Seventeenth Sunday after Pentecost September 30, 2001 Year C
Psalm 146:1-10
Title: “Praise is recognition of what really is, acknowledgment not added knowledge.”
This is the first of five hymns of praise which conclude the Psalter, called “Hallel Psalms, “Hallel” is Hebrew for “praise.” and part, along with Psalm 145, of the daily morning prayer in the synagogue, even today. Although it is indebted to earlier psalms and prayer-traditions verse two and Psalm 104:33; v. 3 and Psalm 118:9; v. 7 and Psalm 103:6; and v. 8b and Psalm 145:14, this psalm is postexilic in composition. The beatitude in verse five, and the comparison of mortal humans with the Immortal God reflect a source friendly to the outlook and expressions of Wisdom Literature.
In verse one, Alleluia: The word is almost a transliteration of the Hebrew, hallelu-yah, which simply means “Praise Yah(weh).”
“To praise” is to recognize a quality or qualities in another, usually not so obvious until they are stated out loud. It is barely distinguishable from “thanks,” for the recognition or acknowledgement is intended to evoke gratitude on the part of the speaker or hearer or both. While this word is used of humans, especially in exalting beauty and truth, it is most frequently reserved for God. In the psalms it is quite often put in the imperative mood, signifying that praising God is a necessity. It is tantamount to an affirmation of life itself. Indeed, human existence and praise of God are so closely related that the very purpose of life is said to affirm the God-given gift constantly.
In verse two, Praise the Lord, my soul: The psalmist exhorts himself, talks himself into praising God for it is fitting. The beginning of formal prayer is a decision to pray. Here, it is a decision to praise God throughout life. Indeed, the truly pious Jew considered the praise of God, the recognition of his constant but hidden, loving presence, to be the very purpose of life. Even though the psalmist is addressing himself, verse ten, reveals that he speaks for as well as to the entire congregation, teaching and admonishing them by his summaries of God’s behavior. The individual Jew did not make so sharp a distinction between himself and his entire community.
In verse three, put no trust in princes: “Princes,” nedibim in Hebrew, stands for human power without God. “Princes” would be a term for “men of excellence,” but not necessarily moral excellence.
In mere mortals: Lit, “in a son of Adam, a generic term for mortal man.” Human beings, on their own power, no matter how “excellent,” well positioned, well endowed, etc, can deliver nothing without or outside of the power of God. Human beings are subject to sudden collapse and death. God is not.
In verse four, they return to the earth: At death mortals return to the stuff of which they are made, stuff made by God in the first place. Anything they did in between was only permitted by, if not approved by, God. There is a play on words here. The word for dust in Hebrew is ’adamah, while ‘adam is the word for man.
In verse five, the God of Jacob: This is one of the oldest titles for God among the ancient Israelites.
In verse six, who keeps faith forever: While the psalmist recognizes God as the creator, it is God’s fidelity that is most impressive of all. Throughout the ages God remains consistent.
In verses seven to nine, the psalmist recites a list, more or less stereotyped by now, of the characteristic ways God behaves and some of the “reasons,” if, indeed, there need be reasons, for praising God . He does so artfully in a montage of contrasts: justice – oppressed; food – hungry; prisoners – free; sight – blind; raises – bowed down; loves – righteous; protects – stranger; sustains – widow and orphan. His purpose is not only to extol God, but to motivate God’s children to imitate his behavior. All those disadvantaged in any way are objects of God’s special concern.
These ways are characteristic for God but most uncharacteristic behavior for both other gods and for humans. God is consistently different from any and all creatures. Certainly princes, crowned or self-designated, do not characteristically secure justice for the oppressed, feed the hungry, free prisoners, give sight to the blind, raise up the lowly, love the righteous, and protect strangers, widows and orphans. All of this is both literally and figuratively true of God. God is especially concerned with those spurned or ignored by others because of their lack of- princely position in society.
In verse ten, the Lord shall reign forever: Even the main kingly or princely function- that of maintaining justice and good order- is done supremely better by God than by any earthling. No earthly king or prince can compare to him and, so, he deserves the praise not they. He merits the trust not they. There is no comparison between an eternal ruler and rule and a temporal one. This sentence is like a toast along the lines of “Long live God” in the musical play Godspell) or “Viva il Papa, “ an acclamation of joy, victory and good will.
