Resh — The Paleo-Hebrew Letter of “Head / Highest One / First”

What Resh means

Resh (ר) is the twentieth letter of the Hebrew alphabet and carries the numeric value 200. In Paleo-Hebrew — the most ancient form of the script, used in the days of Moses and David — it was not an abstract character but a picture: the head of a man. From that image comes its core meaning of Head / Highest One / First.

Because every Paleo-Hebrew letter began as a drawing, Resh speaks before it is ever pronounced. It is the head — the highest part, the chief, the beginning, the one in front. It opens the word rosh (“head, first”) and Bereshit, the very first word of the Bible: “in the beginning.” The head of the word, and the Head of all things.

Resh and the story of the Cross

The whole premise of The House of the Highest One God is that the redemptive plan of God is written into the very shapes of these letters — from the first word of Genesis to the final page of Revelation. Resh, meaning “Head / Highest One / First,” names the One this whole house is built around: the Highest One, the First and the Beginning. Follow all twenty-two letters and the picture that emerges is the Cross itself.