1 A Song of the Ascents. Often they distressed me from my youth, Pray, let Israel say:
and as they afflict it, so it multiplieth, and so it breaketh forth, and they are vexed because of the sons of Israel; and the Egyptians cause the sons of Israel to serve with rigour, and make their lives bitter in hard service, in clay, and in brick, and in every `kind' of service in the field; all their service in which they have served `is' with rigour.
And adversaries of Judah and Benjamin hear that the sons of the captivity are building a temple to Jehovah, God of Israel, and they draw nigh unto Zerubbabel, and unto heads of the fathers, and say to them, `Let us build with you; for, like you, we seek to your God, and we are not sacrificing since the days of Esar-Haddon king of Asshur, who brought us up hither.' And Zerubbabel saith to them, also Jeshua, and the rest of the heads of the fathers of Israel, `Not for you, and for us, to build a house to our God; but we ourselves together do build to Jehovah God of Israel, as the king Cyrus, king of Persia, commanded us.' And it cometh to pass, the people of the land are making the hands of the people of Judah feeble, and troubling them in building, and are hiring against them counsellors to make void their counsel all the days of Cyrus king of Persia, even till the reign of Darius king of Persia. And in the reign of Ahasuerus, in the commencement of his reign, they have written an accusation against the inhabitants of Judah and Jerusalem; and in the days of Artaxerxes have Bishlam, Mithredath, Tabeel, and the rest of his companions written unto Artaxerxes king of Persia, and the writing of the letter is written in Aramaean, and interpreted in Aramaean. Rehum counsellor, and Shimshai scribe have written a letter concerning Jerusalem to Artaxerxes the king, thus: Then Rehum counsellor, and Shimshai scribe, and the rest of their companions, Dinaites, and Apharsathchites, Tarpelites, Apharsites, Archevites, Babylonians, Susanchites, (who are Elamites), and the rest of the nations that the great and honourable Asnapper removed and set in the city of Samaria, and the rest beyond the river, and at such a time: This `is' a copy of a letter that they have sent unto him, unto Artaxerxes the king: `Thy servants, men beyond the river, and at such a time; Be it known to the king, that the Jews who have come up from thee unto us, have come in to Jerusalem, the rebellious and base city they are building, and the walls they have finished, and the foundations they join. `Now, be it known to the king, that if this city be builded, and the walls finished, toll, tribute, and custom they do not give; and at length `to' the kings it doth cause loss. Now, because that the salt of the palace `is' our salt, and the nakedness of the king we have no patience to see, therefore we have sent and made known to the king; so that he doth seek in the book of the records of thy fathers, and thou dost find in the book of the records, and dost know, that this city `is' a rebellious city, and causing loss `to' kings and provinces, and makers of sedition `are' in its midst from the days of old, therefore hath this city been wasted. We are making known to the king that, if this city be builded and the walls finished, by this means a portion beyond the river thou hast none.' An answer hath the king sent unto Rehum counsellor, and Shimshai scribe, and the rest of their companions who are dwelling in Samaria, and the rest beyond the river, `Peace, and at such a time: The letter that ye sent unto us, explained, hath been read before me, and by me a decree hath been made, and they sought, and have found that this city from the days of old against kings is lifting up itself, and rebellion and sedition is made in it, and mighty kings have been over Jerusalem, even rulers over all beyond the river, and toll, tribute, and custom is given to them. `Now, make ye a decree to cause these men to cease, and this city is not builded, till by me a decree is made. And beware ye of negligence in doing this; why doth the hurt become great to the loss of the kings?' Then from the time that a copy of the letter of king Artaxerxes is read before Rehum, and Shimshai the scribe, and their companions, they have gone in haste to Jerusalem, unto the Jews, and caused them to cease by force and strength;
and they crush and oppress the sons of Israel in that year -- eighteen years all the sons of Israel `who' are beyond the Jordan, in the land of the Amorite, which `is' in Gilead. And the Bene-Ammon pass over the Jordan to fight also against Judah, and against Benjamin, and against the house of Ephraim, and Israel hath great distress. And the sons of Israel cry unto Jehovah, saying, `We have sinned against Thee, even because we have forsaken our God, and serve the Baalim.' And Jehovah saith unto the sons of Israel, ``Have I' not `saved you' from the Egyptians, and from the Amorite, from the Bene-Ammon, and from the Philistines? And the Zidonians, and Amalek, and Maon have oppressed you, and ye cry unto Me, and I save you out of their hand;
