Salmos 121
Albert Barnes · Citado em PreceptAustin
Salmos 121
Barnes - The expression would properly denote a condition where there was danger; when no help or aid was visible; and when the eyes were turned to the quarter from which help might be expected to come. What the danger was cannot now be ascertained. Keil & Delitzsch comments that "To render (as does the KJV) “from which my help cometh” (as Luther does) is inadmissible." In other words, the KJV renders the verse not as an interrogative (question) but as a statement of fact "A Song of degrees. I will lift up mine eyes unto the hills, from whence cometh my help." Without going into technical details, suffice it to say that the Hebrew word translated "whence?" or "where?" always conveys the idea of a question. This section should therefore be read as a question "From whence cometh my help?" It is rendered in this manner by most of the modern translations. For example the CSB plainly states "I look up to the mountains – does my help come from there?" Which is answered by the declaration "Not from the hills or the creation, but from the God of creation." Net Bible Note - The Hebrew term me'ayin is interrogative, not relative, in function. Rather than directly stating that his source of help descends from the hills, the psalmist is asking, "From where does my help come?" Nevertheless, the first line does indicate that he is looking toward the hills for help, probably indicating that he is looking up toward the sky in anticipation of supernatural intervention. The psalmist assumes the dramatic role of one needing help. He answers his own question in v. (Ps 121:2) . HELP Hebrew = 'Ezer Help is the Hebrew noun 'ezer (root verb = 'azar - commonly used of military support between countries) (click) referring to assistance or to the one who provides the assistance ("helper"). 'Ezer (actually the verb form 'azar) is used in the OT to refer to military assistance such as God’s help in battle (1Chr 12:18). 'Ezer (actually the verb 'azar) is used of Jehovah’s personal assistance for those who cannot help themselves (Ps 10:14+; Ps 72:12+). Ezer is repeatedly used in the Psalms in reference to God's divine intervention. 🙏 THOUGHT - Let me make a suggestion - pause for a moment, ask God's Spirit to teach you and then meditate on the following verses that speak of Jehovah's HELP. Get a piece of paper or your devotional notebook and record each verse with truths that the Spirit brings to your mind (and remember to check the context which will help you arrive at an accurate Interpretation which in turn leads to an appropriate Application), especially as you query the text with 5W/H type questions (See John Piper's thoughts on importance of learning to "query the text"). (Ps. 20:2; Ps 33:20; Ps 70:5; Ps 115:9-11; Ps 124:8; Ps 146:5). David declares Jehovah is my strength and my shield. My heart trusts in Him, and I am helped. Therefore my heart exults, and with my song I shall thank Him. (Ps 28:7+;cf Ps 86:17+).
Salmos 121
Barnes adds that the phrase my help reflects… (a) a consciousness that help could come only from God; (b) a belief that it would come from Him; and a confident yet humble reliance on Him. (Ed: The psalmist could not see Him except with eyes of faith [2Cor 5:7, 2Cor 4:17, 18, 19], a faith based on past experiences of His immutable faithfulness.) Mike Gilbart-Smith says…In contrast to humans meeting human needs, the psalmist says, “My help comes from the Lord.” Why turn to anything else? If you are a creature, your only possible help is from your Creator. Seek your blessings only within God’s will. He will supply your needs. Ask yourself, what help do you give others? In difficult relationships or tough situations, do you tell your friends what they are comfortable hearing or do you direct them to God? Nonbelievers, if you don’t turn to God for help, what do you turn to? Does it ultimately address the problems causing your discontent? You will end up bitter if you rely on anything other than God. (Psalm 121 brief transcript - I would also encourage you to listen to the excellent, much more in depth and very practical 54 minute mp3 on Psalm 121) THE CREATOR ALL CAN HELP & PROTECT ALL! Who made heaven and earth - He is able. If you think your problem is too complex for Jehovah remember His rhetorical question (expecting an affirmative reply) "Is anything too difficult for the LORD?" (Ge 18:14, cp Jer 32:27, Mt 19:26, Isa 59:1, Nu 11:23) Even as He had all the power needed to protect the psalmist, so too He is ready and able to protect all His children. This assurance is repeated in Ps 124:8+ ("Our help is in the Name of Jehovah, Who made heaven and earth."). Only the