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1 In you, Yahweh, have I taken refuge; *
let me never be ashamed.
2 In your righteousness, deliver me and set me free; *
incline your ear to me and save me.
3 Be my strong rock, a castle to keep me safe; *
you are my crag and my stronghold.
4 Deliver me, elohay, from the hand of the wicked, *
from the clutches of the evildoer and the oppressor.
5 For you are my hope, adonay Yahweh, *
my confidence since I was young.
6 I have been sustained by you ever since I was born;
from my mother's womb you have been my strength; *
my praise shall be always of you.
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This is the Psalm selection that will be read aloud in unison or sung by a cantor on the fourth Sunday after the Epiphany, Year C, according to the lectionary for the Episcopal Church. It will follow a reading from Jeremiah, where as a boy he was told, “Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, and before you were born I consecrated you; I appointed you a prophet to the people.” This pair will be read before the selection from Paul’s first letter to the Corinthians, where he wrote: “If I speak in the tongues of mortals and of angels, but do not have love, I am a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal.” All will accompany the Gospel reading from Luke, where Jesus told the angry Jews of Nazareth, “Doubtless you will quote to me this proverb, 'Doctor, cure yourself!' And you will say, 'Do here also in your hometown the things that we have heard you did at Capernaum.”’
In the above six verses, you will note how I have restored the proper name “Yahweh” (in bold type), after the NRSV (et al) had translated these as “Lord.” This is wrong, as verse five states in the Hebrew text, “adonay Yahweh,” with the NRSV (et al) translating that as “O Lord God.” Because “adonay” is the plural word that translates into English as “lords” (not capitalized) and because the NRSV has shown it reads “Yahweh” and sees “Lord,” they have now pulled an alternate translation for “Yahweh” out of their unholy ass and made it “God,” so as not to redundantly translate “Lord Lord” (when a child reading Hebrew would know “adonay” is the plural of “adon” and correct anyone that stupid by saying, “lords Lord.” Because “adonay” is a human quality from being Spiritually married to Yahweh, the same association should be read into “elohim,” so I have restored the Hebrew word written by David in verse four: elohay.”
Verse one is shown beginning by David singing, “In you, Yahweh, have I taken refuge; let me never be ashamed.” The preposition used – “in” – needs to be understood as direction, rather than some symbolic way of a financial wizard having invested valuable dollars into a retirement fund, to be able to retire rich (at age forty?). The point David must be seen as making is David’s soul (which 1 Samuel says Yahweh poured out His Spirit upon David, for an eternal Anointment [a Christ-Messiah]) be known as married to Yahweh; so, David’s soul is in Yahweh, possessed divinely by His Spirit. The two – David’s soul and Yahweh – are one, inseparable. Just as one would crawl into a cave or cabin in the woods for “refuge,” the soul of David willingly and lovingly is thankful for Yahweh’s protection of his soul.
To then add, “let me never be ashamed” can be misleading. The word for “refuge” [“chasah”] implies both “hope” and “trust.” This is then leading one to see that David being “in Yahweh” led his soul to known Yahweh personally, thus all beliefs were born of deep faith. From that perspective, David was not making a suggestion or recommendation to Yahweh that begged, “let me never be ashamed,” as that comes off like an investor telling some stock purchase program, “I better make a nice profit, or I will leave you in a heartbeat!” In reality, David wrote words that literally translate to say, “never let me never be put to shame let me never.” That becomes an affirmation of faith, where the first person masculine singular [“me”] is David saying to Yahweh, “I truth my self-will will never allow me to shame myself, thereby same the faith I swear to You.” Yahweh will never allow a soul married to His Spirit to do anything shameful.
In verse two, the first segment that sings, “In your righteousness, deliver me and set me free,” the directional preposition “in” returns. This means David was not seeing Yahweh – an entity that is All-Encompassing Spirit – has no need to be “righteous.” Yahweh IS. When a soul is “in Yahweh,” then that soul becomes led by Yahweh to a state of its own being, which is where “righteousness” can only be expressed – in the world. The second person masculine singular use of “your” means David’s soul was possessed by Yahweh, fully in the control of Yahweh, so David’s soul was “His,” means the relationship to Yahweh made the possessive say, “I am yours,” thus I act with “righteousness.”
