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For my weekly quiet time today, I'll blog about Psalm 20 and its interpreters.
Psalm 20 has been considered by scholars and interpreters to be a Psalm before battle. The Israelites are about to go out into battle. They hope that the name of the God of Jacob will defend them, and that, while they are in battle, God will strengthen them from his sanctuary in Zion. The Jewish commentator Rashi interprets v 2 to mean that King David is staying behind in Jerusalem during the battle, serving as a prayer warrior for Israel. (Rashi cites II Samuel 18:3 as evidence that David sometimes stayed behind during times of battle, but Rashi doesn't mention II Samuel 11, in which David doesn't go out to battle and falls into adultery while he remains in the city). That makes a degree of sense, for v 5 expresses hope that the LORD will fulfill "your" (second person masculine singular) petitions, indicating that the Psalm here is speaking to an intercessor, which could be the king. V 6 talks about the LORD hearing his anointed (the king) from heaven. V 7 says that remembering the LORD is more effective than trusting in chariots. And I wonder if v 9 is relevant, for it hopes that the king will hear when the Israelites call. Is this suggesting that the Israelites are out in the battle, calling loudly to the king in Jerusalem so that he'll intercede more intently for his people? Or is the king in v 9 God, meaning that the verse is hoping that God will hear the Israelites' prayers?
A possible problem with Rashi's view is that v 6 talks about the LORD saving his anointed---which makes sense if the king is out fighting in the battle, but not so much if he has remained behind. Or, if the king is staying behind, perhaps God saves him by protecting his city from attack, thereby allowing him to remain on the throne as ruler. In any case, prayer is important in Psalm 20.
Why do the Israelites in Psalm 20:1 refer to God as the "God of Jacob"? E.W. Bullinger and Jimmy Swaggart both say that the Psalm recalls God as Jacob's God because God blessed Jacob when Jacob had nothing and deserved nothing, and the Israelites hoped that God would demonstrate such mercy and favor to them on the battlefield. Jewish commentators (in the medieval Midrash on the Psalms and the orthodox Jewish Artscroll) have interpreted the "God of Jacob" reference in Psalm 20 in light of God's deliverance or protection of Jacob in times of trouble (Genesis 35:3)---and, indeed, Jacob had his share of troubles, like Esau wanting to kill him, Laban cheating him, etc. In Psalm 20:1, were the Israelites expressing hope that God would hear them in times of trouble and defend them on the battlefield, as God heard and protected Jacob? And then there are probably boring historical-critical interpretations that say that we shouldn't even read that much into the phrase "God of Jacob" in Psalm 20:1, for "Jacob" was just a name for the nation of Israel, plus we don't even know if the author of this Psalm was aware of the legends that made their way into the Pentateuch.
The Israelites offer to God their sacrifices, asking that God would remember them. Some (particularly conservative Christian preachers) say that these were sacrifices of atonement, contending that God's forgiveness of the Israelites through the blood of an animal needed to precede God's blessing of them in battle, since God could not bless unforgiven sinners; others, however, maintain that ancient Israelite religion simply held that God liked to receive sacrifices---either because he enjoyed eating them, or (like everyone) he appreciated receiving gifts---meaning that the sacrifices were not necessarily for atonement.
The Israelites say that they will rejoice in God's salvation and set up banners. The Intervarsity Press Bible Background Commentary talks about the use of standards for warfare (Song of Songs 6:4) and the assembly of tribes (Numbers 2:2). It also points out that the Egyptians named divisions in battle after different gods, who were represented with banners. Banners were also held high as a sign of victory. I actually appreciated the comments on the banners in v 5 by some of the interpreters whom Charles Spurgeon featured in his Treasury of David (whereas, often, I find them to be too legalistic and fire-and-brimstone-ish for my taste). Spurgeon cites Samuel Burder's Oriental Customs, which talks about a Mr. Turner's book on Tibet, where the Soobah ascend a hill every month and conciliate an invisible being by setting up a white flag, hoping to gain blessing from that invisible being. Spurgeon also refers to Joseph Roberts' Oriental Illustrations, which refers to the use of banners in religious processions and on top of temples and new homes (to mark one's caste). Roberts also says that the Indian god Siva has a banner in the celestial world. I do not know if the customs of India or Tibet are helpful for understanding the use of banners in the Bible and the ancient Near East. But my impression is that, in many cases, banners appear to be a way for people to express pride in who they are as a people, and to express pride in their god; or, perhaps, the purpose of banners was also to get the deity's attention---and that is what the author and singers of Psalm 20 desperately want, as they call on God to pay attention to sacrifice and prayer.
Even before the battle begins, v 6, 8 express confidence that God will deliver Israel, and preachers have cited these verses in encouraging their congregants and listeners to have faith before and during trials---not just to view God as faithful after the trials pass (assuming that they do pass).
V 7 says that some trust in chariots and horses, but that Israel remembers the LORD. Some have argued that v 7 indicates that this Psalm originated during the Israelites' conflict with the Syrians under King David, for II Samuel 8:4 mentions the Syrians' chariots and horses. The point would be that the Syrians are confident in their chariots and horses, but the Israelites do not need those things because God is helping them in battle; plus, as religious interpreters have noted, Deuteronomy 17:16 prohibits kings from multiplying horses, a command that Solomon violated (I Kings 10:26-29). David battles the Syrians in II Samuel 10, in which David sends ambassadors to Ammon, the Ammonites humiliate David's men, the Ammonites then get the Syrians as allies, and the Syrians invade Israel. II Samuel 10 is about a defensive war on the part of Israel, although some imperialism may have crept in at some point, for II Samuel 8 presents David setting up garrisons in Syria, making the Syrians his servants, and recovering his border at the Euphrates. (Recover. So did Syria belong to David and David was taking it back, or did David feel that Syria belonged to Israel---even if Israel did not previously possess it---on account of God's land promise?)
Interpreters have applied Psalm 20 to other settings, however. According to John Gill, Theodoret thought that the setting of Psalm 20 was Sennacherib's invasion of Jerusalem; of course, in that case, all Judah had was prayer, for she certainly wasn't fighting any battles with enemy armies, at least not on a physical level! And the Jewish commentator Abraham Ibn Ezra related Psalm 20 to the Messiah---which is not surprising, for Psalm 20:6 refers to God's anointed, or mashiach, and there was a Jewish belief that the Messiah would fight the enemies of God and of Israel, bringing deliverance to Israel from her oppressors. But I may get into that next week, when I write about Psalm 21. Stay tuned!
