How the churches in Revelation look backwards and forwards

The imagery in Revelation can often be confusing. There are probably three ways to help you not be so confused:

1. Read the Old Testament
2. Read contemporaneous apocryphal literature
3. Read Revelation

You may have noticed none of these are "read crazy people on the internet." That's on purpose. But the last one (read Revelation) is important because a lot of the language is self-referential. That is, by reading Revelation, Revelation makes more sense. Images that are in one place are often elsewhere also, and nowhere is that more true in understanding the language used in ch's 2-3, the letters to the seven churches.

You might notice the similarities to my earlier table; this is updated and looking at one question in particular: where is the imagery in the letters from? Specifically, I'm asking where the description of Jesus comes from in chapter 1, and where the promise to the victor comes from in the closing chapters of the book. 

I should clarify that there are other references also, to the Old Testament, probably also to elsewhere in the New Testament, and to other places in Revelation. But the key thing I'm interested in is how is the description of Jesus at the beginning of the book redeployed for each church in their letter, and how are the eschatological promises at the end of the book foreshadowed in the promises to the conquerors of the individual churches.

On a personal note, I'm enjoying our series so far. Week 6/20 and still enthusiastic! And due to COVID-19 issues, we're going to be facebook live streaming tomorrow for my talk on the letter to Sardis, so that's a thing too. 

Psalm 122 - an ode for Jerusalem

Psalm 122 - An ode to Jerusalem

Psalm 122 is the third in the songs of ascent, and the first which is also a psalm of David (v1). It tells the story of someone who, no sooner do they say "let's go to the house of Yhwh" (v1), than they are there (v2)! As it unfolds it seems like the psalm is essentially a song of praise to Jerusalem. This is the first of the songs of ascent which make it clear just where the ascent is toward. 120 described the current location, 121 had the singer lifting their eyes towards the mountains, but now in 122 we find out the place to which they are wanting to go, and the particular mountains of desire, are the mountains of Jerusalem. 

It is similarly interesting to note the use of Jerusalem and Zion through these psalms. Jerusalem occurs, for the first time in the collection, thrice in this psalm, and then again in 125 and 128; while Zion, a more common word in the collection (7 rather than 5), appears quite regularly from 125, once per psalm, until the end, missing only 127, 130 and 131. At this point then the focus is the city and the temple - the house of Yhwh (בית יהוה occurs in the first and last verses).

Structure

The psalm is in three parts, with 1-2 describing the journey, from "let's go!" to "here we are". 3-5 describes Jerusalem herself, the type of city she is, how she is the destination of all tribes of Israel, and the house of David which is fundamental to her identity. 6-9 returns to the characters of 1-2, with the prayers they make for her. 

1-2 the journey to Jerusalem
3-5 the beauty of the destination
6-9 the prayers for Jerusalem

There are a few things in favour of this structure. "Jerusalem" appears at the end of 1-2, and at the beginning of 3-5 and 6-9, giving each of the three stanzas something to say about her. Second, with any three-part structure, it gives rise to the possibility of chiastic ruminations. As an ABA structure, both A sections talk about the house of Yhwh (rather than a temple or tabernacle), while the B section talks about the house of David (rather than the sons of David).  

One issue with this three part structure is that the subject in v6 is 3p - "they", while in 7 there is no explicit subject - "may there be", and in v8-9 it is 1s - "I will say," "I will seek." Who then is the "they" of v6 who are asking for the peace of Jerusalem? One possibility is the "thrones" of v5, that is, the ones who sit on those thrones. They would then be not just thrones of judgement/justice, but also thrones of prayer, such that the justice they seek will result in the peace of Jerusalem. While I think this would merit further thought, at the moment I think it's probably best to say that the third section divides in two, with v6-7 more general, and v8-9 the psalmist's specific prayers (this is underlined by the identical syntax in v8 and v9).

Whatever the case, it is also true that the divisions are never impermeable. 1-2 introduces Jerusalem, which 3-5 describes. 3-5 talk about the people who are in Jerusalem, and 6-9 describes their prayers. 

The Journey (122:1-2)

This song for going up begins with a communal scene. there are those אמרים לי (who said to me) בית יהוה נלך (to the house of Yhwh let's go!). Perhaps we still have the people of Meshek and Qedar from 120 in our minds, who are encouraging each other with the joy ahead of the journey; hence, שמחתי (I rejoiced). The freedom granted the psalmist allows them to say "let's go" and then to immediately be there. In line with the idea of each psalm progressing us ever so slightly closer to the temple, with this psalm we are only at the gates: "Standing were our feet / in the gates of Jerusalem." There is a distance to go until we will see Aaron (Ps 133) and the Holy Place (Ps 134). 

The gates will have to do for now, but that is most fitting for our theme, because the gates are where decisions of justice are made. In Psalm 127:5 the NIV translates שׁער (gate) "court", to depict the place where the elders sit and make decisions for the community. Jerusalem is then not just the place where God makes his presence known, but it is also where his justice dwells and the source, from which it will cover the nations.

3-5 The Destination (122:3-5)

Jerusalem is described in fawning ways: she is built like a city / which is joined to herself together. This describes her as more than buildings and walls and people, but as a unit, a unity, of people and building and commerce and cult, built by and around and for Yhwh. 

We might imagine Jerusalem as a place where burnt offerings (עלה) go up (עלה), but this psalm rather emphasises the people who go up (עלה). It is not just individuals like the psalmist with his brother and friend (v8), but tribes. And again, not just any tribes, but שׁבטי־יה - tribes of Yah. They exist because of him, and that they might praise him. 

The phrase "statutes of Israel / to praise the name of Yhwh" is a little confusing, and has some interesting textual evidences. It could be an aside, with עדות לישראל in brackets, telling us that there was a commandment which meant all the tribes of Israel occasionally had to go up to Jerusalem. This could be talking about one of the festivals, even though that doesn't seem to be in the picture in the rest of the psalm. CSB does put it in brackets, while NIV rearranges the verse to have it as a conclusion, but they and most EVV reach essentially the same conclusion. One alternative is to follow the LXX and read עדת ישראל (congregation of Israel) instead, which is an interesting solution. We would then have a triple description of those going up: "the tribes / the tribes of Yah / the congregation of Israel / to praise the name of Yhwh." I really don't know how to decide upon a preferred text, except to say that it seems the EVV have gone with the lectio difficilior and left the clunky (but by no means impossible to understand) "statutes for Israel". 

Twice in v5 the thrones are mentioned. 5a is the verbal clause: "For there sat the thrones of justice;" 5b is in apposition: "the thrones of the house of David." The use of ישׁב (to sit/dwell) evokes not just the seats but also those who sit or sat in them. The purpose of these thrones is judgement/justice, or judgement which enables justice. The house of David have and will have this role eschatologically, which is also reflected in 132:12, the most davidic of all these psalms - the throne belongs to David, which is given to David's sons as a reward for their covenant faithfulness. As God's son (Ps 2:12), the Davidide is the one to whom Yhwh has entrusted his righteous judgement. 

6-9 The Prayers (122:6-9)

There have been a lot of שׁ (sh, š) sounds in this psalm so far (about 21 of that sound in 78 words), and the first four words of (five) in this verse have שׁ (sh, š): šaʾᵃlû šᵉlôm yᵉrûšālāim yı̂šlāyû ʾōhᵃḇāyı̂ḵ (for a similar pattern, see also the first half of v4: šeššom ʿālû šᵉḇāṭim šiḇṭē-yah). 6-7 describe the prayers, with 6a what they ask for, the peace of Jerusalem. And, as Zenger reminds us, Jerusalem (ירושׁלם) can be (mis-)understood as the city of peace (עיר־שׁלם), such that they ask for peace for the city of peace. 6c-7 fill out the content of that peace:

• 6b security for the ones who love you
• 7a peace within your ramparts
• 7b prosperity within your citadels

There is an increasing greatness in the objects: the ones who wish Jerusalem well, the walls of Jerusalem, the strong buildings within the city.  And there is more rhyming of š within those three wishes: שׁלה (security, 6b), שׁלום (peace, 7a), שׁלוה (prosperity, 7b). 

