Psalms: Yesterday, Todah, and Forever
-it is difficult to ‘teach’ the psalms because they are meant to be prayed, not studied in a purely academic way; nevertheless, we will proceed.
The psalms as a book: a.) Authorship: Mainly David -This is disputed because the Hebrew subscripts mean both ‘to’ or ‘by’ David-- which would change who wrote it. b.) Date: 10th cent. B.C.- 5th cent B.C. (Babylonian exile)-4th cent B.C. (return) c.) Structure: 5 “Books” or scrolls (collections) Book I: 1-41 (David’s Rise to kingship and suffering as king) Book II: 42-72 (David’s Height & Solomon’s reign) Book III: 73-89 (Decline & collapse of the Kingdom) Book IV: 90- 106 (Exile) Book V: 107-150 (Restoration of Zion-return from exile) -There is a roughly chronological arrangement-mentioned above
Structure of Hebrew poetry Colon- line of poetry Bicola- 2 lines, Tricola= 3 lines, etc. -Psalms are usually built on Bicola -Ps 1:1 is a tricola (walks not in the counsel…, nor stands…, nor sits…) -tricola are unusual, done to impress a point -Ps 1:2, 5, & 6 are bicola Different parallelisms used: 1.) Synonymous- (i.e. Ps 1:5) two colons which say the same thing 2.) Antithetical- (i.e. Ps 1:6) two colons that contrast […but… (opposites)] 3.) Synthetic- grab bag (anything else—parallelism of idea, rhyming, etc.)
What does “Selah” mean in the margins? Nobody knows (maybe an indication for a guitar solo…) Importance of the Todah Todah- ‘praise’, sacrifice of praise -Lev 7- gives instruction for this sacrifice which has the following characteristics: 1.) Voluntary offering-unlike sin offerings which you had to do 2.) Bread is eaten with it-unique 3.) Followed an act of deliverance from distress 4.) Festive, a feast -frequently, there would be too much food and it would need to be eaten in a day; they would invite many others to feast-- that’s why the poor hung out around the temple
“Todah cycle”: 1.) A person is in distress- (i.e. ‘I am sick’, dying, etc.) 2.) They cry out to the Lord 3.) They make a vow to offer the todah 4.) God delivers them 5.) They pay the vow 6.) They feast 7.) They give praise/thanksgiving -# 3 & 4 are sometimes implicit in the psalms; 5-7 can be in any order -this is important because several psalms reflect the whole cycle; many others reflect part of the cycle -David did the Todah a lot! He also encouraged the people to do likewise.
Psalm 22 has the whole cycle -starts with distress -vs 19-21: cry out to the Lord -vs 22: promise to pay the vow -vs 23-24: praise (there must have been a deliverance) -vs 25: paying of the vow -vs 26: feasting
The whole book of psalms has this structure as well -starts with mostly laments, ends with mostly praise and thanksgiving -this is the structure of salvation history as well -Closely related to the mass- which is also a ‘sacrifice of praise’ -the psalms were written for the Todah, a sacrifice of thanksgiving with feasting and bread, which is why they work well with the Eucharist
Relationship of Psalms with the Davidic Covenant Contrast Mosaic and Davidic Covenant Mosaic Davidic Mountain- Mt. Sinai Mountain- Zion (Moriah) Sanctuary- tabernacle (movable) Sanctuary- Temple (fixed) Leadership- prophetic Leadership- royal/priestly Government- national Government- international Primary Sacrifice- ‘ola (burnt offering) Primary Sacrifice- todah (thanksgiving) Liturgy-silence Liturgy-song -David institutes orders of Levitical singers and musicians
The new covenant is a transformation of the Davidic covenant -Jesus doesn’t restore the Mosaic covenant, but the Davidic -Jesus reigns from Zion, His temple is built of Living Stones, institutes a royal- priesthood (bishops), blessing is available for everyone, todah (Eucharist) is pri- mary sacrifice, songs-psalms in liturgy -Moses is important in the OT (700x mentioned); however, David is mentioned more (1000x)-Jesus is the son of David, not Moses -ignorance of David causes confusion: how do we get from Moses to Jesus -bringing ark into the temple in 1 Kings is symbolic of the Mosaic covenant being as- sumed by the Davidic covenant
Reading the Psalms: We are reading the Psalms for the allegorical sense; remember that there are 3 senses of scripture aside from the literal sense Moral-self, how to behave Allegorical- reference to Christ Anagogical- heaven/hell & last things
Psalm 1 -talks about the way of righteousness and the way of wickedness -this is a wisdom psalm, but the psalms are not primarily didactic (teaching) literature—it is interesting that the first psalm implies this -if we travel with David’s story we will become wise -‘the fear of the Lord is the beginning of Wisdom’ (fear=worship) -the psalms are written for worship, expressing the different emotions of our life
