Psalm 98
Hey there!
This is the first post in my experiment on using blogs and podcasts to engage biblical texts. For an overview of what we're doing, check out my last post "An Experiment." Today, I'm posting the text of the piece of scripture we're looking at, and giving a set of questions to guide our conversation. You guys post your responses/reactions on the "comments" link at the bottom of the page. Ready? I'm so excited! I hope this works!
Psalm 98
(God's Kingship)
1 O sing to the LORD a new song,
for he has done marvelous things.
His right hand and his holy arm
have gotten him victory.
2 The LORD has made known his victory;
he has revealed his vindication in the sight of the nations.
3 He has remembered his steadfast love and faithfulness
to the house of Israel.
All the ends of the earth have seen
the victory of our God.
4 Make a joyful noise to the LORD, all the earth;
break forth into joyous song and sing praises.
5 Sing praises to the LORD with the lyre,
with the lyre and the sound of melody.
6 With trumpets and the sound of the horn
make a joyful noise before the King, the LORD.
7 Let the sea roar, and all that fills it;
the world and those who live in it.
8 Let the floods clap their hands;
let the hills sing together for joy
9 at the presence of the LORD, for he is coming
to judge the earth.
He will judge the world with righteousness,
and the peoples with equity.
Now, the questions:
Right now, I'm just gathering first impressions with the passage. If you want to ID yourself by your first name, that will make it easier for me to know who you are. If you'd rather stay anonymous, that's totally cool too.
Thank you!
Love,
Becky
This is the first post in my experiment on using blogs and podcasts to engage biblical texts. For an overview of what we're doing, check out my last post "An Experiment." Today, I'm posting the text of the piece of scripture we're looking at, and giving a set of questions to guide our conversation. You guys post your responses/reactions on the "comments" link at the bottom of the page. Ready? I'm so excited! I hope this works!
Psalm 98
(God's Kingship)
1 O sing to the LORD a new song,
for he has done marvelous things.
His right hand and his holy arm
have gotten him victory.
2 The LORD has made known his victory;
he has revealed his vindication in the sight of the nations.
3 He has remembered his steadfast love and faithfulness
to the house of Israel.
All the ends of the earth have seen
the victory of our God.
4 Make a joyful noise to the LORD, all the earth;
break forth into joyous song and sing praises.
5 Sing praises to the LORD with the lyre,
with the lyre and the sound of melody.
6 With trumpets and the sound of the horn
make a joyful noise before the King, the LORD.
7 Let the sea roar, and all that fills it;
the world and those who live in it.
8 Let the floods clap their hands;
let the hills sing together for joy
9 at the presence of the LORD, for he is coming
to judge the earth.
He will judge the world with righteousness,
and the peoples with equity.
Now, the questions:
- What does this passage evoke in you? Does it make you happy? Uncomfortable? Does it seem familiar? (Why?). Have you ever felt like the person writing this psalm?
- Do you think you've read this or something similar before? If so, can you remember when?
- Is anything unclear/confusing?
- Are there specific images, words, or references that speak to you more strongly than others?
- Do you ID as a person of faith? If so, which faith? How does that influence how you read this psalm?
Right now, I'm just gathering first impressions with the passage. If you want to ID yourself by your first name, that will make it easier for me to know who you are. If you'd rather stay anonymous, that's totally cool too.
Thank you!
Love,
Becky
posted by Becky at 4/10/2006 07:59:00 PM
7 Comments:
1. In what context is God victorious? Moreover, whom has God defeated to be victorious? If God is omnipotent, does he even have a “peer competitor” or is he just picking on beings that are much weaker than he? (One interpretation seems that the victory here is really an Israeli victory and the author of the text is conflating an Israeli victory with a victory for God. Nice.)
2. Overall the verses evoke a parade after a military victory. To me this makes sense because one purpose God/religion serves is to explain things that are greater than us. It also fits with the bad assed, take-no-prisoners God of the Old Testament but it doesn’t seem to fit w/ the God of love of the New Testament.
3. Another thing that strikes me is that both the victory and judgment concepts (and the “title” of the Psalm, which I assume is a recent addition) anthropomorphize God by making him like a really, really powerful and really, really good king.
4. What’s up with the masculine pronouns?
1. It makes me think the person who wrote it was happy with a recent triumph. The writer's position is that because things worked out his way, God is on his side. And, that everyone should rejoice because God won. At times I guess I've felt that the right thing happened and the God wanted the outcome I wanted.
2. The part about the sea roaring and the floods claping reminds me of Jesus saying, on his ride into Jerusalem that even if all the people were silent the rocks would sing. It also reminds me of some hymns.
