Carefully Examining the Text

A Song of Ascents, of David It is attributed to David. “It is not against high position that is divinely given, but it does model a critical attitude toward pure blind ambition” Longman, 433.   “This personal prayer (vss. 1-2) has a lesson in it that needs to be shared by the nation (vs. 3)” Miller, 411. “This simple, concise, and affecting expression of humility shows no signs of cultic or public...

Psalm 130 A Song of Ascents “In Christian tradition the psalm became one of the seven penitential psalms, the others being Ps. 6, 32, 38, 51, 102, 143” Allen, 195. “This psalm, of course, is a penitential psalm, focusing not on the evil of Israel’s enemies, as does Psalm 129, but on the wrongs Israel has done” Alter, 455. 130:1 Out of the depths- Ps. 30:1; 71:20; Isa. 51:10; Ezek. 27:34; Jonah 2:2...

Psalm 129 A Song of Ascents 129:1-2 Introductory summary ; 129:3 Their intense need ; 129:4 Praise to God 129:5-8 Request for judgment upon the foes “The psalm divide into two sections: verses 1-4 (statement of suffering) and verses 5-8 (prayer for vindication against the enemies causing the suffering)” Transforming Word, 498.  129:1 Many times they have persecuted me- The word many times in vss....

Psalm 128 A Song of Ascents “The quiet blessings of an ordered life are traced from the centre outwards in this psalm, as the eye travels from the godly man to his family and finally to Israel. Here is simple piety with its proper fruit of stability and peace: Kidner, 443.  How are Psalms 127 and 128 linked? 1. The word blessed - 127:5; 128:1-2 2. eat/eating in 127:2; 128:2 3. Behold in 127:3; 128...

“The psalm is ascribed to Solomon, and has perhaps a concealed signature in the expression his beloved (2), which is the word from which Jedidiah, his personal name from God, was formed (II Sam. 12:25)” Kidner, 440. Solomon carried on many building activities (I Kings 3:1-2; 7:1-11; 8:13; 9:1 ). This psalm has more of the characteristics of a wisdom psalms than other types. “A wisdom psalm ... ‘pr...

A Song of Ascents “The community prayer is strikingly similar to the longer Psalm 85…Verses 1-3 reflect upon a past deliverance, probably return from Babylonian captivity . Verses 4-6 plead for the further restoration from present problems” Miller, 405. “ The psalm starts out like a thanksgiving song, celebrating the restoration of the community’s fortunes, but the second part leads us to understa...

This psalm “makes a proper distinction between the fate of righteous and the fate of the wicked, a favorite theme in Israel’s wisdom poetry (cf. Ps. 1; Prov. 1-9). Those blessed are those who trust in the LORD (vs. 1), the righteous (vs. 3), the good (vs. 4a), those who are upright in heart (vs. 4b). Wicked kings (vs. 3a) and people (vs. 5) must be eliminated so that the righteous will not be enco...

Psalm 124 The verses of the Psalm describe Israel’s trouble- vs. 3-5- deliverance- vs. 1-2, 6b, 7- praise - vs. 6a, 8. The psalm shows us “how serious the threat was, and how little confidence David placed in his own power to survive it” Kidner, 436. 124:1 Had it not been the LORD who was on our side- 118:6; vs. 1-2 provide the protasis, the ifs clause to a conditional sentence, to the stanza and...

Psalm 123 A Song of Ascents “Verses 1-2 are written in the tone of a psalm of trust, but 3-4 are in the form of a community lament. 123:1 To You I lift up my eyes- 121:1;  Lifting up eyes can indicate arrogance- II Kings 19:22; Ps. 131:1 but here they are lifted up to God and not against Him.  “ To phrase ‘to You’ is in the emphatic position, suggesting the psalmist’s complete orientation to God”...

Psalm 122 A Song of Ascents, of David The phrase “of David” is omitted in most mss. of the LXX and the Vulgate- Miller, 399.  “The psalm gives more evidence of having been written as a pilgrim psalm than any among the Psalms of Ascents (120-134), with the possible exception of the last one” Miller, 399.  Psalms of Zion are Pss. 46, 48, 76, 84, 87, 132. 122:1-2 Journey to Jerusalem 122:1 I was glad...

Psalm 121 There are some connections with Psalm 91 . The idea of shade or shadow in 121:5; 91:1 . The word keep in 121:3, 4, 5, 7, 7, 8 is also in 91:11 . The word foot is used in 121:3 and 91:12 McCann, 1181. The name LORD appears in vs. 2, 5, 5, 7, 8. 121:1 From whence shall my help come?- The word help is m.s. and is used of God in Exodus 18:4; Deut. 33:7, 26, 29; Ps. 20:2; 33:20; 115:9, 10, 11...

120:1-2 Words of Trust and Petition 120:1 In my trouble I cried to the LORD- 102:2 The word order in Hebrew is “To the LORD in distress to me I cried/called and He answered me.” The point is the emphasis falls on the LORD to whom He called. Who are we calling on or looking to in times of distress? The author “expresses the sole dependence on God in the hour of distress” VanGemeren, 769.  The Hebre...

