Assigned PSALMS from the Book of Psalms: (The Psalms are traditionally divided into FIVE BOOKS, as if to match the FIVE BOOKS of the PENTATEUCH [Torah].)
Book 1: 1, 2, 8, 14 (same as #53), 15, 22, 23, 27, 32, 37
Book 2: 42, 46, 49, 51, 55, 72
Book 3: 73
Book 4:90, 104
Book 5: 110, 114, 119* (only verses 1-8 in this very long Psalm), 127, 130, 137, 139, 146, 148, 150 (the final Psalm).
*For English majors, observe how the word for "teaching" is synonymically repeated in every single verse: "law, teaching, way, instruction," etc. throughout the entire Psalm (the longest Psalm in the Book of Psalms).
PROVERBS: 6:6-15, 8:1-9:6, 10:25, 13:12, 16:2, 16:4, 16:8-9, 16:18, 18:5, 19:21, 20:14, 21:2, 21:31, 22:6, 22:13, 24:3, 26:27, 27:1, 28:9, 29:5, 29:10, 29:18, 30:18-20, 31:10-31
ECCLESIASTES: 1:1-11, 2:2-4:4, 9:11, 12.
Existentialism was a philosophy started by Jean-Paul Sartre, during and after World War II, although many writers have been called Existentialist. The main idea is that "existence precedes essence." That man is completely free; that he or she cannot claim that others have found truth for him; he must find truth for himself, whatever that "essence" is. As such, man's psychology is free too. A man does not act cowardly because he is a coward; rather he is a coward because he acts cowardly. As soon as he acts bravely, he stops being a coward. (Sartre later found Freud and admitted man is not as free as he once thought.) (Sartre was made fun of in the film, Funny Face, with Audrey Hepburn and Fred Astaire.)
Other important verses from JOB, besides those discussed in class:
Note the Existentialist theme in 12:1: "Doubtless you are the people, and wisdom will die with you! But I have a mind as well as you." Job may be sarcastic here; but he may also be speaking honestly: "You are wise, but I must find my own wisdom."
in 12:4 note Job's bitter sarcasm of an Ugly God: "I called upon God and he answered"!
Note in 12:7 Job speaks like his accusers, to prove that he too has seen what they see and know what they know (see 13:1f.).
See 13:7, where a defense of God for the wrong reasons is an insult to God. Note the irony, in view of the "frame" of the poem; because we know that later God will in fact accuse Job's friends for not speaking rightly.
Listen to Job's bitter plea for rest in 14.5, one of many such verses in the poem.
In 15:7 Eliphaz continues the tradition vs. existentialist debate. Eliphaz is right to some degree; but he is wrong in expecting Job to rely on others' knowledge and not Job's own. See also, 15:17b-18: "Let me tell you what wise men hae declared."
In 15:15 we know that angels can be wicked too ("God places no trust in his holy ones").
In 16:19, Job says that "Even now my witness is in heaven." We discussed that idea in terms of the Messianic promise (=Jesus, the Redeemer). See 19:25. Note in 19:27 the Existentialist theme, with the reflexive pronoun for "I" ("myself"): "I myself will see him; I and not another."
In 18:8 we find many synonyms for the word "trap," a common repetition device in Hebrew poetry (compare especially Psalm 119, which is really a thesaurus [treasury] of words on the single idea, "teaching"!!!! English composition students can learn a lot from that psalm.
In 22:4 note the great irony when Eliphaz asks Job, "Is it for you piety that he rebukes you and brings charges against you?" But we know from God himself that Job is "blameless"! Knowing this, from the prologue, we smile at Eliphaz's question.
26:5 to the end of the chapter is suspected to really be words of Bildad rather than Job, since these verses are not consistent with Job's views. Moreover, since Ch. 25, of Bildad, is so short, it's possible these lines were misplaced. Young students may be confused and wonder whether any character has a point of view unless mention is made of this (and below).
In the same way, 27:13-28:28 is suspected to be really spoken by Zophar instead of Job (these words don't make sense if they come from Job). Ch. 28, however beautiful, may be from a completely different source text.
Note in 29:18 how Job was fooled by traditional wisdom: "I thought, 'I shall die in my own house, my days as numerous as the grains of sand.'" This is the basis of Greek tragedy too: common wisdom shaken up by real life misfortune.
31 is another masterpiece (of many in JOB); a great Chapter, often called a "negative confession," as in Egyptian religion: saying what one has not done that is evil. Note the reference in 31:1 to "covenant," as if to refer to the Mosaic Covenant.
Chapters 32-37 is considered a later interpolation (addition), as we said in class. Elihu is not mentioned before nor after (by God); nor does Job respond to him; hence his speech must be a later addition (either by the same writer or another).
Finally, both 38:3 and 40:7 open with the same phrase about standing up like a man, spoken by God. These doublets suggest a redacted or edited text. Remember the Bible was considered the Word of God; so no text could be removed entirely; therefore where two texts seemed to repeat, the editor had to keep both texts and somehow make them fit! The 2d text esp. doesn't make sense, because Job has already repented.
As for God's speeches (Chapters 38-41), they are among the greatest poetry in literature. Note especially the reference to the sea monster, Leviathan (the sea is a main evil in the Bible, from the first, when the sea is separated from the land, to the last, when, in Revelation, we discover there is no more sea! Most scholars believe the Leviathan is the crocodile, based on the description; while the Behemoth is the rhino.
Many years and tears ago, my people were scattered taking with them broken souls from homes where time once mattered. My lovely land, my lonely land, alone two thousand years And now returned our Holy Land, but its fields are filled with tears. [Hebrew] Oh, Oh, Oh, El Shaday, Oh, Oh, El Shaday. Tell me who am I, tell me who am I. Oh, El Shaday.
Show pity, Lord. O Lord forgive. Let a repenting rebel live; are not thy mercies large and free? May not a sinner trust in Thee? Yet save a trembling sinner, Lord, whose hope still hovering round, Thy word would light on some sweet promise there. Some sure support against despair.
Night gathers round my soul; fearful I cry to Thee; Come to mine aid, O Lord! Haste Thee, Lord, haste to help me! Hear my cry, hear my cry, Save me, Lord, in Thy mercy; Hear my cry! Hear my cry. Come and save me, O Lord! O, divine Redeemer! O, divine Redeemer! I pray Thee, grant me pardon, And remember not, remember not, O Lord, my sins! Save, in the day of retribution, from Death shield Thou me, O my God! O, divine Redeemer, have mercy! Help me, my Savior!
2: The rich man had exceeding many flocks and herds:
3: But the poor man had nothing, save one little ewe lamb, which he had bought and nourished up: and it grew up together with him, and with his children; it did eat of his own meat, and drank of his own cup, and lay in his bosom, and was unto him as a daughter.
4: And there came a traveller unto the rich man, and he spared to take of his own flock and of his own herd, to dress for the wayfaring man that was come unto him; but took the poor man's lamb, and dressed it for the man that was come to him.
5: And David's anger was greatly kindled against the man; and he said to Nathan, As the LORD liveth, the man that hath done this thing shall surely die:
6: And he shall restore the lamb fourfold, because he did this thing, and because he had no pity.
7: And Nathan said to David, Thou art the man. Thus saith the LORD God of Israel, I anointed thee king over Israel, and I delivered thee out of the hand of Saul;
8: And I gave thee thy master's house, and thy master's wives into thy bosom, and gave thee the house of Israel and of Judah; and if that had been too little, I would moreover have given unto thee such and such things.
9: Wherefore hast thou despised the commandment of the LORD, to do evil in his sight? thou hast killed Uriah the Hittite with the sword, and hast taken his wife to be thy wife, and hast slain him with the sword of the children of Ammon.
10: Now therefore the sword shall never depart from thine house; because thou hast despised me, and hast taken the wife of Uriah the Hittite to be thy wife.
2: Wash me throughly from mine iniquity, and cleanse me from my sin.
3: For I acknowledge my transgressions: and my sin is ever before me.
4: Against thee, thee only, have I sinned, and done this evil in thy sight: that thou mightest be justified when thou speakest, and be clear when thou judgest.
5: Behold, I was shapen in iniquity; and in sin did my mother conceive me.
6: Behold, thou desirest truth in the inward parts: and in the hidden part thou shalt make me to know wisdom.
7: Purge me with hyssop, and I shall be clean: wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow.
8: Make me to hear joy and gladness; that the bones which thou hast broken may rejoice.
9: Hide thy face from my sins, and blot out all mine iniquities.
10: Create in me a clean heart, O God; and renew a right spirit within me.
11: Cast me not away from thy presence; and take not thy holy spirit from me.
12: Restore unto me the joy of thy salvation; and uphold me with thy free spirit.
13: Then will I teach transgressors thy ways; and sinners shall be converted unto thee.
14: Deliver me from bloodguiltiness, O God, thou God of my salvation: and my tongue shall sing aloud of thy righteousness.
15: O Lord, open thou my lips; and my mouth shall shew forth thy praise.
16: For thou desirest not sacrifice; else would I give it: thou delightest not in burnt offering.
17: The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit: a broken and a contrite heart, O God, thou wilt not despise.
18: Do good in thy good pleasure unto Zion: build thou the walls of Jerusalem.
19: Then shalt thou be pleased with the sacrifices of righteousness, with burnt offering and whole burnt offering: then shall they offer bullocks upon thine altar.
Show pity, Lord. O Lord forgive. Let a repenting rebel live; are not thy mercies large and free? May not a sinner trust in Thee? Yet save a trembling sinner, Lord, whose hope still hovering round, Thy word would light on some sweet promise there. Some sure support against despair.
In a manger for His bed: Mary was that mother mild, Jesus Christ her little Child.
Saul: I would, that by thy art thou bring me up the man whom I shall name.
Witch: Alas! thou know'st how Saul has cut off those who use this art. Would'st though ensnare [trap] me?
Saul: As Jehovah lives, on this account no mischief shall befall thee.
Witch: Whom shall I bring up to thee?
Saul: Bring up Samuel.
Witch: Infernal [Hellish] spirits, by whose power departed ghosts in living form appear, add horror to the midnight hour and chill the boldest hearts with fear: to this stranger's wondering eyes let the prophet Samuel rise!
Delilah: Ah, respond to my tenderness! Pour out your passion!
Samson: Dalila! Dalila! Je t'aime!
Samson: Delilah! Delilah! I love you!
Samson: Dalila! Dalila! Je t'aime!
Samson: Delilah! Delilah! I love you!
Oh, well it was the sword of the Lord And Gideon, Gideon, Gideon children And the sword of the Lord and Gideon I'm gonna lay down my sword and shield!
Great God! Well, read your Bible and you can read it right God called Gideon late at night About 4:15
They tell me the time You ought to hear my God on the line They tell me that He spoke his words so sweet You ought to hear the shuffle of angels' feet God spoke again and He spoke that night Go on down, "Brother Gideon, smite the right I heard Brother Gideon spoke with Him
"Lord, my God, I got too many men." God Almighty told Gideon to do the rest Take them down by the Jordan, stand the test Some come a-leaping in two by two Gideon said pull off that shoe Some come a leaping in three by three Gideon said, "Lord, let me see."
Some came jumping in four by four Great God Almighty, I need some more! They tell me that the numbers ran up to nine Gideon said, "Now fall in line
My God spoke, said, "I tell you when." He counted the number, there were three hundred men!
Oh, well it was the sword of the Lord And Gideon, Gideon, Gideon children And the sword of the Lord and Gideon I'm gonna lay down my sword and shield! (repeat) Great God well you heard my story
That's the end Brother Gideon had a bunch of fighting men Some were old, some were young All got together till the battle was won Prayer was the key, though, I do believe, You can't win a battle unless you get on your knees Gideon cried they tell me, shout Great God Almighty, they all ran out Some ran low and some wide
You can't win the battle with God on the main side.
Oh, well it was the sword of the Lord And Gideon, Gideon, Gideon children And the sword of the Lord and Gideon I'm gonna lay down my sword and shield!
Oh, well it was the sword of the Lord And Gideon, Gideon, Gideon children And the sword of the Lord and Gideon I'm gonna lay down my sword and shield!
Old Deuteronomy's lived a long time. He's a cat who has lived many lives in succession. He was famous in proverb and famous in rhyme a long while before Queen Victoria's accession. Old Deuteronomy's buried nine wives, and more: I am tempted to say, ninety-nine. And his numerous progeny prospers and thrives, and the village is proud of him in his decline.
The Book of Judges is centered on women, both good and evil (Delilah). One of the judges, Deborah, predicts that victory will be in the hands of a woman. This is dramatic irony, because the reader (and Barak) assumes the woman is Deborah, but she turns out to be Jael, who slays the Canaanite captain, Sisera, as he sleeps. The story is based on several ironies and contrasts. One is hospitality, which is violated when Sisera asks for water and is given milk, but is killed as he sleeps. The story contrasts the blessed women Jael and Deborah, and the hapless woman, the mother of Sisera, who, although the mother imagines her son has conquered and so enjoying the spoils of war, lies dead instead, even as she relishes her son's victory in her imagination. The Song of Deborah is one of the oldest texts in the Bible (though Judges itself is of a later date). We'll listen to a narration of this in class, so bring this with you on Tuesday as well:
Well you read in the Bible, you will understand That Samson was the strongest man They tell me God moved on the wings of the wind He saw old Samson and he called to him. He whispered low into Samson’s mind,
Saying, “Deliver the children from the Philistines.”
{Chorus} Well if I had my way . . .
Great God! Then Samson went down and he wandered about. Tell me that his strength was never found out. They tell us down in Chapter 9 That he killed 3000 of Philistines Then Samson’s wife she sat on his knees And said, “Samson, tell me Samson, where your strength lies, please." Samson’s wife, she talked so fair That Samson told her to cut his hair Said you shave my head as clean as your hand Then my strength gonna go like a natural man
Chorus He said, If I had my way . . . Great God!
They shaved his head just as clean as the hand. They took him on down to a strange land They led him on down to the judgment hall Blind him and chained him to the wall But he called on God, he called on the Lord
They tell me that his hair begins to grow Then he called a kid about three feet tall He said you place my hands up against the wall Then he placed his hands up against the wall Then he tore that building down!
Book 1: 1, 2, 8, 14 (same as #53), 15, 22, 23, 27, 32, 37
Book 2: 42, 46, 49, 51, 55, 72
Book 3: 73
Book 4:90, 104
Book 5: 110, 114, 119* (only verses 1-8 in this very long Psalm), 127, 130, 137, 139, 146, 148, 150 (the final Psalm).
*For English majors, observe how the word for "teaching" is synonymically repeated in every single verse: "law, teaching, way, instruction," etc. throughout the entire Psalm (the longest Psalm in the Book of Psalms).
PROVERBS: 6:6-15, 8:1-9:6, 10:25, 13:12, 16:2, 16:4, 16:8-9, 16:18, 18:5, 19:21, 20:14, 21:2, 21:31, 22:6, 22:13, 24:3, 26:27, 27:1, 28:9, 29:5, 29:10, 29:18, 30:18-20, 31:10-31
ECCLESIASTES: 1:1-11, 2:2-4:4, 9:11, 12.
Some summary and final words on JOB:
Today we discussed Job. We focused on the "existentialist" idea in Job; that, however wise some comments from his 3/4 friends are, Job claims he must find out for himself. Their fault is not their wisdom, but that it is not their wisdom, but another's (tradition, parents, teachers, etc.). Job finally tells God, "Before, I heard of you [like his friends heard wisdom], but now I have seen you with my own eyes."Existentialism was a philosophy started by Jean-Paul Sartre, during and after World War II, although many writers have been called Existentialist. The main idea is that "existence precedes essence." That man is completely free; that he or she cannot claim that others have found truth for him; he must find truth for himself, whatever that "essence" is. As such, man's psychology is free too. A man does not act cowardly because he is a coward; rather he is a coward because he acts cowardly. As soon as he acts bravely, he stops being a coward. (Sartre later found Freud and admitted man is not as free as he once thought.) (Sartre was made fun of in the film, Funny Face, with Audrey Hepburn and Fred Astaire.)
Other important verses from JOB, besides those discussed in class:
Note the Existentialist theme in 12:1: "Doubtless you are the people, and wisdom will die with you! But I have a mind as well as you." Job may be sarcastic here; but he may also be speaking honestly: "You are wise, but I must find my own wisdom."
in 12:4 note Job's bitter sarcasm of an Ugly God: "I called upon God and he answered"!
Note in 12:7 Job speaks like his accusers, to prove that he too has seen what they see and know what they know (see 13:1f.).
See 13:7, where a defense of God for the wrong reasons is an insult to God. Note the irony, in view of the "frame" of the poem; because we know that later God will in fact accuse Job's friends for not speaking rightly.
Listen to Job's bitter plea for rest in 14.5, one of many such verses in the poem.
In 15:7 Eliphaz continues the tradition vs. existentialist debate. Eliphaz is right to some degree; but he is wrong in expecting Job to rely on others' knowledge and not Job's own. See also, 15:17b-18: "Let me tell you what wise men hae declared."
In 15:15 we know that angels can be wicked too ("God places no trust in his holy ones").
In 16:19, Job says that "Even now my witness is in heaven." We discussed that idea in terms of the Messianic promise (=Jesus, the Redeemer). See 19:25. Note in 19:27 the Existentialist theme, with the reflexive pronoun for "I" ("myself"): "I myself will see him; I and not another."
In 18:8 we find many synonyms for the word "trap," a common repetition device in Hebrew poetry (compare especially Psalm 119, which is really a thesaurus [treasury] of words on the single idea, "teaching"!!!! English composition students can learn a lot from that psalm.
In 22:4 note the great irony when Eliphaz asks Job, "Is it for you piety that he rebukes you and brings charges against you?" But we know from God himself that Job is "blameless"! Knowing this, from the prologue, we smile at Eliphaz's question.
