If the first section of Book V (Pss 107–118) sketches things in black and white, then this next section (Pss 118–136) circles back around to fill out that sketch with color.
More specifically, section 2 homes in on the eschatological restoration from exile that the coming Messiah will accomplish and parses out what this future David’s new exodus will entail. Yet again, the body of the section (Pss 119–134) has been delimited by
bookends—an introductory psalm on the one hand (Ps 118), and a concluding psalm on the other (Ps 135), both of which are framed with inclusios formed by the structural markers וֹדּ ְס ַח ם ָלוֹע ְל י ִּכ בוֹט־י ִּכ ה ָוהי ַל וּדֹה (Ps 118:1 and 29) and הּ ָי וּל ְל ַה (Ps 135:1 and 21; see also v. 3). Furthermore, just as Psalm 118 plays a dual role in bridging the first and second sections together (Pss 107–118 and 118–136, respectively), so likewise does Psalm 136, with the second and third sections (Pss 118–136 and 136–150, respectively).
In this chapter, I argue that the two primary “colors” used by section 2 to enrich our understanding of the messianic King’s redemptive work, may be summarized by the twin themes of Torah (Ps 119) and Temple (Pss 120–134). These emphases are paired side-by-side so as to present readers with a glimpse of the anticipated
eschatological glories that will be wrought when the promised Anointed One ushers in a
return from exile for all peoples. He will be a righteous Davidic Son who will perfectly
embody the Torah and establish a temple vastly superior to Solomon’s temple atop the
holy mountain of Zion, from which he will mediate Yahweh’s reign to all the nations. As
I had done previously in chapter 3, I will again approach each structural component of
this section in turn: Psalm 118 (the introduction), Psalms 119 and 120–134 (the body),
Psalm 118
1Psalm 118 is a janus marking the transition from section 1 of Book V to section 2. Verses 1 and 29 form an inclusio with the structural marker בוֹט־י ִּכ ה ָוהי ַל וּדוֹה
י ִּכ ם ָלוֹע ְל
וֹדּ ְס ַח , which signals the start of a new segment within the flow of Book V, just
like Psalm 107 had earlier. Verses 2–4 then extend this introductory exhortation by respectively calling on Israel, the house of Aaron, and all who fear Yahweh
2to give heed to verse 1’s summons.
3Following these opening verses, the body of the psalm appears to consist of two halves: verses 5–18 and 19–28 (see table 11).
4The former finds the psalmist recounting his deliverance from death on the battlefield as a result of Yahweh’s saving right hand; whereas in the latter, the psalmist now returns safely to Zion’s gates in triumphal procession and enters the temple to give thanks to Yahweh.
51 Here I will primarily be examining the ways in which this psalm introduces the second section. For a discussion of the psalm’s concluding function in Pss 107–118, see chapter 3.
2 The three addressees, “Israel” (ל ֵא ָר ְשׂ ִי), “the house of Aaron” (ן ֹרֲה ַׁא־תי ֵב), and “those who fear Yahweh” (הָוהְיי ֵא ְרִי), are listed together again later in Ps 135:19–20, a psalm which—notwithstanding the janus of Ps 136—essentially concludes section 2. This connection further reinforces the fact that Ps 118 is not merely a part of section 1 but serves a dual structural function in Book V.
3 Verses 2–4 repeat verbatim the latter half of v. 1 (וֹד ְס ַׁח םָלוֹע ְל י ִכ) in a manner analogous to Ps 107, which features partial echoes of 107:1 in vv. 8, 15, 21, and 31. What is more, the jussive use of the verb רמא in Ps 118:2–4 reflects that found in 107:2. These similarities, rather than tying Pss 107 and 118 together merely as brackets within an inclusio, seem to highlight the functional correspondence of these two psalms within Book V’s literary structure—namely, their shared role as marking off new respective sections.
4 Note that vv. 5–18 are all written from the first-person singular perspective of the individual psalmist, whereas vv. 19–28 are marked by an oscillation between the first-person singular (vv. 19–21 and 28) and first-person plural (vv. 22–27). What is more, in vv. 19–28, the first-person singular sections appear to be structurally delineated by the repetition of the first-person common singular imperfect form of the verb הדי (“to thank,” vv. 19, 21, and 28).
5 Ian J. Vaillancourt, The Multifaceted Saviour of Psalms 110 and 118: A Canonical Exegesis (Sheffield, England: Sheffield Phoenix Press, 2019), 144. Vaillancourt later notes, “The picture is of the psalmist leading a thank-filled victory procession from the battlefield, through the gates of the Jerusalem temple and into its courts” (155). Similarly, Jamie Grant summarizes Ps 118 as follows, “Following on from a praise introduction, the king publicly recounts the trials and difficulties which he has faced, gives thanks to God for his deliverance, and then—based upon Yahweh’s mercy extended to him—he seeks entrance into the Temple to offer thanks to Yahweh” (The King as Exemplar: The Function of Deuteronomy’s Kingship Law in the Shaping of the Book of Psalms, SBLAB 17 [Atlanta: Society of Biblical Literature, 2004], 128).
Table 11. Structure of Psalm 118
6A – Opening of ה ָוהי ַל וּדוֹה inclusio with an extended introduction (vv. 1–4) B – The psalmist recounts Yahweh’s saving right hand as he delivers him from death on the battlefield (vv. 5–18)
B’ – The psalmist returns to the gates of Zion to give thanks to Yahweh in the temple (vv. 19–28)
A’ – Closing of ה ָוהי ַל וּדוֹה inclusio (v. 29)
Given Psalm 118’s structural function as a janus, I would propose that the two halves of this psalm’s body correspond respectively to the two sections of Book V which are bridged by this psalm. Thus, the psalmist’s experience of salvation from his foes in verses 5–18 squares largely with the narrative and thematic flow of thought in Psalms 107–118, while his subsequent entrance through Zion’s gates and into the temple courts in verses 19–28 hints at what is to come in the psalms that follow.
7In this way, the first section (Pss 107–118) depicts the future David’s affliction-filled victory over the enemy at the new exodus, and the second section (Pss 118–136) finds this mighty King leading Yahweh’s redeemed in jubilant procession to the holy city where they will ascend
6 My proposed structure accords closely with Vaillancourt, The Multifaceted Saviour, 140–
162; Frank-Lothar Hossfeld and Erich Zenger, Psalms 3: A Commentary on Psalms 101–150, Hermeneia:
A Critical and Historical Commentary on the Bible (Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 2011), 236; Joshua T.
James, The Storied Ethics of the Thanksgiving Psalms, LHB/OTS 658 (London: Bloomsbury T&T Clark, 2017), 82–87; Nancy L. deClaissè-Walford, Rolf A. Jacobson, and Beth LaNeel Tanner, The Book of Psalms, NICOT (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 2014), 865. Additionally, both Philip Eveson and J. Clinton McCann adopt a similar structure, although they appear to take vv. 28–29 together as one combined final thanksgiving. See Philip H. Eveson, The Book of Psalms: From Suffering to Glory, vol. 2, Psalms 73–150:
God’s Manual of Spirituality, Welwyn Commentary Series (Welwyn Garden City, England: Evangelical Press, 2015), 310–17; J. Clinton McCann, Jr., The Book of Psalms: Introduction, Commentary, and Reflections, in vol. 4 of The New Interpreter’s Bible, ed. Leander E. Keck (Nashville: Abingdon, 1996), 1154–55. While Gregory Reed ultimately lands on a different structure in his thesis on Ps 118, his analysis and survey of various structural approaches is useful. “The Thanksgiving of YHWH’s King: A Canonical Reading of Psalm 118” (ThM thesis, Baptist Bible Seminary, 2020), 57–62.
7 James M. Hamilton Jr. writes, “The future king from David’s line (Ps 2), the man of God’s right hand (80:17), David’s Lord (110:1), has accomplished the new exodus, led the exiles to Jerusalem, and enters the city to establish the Torah there (Ps 119)” (Psalms, vol. 2, Psalms 73–150, EBTC [Bellingham, WA: Lexham Academic, 2021], 334).
the mountain of Yahweh to eternally dwell in His presence under His rule.
8Significantly, Psalm 118:19–20 makes clear that entrance through Yahweh’s
“gates of righteousness” (ק ֶּד ֶּצ־י ֵר ֲע ַש) is restricted to “those who are righteous” (םי ִּקי ִּדּ ַצ).
Jamie Grant convincingly argues that this is “a righteousness defined by the torah,” and only “those who seek after that righteousness shall gain admittance into the worship of the Temple.”
9Hence, the psalmist leading this procession into Zion city is not just any king; rather he is one faithfully devoted to the daily copying, keeping, and recitation of the Torah in accordance with the Kingship Law (Deut 17:14–20).
10His commitment to Torah-shaped piety, as alluded to here in Psalm 118, thus sets the stage for the upcoming body of section 2—particularly Psalm 119—in which this theme figures considerably.
11Hand-in-hand with the Torah is the theme of the Temple. While we have already discussed how Psalm 118:19–28 paves the way for the second section by advancing Book V’s plotline forward from the exodus to Zion and the temple,
12it may
8 L. Michael Morales puts it well: “In summary, restoration to God’s Presence means that those who were scattered must be gathered; then, as the flock of God, they are shepherded to his abode at the mountain of God where they will be planted so as to bask in the life-giving light of his Presence. . . . To dwell with God in his house defines the yearning and hope of Israel, as well as the goal of their restoration”
(Who Shall Ascend the Mountain of the Lord?: A Biblical Theology of the Book of Leviticus, NSBT 37 [Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 2015], 247).
