The Living Words: Love

This article is an xcerpt from Mr. Benner's book The Living Words.

In our modern Western culture, love is an abstract thought of emotion, how one feels toward another, but the Hebrew word אהב ahav ^[H:157] goes much deeper than simple emotion.

The parent root of this word is הב hav. While this root is not found in the Biblical text, a couple of other derivatives are. The word הבהב havhav ^[H:1890], a noun meaning "gift" and יהב yahav ^[H:3051], a verb meaning "to provide," help to supply the fuller Hebraic understanding of אהב ahav ^[H:157].

We do not choose our parents or siblings, but they are instead given to us as a gift from above, a privileged gift. Even in the Ancient Hebrew culture, one's wife was chosen for him. It is our responsibility to provide and protect those privileged gifts. As a verb, the Hebrew word אהב ahav ^[H:157] means "to provide and protect what is given as a privileged gift." We are to love God, neighbors, and family, not in an emotional sense, but in the sense of our actions.