Saturday, September 30, 2023

The word קום (qum, pronounced KOOM) is both a Hebrew and Aramaic verb meaning "to stand, arise." The term can also mean "to rise up (against)" a person in combat. An Aramaic example is found in Daniel 3:24: "Then King Nebuchadnezzar was astonished and rose upקם) quickly." A Hebrew example can be found in Genesis 4:8: "And when they were in the field, Cain rose upקם) against his brother Abel, and killed him." This verb also makes an appearance in the New Testament, when in Mark 5:41, Jesus, speaking his native Aramaic, resurrects a little girl: "He took her by the hand and said to her, 'Talitha koum' (Greek: κουμ, a Hellenized transliteration of the Aramaic קום), which means, 'Little girl, get up'!"