In the final of words in verse two’s first segment, the Hebrew word “palat” [transliterated as “ū·ṯə·p̄al·lə·ṭê·nî”] means “to escape,” such that “set me free” is a paraphrase that implies David needs freedom from captivity. This must be read as David stating the prison that all souls are placed, in captivity where judgment always awaits at death, is the flesh. By David’s soul being “in Yahweh,” with his body of flesh being led to a state of being that is “righteousness,” then David know that state of being is what will release his soul from returning to the earthly realm (in another prison body of flesh). Thus, the “escape” is from reincarnation (or worse), so David’s soul can spend eternity with Yahweh – “in” a forever marriage.
David is then shown to sing, “incline your ear to me and save me.” In this the second person masculine singular of “your” means the same as before. David was not asking Yahweh to lean His “ear” over so He can hear what David has to say. David is saying he is listening to Yahweh, with the possessive of “your” meaning David was the “ear” of Yahweh, who heard what he was being told to know. It is then the benefit of this ability to hear the voice of Yahweh speaking that brings eternal salvation for a soul. One should also see the metaphor of “Yahweh saves” as the naming of Jesus, so by being the “ear” of Yahweh, David’s soul had been reborn as the Son, as Jesus.
The translation of verse three, shown as: “Be my strong rock, a castle to keep me safe; you are my crag and my stronghold” is a paraphrase that has scrambled the order of words written. The order of words come from Yahweh, who wrote in divine ecstasy. David never saw himself as some young ‘rock star’ that needed to ‘get in the writing mood’ and feel the pulse of what the people wanted to sing and hear sung. Because David was “in Yahweh” and his “ear” listened to what Yahweh said, David would never have approved some translation service bastardizing the Word of Yahweh, which came through him. The true literal translation of verse three is as such: “become my rock dwelling to which I enter , always , you have given the orders to save me ; when my crag and my snare yourself .”
In this, the words translated as “rock” and “crag” [“tsur” and “sela”] can also equally translate as “cliff.” This becomes metaphor for a “cliff dwelling,” where it is not easy for anyone to enter, thereby being a safe place to live. Because there are many natural caves in the rock of Israel, the symbolism of “rock” has to be seen as Jesus being the cornerstone, which is rounded [not squared], and used as a tombstone that blocks the entrance of a “cliff dwelling.” Because it is rounded and can be rolled away after death, the soul can escape and be “saved.” Here, again, is Jesus metaphor in words. The “stronghold” aspect needs to be seen as the “stronghold” captured by David [Jebus], which he deemed to be the City of David. That “cliff dwelling” was where underground servants of Yahweh had protected the children of Israel, until David overthrew them and made each Israelites depend on each soul marrying Yahweh for their soul’s salvations. Thus, this verse sings for all who are like David, “in” a relationship with Yahweh.
Verse four is where David used the word “elohay,” which is the possessive form that adds “my” to “gods” [not “God”]. Just as “your” was seen as a statement of Yahweh claiming David’s soul as His, so David could equally say, I am yours,” the use of “my” has the same effect. Again, one must break free of the indoctrination of translation service that refer to the plural “gods” as some statement of Yahweh. It is a statement of Yahweh’s possession of a collection of souls [Spiritual wives], where all so possessed by Yahweh become His “angels in the flesh,” or “elohim.” Therefore, David use of “elohay” is his pronouncing himself as one of Yahweh’s “elohim,” as “my” indicates acceptance of that possession [willing marriage].
Verse four begins with that one word, separated by a comma mark afterwards. Thus, after this statement of himself being one of Yahweh’s “elohim,” David then sang (literally translated), “escape me out of the hands of the wicked ; out of the hand of the unrighteous and cruel man .” With this ending in the singular form of “cruel man,” rather than men, this speaks of David himself. His soul has escaped the desires of the flesh, because he has freely submitted his soul to Yahweh in divine marriage. The Hebrew word translated as “cruel man” is “wə·ḥō·w·mêṣ,” from “chamets,” ordinarily meaning “to be sour or leavened.” This ‘baking’ term says the basic addition of yeast to flour, causing bread to rise and become fresh and tasty, is symbolic of life in the world, where a soul becomes “wicked” and “sour” because of all the additions heaped in with the ‘flatbread’ that is a basic soul. By marrying Yahweh, David willingly and lovingly gave up the ‘spice of life,’ the “leavening” that gives rise to souls filled with a lot of ‘hot air.’
