What Does Psalm 24:6 Mean in the King James?
This is the generation of them that seek him, that seek thy face, O Jacob. Selah.
The analysis reads the King James wording.
King James Version The King James Version, first published in 1611. Selah Verse shows the standard text.
THE KEY
This generation is marked by two kinds of seeking: pursuing God and seeking the face that makes his presence personal.
THE MEANING
This verse recognizes a generation by what it seeks: him, and his face. The Hebrew uses two different verbs, holding inquiry and pursuit together. Jacob’s name gives this seeking generation a particular name and nature.
WHAT THIS UNDOES
Seeking God does not have to mean seeking what he provides while keeping his presence at a distance.
THE ROOT
דֹּרְשָׁיו
doreshav
GROWS FROM
דרש
darash
to seek, inquire, or resort to
“seek him” in this verse is doreshav. The first “seek” is darash: an inquiry that turns toward someone or resorts to them. Beside the search for a face, it shows seeking as a turn toward God himself, not merely a search for an outcome.
ALSO GROWS
derishah: inquiry or search
דְּרִישָׁה
This branch makes the seeking an active inquiry, not a passing glance.
midrash: interpretation or exposition
מִדְרָשׁ
It carries the sense of meaning being sought out, echoing the verse’s movement toward God.
מְבַקְשֵׁי פָנֶיךָ
mevaqeshei fanekha
GROWS FROM
בקש
baqash
to seek or request
“seek thy face” in this verse is mevaqeshei fanekha. The second “seek” comes from baqash, a word that can also carry the sense of asking or requesting. English repeats “seek” and hides the shift: the verse joins inquiry with pursuit of God’s face, his presence.
ALSO GROWS
mevaqesh: one who seeks or requests
מְבַקֵּשׁ
This is the singular form behind the verse’s description of those seeking.
baqashah: a request
בַּקָּשָׁה
This branch shows how seeking can include asking for what is desired.
יַעֲקֹב
Ya'aqov
GROWS FROM
עקב
aqav
heel; to follow at the heel or supplant
Jacob’s name carries the image of a heel and of following at the heel. The verse names the seekers through that identity, adding its particular nature to the picture of a generation turning toward God’s face.
ALSO GROWS
aqev: heel
עָקֵב
This is the concrete image associated with Jacob’s name.
aqav: to follow at the heel or supplant
עָקַב
This verb gives the name a nature of close pursuit and grasping.
THE PATTERN
A generation is shaped by what it seeks, and seeking God draws attention toward his presence.
When thou saidst, Seek ye my face; my heart said unto thee, Thy face, LORD, will I seek.Seek the LORD, and his strength: seek his face evermore.Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you:THE THREAD
When thou saidst, Seek ye my face; my heart said unto thee, Thy face, LORD, will I seek.Psalm 27:8 repeats the image of seeking God’s face, using the same Hebrew root, baqash, as this verse. Its exchange between God’s invitation and the heart’s response makes the search for his face relational and present.
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