6-7 thus work together as a sub-unit, 8-9 are similarly linked with their identical syntax. 

For the sake of

my brothers and friends/the house of Yhwh our God

I will say/I will seek

peace [be] in you/goodness for you

As such, the final two verses also return us to the beginning of the psalm, as the identity of "the ones who said to me" (v1) is revealed as the family and friends of the psalmist. Together they journeyed and together they stood in the city's gates (v2). Similarly we have the second mention of the house of Yhwh (v1 and v9). Wishing for peace within her (8b) and seeking her good (9b) should be seen not just in the present but more importantly in perpetuity. If Jerusalem is to continue to host the house of Yhwh, the thrones of justice, the house of David, and is to continue to be the destination for pilgrims and tribes, for brothers and friends, then these are the appropriate wishes from the psalmist and all who have sung this song.

Praying and Singing

This psalm is both an ode to Jerusalem, but also an encouragement to raise our voices to sing and speak and pray. 

• v1a I rejoice
• v4b to praise
• v6a they ask/pray
• v7a may there be peace
• v8b I will say "peace in you". 

We don't know the history of how these psalms (120-134) became the songs, but in their present form they certainly constitute a collection which are to be for the praise of Yhwh, for his city, for his king. And as they cause the eyes of the singers to be lifted, they transform the experience, the past, the present and the future, for those who sing these songs. They are a reminder that there is a bigger picture beyond one's own struggles and history, which is Yhwh's victory and future. 

Thyatira's Chiasm - Revelation 2:19

There's so much going on in Revelation in terms of structure. One interesting feature of the book is where irregular constructions are used to highlight something. In 2:19, as Jesus outlines the commendable things in the Thyatiran church, there is this odd construction with the word σου (of you) occurring, not after each item, nor only after the whole list, but before and after the list of five positive traits.

οἶδά 

σου 

τὰ ἔργα 

καὶ τὴν ἀγάπην 

καὶ τὴν πίστιν 

καὶ τὴν διακονίαν 

καὶ τὴν ὑπομονήν 

σου

"I know of you, the works and the love and the faith and the service and the endurance, of you." It should just be translated "I know your works and your love and your faith and your service and your endurance," but "your" only occurs before and after the list.

Why? It could be, perhaps, that it's trying to draw attention to this group of admirable traits present in Thyatira, despite the difficult context they find themselves in. And, above all of them, it could be that the central one--their faith/trust/belief--is what is of supreme importance.

When this letter (2:18-29) begins wrapping it, it returns to the idea of trust. 2:25 reads,

"Only this: what you have, hold on to it, until I come." 

It is only by their faith in Christ, and not the teaching of Jezebel (20-23a), the deep things of Satan (24), that they have can be certain of conquering and keeping the works of Jesus until the end (26). 

So it could just be that John didn't want to write σου out five times, but he did write it twice, including once before the list begins, so I think it's fair to say there was some purpose in doing so. It could have been to draw attention to the whole list, or it could be to draw especial attention to the central idea: your faith/trust/belief in Jesus.

Psalm 126 - when Yhwh sparks joy

With Psalm 126 we have the first explicit hint that these psalms may not be literal, but hopeful. Maybe they aren't actually on their way to Zion, but are hoping and imagining and dreaming. The exiles of Judah, far from home, whose temple has been destroyed, imagine themselves en route, walking from their homelands up through the mountains towards Zion. 

In part, this is clear from the two halves of the psalm (1-3, 4-6), which describe in the first half an unreal journey towards Zion ("we thought we were dreaming"), but then in the second half discover they aren't on their way at all, but merely hope and dream and plead to be returned. 

The two halves share a similar structure:

1-3
A Yhwh returned the returning ones
B We were like dreamers
C From sad exiles to joyous returnees

4-6
A Yhwh, return us returning ones
B Like streams of the Negev
C From sad exiles to joyous returnees

שׁוב

In the first clause of both halves there is a double use of שׁוב, first as the verb (to return, bring back), and then as the noun (the ones who return). This lexeme is common throughout the Hebrew Bible both in the context of exiles physically returning, but also of hearts returning in penitence to the God they have wronged. As such, this psalm could be using both senses of the lexeme, Yhwh returning the penitent ones, who are in exile because of their sin, but have turned their hearts back to their faithful God and await his rescue. There is however no context of sin in this psalm, just that they are in exile. It is not too much to infer that from the context (it's not as if they were in Babylon on holiday), but it's still not explicit. For that reason, I think it's emphasising the movement of people toward Zion, but I could be persuaded otherwise.

נגב

In the second clause of both halves is another comparison with כ, in both cases describing themselves. In 1c they were like dreamers, or, perhaps better translated, "we thought we were dreaming." The unreality of the exile being reversed is brought to the fore - who could imagine that the exile could be so spectacularly reversed. In 4b the image of a stream describes water in a dry place. Negev (נגב) has three potential but related meanings. It can just mean "south," and then can also be a place name, "the south." But what is the south like? It is dry, arid, so Negev could just as easily mean "the desert," and is used as a synonym for מדבר (desert, wilderness) in Isaiah 21:1. So what is being described here? At the very least, it is water in the desert. But to say more than that means choosing between two options. The first is a desert stream or an oasis, an unexpected delight of water in a place that is otherwise completely dry and incapable of supporting life. To be like such a stream in the Negev is for the return to Zion to make the returnees a source of life where it is least expected. The alternate is to be like the streams which appear in the wilderness after a yearly or ten-yearly rain. Like Lake Eyre in South Australia, an arid salt plain, used for setting land-speed records because it is in the middle of nowhere, dry and flat--except for the rare occasion when rivers form as if out of nowhere, turn the salt flats into a lake, and attract a plethora of wildlife and make countless hidden and dormant plants flower. This is a lovely image, of the change wrought by Yhwh by breaking their exile and enacting their return. Never having been to the Negev (or Lake Eyre, for that matter), I'm not sure which is more likely, although I have been told that there is indeed the odd river running through the Negev which may point to the former.

Sparking Joy

With apologies to Marie Kondo, the psalm moves on in both halves to suggest the joy that would fill the mouths and tongues of Judah when she is returned to Judah. In the first half, the previous state is not described, but only the change to the new. 

• 2a Laughter filled our mouths,
• 2b songs of joy [filled] our tongues,
• 2d, 3a the nations say of us, and we say of ourselves, that Yhwh has done great things for us,
• 3b we are overjoyed. 

In the second half the change from sorry to joy is described more fully, with two illustrations of this change:

• 5 The ones who sow in tears
• shall reap with in songs of joy.
• 6 The ones who go out weeping, carrying bags of seed
• will come back in songs of joy, carrying sheaves.

There are three words used to describe this joy. Laughter (שׂחוק) occurs once, as does overjoyed (שׂמח). They have two letters in common: שׂ and ח, which may well be deliberate, as these two words begin and conclude the first C section (v2a; v3b). 

The third word, רנן/רנה occurs three times (2b, 5b, 6c), and it seems to be an onomatopoeic word, meaning a song of joy, to rejoice, an exultation, a cry of jubilation (to choose a few options from HALOT). The fact that it can mean a cry of victory may also be part of the meaning here - one does not simply get released from captivity - there must be some sort of military victory to release the exile. But if that is implicit in the first half, in the second the meaning shifts to the farmer, sowing their seed in tears, but on their return reap in songs of joy. There is a change from little (seeds) to plenty (sheaves), which is descriptive of the hoped-for abundance that Yhwh will bring about on their return to the promised land. 

