At some point Psalm 145:21 may have been the final doxology of
Psalms. It makes a similar point to Psalm 150:6.
Psalm 145:21 appears as the concluding doxology of Book V in the
Psalter. Books I-IV conclude with independent doxologies
attached to the final psalms in those books. It is natural that
Book V would also conclude with a doxology.
However, there are five more Psalms (146-150). If Book V
concludes with Psalm 145, what is the function of the final five?
I think they are concluding doxologies (or praises ) for the whole
book.
It is as if the final editor (whoever he/she/they may be) of
Psalms was unwilling to end the Psalter on a two-line doxology.
The journey through the Psalter is a difficult one. It is filled
with lament and protest, but it moves toward praise and exults in
the character and redeeming acts of God. The Psalter must end with
praise…..and praise….and praise. There are not enough words.
Each of the final five Psalms begin and end with the Hebrew
phrase often transliterated as Hallelujah (praise
Yahweh, or praise the Lord). The word “praise” occurs thirty-six
times in the final five psalms, and twelve times in the final
psalm (150). The editor(s) concludes the Psalter with resounding
praise–almost as if it is unceasing praise. So, the structure of
the Psalter might look something like this.
Introduction: Psalm 1
- Book I (Psalms 2-41) Doxology: 41:13
- Book II (Psalms 42-72) Doxology: 72:18-19
- Book III (Psalms 73-89) Doxology: 89:52
- Book IV (Psalms 93-106) Doxology: 106:48
- Book V (Psalms 107-150) Doxology: 145:21
Conclusion: Psalms 146-150
The final psalm–of the traditional Hebrew text–uses the verb
“praise” twelve times. Every line in the psalm contains the verb.
Eleven of them are imperatives (commands), but the next to last is
a jussive, that is, an invitation to join the praise (150:6).
The repeated exhortation to praise constitutes a demand that
arises from the story the Psalmists have told throughout their
journey with God in the previous psalms, a journey with many hills
and valleys. That journey ends, however, in praise.
God has sustained the Psalmists. God has not abandoned them, even
though sometimes they thought God had. Yahweh is faithful, and
from creation to Exodus to renewal in the post-exilic era, God has
redeemed Israel and demonstrated the excellence of the divine
character.
That praise begins in the the divine, heavenly sanctuary–in
firmament that shields the earth–but it encompasses what God has
done upon the earth, God’s “mighty deeds.” The praise in
Psalm 150 has no content. Instead, it has a standard. We are
called to praise God in ways that reflect God’s mighty deeds
(God’s redemptive acts) and the excellence of God’s character.
The mighty deeds have demonstrated God’s presence and revealed
God’s character. Our praise must be congruent with God’s story,
the faithful and redemptive ways in which God has patiently
continued to love Israel. We know who God is, and this demands
praise. Hallelujah, the call to praise Yahweh, is the call
to engage the covenant God of Israel, the one who has acted in
faithful love for the people called out of Ur and Egypt, and
returned from Babylon.
In the divine sanctuary (which probably includes the temple court
as a mirror of the heavenly one), how is this praise embodied?
Interestingly, nothing is explicitly said about the use of words,
though I think the call to “praise” involves words. Rather,
the mood and atmosphere of praise is connected to instrumentation,
to the sounds of artistic, exuberant, and bold string, percussion,
and wind instruments. Israel praised God with (through or by)
these instruments. They were no mere aids but means.
- Trumpets–usually used to mark movements within the
liturgy, to announce significant moments, events, and
transitions (much like bells are used in some liturgical
churches).
- Harp and lute, or “strings and pipe,”–the use of wind and
string instruments as means of praise, as acts of praise of
themselves.
- Tambourines and dancing–we see the joy of the Exodus in the
praise of God (cf. Exodus 15:20), and that joy continued in the
celebration of God’s redemptive acts and faithful character.
- Cymbals–perhaps also used to mark movements within the
liturgy, but also to dramatically heighten the bold character of
the praise. The cymbals are loud and resounding; this is no
soft, solemn, or silent praise.
As one student commented, the instruments reflect how bold and
enthusiastic this praise is. We might imagine the priests blowing
the trumpets and clashing the cymbals at dramatic moments in the
liturgy while a Levitical band (strings and pipes) provides the
music that accompanies the words of praise are sung by a Levitical
choir. In the midst of this offering by the priests and Levites,
the congregation taps their tambourines and dances in the temple
court in praise of Yahweh, their faithful covenant God.