26:5 to the end of the chapter is suspected to really be words of Bildad rather than Job, since these verses are not consistent with Job's views. Moreover, since Ch. 25, of Bildad, is so short, it's possible these lines were misplaced. Young students may be confused and wonder whether any character has a point of view unless mention is made of this (and below).
In the same way, 27:13-28:28 is suspected to be really spoken by Zophar instead of Job (these words don't make sense if they come from Job). Ch. 28, however beautiful, may be from a completely different source text.
Note in 29:18 how Job was fooled by traditional wisdom: "I thought, 'I shall die in my own house, my days as numerous as the grains of sand.'" This is the basis of Greek tragedy too: common wisdom shaken up by real life misfortune.
31 is another masterpiece (of many in JOB); a great Chapter, often called a "negative confession," as in Egyptian religion: saying what one has not done that is evil. Note the reference in 31:1 to "covenant," as if to refer to the Mosaic Covenant.
Chapters 32-37 is considered a later interpolation (addition), as we said in class. Elihu is not mentioned before nor after (by God); nor does Job respond to him; hence his speech must be a later addition (either by the same writer or another).
Finally, both 38:3 and 40:7 open with the same phrase about standing up like a man, spoken by God. These doublets suggest a redacted or edited text. Remember the Bible was considered the Word of God; so no text could be removed entirely; therefore where two texts seemed to repeat, the editor had to keep both texts and somehow make them fit! The 2d text esp. doesn't make sense, because Job has already repented.
As for God's speeches (Chapters 38-41), they are among the greatest poetry in literature. Note especially the reference to the sea monster, Leviathan (the sea is a main evil in the Bible, from the first, when the sea is separated from the land, to the last, when, in Revelation, we discover there is no more sea! Most scholars believe the Leviathan is the crocodile, based on the description; while the Behemoth is the rhino.
Songs, Week of 3 January 2006
EL SHADAY
"El Shaday" is translated as "Almighty God." The song refers to the diaspora, the main topic of the four books we're studying this week. "Diaspora" means "dispersion" and refers to the dispersion of the Jews after the fall of northern Israel (722 BCE) and then when Judah fell in 587/6 (the Babylonian Captivity). King Cyrus conquered Babylon and allowed the Jews to return and restore their city and temple (as told in the books of Ezra and Nehemiah). The Jewish temple was finally destroyed by the Romans in 70 AD (CE). The song refers to the resettling of Palestine by the Jews in the twentieth century but, of course, could apply as well to the first resettlement described in the books of Ezra and Nehemiah. Israeli singer, Ofra Haza, co-wrote this song. She was one of the more famous people to die of AIDS.
As I look back on yesteryear, a picture's coming clear: As I look back on yesteryear, a picture's coming clear: I see my father work the fields, my mother holds me near. I traveled far but now I'm here to sing for you my tears. I traveled far but now I'm here to sing for you my tears. The yellow moon shines in my eyes and watches while I cry. The yellow moon shines in my eyes and watches while I cry. Oh, Oh, Oh, El Shaday, Oh, Oh, El Shaday. Tell me who am I, tell me who am I. Oh, El Shaday. EL SHADAY
"El Shaday" is translated as "Almighty God." The song refers to the diaspora, the main topic of the four books we're studying this week. "Diaspora" means "dispersion" and refers to the dispersion of the Jews after the fall of northern Israel (722 BCE) and then when Judah fell in 587/6 (the Babylonian Captivity). King Cyrus conquered Babylon and allowed the Jews to return and restore their city and temple (as told in the books of Ezra and Nehemiah). The Jewish temple was finally destroyed by the Romans in 70 AD (CE). The song refers to the resettling of Palestine by the Jews in the twentieth century but, of course, could apply as well to the first resettlement described in the books of Ezra and Nehemiah. Israeli singer, Ofra Haza, co-wrote this song. She was one of the more famous people to die of AIDS.
Many years and tears ago, my people were scattered taking with them broken souls from homes where time once mattered. My lovely land, my lonely land, alone two thousand years And now returned our Holy Land, but its fields are filled with tears. [Hebrew] Oh, Oh, Oh, El Shaday, Oh, Oh, El Shaday. Tell me who am I, tell me who am I. Oh, El Shaday.
YOU CAN'T BEAT GOD GIVING
This gospel song is similar to King David's beautiful psalm of thanksgiving in 1 Chronicles 29:10ff.
You can't beat God giving no matter how you try. For just as sure as you are living and the Lord is in Heaven on high, the more you kneel the more he gives to you, just before giving, because it's really true, that you can't beat God giving no matter how you try. He sends the sun and he sends the rain, he sends the harvest's golden grain and he calms the sea every now and then, because he's my best friend and that's why I say: You can't beat God giving no matter how you try. For just as sure as you are living and the Lord is in Heaven on high, the more you kneel the more he gives to you, just keeps on giving, because it's really true, true that you can't, you just can't, you really can't beat God giving no matter how you try. No matter how you try. No matter how you try. This gospel song is similar to King David's beautiful psalm of thanksgiving in 1 Chronicles 29:10ff.
NO COWARD SOLDIER
Throughout the books of Kings and Chronicles, kings are told to rely on God and God only. But often fear caused them to ally with foreign rulers, thus compromising their religion. That's why Elisha insisted on the chariots of God and kings are praised for relying solely on God, as when Hezekiah opposes the Assyrians in 2 Chronicles 32. This gospel song is similar in sentiment.
God don't want, he don't want no coward soldier, he don't need no coward soldiers in his band. Oh, Lord, Oh, yes! God can't use no coward soldier, he don't want no coward soldier, he don't need no coward soldier, he won't have no coward soldier, he won't have no coward soldier in his band. I tell you that God don't want, he don't want no coward soldier, he don't want no coward soldier, he don't need no coward soldier, he won't need no coward soldier in his band. Oh, Lord! I tell you that God don't need, He don't use, he won't have no coward soldier, you can't bring it to the army, he don't need no coward soldier in his band. He told some to sing, others he said to preach. Some he gave a story and those he told to teach. Now every man must work out his own soul's salvation. But when the children of God get together they're sure going to rock the nation. I tell you that God don't want and he don't want no coward soldier, he don't need no coward solder in his band. I tell you that God can't use and he don't need no coward soldier, he won't have no coward soldier in his band. It takes love to be a good soldier, a mighty big heart to be a good soldier, a whole lot of grace to be a good soldier, you gotta talk right to be a good soldier, Lord help me to be a good soldier, Lord help me to be a good soldier, gotta live right to be a good soldier, gotta talk right to be, give me a right to be, please give me a right to be, please give me a right to be a good soldier. Throughout the books of Kings and Chronicles, kings are told to rely on God and God only. But often fear caused them to ally with foreign rulers, thus compromising their religion. That's why Elisha insisted on the chariots of God and kings are praised for relying solely on God, as when Hezekiah opposes the Assyrians in 2 Chronicles 32. This gospel song is similar in sentiment.
Songs, Week of 27 December 2005
Solomon Becomes King
THE TWO HARLOTS
Sacred Harp songs are sometimes named after the source melody, not the subject of the song. The subject of this song is similar to the feeling of repentance David felt following the episode with Bathsheba, as shown in Psalm 51:Solomon Becomes King
1: Now king David was old and stricken in years; 32: And king David said, Call me Zadok the priest, and Nathan the prophet, and Benaiah the son of Jehoiada. And they came before the king.
33: The king also said unto them, Take with you the servants of your lord, and cause Solomon my son to ride upon mine own mule, and bring him down to Gihon: 34: And let Zadok the priest and Nathan the prophet anoint him there king over Israel: and blow ye with the trumpet, and say, God save king Solomon.38: So Zadok the priest, and Nathan the prophet, and Benaiah the son of Jehoiada, and the Cherethites, and the Pelethites, went down, and caused Solomon to ride upon king David's mule, and brought him to Gihon. 39: And Zadok the priest took an horn of oil out of the tabernacle, and anointed Solomon. And they blew the trumpet; and all the people said, God save king Solomon. 40: And all the people came up after him, and the people piped with pipes, and rejoiced with great joy, so that the earth rent with the sound of them.
ZADOK THE PRIEST (G. F. Handel)
Zadok the priest, and Nathan the prophet, anointed Solomon king. And all the people rejoiced, rejoiced, rejoiced, and all the people rejoiced, rejoiced, rejoiced, rejoiced, rejoiced, rejoiced, and all the people rejoiced, rejoiced, rejoiced and said, God save the king. Long live the king. God save the king. May the king live forever. Amen. Alleluia. Amen. Alleluia. Amen!
THE TWO HARLOTS
1: Now the days of David drew nigh that he should die; 10: So David slept with his fathers, and was buried in the city of David. 12: Then sat Solomon upon the throne of David his father; and his kingdom was established greatly. 16: Then came there two women, that were harlots, unto the king, and stood before him. 17: And the one woman said, O my lord, I and this woman dwell in one house; and I was delivered of a child with her in the house. 18: And it came to pass the third day after that I was delivered, that this woman was delivered also: and we were together; there was no stranger with us in the house, save we two in the house. 19: And this woman's child died in the night; because she overlaid it. 20: And she arose at midnight, and took my son from beside me, while thine handmaid slept, and laid it in her bosom, and laid her dead child in my bosom. 21: And when I rose in the morning to give my child suck, behold, it was dead: but when I had considered it in the morning, behold, it was not my son, which I did bear. 22: And the other woman said, Nay; but the living is my son, and the dead is thy son. And this said, No; but the dead is thy son, and the living is my son. Thus they spake before the king. 23: Then said the king, The one saith, This is my son that liveth, and thy son is the dead: and the other saith, Nay; but thy son is the dead, and my son is the living. 24: And the king said, Bring me a sword. And they brought a sword before the king. 25: And the king said, Divide the living child in two, and give half to the one, and half to the other. 26: Then spake the woman whose the living child was unto the king, for her bowels yearned upon her son, and she said, O my lord, give her the living child, and in no wise slay it. But the other said, Let it be neither mine nor thine, but divide it. 27: Then the king answered and said, Give her the living child, and in no wise slay it: she is the mother thereof. 28: And all Israel heard of the judgment which the king had judged; and they feared the king: for they saw that the wisdom of God was in him, to do judgment.
Elijah9: And he came thither unto a cave, and lodged there; And, behold, the LORD passed by, and a great and strong wind rent the mountains, and brake in pieces the rocks before the LORD; but the LORD was not in the wind: and after the wind an earthquake; but the LORD was not in the earthquake: 12: And after the earthquake a fire; but the LORD was not in the fire: and after the fire a still small voice.
5: But Jezebel his wife said unto him, 7: Dost thou now govern the kingdom of Israel? arise, and eat bread, and let thine heart be merry: I will give thee the vineyard of Naboth the Jezreelite. 8: So she wrote letters in Ahab's name, and sealed them with his seal, and sent the letters unto the elders and to the nobles that were in his city, dwelling with Naboth. 9: And she wrote in the letters, saying, Proclaim a fast, and set Naboth on high among the people: 10: And set two men, sons of Belial, before him, to bear witness against him, saying, Thou didst blaspheme God and the king. Then carry him out, and stone him, that he may die. 11: And the men of his city, even the elders and the nobles who were the inhabitants in his city, did as Jezebel had sent unto them, and as it was written in the letters which she had sent unto them. 14: Then they sent to Jezebel, saying, Naboth is stoned, and is dead. 15: And it came to pass, when Jezebel heard that Naboth was stoned, and was dead, that Jezebel said to Ahab, Arise, take possession of the vineyard of Naboth the Jezreelite, which he refused to give thee for money: for Naboth is not alive, but dead. 16: And it came to pass, when Ahab heard that Naboth was dead, that Ahab rose up to go down to the vineyard of Naboth the Jezreelite, to take possession of it. 17: And the word of the LORD came to Elijah the Tishbite, saying, 18: Arise, go down to meet Ahab king of Israel, which is in Samaria: behold, he is in the vineyard of Naboth, whither he is gone down to possess it. 19: And thou shalt speak unto him, saying, Thus saith the LORD, Hast thou killed, and also taken possession? Thus saith the LORD, In the place where dogs licked the blood of Naboth shall dogs lick thy blood, even thine. 20: And Ahab said to Elijah, Hast thou found me, O mine enemy? And he answered, I have found thee: because thou hast sold thyself to work evil in the sight of the LORD. 27: And it came to pass, when Ahab heard these words, that he rent his clothes, and put sackcloth upon his flesh, and fasted, and lay in sackcloth, and went softly. 33: And the king of Israel disguised himself and went into battle. 34: And a certain man drew a bow at a venture, and smote the king of Israel between the joints of the harness: wherefore he said unto the driver of his chariot, Turn thine hand, and carry me out of the host; for I am wounded. 35: And the battle increased that day: and the king was stayed up in his chariot against the Syrians, and died at even: and the blood ran out of the wound into the midst of the chariot. 37: So the king died, and was brought to Samaria; and they buried the king in Samaria. 38: And one washed the chariot in the pool of Samaria; and the dogs licked up his blood; according unto the word of the LORD.
Sainte Nicholaes, Godes druth [God's beloved], tymbre [make] us faiere scoone hus [pleasant dwelling places]. At [throug] thi burth [birth], at thi bare [bier, coffin], Sainte Nicholaes, bring us wel thare [safely there].
CUSSETTAElisha
19: So he departed thence, and found Elisha the son of Shaphat, who was plowing with twelve yoke of oxen before him, and he with the twelfth: and Elijah passed by him, and cast his mantle upon him. 20: And he left the oxen, and ran after Elijah.Naboth's Vineyard: Ahab and Jezebel
1: And it came to pass after these things, that Naboth the Jezreelite had a vineyard, which was in Jezreel, hard by the palace of Ahab king of Samaria. 2: And Ahab spake unto Naboth, saying, Give me thy vineyard, that I may have it for a garden of herbs, because it is near unto my house: and I will give thee for it a better vineyard than it; or, if it seem good to thee, I will give thee the worth of it in money. 3: And Naboth said to Ahab, The LORD forbid it me, that I should give the inheritance of my fathers unto thee. 4: And Ahab came into his house heavy and displeased because of the word which Naboth the Jezreelite had spoken to him. And he laid him down upon his bed, and turned away his face, and would eat no bread. 5: But Jezebel his wife said unto him, 7: Dost thou now govern the kingdom of Israel? arise, and eat bread, and let thine heart be merry: I will give thee the vineyard of Naboth the Jezreelite. 8: So she wrote letters in Ahab's name, and sealed them with his seal, and sent the letters unto the elders and to the nobles that were in his city, dwelling with Naboth. 9: And she wrote in the letters, saying, Proclaim a fast, and set Naboth on high among the people: 10: And set two men, sons of Belial, before him, to bear witness against him, saying, Thou didst blaspheme God and the king. Then carry him out, and stone him, that he may die. 11: And the men of his city, even the elders and the nobles who were the inhabitants in his city, did as Jezebel had sent unto them, and as it was written in the letters which she had sent unto them. 14: Then they sent to Jezebel, saying, Naboth is stoned, and is dead. 15: And it came to pass, when Jezebel heard that Naboth was stoned, and was dead, that Jezebel said to Ahab, Arise, take possession of the vineyard of Naboth the Jezreelite, which he refused to give thee for money: for Naboth is not alive, but dead. 16: And it came to pass, when Ahab heard that Naboth was dead, that Ahab rose up to go down to the vineyard of Naboth the Jezreelite, to take possession of it. 17: And the word of the LORD came to Elijah the Tishbite, saying, 18: Arise, go down to meet Ahab king of Israel, which is in Samaria: behold, he is in the vineyard of Naboth, whither he is gone down to possess it. 19: And thou shalt speak unto him, saying, Thus saith the LORD, Hast thou killed, and also taken possession? Thus saith the LORD, In the place where dogs licked the blood of Naboth shall dogs lick thy blood, even thine. 20: And Ahab said to Elijah, Hast thou found me, O mine enemy? And he answered, I have found thee: because thou hast sold thyself to work evil in the sight of the LORD. 27: And it came to pass, when Ahab heard these words, that he rent his clothes, and put sackcloth upon his flesh, and fasted, and lay in sackcloth, and went softly. 33: And the king of Israel disguised himself and went into battle. 34: And a certain man drew a bow at a venture, and smote the king of Israel between the joints of the harness: wherefore he said unto the driver of his chariot, Turn thine hand, and carry me out of the host; for I am wounded. 35: And the battle increased that day: and the king was stayed up in his chariot against the Syrians, and died at even: and the blood ran out of the wound into the midst of the chariot. 37: So the king died, and was brought to Samaria; and they buried the king in Samaria. 38: And one washed the chariot in the pool of Samaria; and the dogs licked up his blood; according unto the word of the LORD.
Elijah and Elisha and Chariots of Fire
11: And it came to pass, as they still went on, and talked, that, behold, there appeared a chariot of fire, and horses of fire, and parted them both asunder; and Elijah went up by a whirlwind into heaven. 12: And Elisha saw it, and he cried, My father, my father, the chariots of Israel, and the horsemen thereof. And he saw him no more: and he took hold of his own clothes, and rent them in two pieces. 13: He took up also the mantle of Elijah that fell from him, and went back, and stood by the bank of Jordan; 14: And he took the mantle of Elijah that fell from him, and smote the waters, and said, Where is the LORD God of Elijah? and when he also had smitten the waters, they parted hither and thither: and Elisha went over. GUARDIAN ANGELS
Verses that refer to "chariots of Israel, and the horsemen thereof" evokes the idea of guardian angels, familiar in Christian belief. It was a comforting thought in Elisha's day and no doubt today, as in this song:
Guardian angels around my bed, joining me in my prayers. They hush the shadows when they dance about, they shoo away the bears. Guardian angels to comfort me if I wake in the night. They gather all my dreams, their haloes are my light. They dry my tears if I should weep, they tuck me in, they rouse me from my sleep. Guardian angels around my bed, standing by till I rise. There's one with shining wings wbo holds my hand and shows me Paradise. {Repeat}Verses that refer to "chariots of Israel, and the horsemen thereof" evokes the idea of guardian angels, familiar in Christian belief. It was a comforting thought in Elisha's day and no doubt today, as in this song:
SAINTE NICHOLAES
Christian hagiographies (stories of saints) derive from the Elijah/Elisha tales, beginning with the life of Jesus. Such stories were also linked with Saint Nicholas, the early Christian martyr who later became Santa Claus. The following short chant may be the earliest song in the English language (about 1000 CE):Sainte Nicholaes, Godes druth [God's beloved], tymbre [make] us faiere scoone hus [pleasant dwelling places]. At [throug] thi burth [birth], at thi bare [bier, coffin], Sainte Nicholaes, bring us wel thare [safely there].
Show pity, Lord. O Lord forgive. Let a repenting rebel live; are not thy mercies large and free? May not a sinner trust in Thee? Yet save a trembling sinner, Lord, whose hope still hovering round, Thy word would light on some sweet promise there. Some sure support against despair.
ONCE IN ROYAL DAVID'S CITY
In this Christmas season, we are reminded that, according to the Gospels, Jesus was born of the line of David, in King David's city, insuring his royal status and a continuation of the Davidic Promise (Covenant):
Once in royal David’s city stood a lowly cattle shed, Where a mother laid her Baby in a manger for His bed: Mary was that mother mild, Jesus Christ her little Child.In this Christmas season, we are reminded that, according to the Gospels, Jesus was born of the line of David, in King David's city, insuring his royal status and a continuation of the Davidic Promise (Covenant):
PSALM 17
When Judah's King Hezekiah knows he's dying, he pleads with God (2 Kings 20:1-3), in the manner of request psalms, such as Psalm 17:
Ah! turn me not away, receive me, though unworthy! Ah! turn me not away, receive me, though unworthy! Hear Thou my cry, hear thou my cry, behold, Lord, my distress! Answer me from Thy throne, haste Thee, Lord, to mine aid, Thy pity show in my deep anguish! Thy pity show in my deep anguish! Let not the sword of vengeance smite me,Though righteous Thine anger, O Lord! Shield me in danger, O regard me! On Thee, Lord, alone will I call.O Divine Redeemer! O Divine Redeemer! I pray Thee, grant me pardon, and remember not, remember not my sins! Forgive me, O divine Redeemer! I pray Thee, grant me pardon, and remember not, remember not my sins!When Judah's King Hezekiah knows he's dying, he pleads with God (2 Kings 20:1-3), in the manner of request psalms, such as Psalm 17:
1: Hear the right, O LORD, attend unto my cry, give ear unto my prayer, that goeth not out of feigned lips. 2: Let my sentence come forth from thy presence; let thine eyes behold the things that are equal. 3: Thou has proved mine heart; thou hast visited me in the night; thou has tried me, and shalt find nothing; I am purposed that my mouth shall not transgress. 4: Concerning the works of men, by the word of thy lips I have kept me from the paths of the destroyer. 5: Hold up my goings in thy paths, that my footsteps slip not. 6: I have called upon thee, for thou wilt hear me, O God: incline thine ear unto me, and hear my speech. 7: Shew thy marvellous lovingkindness, O thou that savest by thy right hand them which put their trust in thee from those that rise up against them.
8: Keep me as the apple of the eye, hide me under the shadow of thy wings, 9: From the wicked that oppress me. . . .
8: Keep me as the apple of the eye, hide me under the shadow of thy wings, 9: From the wicked that oppress me. . . .
O, DIVINE REDEEMER
The French composer, Charles Gounod, adopted those psalms in, "O Divine Redeemer," a song he wrote just before his death, which has now become a familiar concert item in its English translation:
The French composer, Charles Gounod, adopted those psalms in, "O Divine Redeemer," a song he wrote just before his death, which has now become a familiar concert item in its English translation:
Night gathers round my soul; fearful I cry to Thee; Come to mine aid, O Lord! Haste Thee, Lord, haste to help me! Hear my cry, hear my cry, Save me, Lord, in Thy mercy; Hear my cry! Hear my cry. Come and save me, O Lord! O, divine Redeemer! O, divine Redeemer! I pray Thee, grant me pardon, And remember not, remember not, O Lord, my sins! Save, in the day of retribution, from Death shield Thou me, O my God! O, divine Redeemer, have mercy! Help me, my Savior!
BIBLE SONGS, WEEK OF 20 December 2005
COME LIFE, SHAKER LIFE
The Shaker community in America is famous for its spartan (very spare or simple) lifestyle (no electricity, etc.). Harrison Ford's movie, Witness, shows the community as background to the film. At the same time, the community does not look down on dancing, as Micah looked down on David in the Bible text you've read. Here's a Shaker song about that incident. In fact, the Shakers got their name from their ecstatic movements made in worship (as did the Quakers). Here they are proud to "be a David" and "show Michal" how to worship God:
Come life, Shaker life. Come life eternal. Shake, shake out of me all that is carnal. I'll take nimble steps. I'll be a David: I'll show Michal twice how he behaved.
FOLLOWERS OF THE LAMB
Another Shaker song, which shows how David's dance before the Lord has influenced Shaker Christians to this day, who worship Jesus (the "Lamb") in the same way:
O Brethren [Brothers] ain't you happy (3), ye followers of the Lamb. Chorus: Sing on, dance on, followers of Emanuel. Sing on, dance on, ye followers of the Lamb. O Sisters ain't you happy (3), ye followers of the Lamb. (Repeat chorus) I'm glad I am a Shaker (3) ye followers of the Lamb. (Repeat chorus) I'll cross my ugly nature (3), ye followers of the Lamb. (Chorus) I mean to be obedient (3) ye followers of the Lamb. (Chorus).
A COMPANION TO STIFF
"Stiff" here is the proud self, such as Micah showed when scolding David for his public dancing. The message is that true worship of God should make one "free," not constrained or inhibited in one's movements:
A companion to stiff I will not be. I'll drive you off, I will be free. The gospel is free for everyone. The gospel is free for old and young. Old stiff, you have no business here. 'Tis time that you be gone. I'll give you a dismission [dismissal] here so now be gone, be gone! Old stiff, you have no business here. 'Tis time that you be gone. I'll give you a dismission here so now be gone, be gone!
SIMPLE GIFTS
This is easily the most famous Shaker song, made world famous by Aaron Copland's variations in his ballet, APPALACHIAN SPRING. Here "simple" suggests free and open; this, for the Shakers, is a "gift" from God (as it was for David). If one is truly innocent ("true simplicity"), "to bow and to bend" is not wrong. Note the double meaning on "bow and bend," which suggests obedience but also the movements of a dance, as here. If one "turns" in dance, one will be justified ("right") before God, as David was in God's eyes, though not in Micah's eyes.
PSALM 52
This Psalm was supposedly written when Saul was informed that David had gone to the house of the priest, Ahimilech. (See the superscription of Psalm 52.) As usual, it's a warning to evildoers that the good will flourish while the evil will perish. (The Gospel song, "Run On" is a variant of this theme: "some day God Almighty gonna cut you down!") NOTE: Some Psalms have superscriptions, or writing above the Psalm [super=above; script=writing] explaining the purpose of the Psalm. (Scholars still don't know what "Selah" meant, but it's assumed to be a musical direction, such as "sing in unison," "repeat," etc.)
This is more traditional gospel, affirming faith in what the Bible said. These feelings here were typical of what David must have felt when pursued by Saul:
Trouble keeps on rising on every hand, I wonder when will my ship will land. I'm gonna press on home, like the Bible said. I don't know, I can't see what lies ahead. I've never laid on a bed of ease, I've had to sail through stormy seas. But I'm gonna press on, like the Bible said. You know I don't know and I can't see what lies ahead. When times were good, friends were on my side. But oh when times got bad they told each other, "Hide!" But I'm gonna press on, like the Bible said. Oh, you know I don't know, I can't see, hey, what lies ahead. Let me tell you I don't know and I can't see what lies ahead!COME LIFE, SHAKER LIFE
The Shaker community in America is famous for its spartan (very spare or simple) lifestyle (no electricity, etc.). Harrison Ford's movie, Witness, shows the community as background to the film. At the same time, the community does not look down on dancing, as Micah looked down on David in the Bible text you've read. Here's a Shaker song about that incident. In fact, the Shakers got their name from their ecstatic movements made in worship (as did the Quakers). Here they are proud to "be a David" and "show Michal" how to worship God:
Come life, Shaker life. Come life eternal. Shake, shake out of me all that is carnal. I'll take nimble steps. I'll be a David: I'll show Michal twice how he behaved.
FOLLOWERS OF THE LAMB
Another Shaker song, which shows how David's dance before the Lord has influenced Shaker Christians to this day, who worship Jesus (the "Lamb") in the same way:
O Brethren [Brothers] ain't you happy (3), ye followers of the Lamb. Chorus: Sing on, dance on, followers of Emanuel. Sing on, dance on, ye followers of the Lamb. O Sisters ain't you happy (3), ye followers of the Lamb. (Repeat chorus) I'm glad I am a Shaker (3) ye followers of the Lamb. (Repeat chorus) I'll cross my ugly nature (3), ye followers of the Lamb. (Chorus) I mean to be obedient (3) ye followers of the Lamb. (Chorus).
A COMPANION TO STIFF
"Stiff" here is the proud self, such as Micah showed when scolding David for his public dancing. The message is that true worship of God should make one "free," not constrained or inhibited in one's movements:
A companion to stiff I will not be. I'll drive you off, I will be free. The gospel is free for everyone. The gospel is free for old and young. Old stiff, you have no business here. 'Tis time that you be gone. I'll give you a dismission [dismissal] here so now be gone, be gone! Old stiff, you have no business here. 'Tis time that you be gone. I'll give you a dismission here so now be gone, be gone!
SIMPLE GIFTS
This is easily the most famous Shaker song, made world famous by Aaron Copland's variations in his ballet, APPALACHIAN SPRING. Here "simple" suggests free and open; this, for the Shakers, is a "gift" from God (as it was for David). If one is truly innocent ("true simplicity"), "to bow and to bend" is not wrong. Note the double meaning on "bow and bend," which suggests obedience but also the movements of a dance, as here. If one "turns" in dance, one will be justified ("right") before God, as David was in God's eyes, though not in Micah's eyes.
'Tis the gift to be simple, 'tis the gift to be free, 'tis the gift to come down where we ought to be; and when we find ourselves in the place just right 'twill be in the valley of love nd delight. When true simplicity is gained, to bow and to bend we shant be ashamed to turn, turn will be our delight 'til by turning, turning we come round right.
PSALM 52
This Psalm was supposedly written when Saul was informed that David had gone to the house of the priest, Ahimilech. (See the superscription of Psalm 52.) As usual, it's a warning to evildoers that the good will flourish while the evil will perish. (The Gospel song, "Run On" is a variant of this theme: "some day God Almighty gonna cut you down!") NOTE: Some Psalms have superscriptions, or writing above the Psalm [super=above; script=writing] explaining the purpose of the Psalm. (Scholars still don't know what "Selah" meant, but it's assumed to be a musical direction, such as "sing in unison," "repeat," etc.)
1: Why boastest thou thyself in mischief, O mighty man? the goodness of God endureth continually.
2: Thy tongue deviseth mischiefs; like a sharp razor, working deceitfully.
3: Thou lovest evil more than good; and lying rather than to speak righteousness. Selah.
4: Thou lovest all devouring words, O thou deceitful tongue.
5: God shall likewise destroy thee for ever, he shall take thee away, and pluck thee out of thy dwelling place, and root thee out of the land of the living. Selah.
6: The righteous also shall see, and fear, and shall laugh at him:
7: Lo, this is the man that made not God his strength; but trusted in the abundance of his riches, and strengthened himself in his wickedness.
8: But I am like a green olive tree in the house of God: I trust in the mercy of God for ever and ever.
9: I will praise thee for ever, because thou hast done it: and I will wait on thy name; for it is good before thy saints.
PRESS ON LIKE THE BIBLE SAID2: Thy tongue deviseth mischiefs; like a sharp razor, working deceitfully.
3: Thou lovest evil more than good; and lying rather than to speak righteousness. Selah.
4: Thou lovest all devouring words, O thou deceitful tongue.
5: God shall likewise destroy thee for ever, he shall take thee away, and pluck thee out of thy dwelling place, and root thee out of the land of the living. Selah.
6: The righteous also shall see, and fear, and shall laugh at him:
7: Lo, this is the man that made not God his strength; but trusted in the abundance of his riches, and strengthened himself in his wickedness.
8: But I am like a green olive tree in the house of God: I trust in the mercy of God for ever and ever.
9: I will praise thee for ever, because thou hast done it: and I will wait on thy name; for it is good before thy saints.
This is more traditional gospel, affirming faith in what the Bible said. These feelings here were typical of what David must have felt when pursued by Saul:
I'VE COME SO FAR
Even more than the other songs, this might have been written by David himself, when pursued by the mad king, Saul.
I've come so far, I believe I can run on, run on some more. Yeah, I've come so far, I believe I can run on, run on some more. Didn't think I'd see another morning sun, the night has passed, now I can run. I've come so far, I believe I can run on some more. So-called friends, oh they cheered when I began, when I began. But when I stumbled they wouldn't lend me, they wouldn't lend me a hand, oh no! But when I've fallen 'bout as low as I could go, I cried, "Lord have mercy!" and oh he fixed it so. I've come so far and I believe I can run on some more. Oh, Lord, some more! I surprised myself with the strength God gave me. Oh, back against the wall, something within, oh, within raised me, yes it did! Now everytime I stumble, I began to climb, enemies tried to grab me but I've broken loose every time. I've come so far, I believe I can run on some more. But when I've fallen 'bout low as I could go, I cried, "Lord have mercy!" and he fixed it so! I've come so far, I believe, I believe I can run on some more! Even more than the other songs, this might have been written by David himself, when pursued by the mad king, Saul.
I WILL FIGHT AND NEVER SLACK* [*tire, weaken]
Another Shaker song, typial of the sentiment felt by early Jewish leaders, that they would fight on until completion of God's work:
I will fight, fight & never slack until I overcome the enemy. I will fight, fight & never slack until I overcome the enemy. I have got a little swordwhich Mother Ann has give to me, I will fight, fight, fight, fight fight & slay the enemy. (Repeat)Another Shaker song, typial of the sentiment felt by early Jewish leaders, that they would fight on until completion of God's work:
STRONG AGAIN
This too might have been written by David, who would soon become king and be "strong again":
Strong again, I'm ready to go. Strong again, I'm ready to go. Strong again, I'm ready to go. You can't stop me, I'm ready to go. Strong again, I'm ready to go. Strong again, I'm ready to go. Strong again, I'm ready to go. You can't stop me, child, I'm ready to go. Everyone tried to trip me up, I've had to drink from a bitter cup. I've been as low as I've ever been. But that was then, now I'm strong again. Strong again, child, I'm ready to go. Strong again, I'm ready to go. You know, I've been low as I've ever been. That was then, child, I'm strong again. I'm ready to move, I'm ready to go. I'm a child of God, 'cause that's how ?slow. Lord if you need me, just say when. Choose me and use me, I'm strong again. Strong again, I'm ready to go. Strong again, I'm ready to go. Choose me, use me, I'm strong again. Just say when Lord, I'm strong again! Choose me, use me, use me Lord, I'm strong again. Fit for service, fit for your use. Use me Lord, I'm strong again. Strong again, I'm ready to go. Strong again, I'm ready to go. You can' t stop me, I'm ready to go. You can't stop me, I'm ready to go.This too might have been written by David, who would soon become king and be "strong again":
DAVID'S LAMENTATION
A Sacred Harp song about the death of David's son, Absalom. Sacred Harp songs used ragged counterpoint, as here. As I said before, "sacred harp" refers to the human voice, a harp of God. Some of this singing was used in the film (and the soundtrack), Cold Mountain:
David the king was grieved and moved. He went to his chamber, his chamber, and wept. And as he went he wept, and said, "O my son! O my son! Would to God I had died, would to God I had died, would to God I had died for thee, O Absalom my son, my son! And as he went he wept, and said, "O my son! O my son! Would to God I had died, would to God I had died, would to God I had died for thee, O Absalom my son, my son!A Sacred Harp song about the death of David's son, Absalom. Sacred Harp songs used ragged counterpoint, as here. As I said before, "sacred harp" refers to the human voice, a harp of God. Some of this singing was used in the film (and the soundtrack), Cold Mountain:
2 Samuel 12:1-10
This is the famous story where God sends the prophet Nathan to rebuke David for committing adultery and then killing his lover's husband. Nathan traps David by telling an allegory of his crime. Then, after David condemns the criminal, the prophet points his finger, saying, "You are the man!"
1: And the LORD sent Nathan unto David. And he came unto him, and said unto him, There were two men in one city; the one rich, and the other poor. This is the famous story where God sends the prophet Nathan to rebuke David for committing adultery and then killing his lover's husband. Nathan traps David by telling an allegory of his crime. Then, after David condemns the criminal, the prophet points his finger, saying, "You are the man!"
2: The rich man had exceeding many flocks and herds:
3: But the poor man had nothing, save one little ewe lamb, which he had bought and nourished up: and it grew up together with him, and with his children; it did eat of his own meat, and drank of his own cup, and lay in his bosom, and was unto him as a daughter.
4: And there came a traveller unto the rich man, and he spared to take of his own flock and of his own herd, to dress for the wayfaring man that was come unto him; but took the poor man's lamb, and dressed it for the man that was come to him.
5: And David's anger was greatly kindled against the man; and he said to Nathan, As the LORD liveth, the man that hath done this thing shall surely die:
6: And he shall restore the lamb fourfold, because he did this thing, and because he had no pity.
7: And Nathan said to David, Thou art the man. Thus saith the LORD God of Israel, I anointed thee king over Israel, and I delivered thee out of the hand of Saul;
8: And I gave thee thy master's house, and thy master's wives into thy bosom, and gave thee the house of Israel and of Judah; and if that had been too little, I would moreover have given unto thee such and such things.
9: Wherefore hast thou despised the commandment of the LORD, to do evil in his sight? thou hast killed Uriah the Hittite with the sword, and hast taken his wife to be thy wife, and hast slain him with the sword of the children of Ammon.
10: Now therefore the sword shall never depart from thine house; because thou hast despised me, and hast taken the wife of Uriah the Hittite to be thy wife.
PSALM 51
As the superscription says, this Psalm was supposedly written following David's "indiscretion" with Bathsheba:
1: Have mercy upon me, O God, according to thy lovingkindness: according unto the multitude of thy tender mercies blot out my transgressions. As the superscription says, this Psalm was supposedly written following David's "indiscretion" with Bathsheba:
2: Wash me throughly from mine iniquity, and cleanse me from my sin.
3: For I acknowledge my transgressions: and my sin is ever before me.
4: Against thee, thee only, have I sinned, and done this evil in thy sight: that thou mightest be justified when thou speakest, and be clear when thou judgest.
5: Behold, I was shapen in iniquity; and in sin did my mother conceive me.
6: Behold, thou desirest truth in the inward parts: and in the hidden part thou shalt make me to know wisdom.
7: Purge me with hyssop, and I shall be clean: wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow.
8: Make me to hear joy and gladness; that the bones which thou hast broken may rejoice.
9: Hide thy face from my sins, and blot out all mine iniquities.
10: Create in me a clean heart, O God; and renew a right spirit within me.
11: Cast me not away from thy presence; and take not thy holy spirit from me.
12: Restore unto me the joy of thy salvation; and uphold me with thy free spirit.
13: Then will I teach transgressors thy ways; and sinners shall be converted unto thee.
14: Deliver me from bloodguiltiness, O God, thou God of my salvation: and my tongue shall sing aloud of thy righteousness.
15: O Lord, open thou my lips; and my mouth shall shew forth thy praise.
16: For thou desirest not sacrifice; else would I give it: thou delightest not in burnt offering.
17: The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit: a broken and a contrite heart, O God, thou wilt not despise.
18: Do good in thy good pleasure unto Zion: build thou the walls of Jerusalem.
19: Then shalt thou be pleased with the sacrifices of righteousness, with burnt offering and whole burnt offering: then shall they offer bullocks upon thine altar.
CUSSETTA
Sacred Harp songs are sometimes named after the source melody, not the subject of the song. The subject of this song is similar to the feeling of repentance David felt following the episode with Bathsheba, as shown in Psalm 51:Show pity, Lord. O Lord forgive. Let a repenting rebel live; are not thy mercies large and free? May not a sinner trust in Thee? Yet save a trembling sinner, Lord, whose hope still hovering round, Thy word would light on some sweet promise there. Some sure support against despair.
ONCE IN ROYAL DAVID'S CITY
In this Christmas season, we are reminded that, according to the Gospels, Jesus was born of the line of David, in King David's city, insuring his royal status and a continuation of the Davidic Promise (Covenant):
Once in royal David’s city stood a lowly cattle shed, Where a mother laid her BabyIn this Christmas season, we are reminded that, according to the Gospels, Jesus was born of the line of David, in King David's city, insuring his royal status and a continuation of the Davidic Promise (Covenant):
In a manger for His bed: Mary was that mother mild, Jesus Christ her little Child.
Songs, Week of 13 December 2005: 1 & 2 Samuel
The spiritual, Little David, appears here in two versions, showing how spirituals and gospel songs go through many variants and versions through time. The message is the typical biblical message of strength in weakness and faith in God.
LITTLE DAVID (1)
Little David play on your harp Hallelujah. (3x). Little David was a shepherd boy he killed Goliath and he shouted for joy! Little David play on your harp Hallelujah. Little David play on your harp Hallelujah. Little David play on your harp Hallelujah. Now Joshua was the son of Nun, he never would quit till his work was done. Little David play on your harp Hallelujah. Little David play on your harp Hallelujah. Little David play on your harp Hallelujah. Now that sinner man gambled, he gambled and fell. He wanted to go to Heaven but he had to go --. Little David play on your harp, Hallelujah. Little David play on your harp Hallelujah. Little David play on your harp, hallelujah.LITTLE DAVID (2)
Little David play on your harp Hallelujah. (3x). Little David was a shepherd boy he killed Goliath and he shouted for joy! Now Joshua was the son of Nun, he never would quit till his work was done. Little David play on your harp Hallelujah. (3x). I told you once and I told you twice, you'll never get to Heaven for shooting dice. If you live a life of sin, don't try to get to Heaven, 'cause you can't get in! Little David play on your harp Hallelujah. (3x). Little David play on your harp Hallelujah. (3x). Little David seemed so strong, boy he was strong! The Lord wouldn't let him do no wrong. When David saw, saw the light, he danced for joy with all his might! Little David play on your harp Hallelujah. (3x).THE OLD SHEEP KNOWS THE ROAD
This follows the Deuteronomic message of "teaching" the children how to go. Not that these songs come from scholarship, but from tradition. The image of the Lord (and spokesmen for the Lord) as a shepherd and their followers as sheep continues into the later prophets and then the New Testament. Jesus, of course (like David) was a shepherd and is often depicted clasping a sheep to his bosom. The point of the song is to set a good example (role model):
O church mothers you better watch how you walk. O missionaries you better watch how you talk. Because the old sheep know the road, but the little lambs got to find the path. The old sheep they know the road, but the young lambs have to find the pathway. Preachers, let me tell you, you got to watch how you preach. Well, ministers, you better watch how you teach. The old sheep, they know the road but the little lambs, the young ones, have to find the path. The old sheep they know the road, but their little lambs got to find the patway. Let me tell you, the old sheep they know the road, but the young lambs got to find the path. The old sheep they know the road, but their little lambs, they got to find, they got to find, oh, teach them to find the pathway. This follows the Deuteronomic message of "teaching" the children how to go. Not that these songs come from scholarship, but from tradition. The image of the Lord (and spokesmen for the Lord) as a shepherd and their followers as sheep continues into the later prophets and then the New Testament. Jesus, of course (like David) was a shepherd and is often depicted clasping a sheep to his bosom. The point of the song is to set a good example (role model):
BE BOLD, BE STRONG
This is a contemporary church (not gospel) song, recorded by mainstream church singers. I include it because it refers to the message in the book of Joshua ("be strong"), with the typical biblical message: God is with you. In many ways, David may be the first modern Bible hero, since he shared the same fears, weariness (hunted by King Saul) and final faith in God to deliver him:
Be bold, be strong, for the Lord, your God, is with you. Be bold, be strong, for the Lord, your God, is with you. I am not afraid, I am not dismayed, because I'm walking in faith and victory, come on and walk in faith and victory, for the Lord your God is with you! Be bold, be strong, for your Lord, your God, is with you. Be bold, be strong, for your Lord, your God, is with you. I am not afraid, I am not dismayed, because I'm walking in faith and victory, come on and walk in faith and victory, for the Lord, your God is with you. Be bold, be strong, be bold!This is a contemporary church (not gospel) song, recorded by mainstream church singers. I include it because it refers to the message in the book of Joshua ("be strong"), with the typical biblical message: God is with you. In many ways, David may be the first modern Bible hero, since he shared the same fears, weariness (hunted by King Saul) and final faith in God to deliver him:
GIVE IT UP, LET IT GO
The following gospel songs might all have been written by David himself, before and after he became king, so David would probably not sing half as well. David, of course, is called "the sweet psalmist of Israel," and the book of Psalms is commonly attributed to him (though such attribution is almost certainly legendary). We do know, however, that he wrote psalms and played a peaceful harp (enough to calm King Saul in his madness). Many of the psalms in fact address the same subject matter of a man in fear, surrounded by enemies, but trusting in God to deliver him. The following song is contemporary Gospel, blending traditional Gospel forms with hip-hop beats:
When the weight of the world seems like it's on your shoulders, bogging [bringing] you down. When you feel like you're stuck in one place and you just can't move it around. When it seems like you're so backed up into a corner tha there's no way out. Just remember that you've got a firend who's watching and he knows all about, so you gotta let it go. Give it up, gotta let it go, give it up, gotta let it go. When you've shed so many tears until you just can't cry no more. When your confidence is gone and of yourself you're not very sure. When you're at your lowest point and you just wish it all would end, just remember that you're not alone and yu can always turn to him. Give it up. gotta let it go, give it up, gotta let it go . When you've done all that you can do and yet it's still too much to bear, then it's time you turn it over to the only one who knows you better than yourself. Give it up, gotta let it go. Give it up, gotta let it go.The following gospel songs might all have been written by David himself, before and after he became king, so David would probably not sing half as well. David, of course, is called "the sweet psalmist of Israel," and the book of Psalms is commonly attributed to him (though such attribution is almost certainly legendary). We do know, however, that he wrote psalms and played a peaceful harp (enough to calm King Saul in his madness). Many of the psalms in fact address the same subject matter of a man in fear, surrounded by enemies, but trusting in God to deliver him. The following song is contemporary Gospel, blending traditional Gospel forms with hip-hop beats:
PRESS ON LIKE THE BIBLE SAID
This is more traditional gospel, affirming faith in what the Bible said:
Trouble keeps on rising on every hand, I wonder when will my ship land. I'm gonna press on home, like the Bible said. I don't know, I can't see what lies ahead. I've never laid on a bed of ease, I've had to sail through stormy seas. But I'm gonna press on, like the Bible said. You know I don't know and I can't see what lies ahead. When times were good, friends were on my side. But oh when times got bad they told each other, "Hide!" But I'm gonna press on, like the Bible said. Oh, you know I don't know, I can't see, hey, what lies ahead. Let me tell you I don't know and I can't see what lies ahead!This is more traditional gospel, affirming faith in what the Bible said:
I'VE COME SO FAR
Even more than the other songs, this might have been written by David himself, when pursued by the mad king, Saul.
I've come so far, I believe I can run on, run on some more. Yeah, I've come so far, I believe I can run on, run on some more. Didn't think I'd see another morning sun, the night has passed, now I can run. I've come so far, I believe I can run on some more. So-called friends, oh they cheered when I began, when I began. But when I stumbled they wouldn't lend me, they wouldn't lend me a hand, oh no! But when I've fallen 'bout as low as I could go, I cried, "Lord have mercy!" and oh he fixed it so. I've come so far and I believe I can run on some more. Oh, Lord, some more! I surprised myself with the strength God gave me. Oh, back against the wall, something within, oh, within raised me, yes it did! Now everytime I stumble, I began to climb, enemies tried to grab me but I've broken loose every time. I've come so far, I believe I can run on some more. But when I've fallen 'bout low as I could go, I cried, "Lord have mercy!" and he fixed it so! I've come so far, I believe, I believe I can run on some more! Even more than the other songs, this might have been written by David himself, when pursued by the mad king, Saul.
STRONG AGAIN
This too might have been written by David, who would soon become king and be "strong again":
Strong again, I'm ready to go. Strong again, I'm ready to go. Strong again, I'm ready to go. You can't stop me, I'm ready to go. Strong again, I'm ready to go. Strong again, I'm ready to go. Strong again, I'm ready to go. You can't stop me, child, I'm ready to go. Everyone tried to trip me up, I've had to drink from a bitter cup. I've been as low as I've ever been. But that was then, now I'm strong again. Strong again, child, I'm ready to go. Strong again, I'm ready to go. You know, I've been low as I've ever been. That was then, child, I'm strong again. I'm ready to move, I'm ready to go. I'm a child of God, 'cause that's how ?slow. Lord if you need me, just say when. Choose me and use me, I'm strong again. Strong again, I'm ready to go. Strong again, I'm ready to go. Choose me, use me, I'm strong again. Just say when Lord, I'm strong again! Choose me, use me, use me Lord, I'm strong again. Fit for service, fit for your use. Use me Lord, I'm strong again. Strong again, I'm ready to go. Strong again, I'm ready to go. You can' t stop me, I'm ready to go. You can't stop me, I'm ready to go.This too might have been written by David, who would soon become king and be "strong again":
David's Lament
This famous lament, from 2 Samuel Chapter One, vv. 19-27 shows that great poetry need not have rhyme, nor even the parallelism typical of Hebrew poetry. The phrase "how are the mighty fallen" has long since been a common part of the language. The love of David and Jonathan is one of the most famous friendships in literature. Note the audacious (bold) phrasing when the speaker confesses that his love for Jonathan surpasses the love of women:
The beauty of Israel is slain upon thy high places: how are the mighty fallen! Tell it not in Gath, publish it not in the streets of Askelon; lest the daughters of the Philistines rejoice, lest the daughters of the uncircumcised triumph. Ye mountains of Gilboa, let there be no dew, neither let there be rain, upon you, nor fields of offerings: for there the shield of the mighty is vilely cast away, the shield of Saul, as though he had not been anointed with oil. From the blood of the slain, from the fat of the mighty, the bow of Jonathan turned not back, and the sword of Saul returned not empty. Saul and Jonathan were lovely and pleasant in their lives, and in their death they were not divided: they were swifter than eagles, they were stronger than lions. Ye daughters of Israel, weep over Saul, who clothed you in scarlet, with other delights, who put on ornaments of gold upon your apparel. How are the mighty fallen in the midst of the battle! O Jonathan, thou was slain in thine high places. I am distressed for thee, my brother Jonathan: very pleasant hast thou been unto me: thy love to me was wonderful, passing the love of women. How are the mighty fallen, and the weapons of war perished!THE WITCH OF ENDOR (scene from Saul)
The German composer wrote many oratorios when he lived in England. By chance, therefore, some of the greatest music was set to English instead of German texts, to the gratitude of English-speaking music lovers. Here's a scene from Handel's oratorio, Saul, when the mad king asks the witch to call forth the dead Samuel. Handel writes some weirdly powerful music for the witch's aria (song):
Witch (Woman of Endor): With me what would'st thou? [What do you want with me?]The German composer wrote many oratorios when he lived in England. By chance, therefore, some of the greatest music was set to English instead of German texts, to the gratitude of English-speaking music lovers. Here's a scene from Handel's oratorio, Saul, when the mad king asks the witch to call forth the dead Samuel. Handel writes some weirdly powerful music for the witch's aria (song):
Saul: I would, that by thy art thou bring me up the man whom I shall name.
Witch: Alas! thou know'st how Saul has cut off those who use this art. Would'st though ensnare [trap] me?
Saul: As Jehovah lives, on this account no mischief shall befall thee.
Witch: Whom shall I bring up to thee?
Saul: Bring up Samuel.
Witch: Infernal [Hellish] spirits, by whose power departed ghosts in living form appear, add horror to the midnight hour and chill the boldest hearts with fear: to this stranger's wondering eyes let the prophet Samuel rise!
Despite the fact that Saul was mad and dishonored, he was still respected, even after his death, as David's great lament shows, and as Handel shows in his funeral march for the slain king, from the same oratorio.
Crowd: Welcome, welcome mighty King! Welcome all who conquest bring. Welcome David, warlike boy, author of our present joy. Saul who hast thy thousands slain, welcome to thy friends again! David, this ten thousands slew; ten thousand praises are his due! Ten thousand praises, ten thousand praises, ten thousand praises are his due. Ten thousand praises, ten thousand praises, ten thousand praises are his due.
Saul: What do I hear? Am I then sunk so low to have this upstart boy preferred before me?
Crowd: Ten thousand praises, ten thousand praises, ten thousand praises are his due. Ten thousand praises, ten thousand praises, ten thousand praises are his due., Ten thousand praise are his due!
Saul: To him ten thousands! And to me but thousands! What can they give him more, except the kingdom? With rage I shall burst his praises to hear! With rage I shall burst his praises to hear! O, how I both hate the stripling and fear! What mortal a rival in glory can bear? With rage I shall burst his praises to hear! O, how I both hate the stripling and fear! What mortal a rival in glory can bear? A rival in glory what mortal a rival in glory can bear?
Compare this with Numbers 251ff.: "While Israel was staying in Shittim, the men began to indulge in sexual immoralty with Moabite women, who invited them to the sacrifices to their gods."
Some scholars believe Ruth was written at the time after the Exile (539BCE) to oppose what today we might call a "racist" policy of forcing Jews who had married non-Jewish women to cast them out. We'll see this policy when we read Ezra and Nehemiah. The writer tried to oppose this policy by writing the story of a non-Jewish woman who was better than Jewish sons.
Apart from this, it's a story of people reaching an ideal perfection, showing concern for others above their own interests and, in the end, gaining more by doing so than if they had been selfish. All of them begin sadly, and end happily. The story begins in death and ends in birth; it begins in near starvation and ends in plenty. It begins with the threat of losing the family line and ends in the insuring the greatest family line in Hebrew history: the line of David. For Christians, of course, this line would end in the birth of Jesus, "the "son of David" as the Gospel of Matthew makes clear (1:1).
Regarding the scene where Ruth uncovers the feet of Boaz, as I pointed out in a previous email, it's possible that's a sexual "euphemism" (nice way of saying something) for sex, as in Exodus 4:24f.
Concerning charity laws, see Leviticus 19:9:
"When you reap the harvest of your land, do not reap to the very edges of your field or gathr the gleanings of your harvest. Do not go over your vineyard a second time or pick up the grapes that have fallen. Leave them for the poor and the alien. I am the LORD your God."
See also Leviticus 23:22:
"When you reap the harvest of your land, do not reap to the very edges of your field or gather the gleanings of your harvest. Leave them for the poor and the alien. I am the LORD your God."
Also see Deuteronomy 24:19:
"When you are harvesting in your field and you overlook a sheaf do not go back to get it. Leave it for the alien, the fatherless and the widow, so that the LORD your God may bless you in all the work of your hands. When you beat the olives from your trees, do not go over the branches a second time. Leave what remains for the alien, the fatherless and the widow. When you harvest the grapes in your vineyard, do not go over the vines again. Leave what remains for the alien, the fatherless and the widow. Remember that you were slaves in Egypt. That is why I command you to do this."
Regarding redemption of a family member, read Leviticus 25:25:
"If one of your conuntrymen becomes poor and sells some of his property, his nearest relative is to come and redeem what his countryman has sold."
The prophet Jeremiah refers to this law later:
"The word of the Lord came to me. Hanamel son of Shallum your uncle is going to come to you and say, 'Buy my field at Anathoth, because as nearest relative it is your right and duty to buy it" (Jeremiah 32:6).
Concerning the Levirate, see Deuteronomy 25:5, where the brother is required to marry his deceased brother's wife in order to maintain the family line. But it's not clear how this law applies in Ruth, since there is no sibling relationship involved.
Regarding Ruth's conduct at the feet of Boaz on the threshing floor, compare with these verses from the minor prophet, Hosea:
"[Y]ou have been unfaithful to your God; you love the wages of a prostitute at every threshing floor" (Hosea 9:1), which suggests that prostitution was common during harvest time. But, as said before, it's not clear what happened between Ruth and Boaz in the story. Perhaps a later editor (redactor) "cleaned up" the story.
Ruth
The story of Ruth in the Book of Ruth is one of the best-loved stories in the Bible. The story, like the Book of Jonah among others, advances the idea of "universalism" in the Hebrew religion: that God's covenantal relationship with the Hebrews includes non-Jews too.
This is made clear at the end, when Ruth, the non-Jew, becomes the ancestress of King David, and thus part of the "Davidic Covenant" (the agreement that God makes with King David in 2 Samuel 7).
Ruth is especially important for Christians, as the ancestress of Jesus ("the son of David" in Matthew 12:23 and Luke 20:41). Matthew shows this in his Gospel genealogy (MATTHEW 1:5).
The idealized Ruth is referred to throughout as "the Moabitess," as if to emphasize the point that a non-Jew can be as righteous as a Jew. The Moabites were enemies of the Jews. Ruth's "righteous" behavior toward her mother-in-law, Naomi, is meant to show her behavior as superior to Naomi's, who nearly curses God: "Call me Mara, because the Almighty has made my life very bitter" (RUTH 1:20).
The point is that Ruth's submission to her alien God is stronger than that of her Jewish mother-in-law, as in Ruth's famous words, "Where you go, I will go and where you stay I will stay. Your people will by my people and your God my God" (RUTH 1:16).
The other theme of RUTH continues the Abrahamic promise of many descendents. Naomi's name would have been lost had Ruth not married Boaz, of the tribe of Judah. The Torah (legal) means for this was the Levirate law (Deuteronomy 25:5f.). But the methods used resemble the female "rape" of Lot by his two daughters (Genesis) and for the same genealogical issue. Naomi thus advises sexual seduction, when Boaz "will be winnowing barley on the threshing floor. Wash and perfume yourself, and put on your best clothes. Then go down to the threshing-floor, but don't let him know you are there until he has finished eating and drinking. When he lies down, note the place where he is lying. Then go and uncover his feet and lie down. He will tell you what to do" (3:2-4).
"Feet" is commonly used as a euphemism (nice word) for "genitals" (cf. EXODUS 4:24). The remark, "He will tell you what to do" suggests sexual relations. But the text is unclear about this. We read,
"When Boaz had finished eating and drinking and was in good spirits, he went over to lie down. . . . Ruth approached quietly, uncovered his feet and lay down. In the middle of the night something startled the man, and he turned and discovered a woman lying at his feet" (3:7-8).
Commentators dispute whether sexual relations were involved. One argument is that Bible writers were not shy about sex and would have written more clearly if sex were involved.
On the other hand, the Book of Ruth, although set in the time "when the Judges ruled" (1:1) is actually from a later period, when traditional customs had been forgotten. This is clear when "earlier times" are mentioned (4:7), as if customs had already been forgotten. It's reasonable to assume that sex, taken for granted among tribal cultures, would become a more delicate topic among a more settled culture.
Moreover, the analogy with the stories of the drunken Noah (Genesis 9:21) and Lot (Genesis 19:32) is unmistakeable, especially in the case of Lot, with its issue of insuring descendents. Also, since Noah's wife is not mentioned as having died, Noah's story too might involve Noah's drunken intercourse with his wife.
It is specifically mentioned that Ruth acts only after Boaz has finished drinking (3:3,7). Besides, how else to interpret Boaz's words, "This kindness is greater than that which you showed earlier: You have not run after younger men, whether rich or poor" (3:10)?
Finally, Boaz tells Ruth, "Don't let it be known that a woman came to the threshing-floor," which suggests, at the very least, that Ruth's conduct was morally questionable (3:14).
Yet these issues show how little Bible writers cared about sex compared to the main issues of justice, faith, and loyalty. Although some commentators paint Naomi as a scheming woman, it seems that all three characters are intended as ideals of the way people behave in a just society: each concerned with the interests of each other.
Thus Naomi tells her widowed daughters-in-law: "Go back, each of you, to your mother's home. May the Lord show kindness to you, as you have shown to your dead and to me. May the Lord grant that each of you find rest in the home of another husband" (1:8-9).
True, Naomi treats them as aliens; yet she blesses them in the name of her God and seems clearly concerned about their welfare and prospects.
Ruth in turn is devoted to her mother-in-law in an alien land, a point made famous in John Keats' Ode to a Nightingale, which speaks of "the sad heart of Ruth, when sick for home, she stood in tears amid the alien corn."
Finally, Boaz himself is a model of courtesy, especially to a foreigner, a point made by Ruth (2:10). He tells her, "I have told the men not to touch you" and invites her to eat and drink (2:9), while advising his men not to embarrass or rebuke her (2:15,16) and enforcing a charity law of Leviticus (19:9).
The story thus models a perfectly just society, where each is concerned for each, in the image of God (Genesis 1:27). Ruth asks Boaz to "Spread the corner of your garment over me, since you are a kinsman-redeemer" (3:9).
Boaz does so, but only because Ruth herself models ideal conduct. The theme of the story is that the just, and not only the Jews, shall be redeemed. Boaz is only the instrument of God's judgment, his cloak a type fulfilled in the wings of God:
"I've been told all about what you have done for your mother-in-law. . . . May the Lord repay you. . . . May you be richly rewarded by the Lord, the God of Israel, under whose wings you have come to take refuge" (2:11-12).
The motif (repeated idea) of redeeming has even greater meaning for Christians who see Jesus' selfless redemption as the distant fulfillment of the story of Ruth (doubtless why her name is included in Matthew's genealogy):
Now it came to pass in the days when the judges ruled, that there was a famine in the land. And a certain man of Bethlehem, Judah went to sojourn in the country of Moab, he, and his wife, and his two sons. And the name of the man was Elimelech, and the name of his wife Naomi, and the name of his two sons Mahlon and Chilion.
And Elimelech Naomi's husband died. And she was left, and her two sons. And they took them wives of the women of Moab. The name of the one was Orpah, and the name of the other Ruth. And they dwelled there about ten years.
And Mahlon and Chilion died also, both of them. And the woman was left of her two sons and her husband. Then she arose that she might return from the country of Moab. For she had heard in the country of Moab how that the LORD had visited his people in giving them bread.
And Naomi said unto her two daughters-in-law,
"Go, return each to her mother's house. The LORD deal kindly with you as ye have dealt with the dead and with me."
They lifted up their voice, and wept. And Orpah kissed her mother- in-law. But Ruth clave unto her. And she said,
"Behold, thy sister-in-law is gone back unto her people, and unto her
gods: return thou after thy sister in law."
And Ruth said,
"Entreat me not to leave thee, or to return from following after thee: For whither thou goest, I will go; and where thou lodgest, I will lodge: thy people shall be my people, and thy God my God: Where thou diest, will I die, and there will I be buried: the LORD do so to me, and more also, if ought but death part thee and me."
When she saw that she was steadfastly minded to go with her, then she left speaking unto her. So they two went until they came to Bethlehem. And they came to Bethlehem in the beginning of barley harvest.2 And Naomi had a kinsman of her husband's, a mighty man of wealth, of the family of Elimelech. And his name was Boaz. And Ruth the Moabitess said unto Naomi,
"Let me now go to the field, and glean ears of corn after him in whose sight I shall find grace."
And she said unto her,
"Go, my daughter."
And she went, and came, and gleaned in the field after the reapers. And her hap was to light on a part of the field belonging unto Boaz, who was of the kindred of Elimelech. And, behold, Boaz came from Bethlehem, and said unto the reapers,
"The LORD be with you."
And they answered him,
"The LORD bless thee."
Then said Boaz unto his servant that was set over the reapers,
"Whose damsel is this?"
And the servant that was set over the reapers answered and said,
"It is the Moabitish damsel that came back with Naomi out of the country of Moab: And she said, 'I pray you, let me glean and gather after the reapers among the sheaves.' So she came, and hath continued even from the morning until now, that she tarried a little in the house."
Then said Boaz unto Ruth,
"Hearest thou not, my daughter? Go not to glean in another field, neither go from hence, but abide here fast by my maidens. Let thine eyes be on the field that they do reap, and go thou after them. Have I not charged the young men that they shall not touch thee? And when thou art athirst, go unto the vessels and drink of that which the young men have drawn."
Then she fell on her face, and bowed herself to the ground, and said unto him,
"Why have I found grace in thine eyes, that thou shouldest take knowledge of me, seeing I am a stranger?"
And Boaz answered and said unto her,
"It hath fully been showed me, all that thou hast done unto thy mother- in-law since the death of thine husband and how thou hast left thy father and thy mother and the land of thy nativity and art come unto a people which thou knewest not heretofore. The LORD recompense thy work, and a full reward be given thee of the LORD God of Israel, under whose wings thou art come to trust."
Then she said,
"Let me find favour in thy sight, my lord. For that thou hast comforted me, and for that thou hast spoken friendly unto thine handmaid, though I be not like unto one of thine handmaidens."
And Boaz said unto her,
"At mealtime come thou hither, and eat of the bread, and dip thy morsel in the vinegar."
And she sat beside the reapers. And he reached her parched corn and she did eat and was sufficed and left. And when she was risen up to glean, Boaz commanded his young men, saying,
"Let her glean even among the sheaves, and reproach her not: And let fall also some of the handfuls of purpose for her, and leave them, that she
may glean them, and rebuke her not."
So she gleaned in the field until even, and beat out that she had gleaned and it was about an ephah of barley. And she took it up, and went into the city. And her mother-in-law saw what she had gleaned and she said unto her,
"Where hast thou gleaned today? And where wroughtest thou? Blessed be he that did take knowledge of thee."
And she showed her mother-in-law with whom she had wrought, and said,
"The man's name with whom I wrought to day is Boaz."
And Naomi said unto her daughter in law,
"Blessed be he of the LORD, who hath not left off his kindness to the living and to the dead."
And Naomi said unto her,
"The man is near of kin unto us, one of our next kinsmen."
And Ruth the Moabitess said,
"He said unto me also, 'Thou shalt keep fast by my young men, until they have ended all my harvest.'"
And Naomi said unto Ruth her daughter-in-law,
"It is good, my daughter, that thou go out with his maidens, that they meet thee not in any other field."
So she kept fast by the maidens of Boaz to glean unto the end of barley harvest and of wheat harvest; and dwelt with her mother in law.3 Then Naomi her mother in law said unto her,
"My daughter, shall I not seek rest for thee, that it may be well with thee? And now is not Boaz of our kindred, with whose maidens thou wast? Behold, he winnoweth barley tonight in the threshing floor. Wash thyself therefore, and anoint thee, and put thy raiment upon thee, and get thee down to the floor. But make not thyself known unto the man, until he shall have done eating and drinking. And it shall be when he lieth down that thou shalt mark the place where he shall lie and thou shalt go in and uncover his feet and lay thee down and he will tell thee what thou shalt do."
And she said unto her,
"All that thou sayest unto me I will do."
And she went down unto the floor and did according to all that her mother-in-law bade her. And when Boaz had eaten and drunk and his heart was merry, he went to lie down at the end of the heap of corn. And she came softly and uncovered his feet and laid her down.
And it came to pass at midnight that the man was afraid and turned himself. And, behold, a woman lay at his feet. And he said,
"Who art thou?"
And she answered,
"I am Ruth, thine handmaid. Spread therefore thy skirt over thine handmaid. For thou art a near kinsman."
And he said,
"Blessed be thou of the LORD, my daughter. For thou hast showed more kindness in the latter end than at the beginning, inasmuch as thou followedst not young men, whether poor or rich. And now, my daughter, fear not. I will do to thee all that thou requirest. For all the city of my people doth know that thou art a virtuous woman.
"And now it is true that I am thy near kinsman. Howbeit there is a kinsman nearer than I. Tarry this night, and it shall be in the morning, that if he will perform unto thee the part of a kinsman, well, let him do the kinsman's part. But if he will not do the part of a kinsman to thee, then I will do the part of a kinsman to thee, as the LORD liveth. Lie down until the morning."
And she lay at his feet until the morning: and she rose up before one could know another. And he said,
"Let it not be known that a woman came into the floor."
Also he said,
"Bring the veil that thou hast upon thee, and hold it. And when she held it, he measured six measures of barley, and laid it on her: and she went into the city. And when she came to her mother-in-law, she said,
"Who art thou, my daughter?"
And she told her all that the man had done to her.
And she said,
"These six measures of barley gave he me; for he said to me, 'Go not
empty unto thy mother-in-law.'"
Then said she,
"Sit still, my daughter, until thou know how the matter will fall: for the man will not be in rest, until he have finished the thing this day."4 Then went Boaz up to the gate, and sat him down there: and, behold, the kinsman of whom Boaz spake came by; unto whom he said,
"Ho, such a one! turn aside, sit down here."
And he turned aside, and sat down. And he took ten men of the elders of the city, and said,
"Sit ye down here."
And they sat down. And he said unto the kinsman,
"Naomi, that is come again out of the country of Moab, selleth a parcel of land, which was our brother Elimelech's: And I thought to advise thee, saying,
"'Buy it before the inhabitants, and before the elders of my people. If thou wilt redeem it, redeem it: but if thou wilt not redeem it, then tell me, that I may know: for there is none to redeem it beside thee; and I am after thee.'"
And he said,
"I will redeem it."
Then said Boaz,
"What day thou buyest the field of the hand of Naomi, thou must buy it also of Ruth the Moabitess, the wife of the dead, to raise up the name of the dead upon his inheritance."
And the kinsman said,
"I cannot redeem it for myself, lest I mar mine own inheritance: redeem thou my right to thyself; for I cannot redeem it."
Now this was the manner in former times in Israel concerning redeeming and concerning changing and to confirm all things: A man plucked off his shoe and gave it to his neighbour and this was a testimony in Israel. Therefore the kinsman said unto Boaz,
"Buy it for thee."
So he drew off his shoe. And Boaz said unto the elders, and unto all the people,
"Ye are witnesses this day that I have bought all that was Elimelech's, and all that was Chilion's and Mahlon's of the hand of Naomi. Moreover Ruth, the Moabitess, the wife of Mahlon, have I purchased to be my
wife, to raise up the name of the dead upon his inheritance, that the name of the dead be not cut off from among his brethren, and from the gate of his place: ye are witnesses this day."
And all the people that were in the gate, and the elders, said,
"We are witnesses."
So Boaz took Ruth, and she was his wife. And when he went in unto her, the LORD gave her conception and she bare a son. And Naomi took the child and laid it in her bosom and became nurse unto it. And the women, her neighbours, gave it a name, saying,
"There is a son born to Naomi."
And they called his name Obed. He is the father of Jesse, the father of David.
Songs, Week of 6 November 2005
I TRUST IN GOD
This is a basic theme in the Bible, from Abraham to St. Paul:
I trust in God wherever I may be, upon the land or on the rolling sea. For come what may, from day to day, my Heavenly Father watches over me. Oh, yes! Oh, yes! I trust in God, I know He cares for me. On a mountain deep or on the stormy sea. Though the billows roll, roll, roll so bad, so glad He keeps my soul. My Heavenly Father watches over me!This is a basic theme in the Bible, from Abraham to St. Paul:
from SAUL
When opera lost favor in England, the German composer prospered, inventing the oratorio, a kind of opera without stage action and based on Bible themes. Besides the Messiah (his most famous oratorio) Handel's subjects included the Exodus, Samson, Joshua, Solomon, and Saul. Below is the famous scene in Kings when Saul becomes jealous that David is praised for killing more men in battle than he:Crowd: Welcome, welcome mighty King! Welcome all who conquest bring. Welcome David, warlike boy, author of our present joy. Saul who hast thy thousands slain, welcome to thy friends again! David, this ten thousands slew; ten thousand praises are his due! Ten thousand praises, ten thousand praises, ten thousand praises are his due. Ten thousand praises, ten thousand praises, ten thousand praises are his due.
Saul: What do I hear? Am I then sunk so low to have this upstart boy preferred before me?
Crowd: Ten thousand praises, ten thousand praises, ten thousand praises are his due. Ten thousand praises, ten thousand praises, ten thousand praises are his due., Ten thousand praise are his due!
Saul: To him ten thousands! And to me but thousands! What can they give him more, except the kingdom? With rage I shall burst his praises to hear! With rage I shall burst his praises to hear! O, how I both hate the stripling and fear! What mortal a rival in glory can bear? With rage I shall burst his praises to hear! O, how I both hate the stripling and fear! What mortal a rival in glory can bear? A rival in glory what mortal a rival in glory can bear?
