Let's All Go To Church!

Psalm 133 is an ascent psalm to be sung while going up to Jerusalem at the three required yearly festivals designated in the Mosaic Covenant (Deuteronomy 16:16-17). Refusal to make the pilgrimage invited national disaster; obedience resulted in national blessing. Verse 1 is vital to a correct interpretation of this Psalm.

“How good and pleasant it is when brothers live together in unity!” (New International Version, NIV)

Two Hebrew terms in this verse are not translated by the NIV, הנּה and גּם. These words affect the interpretation of the Psalm and its application.

The Hebrew interjection “behold!” (הנּה) makes an important point—it draws the hearers’ attention to the coming statement much like pointing a finger (Harris, Archer, Waltke, Theological Wordbook of the Old Testament, 220, TWOT; The Brown-Driver-Briggs Hebrew and English Lexicon, 243, BDB). The NIV’s exclamation point may be an attempt to reflect the Hebrew term, but it does not exactly parallel it. The English exclamation point focuses the hearer primarily on the emotion tied to the statement whereas the Hebrew word focuses the hearer primarily on the content and secondarily on the emotion. This is an important interpretive element in the text.

The adverb גּם is also critical to the interpretation. Syntactically it represents an addition and is to be translated also or even (BDB, 168-69; Holladay, A Concise Hebrew and Aramaic Lexicon of the Old Testament, 61-62). The adverb coupled to the following noun (יחד) focuses the covenant idea of physical togetherness at the required festivals. Individual worship is good but the divine mandate requires community worship. As the pilgrims see the community gathered in obedience to the divine law, they can take courage. The nation is living in obedience to God and, therefore, in a position to experience His covenant blessings (cp. verse 3b).

Finally, the translations would do better to rephrase the term unity as well since the Hebrew word יחד means “together, of community in action, place, or time” (BDB, 402; TWOT, 859; Holladay, Lexicon, 132). The ethical concept of unity so prominent in the English word is a secondary idea not the primary Hebrew focus in יחד. A paraphrase which captures the full force of verses 1 and 6 reads like this:

“Look! How good and how pleasant it is when the nation gathers at the designated place and time in obedience to God’s Covenant requirement. . . . Because there and then Yahweh has commanded the Covenant blessing.”

The illustrations in verses 2-3a visualize community togetherness and portray promised spiritual and national blessings. Of the two applications possible in Psalm 133, ethical unity and national togetherness, the latter represents the Hebrew text best and provides a necessary community-oriented activity for accomplishing the former! May there be “Blessed Togetherness!”

This proper interpretation of the Psalm makes the typical ethical-oriented sermonic application—“Let’s all get along!”—a primary application.  As a message for a congregation in conflict Romans 12:18 fits the situation with greater clarity and directness, “If possible, so far as it depends on you, be at peace with all men” (New American Standard Bible, NASB).

The primary application of this Hebrew Psalm, “national togetherness,” points out a contemporary peril—a lack of commitment to the Christian community demonstrated by absenteeism in church. Perhaps our absence in the pews stems from the recent pandemic, but a continuing habitual absence shouts disobedience to the biblical mandate. Hebrews 10:24-25a represents a New Testament parallel to Psalm 133, “and let us consider how to stimulate one another to love and good deeds, not forsaking our own assembling together, as is the habit of some” (NASB). Though live-streaming the worship services on televisions or computers drinking morning coffee dressed in pajamas may take some of the hassle out of Sunday mornings, but the divine command cannot be obeyed by absence. Absenteeism in the pews weakens the local church more than we care to admit. “Let’s All Go To Church!”