This praise is the fruit of a life lived under the Torah of God
and tutored by the prayers and thanksgivings of the Psalmists.
Living in humble submission, absorbing the values and language of
the psalms, and obedient to the Torah or story of God, praise is
the fruit of such a life. Prayer leads to praise, and obedience
leads to adoration.
Indeed, this is the fundamental identity of everything that
breathes; humanity is homo liturgicus. The final
line of the Psalter, except the inclusio “Praise the Lord,”
invites all creation (“every breath” as in Genesis 7:22), to join
the chorus of praise. As in Psalm 148, the cosmos–whether in
heaven or on earth–is invited to praise God.
God gives breath, and that breath ought to return to God in
praise. The breath in us is, in fact, the Spirit of God moving
through us (see Job 27:1). As such, breath returns to God who gave
it.
As the Orthodox theology Schmemann wrote, “every breath is
communion with God,” and the Psalmist invites “every thing that
breathes” to say, Hallelujah!
So, as people who sing, pray, and mediate on the psalms, we join
the chorus of praise that reverberates throughout the cosmos,even
though we have traversed many valleys and dark places to get to
this point.
Our every breath is both an invitation to praise and a form of
praise!
This entry was posted on February 2, 2015 at 1:33 am and
is filed under Biblical Texts. Tagged: Breath,
Instrumental Music, Praise,
Psalm
150, Psalms, Psalter,
Worship.
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While Revelation 4 focused on the worth of the Creator who
sits on the throne, Revelation 5 turns our attention to the
dramatic investiture of the one who is worthy to break the seals
and unroll the scroll. Revelation 4 portrays the reality of the
heavenly throne room where the sovereign God, sitting on the
throne, receives worship as the great benefactor of the cosmos–the
one by whom all creation exists and to whom belong all creation’s
gratitude. Revelation 5 portrays the story of redemption as the
one who is worthy to open the book is worshipped because that one
has redeemed creation from the powers of evil that enslave
it. In essence we move from creation to redemption, from the
sovereign enthroned one who invests another with redemptive
authority, honor and power.
The heavenly liturgy (the service of worship) is interrupted for
John when he notices that there is a scroll (book) in the the
right hand of the one who sits on the throne. It is an extremely
important document as it is sealed seven times, positioned in the
right hand of God, and written on the front and back. Further,
only one who is worthy may break the seals and open the book, and
there is no one worthy present in the heavenly throne room
(angelic hosts), or on the earth (living creation), or even under
the earth (e.g., Hades). The document has such cosmic significance
and importance that no one in heaven and earth (all
creation) is able to open the seals. No one has the right or
worth to do so.
What is this book? Some think it might be the “Book of Life” in
which the names of the redeemed are written. But there is nothing
in the context to indicate that identification. Rather, the
allusion is to Ezekiel 2:9-10 where Ezekiel is told to speak the
words of the book that contain “words of lamentation and mourning
and woe.” As one reads further into this second vision (Revelation
4-16), it is evident that the breaking of the seals involves
lamentation, mourning, and woe for the inhabitants of the earth.
The book is a prophetic word against the powers that have
oppressed the people of God and thus contains God’s destiny for
them. The book symbolizes God’s intent to redeem the church from
the powers even as God judges those powers. The book contains the
answer to the question that the oppressed ask: will God ever act
to overturn this oppression? The answer is “Yes,” and it
is contained in the book.
But, as John observes, no one is worthy to open the book. A
mighty angel asks heaven and earth for anyone to come forward to
open the book, but no one comes. As a result John begins to wail
in lament. This is no mere wimper, but is the lament of the
oppressed; it is the weeping of a people who seemingly see no end
to their suffering. John weeps for the church; he weeps for his
own flock in Asia. The church laments as the powers continue to
oppress.
Lament, however, comes to end in the victory of the one
who has overcome (conquered). “Weep no more,” one of the
twenty-four elders around the throne tells John. Instead, the
elder continues, “look at this!” The elder announces the victory
of the “Lion of the tribe of Judah, the Root of David.” The Lion
has conquered.
The elder’s description evokes deeply rooted Messianic images
from the Hebrew Scriptures as well as from the literature of
Second Temple Judaism. These images are triumphalistic and
militant. The “root of David” is found in Isaiah 11:1-10 (cf.
