To All Who Thirst!

This reflection is part of the ongoing Forest Hills Haftorah Series. The rest of the content can be found here: https://www.sefaria.org/groups/FHJC-Haftorah-Series .

In this week's upcoming Haftarah reading, we encounter what might be one of my favorite verses from the whole TaNaKh.

And unsurprisingly, it is uttered by none other than the Herald of Zion.

Let's take a look at it:

Huh???

Okay, what's the obvious question here!

And just in case we misheard it, he repeats it for us. Here it is with just one more line added:

It takes but a moment of reading to realize that trying to understand the Herald's words literally would result in a nonsensical reading. The Herald does not have a water, wine and milk stand from which he is trying to solicit buyers even if they have no money.

So in that case, what is he saying?

The more I read the works in the TaNaKh, the more I realize that the the absolute best commentary on the TaNaKh are other works in the TaNaKh itself. So let's take a look around at some other places where water-imagery is used to make a point. And by the way, water-imagery is all over the place, so this won't be a comprehensive study; We're just going to look at a select few.

To start off with, here is a very moving example:

Have you ever yearned for something to be in your life as much as our poet here yearns to experience the companionship of YHWH? What does it feel like to have your whole body ache, because there is something you yearn for with such an intensity that you feel the ongoing longing with every breath?

I'll share with you a musical rendition of this prayer-poem to enjoy, which I personally absolutely love.

Here are the complete lyrics:

Oh god; YOU are my god! Earnestly I seek you!

(My soul longs for you!)

I have seen you in the Sanctuary, and beheld your Power and Glory! Because your love is better than life! My lips will glorify!

I will praise you as long as I live! I will praise you as long as I live!

And in your name, lift up my hands! And in your name, lift up my hands!

Hallelu-YAH! Praise to the KING!

From the ends of the sky to the depths of the sea! You are exalted and forever will be.

You are our savior and you are worthy; Hallelu-YAH!

Holy! Holy! You are worthy, Hallelu-YAH! You are worthy!

Wowza. Seriously... wowza.

I particularly love how they start off timid, almost shy-like, and then slowly building, building to an explosion of exultation and joy and praise! Listen to the very beginning again, then for contrast, jump ahead to 6:10, where you not only hear the enthusiasm and adoration, but you see it all over their faces and in their body language. And just like the heavenly angels of Isaiah's vision (Isaiah 6), the climax seems most definitely to be the "HOLY!!! HOLY!!!" which occurs at 7:04. Incredible!

I don't think any of us could accurately imagine, in our human-mind's ear, what it must sound like for the angels and the celestial bodies to join their voices together and pour our their hearts in adoring praise to their creator; But I think in this one song, the Mount Paran Choir might have come as close as we can get.

Let's move on to another example from the prayer-poems:

The prayer-poem of Psalm 63 that we saw above spoke about the poet's own longing. The poet of this one searches the natural world for an appropriate metaphor with which to capture his experience of pining for YHWH. And what did he find? A female deer, or a hind, panting for water.

Any thoughts on why our poet drew on specifically this imagery?

I'll offer one thought on this:

I think the poet recognizes that this need that he feels for this communion comes from the very depths of the heart; YHWH is not something to be intellectual about, to be comprehended by the mind by way of logic or even by observing the world and seeing his presence in nature or history. Rather, there is something so utterly primal or basic about it, and our poet relates to his need for closeness with YHWH in the same way that a dehydrated deer realizes it must find a water source.

All life forms know they need water, and could not last long without it, just as our poet thirsts for a hint of YHWH's countenance in his life.

So far we've seen two prayer-poems which speak so powerfully to the yearning. But what happens when that yearning, that thirst, is finally quenched?

Fortunately for us, some of our poets of yore did merit such an experience, and have left behind their words for us to soak in:

Wow, lovely indeed.

Imagine the delight! Say you take a day to go on a nice long hike through unfamiliar woods. It takes longer than you think, and at some point it dawns on you that you're hot and you've long since run out of fluids. As you walk in what you hope is the quickest direction back to civilization, you hear a noise; The bubbling or trickling sounds of a rushing stream! You follow the noise until you come across a brook of cool, clear, freshwater. With joy and gratitude you run over, plunge your hands in and enjoy the sensation of the coolness running over them; You splash a handful across your face and then lift some to your lips; Imagine the refreshing sweetness!

Says our poet... this is the experience of YHWH's faithfulness! If you can understand how goodly and how pleasant it is to take in refreshing water at a moment of thirst, then perhaps you have an inkling of what it is to experience YHWH's faithfulness.

Here is a really nice comment from the Ultimate Cross-Reference Treasury by Jerome Smith (2016):

While all else has been aging, the water springs up as full of youth,—as free from weariness or decay,—as it was thousands of years ago. Such is the blessedness of heaven.

We've only seen three examples of this type of image from the prayer-poems, but there is so much more!

In fact, even just open up to prayer-poem number one, and this is what you'll find:

Much as I would love to stay rooted in the psalms, I want to show you some of what we have from the prophets as well.

Here is one from Isaiah, from the 8th century in Jerusalem:

This is a passage taken from the climax of a section of Isaiah's oracles in which he describes what a "Golden Age" for Israel and Judea will look like; When there will be an especially exalted descendant of David sitting on the Jerusalem throne, the north and south reunited under a righteous king who embodies the very spirit of YHWH himself!

If you go back two chapters, you'll see that this speech of his is addressed to the Judeans collectively (10:24). At the time, there was a lot to be nervous about for the Judeans. Much of Isaiah's ministry occurred when not only was the Assyrian Empire threatening from the east, but there was conflict even with the Northern Israelites as well as Aram north of them.

