Hand

VIEW:47 DATA:01-04-2020

HAND is EV [Note: English Version.] tr. [Note: translate or translation.] of Heb. yâd, ‘the open hand,’ kaph, ‘the closed hand,’ and Gr. cheir, ‘hand.’ Sometimes it is idiomatic, e.g. ‘at hand’ (Isa_13:6 etc., Heb. qârôb, Mat_26:18 etc., Gr. engys, lit. ‘near’). In determining the directions in the Orient, the face is turned to the east, not to the north as with us. So it comes that yâmîn, ‘right hand,’ and semô’l, ‘left hand,’ like the Arab. [Note: Arabic.] yamîn and shimâl, denote respectively ‘south’ and ‘north.’
In prayer the hands were stretched up (Exo_17:11, 1Ki_8:22, Psa_28:2 etc.). To lift the hand to God signified a vow (Gen_14:22). To put the hand under the thigh of one to whom a vow was made, constituted a binding form of oath (Gen_24:2; Gen_47:29). Blessing was conveyed by laying hands upon the head (Gen_48:14). Out of this probably grew the practice in ordination—see Laying on of Hands. To ‘fill the hand’ (Exo_28:41 etc.) was to set apart to the priesthood. Sin was supposed to be conveyed to the head of the victim for sacrifice (Exo_29:10 etc.), especially to that of the scapegoat (Lev_16:21 etc.), by laying on of the priests’ hands. Washing the hands was a declaration of innocence (Deu_21:6, Psa_26:6, Mat_27:24 etc.). Clean hands were a symbol of a righteous life (Job_22:30, Psa_18:20; Psa_24:4 etc.). To smite the hands together was a sign of anger (Num_24:10). To pour water on another’s hands was to be his servant (2Ki_3:11). To join hand in hand was to conspire together (Pro_11:21 etc.). To strike hands sealed a compact (Pro_6:1 etc.). Folded hands he token slumber (Pro_24:33). Left-handedness seems to have been common among the Benjamites (Jdg_20:16), and once it was of signal service (Jdg_3:15; Jdg_3:21).
‘The hand of the Lord,’ and ‘a mighty hand’ (Deu_2:15; Deu_4:34 etc.), stand for the resistless power of God. ‘The hand of the Lord upon’ the prophet signifies the Divine inspiration (Eze_8:1; Eze_37:1 etc.). ‘The good hand of the Lord’ (Ezr_7:6 etc.), ‘my hand’ and ‘my Father’s hand’ (Joh_10:28-29), denote the providential, preserving care of God.
It appears that certain marks or cuttings in the hand were evidence of what deity one served (Isa_44:5 RVm [Note: Revised Version margin.] , cf. Gal_6:17). The mark of the beast ‘upon their hand’ (Rev_20:4) is probably an allusion to this custom. See Cuttings in the Flesh, and Marks.
In court the accuser stands on the right hand (Psa_109:6, Zec_3:1). The left hand bears the shield, leaving the right side exposed in battle. The protector, therefore, stands on the right hand (Psa_109:31 etc.). Perhaps on this account honour attaches to the right hand, the place given to the most favoured guest. The seat of the Redeemer’s glory is at the right hand of God (Psa_110:1, Luk_22:69, Rom_8:34 etc.).
Thrice (1Sa_15:12, 2Sa_18:18, Isa_56:5) yâd clearly means ‘monument’ or ‘memorial,’ probably a stone block or pillar; a hand may have been carved upon it, but this is uncertain.
W. Ewing.
Hastings' Dictionary of the Bible
Edited by James Hastings, D.D. Published in 1909

Symbol of skill, energy, and action. "Strength of hand." Also control. To "kiss the hand" expresses adoration (Job_31:27). "Fill one's hand" is consecrating him a priest (Exo_28:41 margin, Jdg_17:5; 1Ki_13:33). To "lift up the hand" is to swear (Gen_14:22), the hand being raised in appeal to God above; also the attitude of benediction (Lev_9:22). To "give the hand" assures of faithfulness and friendship (2Ki_10:15); also submission, "she hath given her hand," i.e. surrendered to her conqueror (Jer_50:15; Lam_5:6). The hand of God is His eternal purpose and executive power (Act_4:28; Act_4:30); His providential bounty (Psa_104:28); His firm hold preserving His saints (Joh_10:28-29; Deu_33:8). His "heavy hand," affliction (Psa_38:2).
God's "right hand" denotes His omnipotence. "The right hand," being more proficient than the left hand, is the place of honour (Psa_110:1; Mat_25:33), "the left" is the place of dishonour (Mat_26:64). The Hebrew in reckoning the four quarters faced the E. So "in front" or "before them" was E.; "at the back," or "behind," W.; "the right hand," S.; "the left hand," N. The accuser in a trial stood "at the right hand" of the accused, so Satan at Joshua's right hand (Zec_3:1; Psa_109:6); but the Advocate Messiah also is at the believer's "right hand," to defend his cause effectively (Psa_16:8; Psa_109:31); therefore Paul could say (Rom_8:31; Rom_8:33-34), "If God be for us, who can be against us? Who shall lay anything to the charge of God's elect? It is God that justifieth. Who is he that condemneth?
It is Christ that died, yea rather, that is risen again, who is even at the right hand of God, who also maketh intercession for us." "The hand of the Lord on" the prophets is the Holy Spirit's extraordinary and powerful impulse, His felt impression inspiring them (1Ki_18:46; 2Ki_3:15; Ezr_1:3; Ezr_3:14). His "good hand upon" His people means His gracious help (Neh_2:8; Luk_1:66). "Laying on of hands" was usual in blessing; as the Lord Jesus blessing the infants (Mar_10:16), Jacob blessing Ephraim and Manasseh (Gen_48:14); also in laying guilt and punishment upon persons accused (Deu_13:9; Deu_17:7); also in constituting magistrates, as Moses did in appointing Joshua his successor (Num_27:18); also setting apart the Levites (Num_8:10).
Also the offerer put his hand upon the head of his burnt offering (Lev_1:4), thereby identifying himself with it, and making it his representative to bear typically the death which his sin deserved. Also in ordaining ministers (Act_6:6; Act_13:3; 1Ti_4:14; 2Ti_1:6). The impartation of the Spirit was connected with the symbolical laying on of hands; "Joshua was full of the spirit of wisdom, FOR Moses had laid his hands upon him" (Deu_34:9). The "gift" in Timothy was "BY (did,) the putting on of Paul's hands" as the chief instrument (2Ti_1:6), but "WITH (meta) the laying on of the hands of the presbytery," implying accompaniment rather than direct instrumentality.
Compare Act_8:17; Act_9:17; Act_19:1-6; the apostles and others specially appointed by God had powers of miraculously conferring spiritual gifts and qualifications, such as have not been transmitted; so in confirming those already baptized. Bishops in confirming and ordaining now can only pray for the gift of the Holy Spirit to be bestowed on the candidates, not give it.
Fausset's Bible Dictionary
By Andrew Robert Fausset, co-Author of Jamieson, Fausset and Brown's 1888.

sometimes denotes the vengeance of God: “The hand of the Lord was heavy upon them of Ashdod,” after they had taken the ark, 1Sa_5:6-7. To pour water on any one's hands, signifies to serve him, 2Ki_3:11. To wash one's hands, denotes innocence: Pilate washed his hands to denote his being innocent of the blood of Jesus, Mat_27:24. To kiss one's hand, is an act of adoration, 1Ki_19:18. “If I
beheld the sun when it shined, and my mouth hath kissed my hand,” Job_31:27. To fill one's hands, is to take possession of the priesthood, to perform the functions of that office; because in this ceremony, those parts of the victim which were to be offered, were put into the hand of the newly created priest, Jdg_17:5; Jdg_17:12; 1Ki_13:33. To lean upon any one's hand, in a mark of familiarity and superiority. The king of Israel had a confidant on whom he thus leaned, 2Ki_7:17. The king of Syria leaned on the hand or arm of Naaman when he went up to the temple of Rimmon, 2Ki_5:18. To lift up one's hand, is a way of taking an oath which has been in use among all nations. To give one's hand, signifies to grant peace, to swear friendship, to promise entire security, to make alliance, 2Ki_10:15. The Jews say, they were obliged to give the hand to the Egyptians and Assyrians, that they might procure bread, 2Ma_13:22; that is, to surrender to them, to submit. To stretch out one's hand, signifies to chastise, to exercise severity or justice, Eze_25:7. God delivered his people with a high hand, and arm stretched out; by performing many wonders, and inflicting many chastisements, on the Egyptians. To stretch out one's hand, sometimes denotes mercy: “I have spread out my hands,” entreated, “all the day unto a rebellious people,”
Isa_65:2. Hand is also frequently taken for the power and impression of the Holy Spirit felt by a prophet: “The hand of the Lord was on Elijah,”
1Ki_18:46. It is said that God gave his law by the hand of Moses, that he spoke by the hand of prophets, &c; that is, by their means, by them, &c. The right hand denotes power, strength. The Scripture generally imputes to God's right hand all the effects of his omnipotence: “Thy right hand, O Lord, hath dashed in pieces the enemy,” Exo_15:6. The Son of God is often represented as sitting at the right hand of his heavenly Father: “The Lord said to my Lord, Sit thou at my right hand,” Psa_110:1; thou hast done thy work upon earth, now take possession of that sovereign kingdom and glory which by right belongeth unto thee; do thou rule with authority and honour, as thou art Mediator. The right hand commonly denotes the south, as the left does the north; for the Hebrews speak of the quarters of the world, in respect of themselves, having their faces turned to the east, their backs to the west, their right hands to the south, and their left to the north. For example: “Doth not David hide himself with us in strong holds, in the woods, in the hill of Hachilah, which is on the south of Jeshimon?” in Hebrew, “on the right hand of Jeshimon.” The accuser was commonly at the right hand of the accused: “Let Satan stand at his right hand,” Psa_109:6. And in Zec_3:1, Satan was at the right hand of the high priest Joshua, to accuse him. Often, in a contrary sense, to be at one's right hand signifies to defend, to protect, to support him: “I have set the Lord always before me; because he is at my right hand, I shall not be moved,” Psa_16:8. To turn from the law of God, neither to the right hand nor to the left, is a frequent Scripture expression, the meaning of which is, that we must not depart from it at all. Our Saviour, in Mat_6:3, to show with what privacy we should do good works, says that our left hand should not know what our right hand does. Above all things, we should avoid vanity and ostentation in all the good we undertake to do, and should not think that thereby we merit any thing. Laying on hands, or imposition of hands, is understood in different ways both in the Old and New Testament. It is often taken for ordination and consecration of priests and ministers, as well among the Jews as Christians, Num_8:10; Act_6:6; Act_13:3; 1Ti_4:14. It is sometimes also made use of to signify the establishment of judges and magistrates, on whom it was usual to lay hands when they were entrusted with these employments. Thus when Moses constituted Joshua his successor, God appointed him to lay his hands upon him, Num_27:18. Jacob laid his hands on Ephraim and Manasseh, when he gave them his last blessing, Gen_48:14. The high priest stretched out his hands to the people, as often as he recited the solemn form of blessing, Lev_9:22. The Israelites, who presented sin offerings at the tabernacle, confessed their sins while they laid their hands upon them, Lev_1:4. This testified that the person acknowledged himself worthy of death, that he laid his sins upon the sacrifice, that he trusted in Christ for the expiation of his sins, and that he devoted himself to God. Witnesses laid their hands upon the head of the accused person, as it were to signify that they charged upon him the guilt of his blood, and freed themselves from it, Deu_13:9; Deu_17:7. Our Saviour laid his hands upon the children that were presented to him, and blessed them, Mar_10:16. And the Holy Ghost was conferred on those who were baptized by the laying on of the hands of the Apostles, Act_8:17; Act_19:6.
Biblical and Theological Dictionary by Richard Watson
PRINTER 1849.

