Psalm 42 - The Face of G-d
“As a deer pants for water, so my soul pants for you, O God.” These opening lines to Psalm 42 are some of the most cherished words in all of Scripture. This is the soul cry of so many G-d believers and they need little commentary on my part.
But I would be remiss to not offer some reflections on this top-fiver. Almost certainly Psalms 42 and 43 were originally one psalm with a set of three stanzas, each followed by a repeated refrain (Ps. 42: 5, 11 and Ps. 43:5). Psalm 42 consists of the first two stanzas and Psalm 43 is the third stanza. Is this separation important? I think yes, as it demonstrates the bumpiness of our Scripture’s transmission from antiquity. If you look at the attached picture of Psalm 3 and 4 from the famous Aleppo Codex, which dates to the 900’s CE, you will notice no “chapters and verses.” There is separation of the text, for sure, but that’s it. Chapters and verses were not added until centuries later.
The Great Psalms Scroll from the Dead Sea Scrolls, which dates to Jesus’s time, doesn’t even have the separation between psalms (as you can see in the second attached picture). So, it is impossible to know when Psalm 42 ends and Psalm 43 begins. As scholars continue to examine the available ancient manuscripts, they observe variances in how the psalms are ordered and which psalms are included in the Psalter (depending on the manuscript). This begs the questions: what were the “original” psalms and in what order were they compiled?
The “original copies” of the books of Bible are long lost, so we cannot answer those questions. The creation of the best Hebrew version of the Old Testament and best Greek version of the New Testament that we have today are the result of analyzing and studying thousands of available manuscripts (handwritten copies) and applying reasoned protocols in reconciling the thousands of variations in the texts. If you were to look at the consensus best Hebrew and Greek versions of the Bible, you will see voluminous manuscript notes on every page that detail and comment on those textual variations. These realities must be kept in mind when the topic of “inerrancy” is discussed.
On to the text! The panting deer metaphor of Psalm 42 is so iconic, beautiful and profound, even more so if we shift our minds from the North American picture of a panting deer (in the mountains with luscious greenery and a meandering mountain stream gushing over rocks in the coolness of the morning). No, Israeli deer, called Ibex, live in the desert (see the attached picture). Like their sheep counterparts from Psalm 23, they roam the desert searching for food and water, often congregating at the desert Oasis known as Ein Gedi, seeking refreshment from the brutal heat and barrenness of the harsh conditions. It intensifies the panting deer metaphor in my mind. The psalmist desperately yearns to be in the presence of G-d (v. 2). The literal translation should be “when will I see the face of G-d?”
There are other things to note, like the classic Jewish “compare and contrast” of remembering and forgetting (vv. 4, 6, and 9), both of which are verbs indicating actions in Hebrew thought rather than being just cerebral verbs as we think in the West.
But today, our focus is to consider our closeness to G-d. Are you feeling distant from Him? Do you feel like an Ibex in the desert? Do you need refreshment? Do you yearn for the distance between you and G-d to be closed? Do you desire to be in His presence, to see His face even in the midst of adversity? I pray that each of you passionately and desperately seeks the face of G-d today as if your very being depends upon it.
Shalom שָׁלוֹם,
DWach
PS … DJ Revonda found a gem for today from Tori Kelly. It has a melancholy jazz vibe that captures the psalm beautifully:
