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Psalm 133 Commentary by Nancy Koester - Working Preacher - Preaching This Week (RCL)
RCL|Narrative|Evangelio|Index
7/11/13
Psalm 133 Commentary by Nancy Koester - Working Preacher - Preaching This Week (RCL)
recall a woman who anointed Jesus for his burial and how the women brought spices to the tomb. But on Easter, these gifts of mourning took on a new meaning as hope spread from the empty tomb. Life is no longer scarce but abundant, no longer rationed but spilling over like an endless fountain. For Christians, the oil signifies worship, feasting, celebration in unity. Death separates people, but resurrection promises that we will dwell in unity forever in Christ4. God is in the business of bringing the faithful together, a community of saints across time and distance. The second liquid in Psalm 133 is the "dew of Hermon" (verse 3). Mount Hermon is far to the north of Jerusalem (i.e. Mount Zion). Mount Hermon rises above the upper Jordan Valley. It had its share of heavy rainfall and snow. The melting snow, or dew, flowed down into the valley. It fed the Jordan River and reached as far as the oasis of Jericho5. In arid country, where the rain is scarce and the rivers dry up, the land and the people depend on water that comes from a distant source. It is the scarcity of water in the dry lands, which makes Mount Hermon's dews so precious. Like the oil that flows down the beard of Aaron, so the dew of Mount Hermon reaches far beyond its point of origin and gives life to faraway lands. God's generosity calls people to worship. And in worshiping this God of abundant life and love, we become one family. The resurrection of Jesus Christ slakes our thirst for life and love. We thought that life was a scarce commodity, measured out in years and months, days and hours. But Jesus arose and opened the way to eternal life. We thought that love was reserved for a chosen few, with never enough to go around. But Jesus arose and his Word calls forth a global family of believers. And there at the high point of Easter, "the Lord ordained his blessing, life forevermore" (133:3). Grace flows down to us and makes us one in faith. In our times of conflict and economic distress, Psalm 133 is like water on parched ground. People who are divided and estranged from one another need God's call to "live together in unity." For them, this Psalm offers hope and the promise of kinship in Christ. And people suffer scarcity in everything from food and housing, to justice and love. The message: God loves us abundantly and holds nothing back. Easter is like the oil of blessing, bringing people together in faith. Easter is like the dew of Mount Hermon, flowing with abundant life.
1New
Interpreters' Bible vol. VI (Nashville: Abingdon, 1996), 1214. Psalms (Louisville, KY: Westminster John Knox, 2000), 455. Clifford, Psalms 1-72, (Nashville: Abingdon, 2002), 260.
1214. Achtemeier, ed. Harper Collins Bible Dictionary (HarperSanFrancisco, 1996), 416.
5Paul J.
https://www.workingpreacher.org/preaching.aspx?commentary_id=274
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