Journey into Silence ─ Transformation Through Contemplation, Wonder, and Worship

Just You and the Lord, 24/7:
Most Christians have experienced various times of silence before God. We call it “getting ourselves in the mood for worship,” “moments of meditation,” or “having our morning quiet time.” We might even have “soaked” in God’s presence for an extended period. These are spiritually-enriching experiences, but is there a deeper value in silence than we have realized? What would it be like to spend extended time in an environment where you focused solely on God and His Word—just you and the Lord, 24/7, uninterrupted, with no other obligations and nothing to distract you from His loving presence? In Journey into Silence, drawn from his own real-time journal entries, Chaim Bentorah reveals the spiritual blessings of being alone with God as he describes his experiences in three different retreats of silence, each of which lasted a full week. Wrapped in an ever-deepening closeness with the Lord, the layers of his heart were peeled away, bringing healing and filling him with compassion for a world that needs to know the love of Jesus. With his years of research into Jewish literature and study of ancient languages, including Hebrew, Chaim Bentorah was able to dig deep into the very core of key words from Scripture passages that God called to his attention during his times of living in silence. These reflections on the deeper meanings of Hebrew words open the depths of God’s Word—drawing us, too, into an intimate relationship with God, and refreshing and challenging us in our spiritual walk. Journey into Silence demonstrates how our lives can be transformed as we enter into times of contemplation, wonder, and worship—and then return to daily life, carrying the compassionate heart of God to the hurting world around us.

Chaim Bentorah has a bachelor of arts degree in Jewish Studies from Moody Bible Institute, a master’s degree in Old Testament and Hebrew from Denver Seminary, and a doctorate in Biblical Archaeology. He studied advanced Hebrew under Dr. Earl S. Kalland, who was on the executive committee for the translation work of the New International Version of the Bible. Bentorah taught classical Hebrew and Old Testament for thirteen years at World Harvest Bible College, a division of LeSea, Inc. He presently teaches Hebrew, Aramaic, and Greek to lay Christian leaders and pastors in the metro Chicago area and writes daily word studies on his blog at www.chaimbentorah.com. He speaks to church and parachurch groups about the nature and means of studying the Old Testament in the original Hebrew. His books combine a devotional emphasis with scriptural studies into the deeper meanings of Hebrew words. Chaim Bentorah's first book with Whitaker House was Hebrew Word Study: Revealing the Heart of God (2016).