Sense: to sing for joy
v. — to produce a song with the voice as a response of joy.
But let all who take refuge in you rejoice; let them ever sing for joy [רנן]. Spread your protection over them, so that those who love your name may exult in you.
Psalm 5:11 (NRSV)
Verses like Psalm 5:11 seem to say that worshippers of God should always try to be joyful, even when in need of refuge. But The Bible Sense Lexicon hierarchy reveals a bit of the complexity involved in the expression of emotion to God through song. For example, the entry for “to chant” shows us another entry for “to chant a lament.” And “to sing (a song)” shows us the entry for “to sing (a dirge).” This is too short a space to trace out all of these connections; however, by looking at each of these entries, we might gain a clearer understanding of our appropriate responses to God under different circumstances. In fact, we might find that there is more than one appropriate response in a given circumstance! When doing exegesis, be sure to explore related concepts to gain a fuller understanding of the main concept you’re studying.
What is the Bible Sense Lexicon?
Sense of the Day is based on content from Logos’ Bible Sense Lexicon, which organizes biblical Hebrew, Aramaic, and Greek words by meaning based on a variety of semantic relationships. Sense of the Day provides examples of senses in context, along with insight into their application for theology and interpretation.
The Bible Sense Lexicon is a Logos dataset available in Logos 5 Gold and higher base packages. If you’re enrolled in the Logos Academic Discount Program, you can also find the Bible Sense Lexicon in the Biblical Languages base package. Take your studies even further by exploring semantic domains, engaging the biblical text like never before.
Learn more about the Bible Sense Lexicon.