Perhaps one last thing is the repetition in 2d and 3a, where the exclamation "Yhwh has done great things for them" is first on the lips of the nations, but then is on the lips of the returnees: "Great things has Yhwh done for us." Such repetition on different lips is not uncommon in the songs of ascent - Psalm 132 is probably the best example of this. 

Whether originally understood or not, this points to a greater comprehending of Yhwh's goodness and sovereignty by those who were not called God's people, with the trajectory being that they might become God's people. The eschatological hope which this psalm points to is that it is not just the exiles who come to Jerusalem, but that as they go about their journey, singing these songs of ascent, that the nations will pick up their songs, and join in with them, coming also to Zion to worship Yhwh as their God also (cf. Zech 8:20-23).

Psalm 125 - the straight and the crooked

With Psalm 125 we enter the middle third of the psalms, and it's your classic goodies and baddies psalm. The closing stanza makes the contrast clear:

4 Do good—Yhwh–to the good ones,

and to the upright in their hearts.

5 But for the ones who turn to their crookedness,

Yhwh will cause the doers of evil to walk away.

The rest of the psalm similarly describes who the good are (v1-2), and what the problem with the wicked is (v3). Outside of these verse are two short refrains, first the heading "a song for going up", and finally, "Peace be upon Israel" (see the same conclusion to Ps 128). The structure of the psalm could then be described as follows:

שׁיר המעלות | A song for going up

A 1b-2 the good

B 3 the wicked

A' 4 the good

B' 6 the wicked

שׁלום על־ישׂראל | Peace be upon Israel

The ones who trust

Psalm 125 reuses a verb we are familiar with from Ps 121 - the verb מוט (to totter). It can be (depending on the declension) a homophone with a much more familiar verb מות (to die), but is spelled with a different (but much more infrequently used) "t"; it is spelled with a tet instead of a taw. In this psalm in particular that links well with a number of other lexemes which are also spelled with a tet, including v1 הבטחים (the ones who trust), and in v4 היטיבה ... לטובים (do good ... to the good ones). In the opening refrain then we have the ones who trust in Yhwh who will not totter, and then in the closing section they bid Yhwh to do good to the ones who are or do good. The final ט is in the first verb of v5, the verb נטה (to turn), for those who turn to do evil, in contrast with the ones whose heart is straight (v4b).

In v1 then, the ones who trust in Yhwh are like (כ, our favourite comparative) Mount Zion. We are told that "he" (presumably Mount Zion) will not totter, but will dwell forever. The unmoving mountains have the same stability as do those who trust in Yhwh. This is an interesting move, as my assumption when I began to translate the psalm was that it was Yhwh who was unmoving, who would not totter. But instead, it is by trusting in Yhwh that stability ensues. 

A further unexpected move follows in v2, which is the parallel the psalmist draws between the mountains around Zion and Yhwh. In v2a they make the move from Zion to the mountains which surround her and are "for her" (לָהּ), but then rather than saying (as I would expect) that the mountains are like the ones who trust in Yhwh and surround him, the illustration is flipped: Yhwh surrounds (for) his people (לעמו), from now and forever. 

Psalm 125:1-2 then explains that to trust Yhwh is for Yhwh to be for his people, to surround them, for them, from now and forever.

The problem with the wicked

The wicked are introduced in v3, not by what they do, but by what they have, or wield: a scepter. The closest we have to the phrase "the scepter of the wicked" is perhaps the line in Isaiah 14:5, 

שׁבר יהוה מטה רשׁעים שׁבט משׁלים

Yhwh broke the rod of the wicked, the scepter of the rulers.

If the order is correct, then the psalmist has combined the two Isaianic phrases "rod of the wicked/scepter of the rulers" into one, "scepter of the wicked. And what is the problem with their scepter? It is that is is upon the allotment of the righteous - it affects and controls and limits their prosperity, their enjoyment of the goodness of God's creation. And of course the problem with that is what that may lead to: the righteous sending out their hands in malice (v3c-d). Where wickedness abounds, the righteous will be tempted towards responding with evil  This can be either in fighting against evil (a righteous uprising), or in participating in evil, having learned that "if you can't beat 'em, join 'em." 

Again, in another unexpected turn, the problem with the evil is not their evil deeds per se, but that by their continuing evil reign, they will corrupt or encourage to violence the righteous.

The straight and the crooked

The concluding stanza contrasts the two types of people described in the psalm with two new terms. v4b now calls the good (v4a) the upright/straight in heart, and they are contrasted with in v5a the ones who turn to their crookedness. The straight in heart are the ones who do good, who are good, and to whom Yhwh will do good. But the crooked in heart, the ones who incline towards, rather than resisting, their wickedness, will be forced to walk away (יוליכם) by Yhwh. 

It is only here that we have the acts of the wicked described in any way, as they are called "the doers of iniquity (את־פעלי האון). This, plus their scepter upon the allotment of the righteous (v3a-b), and then the final prayer for "peace [to] be upon Israel" perhaps give us an insight into the situation which Israel is in at the time of the psalm's composition. A time when wickedness reigns, and when others are being tempted to join in with their evil (v3c-d), sounds a lot like the time of many of the Israelite kings. No longer is Israel a place where righteousness reigns, where the people follow their king in trusting Yhwh. But instead, this psalm is needed to encourage Israel to once again trust in Yhwh of Zion, with the encouragement that he alone is trustworthy, and that the reign of the wicked will end. 

Only when the reign of the wicked is ended can Israel finally be at peace, be whole and complete, as they dwell together, surrounded by their trustworthy God, knowing that they will be safe and secure as they trust in him. 

Joshua 1 chiasm

We've started reading through Joshua in our fortnightly pastors' meetings. There's a fascinating chiasm in the second paragraph:

Having success in following Yhwh is only possible when Joshua is bound to the book of the law, both for himself as well as for his people. Being bound to the book looks like following them obediently, meditating in it, and doing all that is written in it. Success in taking the land and occupying it (inheriting, ירשׁ, ch2) is the promise which is predicated on this obedience.

There is also some beautiful symmetry in the two sets of negative commands: "I will not desert you and I will not leave you (v5)" is matched with "do not be afraid, do not be discouraged (v9)." And of course Yhwh will not leave you, because, in the first and last clauses, Yhwh has promised that he will be with Joshua, as he was with Moses, wherever he should walk.


Also of note is the command to "be strong and courageous," which occurs above as spoken by Yhwh to Joshua (3x), but also occurs as the last two words of the chapter. However, when they occur at the end of the chapter it is not Yhwh speaking but the tribes to the east of the Jordan, and not quite as a condition of following Joshua, but as a hope and a blessing.

What we have then is a command from above and below, Joshua being commissioned both by his God and by his people, to be strong and courageous in what he does and how he does it.


Perhaps finally it is worth restating the original context: this is not a promise for physical prosperity to all people at all times. It is a promise to Joshua for success in occupying the promised land, and for Yhwh to be with him to grant him success in so doing. I'm not saying you should send back your coffee cups with "be strong and courageous," just to say that being strong and courageous and gaining success and prosperity have very specific referents in this descriptive, not prescriptive, passage. That is all.

Structures of the songs of ascent

One important question for the songs of ascent (Psalms 120-134) is how are they have been arranged to be read. The psalter as a whole does not follow any order such as length (like the Qur'an for instance) or chronology, so a lot of recent work on the psalms in general has been on the arrangement. Someone has deliberately divided the psalter into five books, with little doxologies in the final few verses to conclude them, so it seems the organisation has intruded into the text of at least four psalms in the psalter.

But what about the songs of ascent? Is there any structure or logic to the ordering? Here are a few suggestions which range from the interesting but untested to the influential. 

Concentric structure

Peter J. Williams suggests a concentric structure as follows (supplemented by James Bejon):

120-126 (7 psalms)

Yhwh occurs 24 times

Yah occurs once

2 David psalms (122,124)

House 3 times

Dwell/Sit 3 times

127
Yhwh occurs 3 times
Yah occurs once
Only Solomon psalm in the collection
House once
Dwell/Sit once

128-134 (7 psalms)

Yhwh occurs 24 times

Yah occurs once

2 David psalms (122,124)

House 3 times

Dwell/Sit 3 times

For Williams, this shows that the central focus is that Yhwh is needed to build house and a dynasty.

The problem with any numerological thesis are the exceptions. To his groups of 7, I could also add:

• Son (2 in, 5 after)
• Eye (5 before, 2 after)
• Zion (2 before, 5 after)
• Shalom (6 before, 1 after)

Other common words are David (3 before, 6 after), bless (1 before, 8 after), guard/guardian (6 before, 2 in, 4 after), and Israel (4 before, 5 after). If there were a numerological arrangement, then these other lexemes which break the pattern are greatly inconvenient. I discuss this at length in my book with reference to Addison G. Wright who went a bit number crazy in Ecclesiastes, resorting to adjusting the text where it didn't fit his thesis, so convinced was he that he was correct. 

Narrative order

Derek Kidner (Tyndale) has a different approach, reading them together as a story. He isn't able to find a place for each psalm in the collection, but senses that there is some orderly progression in the collection. For instance:

Ps 120: distant pilgrims
Ps 122: into Jerusalem
Pss 133-134: in the temple

The idea is that each psalm was sung at a different point in the journey, with 123-132 obviously much smaller steps (the pilgrim is already in Jerusalem by this point!), but as a whole, the collection is ordered moving from out to in. I think with some adaptation this theory is workable, but is it right? I don't know.

David Mitchell has a much larger sweep, and describes the metanarrative of the psalter like this:

Ps 45: the King comes
Ps 50: Israel gathered in
Pss 73-83: nations gather for war
Ps 87: the King cut off
Ps 110: rescued by messianic King
Pss 111-118:  songs of messianic victory
Pss 120-134:  ascent of all Israel to celebrate feast of tabernacles

He develops this in another book (which I haven't read) specifically about pss 120-134, which sounds interesting but from reading the synopsis (hidden codes?) perhaps a bit far off the deep end for me.

Three groups

Perhaps the most interesting approach for me (I think I have become a Zenger fanboy) is the three-part approach described by Erich Zenger (Herders/Hermeneia). Each group of five psalms has its own narrative arc:

120-124
lament—history—praise
          125-129
          the wicked—life under God—the wicked
130-134
lament—history—praise

There is something aesthetically satisfying about this, in that the groupings aren't too big, and it does have a certain explanatory power. Also, after engaging a little with Williams and Bejon on twitter, I wonder whether the two theories could be combined of the groups of three with a larger concentric pattern. 

Whatever the editors initially intended, the number one sign is the "songs of ascent" in the heading. This links all these 15 psalms together as one unit, to be read as one unit, and to be understood on reflection and with reference to one another.

Ultimately, the proof is in the reading. Which of the structures help us read the book better? I don't know yet - but when I work it out I'll be sure to get back to you!

Psalm 121 - Yhwh will guard you

The second psalm in the songs of ascent (Pss 120-134) is a really enjoyable and comforting psalm. It describes a problem: not knowing from whence my help will come, and quickly answers that problem: it comes from Yhwh. The rest of the psalm then describes just what it means to have Yhwh as your helper, and does so with the psalm's keyword: שׁמר (guardian (noun), to guard (verb)). 

The psalm divides into two uneven sections, with 1-2 giving the summary, with 3-8 filling in the detail. This is also seen through the uneven repetition of vocabulary: עזר (helper) occurs only in v1 and 2, while שׁמר (guardian/to guard) occurs six times in the remaining six verses (although not in v6, and 2x in v7). 

However, Erich Zenger has a visually very nice structure with more detail which makes a lot of sense too (Zenger, Hermeneia 2011, p321):

I.                      Help from YHWH
            1          Yearning look toward the mountains
            2          YHWH as creator of heaven and earth
II.                     YHWH’s Constantly Watchful Care
            3          Preservation from stumbling
            4          The always-wakeful creator God
III.                    YHWH as Provider of Shade
            5          The protective umbrella
            6          Protection from sun and moon
IV.                    YHWH as Protector for All Life’s Ways
            7          Support for life
            8          Accompaniment on all one’s ways.

My only issue with this is it divides what has been joined as v4c is connected to v5a, but that needn't mean it should be rejected.

Yhwh my Guardian is my guardian who guards

The flexibility of the keyword שׁמר (guardian (noun), to guard (verb)) is one of the most aesthetically pleasing aspects of the psalm. In v3,4 it is used appositionally in the place of, for instance, "Yhwh" or "the mighty one of Jacob": 

v3b He does not slumber - your Guardian.
v4b And he does not sleep - your Guardian.

This contrasts with v5 where שׁמר is again found as a noun to describe Yhwh:

v5a Yhwh [is] your guardian.

And then in the last two verses שׁמר is used as a verb:

v7a Yhwh will guard you from all wickedness
v7b Yhwh will guard your soul
v8a Yhwh will guard your coming and your going

On a side note, I like the translation of שׁמר as guardian/to guard instead of mixing unrelated English words to refer to the noun and verb (NIV has "he who watches" and "will keep" which is pretty clunky), although watcher/to watch or keeper/to keep (ESV) or protector/to protect (CSB) get the point across also. Enabling the reader to have some insight into the underlying Hebrew is a nice mercy that we should try to keep where it doesn't mean mangling the English.

Help!

The psalm opens with an action (lifting my eyes to the hills) and a question:

"whence cometh my help?" (in the Hebrew order) or "where does my help come from?" (as we would say today). The answer to this question is not too long in coming. The very next word after "my help?" is again "my help", and it comes from Yhwh.

As with Psalm 124:8, so too here in 121:2: the Yhwh who is "my help" is the maker of heavens and earth. Something interesting is happening here in the Hebrew, such that it doesn't just say "from Yhwh", but as with Ps 130:4,8, where forgiveness and redemption are described as "with Yhwh", here in 121:2, "my help" is described as "from-with" (מעם) Yhwh. Help is thus not just something that Yhwh gives, or has, but is intrinsic to his identity. As creator, he is also help to his creation, and he gives this help freely to his creatures. In particular, he gives his help from himself to those who lift their eyes to his hills and call to him as their helper. 

One other thing to mention here is that the verb בוא (to come) is there twice in the psalm. First in the question: where does my help come from? And secondly in the final verse in the declaration: Yhwh guards your going and your coming (ובואך). This might also explain the reverse logical order, where they are not "coming and going" but rather "going and coming." One might expect them to say "my coming and my going" (cf Jer 37:4), but here it is "my going and my coming" (although cf Isa 37:28). In this way, the verb forms something of a bookend to the psalm, with the question of the source of my help being answered by Yhwh who guards my going and coming. 

That being said, "go and come" could be taken in a military sense, for instance in Josh 14:11; 1 Sam 18:13,16; 29:6 etc, the phrase, in that order, is a synonym for warring or serving in war, where warriors go out (from their homes to fight) and come (back after the battle has been fought). In this way, depending on the context this psalm is read in, it could be describing Yhwh's guarding of his people in, among other activities, times of war.

Don't fall!

121:3a the NIV translates "He will not let your foot slip"; an awkward translation would be "He does not give your foot to totter." If we were to think of God appointing our steps, this perhaps describes Yhwh placing your feet in firm, certain places, where it will not stumble or fall. It could also be talking about safety and security, if the shaking aspect of the verb is taken into account: he will not set your paths where you would be anxious. This would also link in to my comments about about 8a, if this were a song for going in to battle. 

