I’m a big LOTR fan, and as I did this bible study, Bilbo’s traveling song came to mind… “the road goes ever on and on, down from the door where it began.” The letter daleth which is used for this octave of Psalm 119. Daleth, along with the He (and very rarely Gimel) is used to represent the Names of God in Judaism. The letter He is used commonly, and the Daleth is rarer. It means door, or curtain to tent. And the first step to getting on the road is to go through the door.
Psalms 119:25-32 DALETH: My soul clings to the dust; give me life according to Your Word. (26) I have declared my ways, and You hear me; teach me Your Precepts. (27) Make me to understand the way of Your Commandments, and I will speak of Your wonderful works. (28) My soul weeps for grief; strengthen me according to Your Word. (29) Remove from me the way of lying; and grant me Your Law graciously. (30) I have chosen the way of truth; I have laid Your judgments before me. (31) I have stuck to Your testimonies; O Jehovah, do not put me to shame. (32) I will run the way of Your Commandments, when You shall enlarge my heart.
My soul clings to the dust… dust in this instance is the same word used in the creation story and used in many other places in the bible. In Leviticus 14:42 it is mortar. In Ezekiel 26:4 it is the remains of the city Tyrus. It is used to describe the multitude of Abram’s descendants in Genesis 13:16. It means complete defeat in 2 Kings 13:7 and humiliation in Job 16:15. Give me life… in Hebrew this is a word meaning to be alive, to live, and to keep alive. It’s not the same word as in Genesis where God breathed life into Adam. Here is it used to describe an ongoing process. We are flawed and defeated, it’s inherent to our nature. But God continually gives us life. His mercy is new every morning. The psalmist grieves for his sinful condition and confesses (declares) it – God hears that and responds as He promised. “Hear” is not just a passive word like someone sitting quietly and listening. It is ‛ānāh (ְלַענּוֹת) which has several definitions. It can mean a simple reply, but it is also used in the Song of Solomon for the lover’s response, in Genesis and Deuteronomy it has legal implications, and it can mean to sing and shout as in a victory song. Our confessions are heard and responded to on several levels. The rejoicing of a lover reunited with his beloved, a fulfilled contract of confession and forgiveness, and a victory against the powers and principalities that encourage us to sin. [Read more...]
