Shake, Rattle, and Roll

Tremble, and do not sin; meditate in your heart upon your bed, and be still. Selah  Psalm 4:4 NASB

Tremble – Do you suppose that Paul had this verse in mind when he wrote, “ Be angry, and yet do not sin; do not let the sun go down on your anger,” (Ephesians 4:26).  Commentators seem to think so.  Perhaps that’s why the editors of the NASB inserted a footnote to this verse in Psalms, reading “i.e., with anger or fear,” and followed by the suggestion that the connecting particle could be read as “but” instead of “and.”  In other words, we have an English translation of this verse in Psalms that reflects the Pauline use in his letter.  Since Paul thought the verse was about anger but not revenge, so the translators followed suit.  Rabbinic interpretation wins.

However, the Hebrew is a little more flexible.  The verb is rāgaz. “Most usages of rāgaz express agitation growing out of some deeply rooted emotion. From the range of usages it is clear that the term refers to the agitation itself, and the underlying emotion is to be recognized only from context.”^[1]  In this regard, we should recognize that Paul’s use might be translated differently:

[The nt (Eph 4:26) which is taken from the LXX is variously interpreted also. Perhaps best is Meyer’s suggestion that the negative force applies to the second imperative “In being angry do not sin,” i.e., do not sin by anger. Or NIV: “In your anger do not sin.” R.l.h.]^[2]

Returning to the Psalms, are we to read this as “Shake in anger but do not sin,” or “Be fearful and do not sin”?  The poet’s second phrase seems contradictory if we read this as rage.  How can you shake in anger, meditate and be still at the same time?  It makes more sense to read the verse as an expression of fear rather than anger.  In this context, it seems likely that the poet is commanding the reader to experience the deepest sense of awe before the Lord, a sense that exhorts one not to sin—and contemporaneously meditate on this experience.  Paul’s rabbinic Greek takes the poet’s words in another direction, legitimately in his own context but unlikely to be the poet’s thinking.

Now consider the actual imperative.  Have you ever felt the presence of God so strongly that it caused you to shake?  We read about these experiences in the Bible.  Men falling on their faces, prophets crying out in doom, disciples shocked into silence—these are the sorts of experiences that change lives and can never be forgotten.  Has anything like that happened to you?  Apparently the poet believe that it should.  His opening verb is a command: “Tremble at the awesomeness of God!”  Let this be the touchstone that causes you to reject all sin.  His command makes me wonder if such an experience isn’t a prerequisite to subduing the yetzer ha’ra.

Topical Index: tremble, anger, awe, Ephesians 4:26, rāgaz, Psalm 4:4

^[1] Bowling, A. (1999). 2112 רָגַז. In R. L. Harris, G. L. Archer Jr., & B. K. Waltke (Eds.), Theological Wordbook of the Old Testament(electronic ed., p. 831). Moody Press.

^[2] Ibid.