Sirach 47:2) which envisions a Davidic conqueror that subjugates
Edom, Moab and Ammon. The lion image comes from Genesis 49:8-10
(cf. 4 Ezra 12:31-32) where the nations serve the royal predator.
The elder paints a verbal picture of a conquering king who defeats
the powers (nations).
But when John turns to see this lion he only sees a small lamb.
The Greek term for “lamb” is diminuitive in form, that is, it
refers to a small lamb. Expecting to see the powerful king of the
beasts, John turns to only see the weakest and most vulnerable of
animals, a small lamb. That vulnerability is borne out by the
reality that the animal is a slaughtered lamb.
This slaughtered Lamb, however, assumes a position of power,
authority and honor. Though once slaughtered (thus
killed), the living Lamb now stands next to the throne
(at the “center,” in fact) and is encircled by the four living
creatures and the twenty-four elders. He has seven horns
(representing strength and power) as well as seven eyes (he sees
everything). Indeed, the seven eyes are the seven spirits of God,
that is, the Lamb is invested with the Holy Spirit and thus is
empowered to act throughout the earth. The imagery derives from
Zechariah 4:2, 6, 10.
It is the once slaughtered but now living Lamb that is worthy to
take the book from the hand of God and reveal its contents;
indeed, to execute its contents as the throne’s agent within the
world. The slaughtered Lamb is a sacrifical victim, but it was
voluntarily assumed rather than a victimization of the Lamb.
The Lion of Judah became a slaughtered Lamb for the sake of
redemption. Jesus defeated the powers through faithful witness
rather than by violent revolution; the Lion became a Lamb.
The heavenly dignitaries recognize the significance of this
moment. Someone, but not just anyone, is now worthy to open the
book. When the book is taken from the hand of the one who sits on
the throne, the four living creatures and the twenty-four
elders fall prostrate before the Lamb. They worship the Lamb and
recognize his worthiness.
If we had any doubt whom the twenty-four elders represented, what
they hold in their hands removes it. Enthroned around the
throne, they hold harps (kithara) and bowls of
incense. They perpetually worshipped the one who sits on the
throne, and their worship includes musical praise (symbolized
by the instruments) and prayer. The kitharas and bowls
of incense remind us of temple worship in Israel as they were part
of the liturgical cultus (cf. Psalms 33:2-3; 141:2; 147:7;
150:3-5), and this worship continues in the heavenlies. The
twenty-f0ur elders are gathered in the Holy of Holies to worship
God. They embody Israel’s temple worship in which the twenty-four
(both Israel and the church) participate.
These heavenly dignitaries break out into a “new song,” a song of
redemption, that declares the worthiness of the Lamb. The Lamb is
worthy because
(1) “you were slain,”
(2) “by your blood you ransomed people for God from every tribe
and language and people and nation,” and
(3) “you made them a kingdom and priests to our God and they shall
reign on the earth.”
This three-fold rationale echoes the Exodus of Israel from Egypt.
The slain Passover lamb ransomed Isreal from Egyptian bondage in
order to make them a kingdom of priests. God had ransomed Isreal
from slavery (Deuteronomy 7:8; 13:5) in order to anoint them a
royal, priestly nation (Exodus 19:5-6) which would bless the other
nations. In other words, God intended Israel to become a shining
light in the world–the new image of God in the world–so that all
people might come to know God. God defeated the Egyptian powers in
order to release Israel into the world to bless the world.
The “new song” praises the lamb for a new exodus, an
“eschatological exodus” (as Bauckham calls it, Theology of
Revelation). In the Apocalypse, the powers (while it
was Egyptian for Israel, it is Roman for the church in Asia)
oppress, persecute, and enslave the people of God. By the
Lamb’s faithful witness through death–he was faithful unto
death–he has earned the worth to purchase a people for God. This
people will not only come from Israel, but from every nation under
heaven. This people will reign on the earth just as God created
humanity to reign as divine images from the beginning of creation.
They will become a kingdom of priests who will minister in the
eschatological temple of God which is God’s good creation. This
people will fulfill not only God’s intent for Israel but God’s
intent for humanity itself. They will share God’s dominion
over the earth, care for creation, and bless the creation as God’s
vice-regents (Genesis 1:26-31; Psalm 8).