Jesus Fulfills Psalm 119  Psalm 119 and Jesus  General Pictures: Jesus as the Word- While there are 177 synonyms for God’s law, word found in Psalm 119 . Jesus is the ultimate embodiment of Word. The Word has become flesh and dwelt among us- John 1:1-14 He does things Psalm 119 attributes to the Word. The Word gives light in 119:105, 130 and Jesus is the Light- John 8:12; 9:5 . Jesus fulfills the...

119:153-160 ר God’s mercy- vs. 156, lovingkindness - vs. 159 , truth- vs. 160 , and righteousness- vs. 160 are all mentioned here.  119:153 Look upon my affliction and rescue me- This word for look will begin vs. 153, 158, 159. This plea for rescue from affliction ties canonically to Exodus 3:7-8- Hermenia, 282. He begs “for deliverance from affliction (vs. 153) and from his persecutors and advers...

119:129-136 פ “His own appreciation of the supernatural quality of the Lord’s word (129) is bracketed with his grief over the flouted word (136)” Motyer, 570. “YHWH’s Torah will be presented in the פ strophe as a wonder-working power” Hermenia, 279. 119:129 Your testimonies are wonderful- The same root for wonders is in vs. 18, 27. The word wonderful is used in Exodus 15:11; Psalm 77:11, 14; 78:12...

119:89-96 ל “From its nadir, Psalm 119 moves to its zenith. Complaint has given way to a profession of faith in God’s sovereignty for all time (vv. 89a, 90a), in all places (vv. 89b, 90a), and over ‘all things’ (v. 91). The profession is highlighted by the uniqueness of vs. 90, which does not contain one of the eight synonyms” McCann, 1171.  119:97-104 מ “The mem strophe is a quiet interlude witho...

119:89-96 ל “From its nadir, Psalm 119 moves to its zenith. Complaint has given way to a profession of faith in God’s sovereignty for all time (vv. 89a, 90a), in all places (vv. 89b, 90a), and over ‘all things’ (v. 91). The profession is highlighted by the uniqueness of vs. 90, which does not contain one of the eight synonyms” McCann, 1171.  119:89 Forever, O LORD, Your word is settled in heaven-...

Psalm 119:49-56 119:53 Burning indignation has seized me because of the wicked- The word translated “burning indignation” is a rare word used only in Ps. 11:6 and Lam. 5:10. In Ps. 11:6 the word speaks of the divine judgment on the wicked. “The psalmist’s commitment to the Lord and His word dictates what He loves and what He hates. He cannot be neutral when it comes to wicked behavior by those who...

119:33-40 ה   The alphabetic arrangement lends itself to these hiphil verb forms, but the rest of the psalm reveals a studied effort to demonstrate reliance upon the God of the word as well as the word of God” Miller, 387. These hiphel verbs are in the imperative but, “in these petitions a tone of humility and dependence comes through” VanGemeren, 744.  119:33 Teach me, O LORD, the way of Your sta...

“vv. 25-28 describe his internal distress (I-lament), that is, that is the threat of physical and spiritual destruction” Hermenia, 268.  119:25 My soul cleaves to the dust- “Clinging to the dust is a graphic depiction of being in a life-threatening condition (see Ps. 44:25)” Ross, 490. Revive me according to Your word- revive is used in vs. 25, 37, 40, 88, 107, 149, 154, 156, 159. This “is a praye...

Psalm 119 This “is the longest psalm in the collection and the longest chapter in the Hebrew Bible, 176 verses or lines of poetry” Alter, 419. Its size has oft times discouraged serious study. Weiser in the Old Testament Library series views it as wearisome in its repetition of motifs and says it opens the door for legalism, but he offers no commentary on the text- Weiser, 739-741. “It is recited...

“The psalm (may have) originated in victory celebrations of Israel’s king and people (cf. II Chron. 20:27). Later it was probably used in periodic commemoration of God’s past goodness to the Davidic dynasty” Laymen, 684. “ The ‘I’ standing collectively for Israel, verses 5-14, 17-19, 21, and 28 seem to portray a great deliverance which has come to a king, possibly David himself. There are similar...

“It is not only the shortest psalm in the collection but also the shortest chapter in the Bible” Alter, 414; Longman, 398.  It is 27 words in the NASB and 28 in the ESV. In Hebrew it is only 17 words. “Many Hebrew mss.attach it to Ps. 116 ….Other Hebrew mss. join the psalm to Ps. 118 ” Allen, 117. The basic structure of a song of praise is simple. It begins with a call to praise (vs. 1). Then the...

A few notes “The Septuagint and Vulgate treat this as two psalms, the second of them beginning at verse 10 (but some Heb. MSS make a similar break after verse 11).” Kidner, 407.   “He has come now to the temple to tell the whole assembly what has happened, and to offer God what he had vowed to Him in his extremity” Kidner, 407.  “The situation was one of deadly threat (3, 8, 15), brought about by...

115:2 Why should the nations say, Where, now, is their God?- 42:3, 10; 79:10; Joel 2:17; Micah 7:10 This question may be “motivated by the fact that the Lord had no idol who represented His presence” Longman, 393. 115:4 the work of man’s hands- Psalm 135:15-18. The word work in vs. 4 is the noun from the verb translated do in vs. 3. The participle is used in vs. 8 to those who make idols. In vs. 1...