• Embed Doc
  • Copy Link
  • Readcast
  • Collections
  • CommentGo Back
Download
 
My Notes On Psalms 1-6These notes are written from a Catholic perspective, though I do make use of some Protestant andJewish sources on occasion. The author of these notes makes no pretensions to being either a giftedwriter or a biblical scholar; my only hope is that some may find these notes useful, and perhaps inspirethem to read, study, and pray the Psalms themselves.
Introduction to Psalm 1
This is a psalm of instruction concerning good and evil, setting before us life and death, the blessingand the curse, that we may take the right way which leads to happiness and avoid that which willcertainly end in our misery and ruin. The different character and condition of godly people and wicked people, those that serve God and those that serve him not, is here plainly stated in a few words; so thatevery man, if he will be faithful to himself, may here see his own face and then read his own doom.That division of the children of men into saints and sinners, righteous and unrighteous, the children of God and the children of the wicked one, as it is ancient, ever since the struggle began between sin andgrace, the seed of the woman and the seed of the serpent, so it is lasting, and will survive all other divisions and subdivisions of men into high and low, rich and poor, bond and free; for by this men’severlasting state will be determined, and the distinction will last as long as heaven and hell. This psalmshows us, 1) The holiness and happiness of a godly man (v. 1-3). 2) The sinfulness and misery of awicked man (v. 4, 5). 3) The groundand reason of both (v. 6). Whoever collected the psalms of David (probably it was Ezra) with goodreason put this psalm first, as a preface to the rest, because it is absolutely necessary to the acceptanceof our devotions that we be righteous before God (for it is only the prayer of the upright that is hisdelight), and therefore that we be right in our notions of blessedness and in our choice of the way thatleads to it. Those are not fit to put up good prayers who do not walk in good ways. (From theMATTHEW HENRY BIBLE COMMENTARY: PSALMS, CH 1)This psalm is usually classified as a wisdom psalm inasmuch as it contains characteristics common tothat genre. These include macarisms (i.e. blessed or happy sayings); extolling of the Torah; two-waysteaching (i.e. contrasting the actions and/or fate of the just and wicked); and acrostic structure (i.e.alphabetic structure).The psalm can be easily divided into four parts (note that the three part structure given above is moregenerally accepted):A) Vss 1-3. These verses focus on the just man. Vs 1 defines the just man by way of negation, detailingwhat the just man is not. Vs 2 looks at the just man in a positive fashion by describing something a justman does. Vs 3 applies a descriptive image of the just man.B) Vs 4 Focus upon the wicked and applies a descriptive image of them.C) Vs 5 Gives the consequences of the differences that exist between the just and the wicked.D)Vs 6 The ultimate reason for these consequences.Psalm 1
PSALM 1: TEXT AND NOTES
 
(The text of Psalm 1 is my own translation. You are urged to consult a recognized translation such as the RSV or the NAB)
 
Vs 1 Happy the man who walks not according to the direction of the wicked, stands not on thepath with sinners, sits not in the assembly of scorners.Happiness
in the bible has little to do with the emotional state we often associate the word with. The
happy man
is one who enjoys God’s blessing here, and looks forward to its fullness in the future. It isinteresting to note that the Hebrew word for 
happy
,
asre
, is derived from a Semitic stem which in itsverb form means “walk” or “go forward”; and in its noun form means “a footstep”. Our life then isconceived of as a pilgrimage, a religious journey towards God and full happiness. This accounts for the journey motif which dominates this Psalm.The present state of the happy man, which will reach its fullness only in the future, is described first byusing a three-fold negation:1) The happy man is one who
walks not according to the directions of the wicked.
In the bible, theword
walk 
, along with the word
path
and its synonyms (
way, road)
are used as metaphors for onesmoral actions and life. In keeping with the journey motif I have translated the Hebrew word
etsah
(ay-tsaw) as
direction
rather than the commonly used “counsel” or “advice”.2) The happy man
stands not on the road with sinners.
As already noted, the word road or path is ametaphor for ones moral activity. The Hebrew word
chattaw
(khat-taw) is derived from a root wordwhich, among other things, can mean “to miss a target,” but also can mean “to go errant from a course,road or direction.3) The happy man
sits not in the assembly of scorners.
The word
sits
translates the Hebrew
mosab
.The word has the sense of keeping formal company. The scorner is one who mocks the will of God andits manifestation in true religion (see Psalm 119:51)The three negations of verse 1 appear to increase in their designation of evil situations. Takingdirections from the unrighteous is foolish enough, but accompanying them on a journey is even morefoolish; worse still is it to gather formally with them and share in their deliberations which scorn God’slaw and those who follow it.
Vs 2 But in the law of the Lord is his delight, upon this law he ponders day and night.
Verse 2 begins to describe the just man in positive terms. He is now described according to that whichshows him to be just. The word
but
is emphatic, highlighting the different approach to the subject andemphasizing the utter contrast between the truly just one and those who live in accord with thenegations of verse 1.Rather than listening to the directions of sinners and finding a false kind of happiness in the companyof such people, the truly happy man
delights in the law of the Lord.
 