3. The writer says the LORD is coming to judge the earth, I wonder if the writer here means that because of the recent victory, it is a sign that God will bring justice on earth from now on. And, did he go on to write a lament later because it didn't happen that way.
4. The imagry of the earth and the sea praising God is powerful for me. The idea that all of God's creation can praise the Lord is interesting. Even though a rock can't think, it can praise God by fulfilling God's purpose for it.
5. I am a person of faith - Christian, United Methodist. That definitely influences how I read the Psalm. I know that there are other Psalms that lament the lack of justice, and Psalms written by someone angry with God. So, when I read the Psalms, I try to find one that speaks to me at the time.
Now, the questions:
What does this passage evoke in you? It makes me think of praising the Lord, expressing praise to a God who is going to come and fulfill his promise.
Does it make you happy? Uncomfortable? It gives me a positive feeling, and also, the mention of vindication, reminds you that God means business too.
Does it seem familiar? (Why?).
The line "Make a Joyful noise to the Lord" is very familiar. Sort of the reason we sign and praise through music.
Have you ever felt like the person writing this psalm? This person has a strong sense of certainty, commanding all the globe to come together in celebration. I am not sure I have.
Do you think you've read this or something similar before? If so, can you remember when?
It reminds me of something I heard as a child in Sunday School...
Is anything unclear/confusing?
Are there specific images, words, or references that speak to you more strongly than others?
Confusing -- yes a bit. The Psalmist says the LORD has remembered Israel, and yet, he asks all the world and those who live in it, to celebrate for the LORD's coming. And how exactly has the LORD revealed his vindication in the sight of the nations?
Do you ID as a person of faith? If so, which faith? How does that influence how you read this psalm?
Well, I call myself a Methodist, and no, it doesn't impact how I read this.
1. What does this passage evoke in you? Does it seem familiar? (Why?).
2. Do you think you've read this or something similar before? If so, can you remember when?
The passage is definitely familiar to me, but I can't quite place it. Maybe adapted to a hymn at some point?
4. Are there specific images, words, or references that speak to you more strongly than others?
I found the nature imagery particularly stirring; perhaps owing to recent events.
5. Do you ID as a person of faith? If so, which faith? How does that influence how you read this psalm?
I'm an Episcopal, but if that places a particular slant on how I read this I'm not conscious of it.
1. Yes it is familiar. The passage evokes pride since as a Christian I believe we have inherited the covenant God made with Israel. Therefore the Psalm speaks to the Christian reader today and has just as much relevance as it did to the Old Testament reader.
2. It is familiar due to the Hymn "Sing a new song unto the Lord"
3. The only confusing thing is the translation....."gotten"?
4. In light of recent hurricanes and Tsunami, the reference to seas roaring and floods clapping seems particularly poingant.
5. As a Catholic, I read the references to God's victory (3 times) as a reminder of the victory of Christ on the Cross. It is a reminder that we have a part to play in salvation history and must be ever cognizant of the fact that the "Lord...comes to judge the earth".
Oh man, Becky darling, I'm not sure I'm the right girl for this job! But I'll give it a shot:)
1. Evoke? This passage triggers two very different feelings for me. The first four stanzas (correct term? you know I'm biblically challenged) are very martial and creep me out. I think the mention of Israel especially makes me uncomfortable b/c of the history of the Middle East. The last five stanzas, however, are beautiful. The ninth is slightly marred by the word righteousness (which again I connect with fundamentalism and extremism), but overall the last part of the Psalm is joyous.
2. Given my religious un-background, I'm going to go out on a limb and say I've probably never read anything similar!
3. Unclear? Perhaps the reference to the floods clapping their hands. Is floods a symbolic term for people? Or is it really referring to floods? And in that case...why do we want them to celebrate, given that they're a negative phenomenon generally?
4. I think I like the 7th and 8th stanzas the best. The references to the celebration of nature are poetic and beautiful.
5. Yah, so, I am an atheist. But you still love me:) That probably makes me view the first part of the psalm more negatively, b/c of a certain amount of discomfort with referring to god and winning/victory/etc.
What does this passage evoke in you? Does it make you happy? Uncomfortable? Does it seem familiar? (Why?).
I have always thought of this as a creation Psalm--that God is victorious in God's own creation. And, everything that God has created sings praises to God--whether through human action (like musical instruments) or nature (like the waves in the ocean). All of creation sings to God's glory.
Have you ever felt like the person writing this psalm?
Spring! Yes, in spring time I feel this way, but not as much during the winter.
Do you ID as a person of faith? If so, which faith? How does that influence how you read this psalm?
Yes, Methodist. I'm sure that affects how I interpret it, but also as an "earthy girl" who loves nature. I'm not sure it is meant as a creation Psalm, but that's how I'm reading it today on Earth day.
Sorry I'm a late post!!
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