(יד, yādh, ?hand?; כּף, kaph, ?the hollow hand,? ?palm?; ימין, yāmı̄n, ?the right hand?; שׂמאל, semō'l, ?the left hand?; χείρ, cheı́r, ?hand?; δεξιά, dexiá, ?the right hand?; ἀριστερά, aristerá, ?the left hand? (only Luk_23:33; 2Co_6:7), or euphemistically (for evil omens come from the left hand; compare Latin sinister, German linkisch, etc.); εὐώνυμος, euō̇numos, literally, ?having a good name?): The Hebrew words are used in a large variety of idiomatic expressions, part of which have passed into the Greek (through the Sepuagint) and into modern European languages (through the translations of the Bible; see Oxford Hebrew Lexicon, under the word ?yādh?). We group what has to be said about the word under the following heads:
1. The Human Hand: Various Uses
The human hand (considered physically) and, anthropopathically, the hand of God (Gen_3:22; Psa_145:16): The hand included the wrist, as will be seen from all passages in which bracelets are mentioned as ornaments of the hand, e.g. Gen_24:22, Gen_24:30, Gen_24:47; Eze_16:11; Eze_23:42, or where the Bible speaks of fetters on the hands (Jdg_15:14, etc.). On the other hand, it cannot seem strange that occasionally the expression ?hand? may be used for a part, e.g. the fingers, as in Gen_41:42, etc.. According to the lex talionis, justice demanded ?hand for hand? (Exo_21:24; Deu_19:21). We enumerate the following phrases without claiming to present a complete list: ?To fill the hand? (Exo_32:29 m; 1Ch_29:5 margin) means to consecrate, evidently from the filling of hands with sacrificial portions for the altar. Compare also Lev_7:37; Lev_8:22, Lev_8:28, Lev_8:29, Lev_8:31, Lev_8:33, where the sacrifice, the ram, the basket of consecration are mentioned. ?To put or set the hand unto? (Deu_15:10; Deu_23:20; Deu_28:8, Deu_28:20), to commence to do; ?to put forth the hand? (Gen_3:22; Gen_8:9); ?to stretch out the hand? (Eze_25:13, Eze_25:16; Zep_2:13); ?to shake or wag the hand upon? (Isa_10:32; Zep_2:15; Zec_2:9), to defy. ?To lay the hand upon the head? (2Sa_13:19) is an expression of sadness and mourning, as we see from Egyptian representations of scenes of mourning. Both in joy and in anger hands are ?smitten together? (Num_24:10), and people ?clap their hands? at a person or over a person in spiteful triumph (Job_27:23; Lam_2:15; Nah_3:19). ?To put one's life into one's hand? is to risk one's life (1Sa_19:5; 1Sa_28:21). ?To lay hands upon? is used in the sense of blessing (Mat_19:13), or is symbolical in the act of miraculous healing (Mat_9:18; Mar_8:23; Act_28:8), or an emblem of the gift of the Holy Spirit and His endowments (Act_8:17-19; Act_13:3; 1Ti_4:14; 2Ti_1:6); but it also designates the infliction of cruelty and punishment (Gen_37:22; Lev_24:14), the imposition of responsibility (Num_8:10; Deu_34:9). Thus also the sins of the people were symbolically transferred upon the goat which was to be sent into the wilderness (Lev_16:21). This act, rabbinical writings declare, was not so much a laying on of hands, as a vigorous pressing. ?Lifting up the hand? was a gesture accompanying an oath (Deu_32:40) or a blessing pronounced over a multitude (Lev_9:22; Luk_24:50), a prayer (Psa_119:48). ?To put the hands to the mouth? is indicative of (compulsory) silence (Job_21:5; Job_40:4; Pro_30:32; Mic_7:16). To ?slack one's hand? is synonymous with negligence and neglect (Jos_10:6), and ?to hide or bury the hand in the dish? is descriptive of the slothful, who is tired even at meals (Pro_19:24; Pro_26:15).
2. The Hand as Power
The hand in the sense of power and authority: (compare Assyrian ı̂du, ?strength?); Jos_8:20 margin, ?They had no hands (the Revised Version (British and American) ?power?) to flee this way or that way?; Jdg_1:35, ?The hand of the house of Joseph prevailed?; Psa_76:5, ?None of the men of might have found their hands?; Psa_89:48 margin, ?shall deliver his soul from the hand (the Revised Version (British and American) ?power?) of Sheol?; 2Ki_3:15, ?The hand of Yahweh came upon him?; Exo_14:31 margin, ?Israel saw the great hand (the Revised Version (British and American) ?work?) which Yahweh did upon the Egyptians?; Deu_34:12, ?in all the mighty hand ... which Moses wrought in the sight of all Israel.?
3. The Hand for the Person
The hand used (pars pro toto) for the person: ?His hand shall be against every man? (Gen_16:12). ?Slay the priests of Yahweh; because their hand also is with David? (1Sa_22:17). ?Jonathan went to David into the wood and strengthened his hand in God? (1Sa_23:16). In this sense penalty is exacted ?from the hand? or ?at the hand? of the transgressor (Gen_9:5; Eze_33:8).
4. Hand, Meaning Side
The hand in the sense of side: ?All the side (Hebrew ?hand?) of the river Jabbok? (Deu_2:37); ?by the wayside? (Hebrew ?by the hand of the way,? 1Sa_4:13). The manuscripts have here the error יך, yakh, for יד, yādh; compare the Hebrew of Psa_140:5 (6) (ליד־מעגּל, leyādh ma‛gāl); ?On the side (Hebrew ?hand?) of their oppressors there was power? (Ecc_4:1); ?I was by the side (Hebrew ?hand?) of the great river? (Dan_10:4).
5. English Idiom
Mention must also be made here of the English idiom, ?at hand,? frequently found in our versions of the Scriptures. In Hebrew and Greek there is no reference to the word ?hand,? but words designating nearness of time or place are used. The usual word in Hebrew is קרב, ḳārabh, ?to be near,? and קרוב, ḳārōbh, ?near?; in Greek ἐγγύς, eggús, ?near,? and the verb ἐγγίζω, eggı́zō, ?to come near.? Rarely other words are used, as ἐνέστηκεν, enéstē̄ken, ?has come,? the English Revised Version ?is now present? (2Th_2:2), and ἐφεστηκεν, ephéstēken, ?is come? (2Ti_4:6).
Frequently the words refer to the ?day? or ?coming of the Lord?; still it must not be forgotten that it may often refer to the nearness of God in a local sense, as in Jer_23:23, ?Am I a God at hand, saith Yahweh, and not a God afar off?? and probably in Phi_4:5, ?The Lord is at hand,? though many, perhaps most, commentators regard the expression as a version of the Aramaic marán athá (1Co_16:22). Passages such as Psa_31:20; Psa_119:151; Mat_28:20 would, however, speak for an interpretation which lays the ictus on the abiding presence of the Lord with the believer.
NOTE. - The ancients made a careful distinction of the respective values of the two hands. This is perhaps best seen from Gen_48:13-19, where the imposition of the hands of aged Israel upon the heads of Joseph's sons seems unfair to their father, because the left hand is being placed upon the elder, the right hand upon the younger son. The very word euōnumos proves the same from the Greek point of view. This word is a euphemistic synonym of aristera, and is used to avoid the unlucky omen the common word may have for the person spoken to. Thus the goats, i.e. the godless, are placed at the left hand of the great Judge, while the righteous appear at His right (Mat_25:33). We read in Ecc_10:2, ?A wise man's heart is at his right hand; but a fool's heart at his left,? i.e. is inclined to evil. As the Jews orientated themselves by looking toward the rising of the sun (Latin oriens, the east), the left hand represented the north, and the right hand the south (1Sa_23:19, 1Sa_23:24; 2Sa_24:5). The right hand was considered the more honorable (1Ki_2:19; Psa_45:9); therefore it was given in attestation of a contract, a federation or fellowship (Gal_2:9). It is the more valuable in battle; a friend or protector will therefore take his place at the right to guard it (Psa_16:8; Psa_73:23; Psa_109:31; Psa_110:5; Psa_121:5), but the enemy will, for the same reason, try to assail it (Job_30:12; Psa_109:6; Zec_3:1). It was also the unprotected side, because the shield was carried on the left arm: hence, the point of danger and honor. The right hand is also the side of power and strength (Psa_60:5; Psa_63:8; Psa_108:6; Psa_118:15, Psa_118:16; Psa_110:1; Mat_22:44; Mat_20:21, Mat_20:23). Both hands are mentioned together in the sense of close proximity, intimate association, in Mar_10:37.

