Psalm 34
COME, I WILL TEACH YOU THE FEAR OF THE LORD
As with Psalm 33, instruction dominates in Psalm 34. Psalm 33 has twenty-two lines but no acrostic sequence. Psalm 34, an acrostic, by adding a peh line at the end and collapsing the śı̂n and the šı̂n (two lines which correspond to Hebrew letters representing two different “s” sounds), results in twenty-two poetic lines and an added title. As with Psalm 25, the vav line is missing. The initial letters of the first, central, and concluding lines spell the word ʾlp, “teach” (vv. 1, 11, 22; cf. Psalm 25). The lengthy superscription, “Of David, when he feigned madness before Abimelech, so that he drove him out, and he went away,” situates it in the context of 1 Sam 21:10–15. The king in Samuel is Achish, not Abimelech.
The psalm has two parts: praise and thanksgiving (vv. 1–11), followed by a wisdom reflection (vv. 12–22). At first the sage instructs the community. Repeatedly the assembly is invited to listen to God who has aided and inspired the psalmist (vv. 5, 8–9, 11). Four references to the fear of God (vv. 7, 9 [twice], 11) plus the two verbs drš (“seek,” vv. 4, 10) and nbṭ (“contemplate, look,” v. 5) result in a total of seven references to a personal search for God. The typical wisdom address “Come, O children, listen” (v. 11; cf. Prov 4:1; 5:7, etc.) anticipates the second part which contains warnings and maxims about the good being favored over the bad. The sage extols correct behavior and exhorts the poor and oppressed to behave. The alternative, to trust in what is not God, particularly through evil means, is to invite failure. The poet pledges to “bless the LORD at all times”; he or she insists on completeness (seven times kōl, “all” or “every,” vv. 1, 4, 6, 10 [“no good thing”], 17, 19, 22 [“none”]).
There is evidence of a plot, which pivots on the initial lamed, the Hebrew letter “l” (v. 11), in the middle of the poem, “Come, O children, listen to me.” The sage teaches “the fear of the LORD,” which is the beginning, the crown, and the culmination of wisdom (see Sir 1:11–20). “Come” and “listen” are the sixth and seventh plural imperatives in the first part (cf. vv. 3, 5, 8 [twice], 9, 11 [twice]).24 The imperatives in the [Ps, p. 85] second half (vv. 13 and 14) are singular. The address “children,” wisdom’s invitation to her disciples, is rare and appears only here in the plural; in Proverbs the address is usually singular (“my child,” cf. Prov 1:8, 10; 2:1 and often). The question “Which of you desires life, and covets many days to enjoy good?” (v. 12) invites a personal response from what began as a general invitation. Given its central position, fear of the LORD is the safeguard and source of blessing for those who “do good.” The consequences of this stance commit one to keeping the commandments. This implies the correct use of speech and action and the pursuit of peace (vv. 13–14). Appeal to God, modeled on personal testimony, is recommended repeatedly (vv. 4–10, 15, 17–18). The reward is a satisfying life. The style, topic, and promise of Psalm 34 are all characteristic of Proverbs.
The central invitation is followed by instruction (vv. 12–14) and the relation between fear of God, prayer, and deliverance (vv. 15–22). The sage expands the message, gives examples, and reassures the afflicted that God sides with the just, the innocent. Appearances can be deceiving, for “Many are the afflictions of the righteous” (v. 19), even to the threat of bodily injury (v. 20), but in the end God will redeem the loyal servants (v. 22), which constitutes true life and goodness (v. 12). The declaration that not one bone of the righteous will be broken alludes, intentionally or by coincidence, to the prescriptions about the paschal lamb in Exod 12:46. The righteous will be kept whole. Broken bones in Isa 38:13 and Lam 3:4 is a sign of distress under God’s wrath. Even though the righteous may suffer physically or morally, God is close to them to help (vv. 4, 6, 17, 19). The poet is a proof of the general statement (v. 17),
When the righteous cry for help, the LORD hears,
and rescues them from all their troubles.
The sage bolsters the confidence of the innocent sufferer, the “humble” (ʿănawı̂m) or “poor” (ʿānı̂) (cf. vv. 2, 6), “the righteous” (vv. 15, 17, 19, 21), “those who take refuge in him” (vv. 8, 22).
The military image is appropriate for the afflicted wisdom devotee (v. 7). Human aggression will be foiled by divine protection (the “angel of the LORD”). God’s goodness is projected as an experience like the sensation of taste. “Taste” and “hunger” embrace eating and famine (vv. 8–10). Those “who take refuge in” God, “who fear him,” “who seek the LORD” are invited to taste; they will not want. The correspondence of the two hemistichs of v. 10 implies that those who do not cultivate a relation with God are like animals who “suffer want and hunger” while “those who seek the LORD lack no good thing.” Elsewhere it is [Ps, p. 86] said that the law is delicious (Ps 19:10). One cultivates good taste by taking refuge in, lovingly fearing, and seeking the LORD. Just as a person may receive a vision or a locution, one may experience God through other senses, touch and taste. Again, two senses, taste and sight, describe the experience and appreciation of God which is open to everybody (the invitation is formulated in the plural). God’s eyes and ears (v. 15), which watch and listen for the just, is an icon of God’s interest and involvement with the devout. On the contrary, God will confront evildoers and “cut off the remembrance of them from the earth” (v. 16; cf. Pss 37:9, 22, 28, 38).
The opposition is evident (vv. 15–16a):
the eyes of the LORD on the righteous
his ears open to their cry
the face of the LORD against evildoers
The result is that the fame, name, or memory of the wicked will be cut off (v. 16b). The downfall of the wicked and God’s care of the good is reinforced by the conclusions in vv. 20–22, death to the wicked and rescue to the righteous. God acts for the benefit of the good; he does not forestall the death of the wicked.
The poet teaches “Many are the afflictions of the righteous” (v. 19) and tells how the afflicted paradoxically experience God’s closeness. Appearances deceive, because even as a person suffers physically or spiritually God is near (vv. 17–20). This reassurance is framed by the declaration that the memory of the wicked will be erased and the aggressor condemned (vv. 16, 21), which amounts to a concise expression of the boomerang effect of evil. Those who fear God are not exempt from troubles. The ethical life must be lived in communion with God, who is close to the brokenhearted and crushed of spirit, those who know that they cannot help themselves and only God can save (v. 18).
Author: Konrad Schaefer, O.S.B.
