Peace with God, Peace with Man: A Preliminary Study of the Meaning of Selamim in the Old Testament

Peace with God, Peace with Man: A Preliminary Study of the Meaning of Selamim in the Old Testament

Tony HK SHER

Sacrifice is a basic element of worship conducted by the ancient Israelites to Yahweh their God. Hence, to know the sacrificial system of the Old Testament is vital for the understanding of the faith of the ancient Israelites. The aim of this paper is to gain a deeper understanding of a widely known yet obscure term of the Old Testament sacrificial system, ie the “peace offering” or ~ymil'v. in Hebrew. By looking into the etymology of the word and its usage in the Old Testament, this study concludes that the term stands for the celebration of a perfectly harmonious state enjoyed by the worshiper with God. But in order to enjoy such a celebration, the worshiper must first restore the harmonious state, if it is jeopardized, by removing all his/her sin against God and making good all the damages he/she has done to God or other fellow human beings.