Now we get some (mercifully short) songs of praise. The fun thing about these is that they cast Yahweh as the greatest among a pantheon of gods. That's how people thought about gods in the time most of the Tanakh was written. You've got your god, we've got ours, but ours is the baddest baddass of all the gods. This is somewhat different from polytheistic religions. All the Roman or Norse gods were gods of the Romans or Norsemen, although Jupiter and Odin were the head honchos.
So the basic structure of the Deuteronomistic history is that when the Israelites please God, he gives them victory over their neighbors, whose gods can't stand up to him; but when they displease him, he lets them down. So the fall of Jerusalem and the Babylonian captivity aren't any reflection on Yahweh's powers, it's just that the Judeans somehow pissed him off. These songs were undoubtedly written before then, however. Psalm 95 refers to the (fictional) exile in the wilderness. Note verse 3. In Psalm 96, note verses 4 and 5. In Psalm 97, note verses 7 through 9.
95 O come, let us sing to the Lord;
let us make a joyful noise to the rock of our salvation!
2 Let us come into his presence with thanksgiving;
let us make a joyful noise to him with songs of praise!
3 For the Lord is a great God,
and a great King above all gods.
4 In his hand are the depths of the earth;
the heights of the mountains are his also.
5 The sea is his, for he made it;
for his hands formed the dry land.6 O come, let us worship and bow down,
let us kneel before the Lord, our Maker!
7 For he is our God,
and we are the people of his pasture,
and the sheep of his hand.O that today you would hearken to his voice!
8 Harden not your hearts, as at Mer′ibah,
as on the day at Massah in the wilderness,
9 when your fathers tested me,
and put me to the proof, though they had seen my work.
10 For forty years I loathed that generation
and said, “They are a people who err in heart,
and they do not regard my ways.”
11 Therefore I swore in my anger
that they should not enter my rest.
96 O sing to the Lord a new song;
sing to the Lord, all the earth!
2 Sing to the Lord, bless his name;
tell of his salvation from day to day.
3 Declare his glory among the nations,
his marvelous works among all the peoples!
4 For great is the Lord, and greatly to be praised;
he is to be feared above all gods.
5 For all the gods of the peoples are idols;
but the Lord made the heavens.
6 Honor and majesty are before him;
strength and beauty are in his sanctuary.7 Ascribe to the Lord, O families of the peoples,
ascribe to the Lord glory and strength!
8 Ascribe to the Lord the glory due his name;
bring an offering, and come into his courts!
9 Worship the Lord in holy array;
tremble before him, all the earth!10 Say among the nations, “The Lord reigns!
Yea, the world is established, it shall never be moved;
he will judge the peoples with equity.”
11 Let the heavens be glad, and let the earth rejoice;
let the sea roar, and all that fills it;
12 let the field exult, and everything in it!
Then shall all the trees of the wood sing for joy
13 before the Lord, for he comes,
for he comes to judge the earth.
He will judge the world with righteousness,
and the peoples with his truth.
97 The Lord reigns; let the earth rejoice;
let the many coastlands be glad!
2 Clouds and thick darkness are round about him;
righteousness and justice are the foundation of his throne.
3 Fire goes before him,
and burns up his adversaries round about.
4 His lightnings lighten the world;
the earth sees and trembles.
5 The mountains melt like wax before the Lord,
before the Lord of all the earth.6 The heavens proclaim his righteousness;
and all the peoples behold his glory.
7 All worshipers of images are put to shame,
who make their boast in worthless idols;
all gods bow down before him.
8 Zion hears and is glad,
and the daughters of Judah rejoice,
because of thy judgments, O God.
9 For thou, O Lord, art most high over all the earth;
thou art exalted far above all gods.10 The Lord loves those who hate evil;[a]
he preserves the lives of his saints;
he delivers them from the hand of the wicked.
11 Light dawns[b] for the righteous,
and joy for the upright in heart.
12 Rejoice in the Lord, O you righteous,
and give thanks to his holy name!Footnotes
- Psalm 97:10 Cn: Heb You who love the Lord hate evil
- Psalm 97:11 Gk Syr Jerome: Heb is sown
1 comment:
Although it isn't consistent (at least in this translation, which alternately uses "god" and "ido"l), nevertheless Psalms 96 and 97 do seem to distinguish between other gods as idols, whereas the god of the Israelites is the only true God, who made the universe.
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