Psalm 2-the royal introduction to the Psalter ***psalm 2 is the most important psalm for the new testament---Royal son of David*** -the great commission of Jesus is the fulfillment of this psalm -it is a song teaching vassal kings about the special relationship between God and the Da- vidic king (royal enthronement psalm) -The Psalter not only teaches us about wisdom (psalm 1), but about the royal Son of David (Christ) -inclusio between beginning Ps 1 and end of Ps 2 (bookend “blessed…blessed”) -Jesus and rich man: first tells Ps 1 (ethics), then says ‘follow me’ Ps 2 (royal son of David) Important verses in Ps 2 for Jesus Vs. 8- All Jesus has to do is to ask for the kingdom (relates to the temptation in the desert); and is the background for Matt 28:18 “All authority on heaven and earth has been given…” Vs. 7- ‘You are my son’-covenant relationship between the Lord and David (Said at the Baptism and the Transfiguration of Jesus) Acts 4:25-26- mentions the fulfillment of the conspiracy of the nations in Christ’s passion Rev 12- ‘a women clothed with the sun…with child…she brought forth a male child… rule the nations with a rod of iron’ (Ps 2:9)
Psalm 8-The Son of Man Vs. 4 -who is the ‘man’ & the ‘son of man’? 4 meanings: 1) Adam & Seth 2) David & Solomon 3) the whole human race 4) Humanity and the Messiah In Jewish Tradition, everything that follows in vs. 5-9 applies to the ‘son of man’: -therefore, Solomon doesn’t really fit perfectly; he is an image of the Messiah to come -the 2nd Temple period talks a lot about the “Son of man” having divine qualities When Jesus calls himself the Son of Man—people would see 2 meanings: 1.) A Guy 2.) The messiah, the one like God! -has dominion over fish (sea of Galilea), storms, etc. -‘little less than God’, but the book of Hebrews says-“for a little while less than God”--- refers to the Incarnation, so Christ is not less than God forever: He is exalted on High after the resurrection.
Psalm 22-“My God, my God, why have you abandoned me?” -How do we see the typology fulfilled here in Christ? 1.) Jesus quotes psalm 22:1 on the cross, this is calling to mind the whole psalm in the minds of Jews who hear it. This psalm contains the whole Todah cycle which begins with desperation but ends in triumph and thanksgiving-meaning that Jesus’ sacrifice on the Cross is the New TODAH! His sacrifice is a liturgical action! The Eucharist is the NEW TODAH! 2.) Divide Garments, cast lots 3.) Count all my bones 4.) Pierced hands and feet 5.) Mock at me, wag their heads “let God deliver him” 6.) Poured out like water (Jn 19:37) 7.) Tongue cleaves to jaw 8.) Poor shall eat & be satisfied (Eucharist) 9.) v 2- ‘find no rest’, sleepless at passion ‘no place to rest head’ 10.) v 13,21- the ‘lion’ adversary=Satan in NT 11.) v 27, 28- correspond to Mt 18:28ff-Great commission -international character (David brought in other nations, Gittites, Hittites, etc.) 12.) v 31- continuity of church through generations 13.) v 9-10- reference to Mary’s role 14.) v 29- is this the descent into Hell? connected to v 15 15.) v 14- dislocation of joints in crucifixion 16.) v 29- humbling of the proud before Christ-Phil 2
Psalm 23-“The Lord is my shepherd” -takes on a new meaning if read immediately after Psalm 22: “Even though I walk in the valley of the shadow of death”—referring to Jesus—and if you read the next psalm in succession…
Psalm 24-“Lift up you gates” -Jesus ascends into heaven, opening the gates shut by Adam’s sin. Jesus alone is worthy to “ascend the mountain” of the Lord! Wisdom Literature: Proverbs, Song of Songs, and Wisdom
Proverbs The core of the proverbs come from King Solomon’s court, others come from sages and kings
4 Points about the nature of wisdom in Proverbs: 1.) Wisdom is covenantal (implicitly) a) The way the reader is addressed is as SON (2:1 ‘my son…’) -son is filial and covenantal (Father and Son are superior and inferior part- ners in a covenant (I will be a father to him and he will be a son to me) -Solomon calls us ‘son’, therefore, if we heed his wisdom, we will enter into the Davidic covenant through the ‘son of David’ -this is similar to the New Covenant: Jesus is in filial relationship with God; we enter into this relationship by accepting his Holy Spirit---Wisdom is linked close- ly to the Spirit -Solomon pours out Wisdom from Zion; foreshadows Christ pouring out the Holy Spirit from the heavenly Zion b) Covenantal structure of the book. -Intro: ch 1-9 -1.) Solomon I: 10-22 -2.) ‘wise’ I: 22-24 -3.) ‘wise’ II: 24:23-34 -4.) Solomon II: 25-29 -5.) Agur: 30:1-14 -6.) Numerical Proverbs: 30:15-33 -7.) Lemuel 31:1-9 -Epilogue 31:10-31 -if we take out the intro and the epilogue, we have 7 sections: “Wisdom has set up her house…7 pillars” 7 is the covenant num- ber -Following Wisdom is like getting married to Lady Wisdom; fol- lowing folly is associated with adultery and prostitution 2.) Wisdom is Nuptial -there is the personification of wisdom as the ‘ideal wife’-wisdom incarnate as a woman…very interesting. The women keep the fabric of society going: they maintain the family unit- which is the core of society -throughout the book, the “son” is encouraged to find a worthy wife or stay faithful to his wife. This is also true on the spiritual level, you want to espouse yourself to the Holy Spirit