But the verb מוט (to totter, not to be confused with מות, to die) is one we should be familiar with. It's in 22 other psalms, most famously Ps 46 with its "Dam Busters" song. Quoting from the song, in the first verse we sing

Though mountains shake and tremble (מוט), though the earth should change!

And then the second verse says:

God is in the midst of her--she shall not be moved (מוט)!

The verb מוט is also in Ps 125:1, 

Whoever trusts in Yhwh is like Mount Zion
they cannot be shaken (מוט) but dwell forever.

This describes people as who trust in Yhwh as as stable as a mountain, the same mountain towards which the pilgrims lift their eyes in our psalm. 

This non-slumbering, non-sleeping guardian, will ensure that his people are stable and need have no fear, for he guards where their feet will tread.

Sun and Moon

Perhaps the trickiest riddle to untie in this psalm is 5b-6b,

Yhwh overshadows your right hand.
By day the sun will not smite you,
nor the moon by night.

Is this talking about sunburn? But that would imply there is such a thing as moonburn, which is pretty weird. So reading it literally is a little difficult.

The next option is to ask whether this is a religious thing? Comparative religionists will see the words שׁמשׁ (sun) and ירח (moon) and immediately think of gods with those names or their equivalents. Furthermore, Zenger reminds us that gods and kings are often described (or describe themselves) as shade to their people, so that shade is a synonym for protector. The parable in Judges 9 is just one of several biblical uses of this motif. 

Zenger explains:

YHWH is the royal protective umbrella that shades during the day from the  annoying and even life-threatening heat of the sun and at night from the mysterious and dangerous powers of the moon. (Erich Zenger, Hermeneia, 2011, p329)

Yhwh, the shade by our side, will protect us from physical and metaphysical harm, indeed, as v7 extrapolates, "Yhwh will guard you from all evil/he will guard your soul."

[EDIT: I was just reading through Revelation and there's a fascinating moment in ch.16 where the angels are pouring out their bowls of wrath, and one of them pours their on the sun, giving it super burnie powers:

8 The fourth angel poured out his bowl on the sun, and the sun was allowed to scorch people with fire. 9 They were seared by the intense heat and they cursed the name of God, who had control over these plagues, but they refused to repent and glorify him. (NIV)

Without Yhwh as shade over your right hand, there is no protection from the wrath to come. The ones copping it here are those who have "shed the blood of your people and your prophets." /EDIT]

Psalm 121 as a pilgrim song

Although we've discussed some of what this psalm might mean in war time, or in terms of fear of other gods who are not Yhwh, as a pilgrim song we read this as someone who has left the far places (120:5) and is now looking towards Zion. They want to know that they will be protected on their journey, that they will be safe from physical and spiritual attack, and the answer to their plea is swift. Their help comes from Yhwh, the creator of all, but also the sovereign of all, who is able and active to protect and provide for his creatures. We might think of the danger that comes from pulling up on the side of the road to sleep as they go on these long journeys. But especially in these most vulnerable times they are reminded that Yhwh never sleeps, and he is always working (John 5:17). Yhwh is our guardian, our protector, the one who watches and keeps his children safe. 

Psalm 120 - A song for peace from afar

The first of the psalms with the superscription "a song for going up", this sets the tone of the rest of the collection (120-134). This psalm describes a problem (1-2) but quickly moves on to assert Yhwh's certain action (3-4). Next comes a description of the overall sitz-im-leben of the psalmist (5-6), including a recapitulation of their character which leads to the friction (7).

Rescue me!

The metre of the first verse (after the heading) is quite uneven, with four words in the first stich (to Yhwh in my distress I call) and only one in the second (and he answers). Interestingly the atnach (the main verse divider) is found on the penultimate word, which would lead to a different reading of the verse which would read the first phrase potentially as an addition to the heading: "a song of ascents. to Yhwh in my distress." Following would then be the two words as the two halves of the verse proper: "I called / and he answered." Dividing it this way would seem to honour the Masoretic reading of the verse, although reading it in the uneven way speaks an important message: although the description of the problem (בַּצָּרָתָה לִּי) and the action (אֶל־יְהוָה ... קָרָאתִי) are long, the response is swift (וַיַּעֲנֵנִי). 

The צרה (distress) is explained in v2 to be a moral problem rather than more physical abuse or persecution. The call to Yhwh is to נצל (rescue) his soul from said distress, which consists of lying lips and deceitful tongues. In both instances it is "lip" (singular) and "tongue" (singular), which raises one tantalising possibility that there is one particular person's lies which are plaguing the psalm's supplicant, although more likely they are describing a situation in general where bearing false witness is the norm. 

Smite them!

In v3c the deceitful tongue becomes the focus of the imprecation, first with a veiled threat in 3a-b, "what will he give to you/what will he add to you?", but then with specifics in v4. The image here is bandied about without any verbs of action: the warrior's arrows sharpened with burning juniper coals. We are not told what will happen with them, Yhwh is not asked to fire them. But for those who have ears to hear, the description of the arrows should be threat enough. 

Protect me!

Finally, v5-7 remind us of the situation, and also the remoteness of the psalmist from Jerusalem (as a song of ascent). As the first among these pilgrim psalms, two locations are given at opposite ends of Israel:

כִּי־גַרְתִּי מֶשֶׁךְ | For I sojourn [in] Meshek
שָׁכַנְתִּי עִם־אָהֳלֵי קֵדָר | I dwell with the tents of Qedar.

Allen (WBC) explains that Meshek is a kingdom to the north of Israel, while Qedar (Kedar) lies to the east. As such, rather than synonymous parallelism such as with Ephrathah/Ja'ar (Ps 132:6), this is more akin to a merismus, giving two points on the compass far from Zion, far from the holiness of Yhwh which should flow out to his people. 

Living so far away is depicted as temporary through the verb גור, which means to sojourn, to be a foreigner. It is this former verb, rather than the following שׁכן (to dwell), which determines the meaning of the second. The substantive משׁכן means dwelling place (it occurs twice in Ps 132 to describe a home for the ark), but often is to be read in parallel to אהל (tent, v5c), signifying a more temporary dwelling. They are called to remember that they are foreigners, living in a foreign land, and are thus governed by a different moral code. Lies and deceit characterise the dealings around them; their tendency is towards war rather than peace (v6-7). But Israel must be different - they must be those who love peace, who are for peace. 

Shalom on earth

And this is the goal of the psalm: peace (שׁלום, shalom). In contrast with hatred and war, the psalmist's words are about and for the purpose of peace, for wholeness and completeness. Like the seeds which fall in the rocky ground, the difficulty of living faithfully in this context often seems impossibly difficult. Our tendency is to give in. But whether we are in Meshek or Qedar, whether we have lived there for a week or a generation, by reading this psalm as the first of the songs of ascent, we are reminded to keep our eyes directed towards Zion, and towards Yhwh who dwells there. Yhwh is both our rescuer (v2) as well as our avenger (v3-4), and so we look to him and call to him wherever God has placed us.

Songs for Going Up - the psalms of ascent 120-134

I've been doing some work on the Psalms of Ascent this past year. I'm currently trying to fill in the gaps now I've finished preaching through the series. Here are the links for them. I'll update this page as I go, and plan to get back and fill in the gaps. I've also preached on most of these, or have got someone to preach for me. If you want to listen to what the working out in the blog turns into when preached, the sermons are available here. Most are by me, but there a couple of guest preachers too, including luminaries such as Andrew Shead (Moore College), Peter Lau (SMBC/STM), and some other friends.

• Psalm 120
• Psalm 121
• Psalm 122
• Psalm 123
• Psalm 124
• Psalm 125
• Psalm 126
• Psalm 127
• Psalm 128
• Psalm 129
• Psalm 130
• Psalm 131
• Psalm 132
• Psalm 133
• Psalm 134

I've written a brief post on imagery within the collection, and a much longer one on the puzzling question of the structure of the collection. 

