“GOD LIKES ME”
In my last Preach letter I referred to what David says in
Psalm 17:15b: “I shall be satisfied, when I awake, with thy likeness.” The
definition of the Hebrew word for “satisfied” is “to be filled, sated, and
enriched with abundance.” And what is David satisfied with? God’s likeness. But
what is God’s “likeness”?
In looking at some of the other Bible versions, I found
“likeness” translated as “to see you as you are, see you face to face.” But
these are not accurate.
Likeness is not a word we use very much, but here’s an
example of how most people would recognize it: If I was to meet my friend Helen
and she introduced me to her mother, I might say to her, “WOW, I can definitely
see the likeness,” and you would know that I’m talking about some physical way
Helen resembles her mom. It’s obvious that Helen is not her mom, but a progeny
of her mother, a human being produced from her mother’s womb.
And that’s how the Hebrew word for “likeness” is being
used in the Bible. It’s things we can see with our eyes. The actual Hebrew word
for “likeness” is “temuna” and it means “something fashioned, an image, a form,
a representation, an appearance, a manifestation of favor.”
In the context of Psalm 17:15 and in the other places the
word is used, it is referring to physical things, things you can see.
In the earlier verses of Psalm 17, David talks about the wicked
enemy that was surrounding him. They were all wealthy and very much satisfied in
the natural realm with all of their valuable possessions and their high-end living,
but they had no salvation from God. Verse 10 says: “They are inclosed in their
own fat; with their mouth they speak proudly.”
The Hebrew word for “fat” is “chelb,” and it means “to be fat, whether
literally or figuratively; hence, the richest or choice part, the best, finest,
grease, and marrow” (Strong’s Concordance).
Then a few verses later, in verse 14 we’re told that
these men are filled with hidden treasures, their children are satisfied, and
they leave the rest of their wealth to their babies—all talking about physical
things you can see. They had it made in the world, but David had something
better. He was fully satisfied, enriched, filled, and overflowed with the
physical things sourced by God. And we are to be that way too. But we need to
expect to see those things that our God is giving us. We look for them, recognize
them, talk about them, and give God the glory He deserves for favoring us with
them. What we see God do for us in the physical realm is Him showing us that He
likes us! (His Likeness!)
One of the keys to understanding the Bible is to take a
look at the first place a word is used and look at the context. The first place
we find “likeness” is in Exodus 20:4 “Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven
image, or any likeness.”
And this is the context:
“I am the Lord thy God, which have
brought thee out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage. Thou shalt
have no other gods before me. Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image,
or any likeness of any thing that is in heaven above, or
that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under
the earth.”
The people were physically making their own images of
what they thought their pagan gods looked like, so they could admire those
images and worship them. We, on the other hand, don’t worship the physical
things, but only worship the true God. And He’s the one who gives us the
physical things, not the other way around!
The next place the word for likeness is used is in
Numbers 12:8. Here “temuna” is translated “similitude.” “With him [Moses] will
I speak mouth to mouth, even apparently, and not in dark speeches; and the
similitude of the Lord shall he behold.” Notice that God said He
would speak to Moses and He would show him something as well.
Numbers 12:8 takes place during the Israelites’ trek
across the wilderness. The people had already seen with their eyes what God did
in Egypt. Remember, God’s likenesses are those physical things which He
produces, forms, and fashions. God told Moses what He was going to produce,
Moses told Pharaoh, and all the people saw the Nile turn to blood; they saw
plagues of frogs, lice, physical diseases on animals, boils, darkness for three
days, and the death of all the first born. Then in the wilderness there were
many more things that God gave to Moses, and Moses shared them with the people.
But in spite of that, the people rebelled.
They started complaining about everything and even talked
about wanting to go back to Egypt. God provided everything for them, and even
when He produced quail for them to eat when they complained about manna, they
still complained. But the final straw was when Moses’ brother and sister, Aaron
and Miriam, started badmouthing Moses and griping about his leadership and the
fact that he married an Ethiopian woman.
Now, God was going to do another physical show of what he
could do as a manifestation of His favor for Moses. He, God, called for Moses,
Miriam, and Aaron to come out to the Tabernacle. “And the Lord spake
suddenly unto Moses, and unto Aaron, and unto Miriam, ‘Come out ye three unto
the tabernacle of the congregation.’ And they three came out. And
the Lord came down in the pillar of the cloud, and
stood in the door of the tabernacle, and called Aaron and Miriam: and
they both came forth” (Num. 12:4-5).
“And the anger of the Lord was kindled against
them; and he departed. And the cloud departed from off the tabernacle; and,
behold, Miriam became leprous, white as snow: and Aaron
looked upon Miriam, and, behold, she was leprous” (Num. 12:9-10).
So, there it is. God told them He was going to show Moses
another “similitude,” a “likeness,” something they could see with their eyes,
something that would show God’s manifested favor toward Moses. He did it to
teach them a lesson, and then because Moses asked, God reversed it, and in 7
days Miriam was completely healed.
Another place where “temuna” is used is in Deuteronomy
4:12. “And the Lord spake unto you out of the midst of the fire: ye
heard the voice of the words, but saw no “similitude;” only ye
heard a voice.” From this reference we learn that God wants us to receive more
than one of the benefits of what He has to offer. He wants us to not only hear
His voice, but He wants us to see with our eyes what He produces for us. The
people here in Deuteronomy were God’s children, but they had turned to making
their own things to worship. They could still hear God, but for some reason they
couldn’t see His fire.
I think we can step up our spiritual enlightenment and
blessing by expecting to see with our eyes the physical things God is more than
willing to show us. We want to see the fire, and we want to see God’s favor
like he showed to Moses, and we want to see more of things David was so
delighted to see when he awoke in the morning and knew that he would see the
likeness of God.
Pray with me, “Lord, let your mercy and grace be on me
and show me some of those things this week.”
And remember to tell yourself, “GOD LIKES ME!”
Love, Carolyn
You can find my books on Amazon, with more teachings from
God’s Word and HOW TO APPLY these truths in everyday life—
https://www.amazon.com/s?k=wings+carolyn+molica&crid=EZNJZZUP3KHG&linkCode=ll2&linkId=db88efb13727dcb484eb29f5b1683284&sprefix=wings+carolyn+molica%2Caps%2C353&tag=jmbcsds-20&ref=as_li_ss_tl
