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Songs of Ascents Lesson 8 “Psalm 126” Objective: To inspire a greater appreciation of the Psalms, more understanding, an understanding that is far richer, more comforting, more encouraging, and more challenging. We have become a culture that values that which is new and innovative, and this has dramatically affected our usage of the Psalms which are part song book, and part prayer book, and part theological treatise, all at the same time. The Psalms have a way of expressing the deep cries of the soul in powerful and evocative ways that draw us ever more deeply into relationship with God. They are time tested, effective, and God-breathed. The Psalms of Ascents in particular provide some additional challenges and it will be the goal of this study to explore; their usage in both ancient and more modern times. A part of our goal is to demonstrate how they can still be powerfully relevant for us today in our pilgrimage of faith. Materials: The Bible, textbooks, journal articles, maps, charts anD other resources as may be appropriate. Procedures 1. To examine the ancient usage of these Psalms, anD their original context. 2. To seek to unDerstanD the meaning anD impact that these Psalms haD on ancient people. PAGE 1 OF 23 DURATION: SERIES 1 - 8 WEEKS 3. To enDeavor to comprehenD how we shoulD unDerstanD these Psalms in our moDern era while at the same time honoring and respecting the original intent. 4. To allow these ancient Psalms to inspire anD challenge our pilgrimage towarD greater unDerstanDing anD Deeper relationship with GoD. PAGE 2 OF 23 DURATION: SERIES 1 - 8 WEEKS Psalm 126 1 A song of Ascents. When Yahweh restored the fortunes of Zion, we were as those who are dreaming. 2 Then our mouth was Killed with laughter, and our tongue with a joyful shout; then it was said among the nations, “Yahweh has accomplished great things with them. 3 Yahweh has accomplished great things with us, we were joyful. 4 Oh, Yahweh, restore our fortunes like the stream-beds of the Negev. 5 May those sowing in tears reap in praise. 6 May the one who goes out weeping, carrying the seed bag of seed, return with a shout of joy carrying his sheaves. In a great many ways this psalm has proven to be the most challenging so far. A large part of that challenge is in stripping away all the baggage that has been attacheD to this psalm Down through the centuries. This along with our drive and Determination to KinD precision anD speciKicity even where none may have been intenDeD. One of the sources I have been reaDing is Augustine’s Expositions of the Psalms anD in that source he indicates that there is a connection here in verses 1 and 4 with the PAGE 3 OF 23 DURATION: SERIES 1 - 8 WEEKS return of the exiles from Babylon.1 He has some very interesting observations from his 4th-5th A. D. century perspective. It is perhaps the case that some of his observations, anD those of others of inluence, have radiated down through the years to affect our unDerstanDing of this psalm. One of the things that I founD to be very prominent is that the initial unDerstanDing that people bring with them to this psalm, anD to the others in this series, seems to Dominate their perception of what a psalm means from the outset. If they believe that this psalm is about the returning exiles then this becomes the theme that is Dominant, anD if this is not the perception that is the starting point, then the interpretation of this psalm takes a very Different path. Whether that path is that this psalm refers to the exoDus of Israel from Egypt, the great hope brought about by the rise of the Davidic kingship, or some other instance, or instances. NeeDless to say there is a great deal of dispute in this regarD, but there is a a gooD deal of recent scholarship that brings even greater pressure on the more traDitional view that this psalm is aDDressing the situation of the exiles having returneD from the Babylonian captivity. We 1 Augustine, Expositions of the Psalms, in Maria BoulDing, trans., Boniface Ramsey eD., The Works of Saint Augustine III/20, Vol. 6 (HyDe Park NY: New City Press, 2004), pp. 83-97. PAGE 4 OF 23 DURATION: SERIES 1 - 8 WEEKS will begin our study with a detaileD analysis of the text in orDer to allow us to move aheaD in our unDerstanDing baseD upon available eviDence. As we begin this aspect of our stuDy, it is perhaps pruDent to give a warning regarDing the numbering of the Psalms: the numbering both of verses anD the actual number of the psalms themselves Differs often between