3.) Wisdom is Spiritual -Gen 41:38ff “Can we find such a man…in whom is the Spirit of God? Since God has shown you all this, there is none so…wise as you are” -Isaiah 11:1ff “Spirit of the LORD shall rest upon him, the spirit of wisdom and under- standing…” -Proverbs 8:22ff –origins of wisdom: Wisdom is pre-existent---the Fathers saw this as pointing to Christ, but we can also see it as the Holy Spirit; it may also be more appropri- ate because it is seen as a feminine aspect all throughout the OT
4.) Wisdom is Transcendent -you can’t learn it on your own, it must be given to you from above Proverbs 26:4-5--- 2 ‘contradictory’ proverbs, what’s going on? There is a limit to what you can be taught by these sayings because you must have a certain wisdom to be able to apply either one at the proper time or place -Wisdom vs. Intelligence: Wisdom has a moral quality (ex. Nazis were very intelligent, but very foolish)
Proverbs 31:10-31 “Ideal Wife” (woman of Valor) -“Valor”-Hi-eel in Hebrew-used to describe David’s warriors -there is something profound about calling this ‘simple’ woman ‘Valorous’- In God’s sight, mundane tasks done well can take on the greatest significance. -her tasks are not unimportant (as the world views it) *In Germany it used to be said that woman’s role was Kirche, Kuchen, und Kinder (Church, Kitchen, and children)-may seem chauvanistic, but if we look at it seriously it means: eternal salvation, sustenance-survival (daily bread), and future of human race!! - we see this also in Pr. 31: the woman creates an environment for communion and love -she is more than an ancient model of womanhood- in Pr 3:15 wisdom is called “more precious than jewels”; in Pr. 31:10 the good wife is said to be more precious than jewel- s-this is an INCLUSIO that shows the feminine or nuptial imagery of wisdom. -She has fortitude and strength. These are not typically female virtues in the bible. -we see her as a type of the Church-the Ideal wife -she clothes her children in the garments of righteousness, the teaching of right- eousness is upon her tongue -She is also a type of Mary -In Conclusion, Wisdom is: Church, Mary, Wisdom, and the ideal wife
-Throughout the book, the ‘son’ is warned to stay away from the adulterer and be faithful to the wife of his youth- Pr 5:15ff -For a Priest, the “Ideal wife” is the Church
Song of Songs -It is erotic love poetry, placed at about the middle of the Bible: -Salvation history started with a marriage of Adam and Eve, Ended with Wedding of the Lamb, Song of Songs in the middle-about a man and woman in a garden (all three are in a garden actually) -it was probably not written by one person, rather a collection of love poems that were put together; certain themes tie them together (longing) -What is going on? What is the Plot? -There is no real plot -it seems like the bride and bridegroom get together in the middle but at the end, she is still a ‘wall’ calling to the bridegroom. -Dr. Bergsma interprets this as a dream sequence “Do not awaken the ‘loved one’ until she please” (the bride is imagining the pleasure of the lover) -if he is right, this book is like the book of Revelation, seeing a vision of the con- summation, but at the end, the Spirit and the Bride still are saying ‘come’ -The groom is called ‘my beloved’—which means ‘my DAVID’ -It is about human love, so we do not need to deny the natural meaning-love between Solomon and a Shulamite woman; but that is not all there is to it -it was read Messianicaly by the Jews: they read it in Exile. Solomon is the quin- tessential bridegroom (a marriage a week for the whole of his life—700 wives and 300 concubines) and we are the bride, espoused to the Son of David. When the new Son of David comes, he will espouse himself to us again. -The predominant mood in this book is longing:
Structure *this is designed to be sung by multiple parts (possibly a song sung at weddings) 1.) Opening colloquy 1:1-2:7 2.) Bridegrooms’s invitation to Elope 2:8-17 3.) First Dream Sequence 3:1-5 4.) Vision of Solomon and his bride 3:6-5:1 5.) Second Dream Sequence 5:2-6:10 6.) Day Dream Sequence 6:11-7:4 7.) Epilogue 8:5-14