TOO CLOSE
This is the common Bible theme of persevering (persisting) in one's goal. As another Gospel song says (adapting a Bible verse): "He never stopped his work until his work was done."
I'm up too close to now turn around. Lord I'm too close to turn back in a world of sin. [That's all right.] Hmm, I won't turn back Lord from my journey now. [That's all right.] You know sure got to make it to Heaven somehow. I'm too close, too close on reaching my goal. Yeah, Lord, I'm too close [that's all right] too close to saving my soul. Yeah, Lord, I'm too close to Heaven, too close, to turn around, just to turn around. I'm too close to turn around. Keep on, Brother now. Because the Lord has a crown waiting for you. I tell you I feel all right now. The spirit of Memphis got me feeling good. And I want you to know that I"m not ashamed to honor him either. I want you to know tongiht no matter how heavy my burden may get or how hard the way may be, I'm on the way to Heaven and I don't intend to turn around. Even if I have to lie down low, Down at the cross, oh Lord, I sure got to bow. You know that I'm on my way to Heaven anyhow. You may abuse me, child you may scandal-, scandalize, scandalize my name. You know that I'm on my way, on my way, on my way, on my way, sometimes the burden gets too tired and my road gets rocky: I'm on my way, etc. I wonder, are you on your way? I wonder, are you on your way? I'm on my way to Heaven anyhow, anyhow. This is the common Bible theme of persevering (persisting) in one's goal. As another Gospel song says (adapting a Bible verse): "He never stopped his work until his work was done."
HOLD TO GOD'S UNCHANGING HAND
This is another common Bible theme, especially stressed when political alliances became more desirable, after the Hebrews entered the Promised Land and thought compromise was better than struggle. The fear was that as the political situation changed, so would the people's hopes. So it was best to "trust in God's unchanging hand":
I was sick and at Death's door, I called on the Lord as never before. He heard my feeble cry and he did understand: now you understand why I hold to his unchanging hand. Now Brother can't you hold to his hand, Papa can't you hold to his hand, you better, better build your hope on things eternal. Hold on, hold on, you better hold to God's unchanging hand. Now sister can't you hold to his hand, sister can't you hold to his hand: God's unchanging hand. You better build your hopes on things eternal, well he'll be your mother when you're mother, be your father when you're fatherless, be your hope for tomorrow, be your joy in sorrow, be your doctor inthe sick room, be your lawyer in the courtroom. You better hold to God's unchanging hand. Oh, brother, hold God's unchanging hand, oh build your hopes on things eternal, hold on, hold on, hold on, etc. you better hold on God's unchanging hand!This is another common Bible theme, especially stressed when political alliances became more desirable, after the Hebrews entered the Promised Land and thought compromise was better than struggle. The fear was that as the political situation changed, so would the people's hopes. So it was best to "trust in God's unchanging hand":
SOMEBODY, SOMETIME
The sentiment here comes from the charity laws in Leviticus, Deuteronomy, Ruth, and other Bible texts: to help people in need:
If I can help somebody as I pass along. If I can cheer somebody with a word or a song. If I can show somebody that he is traveling wrong. Then my living shall not be in vain. Then my living shall not be in vain. No, no, no, no, no, my living shall not be in vain. If I can just help somebody as I pass along, then my living shall not be in vain. Praise the Lord, praise the Lord, praise the Lord!The sentiment here comes from the charity laws in Leviticus, Deuteronomy, Ruth, and other Bible texts: to help people in need:
COME BY HERE
This is the plea of supplicants (those who ask God for help), from Jacob and Hannah to Jesus and St. Paul:
Come by here, Lord, come by here! O we're down here praying, Lord, come by here. We're down here praying Lord, come by here. Somebody needs you Lord, come by here. Somebody needs you Lord, come by here. Somebody needs you Lord, come by here. Lord we need more love we need more power, every day and every hour. Lord, Lord, we need more faith, we need more grace, let the Spirit fill this place. Lord! Come by here, come by here, come by here. This is the plea of supplicants (those who ask God for help), from Jacob and Hannah to Jesus and St. Paul:
The Book of Ruth
In sum, the book of Ruth presents the theme of universalism. The author repeatedly called Ruth a "Moabitess." This was done on purpose. It was to remind Jews that even someone outside the Jewish community could be a good person; in fact, in the story, Ruth is the finest person.Compare this with Numbers 251ff.: "While Israel was staying in Shittim, the men began to indulge in sexual immoralty with Moabite women, who invited them to the sacrifices to their gods."
Some scholars believe Ruth was written at the time after the Exile (539BCE) to oppose what today we might call a "racist" policy of forcing Jews who had married non-Jewish women to cast them out. We'll see this policy when we read Ezra and Nehemiah. The writer tried to oppose this policy by writing the story of a non-Jewish woman who was better than Jewish sons.
Apart from this, it's a story of people reaching an ideal perfection, showing concern for others above their own interests and, in the end, gaining more by doing so than if they had been selfish. All of them begin sadly, and end happily. The story begins in death and ends in birth; it begins in near starvation and ends in plenty. It begins with the threat of losing the family line and ends in the insuring the greatest family line in Hebrew history: the line of David. For Christians, of course, this line would end in the birth of Jesus, "the "son of David" as the Gospel of Matthew makes clear (1:1).
Regarding the scene where Ruth uncovers the feet of Boaz, as I pointed out in a previous email, it's possible that's a sexual "euphemism" (nice way of saying something) for sex, as in Exodus 4:24f.
Concerning charity laws, see Leviticus 19:9:
"When you reap the harvest of your land, do not reap to the very edges of your field or gathr the gleanings of your harvest. Do not go over your vineyard a second time or pick up the grapes that have fallen. Leave them for the poor and the alien. I am the LORD your God."
See also Leviticus 23:22:
"When you reap the harvest of your land, do not reap to the very edges of your field or gather the gleanings of your harvest. Leave them for the poor and the alien. I am the LORD your God."
Also see Deuteronomy 24:19:
"When you are harvesting in your field and you overlook a sheaf do not go back to get it. Leave it for the alien, the fatherless and the widow, so that the LORD your God may bless you in all the work of your hands. When you beat the olives from your trees, do not go over the branches a second time. Leave what remains for the alien, the fatherless and the widow. When you harvest the grapes in your vineyard, do not go over the vines again. Leave what remains for the alien, the fatherless and the widow. Remember that you were slaves in Egypt. That is why I command you to do this."
Regarding redemption of a family member, read Leviticus 25:25:
"If one of your conuntrymen becomes poor and sells some of his property, his nearest relative is to come and redeem what his countryman has sold."
The prophet Jeremiah refers to this law later:
"The word of the Lord came to me. Hanamel son of Shallum your uncle is going to come to you and say, 'Buy my field at Anathoth, because as nearest relative it is your right and duty to buy it" (Jeremiah 32:6).
Concerning the Levirate, see Deuteronomy 25:5, where the brother is required to marry his deceased brother's wife in order to maintain the family line. But it's not clear how this law applies in Ruth, since there is no sibling relationship involved.
Regarding Ruth's conduct at the feet of Boaz on the threshing floor, compare with these verses from the minor prophet, Hosea:
"[Y]ou have been unfaithful to your God; you love the wages of a prostitute at every threshing floor" (Hosea 9:1), which suggests that prostitution was common during harvest time. But, as said before, it's not clear what happened between Ruth and Boaz in the story. Perhaps a later editor (redactor) "cleaned up" the story.
This is made clear at the end, when Ruth, the non-Jew, becomes the ancestress of King David, and thus part of the "Davidic Covenant" (the agreement that God makes with King David in 2 Samuel 7).
Ruth is especially important for Christians, as the ancestress of Jesus ("the son of David" in Matthew 12:23 and Luke 20:41). Matthew shows this in his Gospel genealogy (MATTHEW 1:5).
The idealized Ruth is referred to throughout as "the Moabitess," as if to emphasize the point that a non-Jew can be as righteous as a Jew. The Moabites were enemies of the Jews. Ruth's "righteous" behavior toward her mother-in-law, Naomi, is meant to show her behavior as superior to Naomi's, who nearly curses God: "Call me Mara, because the Almighty has made my life very bitter" (RUTH 1:20).
The point is that Ruth's submission to her alien God is stronger than that of her Jewish mother-in-law, as in Ruth's famous words, "Where you go, I will go and where you stay I will stay. Your people will by my people and your God my God" (RUTH 1:16).
The other theme of RUTH continues the Abrahamic promise of many descendents. Naomi's name would have been lost had Ruth not married Boaz, of the tribe of Judah. The Torah (legal) means for this was the Levirate law (Deuteronomy 25:5f.). But the methods used resemble the female "rape" of Lot by his two daughters (Genesis) and for the same genealogical issue. Naomi thus advises sexual seduction, when Boaz "will be winnowing barley on the threshing floor. Wash and perfume yourself, and put on your best clothes. Then go down to the threshing-floor, but don't let him know you are there until he has finished eating and drinking. When he lies down, note the place where he is lying. Then go and uncover his feet and lie down. He will tell you what to do" (3:2-4).
"Feet" is commonly used as a euphemism (nice word) for "genitals" (cf. EXODUS 4:24). The remark, "He will tell you what to do" suggests sexual relations. But the text is unclear about this. We read,
"When Boaz had finished eating and drinking and was in good spirits, he went over to lie down. . . . Ruth approached quietly, uncovered his feet and lay down. In the middle of the night something startled the man, and he turned and discovered a woman lying at his feet" (3:7-8).
Commentators dispute whether sexual relations were involved. One argument is that Bible writers were not shy about sex and would have written more clearly if sex were involved.
On the other hand, the Book of Ruth, although set in the time "when the Judges ruled" (1:1) is actually from a later period, when traditional customs had been forgotten. This is clear when "earlier times" are mentioned (4:7), as if customs had already been forgotten. It's reasonable to assume that sex, taken for granted among tribal cultures, would become a more delicate topic among a more settled culture.
Moreover, the analogy with the stories of the drunken Noah (Genesis 9:21) and Lot (Genesis 19:32) is unmistakeable, especially in the case of Lot, with its issue of insuring descendents. Also, since Noah's wife is not mentioned as having died, Noah's story too might involve Noah's drunken intercourse with his wife.
It is specifically mentioned that Ruth acts only after Boaz has finished drinking (3:3,7). Besides, how else to interpret Boaz's words, "This kindness is greater than that which you showed earlier: You have not run after younger men, whether rich or poor" (3:10)?
Finally, Boaz tells Ruth, "Don't let it be known that a woman came to the threshing-floor," which suggests, at the very least, that Ruth's conduct was morally questionable (3:14).
Yet these issues show how little Bible writers cared about sex compared to the main issues of justice, faith, and loyalty. Although some commentators paint Naomi as a scheming woman, it seems that all three characters are intended as ideals of the way people behave in a just society: each concerned with the interests of each other.
Thus Naomi tells her widowed daughters-in-law: "Go back, each of you, to your mother's home. May the Lord show kindness to you, as you have shown to your dead and to me. May the Lord grant that each of you find rest in the home of another husband" (1:8-9).
True, Naomi treats them as aliens; yet she blesses them in the name of her God and seems clearly concerned about their welfare and prospects.
Ruth in turn is devoted to her mother-in-law in an alien land, a point made famous in John Keats' Ode to a Nightingale, which speaks of "the sad heart of Ruth, when sick for home, she stood in tears amid the alien corn."
Finally, Boaz himself is a model of courtesy, especially to a foreigner, a point made by Ruth (2:10). He tells her, "I have told the men not to touch you" and invites her to eat and drink (2:9), while advising his men not to embarrass or rebuke her (2:15,16) and enforcing a charity law of Leviticus (19:9).
The story thus models a perfectly just society, where each is concerned for each, in the image of God (Genesis 1:27). Ruth asks Boaz to "Spread the corner of your garment over me, since you are a kinsman-redeemer" (3:9).
Boaz does so, but only because Ruth herself models ideal conduct. The theme of the story is that the just, and not only the Jews, shall be redeemed. Boaz is only the instrument of God's judgment, his cloak a type fulfilled in the wings of God:
"I've been told all about what you have done for your mother-in-law. . . . May the Lord repay you. . . . May you be richly rewarded by the Lord, the God of Israel, under whose wings you have come to take refuge" (2:11-12).
The motif (repeated idea) of redeeming has even greater meaning for Christians who see Jesus' selfless redemption as the distant fulfillment of the story of Ruth (doubtless why her name is included in Matthew's genealogy):
And Elimelech Naomi's husband died. And she was left, and her two sons. And they took them wives of the women of Moab. The name of the one was Orpah, and the name of the other Ruth. And they dwelled there about ten years.
And Mahlon and Chilion died also, both of them. And the woman was left of her two sons and her husband. Then she arose that she might return from the country of Moab. For she had heard in the country of Moab how that the LORD had visited his people in giving them bread.
And Naomi said unto her two daughters-in-law,
"Go, return each to her mother's house. The LORD deal kindly with you as ye have dealt with the dead and with me."
They lifted up their voice, and wept. And Orpah kissed her mother- in-law. But Ruth clave unto her. And she said,
"Behold, thy sister-in-law is gone back unto her people, and unto her
gods: return thou after thy sister in law."
And Ruth said,
"Entreat me not to leave thee, or to return from following after thee: For whither thou goest, I will go; and where thou lodgest, I will lodge: thy people shall be my people, and thy God my God: Where thou diest, will I die, and there will I be buried: the LORD do so to me, and more also, if ought but death part thee and me."
When she saw that she was steadfastly minded to go with her, then she left speaking unto her. So they two went until they came to Bethlehem. And they came to Bethlehem in the beginning of barley harvest.
"Let me now go to the field, and glean ears of corn after him in whose sight I shall find grace."
And she said unto her,
"Go, my daughter."
And she went, and came, and gleaned in the field after the reapers. And her hap was to light on a part of the field belonging unto Boaz, who was of the kindred of Elimelech. And, behold, Boaz came from Bethlehem, and said unto the reapers,
"The LORD be with you."
And they answered him,
"The LORD bless thee."
Then said Boaz unto his servant that was set over the reapers,
"Whose damsel is this?"
And the servant that was set over the reapers answered and said,
"It is the Moabitish damsel that came back with Naomi out of the country of Moab: And she said, 'I pray you, let me glean and gather after the reapers among the sheaves.' So she came, and hath continued even from the morning until now, that she tarried a little in the house."
Then said Boaz unto Ruth,
"Hearest thou not, my daughter? Go not to glean in another field, neither go from hence, but abide here fast by my maidens. Let thine eyes be on the field that they do reap, and go thou after them. Have I not charged the young men that they shall not touch thee? And when thou art athirst, go unto the vessels and drink of that which the young men have drawn."
Then she fell on her face, and bowed herself to the ground, and said unto him,
"Why have I found grace in thine eyes, that thou shouldest take knowledge of me, seeing I am a stranger?"
And Boaz answered and said unto her,
"It hath fully been showed me, all that thou hast done unto thy mother- in-law since the death of thine husband and how thou hast left thy father and thy mother and the land of thy nativity and art come unto a people which thou knewest not heretofore. The LORD recompense thy work, and a full reward be given thee of the LORD God of Israel, under whose wings thou art come to trust."
Then she said,
"Let me find favour in thy sight, my lord. For that thou hast comforted me, and for that thou hast spoken friendly unto thine handmaid, though I be not like unto one of thine handmaidens."
And Boaz said unto her,
"At mealtime come thou hither, and eat of the bread, and dip thy morsel in the vinegar."
And she sat beside the reapers. And he reached her parched corn and she did eat and was sufficed and left. And when she was risen up to glean, Boaz commanded his young men, saying,
"Let her glean even among the sheaves, and reproach her not: And let fall also some of the handfuls of purpose for her, and leave them, that she
may glean them, and rebuke her not."
So she gleaned in the field until even, and beat out that she had gleaned and it was about an ephah of barley. And she took it up, and went into the city. And her mother-in-law saw what she had gleaned and she said unto her,
"Where hast thou gleaned today? And where wroughtest thou? Blessed be he that did take knowledge of thee."
And she showed her mother-in-law with whom she had wrought, and said,
"The man's name with whom I wrought to day is Boaz."
And Naomi said unto her daughter in law,
"Blessed be he of the LORD, who hath not left off his kindness to the living and to the dead."
And Naomi said unto her,
"The man is near of kin unto us, one of our next kinsmen."
And Ruth the Moabitess said,
"He said unto me also, 'Thou shalt keep fast by my young men, until they have ended all my harvest.'"
And Naomi said unto Ruth her daughter-in-law,
"It is good, my daughter, that thou go out with his maidens, that they meet thee not in any other field."
So she kept fast by the maidens of Boaz to glean unto the end of barley harvest and of wheat harvest; and dwelt with her mother in law.
"My daughter, shall I not seek rest for thee, that it may be well with thee? And now is not Boaz of our kindred, with whose maidens thou wast? Behold, he winnoweth barley tonight in the threshing floor. Wash thyself therefore, and anoint thee, and put thy raiment upon thee, and get thee down to the floor. But make not thyself known unto the man, until he shall have done eating and drinking. And it shall be when he lieth down that thou shalt mark the place where he shall lie and thou shalt go in and uncover his feet and lay thee down and he will tell thee what thou shalt do."
And she said unto her,
"All that thou sayest unto me I will do."
And she went down unto the floor and did according to all that her mother-in-law bade her. And when Boaz had eaten and drunk and his heart was merry, he went to lie down at the end of the heap of corn. And she came softly and uncovered his feet and laid her down.
And it came to pass at midnight that the man was afraid and turned himself. And, behold, a woman lay at his feet. And he said,
"Who art thou?"
And she answered,
"I am Ruth, thine handmaid. Spread therefore thy skirt over thine handmaid. For thou art a near kinsman."
And he said,
"Blessed be thou of the LORD, my daughter. For thou hast showed more kindness in the latter end than at the beginning, inasmuch as thou followedst not young men, whether poor or rich. And now, my daughter, fear not. I will do to thee all that thou requirest. For all the city of my people doth know that thou art a virtuous woman.
