Psalm 84: Doorkeepers

 

I have found "journey" to be one of the many recurrent themes that crisscrosses the pages, chapters and books of the Bible. Psalm 84 is a beautiful example of this theme, that captures in brevity, the origin, the pathway and the destination of one such journey. Let us trace these three sections of the eighty fourth Psalm.

Section 1 : Home

1 How lovely is Your tabernacle, O Lord of hosts!

2My soul longs, yes, even faints

For the courts of the Lord;

My heart and my flesh cry out for the living God.

3Even the sparrow has found a home,

And the swallow a nest for herself,

Where she may lay her young—

Even Your altars, O Lord of hosts,

My King and my God.

4Blessed are those who dwell in Your house;

They will still be praising You.

Selah

Our home is where many of our journeys begin. Even when we are safe and comfortable in our earthly homes, our souls long and yearn for a final destination. The New King James version of the Bible even goes as far as to say "My soul longs, yes, even faints for the courts of the LORD!" and "My heart and my flesh cry out for the living God". I like the part that reminds us just how important our homes are. Even the tiniest among us deserve a home. The sparrow, the swallow, each has a nest. We are reminded that our homes are not only places of our comfort about also security for our young ones.

Often each section of a Psalm ends with the word  "Selah". Selah is a moment of reflection that acts as a prompt to remind us about the verses above. As we come to the first Selah, it is time to ponder about our homes and our deep yearnings.

Section 2: The Pilgrimage or Journey

5 Blessed is the man whose strength is in You,

Whose heart is set on pilgrimage.

6 As they pass through the Valley of Baca,

They make it a spring;

The rain also covers it with pools.

7 They go from strength to strength;

Each one appears before God in Zion.

8 O Lord God of hosts, hear my prayer;

Give ear, O God of Jacob!

Selah 

With our hearts are set on a pilgrimage, the journey begins in the second section. The journey is not within its fair share mountains and valleys that we must cross.  I am reminded of a recent visit to a valley that was carved out of a mountain by a desperate man who lost his wife to a perilous journey to the hospital across the mountains. With sheer determination which lasted for twenty years, he carved our a road through the mountain. Our journey takes us through deep and desperate valleys too, like the valley of Baca mentioned in the sixth verse of the eighty fourth Psalm. The website https://www.gotquestions.org/valley-of-Baca.html explains "The Valley of Baca is mentioned in the Bible only once, in Psalm 84. Baca is rendered “weeping” in most translations: “What joy for those whose strength comes from the LORD, who have set their minds on a pilgrimage to Jerusalem. When they walk through the Valley of Weeping, it will become a place of refreshing springs. The autumn rains will clothe it with blessings” (Psalm 84:5–6, NLT). The Hebrew word baca is related to bakah, which means “to weep.” Baca refers to a type of “weeping” tree; that is, one that drips resin or gum-like tears, such as a balsam, mulberry, or aspen tree. In 2 Samuel 5:23, bakaim is translated as “balsam trees” (ESV)." At the end of this section again comes "Selah". The pause for the reflection of the journey, the mountains, the valleys, the weeping and the pools of refreshing.

Section 3: Destination 

9 O God, behold our shield,

And look upon the face of Your anointed.

10For a day in Your courts is better than a thousand.

I would rather be a doorkeeper in the house of my God

Than dwell in the tents of wickedness.

11For the Lord God is a sun and shield;

The Lord will give grace and glory;

No good thing will He withhold

From those who walk uprightly.

12O Lord of hosts,

Blessed is the man who trusts in You! 

Our final destination is heaven, or better still, the place of unlimited presence of God in our midst. Where there is no more yearning, no thirst, no hunger, no tears. Oh to spend eternity there! what then are thousand years, but an expressing of eternity! With God in all His magnificence and grace and glory. As a Father, we will then experience His goodness, when He will not withhold any good thing to those who have journeyed till the end. Blessed is the man who trusts in Him.

At the end of this last section, did I miss the Selah? Was it not there?

Well, actually, I got stuck at the doorway!

I just could not overcome the thought that all the time we are looking for newer doors of blessings, breakthroughs and opportunities to open before us, and we never consider the higher role that God has kept for us. That of a doorkeeper! How many of us would want to be the one that opens doors of blessings to others? Amazing! This thought and revelation is just overwhelming. In all humility we look at the amazing opportunity that God has given to us...that of a janitor, a doorkeeper, in whose hands and through whose lives, God, I am sure is willing to entrust his keys, to unlock blessings and open doors for many, many others!