Isaiah was well-respected and recognized in his day for being a man-of-Elohim. When the southern-Judean kings needed to know the heart and mind of YHWH, and felt a pressing need for his special blessings, they sent for Isaiah.

Here's one example:

What's happening here? Well, if you read the broader context (going back to 2 Kings 18:13) there is a major confrontation outside the walls of Jerusalem. On one hand there are the representatives of one of the most terrifying empires of human history, those big bad Assyrians, making demands that the humbled Judean King, Hezekiah, cannot fulfill. So how does he react? "Get Isaiah!"

Note the precise wording the king's agents use when employing Isaiah for help, acknowledging how uniquely strong a bond Isaiah has beyond what any of them can aspire to:

"Perhaps YHWH your elohim will take note."

And what message did Isaiah, with his direct line straight to On High, have for the people of Judah during times of need?

Look! El-of-my-Salvation! I shall trust and shall not fear, for YAH, YHWH is my might and my song, and he shall be my salvation!

Joyfully you shall draw water from the Fountains-of-Salvation!

Yet another case of this recurring water-motif. A time will come when the Judeans will be able to access salvation as easily as the joyful experience of drawing water from a fountain. And the source of said foundation? El-Yeshua!

What Isaiah does here will end up having ripple effects throughout the literary and prophetic traditions of Judah moving forward.

Look what happens by the time we get to Jeremiah, prophesizing about a century later. (When the Assyrians have since fallen and a new threat has entered the scene... the Babylonians):

(If you've been with us for long enough, you might recall that we once learned about both Psalm 1 and this passage from Jeremiah once-upon-a-time, in our Trust or Wisdom reflection, though then we had a different focus. (https://www.sefaria.org/sheets/237293?lang=bi).)

Note the ways in which Jeremiah's words here intersect with Psalm 1 and with Psalm 36 above, as well as how he might be picking up on kernels of ideas originally planted by Isaiah a hundred years ago and developing them further.

He's also placing a clever word-game that you might have noticed if you read through in the Hebrew. How does Jeremiah describe YHWH? The mikvah (hope) of Israel.

The first time we see the root for this word, hope, is actually in the very first chapter of Genesis:

Do you see the word-game Jeremiah is playing? I highlighted the relevant parts in the Hebrew above.

Both hope and gathering (gathering of water) trace them themselves back to the same root: ק-ו-ה . In Jeff Brennersr Ancient Hebrew Lexicon, he suggests that the common denominator of meaning between these two words relates to a being held back; A collection of water is certainly held back from natural dispersion, while one who hopes for something endures, or holds him or herself back, in a way, in anticipation of the hoped-for outcome.

So Jeremiah is quite cleverly playing with this water-imagery on multiple layers. First he just out and tells us that having trust in YHWH is akin to a tree being planted next to healthy running streams; Then he tells us that turning from YHWH is akin to forsaking the Fount-of-Living-Water. And at the same time, just below the surface, his term for YHWH as the Hope-of-Israel is a term which carries a secondary meaning which invites water-associations in the minds of the listeners (or readers) as well.

I don't think it's a coincidence by any means that rain, at the appropriate time and in the appropriate amount, is one of those blessings that the Israelites and Judeans were constantly promised, should they remain faithful to their relationship with YHWH.

I'll give you just a couple examples from a few different book:

And similarly:

Note how in this blessing above, you can see how the right rains will set off a chain-reaction of successive blessings, resulting in nothing short of tranquility and dwelling securely in the land.

This promise is then reaffirmed by Zecharia in the 6th century, and one of the very last prophets to be included in the TaNaKh-collection.

Here is his message to the Judeans returning from the first exile and setting to work on picking up the pieces of their ancestral homeland:

And finally, very likely right around the same time as Zecharia is our dear friend the Herald, with whom we started this whole discussion! We began by looking at the very beginning of chapter 55, and we'll come back to this. But first, let's see what he says elsewhere:

Unlike the rest of life in the animal and plant world, with whom we share this space, we as human beings are able to tap into our intellect and our understanding of that which we perceive and experience, alongside learning about the experiences of those who came before us, enabling us to reach the conclusion that there is a source behind all of our blessings. A source with whom we can be in relationship and communion.

The Herald looks forward to a time when even the beasts will recognize the source of their blessings as well, honoring YHWH for the the water by which they are sustained.

Like the Herald, other Israelites and Judeans who have contributed to the literature in the TaNaKh write this way as well.

Here is one example from one of the prayer-poems:

Of course, our poet here could very well be writing, well, poetically. Whether he and the Herald conceived of this happening on a literal level or not, I'm not sure. Either way, I love the imagery! The idea that humankind is but one entity in a universe of seemingly infinite expanse, with everything praising YHWH for providing them with whatever it is they need most to survive.

But finally, with all of this in mind, let's revisit the line with which we began:

Out of a desire to inform our reading of the words of the Herald here, we looked at lots of cases of water-imagery above (and there's much more where those all came from!) Here were some of the major themes:

• For the Israelites and Judeans, the right water at the right time is one of the greatest blessings, enabling "secure dwelling in the land;"

• Some of the poets felt that the need they had for YHWH in their lives was akin to a parched throat's thirst, in a very palpable and physical sense;
  • In light of the above point, YHWH himself is described as the Fountain-of-Life!

Here is my personally take-away - one that admittedly, I would have reached even without all of these other supplemental sources - but a conclusion that is enriched a thousand times over after having done so;

When the Herald invites anyone and everyone to come drink, he is inviting all who thirst for the waters of the Fountain-of-Life! He is inviting people to taste the sweetness of experiencing YHWH in in their lives.

This is a water which truly refreshes, restores, and enriches; And says the Herald, readily available to all! Come, all who thirst!