‘Tsabat’ in English means ‘reached’. But, the special thing about this word is that it is only found one time in the Ancient Scriptures. Is there any significance about it?
Why tsabat is special?
According to the Rock Island Books, there are almost four hundred Hebrew words that appeared only once in the Bible. And there are even fewer that do not share even a root with other words; tsabat is one of them.
‘Tsabat’ is only found in Ruth 2:14, “And Boaz said unto her, At mealtime come thou hither, and eat of the bread, and dip thy morsel in the vinegar. And she sat beside the reapers: and he reached her parched corn, and she did eat, and was sufficed, and left.”
The word ‘reached’ in its original translation is ‘tsabat’. As we look at the letters used in tsabat, we will discover the beauty behind this word.
Tsabat is spelled as tsade, beyt, and tet. Tsade has the picture meaning of to catch, strong desire or need, and righteous and just. Beyt is the picture of a tent and means house or dwelling place or the physical body. It is the first letter in the Torah that represented the Son of God. While tet has a picture meaning of surround, trap, or entwined in the good or bad way.
Understanding the given verse, Boaz reached out to Ruth with the desire to bring her into his house and surround her with his protection.
The mystery behind
Moreover, there is a mystery behind tsabat. Since tsade means just or righteous, and beyt identifies the Son of God, we can see that the Son of God wants to reach out to people and entwine them in a good way.
Boaz is a kinsman-redeemer. He examples the Messiah who is the Redeemer of people. So, when Boaz reached out to Ruth, a Moabitess woman, he pictures Yeshua, our Messiah, who offers Himself for all people.
That is why it is a very special and rarest word because it demonstrates something unique and powerful. The Messiah tsabat; He reaches out to His children with a strong desire to surround us with His love and back into His family.
Reference: Living Word