9 Grant, The King as Exemplar, 146. Grant further elaborates that other ideas synonymous with Torah-righteousness seem to be “found in the concepts of ‘those who fear Yahweh,’ [v. 4] ‘those who take refuge in Yahweh,’ [vv. 8–9] those for whom ‘Yahweh has become their salvation’ [vv. 14 and 21] and also those who come ‘in the name of the Lord’ [vv. 10–12, 26].” See also Grant’s analysis of Deuteronomic influences throughout Ps 118 in idem, 127–48.
10 Grant describes this type of king as “an individual whose whole world-and-life view is thoroughly shaped by and grounded in the teaching of Yahweh. . . . one who is committed to do more than learn from his ‘assigned text’—he seeks to shape and form his whole life and outlook based around that text” (The King as Exemplar, 207). For an extensive discussion of the Kingship Law of Deut 17:14–20, see idem, 189–222; Daniel I. Block, “The Burden of Leadership: The Mosaic Paradigm of Kingship (Deut.
17:14–20),” Bibliotheca Sacra 162, no. 3 (January 2005): 259–78.
11 Additionally, there are a plethora of lexical and thematic links connecting Pss 118 and 119 together. For a list of these numerous correspondences, see Vaillancourt, The Multifaceted Saviour, 170–
71, 197–99; Grant, The King as Exemplar, 175–80; Yair Zakovitch, “The Interpretive Significance of the Sequence of Psalms 111–112.113–118.119,” in The Composition of the Book of Psalms, ed. Erich Zenger, BETL CCXXXVIII (Leuven, Belgium: Uitgeverij Peeters, 2010), 222–23.
12 It is certainly true that Ps 118 alludes to the exodus, especially through its references to the Song of Moses (cf. Ps 118:14 and Exod 15:2a; Ps 118:28 and Exod 15:2b; Ps 118:15–16 and Exod 15:6, 12). Nevertheless, Patrick D. Miller contends, “It is not fully accurate to set Psalm 118 under the ‘Exodus’
theme . . . . It is centered in Zion and the temple . . . . The Hallel psalms of 111–18 focus on Exodus but
also be instructive at this juncture to consider the crucial way that the refrain, ה ָוהי ַל וּדוֹה בוֹט־י ִּכ
י ִּכ ם ָלוֹע ְל
וֹדּ ְס ַח , has been utilized elsewhere in the Hebrew Bible. For, contrary to
what one may think, this phrase does not recur as often as would be expected. In fact, outside of the Psalter, the phrase is only used once in its entirety (1 Chr 16:34), with portions or variations of it appearing in several other texts, as laid out in table 12.
Table 12. וֹדּ ְס ַח ם ָלוֹע ְל י ִּכ בוֹט־י ִּכ ה ָוהי ַל וּדוֹה in the Hebrew Bible
13“Give thanks to Yahweh, for he is good, for everlasting is his steadfast love.” (1 Chr 16:34) וּדוֹה ה ָוהי ַל בוֹט־י ִּכ י ִּכ ם ָלוֹע ְל וֹדּ ְס ַח
“to give thanks to Yahweh, for everlasting is his steadfast love” (1 Chr 16:41)
תוֹדֹה ְל ה ָוהי ַל י ִּכ ם ָלוֹע ְל וֹדּ ְס ַח
“for he is good, for everlasting is his steadfast love” (2 Chr 5:13)
י ִּכ בוֹט י ִּכ ם ָלוֹע ְל וֹדּ ְס ַח
“and giving thanks to Yahweh, for he is good, for everlasting is his steadfast love” (2 Chr 7:3) תוֹדוֹה ְו ה ָוהי ַל י ִּכ בוֹט י ִּכ ם ָלוֹע ְל וֹדּ ְס ַח
“to give thanks to Yahweh, for everlasting is his steadfast love” (2 Chr 7:6)
תוֹדֹה ְל ה ָוהי ַל ם ָלוֹע ְל־י ִּכ וֹדּ ְס ַח
“Give thanks to Yahweh, for everlasting is his steadfast love” (2 Chr 20:21)
וּדוֹה ה ָוהי ַל י ִּכ ם ָלוֹע ְל וֹדּ ְס ַח
“and by giving thanks to Yahweh, for he is good, for everlasting is his steadfast love over Israel” (Ezra 3:11)
תֹדוֹה ְבוּ
ה ָוהי ַל י ִּכ בוֹט ם ָלוֹע ְל־י ִּכ וֹדּ ְס ַח
ל ֵא ָר ְש ִּי־ל ַע
“Give thanks to Yahweh of hosts, for Yahweh is good, for everlasting is his steadfast love”
(Jer 33:11)
וּדוֹה ה ָוה ְי־ת ֶּא תוֹא ָב ְצ
בוֹט־י ִּכ ה ָוה ְי ם ָלוֹע ְל־י ִּכ וֹדּ ְס ַח
O. Palmer Robertson has surveyed these eight non-Psalter occurrences and rightly concludes that this statement “has a clearly defined pattern of usage in
move to Zion” (Israelite Religion and Biblical Theology: Collected Essays, JSOTSup 267 [Sheffield, England: Sheffield Academic Press, 2000], 311–12 [emphasis added]).
