A husband of 67 years sits alone in his nursing-home room. He hears something on the television and said, “Did you hear that Mother?” And to his disappointment, not only was his room empty of people but his wife (his affectionate nickname for her as Mother) had passed a year prior. When will he be comforted? A woman who was briefly married longs to feel true love in her life. Sufficient is Jesus but she cries herself to sleep sometimes because it would be wonderful if her arms and heart were filled with a man of God also. When will she be comforted? A husband goes to bed tired but more so lonely. His wife is at the hospital and at this point in time it is touch and go as to what really happened to her and what will happen. Will they both be comforted?
After briefly reading an introduction about Christians in Central Asia being persecuted by not only the stronghold of communist mindsets on one side but the growing Muslim influence on the other side, something caught my attention that immediately made me taken notice and stop reading. In the middle of the introduction, a short paragraph said (emphasis added), “Those in Central Asia place their faith in Christ—like Silas—know they will pay a price. One pastor said, ‘If the Holy Spirit doesn’t put His arm around us, we cannot overcome our fear.’ The Holy Spirit is comforting and emboldening God’s children, and they are overcoming their fear to proclaim the gospel.”
Upon reading that view of the Holy Spirit as a Comforter (or comforter) (G3875), a number of verses from the Bible came to me. The first is in the New Testament when Jesus declared in John chapters 14-16 about the Comforter or Holy Spirit will continue where Jesus left off to abide with God’s people and will continue to embolden and remind His people of Jesus’ words. And this brings comfort. This connotation is an intercessor, consoler, or an advocate. This is a legal meaning of someone who stands on our behalf to defend or testify. This ties to a biblical connection when Joshua the High Priest stood before God (in the Book of Zechariah) and the Accuser of the Brethren was there (Satan) lambasting Joshua with his former sins (or the sins of the people/Israel) and God said to change his garments. This advocate is a lawyer defending a client to restore dignity and worth that accusations are desiring to trash. But it is beyond just “shut up Devil” but this advocate provides (legal) guidance, direction, defends, to esteem, to build (back) up.
But when viewed in the Old Testament, there are a number of scriptures about comfort, comforter, comforted with virtually all the same root meaning (H5162) which in Hebrew is naham which is where we find the minor prophet Nahum whose name means Comfort. (Nahum was a prophet against wicked Ninevah or the Assyrians (Ninevah was the capitol of Assyria) because Ninevah briefly repented but as time went on the drifted back to sin.) Where comfort in the New Testament lent itself to encourage, defend, and build, this comfort in the Old Testament means to sigh, breathe strongly, to be sorry, to pity. It is like when someone sighs and says “Oy vey” or sighs when they are exasperated and exhausted with dealing with someone. It is like arguing with a person in reference to a brick wall, never seems to get anywhere, and we sigh as if to say “what is the point to say anything more”. This is interesting but can be dismissed until remembering something I shared in Sunday School this morning which was something that I had initially discovered a number of years ago found in Genesis 6:6. “And the LORD was sorry that He had made man on the earth, and He was grieved in His heart,” is the New King James translation. The Old King James version says, “And it repented the LORD that he had made man on the earth, and it grieved him at his heart.” This repented or sorry has the same Hebrew number (5162) meaning that God was sighing, to pity, to almost be at wits end with dealing with the people/person.
Two other times (in quick thought, certainly there are others) where this occurs. First is in Jonah when God rebukes Jonah that he cared more for the plant than the people whom God had pitied (which means this sigh) Ninevah. The other example that comes to mind is when Jesus is sitting outside of Jerusalem (Matthew 23:37) and says, “O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the one who kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to her! How often I wanted to gather your children together, as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, but you were not willing!” This lament is the same meaning of sighing or pitying.
So taking what Jesus said there with what the pastor said, “…if the Holy Spirit doesn’t put His arm around us…” (outside of this only being really cool to discover and see these connections), I wonder how many times God sighs, “Robert, Robert, Robert…here we go again. When can we finally move past this?” But in His sigh, there is an Advocate who desires to fight on our behalf and to clothe us with dignity and allow us to be valued and involved. May we take comfort in Paul’s words found in 2 Corinthians 5:1-9 (skipping around), “For we know that if our earthly house, this tent, is destroyed, we have a building from God…For in this we grain, earnestly desiring to be clothed…if indeed, having been clothed, we shall not be found naked…who also has given us the Spirit as a guarantee…for we walk by faith, not by sight…Therefore we make it our aim, whether present or absent, to be well pleasing to Him.” And in this we may find comfort knowing (Isaiah 35:10), “And the ransomed of the LORD shall return, and come to Zion with singing, with everlasting joy on their heads. They shall obtain joy and gladness, and sorrow and sighing shall flee away.” May we not just only take comfort of our eternal home and comfort but that He is with us NOW. Oh Holy Spirit, may You have your way in our lives and through our lives. Strengthen and comfort Your people Lord with your arms of love, protection, and strength.