I Chronicles 29:25 Jewish Thought: Guide for the Perplexed

These two words, ‘alah, “he went up,” and yarad, “he went down,” are Hebrew terms used in the sense of ascending and descending. When a body moves from a higher to a lower place, the verb yarad, “to go down,” is used; when it moves from a lower to a higher place, ‘alah, “to go up,” is applied. These two verbs were afterwards employed with regard to greatness and power. When a man falls from his high position, we say “he has come down,” and when he rises in station “he has gone up.” Thus the Almighty says, “The stranger that is within thee shall get up above thee very high, and thou shalt come down very low” (Deut. 28:43). Again, “The Lord thy God will set thee on high (‘elyon) above all nations of the earth” (Deut. 28:1): “And the Lord magnified Solomon exceedingly” (lema‘alah) (1 Chron. 29:25). The Sages often employ these expressions, as: “In holy matters men must ascend (ma‘alin) and not descend (moridin).”