The name of the prophet is Shemiah which means "heard by the Lord". The name connotes an obedient man listening to the Lord, praying to the Lord, heard by the Lord (getting his prayers answered), a man in a constant life-stream with the Lord, the source of life.
Shemiah went out and said, "This 'tearing' (act of rebellion) is my doing". It is the Lord's doing, for the Lord said to Solomon that "this" is what was going to happen down the road - a result of Solomon not hearing the Lord but persisting in his own way. 1Ki 11:4,11
So hearing the Lord keeps the family in peace. Disobedience to the Lord breaks the unity.
To help his children keep the family in perfect peace and harmony, the Lord calls out to his children saying, "Hear O Israel, the Lord your God is one: love the Lord with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your strength." Deu 6:4,5 This calling is called "Shemah Calling". Shemah means, "hearing" (or simply talking).
One (1) is the first whole number. In Genesis 1-2 the Lord kept the family in wholesome 'oneness'. From Genesis 3 till Revelation 20 we see the brokenness of the oneness. In last two chapters of the Bible we see the oneness of the family restored.
July 19, 2014, my wife Rebekah had the first birth day in Redding. Her children recognized that she keeps the family in peaceful unity. So on her birthday they came around the eating table, sang "Happy birthday", and said, "Grandma is no. 1".
Question: what is her source of peace? The answer is still the same: "Shemah": she hears the Lord. Every morning she spends good hours reading the Bible, and praying. The Lord hears her, that there is peace in the family. So here is the truth: Grandma is No. 1 (or the best) because the Lord with whom she is in constant live-stream is No. 1, just as it is written: "Hear O Israel, the Lord your God is ONE".
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