Today’s
Scripture Reading (May 13, 2019): Psalm
17
I remember the first semester of my second year at college. My
first year I spent at a University relatively close to home. But for my second
year, I spent it at an institution that was 1500 kilometers (almost 1000 miles)
away from home. As a result, there was more of a feeling of isolation at my new
place of study, than there had been the year before. It was impossible to get
frustrated, pack up, and go home for a weekend. The Christmas break at the end
of that semester was to be spent at the home of my grandparents, another 1500
kilometers away in the opposite direction from my home. But where didn’t really
matter. I got on the bus after my last exam excited to see the faces of my
relatives who I hadn’t seen for a while; some for months and other for years. So
as I got off of the bus, I searched the crowd for faces I knew and needed to
see. And when I found them, I was excited; I felt that I was home.
David makes the same argument. With all of the things that he is
going through, he is strengthened as he faces his struggles by the thought that
one day he will awake and see the likeness of God. Being able to see God will
be enough to make all of the struggles fade into the background.
There is a little disagreement over the translation and interpretation
of the last clause. On its face, this interpretation seems to simply restate
the first clause, which is entirely appropriate in Hebrew poetry. David says “I
will be vindicated and [therefore] I will see your face,” or I know that in the
end I will be found worthy of seeing God. And in the second statement, he says
that seeing God will be enough – “I will be satisfied with seeing your
likeness.” But not everyone agrees that that is the meaning of the second
statement. Some argue that David, while not having a clear idea of what heaven
might be like, seems to understand that when he awakes in the presence of God,
that he will be remade into the likeness of God. If that is true, then maybe a
better translation of the second clause would be “when I awake, I will be satisfied, being transformed into
your likeness.” Such an understanding of the second phrase would echo the
understanding of the apostle Paul; “For those God foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to
the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brothers and
sisters” (Romans 8:29).
But the reality is that this might
also be a case of reading meaning into the Tanakh or Hebrew Bible that comes
from the New Testament and belongs just there. Hebrew poetry restates concepts,
so it is probably best to accept the NIV translation at face value. God, I know
that I will see your face, I will awake in your presence and be greeted by your
likeness. And that will be more than enough for me.
Tomorrow’s
Scripture Reading: Psalm 18
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