International Standard Bible Encyclopedia
PRINTER 1915.

Hand, the organ of feeling, rightly denominated by Galen the instrument of instruments, since by its position at the end of the forearm, its structure and its connection with the mind, the hand admirably executes the behests of the human will, and acquires and imparts to man incomparable skill and power. By the peculiarities of its conformation?the inclination of the thumb to the palm, the comparative length of the thumb and of the fingers, 'the hollow of the hand,' and the fleshy protuberances by which that hollow is mainly formed?this member is wonderfully adapted to the purposes for which it was designed, and serves to illustrate the wisdom and providence of the great Creator. The hand itself serves to distinguish man from other terrestrial beings. No other animal has any member comparable with the human hand. Of the two hands the right has a preference derived from natural endowment. Its universal use, as the chief instrument in acting, serves to show that its superiority is something more than an accident. But the preference which it holds is only a part of the general advantage which the right side has over the left, not only in muscular strength, but also in its vital or constitutional properties.
From the properties already described, the student of Scripture is prepared to see the hand employed in holy writ as a symbol of skill, strength, and efficacy. As a part of that general anthropomorphism, without whose aid men in the early ages could probably have formed no conception of God, the Deity is frequently spoken of in the records of revelation as if possessed of hands.
The phrase 'sitting at the right hand of God,' as applied to the Savior of the world, is derived from the fact that with earthly princes a position on the right hand of the throne was accounted the chief place of honor, dignity, and power:?'upon thy right-hand did stand the queen' (Psa_45:9; compare 1Ki_2:19; Psa_80:17). The immediate passage out of which sprang the phraseology employed by Jesus may be found in Psa_110:1 : 'Jehovah said unto my Lord, sit thou at my right hand until I make thine enemies thy footstool.' Accordingly the Savior declares before Caiaphas (Mat_26:64; Mar_14:62), 'Ye shall see the Son of man sitting on the right hand of power, and coming in the clouds of heaven;' where the meaning obviously is that the Jews of that day should have manifest proofs that Jesus held the most eminent place in the divine favor, and that His present humiliation would be succeeded by glory, majesty, and power (Luk_24:26; 1Ti_3:16). So when it is said (Mar_16:19; Rom_8:34; Col_3:1; 1Pe_3:22; Heb_1:3; Heb_8:1) that Jesus 'sits at the right hand of God,' 'at the right hand of the Majesty on high,' we are obviously to understand the assertion to be that, as His Father, so He worketh always (Joh_5:17) for the advancement of the kingdom of heaven, and the salvation of the world.
As the hand is the great instrument of action, so is it eminently fitted for affording aid to the mind, by the signs and indications which it makes. Thus to lay the hand on any one was a means of pointing him out, and consequently an emblem of setting any one apart for a particular office or dignity. Imposition of hands accordingly formed, at an early period, a part of the ceremonial observed on the appointment and consecration of persons to high and holy undertakings (see Num_27:19; Act_8:15-17; 1Ti_4:14; 2Ti_1:6). A corruption of this doctrine was, that the laying on of hands gave of itself divine powers; and on this account Simon, the magician (Act_8:18) offered money, saying, 'Give me also this power, that on whomsoever I lay hands he may receive the Holy Ghost,' intending probably to carry on a gainful trade by communicating the gift to others.
The Popular Cyclopedia of Biblical Literature
by John Kitto.