In response to this “new song” of redemption, the
whole angelic chorus breaks out in praise, ascribing all
the honor, wealth and power within creation to the Lamb (rather
than to Caesar!). In concentric circles of praise, the four living
creatures, then the twenty-four elders, and then the myriads of
angels give honor to the lamb. The praise moves from the center of
the throne room to its outer edges as all of heaven praises the
Lamb.
But the praise does not end there. The praise extends to all
creation–“every creature in heaven and on earth and under the
earth and on the sea and all that is in them.” The whole creation
is filled with the eternal praise of God and the Lamb. While
the Apocalypse always remains thoroughly theocentric (“the one who
sits on the throne”), the liturgical scenes do not hesitate to
include the Lamb who is worshipped alongside the one who sits on
the throne. The Lamb, at the “center of the throne,”
deserves worship and is ascribed divine “worth.”
This heavenly liturgical scene, reflective of
Israel’s temple, invites the readers of the Apocalypse to
enter the throne room to praise and pray. We praise God and
the Lamb while we also pray for the eschatological coming of God’s
kingdom.
We join the angels and all creation around the throne. We confess
the sovereignty of God. We confess the worthiness of the Lamb. We
praise both and ascribe (bless) to them praise, honor, glory, and
power. And we continue to pray for the fullness of the kingdom of
God when the whole earth will reflect the glory and presence of
God and the Lamb. We pray for the end to oppression, injustice,
slavery, and persecution. We sing and we pray, and this we do
every time we gather as the people of God and participate in the
eschatological assembly envisioned in Revelation 4 and 5.
Winchester, Kentucky, is a small town of only 16,000 in a
county (Clark) of 33,000. The city lies in the
heart of the origins of the Stone-Campbell Movement. Within a
sixty mile radius are Lexington, Cane Ridge, Mt. Sterling,
Georgetown and other famous cities of the early years
of that history. The story of the Stone-Campbell Movement
in Winchester, KY illustrates the progress and process of
division within the movement.
Division One, Baptist-Christian: In 1812 the
Strode’s Station Church (formed in 1791), a member of the
North District Association of Baptist Churches, moved 1.5
miles to a lot on Lexington Road in Winchester and became
known as the “Friendship Church.” In 1821 it reported
125 members led by Elder Quisenberry. In 1822
Quisenberry was dismissed by a minority in the church because
of his interest in the teachings of Barton W. Stone (since
1814) and Alexander Campbell’s “Sermon on the Law”
(given in 1816). Though Quisenberry withdrew his leadership,
the result was two congregations known as “Friendship Church”
in Winchester–one (ultimately the First Baptist Chuch)
belonging to the Licking Association and the other (ultimately
the first Stone-Campbell congregation) a member of the North
District Association. The Stone-Campbell group renamed
themselves “Christian Church at Friendship” in 1825 and moved
their membership to the Boone Association.
Division Two, Baptist-Christian: In 1828 Elder
William Morton, the regular preacher for the Christian Church,
preached the introductory sermon for the Boone Association
when it met at Winchester. At this meeting a resolution was
proposed to abolish the Association’s constitution and accept
the Bible alone as their rule of faith and practice. In
1829, the Christian Church at Friendship, along with five
other congregations, withdrew from the Boone Association.
These churches were now independent and informally associated
with the work of John “Racoon” Smith and Jacob Creath,
Sr. Elder Morton himself baptized 300 persons in the
first six months of 1828 through his intinerant evangelism.
The Winchester “Christian Church at Friendship” was clearly
situated within the orbit of Alexander Campbell’s influence
though Stone held a camp meeting at Winchester in 1832.
Campbell preached at Winchester in 1834 (and later in 1851).
Aylette Rains served as a monthly preacher for the Christian
Church from 1834-1861. Raines lost favor with the congregation
due to his unionist proclivities when the church essentially
wanted to stay neutral. The congregation erected a new
building in 1845 and became known as the “Court Street
Christian Church,” started a Sunday School in 1850 ,and by
1865 numbered 300.
Division Three, Black-White: Prior to
the Civil War the Friendship Church and its descendent the
Court Street Christian Church counted some blacks among their
members. Sometime after the Civil War an African-American
Christian Church appeared in Winchester (there were only four
in Kentucky prior to the Civil War), one of nearly seventy
African-American congregations organized from 1865-1900 in
Kentucky. The Broadway Christian Church obtained property in
1868. Little is known about the origins of this particular
congregation. The congregation never grew above 100 and still
exists.