our English Bibles, the Hebrew text, anD the Greek text. Sometimes English Bibles Do not number the Kirst line, which they consiDer the title of the psalm. This is also, generally the case in the Hebrew text, however, in the Greek text, the numbering incluDes the title in the Kirst verse. In this stuDy, as you may have alreaDy KigureD out we are following the Greek numbering of verses for convenience anD logic. To aDD to the confusion however, if you are looking up the Psalms in the Septuagint you will KinD that Psalm 126 in the Hebrew anD English texts is Psalm 125 in the Greek text. The Vulgate anD the OlD Latin version then follow the Greek numbering for the psalms. We will follow the more traDitional chapter numbering that is useD in the Hebrew (Masoretic) text anD is followeD in the majority of English texts as far as Designating the psalm number. PAGE 5 OF 23 DURATION: SERIES 1 - 8 WEEKS As we begin our interpretation of Psalm 126, we KinD the now very familiar preluDe “A Song of Ascents.” We then move to a set then is time The .(בְ) ”“when time, inDicates that preposition as when GoD diD this thing that is now going to be describeD. The Designation is very generic anD may refer to either a speciKic instance or to something more general such as each time Yahweh may have Done something like this (as in seeD-time anD harvest). We then have the Divine name the Tetragrammaton (Yahweh Whether action. the performeD who of Designation the as (יְ֭הוָה the psalm was intenDeD to reference a single instance, or every instance that Yahweh maDe such a thing to happen is not speciKieD in the text. That is the easy part. Then comes the phrase that is useD here, anD is repeateD in a Different form in 4a, which has createD enormous confusion. Some translations have interpreteD this rare worD phrase in the sense of Yahweh having “turneD again the captivity of Zion” (KJV), or something similar. This has leD to interpretations that linkeD this psalm to a return of Israel from exile. Naturally then, focus goes to a time after the Babylonian captivity. This interpretation then woulD Date this psalm to sometime after the return of the exiles: some Kive centuries later PAGE 6 OF 23 DURATION: SERIES 1 - 8 WEEKS than the time of Solomon anD DaviD. Though this is certainly a possibility, there are alternatives offered through careful examination of this phrase, especially in light of moDern archaeological inds. The noun useD in this section is founD only here in the OlD Testament. For this reason, many scholars prefer to emenD the or shevit),) שְבִית as such form common more a to here useD form of accusatives cognate a as used are which of both shévut);) שְבות the of meaning the recently, Until 14:7). Ps see shuv;) שוב verb the noun useD in Psalm 126:1 was not unDerstooD very well at all, but in discoveries of the The Aramaic treaties of Seire, Fitzmyer be should shivit) שִיבַ֣ת) 126 Psalm in useD worD the that inDicates שוב of accusative cognate a as unDerstooD be shoulD anD retaineD, (shuv). This then means that there is no neeD to change the text that has been passeD Down to us. The phrase then means literally, something like “turns with a turning [towarD] his people.”2 It seems to me that it is always preferable to KinD a solution that does not entail us changing the words in the Hebrew text, unless we are compelleD to Do so by substantive eviDence. Leslie Allen 2 Joseph A. Fitzmyer, The Aramaic Inscriptions of Seire, in the Biblica et Orientalia series, 19 (Rome, Italy: PontiKical Biblical Institute, 1967), pp. 119-120. PAGE 7 OF 23 DURATION: SERIES 1 - 8 WEEKS also cites the KinD of the Aramaic Documents from the 8th century B.C. (Nr. 224, line 24 - “the goDs brought about the restoration [of my father’s house]”).3 This same general range of meaning seems to be conKirmeD in a paper written by Bracke. He concluDes that the associateD phrase šûb šebût, which is far more common than the one we have in Psalm 126, in the other literary contexts of the OlD Testament, is a technical term referring to a moDel of restoration that is most frequently characterizeD by Yahweh’s reversal of his juDgment (Jeremiah 30-33; Job 42:10; Psalm 85:1-3; Zephaniah 2:5-7; 3:20; Lamentation 2:13; Amos 9:14-15; Joel 1-3; Deuteronomy 30:3; Ezekiel 16:53; 39:25).4 In light of all of this, it seems to me preferable to retain the Hebrew text and therefore, the best translation would be something like that of the NRSV, “restoreD the fortunes of Zion, ….” Questions then are still open as to what has been restoreD, to whom anD when.