The word "hand" occurs about 1046 times in the Bible. It is used in approximately 20 different ways as types of various attitudes and actions. The Scriptures are too numerous for us to list them all, but we will seek to arrange them in groups in a way that will be helpful and profitable to the reader. The arrangement will not be an alphabetical one, but will rather be placed as the thoughts are found in the Scriptures. A typical Scripture reference will be used in each case.

The hand represents human power. Gen_9:2; Gen_39:6.
The hand represents divine power. Exo_6:1; Exo_13:3.
The hand represents conquering power. Exo_14:8; Num_33:3.
The hand represents a position of service. 2Ki_3:11.
The hand when washed represents innocency. Deu_21:6; Mat_27:24.
The hand when kissed represents loving affection, or deceitfulness or hypocrisy. Job_31:27.
The hand when it is the right hand sometimes represents honor and favor. Psa_110:1; Rom_8:34.
The hand when it is the right hand may indicate security and peace. Psa_16:8; Psa_109:31.
The hand when it is given is a sign of friendship, confidence and trust. 2Ki_10:15.
The hand when it is lifted up may represent an act of supplication to GOD, and of dependence on GOD. Exo_17:12; 1Ti_2:8.
The hand when Laid on, indicates the imparting of spiritual gifts on the part of a leader of GOD's people to one who is less able and less prominent. Act_6:6; 1Ti_4:14. This seems to have been done only by Apostles and those in authority.
The hand when stretched out indicates that mercy is extended and offered. Pro_1:24; Rom_10:21.
The hand when leaned upon is a type of confidence and familiarity. 2Ki_7:2; 2Ki_5:18.
The hand when it is GOD's hand may signify divine power. Act_4:28; probably the Holy Spirit, Act_8:18; divine retribution Jdg_2:15; sovereign disposition Psa_31:15; divine sufficiency Psa_104:28; Psa_145:16.
The hand when it is man's hand may represent evil power; Exo_18:9; personal possessions 1Ki_11:31; counselor agreement 2Sa_14:19; personal sufficiency Pro_3:27.

Isa_49:16 (a) This shows the wonderful love and the constant care of GOD for those who have trusted their lives and their souls to Him. His wounded hands are ever before Him to remind Him of the children of GOD whom He has saved. The work which He does is always connected with His people. The engraving on those hands was done by the nails at Calvary.

Isa_59:1 (a) This is a picture of the blessed, far-reaching power of GOD to save both the soul and the life of everyone who believes GOD.

Isa_65:2 (a) Here is a figure of GOD's constant call to His enemies to come unto Him for salvation and restoration.

Heb_10:31 (a) This figure reveals the terrible sufferings of that one who fails to kneel as a suppliant for mercy at the feet of the Lord JESUS. The terrible wrath of an angry GOD will fall upon him in judgment.
Wilson's Dictionary of Bible Types
press 1957.

