On Sunday, I shared with our bilingual groups some thoughts from the first three psalms of ascent. I talked about what most scholars think these psalms were used for: the pilgrimage to Jerusalem for the annual feasts. I talked about us being on the same pilgrimage (“We’re Marching to Zion”), except that we are on our way to the heavenly Jerusalem.
Psalm 120:1 In my distress I called to the LORD, and he answered me.
2 Deliver me, O LORD, from lying lips, from a deceitful tongue.
3 What shall be given to you, and what more shall be done to you, you deceitful tongue?
4 A warrior’s sharp arrows, with glowing coals of the broom tree!
5 Woe to me, that I sojourn in Meshech, that I dwell among the tents of Kedar!
6 Too long have I had my dwelling among those who hate peace.
7 I am for peace, but when I speak, they are for war!
Looking at Psalm 120, we looked at the psalmist’s anguish due to the society around him, a society full of violence, lying lips and people who sought war when he only wanted peace. We noted that when he describes his physical location, he mentions Meshech and Kedar. Meshech is to the north of Israel and Kedar to the south. The psalmist is not talking about a particular place, rather he is speaking of the plight of those Israelites who were dwelling far from their homeland.
Psalm 121: 1 I lift up my eyes to the hills. From where does my help come?
2 My help comes from the LORD, who made heaven and earth.
3 He will not let your foot be moved; he who keeps you will not slumber.
4 Behold, he who keeps Israel will neither slumber nor sleep.
5 The LORD is your keeper; the LORD is your shade on your right hand.
6 The sun shall not strike you by day, nor the moon by night.
7 The LORD will keep you from all evil; he will keep your life.
8 The LORD will keep your going out and your coming in from this time forth and forevermore.
In Psalm 121, we noted the psalmist’s opening phrase: “I lift up my eyes to the hills. From where does my help come?” (Psalms 121:1) As he traveled the perilous road to Jerusalem, he would have been apprehensive when approaching the hills. Yet the hills had another meaning for the Jews, for the high places were the places of pagan worship. During his trip, as he looks to his safety, there was the temptation to follow the advice of those around him, the people who would say, “Go ahead. Seek help from the gods of the high places. This is their land; they will protect you.” However the psalmist finds an answer, either from inside himself or from a fellow traveler: “My help comes from the LORD, who made heaven and earth.” (Psalms 121:2) The psalmist makes a conscious decision to reject other sources of aid and look only to the Lord.
Psalm 122:1 I was glad when they said to me, “Let us go to the house of the LORD!”
We finished with just the first verse of Psalm 122: “I was glad when they said to me, “Let us go to the house of the LORD!”” (Psalms 122:1) We talked about how this was not just a “let’s go to church verse,” this was “Let’s leave our fields and homes and make the journey to Jerusalem to worship God.” It was a call to leave Meshech and Kedar, make a perilous trip, all as worship to God and a show of faith in Him.
Tying the three together, we spoke of Christians dwelling in Meshech and Kedar, living among people who are far from God, living a life of exile away from the new Jerusalem. Rather than trust in the things in this world, we look to the Lord. Our help will not come from the White House, the International Monetary Fund or the armed forces. Our help comes from the Lord. And we will share the joy of the pilgrimage, the exhilaration of saying: “Let’s go to the new Jerusalem!”