 |  |
Sanctified (A.V. "Hallowed") is the Greek verb hagiazo, evidently related to hagios,
holy. Parkhurst suggests the possible derivation of the two words from a, negative and
ge, the earth, so, "separated from the earth". Whether this be the correct derivation or no,
it is not possible to say with certainty, but there seems little doubt that the basic meaning
of sanctification is separation. When "God blessed the seventh day and sanctified it"
(Gen. 2: 3), He set that day apart from the other six. This Sabbath, which was given to
Israel, was itself a sign between the Lord and Israel, that He had sanctified them, and so
was their Sanctifier.
"And the Lord spake unto Moses, saying, Speak thou also unto the children of Israel,
saying, Verily My sabbaths ye shall keep: for it is a sign between Me and you
throughout your generations; that ye may know that I am the Lord that doth sanctify
you" (Exod. 31: 12, 13).
Or literally, "I, Jehovah am your Sanctifier". To say that God gave the Sabbath to any
other nation than Israel is to deny the truth of this verse. It was a sign between the Lord
and Israel, and it suggested separation. If the other nations had received this sign also,
what evidence would it then have been to Israel that the Lord was their Sanctifier?
In the prophecy of Isaiah the expression, "the Holy One of Israel" occurs some
twenty-five times. The people of Israel at that time were condemned because they had
"provoked the Holy One of Israel unto anger" (Isa. 1: 4); the word `provoked' being
translated elsewhere `abhorred' (I Sam. 2: 17), `blasphemed' (Psa. 74: 18), `despised'
(Isa. 5: 24), etc. The word is used in a particularly significant context in Numb. 16: 30.
Korah and his company had challenged the position of Moses and Aaron with respect to
the whole congregation of Israel saying:
"You have gone too far! For all the congregation are holy, every one of them, and the
Lord is among them; why then do you exalt yourselves above the assembly of the Lord?"
(Numb. 16: 3 R.S.V.).
The danger of this challenge lay in it being a half-truth. The whole congregation,
insofar as the Lord had separated them from other nations, were holy. What Korah failed
to recognize was a further separation, a choice from among this holy people, of leaders,
even Moses and Aaron. In this way he provoked the Lord, and the opening up of the
ground to swallow him and his company was evidence of this (verse 30). He failed to
recognize the Lord as the Sanctifier, and so provoked or despised the Lord. In the
expression, "sanctified be Thy Name", there is a call for a recognition of the Father's
Name as being holy, and this is equivalent to a recognition of Him as holy. The opposite
of this would appear to be despising or blaspheming the name of the Lord, something of
which both Korah (in Numb. 16:) and Israel (in Isa. 1:) were guilty.
The sanctified nation, Israel, were evidently intended to so conduct their lives that the
Lord would be sanctified in them. Owing however to their constant failure and apostasy,
this has yet to be. Paul, in Rom. 2: 17-27 brings the condemnation against the Jew for
his failure in these words: