Donald Sheehan was a poet, translator and professor working in the Northeast. He came to the Orthodox Church and had some profound thoughts on the Psalms, and did a modern language translation of the LXX version, which is very good. An essay on what each of the "commandment" words in this psalm means is part of the collection "The Grace of Incorruption", and he ended up writing a whole book on the Psalms, "The Shield of Psalmic Prayer". I haven't read the last one yet, but it's waiting for me on my stack... I can recommend them all. I think they would speak to you, Richard.
In EO, Psalm 119 (LXX 118) is featured both on Holy Saturday in the Matins service (which is prayed on Holy Friday night), and in the funeral service, because of the way the word "life" is used constantly throughout, calling our focus to the Resurrection. Of course, the Resurrection life is meant to be lived now insofar as we can. The overwhelming sense of the "commandment" words as they are interpreted in EO is less "rule" and more "instruction". If we live as God instructs us (primarily as obedience to Christ's commands), we will not only see the Resurrection at our death/the Lord's return to fully reign, but we also will be helped to live the Resurrection kind of life already.
May I offer a three other (structural) observations:
The alphabetical arrangement thematically moves from youth to old age.
The alphabet also can be seen as the entire creation. There is not a place where God isn't known by Wisdom (which I think is the direction of the synonyms for Law).
And finally, each stanza tends to follow the broader Hebrew poetic: acclimation, development, a reference to enemies, and an affirming conclusion.
Not too cringy. We are to be disciples after all, which presumes discipline (good order, regularity). Are we are reminded again and again that God is gracious and merciful, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love.
But I think you intended to write authoritative, instead of authoritarian, in this sentence: 'To be sure, this might be a cringy metaphor, but what we find in Israel's experience with God is an authoritarian parenting style.'
Donald Sheehan was a poet, translator and professor working in the Northeast. He came to the Orthodox Church and had some profound thoughts on the Psalms, and did a modern language translation of the LXX version, which is very good. An essay on what each of the "commandment" words in this psalm means is part of the collection "The Grace of Incorruption", and he ended up writing a whole book on the Psalms, "The Shield of Psalmic Prayer". I haven't read the last one yet, but it's waiting for me on my stack... I can recommend them all. I think they would speak to you, Richard.
In EO, Psalm 119 (LXX 118) is featured both on Holy Saturday in the Matins service (which is prayed on Holy Friday night), and in the funeral service, because of the way the word "life" is used constantly throughout, calling our focus to the Resurrection. Of course, the Resurrection life is meant to be lived now insofar as we can. The overwhelming sense of the "commandment" words as they are interpreted in EO is less "rule" and more "instruction". If we live as God instructs us (primarily as obedience to Christ's commands), we will not only see the Resurrection at our death/the Lord's return to fully reign, but we also will be helped to live the Resurrection kind of life already.
Dana
May I offer a three other (structural) observations:
The alphabetical arrangement thematically moves from youth to old age.
The alphabet also can be seen as the entire creation. There is not a place where God isn't known by Wisdom (which I think is the direction of the synonyms for Law).
And finally, each stanza tends to follow the broader Hebrew poetic: acclimation, development, a reference to enemies, and an affirming conclusion.
Not too cringy. We are to be disciples after all, which presumes discipline (good order, regularity). Are we are reminded again and again that God is gracious and merciful, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love.
But I think you intended to write authoritative, instead of authoritarian, in this sentence: 'To be sure, this might be a cringy metaphor, but what we find in Israel's experience with God is an authoritarian parenting style.'
Yes, that was a typo. Corrected now!
Psalm 119 is a wonderful psalm and Richard s brief exposition is informative and enlightening