PSALMS

A study of the Eucharistic psalms in the post Pentecost season
Twelfth Sunday after Pentecost
23 August 2020

PSALM 124 – Thanksgiving of those who have been delivered

Whilst exploring the psalms, we have noted that they describe and suggest many subjects and moods. It is thus beneficial to know something about the history of the people of Israel from ancient beginnings to New Testament times. We will need to know that the patriarchal age of Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, and Joseph is reflected in many aspects of our spiritual understanding. Paul reflected on the call of Abraham and suggested a type or model for faith in God such that it models what we believe in Christ Jesus.

This psalm of thanksgiving is highly disciplined and intentional in its articulation. It gives thanks for a communal deliverance, though again we are not told anything beyond quite general metaphors.

1       If the Lord had not been on our side
   now may Israel say:
   if the Lord had not been on our side
   when men rose up against us,

This is an expression of more than relief at being rescued from some catastrophe. The actual event is not mentioned in the psalm, so it is not easily dated. One can imagine or recall an event in your life when it passed and you could wipe the sweat off your brow and call out, “Thank goodness, that just missed!” The Israelite in this poem thinking about some event in which God rescued them.

2 Then they would have swallowed us alive
when their anger was kindled against us.

This verse is an extension of the previous enlarging on the closeness of the encounter with the catastrophe. There is a clear hint that this might have been one of the instances in Israelite history where the people figuratively survived being swallowed alive.

3       Then the waters would have overwhelmed us
   and the torrent gone over us:
   the raging waters would have gone clean over us.

There are several stories in the old Testament in which waters are mentioned – the creation story, the story of Noah and the ark, the crossing of the red sea, and the crossing of the Jordan. The conquering armies must have felt like waves rushing to crush the people and totally overwhelm them.

4 But praised be the Lord:
who has not given us as a prey to their teeth.

An act of praise to God who has done so much in rescuing his people. The imagery changes from rushing waves to snapping teeth – the monster is about to eat them.

5 We have escaped like a bird from the snare - of the fowler:
the snare is broken, and we have gone free.

The image of hunting is continued in this verse with references to the snare which is used by the fowler and what makes it pleasing is that the snare is broken. Somehow and the prey has got away, and it is not the work of the prey but the work of God

6 Our help is in the name of the Lord:
who has made heaven and earth.

This is a familiar phrase from our liturgical practice, but it is more than what it says. It is not just that God rescues but that he made the creation in which he works, builds, and saves. We are reminded that in all things the reliable person is God himself! Note that every verse starts with a strong affirmation of God’s sovereignty over all he has made, heaven and earth, waters and snares. Nothing is in doubt at this point in the psalm. It follows a pattern in which the psalm reflects a move from the anxiety of disorientation to the stability and confidence of the new orientation.