The “Spiritual” Man
Make glad the soul of Your servant, for to You, O Lord, I lift up my soul. Psalm 86:4 NASB
Make glad – How do you interpret this request? If you’re encumbered by the typical Western paradigm, you might think the psalmist is asking God to gladden his inner, spiritual self. If you view man as a tripartite being (body-mind-soul), then you will interpret this verse as if it is about the invisible part of you connected to the spiritual dimension (your “soul”). But that would be the wrong point-of-view. You see, the psalmist isn’t a Platonist. He doesn’t think of man as separated into three categories. The word translated “soul” is nephesh, a word that means something like “person,” that is, the whole embodied being of who we are, completely homogenized and impossible to separate into pieces. So the psalmist is not asking God to make his spiritual self happy. He is asking God to bring rejoicing back to his life—every bit of it.
This is consistent with a previous verse. There we discovered that experiencing God’s graciousness is just as much a function of what God does as it is about what we do. If we want to feel God’s preserving love, we must pick ourselves up and become a blessing to others (from ḥesed to ḥāsîd). So here we are called to take action, to shift our thinking and our emotions from despondent discouragement to a joyful disposition about who we are and where we are. But this goal is often difficult despite its obvious appeal. How do we discover joyfulness when life seems to offer dregs? Perhaps the psalmist’s appeal provides some insight.
“To make glad, to rejoice, to be joyful” is the Hebrew verb śāmaḥ. Let’s consider the Paleo consonant structure for a moment. Shin-Mem-Chet are the letters. The picture presented might be something like “consumes chaos with fence.” Isn’t this at the heart of joyfulness, that is, knowing that there is a fence around the chaos of life? And isn’t this precisely what it means to have a God who is sovereign and benevolent? Hasn’t God, the only true God, made a covenant promise to His people that no matter what turmoil occurs in their lives, He and He alone is sovereign, faithful and filled with ḥānan (see the previous verse about graciousness)? Doesn’t this plea take us right back to the character of God? And because it does, are we not joyful? Can we not rejoice, knowing that He will oversee?
The psalmist asks God to make his life glad, full of joy, characterized by a merry heart. But his very asking is already the elaboration of the pathway to achieve this end. God has already made our hearts joyful because the tragedies we face in life are not the end of the story. God’s character is the end of the story. That we can absolutely count on. And that makes us sing.
Topical Index: gladden, joy, rejoice, śāmaḥ, chaos, Psalm 86:4
OK. I got it wrong. Sort of. The last letter is samach is chet, not tav. Don’t know what I was thinking. Sorry. Jeni emailed me the correction. Thanks. Anyway, I had to rewrite a bit and posted the correction, so if you want to read it right, you’ll need to go to the web site. Sorry.
The Toe Bone’s Connected
“In every thing give thanks…” Joseph, as we now know “migrated” from the pit to the palace. Did he?—was he able to? — give thanks “in the midst of it all?” We know “his” end from the beginning, but do we know ours? No, – only God knows. But… (don’t you love those Bible “buts?” Ahh… “but God!”
Yes, — May I? But God, being rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us.. SELAH (y’all). Pull over and put it in park! Think about the mercies of our great God and Savior!! Who has rescued us – Who has redeemed us – Who has renewed us – Who has refreshed us – Who has revived us? Oh yes! It is none other than our great God! David knew Him — do we?
Great is the LORD and greatly to be praised!! (and therefore!) ~ I will sing of the mercies (they are new every morning!) of the LORD forever!!
I got hung at one point on the word “rejoice”. “Re” means to do it again; therefore, to REjoice means to experience joy again. I was looking at the verse in Psalm 126:6 about going out weeping with seed but coming back REjoicing. My literalistic mind was having a problem; if somebody was rejoicing, then wouldn’t they had to have previously been joy-ing before (instead of weeping, of course)? (Yes, I must have been a horrible child to be around.) What exactly was joy, anyway?
Well, I prayed for enlightenment. It was a really low point in my life, and I had very little joy at the time. I was tired of sowing but never reaping: tired of sewing chaos back together over and over with no rest anywhere; much less any congratulatory party. There were pretty much no sheaves, either, that I could see. If I had no joy in the first place, there wasn’t a whole lot of chance that I was going to get to rejoice, either. How do you have joy?
I was reading this morning about the account of Christ stilling the sea. Everyone but Him was terrified; He was the only one having a good night’s sleep; safe and secure from all that chaos in His fence. What gives us courage? What exactly is the stuff that fence is made out of? Is it not joy? “The joy of the Lord is your strength (fortress).” Does it have to be my emotional joy in the bottom of the pit? Can I not rest in His joy in me when I have none of my own?
How can I rest in the “joy of the Lord”? Paul and Silas sang in the dungeon. Were they singing BECAUSE they were joyful, or were they singing so that they could access joy? I have always wondered if their singing caused the earthquake; reordered reality from chaos back to righteousness. My mama used to put us in a corner when we were furious with each other, and tell us that we could come out when we were able to smile at each other. Just the act of attempting to smile when you are in the midst of a rage attack is hilarious in and of itself. Try it! So, too, the acts of joy – (like singing!) – in the midst of disaster can produce the fruits of righteousness in the midst of chaos. Joy knits the cosmos together. When we persist in obeying the command to “sow beside all waters” does not the act of faith produce the fruit of joy? When I know I am pleasing Him, am I not strengthened to endure, resting in His joy in me, for “joy comes in the morning”. Halleluah!