Psalm 134 - Blessing for Yhwh, blessing from Yhwh

The shortest psalm of the collection, and the second shortest in the whole psalter after Psalm 117, Psalm 134 concludes the pilgrimage with a view of the people inside the temple worshipping Yhwh.

This psalm has formal links to the preceding psalm, with its opening הנה (hinneh, look, behold, hey!), as well as by continuing the topic of blessing coming from Yhwh from Zion. Furthermore, the second-last stich of Psalm 133 was "for there [Zion] Yhwh commands blessing", while the second-last stich of Psalm 134 is "Yhwh shall bless you from Zion."

Blessing

The psalm looks very similar to the following psalm, especially in the NIV translation, as they both begin with "Praise the LORD." Of course, while the NIV tends to elide words like הנה and the like, it is present in 134 (and 133) but not in 135. Furthermore, "Praise the LORD" in 134 is actually "Bless (ברכו) the LORD" (and throughout the psalm) while 135 begins with הללו יה (hallelu yah, praise Yah). In fact, הלל (to praise) does not occur at all in the psalms of ascent. ידה, a near synonym, does, as does ברך, but הלל is noticeably absent. If we were to translate more formally, 134 would begin "Look--Bless Yhwh," which is quite different to "Praise Yhwh."

That said, I understand why the NIV chose to eschew "bless" in favour of "praise" (Goldingay actually chooses "worship" in 134:1,2, with "bless" appearing in 134:3). what does it mean to bless - if by "bless" we understand something like "bestow favour upon" - Yhwh? This is something Yhwh does to his people, not his people doing to him. Goldingay justifies his translation of "worship" by pointing to comparative philology - there is a related root in Arabic and Ethiopic which means to kneel. So it could be that this is a homonym, such that "bless" and "kneel" sound and look the same, but the reader (or singer) understands that when directed heavenwards it takes the latter meaning, while when directed earthward it takes the former.

The noun "‎בֶּרֶךְ" does appear, probably meaning "knee", often in the context of childbirth - people give birth upon their knees, newborn babies are placed upon knees. The verb ברך, however, is harder to discern. The tagging in my Accordance Bible Software has three hits for ברך meaning "kneel", which are Gen 24.11; Ps 95.6; 2 Chr 6.13. Genesis is fairly unambiguous - it's camels doing the kneeling. The instance in 2 Chronicles is in apposition to ברך as knees, as mentioned before: ‏וַיִּבְרַךְ עַל־בִּרְכָּיו (and he knelt upon his knees). However, this instance, as well as Ps 95, could both arguably be "bless", without needing the recourse to the verb "kneel."  

All this is to say that the idea of people blessing Yhwh isn't that straightforward, but that doesn't mean it's not what the text is saying. If Yhwh's blessing his people looks like bring gracious to them and filling them with good things, then what does it hurt to with the same for Yhwh? It might be theologically deficient, but just as the angels declare that God is gracious and merciful, and as people pray that his be the kingdom, then the use of ברך to mean "bless" seems less weird and indeed normal. 

Maker of heavens and earth

The final phrase of the psalm, and indeed of this collection, is "maker of heavens and earth." This occurs two other times in the collection (and once just outside it, 115:15) and each time without the article (it never says "the"). A similar phrase occurs in 135:6 but is significantly different, while 146:6 is more similar to our occurrence. 

Looking at this phrase within the songs of ascent, it is interesting to see what is made of Yhwh being the one who made heavens and earth. In both 121:2 and 124:8 it is the creator of all who is Israel's help: 121:2 my help comes from Yhwh, creator...; 124:8 our help is in the name of Yhwh, creator... 

Knowing that Yhwh is the sole source of Israel's help provides content to what is lacking in this psalm. What does his blessing consist of, when Yhwh blesses you from Zion, he who is the creator of heaven and earth? It consists of help. And that is why his people bless him, because he returns blessing of help. 

At night

This idea of Yhwh the creator who is Israel's helper is amplified when considering the potential referent of the puzzling time stamp a the end of the first verse: "בלילות" (at night). Now, it is in the plural, so it could mean "nightly," which is how some commentators take it. The temple attendants who maintain the fires and candlesticks and things, so there is always someone in attendance. But following Gunkel in the desire to link every psalm to some festival or other, it is worth noting one of the key night-time festivals, Passover. Remembering Yhwh's rescue of his people from slavery in Egypt, the sacrifice of the lamb or goat, and the meal eaten in haste with unleavened bread, this was held at night time. Although this festival was supposedly forgotten until the time of Josiah, it came to be a crucial festival in the yearly cycle, with its obvious application to any circumstance in life which resembled Israel's Egyptian slavery. The period of the Babylonian exile, the rule by Persia and then the Seleucid/Ptolemaic to-and-fro, were all reminiscent of that time and memories of that time were conjured up to give them assistance in their time of need.

So when the priests worshipped Yhwh at this night-time festival, they could call upon Yhwh to help them in their time of need. They could remind themselves of need to depend on Yhwh alone for rescue and to return their worship with blessing. 

Holy

One final note is the use of קדשׁ (qodesh, holy) in v2. This has been translated variously as "in the holy place," "in holiness," and "holy," modifying "hands." I think the first is probably correct (holy place - sanctuary), although I would like there to be a particle, "in," which isn't there. This makes me prefer "lift your holy hands," which I can only find in the Bishop's Bible (16th Century), so there are probably good reasons against this option. 

As such, the holy place here, along with the servants of Yhwh standing in the house of Yhwh links again with the mention of Aaron in the preceding psalm. These two final psalms signal the end of the pilgrim's journey, whether real or imagined (cf 126:1). The journey from afar (120:5) has now concluded at the sanctuary, where the connection between Yhwh and his priests, the priests of the people, is concluded. 

Psalm 134 as Christian Scripture

In many ways too much talk of the temple can be discomfiting for Christians. We tend to skip over those bits and move straight to Jesus and to the language of completion. And yet, if we look at a letter like Hebrews, the language of temple was still meaningful for the early Christians. The connection between the temple and heaven was always important, and points us to the satisfaction we should know in God reaching out to his people in Jesus. The blessing of Yhwh in the temple is returned most perfectly in the person of Jesus. Those who called out "how long O Lord?" received their answer in John the Baptiser and in Jesus whose way he prepared. 

Psalm 133 - How good is unity?

Psalm 133 is both the second-last psalm of ascents and also the second-shortest psalm of ascents. It's also the one with all the beards! It's the fourth "for David", or the fifth if you want to include the previous psalm which is all about David but not actually "for David." 

As a David psalm it is hard to find the link on first viewing, except perhaps to point to the priests who serve in Zion. However, there is more, which we will come back to below.

The first word of the psalm proper (הנה, look, behold) is also the first word of the following psalm, linking them together. So too does the word blessing, which occurs only once at the end of this psalm but repeatedly, even as the keyword, in the next psalm. 

Apart from these words which link with the following psalm, in the rest of this psalm there is again much repetition. “Good” occurs in v1 and v2, “how?” twice in v1, “beard” twice in v2, “go down” twice in v2 and a third time in v3. על (upon) is thrice in v2 and then a fourth time in v3. And the comparative כ is used to introduce the two similes in v2. 

The structure seems to be step after step. It looks pretty awful, but here it is:

A song for going up. For David.

1 How good and how pleasant

when brothers live together in harmony!

2 like good oil on the head, 

running down on the beard - the beard of Aaron,  

running down onto his robes.

3 like the dew of Hermon 

falling on the mountains of Zion. 

For there Yhwh commands blessing— 

life until forever.

The subject of the psalm

This is an odd psalm, in that it seems to be dealing with two subjects. In the first verse the subject is the closeness of brothers: 

שׁבת אחים גם־יחד  | brothers dwelling together. 