Delight
is a translation of theword
chaphets
(khaw-fates). One could translate the verse to read “his
inclination
is towards the law of the Lord, upon this law he ponders…” One moves towards what one delights in and desires. The senseof the Hebrew
chaphets
then could have a connection to the journey motif.
Law
here would be better translated as instruction. The Hebrew word
Torah
can mean either law or instruction; with the second meaning being the more common meaning for not all instructions are laws, but all laws are, in some sense, instructive. Remember that the Law of Moses consists of the first five books of the OT, but Genesis and the first several chapters of Exodus, along with various parts of other  books, contain few laws but much narrative. Not only does the happy man delight in the law, but he also
ponders
it continuously. This word ponder (Hebrew
hagah
) originally referred to the cooing of a dove and is usually translated as “meditates”.
 
When the Jews meditated on the law they would recite it in low tones, much as we do with the Our Father or the Psalms. The word then refers to thoughtful, reflective prayer. This stands in markedcontrast to the scorners mentioned in verse 1. the Hebrew word for scorn originally referred to the talk of people of foreign tongues. It came to be applied to those who childishly mimic people. (seeIsaiah28:9-11and the correspondingfootnotes of the NAB)
Vs 3 He is like a tree well-planted by steams of water, which gives forth its fruit in its season; itsleaves do not wither. Whatsoever he does, he prospers.
A good bit of the Holy Land is quite dry, and therefore treeless. Also, during a certain time of the year the Sirocco winds begin to blow in from the desert and wither much of the foliage. A
tree
which has been
well-planted by flowing water
however, would do well. The word I have translated as
well-planted
implies that the tree in the image has in fact been transplanted beside the water. This perhapssuggests the idea that the just man is taken care of by God, who is sometimes described in the bible as ahusbandman (grower of trees, vines, ect. See Isaiah 5:1-7; Luke 13:6-9).In the prophet Jeremiah the wise man is described as a tree near water while the fool is described as adesert shrub:
5:
Thus says the LORD: “Cursed is the man who trusts in man and makes flesh his arm, whose heartturns away from the LORD.
6:
He is like a shrub in the desert, and shall not see any good come. Heshall dwell in the parched places of the wilderness, in an uninhabited salt land.
7:
“Blessed is the manwho trusts in the LORD, whose trust is the LORD.
8:
He is like a tree planted by water, that sends outits roots by the stream, and does not fear when heat comes, for its leaves remain green, and is notanxious in the year of drought, for it does not cease to bear fruit.” (RSV Jer 17) See also Rev 22:1-3In keeping with the wisdom motif of the Psalm, it should be noted that the word wither in its Hebrewform, can also be applied to foolish men or things as in Prov 30:32. The word can also be applied to theact of treating something with contempt, as in Micah 7:6.Vs 4 But not so are the wicked! They are like chaff driven on by the wind.This verse begins with the Hebrew word loken which is translated above as but. This word highlights inan emphatic way the contrast between what was said in verse 3 concerning the just, and what is said inverse 4 concerning the wicked.In stark contrast to verse 3 the wicked are here described as useless chaff. Chaff refers to the outer shellor husks from which grain was taken. Light, dry, sterile, it was utterly useless. It was fit only to burn, but even in this it was useless, since it burned so quickly it wasn’t even adequate for use as kindling.Most people simply left it on the ground to be driven away by the wind. It is hard to imagine an imageof rootlessness and bareness more fitting than this. (see the prayer against enemies in Psalm 35:5) Thewinnowing of chaff is used, throughout the Bible, as a image of God’s judgment (see Hosea 13:2-3 andMatt 3:12).Wind is also used as an image of God’s punishment (see Psalm 18:42; Psalm 48:7; Hosea 13:15)Vs 5 For this reason the wicked will not withstand the judgment, nor sinners stand in the assembly of the righteous.The wicked will not stand in the judgment because the are like chaff. As chaff has no root in the groundthese people have not root in God or his Torah. In the judgment they will not stand with God and hisholy people but will be removed from their presence.The reference to sinners standing and the term assembly reminds us of the negations of verse 1. A manwho stands not on the road with sinners, sits not in the assembly of scorners shows that he is already on
of 00

Leave a Comment

You must be to leave a comment.
Submit
Characters: ...
You must be to leave a comment.
Submit
Characters: ...