This sounds very theological. But is accepted based on the fact that it is not our needs and views or wants that count but God’s. Given this the question on faith and redemption or comforting, the compassionate character of God, remains a mystery. Why do we need to believe this redeeming probability if we cannot experience the reward today and now. Knock and will be opened, Ask and will be given, Now is the time, take your cross up today etc. All reveal that faith is about today, not next week generation etc.
The request is for now.
The answer is revealed how?
It is maybe not the request or manned in which made that matters but the answer that is provided that we keep missing. I for one cannot think that the ever changing and adapting God will need to consider any request that is futuristic or even promise to deliver in years ahead…
True faith must surely focus on the now and here so the requests or prayers to God should also be answered in the now and here.
The reality is maybe in how Apostle James considered that God grants wisdom for all those that ask. And it is our wavering faith that makes us doubt. And maybe it is this that causes us to make God’s response futuristic.
Just my view. I cannot prove any claim but have experienced joy and answers only when I have surrendered all to the moment. And the clue to God’s response is observing the way the rest of nature around you acts after the request.
The answer is in what Yeshau said. Whatever we ask in His purpose God will provide. Yep changed name to purpose as that is how I understand this promise or covenant.
Seeker, please proof-read and edit. We got all tongue-tied at “manned in” and can’t figure out what word you were hoping for there. This is a great post and we want to understand all you meant to say. Shalom!
Thank you Leslee
That should read “manner in” referring to the ritual or process used as prayer from the heart; audible, silent, with or without a sacrifice, prayer at altar etc.
All these seem to be relevant to the individual’s conviction but not a prerequisite for praying. There are exceptions such as praying for rain which seems to be a communal redemption and gathering is needed before God can be approached. As for healing the prayer of a righteous person has great power…
“Consumes chaos with a fence…”
In truth, not every fence – just because it acts as a fence – has the capacity to consume chaos. Some fences might promote chaos. Consider this quote from the late Professor Richard Feynman and his reference to a culturally imposed fence of “groupthink.”
“I would rather have questions that can’t be answered than answers that can’t be questioned.”
And, in the same manner I offer that I’d rather attune to the journey not realizing my goals, than achieve them with no recall of the journey.
As I row my boat backwards into the future, focusing on outcomes is absurdly demotivating. Prediction and forecasting has more to do with the fantasy of controlling what doesn’t exist; a vain grasp at security. As opposed to trusting the sufficiency of my intangibles; like talent (individual and corporate), legacy (Sinai and forward), and unrecognized revelations.
Do I dream for a better tomorrow? I do. My temptation, though, is to turn my head to sneak a peak into the unknowable. Generally, because I’m anxious and not relaxed about me. The more unpredictable my life appears, the more I perceive threat and terror. My head turning gives me a headache. The advice is to stop gazing at the future and start asking questions about the past. There’s the fence that consumes chaos.
Rowing backwards affords me resources and resiliency for navigating everyday life. With my back to the future, I am able to face my experiences and revelations. I’m not reliving my past, I’m revaluing it. Now enabled for my best work and my best self, without compromising truth or relational integrity. It’s not particularly easy, but it’s simple and simplifying.
Very deep thoughts shared, thank you, Roderick
Roderick, I love your quote “I’m not reliving my past, I’m revaluing it”. If it is true that “the unexamined life is not worth living” (Socrates) then it follows that if one’s past has been unexamined and unexplained it is a life that has not been worthy of having been lived or, more simply, because it has been unexamined it has been unlived. But, you can relive, revive and resurrect an unlived life by reflecting upon the meaning and purpose of your life up to this point. What reasons and answers can be given for all that you have thus experienced? If you have none or if they are unsatisfying then you have not been alive (present) in your own life. If this is so, you must scrupulously examine your past in order to understand it and be reconciled to it before you can be truly alive and have any hope of being able to accurately predict a good future for yourself. As for me these are weighty matters. As you might expect (if you have read my posts these past 7 years and know of my 2 TBI’s) I have a ton of unexamined questions about my past. Today I will weigh them on a scale (which has been recently calibrated and certified by the Department of Eternal Weights and Measures)… a peck of respect, a stone of scruples, a dram of drama, an ounce of sense to see if they finally add up to a life that I can reconcile with my shattered and broken brain and forsaken expectations. I suspect only if I use Yeshua as my counter weight will my life be in balance and ” those terrible conditions that initiated (my) feelings of abandonment (will be) forever overcome”.
I seem to recall that the Hebrew mindset regarding reflection/consideration of life is one that looks back (viewing and focused on the sure mercies and actions of God); such a perspective allows us to move confidently forward. (Is it possible that is one reason Moses could only experience seeing God’s “hinder parts” as He passed by Moses in the cleft of the rock?)
Thank you for sharing your thoughts… you’ve very clearlyarticulated something that has been in my thoughts for some time.