"And now it is true that I am thy near kinsman. Howbeit there is a kinsman nearer than I. Tarry this night, and it shall be in the morning, that if he will perform unto thee the part of a kinsman, well, let him do the kinsman's part. But if he will not do the part of a kinsman to thee, then I will do the part of a kinsman to thee, as the LORD liveth. Lie down until the morning."
And she lay at his feet until the morning: and she rose up before one could know another. And he said,
"Let it not be known that a woman came into the floor."
Also he said,
"Bring the veil that thou hast upon thee, and hold it. And when she held it, he measured six measures of barley, and laid it on her: and she went into the city. And when she came to her mother-in-law, she said,
"Who art thou, my daughter?"
And she told her all that the man had done to her.
And she said,
"These six measures of barley gave he me; for he said to me, 'Go not
empty unto thy mother-in-law.'"
Then said she,
"Sit still, my daughter, until thou know how the matter will fall: for the man will not be in rest, until he have finished the thing this day."
"Ho, such a one! turn aside, sit down here."
And he turned aside, and sat down. And he took ten men of the elders of the city, and said,
"Sit ye down here."
And they sat down. And he said unto the kinsman,
"Naomi, that is come again out of the country of Moab, selleth a parcel of land, which was our brother Elimelech's: And I thought to advise thee, saying,
"'Buy it before the inhabitants, and before the elders of my people. If thou wilt redeem it, redeem it: but if thou wilt not redeem it, then tell me, that I may know: for there is none to redeem it beside thee; and I am after thee.'"
And he said,
"I will redeem it."
Then said Boaz,
"What day thou buyest the field of the hand of Naomi, thou must buy it also of Ruth the Moabitess, the wife of the dead, to raise up the name of the dead upon his inheritance."
And the kinsman said,
"I cannot redeem it for myself, lest I mar mine own inheritance: redeem thou my right to thyself; for I cannot redeem it."
Now this was the manner in former times in Israel concerning redeeming and concerning changing and to confirm all things: A man plucked off his shoe and gave it to his neighbour and this was a testimony in Israel. Therefore the kinsman said unto Boaz,
"Buy it for thee."
So he drew off his shoe. And Boaz said unto the elders, and unto all the people,
"Ye are witnesses this day that I have bought all that was Elimelech's, and all that was Chilion's and Mahlon's of the hand of Naomi. Moreover Ruth, the Moabitess, the wife of Mahlon, have I purchased to be my
wife, to raise up the name of the dead upon his inheritance, that the name of the dead be not cut off from among his brethren, and from the gate of his place: ye are witnesses this day."
And all the people that were in the gate, and the elders, said,
"We are witnesses."
So Boaz took Ruth, and she was his wife. And when he went in unto her, the LORD gave her conception and she bare a son. And Naomi took the child and laid it in her bosom and became nurse unto it. And the women, her neighbours, gave it a name, saying,
"There is a son born to Naomi."
And they called his name Obed. He is the father of Jesse, the father of David.
Samson as Solar Myth
Night, here comes the night, another night to dream about you. Night, each lonely night, the only time I'm not without you. Once more, I feel your kisses. Once more, I know what bliss is. Comes dawn, my darling, you're gone, but you come back into my arms each night. Once more, I feel your kisses. Once more, I know what bliss is. Comes dawn, my darling, you're gone, but you come back into my arms each night. As is generally accepted today, the story of Samson and Delilah is part of a mythic tale of the (apparent) rise and decline of the sun during the earth's twenty-four hour cycle.
Remnants of this sun myth are apparent in the Samson story included in the book of Judges 13-16). Samson represents the sun, while the Philistines (later, Delilah) represent night.
Samson was born in Zorah, near Beth-Shemesh ("House of the Sun"). Samson's birthplace and name are thus linked with the word for sun (shemesh).
As an image of the sun, Samson must have long hair (=rays of the sun). For this reason he was made a Nazirite:
"No razor may be used on his head , because the boy is to be a Nazirite, set apart to God from birth, and he will begin the deliverance of Israel from the hands of the Philistines" (13:5).
Samson himself tells Delilah:
". . . I have been a Nazirite set apart to God since birth. If my head were shaved, my strength would leave me, and I would become as weak as any other man" (Judges 16:17).
But this linking of hair and strength has no source in the Bible and was evidently made up to make this solar character fit the Hebrew religion. For we know from Judges that Samson shows no other signs of his Nazirite status, as is listed in Numbers:
"If a man or woman wants to make a special vow, a vow of separation to the Lord as a Nazirite, he must abstain from wine and other fermented drink. . . . During the entire period of his vow of sepration no razor may be used on his head. . . . [and he] must not go near a dead body" (6:2f.).
Yet Samson has no problem touching a dead body of a lion (Judges 14:8-9) or drinking (14:10).
There also seems to be a transfer of the Nazirite status from Samson himself to his mother, as if there were two different stories combined ("redacted"):
"Your wife [Samson's mother] must do all I have told her. She must not eat anything that comes from the grapevine, nor drink any wine or other fermented drink nor eat anything unclean" (13:13f.).
Thus Samson's Nazirite background seems to be included merely to adapt the Samson story to Hebrew narrative needs. The cycle of the rising and setting of the sun then becomes the cycle of man's sin and God's judgment.
But the solar cycle holds the stronger place in the Samson story. Samson's first wife, who "cried the whole seven days of the feast" (14:17) seems to be linked with this cycle. Samson himself tells his wife the secret she wishes to know "on the seventh day" (14:17).
Angered by his wife's exposure of the riddle, Samson "burns" with anger (though I'm not certain if there's a link in the original the Hebrew). To avenge himself Samson,
". . . went out and caught three hundred foxes and tied them tail to tail in pairs. He then fastened a torch to every pair of tails, lit the torches and let the foxes loose in the standing corn of the Philistines. He burned up the shocks and standing corn, together with the vineyards and olive groves" (15:3ff.).
This, of course, is something the sun would do at its peak strength (solar heat).
In the same way, tied up by the Judahites (tribe of Judah), we are told:
"The Spirit of the Lord came upon him in power. The ropes on his arms became like charred flax, and the bindings dropped from his hands" (15:14).
Here the Lord's "power" suggests the power of the sun at full strength, which can melt flax.
Later Samson finds a prostitute in Gaza to "spend the night with" (16:1). The Philistines lay in wait for him, waiting for the dawn. For at night, the sun is hidden. But at dawn the sun is at its weakest strength (16:2).
The reference to Samson carrying the city gate to the top of the hill (16:3) suggests the sun rising over the hill (sunrise) right before dawn, thus catching his would-be captors by surprise.
Delilah's attempt to find out the secret of Samson's strength suggests human curiosity about the secret of the sun's strength, which must have puzzled people down to the scientific present. Delilah's name is linked to the Hebrew word for "night" ("lilah"). The solution to the secret of Samson's strength is, in fact, "night" itself. Thus, Delilah (night),
"Having put [Samson] to sleep on her lap, she called a man to shave off the seven braids of his hair, and so began to subdue him. And his strength left him" (16:19).
Samson cannot do as he thinks ("shake myself free"), no more than the sun can shake itself free from its daily cycle (16:20). After sunset (night), there is only darkness, here figured as blindness: "Then the Philistines seized him, gouged out his eyes and took him down to Gaza" (16:21). But, just as the sun begins to rise again even as it has set, starting a new cycle, so "the hiar on his head began to grow again after it had been shaved" (16:22).
Whether by accident or design, this solar cycle survives in the pop song lyric for "Night," based on Saint-Saens' famous love duet from the opera, Samson et Dalila. The song was a Top Ten hit for
soul singer, Jackie Wilson:
Remnants of this sun myth are apparent in the Samson story included in the book of Judges 13-16). Samson represents the sun, while the Philistines (later, Delilah) represent night.
Samson was born in Zorah, near Beth-Shemesh ("House of the Sun"). Samson's birthplace and name are thus linked with the word for sun (shemesh).
As an image of the sun, Samson must have long hair (=rays of the sun). For this reason he was made a Nazirite:
"No razor may be used on his head , because the boy is to be a Nazirite, set apart to God from birth, and he will begin the deliverance of Israel from the hands of the Philistines" (13:5).
Samson himself tells Delilah:
". . . I have been a Nazirite set apart to God since birth. If my head were shaved, my strength would leave me, and I would become as weak as any other man" (Judges 16:17).
But this linking of hair and strength has no source in the Bible and was evidently made up to make this solar character fit the Hebrew religion. For we know from Judges that Samson shows no other signs of his Nazirite status, as is listed in Numbers:
"If a man or woman wants to make a special vow, a vow of separation to the Lord as a Nazirite, he must abstain from wine and other fermented drink. . . . During the entire period of his vow of sepration no razor may be used on his head. . . . [and he] must not go near a dead body" (6:2f.).
Yet Samson has no problem touching a dead body of a lion (Judges 14:8-9) or drinking (14:10).
There also seems to be a transfer of the Nazirite status from Samson himself to his mother, as if there were two different stories combined ("redacted"):
"Your wife [Samson's mother] must do all I have told her. She must not eat anything that comes from the grapevine, nor drink any wine or other fermented drink nor eat anything unclean" (13:13f.).
Thus Samson's Nazirite background seems to be included merely to adapt the Samson story to Hebrew narrative needs. The cycle of the rising and setting of the sun then becomes the cycle of man's sin and God's judgment.
But the solar cycle holds the stronger place in the Samson story. Samson's first wife, who "cried the whole seven days of the feast" (14:17) seems to be linked with this cycle. Samson himself tells his wife the secret she wishes to know "on the seventh day" (14:17).
Angered by his wife's exposure of the riddle, Samson "burns" with anger (though I'm not certain if there's a link in the original the Hebrew). To avenge himself Samson,
". . . went out and caught three hundred foxes and tied them tail to tail in pairs. He then fastened a torch to every pair of tails, lit the torches and let the foxes loose in the standing corn of the Philistines. He burned up the shocks and standing corn, together with the vineyards and olive groves" (15:3ff.).
This, of course, is something the sun would do at its peak strength (solar heat).
In the same way, tied up by the Judahites (tribe of Judah), we are told:
"The Spirit of the Lord came upon him in power. The ropes on his arms became like charred flax, and the bindings dropped from his hands" (15:14).
Here the Lord's "power" suggests the power of the sun at full strength, which can melt flax.
Later Samson finds a prostitute in Gaza to "spend the night with" (16:1). The Philistines lay in wait for him, waiting for the dawn. For at night, the sun is hidden. But at dawn the sun is at its weakest strength (16:2).
The reference to Samson carrying the city gate to the top of the hill (16:3) suggests the sun rising over the hill (sunrise) right before dawn, thus catching his would-be captors by surprise.
Delilah's attempt to find out the secret of Samson's strength suggests human curiosity about the secret of the sun's strength, which must have puzzled people down to the scientific present. Delilah's name is linked to the Hebrew word for "night" ("lilah"). The solution to the secret of Samson's strength is, in fact, "night" itself. Thus, Delilah (night),
"Having put [Samson] to sleep on her lap, she called a man to shave off the seven braids of his hair, and so began to subdue him. And his strength left him" (16:19).
Samson cannot do as he thinks ("shake myself free"), no more than the sun can shake itself free from its daily cycle (16:20). After sunset (night), there is only darkness, here figured as blindness: "Then the Philistines seized him, gouged out his eyes and took him down to Gaza" (16:21). But, just as the sun begins to rise again even as it has set, starting a new cycle, so "the hiar on his head began to grow again after it had been shaved" (16:22).
Whether by accident or design, this solar cycle survives in the pop song lyric for "Night," based on Saint-Saens' famous love duet from the opera, Samson et Dalila. The song was a Top Ten hit for
soul singer, Jackie Wilson:
SAMSON AND DELILAH
Dalila: Ah! reponds a ma tendresse! Verse-moi, verse-moi, l'ivresse! Reponds a ma tendresse! Reponds a ma tendresse! Verse-moi, verse-moi, l'ivresse!This ravishing love duet comes from the French opera based on the biblical story of Samson and Delilah in the Book of Judges. It was written by Camille Saint-Saens in 1877. It's the only one of his many operas to have survived changing fashions.
The love duet is especially famous and, in the 1960s, was turned into an American Top Ten hit, in an English version (sung by Soul singer, Jackie Wilson) called Night, which had no relation (apart from the melody) to the original.
Yet it's ironic, since the story of Samson was probably derived from a solar (sun) myth (Samson=sun) and Delilah's name comes from the Hebrew word for night (lilah).
Whether the writer of the American pop version knew of this or simply hit upon a lucky coincidence is another matter ("night" is a romantic notion and appears in thousands of pop songs).
This duet is sung in Act II, and is begun by Delilah, with her two choruses completed by Samson. They alternate at first, then sing their duet, which concludes with Samson singing solo.
Unfortunately, due to time constraints (limits), we'll listen only to the most famous part of this duet, including the main melody. I've omitted an equally beautiful melody, sung by Delilah, leading up to the melody we hear here.
The French text is in blue, English translation is in red:
The love duet is especially famous and, in the 1960s, was turned into an American Top Ten hit, in an English version (sung by Soul singer, Jackie Wilson) called Night, which had no relation (apart from the melody) to the original.
Yet it's ironic, since the story of Samson was probably derived from a solar (sun) myth (Samson=sun) and Delilah's name comes from the Hebrew word for night (lilah).
Whether the writer of the American pop version knew of this or simply hit upon a lucky coincidence is another matter ("night" is a romantic notion and appears in thousands of pop songs).
This duet is sung in Act II, and is begun by Delilah, with her two choruses completed by Samson. They alternate at first, then sing their duet, which concludes with Samson singing solo.
Unfortunately, due to time constraints (limits), we'll listen only to the most famous part of this duet, including the main melody. I've omitted an equally beautiful melody, sung by Delilah, leading up to the melody we hear here.
The French text is in blue, English translation is in red:
Delilah: Ah, respond to my tenderness! Pour out your passion!
Samson: Dalila! Dalila! Je t'aime!
Samson: Delilah! Delilah! I love you!
| Dalila: Ah! reponds, reponds a ma tendresse! Verse-moi, verse-moi l'ivresse! Reponds a ma tendresse! Responds a ma tendresse! Verse-moi, verse-moi, verse-moi livresse! Delilah: Ah! respond, respond to my tenderness! Pour out your passion! |
| Samson: Par mes baisers je veux secher tes larmes and de ton coeur eloigner les alarmes. Je veux seche tes larmes! Je veux secher tes larmes! Samson: With my kisses I will dry your tears and rid your heart of fear. I will dry your tears! I will dry your tears! |
Samson: Delilah! Delilah! I love you!
Songs Week of 22 November 2005
GIDEON AND THE SWORD
This Gospel song (like most Gospel) stays close to the source text, in Judges, with the usual fanciful additions common among Gospel songwriters. The main idea of the song (as of its source text in Judges) is that God wins battles, not men ("the sword of the Lord," not the sword of Gideon).
Oh, well it was the sword of the Lord And Gideon, Gideon, Gideon children And the sword of the Lord and Gideon I'm gonna lay down my sword and shield!This Gospel song (like most Gospel) stays close to the source text, in Judges, with the usual fanciful additions common among Gospel songwriters. The main idea of the song (as of its source text in Judges) is that God wins battles, not men ("the sword of the Lord," not the sword of Gideon).
Oh, well it was the sword of the Lord And Gideon, Gideon, Gideon children And the sword of the Lord and Gideon I'm gonna lay down my sword and shield!
Great God! Well, read your Bible and you can read it right God called Gideon late at night About 4:15
They tell me the time You ought to hear my God on the line They tell me that He spoke his words so sweet You ought to hear the shuffle of angels' feet God spoke again and He spoke that night Go on down, "Brother Gideon, smite the right I heard Brother Gideon spoke with Him
"Lord, my God, I got too many men." God Almighty told Gideon to do the rest Take them down by the Jordan, stand the test Some come a-leaping in two by two Gideon said pull off that shoe Some come a leaping in three by three Gideon said, "Lord, let me see."
Some came jumping in four by four Great God Almighty, I need some more! They tell me that the numbers ran up to nine Gideon said, "Now fall in line
My God spoke, said, "I tell you when." He counted the number, there were three hundred men!
Oh, well it was the sword of the Lord And Gideon, Gideon, Gideon children And the sword of the Lord and Gideon I'm gonna lay down my sword and shield! (repeat) Great God well you heard my story
That's the end Brother Gideon had a bunch of fighting men Some were old, some were young All got together till the battle was won Prayer was the key, though, I do believe, You can't win a battle unless you get on your knees Gideon cried they tell me, shout Great God Almighty, they all ran out Some ran low and some wide
You can't win the battle with God on the main side.
Oh, well it was the sword of the Lord And Gideon, Gideon, Gideon children And the sword of the Lord and Gideon I'm gonna lay down my sword and shield!
Oh, well it was the sword of the Lord And Gideon, Gideon, Gideon children And the sword of the Lord and Gideon I'm gonna lay down my sword and shield!
OLD DEUTERONOMY
If only to show the influence of the Bible at many levels, here a brief excerpt from a song from the Lloyd-Webber musical, Cats, one of which is named after Deuteronomy. The lyric (like all the lyrics in the musical, except parts of "Memory," was by Nobel prize-winning poet, T. S. Eliot:Old Deuteronomy's lived a long time. He's a cat who has lived many lives in succession. He was famous in proverb and famous in rhyme a long while before Queen Victoria's accession. Old Deuteronomy's buried nine wives, and more: I am tempted to say, ninety-nine. And his numerous progeny prospers and thrives, and the village is proud of him in his decline.
