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 function,and is a good illustration of how the psalm as a poetic form of spiritual expressions often stands outside the generic categories that scholars have constructed” Alden, 457.

131:1 O LORD, my heart is not proud- The word proud is used of Uzziah in II Chron. 26:16, Hezekiah in II Chron. 32:25, the king of Tyre in Ezek. 28:2, 17.

nor my eyes haughty- Pss. 18:27; 101:5; Prov. 6:17; 30:13 “It would be easy to make this verse an excuse to avoid the challenges of life. But the sin rejected in 1a is pride, while the sin of 1b is presumption. By the first of these, one undervalues other people; by the second, one overestimates and overreaches oneself, forgetting, e.g. Deut. 29:29” Kidner, 447.

Nor do I involve myself in great matters- Jer. 45:5

or in things too difficult for me- Deut. 17:8; 30:11 “These two words are used in Pss. 86:10; 136:4; and 145:5-6 to describe the works of God in the world. The psalmist has not sought to do or take credit for Godlike acts in the world” NICOT, 931.

131:2 Surely, I have composed and quieted my soul- Composed is used in II Sam. 22:34; Ps. 18:33 of God making his feet sure and in Isaiah 28:25 of leveling ground. The verb quieted is used in Ps. 37:7 and translated rest.

My soul is like a weaned child within me- A child not weaned “is fussy and restless” Longman, 433. But here “he was content without that which used to seem indispensable. A mature believer leaves the clamor of proud ambition and rests in the Lord” B.K, 887

131:3 O Israel, hope in the LORD- 130:5, 7 To hope in the LORD “is the antithesis of pride” B.K., 887. “We do not know, but its call to hope in the Lord links it with 130 and makes it the testimony of a sinner forgiven: humbled by the mercy of God, at peace within because at peace above” Motyer, 575.

From this time forth and forever- 113:2; 121:8; 125:2

Jesus and Psalm 131
“This demure little psalm anticipates the object lesson of Matt. 18:1-4” Kidner, 447. “It is freedom from the nagging of self-seeking” Kidner, 448. “The OT is not alone in making a child the model of humble faith in God” Allen, 199.

Matt. 19:13-15; Mark 10:13-16; Luke 18:15-17 If we do not enter the kingdom as a child we do not enter it at all.

“In Philippians 2 we are shown the constructive answer to the first of these tempations, in the honor of being a servant; and in Philippians 3, I Cor. 2, the answer to the second, not by stifling adventurousness but by rightly directing it” Kidner, 447. This psalm “embodies the lessons of both Philippians 2:3ff. (‘Do nothing from selfishness or conceit’) as 4:11ff. (‘I have learned…to be content’)” Kidner, 448.

John 4:34 If we make His ambition ours then we free ourselves from many problems

The word used for in vs. 1 in the LXX for heart being proud is exalted and it is used of Christ on the cross in John 3:14; 8:28; 12:32.
It is also used in Matt. 23:12; Luke 14:11; 18:14.

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 2:2-6 This is “a figure of speech suggesting his insurmountable difficulty, even to the point of death:…The exact problem is not specified” B.K, 886.

I have cried to You, O LORD- Ps. 17:6; 86:7. Is the I used of the author individually or the people collectively? “In v. 1, the psalm-singer addresses God by the divine name YHWH: in v. 2, the psalmist uses the more generic Lord (adonay). The pattern (divine name followed by generic name) is repeated in vv. 3-4 and in vv. 5-6. Only in vv. 7-8 is the divine name YHWH used twice” NICOT, 927.

130:2 Lord, hear my voice!- Ps. 4:1; 64:1;102:2; 119:149; 141:1 .
Let your ear be attentive- II Chron. 6:40; 7:15; Neh. 1:6, 11 “What is clear in all such passages is that self-help is no answer to the depths of distress, however useful it may be in the shallows of self-pity” Kidner, 446.

To the voice of my supplications- Ps. 28:2; 140:6 “The Hebrew word translated supplications comes from the same root as those render ‘grace’ and ‘be gracious’” Miller, 411.

130:3 If You, LORD, should mark iniquities- Iniquities “is the primary word used to describe human sin and guilt in the prophetic writings” NICOT, 928. The word iniquities will reappear in vs. 8. “If He should deal with us exactly as we are; if He should overlook nothing, forgive nothing, we could have no hope” Barnes, 259.

O Lord, who can stand?- Ezra 9:15; Ps. 76:7; Amos 7:2; Nah. 1:6; Mal. 3:2; Rev. 6:17. This is “an adaptation of the question of the entrance liturgy ( ‘who shall stand’ 24:3; 15:1)” Allen, 192.

