The Meaning of "Tamid"... the "Daily"

CONTINUALLY ("DAILY")

Source: Vines Compete Expository Dictionary

Daniel 8:11 "himself even to the prince of the host,  and by him the daily sacrifice was taken away, and the place ...

Daniel 8:12 "And an host was given him  against the daily sacrifice by reason of transgression, and it ...

Daniel 8:13  "How long shall be the vision concerning  the daily sacrifice, and the transgression of desolation, to ...

Daniel 11:31 "the sanctuary of strength, and shall take away  the daily sacrifice, and they shall place the abomination ...

Daniel 12:11 "shall understand. And from the time that  the daily sacrifice shall be taken away, and the ...

A. Adverb.

tamid (תָּמִיד, 8548), “always; continually: regularly.” This word comes from a root that means “to measure.” The root is found in Assyrian, Aramaic, Arabic, and Phoenician. Tamid occurs 100 times in all parts of the Old Testament. It signifies what is to be done regularly or continuously without interruption.

Tamid is first used in Exod. 25:30: “And thou shalt set upon the table showbread before me always” (kjv; nasb, “at all times”). Sometimes the continuity is explained by what follows, as in Isa. 21:8: “… My lord, I stand continually upon the watchtower in the daytime, and I am set in my ward whole nights.”

Because of his covenant with Jonathan, David said to Mephibosheth: “… And you shall eat at my table regularly” (2 Sam. 9:7; cf. 2 Sam. 9:10, nasb; kjv, “continually”; rsv, “always”).

Tamid occurs most frequently of the daily rituals in the tabernacle and temple: “Now this is that which thou shalt offer upon the altar; two lambs of the first year day by day continually” (Exod. 29:38). The variety in the English versions indicates that both ideas—regularity and continuousness—are present in the Hebrew word. In this passage, tamid indicates that these rituals were to be performed regularly and without interruption for the duration of the old covenant.

The word is also used of God. It describes His visible presence at the tabernacle: “So it was always: the cloud covered it by day, and the appearance of fire by night” (Num. 9:16). It describes His care for His people: “… let thy loving-kindness and thy truth continually preserve me” (Ps. 40:11); “And the Lord shall guide thee continually …” (Isa. 58:11).

Tamid is also used of Jerusalem: “… thy walls are continually before me” (Isa. 49:16). The word describes man’s response to God: “I have set the Lord always before me” (Ps. 16:8); “… his praise shall continually be in my mouth” (Ps. 34:1); “So I shall keep thy law continually, for ever and ever” (Ps. 119:44). In contrast, Israel is “a people that provoketh me to anger continually to my face” (Isa. 65:3). Finally, it is said of Zion eschatologically: “Therefore thy gates shall be open continually; they shall not be shut day nor night” (Isa. 60:11).

B. Adjective.

tamid (תָּמִיד, 8548), “continual.” In Exod. 30:7-8, Aaron is commanded to burn incense morning and evening when he trims the lamps. He is told to offer “… a perpetual incense before the Lord throughout your generations” (kjv). The same Hebrew expression is used often of priestly functions (cf. Num. 28:6; Ezek. 46:15).

CONTINUITY

A. Noun.

tamid (תָּמִיד, 8548), “continuity.” Tamid is often used as a noun. In Num. 4:7, the word is used with “bread,” literally meaning “the bread of continuity” (nasb, “the continual bread”) or the bread that is “always there.” In other groups of passages, the word emphasizes “regular repetition”: for example, Exod. 29:42 mentions, literally, “the burnt offering of continuity” (nasb, “continual burnt offering”), or the offering made every morning and evening. The “daily sacrifice” of Dan. 8:11 is also this continual burnt offering.

The nonreligious usage indicates that tamid describes “continuity in time,” in the sense of a routine or habit. Tamid may also have the connotation of a routine that comes to an end when the job is completed: “And they shall sever out men of continual employment, passing through the land to bury with the passengers those that remain upon the face of the earth, to cleanse it: after the end of seven months shall they search” (Ezek. 39:14).

B. Adverb.

tamid (תָּמִיד, 8548), “continually; at all times; ever.” A cognate of this word appears in Arabic. Biblical Hebrew attests it in all periods.

The word is used as an adverb meaning “continually.” In its first occurrence, tamid represents “uninterrupted action”: “And thou shalt set upon the table showbread before me always” (Exod. 25:30). In Jer. 6:7, we read: “… Before me continually is grief and wounds.” In many passages, tamid bears the nuance of “regular repetition”: “Now this is that which thou shalt offer upon the altar; two lambs of the first year day by day continually. The one lamb thou shalt offer in the morning; and the other lamb thou shalt offer at even …” (Exod. 29:38-39).

In poetic usage, tamid is found in the context of a fervent religious expression: “Mine eyes are ever toward the Lord; for he shall pluck my feet out of the net” (Ps. 25:15). It may express a firm belief in God’s faithfulness: “Withhold not thou thy tender mercies from me, O Lord: let thy loving-kindness and thy truth continually preserve me” (Ps. 40:11).