Hand
(יָד,yd, the open palm; כִּ, kaph, the hollow of the partly-closed hand; Greek χείρ; יָמַין, yanin', the right hand, δεξιά; שְׂמוֹל, semel', the left hand, ἀριστερά, εὐώνυμον), the principal organ of feeling, rightly denominated by Galen the instrument of instruments since this member is wonderfully adapted to the purposes for which it was designed, and serves to illustrate the wisdom and providence of the great Creator (The Hand, its Mechanism and vital Endowments, as evincing Design, by Sir Charles Bell). Considering the multiplex efficacy of the human hand, the control which it has given mail, the conquest over the external world which it has enabled him to achieve, and the pleasing and useful revolutions and improvements which it has brought about, we are not surprised to read the glowing eulogy in which Cicero (De Nat. Deor. 2, 60) has indulged on the subject, nor to find how important is the part which the hand performs in the records of divine revelation. The hand itself serves to distinguish man from other terrestrial beings. Of the two hands, the right has a preference derived from natural endowment. — SEE LEFTHANDED.
Hands are the symbols of human action; pure hands are pure actions; unjust hands are deeds of injustice; hands full of blood, actions stained with cruelty, and the alike (Psa_90:17; Job_9:30; 1Ti_2:8; Isa_1:15). Washing of the hands was the symbol of innocence (Psa_26:6; Psa_73:13). Of this Pilate furnishes an example (Mat_27:24). It was the custom of the Jews to wash their hands before and after meat (see Mar_7:3; Mat_6:2; Luk_11:38). Washing of hands was a symbol of expiation, as might be shown by numerous references; and of sanctification, as appears from several passages (1Co_6:11; Isa_1:16; Psa_24:3-4). SEE WASHING OF HANDS. Paul, in 1Ti_2:8, says, “I will therefore that men pray everywhere, lifting up holy hands,” etc. (see Job_11:13-14). The elevation or extension of the right hand was also the ancient method of voting in popular assemblies, as indicated by the Greek term χειροτονέω (Act_14:23; 2Co_8:19). In Psa_77:2, for “sore,” the margin of our version has “hand;” and the correct sense is, “My hands in the night were spread out, and ceased not.” To smite the hands together over the head was a gesture of despairing grief (2Sa_13:19; Jer_2:37). The expression in Jer_2:37, “Thy hands upon thy head,” may be explained by the act of Tamar in laying her hand on her head as a sign of her degradation and sorrow (2Sa_13:19). The expression “Though hand join in hand” in Pro_11:21, is simply “hand to hand,” and signifies through all ages and generations, ever: “through all generations the wicked shall not go unpunished.”
To the right hand signified to the south, the southern quarter, as the left hand signified the north (Job_23:9; 1Sa_23:19; 2Sa_24:5). The term hand is sometimes used for a monument, a trophy of victory (1Sa_15:12); a sepulchral monument, “Absalom's Place,” literally Absalom's Hand (2Sa_18:18; see Erdmann, Monunentum Absalomi, Helmst. 1740). So in Isa_56:5, “to them will I give a place within my walls — a monument (or portion) and a name” (Gesenius, Thesaur. Heb. p. 568).
To give the right hand was a pledge of fidelity, and was considered as confirming a promise or bargain (2Ki_10:15; Ezr_10:19); spoken of the vanquished giving their hands as a pledge of submission and fidelity to the victors (Eze_17:18; Jeremiah 1, 15; Lam_5:6); so to strike hands as a pledge of suretiship (Pro_17:18; Pro_22:26; 2Ch_30:8, margin). The right hand was lifted up in swearing or taking an oath (Gen_14:22; Deu_32:40; Eze_20:28; Psa_144:11; Isa_62:8); similar is the Arabic oath, “By the right hand of Allah.” (See Taylor's Fragments, No. 278.)
Hand in general is the symbol of power and strength, and the right hand more particularly so. To hold by the right hand is the symbol of protection and favor (Psa_18:35). To stand or be at one's right hand is to aid or assist any one (Psa_16:8; Psa_109:31; Psa_110:5; Psa_121:5); so also “man of thy right hand,” i.e. whom thou sustainest, aidest (Psa_80:17); “my hand is with any one,” i.e. I aid him, am on his side (1Sa_22:17; 2Sa_23:12; 2Ki_23:19); and to take or hold the right hand, i.e. to sustain, to aid (Psa_73:23; Isa_41:13; Isa_45:1). So the right hand of fellowship (Gal_2:9) signifies a communication of the same power and authority. To lean upon the hand of another is a mark of familiarity and superiority (2Ki_5:18; 2Ki_7:17). To give the hand, as to a master, is the token of submission and future obedience. Thus, in 2 Chronicles 30:8, the words in the original, “Give the hand unto the Lord,” signify, Yield yourselves unto the Lord. The like phrase is used in Psa_68:31; Lam_5:6. “Behold, as the eyes of servants look unto the hand of their masters, and as the eyes of a maiden unto the hand of her mistress, so our eyes wait upon the Lord our God”(Psa_123:2), which refers to the watchful readiness of a servant to obey the least sign of command (Kitto's Daily Bible Illust. ad loc.). To kiss the hand is an act of homage (1Ki_19:18; Job_31:27). To pour water on any one's hands signifies to serve him (2Ki_3:11). To “seal up the hand”(Job_37:7) is to place one in charge of any special business, for which he will be held accountable. Marks in the hands or wrists were the tokens of servitude, the heathens being wont to imprint marks upon the hands of servants, and on such as devoted themselves to some false deity. Thus in. Zec_13:6, the man, when challenged for the scars visible on his hands, would deny that they had proceeded from an idolatrous cause, and pretend that they were the effects of the wounds he had given himself for the loss of his friends. The right hand stretched out is the symbol of immediate exertion of power (Exo_15:12); sometimes the exercise of mercy (Isa_65:2; Pro_1:24).