`Ye do not add to give straw to the people for the making of the bricks, as heretofore -- they go and have gathered straw for themselves; and the proper quantity of the bricks which they are making heretofore ye do put on them, ye do not diminish from it, for they are remiss, therefore they are crying, saying, Let us go, let us sacrifice to our God; let the service be heavy on the men, and let them work at it, and not be dazzled by lying words.' And the exactors of the people, and its authorities, go out, and speak unto the people, saying, `Thus said Pharaoh, I do not give you straw, ye -- go ye, take for yourselves straw where ye find `it', for there is nothing of your service diminished.' And the people is scattered over all the land of Egypt, to gather stubble for straw, and the exactors are making haste, saying, `Complete your works, the matter of a day in its day, as when there is straw.' And the authorities of the sons of Israel, whom the exactors of Pharaoh have placed over them, are beaten, saying, `Wherefore have ye not completed your portion in making brick as heretofore, both yesterday and to-day?' And the authorities of the sons of Israel come in and cry unto Pharaoh, saying, `Why dost thou thus to thy servants? Straw is not given to thy servants, and they are saying to us, Make bricks, and lo, thy servants are smitten -- and thy people hath sinned.' And he saith, `Remiss -- ye are remiss, therefore ye are saying, Let us go, let us sacrifice to Jehovah; and now, go, serve; and straw is not given to you, and the measure of bricks ye do give.' And the authorities of the sons of Israel see them in affliction, saying, `Ye do not diminish from your bricks; the matter of a day in its day.'
Worthy.Bible » Commentaries » Keil & Delitzsch Commentary » Commentary on Psalms 129
Commentary on Psalms 129 Keil & Delitzsch Commentary
The End of the Oppressors of Zion
Just as Psalms 124:1-8 with the words “let Israel say” was followed by Psalms 125:1-5 with “peace be upon Israel,” so Psalms 128:1-6 with “peace be upon Israel” is followed by Psalms 129:1-8 with “let Israel say.” This Psalms 129:1-8 has not only the call “let Israel say,” but also the situation of a deliverance that has been experienced (cf. Psalms 129:4 with Psalms 124:6.), from which point it looks gratefully back and confidently forward into the future, and an Aramaic tinge that is noticeable here and there by the side of all other classical character of form, in common with Psalms 124:1-8.
Israel is gratefully to confess that, however much and sorely it was oppressed, it still has not succumbed. רבּת , together with רבּה , has occurred already in Psalms 65:10; Psalms 62:3, and it becomes usual in the post-exilic language, Psalms 120:6; Psalms 123:4, 2 Chronicles 30:18; Syriac rebath . The expression “from my youth” glances back to the time of the Egyptian bondage; for the time of the sojourn in Egypt was the time of Israel's youth (Hosea 2:17, Hosea 11:1, Jeremiah 2:2; Ezekiel 23:3). The protasis Psalms 129:1 is repeated in an interlinked, chain-like conjunction in order to complete the thought; for Psalms 129:2 is the turning-point, where גּם , having reference to the whole negative clause, signifies “also” in the sense of “nevertheless,” ὅμως (synon. בּכל־בּכל ), as in Ezekiel 16:28; Ecclesiastes 6:7, cf. above, Psalms 119:24 : although they oppressed me much and sore, yet have they not overpowered me (the construction is like Numbers 13:30, and frequently).
Elsewhere it is said that the enemies have driven over Israel (Psalms 66:12), or have gone over its back (Isaiah 51:23); here the customary figurative language חרשׁ און in Job 4:8 (cf. Hosea 10:13) is extended to another figure of hostile dealing: without compassion and without consideration they ill-treated the stretched-forth back of the people who were held in subjection, as though it were arable land, and, without restraining their ferocity and setting a limit to their spoiling of the enslaved people and country, they drew their furrow-strip ( מעניתם , according to the Kerî מענותם ) long. But מענה does not signify (as Keil on 1 Samuel 14:14 is of opinion, although explaining the passage more correctly than Thenius) the furrow (= תּלם , גּדוּד ), but, like Arab. ma‛nât , a strip of arable land which the ploughman takes in hand at one time, at both ends of which consequently the ploughing team ( צמד ) always comes to a stand, turns round, and ploughs a new furrow; from ענה , to bend, turn (vid., Wetzstein's Excursus II p. 861). It is therefore: they drew their furrow-turning long (dative of the object instead of the accusative with Hiph ., as e.g., in Isaiah 29:2, cf. with Piel in Psalms 34:4; Psalms 116:16, and Kal Psalms 69:6, after the Aramaic style, although it is not unhebraic). Righteous is Jahve - this is an universal truth, which has been verified in the present circumstances; - He hath cut asunder the cords of the wicked ( עבות as in Psalms 2:3; here, however, it is suggested by the metaphor in Psalms 129:3, cf. Job 39:10; lxx αὐχένας , i.e., ענוק ), with which they held Israel bound. From that which has just been experienced Israel derives the hope that all Zion's haters (a newly coined name for the enemies of the religion of Israel) will be obliged to retreat with shame and confusion.
