One of the first words you learn when visiting Israel is shalom. That’s because it is used to say “hello” and “goodbye” to someone - somewhat like aloha is used in Hawaii. When you think about it, to wish someone “peace” is a very nice thing. And, if shalom only meant peace, that would still be great. However, in Hebrew, shalom has so many more meanings than the word “peace” in English, which simply means, “freedom from strife and disorder; harmony; and to be quiet.”
Interestingly, English seemingly gets its definitions from the Greek. The Greek root word is irene. It is the same as a lady’s name, except that it is pronounced EE-ree-nee. The basic meaning is a harmonious relationship between people, nations, etc. It can also mean peaceful, as in quietness of surroundings or the heart. The limitations of the English and Greek meanings for the word “peace” are obvious when we see how different words have to be used in these languages (and other languages, as well) to convey the varieties of meaning packed into this one Hebrew word. For example, in the Septuagint, the Greek word soteria, which means salvation, and not irene, has to be used to convey one of the meanings of shalom, which is “salvation.”
The Hebrew Root of Shalom?
The foundation of almost every Hebrew word is a root composed of three consonants, and each root has its own fundamental meaning. The other letters that fill in around the three-consonant root to make a word can be varied in many ways to make other words. However, something of the basic meaning of the root always remains in the meaning of all the other words. The root of the word shalom is sheen-lamed-mem (µlv), transliterated in English as SH-L-M. Its basic meaning is “wholeness” or “completeness.” Literally hundreds of Hebrew words are built from the root SH-L-M, and all of them have some connection to this basic meaning. For example, ShaLeM means “complete,” and is also the name of the city of Melchizedek mentioned in Genesis 14:18 (transliterated in English as “Salem”). SheLeM means “peace offering,” which was part of restoring a broken relationship with God; SheeLeM means “he paid,” that is, he completely fulfilled his obligation.
Hebrew is very efficient and has a relatively small vocabulary, approximately one-tenth that of English. One word can often serve a variety of functions. One sees this with the word shalom, which is usually translated as “peace,” but means more simply “tranquility” or the opposite of war. A quick look at a number of Bible passages shows other meanings of the Hebrew word shalom - meanings that have not always been conveyed well in translations in other languages. In some of the references you may not see the connection, but the word shalom is present in the Hebrew. Let’s look at a few of them:
FRIENDSHIP: The shalom between friends has to do with trust (Jer. 38:22), familiarity (Jer. 20:10), or in a relationship of “peaceful understanding” (Zech. 6:13), where the word for “peace” is prefixed to the word for “friends.” Psalm 28:3 mentions those “who speak shalom but harbor malice in their heart,” and Psalm 41:9 speaks of betrayal by a “man of shalom (peace).” Both passages contrast friendship with treachery, not peace with war. Similarly, in 1 Kings 2:13, when Bathsheba asked Adonijah, “Is your coming shalom?”, she was not asking if he had come peacefully. Rather, she was asking if he had come with friendly intent. Although he answered, shalom, he was lying. Even though he did not come in war, he did not come with friendly intent, but rather with treachery in his heart. When Yeshua (Jesus) used the expression, “son of shalom (peace)” (Luke 10:6), He was referring not to a peace-loving man, but to a friendly, hospitable person.
WELL-BEING: This usage of shalom has to do with one’s total well-being, including his health and prosperity, which are gifts from the Lord. One sees this meaning in 2 Kings 4:26, where the Shunamite woman was asked by Elisha’s servant if it was well with her, her husband and child. In the original Hebrew text the question was simply, “Do you have shalom?” Today, one hears this same familiar usage in modern Israel when you inquire after a friend’s well-being by asking, “ma shlomcha?”, literally meaning, “How is your shalom (well-being)?” And, if you want your friend to convey your regards to someone else, you simply tell him, ”dreeshat shalom,” which means, “Ask about the shalom (well-being)” of that person. The Psalmist is clearly addressing the health aspect of this meaning of shalom when he says, “There is no soundness in my flesh ... no shalom in my bones” (Ps. 38:3). Shalom in this passage is not translated as “peace,” but as “health” to convey this meaning.