Verse five is then where David wrote the combination of words: “adonay Yahweh,” which (as explained earlier) means David was one of the “lords” married to Yahweh, for the purpose of leading other souls to also marry Yahweh. While an “elohim” is such a married soul, all souls need to be led to that state of wedded bliss, which makes “lords” be symbolic of shepherds, with lost soul being a scattered flock.
The literal translation of verse five then is seen to be: “when you my cord ; lords Yahweh my confidence from my early years .” The Hebrew word that I have translated as “cord” is “ṯiq·wā·ṯî,” from “tiqvah,” means “cord,” but is acceptable as implying “hope,” like some ‘lifeline.’ When one studies people who have died and had near death experiences, where their soul leaves their body of lifeless flesh and floats around and goes to see things pertinent to the life lived, they speak of the ‘silver cord,’ which is the soul’s link back to the body of flesh. If that silver cord becomes severed, there can be no return to life, after such an experience of death. In that, a soul is linked to its body of flesh by a normal or ordinary “cord,” which is breathed into the flesh by Yahweh at birth. He then determines when this “cord” will be severed. What David is now singing about is the equivalent of a ‘golden cord,’ which is the second soul breathed into a soul-wife’s soul, which is Jesus [“Yahweh Saves]. It is that presence within one’s soul that makes one be like all who are souls reborn as Jesus, as all are the teachers of Salvation, as the ‘golden cord’ to be received by souls transforming from ordinary to extraordinary. David knew of this “cord’s” presence when Yahweh Anointed him when he was just a boy.
When David is then shown to sing, “I have been sustained by you ever since I was born; from my mother's womb you have been my strength; my praise shall be always of you.” this relates well with the companion Old Testament reading from Jeremiah. While the implication is to hear David singing of having been a miracle birth, much like John the Baptist, the truth of David’s known history is he was born ordinarily from the wife of Jesse, with no angels of Yahweh sent to notify anyone of David’s soul being born. This means the truth is in line with Jesus telling Nicodemus that one must be born a second time [which flew well over Nick’s head]. Thus, David is singing of a resurrection, where the second birth is that of Jesus entering into his soul, after the baptism of Yahweh’s Spirit.
Here, the literal translation is vital to realize, in order to get to that conclusion. The literal translation is this: “on account of you I have been upheld since birth , out of the womb of my mother you cut me ; of you my praise eternally .” In this, the translation of “upheld” is based on the initial preposition implying “above,” with the Hebrew word “samak” meaning “support.” The two combine to state “upheld,” where this is a statement of righteousness making one capable of being a Son of Yahweh. When seeing this as the Son, this is the reborn state that has a divine soul come to make one’s soul be “upheld.” The “birth” is then when the soul of Jesus is born within one’s soul.
The focus on the “womb” needs to be seen as one’s own soul, not a female body of flesh. Since all souls in bodies of flesh are feminine essence, thereby being bridesmaids awaiting marriage to Yahweh’s Spirit, all souls [those in both men and women] are feminine, to Yahweh’s masculine Spirit. When the soul is seen to divinely marry with Yahweh’s Spirit, the only reason for any true marriage is propagation – making a baby. This turns the wife-soul of a human being into the “mother,” whose “womb” is its soul in human flesh. Thus, a wife-soul of Yahweh becomes the mother of the Son born into the mother’s soul, as two souls in one body of flesh. This is the second birth of which Jesus spoke to Nicodemus. Many people are exactly like Nicodemus in their inability to see this meaning.
In other Old Testament songs [of David, Isaiah, Jeremiah, et al], the metaphor of “strength” [from “koach,” found used in verse nine] is that which saves, thus being a reflection of Jesus. The word the NRSV used to translate “strength” is [I imagine, as it is not written] “gazah,” which means “to cut.” This needs not be seen as a Cesarian section form of birth, but the splicing of an ordinary soul with the soul of the divine Son of Yahweh [Adam-Jesus], whis is regularly called the “strength” that saves. This then becomes the soul David identified with [“of me, my, yours”]; and, it was that new identification that he would forever “praise.”
As the Psalm to be sung on the fourth Sunday after the Epiphany, the point is for those who have been reborn as Jesus to be making our souls comfortable in our new relationship that has us not only dwelling with Yahweh’s Spirit, but also His Son. We have to let go of all the controls we once claimed over our body of flesh. That body has been transformed into a temple, with Jesus now the High Priest that resides within us. Our duty is as a Levite, which is to keep the temple clean and presentable for those who seek a place to worship Yahweh. We need to become like David, where our inner child leads us faithfully and righteously.