Ch 2:8-17 -This is read in Advent, shortly before Christmas “The time has come for love”- Jesus is the Messianic Bridegroom who will say to Jerusalem, “come away, the wedding feast is prepared”
Ch 3-she is asleep…no transition from the last scene to this one -it’s like she just woke up from a dream about the last scene -this gives a ‘dreamlike’ quality to the whole book: are the events happening or is the bride imagining things? -she seems to be the ‘love’ that she doesn’t want the daughters to wake or arouse, because she is having such a pleasant dream of her beloved -even at the end of the book the marriage has not been consummated, the last things that come out of the bride’s mouth is an invitation to come to be married - The Jews reading this saw this that the marriage had not yet happened and they were waiting with anticipation for the Messiah to wed them (Israel and Messiah) -When Jesus comes and uses bridegroom imagery about himself, he is telling the Jews that this ‘marriage’ has come (Christ and the Church) -We are technically waiting for the consummation when all is completed -end of Revelation: 22:17- The Spirit and the Bride say ‘Come’…Surely I am coming soon. Amen. Come Lord Jesus! -We can also see the marriage then as our souls to Christ; as well as the Holy Spirit and us as the ‘son’; as well as a Priest and the Church These are all various types of TYPOLOGY
Why is there erotic love poetry in the Bible? Read Pope Benedict’s Encyclical Deus Caritas Est -Talks about 4 names for love: Agape, Philia, Eros, and Pornea -He says that Love involves not only Agape (total self-giving), but Eros-(romantic love)-as well. Eros is good in married love, Pornea (lust) is never good anywhere -ultimately, the messianic reading of the Song of Songs is what convinced the Jewish people to include it in the Bible -the physicality of the Song of Songs, some think, is the spiritual love of God and we must transcend the physical to get at the meaning—this is true, but… -it still remains physical love, they are speaking to us of an embodied love-which will ultimately come to us in Christ.
Types in the Song of Songs
1) Frankincese and Myrrh are used when the adulteress spiced her bed (in Proverbs) and in the royal wedding song of Solomon, not to mention gifts given to Jesus. Jesus is the Eschatological (end times) bridegroom -Jesus is laid in a ‘virginal’ tomb (no one was buried there before) after being anointed with myrrh and aloes -Jn 12-Mary (sinner) anoints Jesus with nard-Song of Songs is the only OT book to mention nard-it is a romantic perfume. Jesus says that she is anointing him for his death…his death therefore is his wedding consummation. Christ’s death on the cross is his nuptial self-giving.
2) The Well/Fountain: There is a connection of the “fountain sealed” to the Book of Revelation and the woman at the well -John 4- “I will give you living water…he will become a well of living water”- chock full of nuptial imagery. -The woman at the well is a Samaritan… what did they do to the Son of David? They “divorced” him in the OT (rejected him as king). This woman has been di- vorced SEVERAL TIMES and Jesus is “wooing” her back -All the patriarchs met their wives at a well
3) Nuptial/Liturgical -Eden-Temple-Sanctuary-Feminine all tie together -Adam-Priest-Masculine-Messiah- all tie together -When a Priest enters into the sanctuary and celebrates the liturgy, he brings about communion with God which brings forth new life in the community. -When a Husband and wife come together, they enter into communion with each other and their love gives new life to the world. 4) Marian Types -Flower of Sharon-Ch 2-identification of Mary-she is the bride who remains forever ‘the wall’-virginal, yet still fruitful
WISDOM -Not written by Solomon, but has the Solomonic charism, truly expressing his wisdom -deals with the wicked and the persecution of the virtuous Ch 2- Talks about “errors” of “the fool” and “enemies of God”; which are quite relevant for us today: -denial of resurrection, -born by chance (Darwinism), -Materialism-only matter exists, -Hedonism-search for pleasure, -Consumerism-acquiring stuff, -“Nietsche-ism”: strength is the norm for justice: weakness is useless -In short, all the modern heresies in society are not new!!!
Chapters 1-5: The virtuous are blessed in light of the resurrection Ch 7-9: Combines images of Wisdom and the Holy Spirit -wisdom is the breath of God -wisdom is equated with: “bride” and Holy Spirit (later in Catholic Tradition also Mary and the Church)