Psalm 124
1If it had not been the Lord who was on our side
—let Israel now say—
2if it had not been the Lord who was on our side,
when our enemies attacked us,
3then they would have swallowed us up alive,
when their anger was kindled against us;
4then the flood would have swept us away,
the torrent would have gone over us;
5then over us would have gone
the raging waters.
who has not given us
as prey to their teeth.
7We have escaped like a bird
from the snare of the fowlers;
the snare is broken,
and we have escaped.
who made heaven and earth.
Psalm 124 is a communal thanksgiving. The date is uncertain. In the canonical collection of psalms, it became one of the pilgrim songs. It invites us to reflect upon the real enemies we face. The rubric “Let Israel say” in verse 1b, also in Psalm 118:2-4, 39, suggests it use was in a corporate setting involving sung or chanted responses. A choir would take one part and the pilgrims would take the other.
The superscription of this song of ascents includes that it is of David.
1 If it had not been the Lord who was on our side —let Israel now say (declare or sing the song that begins with)—2 if it had not been the Lord who was on our side, when our enemies attacked us. Clearly, the point is that without the presence of the Lord, they would have had no hope. We find similar sentiments elsewhere in the Bible. The testimony of the psalmist is that without the help of the Lord, his soul would have lived in the land of silence (Psalm 94:17). Jacob testifies that the God of Abraham and Isaac was with them (Genesis 31:42). The Lord preserved a remnant so that there was not the destruction Sodom and Gomorrah experienced (Isaiah 1:9).
The poet will offer powerful but vague references that do not allow us to tie the poem to an historical setting, but which allow us to apply the imagery to many situations we might face. If the Lord had not been on their side, 3 then they would have swallowed us up alive, when they kindled their anger against us. The image has roots in Canaanite mythology. In an epic from Ugarit (14th century B.C.), Baal descends to the underworld through the mouth of the god Death, who is has "one lip to earth, one lip to heaven." The author compares the adversaries with proverbial sea monsters and the overflowing mountain streams. It connects the enemies with the primeval chaos. The people could not overcome them without divine aid. If the Lord was not on their side, 4 then the flood would have swept us away, the torrent would have gone over us; 5 then over us would have gone the raging waters. The imagery of water describing danger is frequent in the psalter. The faithful are to pray at a time of distress so that the rush of mighty waters shall not reach them (32:6). The author experiences the waves going over him (42:7). The author asks the Lord to save him, because the waters have come to his neck, and he sinks in the deep mire and the deep waters sweep over him (69:1-2). Thus, one should not construe it as a historical reference to the exodus. Israel would have been devastatingly overwhelmed had not the Lord been with them to bring victory. The use of the first-person plural to refer to enemies is far less frequent than the singular in the psalter's songs of deliverance; only here and at Psalm 44:10 is the plural used. Whether this was originally the case is hard to determine, although it seems likely that the collective orientation of Israel's theological thinking would favor a greater number of psalms referring to Israel's communal deliverance.
6 Blessed be the Lord, who has not given us as prey to their teeth. 7 We have escaped like a bird from the snare of the fowlers; the snare is broken. A snare is a nooselike wire or cord used to catch a bird or small game; a fowler is a game-bird hunter. Therefore, we have escaped.
8 Our help (usually military) is in the name of the Lord (Shem YHWH). The term is significant enough to deserve some of our attention. The Lord promises to send an angel of the Lord in front of Moses to lead the Hebrews to the Promised Land, and the Shem YHWH will be in the angel (Exodus 23:20-21). The Shem YHWH comes from a distant place with anger and smoke to bring judgment (Isaiah 30:27). The Shem is what the Lord will cause people to remember in the tabernacle. The Shem will be in the tabernacle because the Lord will put it there (Deuteronomy 12:5). A descendant of David will build a house for the Shem (II Samuel 7:13). The point here is that the Shem YHWH and the actual being of God have an intimate connection.[1] Further, the Lord is the one who made (‘oseh, a qal participle of ‘asah) heaven and earth (a merism that means the Lord made everything). The same basic expression appears in other Psalms. The Lord who made heaven and earth will bless them (115:15). His help comes from the Lord, who made heaven and earth (121:2). His help and hope are the Lord who made heaven and earth (146:6).
Life can overtake us. At least, it can feel that way. We face enemies in life. Some of them are outside of us. We live in a world that is not always friendly. Society has certain enticing ways that are not in our best interests to pursue. Some of our enemies arise from within. We have desires and goals that, if fulfilled, would mean our self-destruction. In either case, we can feel like we are in prison. Yes, we face the reality of evil, injustice, and hatred. They may come from outside forces. They may arise from within. We know we need help, a safe place, and hope for the future. Hope is essential for a just and humane world. If hope dies, the killing begins. Hopelessness and brutality are two sides of the same coin.[2] Again, we may inflict our hopelessness on those around us. We may inflict it upon our self. The mystery is not so much why so much suffering and evil exists, but rather, why we have so much freedom to determine what we will do with it. We will bring more suffering and evil, or we will bring healing, wisdom, and liberation. Human beings can bring more truth, goodness, and beauty into the world. We can also bring more deception, ugliness, and evil into the world. Yes, we can become something like Mother Teresa or something like Hitler. We can live faithfully for God or crucify Jesus of Nazareth.[3] The step any religion asks us to make is that we do not have the capacity to choose rightly or to know what to choose. If we are to have safety or hope, we cannot think in a purely earthly direction. Our “help” from prison will have to come from outside, from the eternal. The hope of which I write is not the same as the optimistic attitude that everything will eventually work out. Hope can see the dangers and challenges, and yet see the possibility contained in them. Such hope requires courage and faith. In that sense, our “faith” becomes a source of safety and hope. The dangers remain, but by faith, we know the one who is the foundation of our safety and hope. Truly, “Our help is in the name of the Lord (not a country in which we live, not a business for which we work, not a denomination in which we have found some sustenance), who made heaven and earth.”
Think this might be my favorite psalm. I place it post exilic but the date really does not matter to the message. It is something we can all say about our lives. Where would we be without the Lord?
ReplyDeleteWell said.
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