A Meditation on Psalm 149
Let the high praises of God be in their mouth, And a two-edged sword in their hand. Psalm 149:6
Psalm 149 is a hymn of praise. It sings the praises of God who is, and who will be a victorious warrior. The first four verses seem to point to a recent victory in which God defeated those who had oppressed his people. “For the Lord has pleasure in his people and gives victory to those who are oppressed.” What is not clear is which victory the psalm points to. One can think of David and Goliath, or Moses and Pharaoh, or Joshua over Jericho, or Gideon and the Midianites. Perhaps it was an internal battle, much like the Gerasene demoniac who was delivered by Jesus from Legion and the demons. We do know that the battle belonged to the Lord, and he was victorious.
The second half of the psalm seems to point to the ultimate victory of the Lord over the spiritual forces of oppression at the end of the ages. The words of the psalm are best fulfilled in the final judgment as described in Revelation 19:1-2, “Hallelujah! Salvation and glory and power belong to our God, for his judgments are true and just; for he has judged the great prostitute who corrupted the earth with her immorality, and has avenged on her the blood of his servants.”
What struck me in the psalm is that we will participate in the victory. We are called to be soldiers in God’s army. Let the praises of God be in their mouth and a two-edged sword in their hands, to inflict vengeance on the nations and to rebuke the peoples…” -Psalm 149:6-7
Some resist this call to war and yet it is part of our baptism, “Receive the sign of the Cross as a token of your new life in Christ crucified, to fight bravely under his banner against the world, the flesh, and the devil, and to continue as his faithful soldier and servant to the end of your days.” —2019 BCP p. 169 I think this language is good. It reminds us that we are at war against, “rulers, authorities, the cosmic powers over this present darkness, and the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places.” —Ephesians 6:12
Our weapon is the two-edged sword of Psalm 149:6 but also mentioned in Ephesians 6, “Take up the sword of the Spirit, which is the Word of God.” This sword is described in Hebrews 4:12, “For the word of God is sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and spirit, of joints and marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart.” We find this sword mentioned one more time, as well as the victory of our Lord, described in the Psalm in the 19th chapter of the Book of Revelation, “ Then I saw heaven opened, and behold a white horse! The one sitting on it is called Faithful and True, and in righteousness, he judges and makes war. His eyes are like a flame of fire, and on his head are many diadems, and he has a name written that no one knows but himself. He is clothed in a robe dipped in blood, and the name by which he is called is The Word of God. And the armies of heaven, arrayed in fine linen, white and pure, were following him on white horses. From his mouth comes a sharp sword with which to strike down the nations, and he will rule them with a rod of iron. He will tread the winepress of the fury of the wrath of God Almighty. On his robe and on his thigh he has a name written, King of Kings and Lord of Lords.” —Revelation 19:11-16
It is good to be reminded that we are at war. It is good to know that the good guys win in the end. That is the whole point of the Book of Revelation. It is humbling to know that the Lord wants us in his army. It is good to be reminded that we enlisted when we were baptized. It is a reminder that we had better be proficient in using our sword — the Word of God, the Scriptures. We must practice or swordsmanship daily, lest we too are cut by that two-edged sword. And we had better practice singing the praises of the victorious King, for so we will spend eternity.
†Bishop Mark