The hand of God is spoken of as the instrument of power, and to it is ascribed that which strictly belongs to God himself (Job_27:11; Psa_31:16; Psa_95:4; Isa_62:3; Pro_21:1; Act_4:28; 1Pe_5:6). So the hand of the Lord being upon or with any one denotes divine aid or favor (Ezr_7:6; Ezr_7:28; Ezr_8:18; Ezr_8:22; Ezr_8:13; Neh_2:8; Isa_1:25; Luk_1:66; Act_11:21); further, the hand of the Lord is upon or against thee, denotes punishment (Exo_9:3; Deu_2:15; Jdg_2:15; 1Sa_7:13; 1Sa_12:15; Eze_13:9; Amo_1:8; Act_13:11). In Job_33:7, “my hand shall not be heavy upon thee,” the original term is אֶכֶ, ekeph; and the passage signifies “my dignity shall not weigh heavy upon thee”(Gesenius, s.v.). The hand of God upon a prophet signifies the immediate operation of his Holy Spirit on the soul or body of the prophet, as in 1Ki_18:46; 2Ki_3:15; Eze_1:3; Eze_3:22; Eze_8:1. As the hand, so also the finger of God denotes his power or Spirit (see Luk_11:20, and comp. Mat_12:28). Thus our Savior cast out devils or daemons by his bare command, whereas the Jews cast them out only by the invocation of the name of God. So in Exo_8:19, the finger of God is a work which none but God could perform. SEE ARM.
The hands of the high priest were laid on the head of the scape-goat when the sins of the people were publicly confessed (Lev_16:21). Witnesses laid their hands oil the head of the accused person, as it were to signify that they charged upon him the guilt of his blood and freed themselves from it (Deu_13:9; Deu_17:7). The Hebrews, when presenting their sin-offerings at the tabernacle, confessed their sins while they laid their hands upon the victim (Lev_1:4). To “fill one's hands,” is to take possession of the priesthood, to perform the functions of that office; because in this ceremony those parts of the victim which were to be offered were put into the hand of the new-made priest (Jdg_17:5; Jdg_17:12; Lev_16:32; 1Ki_13:33). Jacob laid his hands on Ephraim and Manasseh when he gave them his last blessing (Gen_48:14). The high priest stretched out his hands to the people as often as he recited the solemn form of blessing (Lev_9:22). Our Savior laid his hands upon the children that were presented to him and blessed them (Mar_10:16). (See Tiemeroth, De χειροθεσίᾷ, χειρολογιᾷ, Erford. 1754.)
Imposition of hands formed at an early period a part of the ceremonial observed on the appointment and consecration of persons to high and holy undertakings. In Num_27:19, Jehovah is represented as thus speaking to Moses, “Take thee Joshua, the son of Nun, a man in whom is the spirit, and lay thine hand upon him, and set him before Eleazar the priest, and before all the congregation, and give him a charge in their sight,” etc.: where it is obvious that the laying on of hands did neither originate nor communicate divine gifts; for Joshua had “the spirit” before he received imposition of hands; but it was merely an instrumental sign for marking him out individually, and setting him apart; in sight of the congregation, to his arduous work. Similar appears to be the import of the observance in the primitive Church of Christ (Act_8:15-17; 1Ti_4:14; 2Ti_1:6). A corruption of this doctrine was that the laying on of hands gave of itself divine powers, and on this account Simon, the magician (Act_8:18), offered money, saying, “Give me also this power, that on whomsoever I lay hands he may receive the Holy Ghost,” intending probably to carry on a gainful trade by communicating the gift to others. SEE IMPOSITION OF HANDS.
The phrase “sitting at the right hand of God,” as applied to the Savior, is derived from the fact that with earthly princes a position on the right hand of the throne was accounted the chief place of honor, dignity, and power: “upon thy right hand did stand the queen”(Psa_45:9; comp. 1Ki_2:19; Psa_80:17). The immediate passage out of which sprang the phraseology employed by Jesus may be found in Psa_110:1 : “Jehovah said unto my Lord, sit thou at my right hand until I make thine enemies thy footstool.” Accordingly the Savior declares before Caiaphas (Mat_26:64; Mar_14:62), “Ye shall see the Son of man sitting on the right hand of power, and coming in the clouds of heaven;”where the meaning obviously is that the Jews of that day should have manifest proof that Jesus held the most eminent place in the divine favor, and that his present humiliation would be succeeded by glory, majesty, and power (Luk_24:26; 1Ti_3:16). So when it is said (Mar_16:19; Rom_8:34; Col_3:1; 1Pe_3:22; Heb_1:3; Heb_8:1) that Jesus “sits at the right hand of God,” “at the right hand of the Majesty on high,” we are obviously to understand the assertion to be that, as his Father, so he worketh always (Joh_5:17) for the advancement of the kingdom of heaven, and the salvation of the world.
In Col_2:13-14, “the law of commandments contained in ordinances”(Eph_2:15) is designated “the handwriting of ordinances that was against us,” which Jesus blotted out, and took away, nailing it to his cross; phraseology which indicates the abolition, on the part of the Savior, of the Mosaic law (Wolfius, Curce Philolog. in N.T. 3, 16).

CYCLOPEDIA OF BIBLICAL, THEOLOGICAL AND ECCLESIASTICAL
press 1895.

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