Creator can be the Helper of His creation. If he has accomplished the greater (Creation of everything), He will surely accomplish the lesser (Be our Helper in time of need). His attributes such as His Omnipresence , Omniscience and Omnipotence assure us that He has the ability to follow through on His promise to help us. He Who spoke the heavens is to be "my" personal Helper! Is this not an awesome, humbling thought? The next time you are in a tight spot, recall this verse to your mind ("Preach it to your soul!" in the pattern of Ps 42:5). The transcendent (exceeding usual limits) Creator is also the ever-present Watcher of each of His children! Meditate on this truth. Will He not His help afford? Help, while yet I ask, is given: God comes down, the God and LORD That made both earth and heaven. To the Hills I Lift Mine Eyes — Charles Wesley In regard to the God Who made heaven and earth the ESV Study Bible notes that Biblical authors cite this idea, based on Ge 2:4 and Ex. 20:11, to stress that the God of Israel has universal and unbounded power: cf. 2Kings 19:15 (= Isa. 37:16); 2Chr 1:12; Ps. 115:15; Ps 124:8; Ps 134:3; Ps 146:6; Jer. 32:17. ‘Ah Lord GOD! Behold, Thou hast made the heavens and the earth by Thy great power and by Thine outstretched arm! Nothing is too difficult for Thee (Jer 32:27) Derek Kidner observes that…The thought of this verse leaps beyond the hills to the universe; beyond the universe to its Maker. Here is living help: primary, personal, wise, immeasurable. (See Psalms 73-150 - Page 467) Psalm 146 echoes this truth about God the Creator declaring How blessed is he whose help (Hebrew = ezer; Greek = boethos) is the God of Jacob, whose hope (Greek = elpis) is in the Lord his God; Who made heaven and earth, the sea and all that is in them, Who keeps faith forever." (Ps 146:5+, Ps 146:6+) Spurgeon on Ps 146:5: Heaped up is his happiness. He has happiness indeed: the true and the real delight is with him. The God of Jacob is the God of the covenant, the God of wrestling prayer, the God of the tried believer; he is the only living and true God. The God of Jacob is Jehovah, who appeared unto Moses, and led the tribes of Jacob out of Egypt, and through the wilderness. Those are happy who trust him, for they shall never be ashamed or confounded. The Lord never dies, neither do his thoughts perish: his purpose of mercy, like himself, endures throughout all generations. Hallelujah!… He is happy in help for the present and in hope for the future, who has placed all his confidence in Jehovah, who is his God by a covenant of salt. Happy is he when others are despairing! Happiest shall he be in that very hour when others are discovering the depths of agony. We have here a statement which we have personally tried and proved: resting in the Lord, we know a happiness which is beyond description, beyond comparison, beyond conception. O how blessed a thing it is to know that God is our present help, and our eternal hope. Full assurance is more than heaven in the bud, the flower has begun to open. We would not exchange with Caesar; his sceptre is a bauble, but our bliss is true treasure. In each of the two titles here given, namely, "the God of Jacob", and "Jehovah his God", there is a peculiar sweetness. Either one of them has a fountain of joy in it; but the first will not cheer us without the second. Unless Jehovah be his God no man can find confidence in the fact that he was Jacob's God. But when by faith we know the Lord to be ours, then we are "rich to all the intents of bliss."
Salmos 121
Barnes says "He will keep time from danger; he will keep thee from sin; He will keep thee unto salvation." David describes Jehovah as His Defender in Psalm 41 How blessed is he who considers the helpless; The LORD will deliver him in a day of trouble. 2 Jehovah will protect (shamar) him, and keep him alive, And he shall be called blessed upon the earth; And do not give him over to the desire of his enemies. (Ps 41:1-2) We see this same truth in several other psalms… The LORD preserves (Jehovah shamar) the simple (Those whose lack of wisdom and experience exposes them to danger. - Ryrie); I was brought low, and He saved me. (Ps 116:6) (A Song of Ascents, of Solomon.) Unless the LORD builds the house, They labor in vain who build it; Unless the LORD guards (Jehovah shamar) the city, The watchman keeps awake in vain. (Ps 127:1) Comment: This is most instructive verse - (1) It teaches the foundational truth that man has a responsibility, but he can do nothing in the supernatural realm without God's enablement! Compare this same truth in Phil 2:12 and Phil 2:13. (2) The watchman is only effective because God is the Guard, the Defender!
