This Book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do according to all that is written in it. For then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have good success. – Joshua 1:8 (ESV)
When you read that “you shall
meditate” on the “Book of the Law”, it probably conjures up in your mind, a passive
act of pondering in quiet solitude and silent reflection. But how we think of
meditate is not an adequate visual of the Hebrew word used. The Lord was
commanding Joshua to hagah the Book of the Law day and night.
Indeed to meditate is a powerful act of worship which speaks
of spiritual refreshing and renewal and looking at the word hagah, we see that to
meditate is one of its definitions, however hagah also means to moan, to growl,
to mutter, to speak.
So, it’s not silent contemplation but a low audible
expression, like when Hannah, in the temple, poured out her deepest anguish to
God in prayer (see 1 Samuel 1).
Isaiah 31:4, “…As the lion or the young lion growls over his prey…”, gives us yet another idea of what this Hebrew word means. It’s that deep guttural sound a lion makes when he’s about to devour his prey.
God’s Word is food for our souls, and we must experience
pangs of hunger that will cause us to tear into the Word and feast like a lion eating
its prey.
Hagah is about being so desperately hungry, and having such
an insatiable appetite for the Word, that we cannot help but persistently
confess it day and night.
We see that hagah can take the form of verbalized reflection,
or vocalized prayer.
Delirious, I chattered like a
swallow or a crane, and then I moaned like a mourning dove. My eyes grew tired
of looking to heaven for help. – Isaiah 38:14 (NLT)
So from now on beloved, as you pray and meditate on God’s
Word, do not merely sit in silent reflection, instead let that quiet time be less
quiet. Take the opportunity to be vocal, growl and moan and mutter and speak.
Amen †
Shelley Johnson “HAGAH” ©2013 revisited September 27, 2025
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