This is the subject of two rhetorical questions: how good and how pleasant in the first stich. In other words, what is better than the closeness of two brothers?! However this topic seems to be superseded by a second subject in the final two stichs of the psalm, the place where Yhwh has appointed (lit. commanded, צוה (ṣiwwâ) to rhyme with ציון (ṣı̂yôn, Zion)) blessing. It's not immediately clear how these two fit together. "There" is a location, but “brothers” (whether this be actual siblings, all Israel, the priesthood) describes a relationship. The blessing which is found there (שׁם) is חיים עד־העולם (life unto eternity), which again, doesn't quite gel with how the psalm began.

Perhaps the way these two separate ideas come together is in the blessing refracted through unity among people. That is, where there is unity, there is blessing. Where there is togetherness, there is a lasting presence. In disunity there is fracturing and disaster and dissolution of the good. 

Until eternity

The final phrase עד־העולם (with the article) is shared with a number of psalms (28:9; 41:13; 106:48), and indeed gives this psalm its eschatological direction. The three remaining uses of the phrase are Nehemiah 9:5, but also significantly 1 Chronicles 16:36; 17:14. In ch. 16 it is the final words of the song David sang to celebrate the delivery of the ark into Jerusalem, while in ch. 17 is Yhwh speaking through Nathan to confirm his promise to build David a house. In this sense, the use of עד־העולם is almost as if it is an overflow from Psalm 132, with the joy of the ark coming to Jerusalem and Yhwh's promise to David, being the launching pad from which to sing this new song. Indeed, the picture of 1 Chronicles 16 is that of unity, with every person in the whole land celebrating, every person in the whole land given a gift of food from the king, and the song itself (v8-36) makes numerous references to the one nation of Israel and God's care and salvation of it מן־העולם ועד־העולם (from forever and until forever). 

Hermon and Zion

The two places mentioned in apposition to one another are the mountains of Zion and Hermon, both mountains among other mountains. Hermon in particular has multiple summits and is way up north, even in Syria/Palestine. Depending on your map the kingdoms of David and Solomon probably extended that far (it is in between the northernmost Israelite town of Dan and the Syrian city of Damascus). Goldingay (BCOTWP) spends a whole page debunking the oft-repeated theory that Hermon had especially noteworthy dew (he calls it "inherently implausible"). The markers then, much like in the second of the songs (Meschech & Kedar; 121:5), are pointing to the two important mountains to the north (Hermon) and south (Zion) of Israel, which could be something of a merismus to imply the whole of the nation.

A more important question however is what is going on in this verse. The syntax is a little confusing (or at least, it is to me), as there's only the one verb to go around.

כטל־חרמון | like the dew of Hermon

שׁירד | which falls down

על־הררי ציון | upon the mountains of Zion

→ the three key words/phrases in order

like the dew of Hermon which falls down

[like the dew] upon the mountains of Zion

→ they both are mountains, and dew falls on both of them

like the dew of Hermon

[the very dew] which falls down upon the mountains of Zion

→ the dew falls down on Hermon and then runs down on to Zion

The first syntax option is syntactically weirder (the verb really should go with Zion) but the second is a weirder image (how does the dew from one mountain run hundreds of kilometres down and then uphill?!). 

The NIV (if I'm understanding it correctly) goes with a third option, taking it as an eschatological hope, that the mythical dew which falls on Hermon (a now debunked theory!) might one day also fall on Zion: "It is as if the dew of Hermon were falling on Zion". The CSB and RSV and others go with my second option, that the same dew of Hermon keeps flowing to Zion (or perhaps evaporates from Hermon and then falls on Zion). 

First off, it's worth saying that the precipitation that Hermon is best known for is snow, rather than dew, but that snow does indeed, like in alpine regions, flow downhill, and would flow down into the Jordan and to the foothills of Canaan, out of which Zion climbs. So although this is not the immediate image conjured, when coupled with the flowing oil in v2, from head to beard to clothes, the image is one of God pouring out dew/snow/precipitation on the most northerly point of Israel, which then flows to and nourishes the rest of the land.

Putting it all together

Working from the end to the beginning, this psalm speaks of the way he brings blessing to his people. We know how snow from the highest peaks nourishes all the land through the rivers, as Hermon does Zion. We can look at the priesthood for another illustration, as precious oil is poured on the head and flows to the beard and then clothing of Aaron and his descendants. All this is an illustration of unity, most perfectly illustrated between brothers. It is good and pleasant not just for them at the head, but for everyone their unity impacts as their harmony flows down the chain. 

This psalm is not arguing for trickle down economics, but for trickle-down blessing. It begins with unity and harmony, and as people live out the gospel in life, in forgiveness and selflessness and generosity, this flows down and impacts many others by bringing the blessing of Yhwh: life evermore.

Imagery in the Songs of Ascent - Psalm 120-134

The particle כ (like/as) occurs a bunch in these psalms, usually just the one or max two images throughout the psalm to draw out the point. Out of the 15 a third (120,121,130, 132, 134) don't have the particle, which does occur 15 times in the other 10. That said, there are some similes without the particle, for example 120:4, 121:5, 130:6, which, if you admit these, leaves only the the longest psalm, 132, and the final psalm, 134, without one.

Here's a list of the uses of כ, with my virtual similes in square brackets. (I've just used the NIV11 rather than providing my own translation)

[Ps 120.4 He will punish you with a warrior’s sharp arrows, with burning coals of the broom bush.]
[Ps 121.5 The LORD watches over you— the LORD is your shade at your right hand;]
Ps 122.3 Jerusalem is built like a city that is closely compacted together.
Ps 123.2 As the eyes of slaves look to the hand of their master, as the eyes of a female slave look to the hand of her mistress, so our eyes look to the LORD our God, till he shows us his mercy.
Ps 124.7 We have escaped like a bird from the fowler’s snare; the snare has been broken, and we have escaped.
Ps 125.1 Those who trust in the LORD are like Mount Zion, which cannot be shaken but endures forever.
Ps 126.1 When the LORD restored the fortunes of Zion, we were like those who dreamed.
Ps 126.4 Restore our fortunes, LORD, like streams in the Negev.
Ps 127.4 Like arrows in the hands of a warrior are children born in one’s youth.
Ps 128.3 Your wife will be like a fruitful vine within your house; your children will be like olive shoots around your table.
Ps 129.6 May they be like grass on the roof, which withers before it can grow;
[Ps 130.6 I wait for the Lord more than watchmen wait for the morning, more than watchmen wait for the morning.]
Ps 131.2 But I have calmed and quieted myself, I am like a weaned child with its mother; like a weaned child I am content.
Ps 133.2-3 It is like precious oil poured on the head, running down on the beard, running down on Aaron’s beard, down on the collar of his robe. It is as if the dew of Hermon were falling on Mount Zion. 

As you can see, a lot of these are quite poignant and emotionally rich images. There are obviously those four  exceptions in square brackets which have images but not כ, while there is only 132 and 134 without either a simile or the particle כ. There's really only 126 which has two separate images; 123 is saying more or less the same thing, and the ideas in 128 are closely related also. 131 literally says the same thing twice, leaving 133 as the only psalm which has a simile about a simile: brotherly closeness is like oil running down which is like dew falling on Mount Hermon (I'm not sure the NIV has understood the imagery here, but I'll leave that discussion until a post on Ps 133).

In short, when reading the psalms of ascent, keep an eye out for the similes/metaphors/images. Get to the heart of them and you'll get to the heart of the psalm. 

The Letters to the Seven Churches in Revelation

In February we're going to start 20 weeks in the book of Revelation, which is getting more and more daunting the closer we get. Of course, embarking on the book is a a good thing, as we want to hit that sweet spot between ignoring Revelation to our own detriment, and reading only Revelation, also to our own detriment. That is, not reading Revelation means we miss out on the final book of the New Testament and the Bible (in its canonical order), we miss the promises and encouragements there, we miss the unique imagery and messaging used in this book alone, which will speak to some people in ways an Epistle or Gospel just won't. Similarly, reading nothing except for Revelation usually means reading Revelation through a particular lens of dispensationalism, another of those peculiarly American tack-ons to the Bible. That's usually quite dangerous, it means trying to interpret everything that happens in the world as a secret message disclosing another sign-post in the book for "whoever has ears to hear."