SAFETY: We read in Judges 11:31 that Jephthah tragically vowed that if he returned from the battle “in shalom,” that is, in safety, he would sacrifice to the Lord the first living thing that came out of his house to meet him. Shalom here is used with the same meaning in Isaiah 41:3, “He pursues them, advancing in shalom (safety) ...” Yeshua used the word shalom in the same manner in a teaching recorded in Luke 11:21, “When a strong man fully armed guards his own dwelling, his belongings are in shalom (safety).” Isaiah draws a direct connection between righteous living before God bringing shalom, as safety and tranquility, when he says, “The fruit of righteousness will be shalom; the effect of righteousness will be shalom (quietness) and confidence forever. My people will live in dwelling places of shalom, in secure homes, in undisturbed places of rest” (Isa. 32: 17-18).
SALVATION: Shalom is also used as a parallel to other biblical synonyms for salvation, such as tsedakah (righteousness) in Isaiah 60:17, and yeshuah (“help”) in Isaiah 52:7. This passage from Isaiah 52 receives added significance when we realize that the words which literally mean “peace” and “help” were intended as synonyms for salvation: “How beautiful on the mountains are the feet of the messenger announcing shalom, heralding good news, announcing yeshuah, telling Zion ‘Your God is King!’”
The Apostle Paul understood the “shalom, shalom” of Isaiah 57:19 as a reference to salvation, not just peace. In his explanation in Ephesians 2:13-18, he makes this clear when he says of Messiah Yeshua, “For He Himself is our shalom (salvation),” who brings together the Jew and Gentile into one (vv. 14-15); and, “He came to preach shalom ... for through Him we both have access to the Father by one Spirit” (vv. 17-18).
One finds the same implication in the angels’ song recorded in Luke 2:14, “Glory to God in the highest, and on earth shalom to men on whom His favor rests.” Even the well-known verse in Psalm 122:6, “Pray for the shalom of Jerusalem,” would be understood more fully if shalom were translated “salvation” rather than “peace.” However, we must keep in mind when considering this passage that the word shalom, like all Hebrew words for salvation, refers to physical as well as spiritual deliverance. The Hebrews did not compartmentalize things as neatly as other cultures do.
Throughout the Newer Testament, persons who had association with Yeshua, either directly when He ministered, or indirectly through spiritual salvation, were described in terms of shalom in all its varieties of meanings. Zechariah and Simeon, for example, expected this shalom (Lk. 1:79; 2:29); the angels heralded it (Lk. 2:14); people who were healed were told to “go in shalom” (Mk. 5:34; Lk 7:50); the people sang about it at the Truimphal Entry of Messiah Yeshua into Jerusalem (Lk. 19:38); and when Yeshua wept over Jerusalem, He lamented that they did not understand that His coming meant shalom (salvation) for them, and they had missed it (Lk. 19:42). Before Yeshua’s death, He bequeathed shalom to His disciples (Jn 14:27; 16:33), and on the day of His resurrection “the disciples were together, with the doors locked for fear of the Jewish leaders, Yeshua came and stood among them and said, ‘Shalom be with you!’” (Jn. 20:19-20). In fact, He said this phrase three times in this passage (cf. Jn. 20:21, 26). Various Newer Testament leaders spoke of salvation as the “good news of shalom by Yeshua HaMashiach” (Acts 10:36), the preaching of shalom (Eph. 2:17), and the “gospel of shalom “ (Eph 6:15; Rom. 10:15). It was declared that the “God of shalom” brings salvation to the whole man - body, soul and spirit (I Thess. 5:23). Man’s participation in the shalom of God through Messiah’s finished work of redemption is also mentioned frequently in the Newer Testament.
As you can see, shalom is a very flexible word and can refer to much more than peace as merely “freedom from strife and disorder; harmony; and to be quiet.” Yet, all of the many meanings of shalom, including friendship, well-being, safety and salvation - clearly reflect various aspects of “completeness,” the fundamental meaning of the Hebrew root SH-L-M.
Shalom in Our Everyday Life
The secular Western culture of today displays a typically Greek orientation to the concept of peace. It sees peace as a condition that persists within the individual as a state of being that is emotionally felt, internally generated, and having no influence of a divine being.
However, in the Hebrew Scriptures (the Older Testament), the writers thought just the opposite of this. They did not conceive of any human condition as occurring independently of God’s controlling will and presence. This awareness of God gives a sense of wholeness and success to the business of living, which is marred only by human inadequacy and sin. They believed that God is the creator of peace in heavenly spheres, high above all human affairs, and that the pledge of shalom and its realization appears as human prosperity and wholeness of life (Gregory, 1976). You can see this concept in The Lord’s Prayer, when it says, “Our Father, Who art in heaven, hallowed be Thy Name. Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done on earth as in heaven” (Matt. 6:9-10). The term shalom is often used to describe prosperity of a material sort, which for them was associated with God’s covenantal promises or the manifestation of God’s presence.
