Selah - Take a Rest and Think About It

Have you ever been commanded to take a rest?  Maybe a pregnant woman has been commanded "bed rest" or a doctor has reminded us during times of sickness "rest" is the best medicine.

But even a commanded "rest" does not deliver the results because of our minds.  What we are thinking about.  The only way to stop a thought is to replace it with another.

In Scripture, there is a "Selah" - a command to rest and think.

In the Old Testament, this word used to do just that - rest and think.  Selah is a Hebrew word used 74 times in the Old Testament with 71 of those times in the book of Psalms.  The other three are in Habakkuk chapter 3. Scholars can't agree whether it comes from a word meaning "to lift up" or "to be silent." If the first, then it might be a signal for louder voices or the lifting and blowing the trumpets, perhaps even the lifting of hands to the Lord.  If the second, it could signal a pause, a moment of silence, rest, pause, and meditation.  Either way, we know it is a technical term used in a musical score. Thus, it is used primarily in the hymn book of the Bible.

A renowned Bible teacher once preaching from Psalm 24 came to the end of his message and the text and said, "Selah" implying - think about it.  I like that.  Selah is a time to pause, stop, rest, and think about it.

We need desperately in our Christian life to nourish our souls with Selah.  We may daily read the Scriptures, faithfully listen to the Sunday sermon, and even read other inspiring writings to put solid food into our life.  But do we stop, rest, and pause to think about it?

I would suggest this word carries closely the idea of meditation.  In our culture, meditation has taken on the Hindu concept of yoga.  But there is a Biblical connection to meditation causing us to ask "What are you thinking about?"

With yoga, where there is no belief in God, they seek for you to find self-realization.  But that well is shallow and often poisoned. As believers, we have the truth about God and ourselves found in the Word of God.  That should be our source of meditation.

Psalm 1:2 "His delight in the law of the Lord, and in His law he meditates day and night."

Psalm 4:4 "...meditate within your heart on your bed, and be still. Selah"

I Timothy 4:15 "Mediate on these things, give yourself entirely to them..."

What things? The Scriptures. Doctrine. The Word of God. Now that is a deep, pure, well of water that continually springs up into everlasting life. And it is a well that will never run dry. When we read the Scriptures or hear that sermon, Selah, take a rest and think about it. What is God saying to you? What in your life do you need to change due to what you have read/heard? What aspect of God's character or the glorious finished work of Jesus do you need to dig deeper and come up shouting, "Hallelujah! What a Savior!"

So, Selah could mean both..raising of our voices and a pause. When we "let the word of Christ dwell in us richly," by meditating on His Word, His glory, and His work, then it will create a raised voice of praise. 

One of my all-time favorite quotes reveals the link between revealed truth and praise:  "Truth without emotion produces death orthodoxy and a church full of artificial admirers (like people who write generic anniversary cards for a living). On the other hand, emotion without truth produces an empty frenzy and cultivates shallow people who refuse the discipline of rigorous thought. But true worship comes from people who are deeply emotional and who love deep and sound doctrine.  Strong affections for God rooted in truth are the bone and marrow of Biblical worship." - John Piper.  

Selah