“In the Beginning…”

Genesis 1:1

In yesterday’s gospel reading, Jesus tells the crowd that he has come to fulfill the fullness of the law. He references every iota and every dot (other translations speak of every jot and tittle). We understand this better today as every t that is crossed and every i dotted. In short, Jesus didn’t come to only fulfill the broad, sweeping elements of the law—but every small, seemingly insignificant brush stroke of the law as well. Jesus came to do it all.

For today, I wanted to zoom in on one of these letters that Jesus comes to fulfill. And it goes back to the beginning…in the beginning. The Old Testament is originally written in the Hebrew language. In fact, we get the word alphabet from the first two letters of the Hebrew language—aleph and bet. It is this second letter that we will zoom in on today. It is the first letter written in the scriptures. The three first words in English are one word in Hebrew, Bereshit, and it starts with the letter b.

Over the course of millennia of Jewish thought, several different teachings on this fact have developed. It starts with the way the letter is drawn. Hebrew letters, in a similar concept but with a different flair, are like Chinese letters—they began as mini pictures that help to express the meaning of the letter. The letter b is depicted as a house or tent in its rudimentary drawing. It looks similar to a backwards C. The word for house is more than just the letter. But just as we know A is for apple, in Hebrew it is even a closer truth that b is for house.

In the beginning, God creates a house for His people. He creates a place for us to dwell. A protective home and a place where we live together with the Lord.

This alone has a lifetime of reflection built into it. God’s community benefits from a place to call home. It is protection and belonging that the Lord provides to all of creation. This is the act of love that God breathes into life in this opening chapter—in this opening letter.

Throughout Jewish thought, there has been considerable discussion about why the first letter of the scripture is letter number 2 instead of letter number 1. Aleph—equated to an A in our alphabet—is almost exclusively silent in the Hebrew language. When used, the first letter is present but silent. It is there, but often unknown and unheard. This is the ineffable God—words will always fall short in describing the full majesty of the Almighty.

Beginning the story of God’s love with His creation starting on the second letter is an important statement. It is a reminder that this is about our beginning, not His. We skip the silent letter because there is an entire unknowable reality that existed prior to God speaking light into being. The Lord was from before this opening word. And in that silent skipped Aleph is an eternity of God’s wisdom, presence, and the eternal love of the Triune God. It is a subtle reminder of who the real alpha dog is—the Almighty.

Finally, another simple explanation of God’s wisdom of beginning the Word with a b has to do with it being a forward-looking letter. The Bet consists of a box with 3 straight lines. The opening is on the left side of the letter—a backwards C. This is forward-focused because the Hebrew language is read right to left instead of left to right. The opening of the letter leads straight to the next one. It is constantly looking forward. It leans into what is next. And this is the posture of God’s creation as well. It leads us forward towards what is next. The movement of God is a journey forward—even when we take a step backward. Even when we are knocked down and knocked back—our eyes look out ahead of us. This is part of the beauty of being a Jesus follower. He raises our eyes up. We fall forward.

Why do I share all of this with you today? Because even the jots and tittles tell the story of God’s love and creation. The i’s dotted and the t’s crossed are not glossed over or missed in the unfolding of God’s work in your life. Jesus reminds us that every hair on your head is numbered (Matthew 10:30). He is with you and He is for you. Always. If the Lord puts this much thought in the first letter of Scripture, how much more do you think His attention is upon you, your needs, and walking with you through the highs and lows of life? If Jesus cares for each brush stroke of His word, how much more does He care for you—the one who is made in His image?

In the first syllable of His love letter, the Lord was already fashioning a house for you to dwell with Him forever. Do you really think He would let anything happen to you to keep you from coming home? This has been His work from the beginning. From even before the beginning. This has been His plan from the silent aleph that holds the eternity before He makes a home for you and for me.

How has God made a home for you?