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Psalm 132 - an unfinished journey to God's true home

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1 Lord, remember David And all his afflictions; 2 How he swore to the Lord, And vowed to the Mighty One of Jacob: 3 “Surely I will not go into the chamber of my house, Or go up to the comfort of my bed; 4 I will not give sleep to my eyes Or slumber to my eyelids, 5 Until I find a place for the Lord, A dwelling place for the Mighty One of Jacob.” 6 Behold, we heard of it in Ephrathah; We found it in the fields of the woods. 7 Let us go into His tabernacle; Let us worship at His footstool. 8 Arise, O Lord, to Your resting place, You and the ark of Your strength. 9 Let Your priests be clothed with righteousness, And let Your saints shout for joy. 10 For Your servant David’s sake, Do not turn away the face of Your Anointed. 11 The Lord has sworn in truth to David; He will not turn from it: “I will set upon your throne the fruit of your body. 12 If your sons will keep My covenant And My testimony which I shall teach them, Their sons also shall sit upon your throne forevermore.” 13 For the L...
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Psalm 131: An unfinished journey with a quiet soul

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1 Lord, my heart is not haughty, Nor my eyes lofty. Neither do I concern myself with great matters, Nor with things too profound for me. 2 Surely I have calmed and quieted my soul, Like a weaned child with his mother; Like a weaned child is my soul within me. 3 O Israel, hope in the Lord From this time forth and forever. Everyone loves a short psalm!  In the short psalm league table, this is not the shortest.  That accolade belongs to Psalm 117 (just 2 verses!)  Psalms 133 and 134 also give it a run for it's money, but this one is certainly up there! I guess there are times on a long pilgrimage when you only have breath for a few words - this one would work! At first sight, verse 1 might look like a prideful boast.  There ARE psalms that give off an "I'm not like those people" vibe.  But I don't think that's the tone. Going on pilgrimage to Jerusalem will have had some of the benefits I have gained from going on sabbatical - and both are part of the central Je...
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Psalm 130: an unfinished journey out of the depths

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1 Out of the depths I have cried to You, O Lord; 2 Lord, hear my voice! Let Your ears be attentive To the voice of my supplications. 3 If You, Lord, should mark iniquities, O Lord, who could stand? 4 But there is forgiveness with You, That You may be feared. 5 I wait for the Lord, my soul waits, And in His word I do hope. 6 My soul waits for the Lord More than those who watch for the morning— Yes, more than those who watch for the morning. 7 O Israel, hope in the Lord; For with the Lord there is mercy, And with Him is abundant redemption. 8 And He shall redeem Israel From all his iniquities. There are psalms of lament in the Bible where the depths are not of my making and I pour out my distress to God about the situation I find myself in - a situation not of my making.  My enemies are gloating, evildoers have ruined my life, I feel forsaken... This psalm doesn't have the feel.  It feels like the psalmist recognised that these depths are at least in some respects self-imposed....
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Psalm 129: an unfinished journey to solidarity

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Mud Roof With Grass Growing On It 1 “Many a time they have afflicted me from my youth,” Let Israel now say— 2 “Many a time they have afflicted me from my youth; Yet they have not prevailed against me. 3 The plowers plowed on my back; They made their furrows long.” 4 The Lord is righteous; He has cut in pieces the cords of the wicked. 5 Let all those who hate Zion Be put to shame and turned back. 6 Let them be as the grass on the housetops, Which withers before it grows up, 7 With which the reaper does not fill his hand, Nor he who binds sheaves, his arms. 8 Neither let those who pass by them say, “The blessing of the Lord be upon you; We bless you in the name of the Lord!” We have a trace in here of how these psalms may have been used - the opening two verses are a call and response - the pilgrims would be ready with the response when the priest called out verse 1.  There would have been no giant powerpoint projections or neatly printed service sheets, they would kn...
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Psalm 128: an unfinished journey to rooted stability

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A Palestinian boy pulls tree branches in the southern Gaza Strip, December 2, 2023. (Photo by Ahmed Zakot / SOPA Images/Sipa USA via AP Images) 1 Blessed is every one who fears the Lord, Who walks in His ways. 2 When you eat the labour of your hands, You shall be happy, and it shall be well with you. 3 Your wife shall be like a fruitful vine In the very heart of your house, Your children like olive plants All around your table. 4 Behold, thus shall the man be blessed Who fears the Lord. 5 The Lord bless you out of Zion, And may you see the good of Jerusalem All the days of your life. 6 Yes, may you see your children’s children. Peace be upon Israel! The psalm, if you like, is an attempt to describe the shape of blessing.  Blessing here is not a private windfall or a lucky break, it’s a way of walking — a life oriented toward God’s ways. The psalmist begins with the image of a pilgrim whose daily steps are shaped by reverence for God, not fear as in dread, but a deep awareness of Go...
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Psalm 127: An unfinished building project

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1. Unless the Lord builds the house, They labour in vain who build it; Unless the Lord guards the city, The watchman stays awake in vain. 2. It is vain for you to rise up early, To sit up late, To eat the bread of sorrows; For so He gives His beloved sleep. 3. Behold, children are a heritage from the Lord, The fruit of the womb is a reward. 4. Like arrows in the hand of a warrior, So are the children of one’s youth. 5. Happy is the man who has his quiver full of them; They shall not be ashamed, But shall speak with their enemies in the gate. Isn't that half-verse music to our ears?  "It is vain to rise up early" !  YES!  the Bible says it is vain to get up early! :-)  Amen!  Much of the reading I have been doing over the last weeks, from different perspectives, has been about the importance of Sabbath as a gift of God.  Sabbath is (as Walter Bruegemann puts it) an act of rebellion against the Empire of consumerism - our anxiety and overwork is a s...
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Psalm 126: An unfinished journey to liberation

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 1 When the Lord brought back the captivity of Zion, We were like those who dream. 2 Then our mouth was filled with laughter, And our tongue with singing. Then they said among the nations, “The Lord has done great things for them.” 3 The Lord has done great things for us, And we are glad. 4 Bring back our captivity, O Lord, As the streams in the South. 5 Those who sow in tears Shall reap in joy. 6 He who continually goes forth weeping, Bearing seed for sowing, Shall doubtless come again with rejoicing, Bringing his sheaves with him. The NKJV translation of this is horribly unhelpful!  It reads as "yay! bring back captivity" as in "bring back hanging" or " bring back corporal punishment"!  Bringing back our captivity does not sound like good grounds for celebration! Here, "bring back" is much better translated as "reverse" - " When the Lord reversed the captivity of Zion", i.e. God set his people free. The long history of the ...
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