Open Air Theology

Sustain me so that I may be safe, that I may have regard for Your statutes continually.  Psalm 119:117  NASB

May be safe – If you read the Hebrew text, you’d recognize this verb immediately, not as “may be safe” but rather as “be saved.”  It is the verb yāšaʿ from which we derive the name Yeshua.  But “salvation” is a rather nebulous theological term, loaded with doctrinal nuances these days.  Perhaps we would have a better understanding if we remembered that Hebrew is a language of the land, a tactile, earthy, pragmatic language with its roots in the soil.  Now consider the verb:

yāšaʿ and its derivatives are used 353 times. The root meaning in Arabic is “make wide” or “make sufficient”; this root is in contrast to ṣārar “narrow,” which means “be restricted” or “cause distress.” That which is wide connotes freedom from distress and the ability to pursue one’s own objectives. To move from distress to safety requires deliverance. Generally the deliverance must come from somewhere outside the party oppressed. In the ot the kinds of distress, both national and individual, include enemies, natural catastrophes, such as plague or famine, and sickness. The one who brings deliverance is known as the “savior.” The word may be used, however, in everyday life free of theological overtones; e.g., at a well Moses saved the daughters of Reuel from being driven off by the shepherds (Ex 2:17). But generally in the ot the word has strong religious meaning, for it was Yahweh who wrought the deliverance. Thus he is known as the “God of our salvation” (Ps 68:19f. [H 20f.]). Although salvation could come through a human agent, it was only because God empowered the agent. In the nt the idea of salvation primarily means forgiveness of sin, deliverance from its power and defeat of Satan. Although the ot begins to point in this direction, the majority of references to salvation speak of Yahweh granting deliverance from real enemies and out of real catastrophes.^[1]

Did you notice Hartley’s comment about the Greek equivalent of yāšaʿ in the New Testament? Regrettably, almost all of our typical Western ideas about salvation come from this source, bypassing the normal usage among the Hebrew tribes.  So, if we’re going to understand the psalmist, we’ll have to carefully strip ourselves of this New Testament overlay.  Perhaps we should start by contrasting the poet’s plea with his declaration of walking in ṣalmāwet (Psalm 23:4), the place of ultimate restriction.  You can think of it as the tomb.  When God prepares a banquet in the presence of enemies, he empowers us to walk out of the thick darkness, a metaphor for Death.  We are “saved” by entering open space.  When the psalmist asks God to “sustain” him, he’s thinking of these open places where he is free to choose the life he wishes, a life of unfettered obedience.  We know this because he provides the reason for his request.  “ . . . that I may be regard for . . .” uses the verb šāʿâ, not just to look upon as if I were reading a printed page but rather to “look at with approval” or “to look at with expectation.”  šāʿâ is never casual observation.  It’s intense.  It demands response.  Open air theology isn’t wandering around however you may please.  It’s freedom to obey.  When you think deeply about it, ṣalmāwet is the real restriction.  It comes without choice.

Topical Index: ṣalmāwet, deep darkness, death, Psalm 22:4, yāšaʿ, save, safe, šāʿâ, Psalm 119:117

^[1] Hartley, J. E. (1999). 929 יָשַׁע. In R. L. Harris, G. L. Archer Jr., & B. K. Waltke (Eds.), Theological Wordbook of the Old Testament (electronic ed., pp. 414–415). Moody Press.