Sermon
When the psalmist says in verse ten, “Your God, Zion, throughout all generations,” he is both addressing the assembled congregation of worshipers and rooting what he has praised as God’s justice in the Zionist tradition. Justice comes from the behavior and character of God and requires those in covenant with him to behave accordingly. Justice is not found in human behavior or trust in human power. Just as the idols cannot deliver because they are neither alive nor powerful, so humans cannot because they are mortal and unreliable. What would otherwise be hopeless situations- hunger, imprisonment, blindness, oppression, widowhood, orphan hood, estrangement- now, because of the covenant with God, become the very basis for hope, since God looks kindly upon those in such circumstances.
The power that the well-placed people in society, “potentates” of this world, radiate is deceptive, not real, only apparent. Trust in that is the formula for disappointment at the very least and disaster in the end. It just is not there. In contrast to that there is God, who is always there and always willing to bring his power to bear upon those in need. He may or may not literally cure the blind or free prisoners, but he will certainly spiritually do so. This freedom enables one to withstand any of the physical oppressions that so plague any human. His unlimited, absolute power as creator is used to save individuals as well.
If praising God is the real purpose of life, praise as recognition of God’s constant presence, love and care, then worshiping him comes naturally to humans. More correctly, worshiping comes naturally, not necessarily worshiping God. In fact, such is the fundamental flaw of humans: to use our God’s given capacity to worship and give it to the creature rather than to the creator. We need to be saved from this and God has done even this through Christ. So, everybody worships something- idols, money, fame, themselves or heroes. The praise of God is so important because it helps prevent us from misguided worship of “princes”- important people, beautiful people, rich people, powerful people, people we would like to be like. God would like us to be like him. Worshiping him alone and praising him or praising his power and grandeur greatness and might and beauty and truth through praising others is the key. Leave out God and we become worshipers and then slaves of gods or heroes of either our own making or imagining.
The characteristic behaviors of God, recited in verses seven to nine, and from Deutero-Isaiah, become the very characteristics of the Messiah’s behavior inaugurating and establishing the kingdom of God. To trust in this God involves having his attitudes and exhibiting his behavior. Praise, then, is not merely words but actions fueled by attitudes. Actually, the very praise of God, the remembrance and recognition of his constant presence encourages us. It is God, especially in and through Christ, who has confidence in us that we can be like him. This is not our idea but his. Instead of being like other humans, especially those to whom we falsely and foolishly attribute qualities they do not have, we can actually be like God. When put that way, would we really want it otherwise?
Neither human power nor horse power can compare with heavenly power.
Humans on their own power are both mortal and powerless; God and those with him enjoy immortality and joy.
God will right every wrong, but in his own way and on his own timetable.
Optimism: A praising person is optimistic because he or she sees past the immediate and obvious and comes into contact with the more permanent and lasting. A praising person sees qualities in others that even they do not see in themselves. A praising person is not one with tinted glasses, blocking out and denying the negatives, but one with x-ray vision, seeing underneath the surface. Such a person is optimistic, even amidst the ugliness and injustice of daily life on this planet, because that person has a vision of the really real. Instead of focusing on human deeds, his or her own or those of others, the optimistic praise focuses on the love of God, the presence of God. The praise appraises everyone and everything in the light of that one truth, God. The pessimist appraises everything and everyone in the light of his or her own light, more correctly, lack of light. The one who does the praise has no more knowledge, in the factual sense, than the condemner does. Rather, he or she acknowledges all that is there, all that is present, and does not selectively perceive only the negative. Praise is recognition of what really is, acknowledgment not added knowledge.
Human Power vs. Heavenly Power: Humans will always disappoint, even unintentionally. Humans are so limited in their powers that it is inevitable that they either will not measure up to expectations, even their own, or cannot measure up to them, because they have been over-stated. Humans love to promise and fail to deliver. Humans make promises that they cannot fulfill. They exaggerate. If a person exaggerates his or her own abilities, one can be sure that he or she is not praising anyone else for theirs. In exaggerating our capacities we exaggerate our promises and then fail to deliver on them. Worse, we read into God’s promises things he never promised. We take our own faulty promise-power and project it onto God, convince ourselves he has promised something he has not, and then have the nerve to complain either to him or about him for not keeping his, really our distortion of his, promises! Praising God, discerning his presence and activity, goes a long way in learning how he works and avoiding reading our meaning into his words. When we get his words right we realize that he does things in eternity- like setting the oppressed free and sighting the blind- which do not quite make their way to earth because they get deflected by human pride, boasting and sin. However, what God has decreed is already true in heaven and will become true on the human earth. It is just a matter of time. Amen.