Division Four, Instrumental-Noninstrumental: In 1887
the organ was introduced into the public worship of the church
at Winchester (the same year it was introduced in Georgetown
and Hopkinsville, KY). Trouble had apparently been
brewing for a while. This is the home church of James W.
Harding (1823-1919) and his son James A. Harding
(1848-1922). J. W.’s mother and grandmother had been members
of the original Friendship Church and J. W. was baptized
by Rains in 1839. Though a local buisnessman, he was an Elder
at the church and an intinerant evangelist in the region. He
was close friends with Moses Lard and J. W. McGarvey. While
the organ was originally introduced into the Sunday School as
a compromise, when it was moved into the public assembly this
“drove out a number of the oldest, wisest and best members”
(according to W. F. Neal). The organ remained in the
church despite a petition signed by “forty-five conscientious
members.” They began a new congregation in the home of J. W.
Harding with fifteen people and was known, after the
erection of a building in 1891, as the “Fairfax Street
Church of Christ.” By 1898 the membership was 378. At the turn
of the century, the Fairfax Street Church of Christ (400
members) and the Court Street Christian Church (600 members)
were the largest churches in Winchester.
Division Five, Premillennial-Amillennial: The
Fairfax Church employed their first regular minister in 1912,
H. C. Shoulders. When he was dismissed in 1917, 240 members
organized a new congregation on January 19, 1918 known as the
Main Street Church of Christ. Apparently, generational and
leadership issues (growing dissatisfaction with the Hardings)
as well as millennialism were the center of the tension. The
Fairfax Church was only left with 68 members. Though briefly
reunited in 1926 after the deaths of some of the Hardings and
some agreement about toning down the millennialism, fifteen
people began to meet at the Fairfax building by the end of the
year (the same number that started meeting in 1887).
Eventually the Fairfax church grew to 100 and has hovered in
that neighborhood ever since. The division between the two
churches was acerbated and written in stone by the debate
on premillennialism held in Winchester between Charles M.
Neal and Foy E. Wallace, Jr., from January 2-7, 1933. The
premillennial movement within Churches of Christ operated a
Bible College at Winchester from 1949-1979.
Division Six, Disciples of Christ and Christian
Church/Churces of Christ: The Court Street
Christian Church, now known as the First Christian Church,
moved into a new building in 1908 and employed a well-known
minister by the name of J. H. MacNeill. He became a board
member of the College of the Bible (now Lexington Theological
Seminary), ultimately its chairman, and was a major player in
the formation of the United Missionary Society. Between
1917-1918, at the time of the heresy trials at the College of
the Bible, MacNeill began reporting his work through the Christian
Evangelist rather than the Christian Standard.
However, a few in his congregation opposed his College
associations and he resigned in 1923 (4 accepted, 2 abstained
and 20 refused the resignation). The First Christian Church
was well-entrenched in the direction of the Disciples of
Christ, the United Missionary Society, and “liberal” higher
education. It would not be until 1973 when an independent
Christian Church/Churches of Christ congregation would be
planted in the city (Calvary Christian Church) and another
followed known as the Christview Christian Church (though
three congregations in the County were listed in the
1960 direction of Christian/Churches and Churches of
Christ: Log Lick, Antioch, and Ruckersville with Forest
Grove added in 1965).
Division Seven, Institutional-Noninstitutional:
Throughout the 1950s Churches of Christ nationwide debated
whether churches should support Colleges, children’s homes,
and sponsored missionaries. For one side (institutionalists)
it was an expedient means, for the other it was the machinery
of denominationalism (noninstitutionalists). In 1964 a small
group in the Fairfax Church of Christ withdrew after several
years of discussion when the church decided to support orphans
homes out of their church treasury rather than simply
providing an optional “non-worship activity” box for such
contributions in the foyer. This group ultimately planted a
new congregation in Winchester in 1966.
Winchester, KY, is Exhibit A for the history of division
within the Stone-Campbell Movement. Within the city
limits of this small town in the heart of Stone-Campbell
history, are two Christian Churches, three Churches of Christ,
and two Christian Churches/Churches of Christ. They
number about 1600 out of a popuation of 16,000 people.
This entry was posted on
January 19, 2009 at 10:24 am and is filed under Stone-Campbell. Tagged: African American, Christian Church, Churches of Christ, Disciples of Christ, Division,
Fellowship,
Institutional, Instrumental Music, Kentucky,
Noninstitutional, Stone-Campbell, Winchester.
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