Glory
Excerpt
‘Glory’ generally represents Heb. kāḇôḏ, with the root idea of ‘heaviness’ and so of ‘weight’ or ‘worthiness’. It is used of men to describe their wealth, splendour or reputation (though in the last sense kāḇôḏ is often rendered ‘honour’). The glory of Israel was not her armies but Yahweh (Je. 2:11). The word could also mean the self or soul (Gn. 49:6).
The most important concept is that of the glory of Yahweh. This denotes the revelation of God’s being, nature and presence to mankind, sometimes with physical phenomena.
In the Pentateuch the glory of Yahweh went with his people out of Egypt and was shown in the cloud which led them through the wilderness (Ex. 16:7, 10). The cloud rested on Mt Sinai, where Moses saw his glory (Ex. 24:15–18). No man could see God’s face and live (Ex. 33:20), but some vision of his glory was granted (Ex. 34:5-8).
The glory of Yahweh filled the tabernacle (Ex. 40:34–35) and appeared especially at the hour of sacrifice (Lv. 9:6, 23). These passages seem all to be connected with a ‘thunderstorm-theophany’, but there are also passages which suggest more the character of Yahweh which is to be made known throughout the earth (Nu. 14:21-22).
The historical books tell of the Temple’s becoming the place where the glory of Yahweh was especially to be located (1 Ki. 8:11; 2 Ch. 7:1–3).
In the prophets there are both the quasi-physical conception of Yahweh’s glory as seen in the visions of Ezekiel (Ezk. 1:28, etc.) and also a more spiritualized doctrine (Is. 40:4-5; 60:1-3, etc.). The vision of Isaiah in the Temple seems to combine both ideas (Is. 6:1-4).
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Nixon, R. E. “Glory.” Ed. D. R. W. Wood et al. New Bible dictionary1996 : 414. Print.
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