Salmos 121
Barnes comments that this may refer to the belief concerning… The influence of the moon, in producing madness or disease - the general influence of it on health - is often referred to. Thus Shakespeare says: “The moon, the governess of floods, Pale in her anger, washes all the air, That rheumatic diseases do abound.” Midsummer Night’s Dream, ii. 2. “It is the very error of the moon; She comes more near the earth than she was wont, And makes men mad.” Othello, v. 2. David Barker has an interesting comment on the psalmist's reference to the "moon" writing that While the Hebrew pilgrim may well have known from his understanding of God and the world that such a danger does not actually exist (Ed note: that the moon could really cause mental illness), it is easy to understand how popular lore and superstition would invade and dominate in spite of theological understandings to the contrary. The psalm realistically addresses the mind-set of the pilgrim in his perceptions of dangers and fears." Barker goes on to add that "there seems to be more here in reference to the superstitions and popular fears of the people of the day. One wonders how many of God’s people today still pause to pick up a four-leaf clover or feel a twinge of anxiety when a black cat crosses the road ahead of them." (David Barker: "THE LORD WATCHES OVER YOU": A PILGRIMAGE READING OF PSALM 121: Bibliotheca Sacra: Volume 152, issue 606, page 163) DIVINE SUNSCREEN - Some people are harmed by the sun's powerful rays. They may be allergic to the sun, or they may have a disease, like vitiligo (lack of protective pigment and propensity to severe burns) lupus erythematosis. If these people are exposed to direct sunlight for an extended period of time, they have a visible and painful reaction. To protect themselves, they wear large-brimmed hats and clothing to cover their arms, legs, and necks. They use the strongest sunscreen possible to protect exposed skin areas. And they spend the midday hours in the shade. The hosts of God encamp around The dwellings of the just; Protection He affords to all Who make His name their trust. - Tate and Brady The IVP Bible Background Commentary has an interesting note: Anyone who has traveled in the Middle East knows the threat of dehydration and sunstroke. Many of the roads to Jerusalem exposed the traveler to oppressive heat. Just as too much exposure to the sun could be dangerous, it was believed in the ancient world that too much exposure to the moon could pose a health threat. Medical diagnostic texts from first-millennium Babylonia and Assyria identify several conditions as a result of the “hand of Sin” (Sin was the moon god), including one in which the patient grinds his teeth and his hands and feet tremble, and another that has all the symptoms of epilepsy. English words like “moonstruck” and “lunatic” show that such belief persisted into relatively recent times. (Matthews, V, et al: The IVP Bible background commentary : Old Testament. Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press) Psalm 121:7 The LORD will protect you from all evil; He will keep your soul. (NASB: Lockman) Septuagint (LXX): kurios phulaxei (3SFAI: guard, protect, watch over) se apo (basic meaning = separation from) pantos (all) kakou (evil) phulaxei (3SFAI: guard, protect, watch over) ten psuche (soul) sou English Translation of the Septuagint - May the Lord preserve thee from all evil: the Lord shall keep thy soul. Protect: Ps 91:9,10 Job 5:19-27 Pr 12:21 Mt 6:13 Ro 8:28,35-39 2Ti 4:18; He will: Ps 34:22 41:2 97:10 145:20 The LORD will protect - Jehovah shamar - (Torrey's topic "protection"). Dear child of God, you can know beyond a shadow of a doubt that nothing can come into your life apart from the permissive will of God. Everything is "filtered" through the hands of our loving Father. There are no chance circumstances or random occurrences in the life of a believer. Nothing happens in a believer's life that is purposeless for "we know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose." (Ro 8:28+, cp Genesis 50:20). As John