13 With the exception of 1 Chr 16:34, I have not quoted any of the other verses in their וּדוֹה הָוהיַׁל בוֹט־י ִכ י ִכ םָלוֹע ְל וֹד ְס ַׁח
Scripture”—namely its relationship to the temple.
14The refrain is first introduced during a celebratory song in 1 Chronicles 16:34, after David brings the ark of the covenant back to Jerusalem and places it inside the tent which he has pitched for it.
15Then, in every other instance that follows throughout Chronicles, “The phrase is exclusively related to progress in the establishment of the temple in Jerusalem, and to worship in that locale.”
16This thematic connotation further carries over into Jeremiah’s usage of the statement when he prophesies of Israel’s future restoration—including that of the temple—after a time of exilic judgment (Jer 33:10–11). Finally, it is later employed in Ezra 3:10–11, following Israel’s return from exile and re-laying of the temple’s foundation.
17Consequently, the Psalter’s employment of this loaded statement practically bursts at the seams with temple-related meaning. The editor has not simply utilized this
14 O. Palmer Robertson, The Flow of the Psalms: Discovering Their Structure and Theology (Phillipsburg, NJ: P&R, 2015), 185–87. Likewise, Peter C. W. Ho writes that “this formula is associated with the climactic celebration of the completion of YHWH’s house” (The Design of the Psalter: A Macrostructural Analysis [Eugene, OR: Pickwick, 2019], 160).
15 It is striking to note that immediately after the events of 1 Chr 16, the following chapter narrates David’s resolve to build a house—that is, a temple—for Yahweh (1 Chr 17:1–2), followed by the establishing of the Davidic Covenant between Yahweh and David (1 Chr 17:3–15).
16 Robertson, The Flow of the Psalms, 185. First Chr 16:41 is used in the same context as 16:34. Second Chr 5:13; 7:3, and 6 all occur in the context of Solomon completing the temple and
transporting the ark into the temple (2 Chr 5), lifting up a prayer of dedication for the temple (2 Chr 6), and then offering sacrifices and worshiping Yahweh in the temple (2 Chr 7). Robertson contends that 2 Chr 20:21 is the sole exception to this pattern of the temple-related usage of וֹד ְס ַׁחםָלוֹע ְלי ִכבוֹט־י ִכהָוהיַׁלוּדוֹה, since it simply “records the dramatic moment when King Jehoshaphat appointed musicians preceding his army into battle” (185n2). It should be pointed out, however, that within the broader context of 2 Chr 20, the Ammonites and Moabites have come to wage war with Judah and drive them out of the land—and hence, they pose a threat to the temple. What is more, both before and after Jehoshaphat has led his army into battle against these enemy nations, the narrative depicts him assembling with the people of Judah at the temple to pray—either in pre-battle supplication (2 Chr 20:5-19), or in victorious post-battle rejoicing (2 Chr 20:27–28).
17 Nevertheless, right upon the heels of Ezra 3:11, we read in vv. 12–13 that many of the Israelites wept, since this second temple could not match the glory of Solomon’s temple (cf. Hag 2:3).
Thus, Morales writes,
Needless to say, the historical return from exile did not usher in the new heavens and new earth, nor was it an exodus to make the previous one out of Egypt pale by comparison. As to the rebuilt house of God, many of the elderly priests, Levites and leaders of Jerusalem wept as they recalled the greater splendours of Solomon’s temple (Ezra 3:12–13)—and, most devastating, the glory of YHWH never returned to the second temple. These considerations, along with the manifest lack of renewal in the hearts of the Jewish returnees, served to foster the understanding that Israel was indeed still in exile, still awaiting the glorious new exodus, an apocalyptic expectation that would lead the flock of God to the heavenly Jerusalem, the heavenly Mount Zion. (Who Shall Ascend the Mountain of the Lord?, 253)