After the first chapter we're going to spend seven weeks looking at the seven letters to the seven churches which Jesus transcribed to John in 1:11,19. As such, 1:9-20 serves as the introduction and framework through which to read the letters. This also means a lot of the vocabulary in 1:9-20 will recur throughout the letters, which it's good to keep an eye out for.

There are lots of points of correspondence (inescapable pun) between the letters, and some of it suggests a structure, but there are more points which go against that structure that I think it's best to just read them as is, to see where there are parallels, but not get all worked up. There are seven, and seven's good and complete and so on, but that's as far as we can go.

If you look at a map, the churches are in a circuit through Asia Minor, so that if a messenger was to bring the book of Revelation from John in Patmos to the churches in Asia Minor, with its batch of personalised letters just after the introduction, they would be able to deliver it in order of the writing without too much trouble. That, to me, seems to be the sole organising principle.

The only other thing to say is that although the actual churches may have had the actual problems described, in terms of Nicolationism and persecution and so on, the "seven-ness" of the letters commends them to all people everywhere to consider how they can learn from this. It's always right to ask how we may have become like the Laodiceans or how we could be more like the Thyatirans, so long as we don't say " we're clearly the Smyrnans here and have nothing to worry about." We aren't these churches, they were and are no more, but we still need to heed the warnings where appropriate, and take encouragement where appropriate too.

Psalm 132 - Yhwh's great promises to David

Structure

Although this psalm does not have the heading "for David", it is easily the one most thoroughly soaked in talk of David. As I explain below, it is essentially a retelling of 2 Samuel 6-7. Like Psalm 130 this psalm has an ABAB structure. There is much repetition, and much correspondence, especially between the two B sections. The way I see it, each section has the introduction from the narrator, and then some speech, first from David, then Israel, then Yhwh in the past, then Yhwh looking to the future. The sections have different lengths (respectively, 10,10,8,12), but each AB pair has 20 stichs (which should correspond to the number of lines in the setting out in of most translations), giving the psalm a nice balance.

A intro 1-2 Remember when David swore to Yhwh

speech 3-5 David's vow to build Yhwh's house

B intro 6 The excitement of hearing of David's vow

speech 7-10 The people encourage Yhwh to dwell in Zion

A` intro 11a-b When Yhwh swore to David

speech 11c-12 Yhwh's vow to build David's house

B` intro 13 When Yhwh chose to dwell Zion

speech 14-18 Yhwh's promises to David in the future

Each section has Yhwh and David; in the two A sections they are adjacent, while in the B sections they are not. Furthermore Yhwh and "the mighty one of Jacob" occurs with one word separating them, twice in the first A section (v2,5). Otherwise the first AB section reuses the word "tabernacle" or "tent" (v5,7), and the second A`B` sections reuse the phrase עדי־עד (for ever ever, v12,14). Apart from these, most of the correspondence is between the two A sections and between the two B sections.

1-5; 11-12

The first of these is unsurprisingly נשׁבע - he swore. They both occur in the respective headings of their sections (v2,11), as the respective oaths of David and Yhwh are introduced. The oaths themselves are discussed in both respects with the conditional אם (if); thrice in v3-4a (and assumed in 4b) and once in 12a. In the case of David's oath, this is a Hebrew oddity where it forms the first half of a phrase but where the second half remains unstated. "If I do x before y (then may something bad happen to me)." So in this case, David's oath is that he will not care for his own interests - by going home or lying down or having a nap - before he builds Yhwh a house. But if he does, then something bad may happen to him. 

The second A section (11-12) reuses אם just the once, but in a positive sense, so that if David's descendants do indeed obediently follow Yhwh, then they will sit on his throne forever.  Interestingly the word order is "then your sons for ever and ever will sit on your throne", so that it's not "for ever and ever" which finish the thought, but "your throne" to be the note to finish this thought on. It's not the length, but the place, which is at the forefront.

6-10; 13-18

There are more repetitions between the B sections, with "resting place" being found in v8 and v14, as well as "anointed one" (lit. "messiah") in v10 and 17. The discussions about the priests and steadfast ones in v9 and 16 are repeated almost verbatim.

9	16
כהניך ילבשׁו־זדק	וכהניה אלבישׁ ישׁע
וחסידיך ירננו	וחסידיה רנן ירננו

The perspectives are obviously different - v8 is from the perspective of the people and v16 is Yhwh speaking, but otherwise there are two notable differences. The first is the clothing: v9 the priests will be clothed with righteousness; v16 the priests will be clothed with salvation. The second difference is the enthusiasm with which steadfast ones will rejoice - in v16 the verb is repeated, such that they will certainly, or enthusiastically, sing for joy (רנן).

Both B sections speak then of the joy of a restored Zion; in v6 it is boasted of from far away, while in v13 it is ensured because Yhwh has chosen (or desired - v13, 14) to choose that as his dwelling place. The places mentioned here - Ephrathah and Ja'ar - are interesting choices. David is said to be an Ephrathite, as Bethlehem was in the area of Ephrathah. We have Judah>Ephrathah>Bethlehem. So in David's home region it is heard that something is happening in Jerusalem. But it is found out also in "the fields of Ja'ar" - which is interesting in the other way - it's very confusing what this might mean. 

Everywhere else in the Bible Ja'ar is translated "forest", but the weirdness of saying "the fields of the forest" has led translators to go instead with "the fields of Ja'ar", assuming that there is some other place (maybe alternate name for Ephrathah?) which is actually called "Ja'ar." There are three options:

1. there is a place called Ja'ar that isn't recorded anywhere else
2. there is a field in a forest
3. there is a typo (NIV footnote suggests Jearim or Je'arim - which just means forests rather than forest)
4. Ja'ar is an alternate name for Ephrathah

It could well be that we are to read the two stichs of v6 in parallel, so that, rather than opposite ends of the land like in 120:5 (Meshek and Kedar), Ephrathah and Ja'ar are more or less the same place. If Ephrathah is or was largely a wooded region, then the places people would live and farm within it would the fields, so I think option 3 probably makes the most sense, and that the name was given it because it was a wooded place.

The story of the psalm

In terms of the story this tells, it all hinges around the person of and promises to David. It revolves around the goings on in 2 Samuel 6-7 where the ark of Yhwh (cf. v8 ark of your power) is brought to Jerusalem and David intends to build a house for Yhwh (v2-5). The intent (or vow, v2) is turned on its head, as instead Yhwh swears (v11a) that he instead will build David a house his servant (v10), promises that his descendants will rule after him (v11b-12). 

The final section of the psalm seems to be more eschatological and hoping despite hope, possibly betraying a post-exilic context. Although her priests may be clothed in sackcloth now, "Her priests I will clothe with salvation" (v16). The line of David may not look like much now, but as with Isaiah 11 (although with different lexemes), Yhwh will cause David's line to "sprout" once again, and he will light his path. The glory that his enemies now enjoy will be turned into shame, will be taken from them and given to the anointed descendant of David.

The image used in v18b continues that begun in v17a. The horn which sprouted there is linked to a crown which "blossoms." The messiah is something of a tree - planted by and nurtured by Yhwh. Just as blossoms come from a tree at the right time of year, so too will Yhwh's chosen one be crowned. This quite beautiful imagery of a floral crown is in obvious contrast with the crown of thorns worn by Jesus as he was proclaimed king, but the irony of course is that the ones who crowned him in jest had their joking turned to shame, as Jesus rose like blossoms on a tree which otherwise seemed dead.