Deuteronomy 32:10 says, “He found him [Speaking of Jacob and his descendants] in a desert land, and in the howling waste of a wilderness; He encircled him, He cared for him, He guarded him as the pupil of His eye.”

Psalm 17:8 says, “Keep me as the apple of the eye; hide me in the shadow of Your wings.”

​Zechariah 2:8 says, “For thus says YHVH of hosts, “After  glory He has sent me against the nations which plunder you, for he who touches you, touches the  apple of His eye.”

Let’s explore the function of the “apple of our eye”, the pupil, in order to gain a better understanding of the verses above.  Eyedoctorguide.com had this to say about the pupil. “For most of us, vision – the act of being able to see an object – is the beginning of understanding. That’s why when we understand something we often replace the phrase “I understand” with “I see.” No other sense of perception comes close to eyesight, in terms of affecting our lives, and our ability to perform in the world we live in. Of course, all our senses are continually functioning, but if we don’t hear anything for a few minutes, or don’t smell, taste or feel anything, we are fine. The fact that we are not receiving any sensory input from the relevant organs does not worry us – when there is something to smell, touch or feel, we will know. But, if we are deprived of our vision for even a few minutes, we tend to feel insecure and cut off from the rest of the world.

The eyes are not only one of the most complex organs in our bodies; they are also one of the most expressive. Along with the mouth they are the organs by which the world can tell how we are feeling and what our emotions are. In the case of the eye, most of the emotion is conveyed by the eyelids – they narrow when we concentrate and open wide when we are amazed. The eye itself has only one part that changes in a manner that is visible to others and that is the pupil.

The pupil is the circular opening in the middle of the iris. It opens and closes to control the amount of light that is allowed to enter the eye. This light is then focused on the retina, which is the layer of light sensitive cells at the back of the eye.

The pupil reacts to external light and changes its size accordingly. That is why when we go into bright sunlight we involuntarily squint – we almost close our eyes to limit the sudden excess of light entering. Once the pupils have adjusted to the light by becoming smaller, we no longer need to squint. Similarly when we go into a dark room it takes a few moments for our pupils to open wide so that the eyes can receive the maximum possible light so as to be able to see as much as possible.”

When you look at the external eye, it is the pupil that is at the center or the heart of it.  All of the verses today are confirming that as His people we are to understand that the apple of His eye means that:

1. We are near and dear to Him
2. His commandments are to be near and dear to us
3. His teachings are to be near and dear to us
4. Wisdom and understanding are to be near and dear to us
5. He guards us because we are near and dear to Him
6. He comes against those who come against His people because we are near and dear to Him
7. We are to pray that we remain as the apple of His eye, near and dear to Him, by holding dear what He tells us in the verses above

Have a blessed and shalom filled day!!

Tammy

Courtesy of
River of Life Tabernacle
Tammy McLendon
Great peace have they who love Your law. Psalm 119:165a