Psalm 133
“Behold, how good a thing it is And how becoming well,
Together such as brethren are In unity to dwell! In unity to dwell!
Like precious ointment on the head, That down the beard did flow,
Ev’n Aaron’s beard, and to the skirts Did of his garments go, Did of his garments go.
As Hermon’s dew, the dew that doth On Zion’s hills descend;
For there the blessing God commands, Life that shall never end, Life that shall never end.”
By Betsy Logeman I
f the minister said, “Turn to Bible Song #280,” or “Let’s sing Psalm 133,” I imagine many of you would not even need to crack open the book. The tune (ORTONVILLE) written by Dr. T. Hastings would simply come to mind and you would sing. Let’s face it. If you are like me and it is an extremely familiar song, it is easy
to just sing without thinking. How many times have we been guilty of singing “Amazing Grace” or any other common hymn or psalm without thinking? I have been a member of an ARP church for only about three and a half years. The denomination I came from
sang many traditional hymns but does not have the rich psalm-singing heritage of the ARP churches. However, I adore historical research, and in my few years as an ARP, I have come to love many of the psalms we sing. First, consider the words of Psalm 133. David, the psalmist, is writing about the pleasing sounds of unity.
My pastor, Dr. Rob Patrick at Boyce Memorial ARP Church likens the spirit of this psalm to a family prepar- ing for and taking a trip. In reality, family trips are often full of teasing and bickering, but how wonderful are those moments when all are getting along or dwelling in unity! In Bible times, this “Song of Ascent” was often rehearsed as the worshippers were headed toward Jerusalem. Think of the difficulty of travel today – delayed flights, traffic situations, car trouble. But the trips for those worshipping in Jerusalem were even more strenu- ous – longs days on foot or donkey. My mom loved to use Scripture to remind my siblings and me to get along. At the first sign of complaining,
I can still hear her singing “Do everything without complaining” or “Be ye kind to one another.” Music has a way of lightening the load of the task at hand. How many of us complete chores or exercise to music? So how good and pleasant it would be to have everyone singing along and being a team player on this arduous journey to Jerusalem. The second stanza references the ointment on the head of Aaron. At first glance, singing about ointment can
be perplexing and perhaps it does not call to our minds beautiful imagery. It may even seem a little awkward to sing about. However, the Reformation Study Bible by R. Sproul, explains it this way: “The first simile refers to the anointing of Aaron, the high priest. The special and exclusive blend of oil (Ex. 30:22–33) was poured out extravagantly, running down his beard and onto his sacred robes. In the same way the unity of the people of God is a rich perfume making their worship pleasing to Him (Rom. 15:6).”
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The Associate Reformed Presbyterian
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