Compare the thought of I Kings 8:46; Psalm 143:2; Prov. 20:9; Rom. 3:9-20, 23.
130:4 But there is forgiveness with You- Exod. 34:7; Neh. 9:17; Dan. 9:9. “He derives comfort from the known character of Yahweh as a God who forgives (cf. 86:5, 15): this divine quality transcends man’s sinfulness” Allen, 195.

That I may be feared- Jer. 33:8-9 “Forgiveness increases the sinner’s reverent awe of and trust in Yahweh (cf. I Kings 8:38-40)” Allen, 192.

130:5 I wait for the LORD, my soul does wait- Ps. 25:3, 5; 27:14; 33:20; 37:34; 40:1; 52:9; 62:1, 5; Isa. 8:17; 26:8 Notice the shift from 2nd person (vss. 1-4) to 3rd person (verses 5-8).

And in His word do I hope- Ps. 119:74, 81, 114, 147 The word hope appears in both vs. 5 & vs. 7.

130:6 My soul waits for the LORD- A similar phrase is used in Judges 5:9 with “my heart goes out to the commanders” Allen, 192..

More than the watchman for the morning- “He compared his weight to that of a city’s watchman looking for the first rays of dawn, for then they would be relieved of their duties by other guards” B.K., 886.

Indeed, more than the watchmen for the morning- The verb waits is missing in the Hebrew text but it added in some translations like the NIV because it is implied- VanGemeren, 802.

130:7 O Israel, hope in the LORD- 131:3 “The psalmist’s faith and hope impel him…to encourage others to be faithful and hopeful (Pss. 22:22-23; 27:14; 31:23-24; 32:8-11; 34:3, 5, 8-14; 51:13-14; 131:3)” McCann, 1206. “The morning will dawn; the light will break in the east; deliverance and joy will come” Barnes, 260.

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. 1-2 is used in 120:6; 123:4. In the NRSV is translated greatly. “A comparison of the NIV with the NRSV shows that the adverb at the beginning of vv. 1-2 can be construed to indicate either the frequency of the opposition or its severity” McCann, 1203.

“The religious community is encouraged by a cultic precentor to take upon their own lips a testimony to Yahweh’s repeated aid” Allen, 190. “The first-person language makes this initially sound like an individual complaint, but as the references to ‘the haters of Zion’ in verse 5 indicates, the first person is speaking on behalf of the nation” Alter, 453. “The communal lament differs from most laments in that it mourns an extended period rather than a single event” Transforming Word, 498.

from my youth up- Jer. 2:2; 22:21; Ezek. 16:22; Hos. 2:15; 11:1 Israel’s youth was a time of devotion (Jer. 2:2) and joy (Hos. 2:15), but also a time of disobedience (Jer. 22:21), yet God loved them and showed them mercy anyway (Ezek. 16:22; Hos. 11:1).

Let Israel now say- 118:2; 124:1 “In the subsequent interpretation in terms of ‘Israel’ this religious truth received even wider warrant: it could trace back to the Exodus (cf. Hos. 11:1) the history of God’s saving grace over against the oppressor’s plowlike scourge (cf. Isa. 1:5-7; 51:23)” Allen, 190.

“National memoirs may be written from the standpoint of achievement and attainment, of from the viewpoint of suffering and survival. While secular nations usually choose the former, it is singular that Israel glorifies God as her protector and preserver” Miller, 409.

129:2 Many times they have persecuted me from my youth up- Ps. 88:15 The repetition fixes their thoughts on the severity of their troubles- Barnes, 255.

Yet they have not prevailed against me- Jer. 1:19; 15:20; 20:11; Matt. 16:18; II Cor. 4:8-9. This does not promise God’s people will not suffer, but it does promise that wickedness will not ultimately prevail.

129:3 The plowers plowed upon my back- Micah 3:12; Isaiah 51:23 The plow would pass over the field, tear up the sod, pierce deep and produce long rows- Barnes, 256. “This agricultural image for laceration and torment, is vivid enough in itself, leads to the agricultural simile of the curse in verses 6-8” Alter, 453. “The imagery of plowing furrows describes the extreme suffering that the enemies inflicted on Israel” B.K, 886. The words for plowers and wicked are very similar in Hebrew and a Hebrew manuscript from Qumran has wicked- Allen, 187.

They lengthened their furrows

129:4 The LORD is righteous- Ps. 119:137 In permitting this, the LORD is righteous. “Deliverance from such suffering is attributed to the righteous LORD” B.K., 886. The LORD’s righteousness is demonstrated in the judgment upon Israel’s enemies. “The mystery of the continual resilience of God’s city and people is thereby explained. V. 4 triumphantly amplifies (v. 2b), after (v. 3) has grimly developed (v. 2a). To use J.B. Philips paraphrase of II Cor. 4:9, the capital and community were often knocked down, but never knocked out. They revived and survived as a testimony to a long history of God’