grace abound unto you …” Ponder what this means for your life – that grace will bountifully increase (1 Pet. 1:2)!
But on the other hand, it also becomes clear why Jesus expressly stated the following in Matt. 6:24: “No one can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or else he will be loyal to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and mammon.”
The different verses of Prov. 31:10-31 are also divided according to the Hebrew alphabet. In Hebrew versification this type of form is called an acrostic (each line of a verse corresponds with a letter of the alphabet, strictly in the correct order, thus from aleph, the first letter, to tau, the last letter). The verse that starts with gimel is translated as follows in The Complete Apostles’ Bible: “For she employs all her living for her husband’s good.” Typologically speaking this Prov. 31-woman points to the characteristic nature and works of the Bride, and is thus a very apt summary of bountiful generosity. Obviously this characteristic nature of generosity is something the Bride receives from the Father, His true nature. No Scripture makes it more clear than Isa. 63:7: “I will mention the lovingkindnesses of the Lord and the praises of the Lord, according to all that the Lord has bestowed on us, and the great goodness toward the house of Israel, which He has bestowed on them according to His mercies,
According to the multitude of His lovingkindnesses.” The Message translates it as follows: “All the generous bounties of GOD, his great goodness … – Compassion lavished, love extravagant.”
Back to gimel and the camel. It is of course very important to remember the existence of a man in history who embodied gimel – John the Baptist. Remember the man clothed in camel hair, the voice calling in the desert: “Prepare the way of the Lord; make his paths straight!” (Matt. 3:3-4)? One of the primary callings of John the Baptist, which carries the spirit of Elijah (Matt. 11:13-14), is to make the “way” (= Jesus – John 14:6) straight, in other words, render it unperverted! This way, through the eye of the needle, is very narrow. In Matt. 7:13-14 Jesus says, “Enter by the narrow gate; for wide is the gate and broad is the way that leads to destruction, and there are many who go in by it. Because narrow is the gate and difficult is the way which leads to life, and there are few who find it.”
VERY IMPORTANT – this “narrow gate” is preceded by the whole issue of giving “to all liberally and without reproach” (James 1:5): “Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives, and he who seeks finds, and to him who knocks it will be opened. Or what man is there among you who, if his son asks for bread, will give him a stone? Or if he asks for a fish, will he give him a serpent? If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father who is in heaven give good things to those who ask Him! Therefore, whatever you want men to do to you, do also to them, for this is the Law and the Prophets.” (Matt. 7:7-12). Directly after this we find the following verses: “Enter by the narrow gate; for wide is the gate and broad is the way that leads to destruction, and there are many who go in by it. Because narrow is the gate and difficult is the way which leads to life, and there are few who find it.”
The arrival of him who calls in the desert is prophesied in Isa. 40:3 – “The voice of one crying in the wilderness: ‘Prepare the way of the Lord; make straight in the desert
A highway for our God.’” The following verse explains how the perverted path of religion is rendered straight: “Every valley shall be exalted and every mountain and hill brought low; the crooked places shall be made straight and the rough places smooth”. And the following verse points to what will then result: “The glory of the Lord shall be revealed, and all flesh shall see it together; for the mouth of the Lord has spoken.” The conclusion of all this is the gospel of glory (2 Cor. 4:4; 2 Thess. 2:14; 1 Tim. 1:11)! (Again read the teaching of Day 731.) But for this you need a specific garment of camel hair, for the gate and the way that lead to life are narrow, and there are few who find it. It is essential that we find our way through the eye of the needle, for in this lies the mystery of an abundant life (John 10:10). In the following couple of teachings we will discuss this amazing garment of gimel in more detail.
- Selah: Do serious soul-searching concerning James 1:5.
- Read: 36-43; Ps. 76.
- Memorise: 40:3-5 (Note God’s wondrous Hand in the synchronicity!)
