119: Nun

The letter Nun [נ] is the symbol for soul, the heavenly spark housed in the earthly container of the body. The soul is the self, taking in intellect, will and heart. The shape of the letter leads many to associate it with humility: nun is “the servant bent over”. Hebrew numerology students love to add up the sum of the letters in words to figure out what they signify. The letters in the name “David” add to fourteen, so they associate the great King of Israel with this letter, as well as Messiah, his descendant; the perfect servant and the epitome of humility. (Nun is the fourteenth letter of the Hebrew alphabet.)

Nun is also the word for “fish” in Aramaic, and Hebrew scholars refer to it as the fish that swims in the water of the Torah. Some of this is a bit too mystical for me, but I find these things of interest.

Anonymous Asks (92)

“Are soul mates for real?”

When Jonathan watched David slay Goliath, he recognized a kindred spirit.

Like David, Jonathan was a brave man who trusted in God almost to the point of recklessness. Climbing a hill fully exposed to enemy arrows in order to take it to an enemy whose numbers dwarf your own seems like a crazy stunt, but if the Lord has given the enemy into your hands, it’s a cinch. Jonathan and his armor bearer had prevailed against 10:1 odds.

It’s holy conjecture, but I suspect if his father had allowed it, Jonathan might have taken on Goliath himself. But Jonathan knew that would never be permitted. Why would the king of Israel risk his own crown prince in what he believed was an unwinnable duel? It would have been a huge PR win for the Philistines and a political disaster for Saul.

David was comparatively expendable. Saul couldn’t even put a name to him when asked.