BERNSTEIN'S MASS
God said, "Let there be light," and there was light. God said: "Let there be night." And there was night. God said, "Let there be day," and there was day, day to follow the night. And it was good, brother. And it was good, brother. And it was good, brother. And it was goddamn good.We missed this when discussing Genesis, so we'll hear it today. It's a bizarre setting of verses from Genesis in Broadway style, or a mix of Broadway and Classical, for which composer Leonard Bernstein (West Side Story) was famous. Bernstein also wrote the text, freely adapted from the Bible and the Christian Mass. This Mass was written in honor of John F. Kennedy, with Kennedy's widow, Jacqueline, in attendance at the premiere performance. It's an audacious (bold) setting and some were offended by it. But Bernstein shows that the Bible is timeless and adapted its texts to the vernacular idioms and rhythms of modern life. Actually, this setting of Genesis sounds like it might have come from Bernstein's Broadway musical, West Side Story:
Judges 5 (King James Version)
The Book of Judges is centered on women, both good and evil (Delilah). One of the judges, Deborah, predicts that victory will be in the hands of a woman. This is dramatic irony, because the reader (and Barak) assumes the woman is Deborah, but she turns out to be Jael, who slays the Canaanite captain, Sisera, as he sleeps. The story is based on several ironies and contrasts. One is hospitality, which is violated when Sisera asks for water and is given milk, but is killed as he sleeps. The story contrasts the blessed women Jael and Deborah, and the hapless woman, the mother of Sisera, who, although the mother imagines her son has conquered and so enjoying the spoils of war, lies dead instead, even as she relishes her son's victory in her imagination. The Song of Deborah is one of the oldest texts in the Bible (though Judges itself is of a later date). We'll listen to a narration of this in class, so bring this with you on Tuesday as well:
1Then sang Deborah and Barak the son of Abinoam on that day, saying,
2Praise ye the LORD for the avenging of Israel, when the people willingly offered themselves.
3Hear, O ye kings; give ear, O ye princes; I, even I, will sing unto the LORD; I will sing praise to the LORD God of Israel.
4LORD, when thou wentest out of Seir, when thou marchedst out of the field of Edom, the earth trembled, and the heavens dropped, the clouds also dropped water.
5The mountains melted from before the LORD, even that Sinai from before the LORD God of Israel.
6In the days of Shamgar the son of Anath, in the days of Jael, the highways were unoccupied, and the travellers walked through byways.
7The inhabitants of the villages ceased, they ceased in Israel, until that I Deborah arose, that I arose a mother in Israel.
8They chose new gods; then was war in the gates: was there a shield or spear seen among forty thousand in Israel?
9My heart is toward the governors of Israel, that offered themselves willingly among the people. Bless ye the LORD.
10Speak, ye that ride on white asses, ye that sit in judgment, and walk by the way.
11They that are delivered from the noise of archers in the places of drawing water, there shall they rehearse the righteous acts of the LORD, even the righteous acts toward the inhabitants of his villages in Israel: then shall the people of the LORD go down to the gates.
12Awake, awake, Deborah: awake, awake, utter a song: arise, Barak, and lead thy captivity captive, thou son of Abinoam.
13Then he made him that remaineth have dominion over the nobles among the people: the LORD made me have dominion over the mighty.
14Out of Ephraim was there a root of them against Amalek; after thee, Benjamin, among thy people; out of Machir came down governors, and out of Zebulun they that handle the pen of the writer.
15And the princes of Issachar were with Deborah; even Issachar, and also Barak: he was sent on foot into the valley. For the divisions of Reuben there were great thoughts of heart.
16Why abodest thou among the sheepfolds, to hear the bleatings of the flocks? For the divisions of Reuben there were great searchings of heart.
17Gilead abode beyond Jordan: and why did Dan remain in ships? Asher continued on the sea shore, and abode in his breaches.
18Zebulun and Naphtali were a people that jeoparded their lives unto the death in the high places of the field.
19The kings came and fought, then fought the kings of Canaan in Taanach by the waters of Megiddo; they took no gain of money.
20They fought from heaven; the stars in their courses fought against Sisera.
21The river of Kishon swept them away, that ancient river, the river Kishon. O my soul, thou hast trodden down strength.
22Then were the horsehoofs broken by the means of the pransings, the pransings of their mighty ones.
23Curse ye Meroz, said the angel of the LORD, curse ye bitterly the inhabitants thereof; because they came not to the help of the LORD, to the help of the LORD against the mighty.
24Blessed above women shall Jael the wife of Heber the Kenite be, blessed shall she be above women in the tent.
25He asked water, and she gave him milk; she brought forth butter in a lordly dish.
26She put her hand to the nail, and her right hand to the workmen's hammer; and with the hammer she smote Sisera, she smote off his head, when she had pierced and stricken through his temples.
27At her feet he bowed, he fell, he lay down: at her feet he bowed, he fell: where he bowed, there he fell down dead.
28The mother of Sisera looked out at a window, and cried through the lattice, Why is his chariot so long in coming? why tarry the wheels of his chariots?
29Her wise ladies answered her, yea, she returned answer to herself,
30Have they not sped? have they not divided the prey; to every man a damsel or two; to Sisera a prey of divers colours, a prey of divers colours of needlework, of divers colours of needlework on both sides, meet for the necks of them that take the spoil?
31So let all thine enemies perish, O LORD: but let them that love him be as the sun when he goeth forth in his might. And the land had rest forty years.
IF I HAD MY WAY
{Chorus} Well, if I had my way If I had my way, little children! If I had my way I’d tear this building down! Great God! If I had my way If I had my way, little children If I had my way I’d tear the building down!Unfortunately, the Bible has been sanitized (cleaned up) for centuries, preaching meekness and passivity in the face of evil, when a great deal of the Bible (Deuteronomy, the Prophets, and Jesus) teaches the complete opposite, namely to stand up in the face of social injustice. In these two songs about Samson, the main idea is find strength in weakness (with the help of God, of course), as Samson tears the building down. The point is that, with God's help, Samson killed more men in his weakness than he killed by his own strength without God.
(Samson, as we know from Judges, is one of the oddest characters in the Bible. Although a Judge, he was more concerned with chasing women than in fulfilling his mother's vows (she dedicated him to God); in fact, he even makes her touch a dead body (without her knowing it), which would have been a violation of her (and her husband's) vows. His role in Judges, as the last of the judges, seems to show that men, however strong, without God can not effect justice:
(Samson, as we know from Judges, is one of the oddest characters in the Bible. Although a Judge, he was more concerned with chasing women than in fulfilling his mother's vows (she dedicated him to God); in fact, he even makes her touch a dead body (without her knowing it), which would have been a violation of her (and her husband's) vows. His role in Judges, as the last of the judges, seems to show that men, however strong, without God can not effect justice:
Well you read in the Bible, you will understand That Samson was the strongest man They tell me God moved on the wings of the wind He saw old Samson and he called to him. He whispered low into Samson’s mind,
Saying, “Deliver the children from the Philistines.”
{Chorus} Well if I had my way . . .
Great God! Then Samson went down and he wandered about. Tell me that his strength was never found out. They tell us down in Chapter 9 That he killed 3000 of Philistines Then Samson’s wife she sat on his knees And said, “Samson, tell me Samson, where your strength lies, please." Samson’s wife, she talked so fair That Samson told her to cut his hair Said you shave my head as clean as your hand Then my strength gonna go like a natural man
Chorus He said, If I had my way . . . Great God!
They shaved his head just as clean as the hand. They took him on down to a strange land They led him on down to the judgment hall Blind him and chained him to the wall But he called on God, he called on the Lord
They tell me that his hair begins to grow Then he called a kid about three feet tall He said you place my hands up against the wall Then he placed his hands up against the wall Then he tore that building down!
IF I HAD MY WAY
Gospel songs borrow from each other. Here's the same song in a variant, including Joshua as well as Samson. That's how Gospel songs continue to grow into new songs in a folk song tradition. Once again, the emphasis is on God's power, not man's strength? Critics have coined many phrases for "irony" (saying one thing and meaning another), such as "dramatic irony." One might also speak of "theological irony," or the way, in the Bible, by which God uses human weakness for power (Moses, Joshua, Jesus) and human power for weakness (as in Pharaoh). The point is, Samson was never stronger than when he was helpless and weak; only then could he fulfill God's plan. St. Paul will later repeat the same idea, that in his weakness lay his strength, as in the famous reference to his "thorn in the flesh" (an unknwon problem he could not get rid of, even by prayer):
"To keep me from becoming conceited . . . there was given me a thorn in my flesh, a messenger of Satan, to torment me. Three times I pleaded with the Lord to take it away from me. But he said to me, 'My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.' Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses so that Christ's power may rest on me. That is why, for Christ's sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong"
(2 Corinthians 12:7ff.)
Chorus: If I had my way (3), I'd tear this building down. If I had my way (3) I'd tear this building down. You know Samson was a strong man, a mighty man was he. Till Delilah found his secret, she would not let him be. She shaved his head just as clean as your hand, Samson got as weak as any other man. But God still had a way and he tore that building down. Oh, Lord! If I had my way, if I had my way, if I had my way, I'd tear this building down. Oh, Joshua was a strong man, a mighty man was he. He fought the mighty battle of Jericho, yes indeed. The walls came crumbling, tumbling down, the rocks were piled all over the ground. God let him have his way, he tore that building dwon. Oh, Lord! If I had my way, if I had my way, I'd tear this building down. Oh, I said, if I had my way, if I had my way, if I had my way, I'd tear this building down.Gospel songs borrow from each other. Here's the same song in a variant, including Joshua as well as Samson. That's how Gospel songs continue to grow into new songs in a folk song tradition. Once again, the emphasis is on God's power, not man's strength? Critics have coined many phrases for "irony" (saying one thing and meaning another), such as "dramatic irony." One might also speak of "theological irony," or the way, in the Bible, by which God uses human weakness for power (Moses, Joshua, Jesus) and human power for weakness (as in Pharaoh). The point is, Samson was never stronger than when he was helpless and weak; only then could he fulfill God's plan. St. Paul will later repeat the same idea, that in his weakness lay his strength, as in the famous reference to his "thorn in the flesh" (an unknwon problem he could not get rid of, even by prayer):
"To keep me from becoming conceited . . . there was given me a thorn in my flesh, a messenger of Satan, to torment me. Three times I pleaded with the Lord to take it away from me. But he said to me, 'My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.' Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses so that Christ's power may rest on me. That is why, for Christ's sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong"
(2 Corinthians 12:7ff.)
COME ON, JOIN THAT NUMBER
The reference to God descending from the "air" (to take up his chosen people to Heaven) goes back to the story of the prophet, Elijah. Paul later writes of a similar event to happen. Revelation also speaks of a Book of Judgment (Book of Life), as did the Book of Daniel in the Old Testament; here Samson is included in that "number." Probably the most famous Gospel song treating this theme is "When the Saints Go Marching In":
Don't you want to join that number that no man can number (3), come on and join that number. Yeah, the holy, righteous number that no man can number (3), come on join that number in the air. (Repeat) Well you read in the Bible, you understand, Samson was the strongest man. You read deep down in ancient times, he killed ten thousand Philistines. Well Samson joined that number that no man can number (3) come on join that number in the air. Well, that holy righteous number that no man can number (3) come on join that number in the air. Well join that number that no man can number (3) come on join that number in the air.The reference to God descending from the "air" (to take up his chosen people to Heaven) goes back to the story of the prophet, Elijah. Paul later writes of a similar event to happen. Revelation also speaks of a Book of Judgment (Book of Life), as did the Book of Daniel in the Old Testament; here Samson is included in that "number." Probably the most famous Gospel song treating this theme is "When the Saints Go Marching In":
RUN, SAMSON, RUN
Like all great texts, the Bible has also been the source of great humor. Here's a reference to the Samson story used to defame all women (however humorously). We already heard this in Elvis Presley's Hard-Headed Woman:
"Samson told Delilah, loud and clear, keep your cotton-picking fingers out my curly hair!"
"Run, Samson, Run" uses a whole song to retell (with "tongue in cheek") the Samson story. This was a pop hit for Neil Sedaka (of "Oh, Carol" fame), who also wrote the tune:
In the Bible, one thousand years BC. There's a story of ancient history, about a fellow who was strong as he could be, till he met a cheating gal who brought him tragedy. Oh, run Samson run, Delilah's on her way. Run Samson run you ain't got time to stay. Run Samson run on your mark you'd better start. I'd sooner trust a hungry lion than a gal with a cheating heart. She was a demon, a devil in disguise. He was taken by the angel in her eyes. That lady barber was very well equipped, you can bet your bottom dollar he was gonna get clipped. Oh, run, Samson run, Delilah's on her way. Run Samson run, you ain't got time to stay. Run Samson run, On your mark you'd better start. I'd sooner trust a hungry lion than Oh Delilah made Sammy's life a sin and he perished when the roof fell in. There's a moral, so listen to me, pal. There's a little of Delilah in each and every gal. So run, Samson run. Delilah's on her way. Run Samson run you ain't got time to stay. Run Samson run, On your mark you'd better start. I'd sooner trust a hungry lion than a gal with a cheating heart. I'd sooner trust a hungry lion than a gal with a cheating heart.Like all great texts, the Bible has also been the source of great humor. Here's a reference to the Samson story used to defame all women (however humorously). We already heard this in Elvis Presley's Hard-Headed Woman:
"Samson told Delilah, loud and clear, keep your cotton-picking fingers out my curly hair!"
"Run, Samson, Run" uses a whole song to retell (with "tongue in cheek") the Samson story. This was a pop hit for Neil Sedaka (of "Oh, Carol" fame), who also wrote the tune:
FIGHT ON
In many ways, Gospel revives the Bible from its churchly dormancy (sleep) to its roots in social activism, as in the Prophets and in Jesus' real-life missionary work, which was more as a social activist than a Sunday preacher. Here again, Old and New Testaments (Moses and Peter, one of Jesus' disciples) come together, both reaching the other shore. Here the emphasis is, as it was in the Old Testament, on fighting, not dying (the usual Christian meaning of reaching the other shore, or crossing Jordan). The reference to Peter, who stopped fishing to follow Jesus, and on whom Jesus placed his confidence: "On this Rock [Peter] I will build my church" (Peter=Rock in Greek, so Jesus is punning on Peter's name).
We are almost down to the shore. Peter, Peter on the sea, drop your nets and follow me, we are almost down to the shore. Fight on, fight on, children don't turn back. We are almost down to the shore. We're almost down to the shore. I said, fight on, fight on, children and don't, children don't, don't you turn back. We are almost, almost down to the shore. God told Moses on the mountain top, he said keep on going and don't you stop. We are almost, almost down to the shore. Fight on, fight on, children don't you, don't you turn back. We are almost, almost down to the shore. Fight on, fight on, children don't turn back. We're almost down to the shore. Moses almost lost his mind when God said Moses got to stay behind. We are almost down to the shore. Walk together by God's command, bound to reach the Promised Land. We are almost down to the shore. Fight on, fight on, children don't you, don't you don't you turn back. We are almost down to the shore. Fight on, fight on, children don't turn back we are almost down to the shore. In many ways, Gospel revives the Bible from its churchly dormancy (sleep) to its roots in social activism, as in the Prophets and in Jesus' real-life missionary work, which was more as a social activist than a Sunday preacher. Here again, Old and New Testaments (Moses and Peter, one of Jesus' disciples) come together, both reaching the other shore. Here the emphasis is, as it was in the Old Testament, on fighting, not dying (the usual Christian meaning of reaching the other shore, or crossing Jordan). The reference to Peter, who stopped fishing to follow Jesus, and on whom Jesus placed his confidence: "On this Rock [Peter] I will build my church" (Peter=Rock in Greek, so Jesus is punning on Peter's name).
CROSSING TO THE OTHER SIDE
Moses called himself "a stranger in a strange land," a phrase that became famous and the title of a science-fiction novel. The New Testament picked up this idea and used it repeatedly, as in the Letter to the Hebrews, once attributed to Paul:
"All these people [of faith] were still living by faith when they died. They did not receive the things promised; they only saw them and welcomed them from a distance. And they admitted that they were aliens and strangers on earth. People who say such things show that they are looking for a country of their own. If they had been thinking of the country they had left, they would have had a chance to return. Instead, they were longing for a better country, a heavenly one" (Hebrews 11:13ff.).
Peter begins his first letter in the same way:
"To God's elect, strangers in the world" (1 Peter 1:1). Later he cautions, "live your lives as strangers here" (1:17). Later still, "I urge you, as alens and strangers i the world" (2:11).
This song is from Roger Miller's Broadway musical version of Huckleberry Finn. Once again, Hebrew imagery (the Jordan River) is blended with Christian values (Jesus):
Crossing to the other side: We are pilgrims on a journey through the darkness of the night. We are bound for other places, crossing to the other side. I will worry about tomorrow when tomorrow comes in sight, until then, Lord, I'm just a pilgrim crossing to the other side. Jesus will be there to meet me, he will reach his hand in mine and I will no more be a stranger when I reach the other side. Crossing to the other side. Moses called himself "a stranger in a strange land," a phrase that became famous and the title of a science-fiction novel. The New Testament picked up this idea and used it repeatedly, as in the Letter to the Hebrews, once attributed to Paul:
"All these people [of faith] were still living by faith when they died. They did not receive the things promised; they only saw them and welcomed them from a distance. And they admitted that they were aliens and strangers on earth. People who say such things show that they are looking for a country of their own. If they had been thinking of the country they had left, they would have had a chance to return. Instead, they were longing for a better country, a heavenly one" (Hebrews 11:13ff.).
Peter begins his first letter in the same way:
"To God's elect, strangers in the world" (1 Peter 1:1). Later he cautions, "live your lives as strangers here" (1:17). Later still, "I urge you, as alens and strangers i the world" (2:11).
This song is from Roger Miller's Broadway musical version of Huckleberry Finn. Once again, Hebrew imagery (the Jordan River) is blended with Christian values (Jesus):
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