Prophetically, shalom is a major part of the Messianic promise of future blessing that provides salvation on all levels. It is shalom that is promised for Israel, which would also extend to the rest of the world. The prophets wrote of a coming shalom that is accompanied by restored relationships, spiritual restoration, a cessation of war and conflict, and physical comfort. God promises to Judah and Israel: “I will bring health and healing to it: I will heal My people and will let them enjoy abundant shalom and security ... I will cleanse them from all the sin they have committed against Me ... Then this city will bring Me renown, joy, praise and honor before all nations on earth that hear of all the good things I do for it; and they will be in awe and will tremble at the abundant prosperity and shalom I provide for it” (Jer. 33:6-9).
What Does This Mean to Us?
The ultimate shalom that we can have now is that shalom which is found in our relationship to God, that manifests itself spiritually and materially.
On the most basic level, the shalom of salvation is a doorway opened freely by the Lord for us to walk through so that we can enjoy His shalom in every way. In Messiah Yeshua, our shalom (salvation) was purchased, if we choose to accept it. Paul says, “For God was pleased to have all His fullness dwell in Him, and through Him to reconcile to Himself all things, whether things on earth or things in heaven, by making shalom through His blood, shed on the cross” (Col. 1:19-20).
Afterward, we can find true spiritual and emotional shalom, as well. Paul gives us the formula: “Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice! Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near. Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the shalom of God, which passes all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Messiah Yeshua. Finally brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable - if anything is excellent or praiseworthy - think about such things. Whatever you have learned or received or heard from me, or seen in me - put it into practice. And the God of shalom will be with you” (Phil. 4:4-9).
Finally, we can know real material shalom as well-being and a sense of “prosperity” that exists for us no matter what our material circumstances suggest. Paul says, “I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances. I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want. I can do everything through Him who gives me strength” (Phil. 4:11-13). It is a deep-down contentment in the Lord where His Presence with you is a shalom that can carry the believer above temporal circumstances.
On all levels, it is this supernatural “shalom that passes all understanding” that is often witnessed by the world and draws men to the God of shalom. Most believers have had those experiences where circumstances dictated hysteria; yet through prayer and trust in the Lord, His presence brought a supernatural shalom and sense of well-being, assurance, safety and the hope that all would be well.
That kind of shalom can only come from God and cannot be conjured up. This is something worth celebrating.
In the days of the Temple, of the many offerings made unto the Lord, one was called the shelem or peace offering. These were offered by those who were at peace with God. They were made as an expression of gratitude to God and to have fellowship with Him (Lev. 3). An ox, sheep or goat was sacrificed: its blood poured over the altar, the fat burned as a sweet savor to the Lord, part of the flesh given to the priest and the remainder eaten at the sanctuary by the sacrificer and his friends (Lev. 7:15f; Dt. 12:1,17f). Also, a meal offering and drink offering were made along with the meat offering. The meal denoted the fellowship which existed between the worshiper and God and was a symbol and pledge of friendship and shalom with Him. This offering was a joyful public acknowledgement of relationship with the Lord, which showed their thanks to Him as their Source.
Today, outside the circle of those who have faith in the God of the Bible, God is not seen as the Source of their well-being, prosperity, safety or salvation. Most humanists see themselves as the source of their own destiny, and God is left out of the equation. Yet, most of them do not have genuine shalom in their lives. Real inner shalom and contentment is not something the ways of the world can provide for people. This must come from our Creator, Redeemer and Teacher - the God of the Universe, the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, the God of Israel.
For a world crying for shalom, Messiah Yeshua is the answer to overcome the inner turmoil so many feel today, “for He is our shalom.”
When Yeshua was talking to His disciples about the time when He would go to be with the Father, He promised them His shalom. He said that the Holy Spirit would come to be their Comforter and Teacher. He would remind them of all the things He had said to them (Jn. 14:25-26).
Then He said, “ Shalom I leave with you; My shalom I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled, and do not be afraid” (Jn. 14:27). It is interesting that He told them that He stressed He would not give them the peace of the world; that is fleeting, temporary and inconsistent. Rather, He promised them the shalom of God, which is the essence of salvation, wholeness, well-being, friendship, safety, prosperity, health, tranquility and contentment. Who could ask for more?
Don’t wait any longer. If the shalom of the Lord that passes all understanding is ours for the asking, then let this day be your day to experience this great gift of the Lord.
Shalom from Jerusalem,
Clarence H. Wagner, Jr.
International Director
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