The poet illustrates the fate that overtakes them by means of a picture borrowed from Isaiah and worked up (Psalms 37:27): they become like “grass of the housetops,” etc. שׁ is a relative to יבשׁ ( quod exarescit ), and קדמת , priusquam , is Hebraized after מן־קדמת דּנה in Daniel 6:11, or מקּדמת דּנה in Ezra 5:11. שׁלף elsewhere has the signification “to draw forth” of a sword, shoe, or arrow, which is followed by the lxx, Theodotion, and the Quinta: πρὸ τοῦ ἐκσπασθῆναι , before it is plucked. But side by side with the ἐκσπασθῆναι of the lxx we also find the reading exanthee'sai; and in this sense Jerome renders ( statim ut ) viruerit , Symmachus ἐκκαυλῆσαι (to shoot into a stalk), Aquila ἀνέθαλεν , the Sexta ἐκστερεῶσαι (to attain to full solidity). The Targum paraphrases שׁלף in both senses: to shoot up and to pluck off. The former signification, after which Venema interprets: antequam se evaginet vel evaginetur , i.e., antequam e vaginulis suis se evolvat et succrescat , is also advocated by Parchon, Kimchi, and Aben-Ezra. In the same sense von Ortenberg conjectures שׁחלף . Since the grass of the house-tops or roofs, if one wishes to pull it up, can be pulled up just as well when it is withered as when it is green, and since it is the most natural thing to take חציר as the subject to שׁלף , we decide in favour of the intransitive signification, “to put itself forth, to develope, shoot forth into ear.” The roof-grass withers before it has put forth ears of blossoms, just because it has no deep root, and therefore cannot stand against the heat of the sun.
(Note: So, too, Geiger in the Deutsche Morgenländische Zeitschrift , xiv. 278f., according to whom Arab. slf ( šlf ) occurs in Saadia and Abu-Said in the signification “to be in the first maturity, to blossom,” - a sense שׁלף may also have here; cf. the Talmudic שׁלופפי used of unripe dates that are still in blossom.)
The poet pursues the figure of the grass of the house-tops still further. The encompassing lap or bosom ( κόλπος ) is called elsewhere חצן (Isaiah 49:22; Nehemiah 5:13); here it is חצן , like the Arabic ḥiḍn (diminutive ḥoḍein ), of the same root with מחוז , a creek, in Psalms 107:30. The enemies of Israel are as grass upon the house-tops, which is not garnered in; their life closes with sure destruction, the germ of which they (without any need for any rooting out) carry within themselves. The observation of Knapp, that any Western poet would have left off with Psalms 129:6, is based upon the error that Psalms 129:7-8 are an idle embellishment. The greeting addressed to the reapers in Psalms 129:8 is taken from life; it is not denied even to heathen reapers. Similarly Boaz (Ruth 2:4) greets them with “Jahve be with you,” and receivers the counter-salutation, “Jahve bless thee.” Here it is the passers-by who call out to those who are harvesting: The blessing ( בּרכּת ) of Jahve happen to you ( אליכם ,
(Note: Here and there עליכם is found as an error of the copyist. The Hebrew Psalter , Basel 1547, 12mo, notes it as a various reading.)
as in the Aaronitish blessing), and (since “we bless you in the name of Jahve” would be a purposeless excess of politeness in the mouth of the same speakers) receive in their turn the counter-salutation: We bless you in the name of Jahve . As a contrast it follows that there is before the righteous a garnering in of that which they have sown amidst the exchange of joyful benedictory greetings.