"Selah." Do what now?

If you've been reading my blog, you may (or may not) recall an instance or two in which I used the Hebrew word "selah", famous for its 70-something occurrences in the Bible. For years scholars have argued over the meaning of this elusive word, never able to agree on a meaning. In Bibles it is simply transliterated as "selah" and left without translation.

After awhile I started to wonder what this word meant. It was used fairly heavily in the Psalms (and featured once in Habbakuk). What was the meaning of this mystery word?

If you take a look at the footnotes of your Bible, you'll probably see it noted that the exact meaning is unknown. "Probably a literary or musical term" is often what you'll find, but in a few copies, you'll see something suggesting that it means "reflect" or "pause", which I like much better than merely "interlude" or any random word.

Okay, so I'm not an expert on the Hebrew language. Heck, I'm not even an expert on the Bible! So I'm most definitely not the one to tell you what this word means. But perhaps I could offer my opinion?

In all the instances in which I've read it (that I recall at this moment), "selah" has been used after a thought-provoking statement has been made. It seems to me that the word invites the reader (or listener, whatever) to meditate upon what has just been said. To pray. To dream. To reflect. Pause, wonder, ponder, imagine, bask. To me, this is what "selah" means. It's not simply some "musical or literary term" -- which, if assigned that meaning, there is nothing for us to gain from it.

So maybe this wasn't the best of my entries. It's been difficult to find the perfect words lately. But I'm waiting for God to inspire. I'm asking Him to show up. I'm inviting Him to speak to me, and about more than just this little project of mine. I'm asking Him to guide me, and show me His ways.

There are many verses in the Bible that warrant a "selah". Your job now is to find them. Search the Word for everything. Look to it and its true Author for spiritual fulfillment. He won't turn us away. God will love me regardless of what I do (or do not). He will never leave me. He will never abandon or forsake me. And that, my friends, begs a selah.