What is "selah"

Selah \Se"lah\, n. [Heb. sel[=a]h.] (Script.) A word of doubtful meaning, occuring frequently in the Psalms; by some, supposed to signify silence or a pause in the musical performance of the song.

Beyond the fact that Selah is a musical term, we know absolutely nothing about it.
--Dr. W. Smith (Bib. Dict.)

1520s, Hebrew word occurring frequently at the end of verse in Psalter. Supposed to be a liturgical direction, perhaps meaning "pause," or perhaps a musical direction to raise the voice (compare Hebrew base s-l-l "to raise, lift").

interj. (non-gloss definition: A word occurring between verses or paragraphs in parts of the Hebrew Bible, often in the Psalms, perhaps indicating a pause for contemplation.)

Selah is a contemporary Christian vocal trio consisting of Todd Smith, Allan Hall, and Amy Perry. They have won seven Gospel Music Association Dove Awards and sold more than 4 million album and single units combined. The group has been featured on The 700 Club, The Hour of Power, and TBN.

Selah is a Hebrew word meaning "pause, reflection", within the context of a prayer or psalms.

Selah may also refer to:

• Selah, Washington, a town in Washington State, U.S.

Selah: Music for the Quiet Time (often known simply as Selah) is an album by Vic Mignogna. It is a collection of piano tracks and a tribute to God.

Category:Vic Mignogna albums

Selah ( or with pronounced audible H; , also transliterated as selāh) is a word used seventy-four times in the Hebrew Bible—seventy-one times in the Psalms and three times in Habakkuk. The meaning of the word is not known, though various interpretations are given below. (It should not be confused with the Hebrew word sela‘ which means "rock", or in an adjective form, "like a rock", i.e.: firm, hard, heavy.) It is probably either a liturgico-musical mark or an instruction on the reading of the text, something like "stop and listen." Selah can also be used to indicate that there is to be a musical interlude at that point in the Psalm. The Amplified Bible translates selah as "pause, and think of that." It can also be interpreted as a form of underlining in preparation for the next paragraph.

At least some of the Psalms were sung accompanied by musical instruments and there are references to this in many chapters. Thirty-one of the thirty-nine psalms with the caption "To the choir-master" include the word selah. Selah may indicate a break in the song whose purpose is similar to that of Amen (Hebrew: "so be it") in that it stresses the truth and importance of the preceding passage; this interpretation is consistent with the meaning of the Semitic root ṣ-l-ḥ also reflected in Arabic cognate salih (variously "valid" [in the logical sense of "truth-preserving"], "honest," and "righteous"). Alternatively, selah may mean "forever," as it does in some places in the liturgy (notably the second to last blessing of the Amidah). Another interpretation claims that selah comes from the primary Hebrew root word salah which means "to hang," and by implication to measure (weigh).