Gilbert House Fellowship #368: Psalm 107; 1 Chronicles 13–15

GOD IS enthroned above the cherubim on the Ark of the Covenant. Failure to treat the ark with proper respect, according to the Law, cost a teamster his life.

This week, we discuss the move of the ark to Jerusalem and a section of scripture in 1 Chronicles 13 that’s difficult for many to accept. Why was Uzzah killed by God for putting his hand on the ark to steady it? The answer: The ark was supposed to be treated with reverence, carried by Levites with poles made specifically for that purpose (Exodus 25:12–14; Numbers 4:5–6, 15). Instead, it had been loaded onto an oxcart, like cargo in an Iron Age U-haul van.

We also discuss an interesting section of a psalm of joy and thankfulness that is more supernatural than it first appears. Psalm 107:3 refers to the people gathered “from the east and from the west, from the north and from the south.” However, “north” is the Hebrew word tsaphon, a reference to “cosmic” north—the mountain sacred to the king of the Canaanite pantheon, Baal.

And “south” is yam, usually translated “west” or “sea.” This is the only place in the Bible where yam is rendered “south,” because of its opposition to tsaphon. Yam is the name of the Canaanite chaos-dragon, equivalent to Leviathan, and often used to represent the abyss—the bottomless pit, or Tartarus.

What is meant in Psalm 107:3 is that God has gathered his people from “cosmic” north, the realm of the pagan gods (fallen angels), and “cosmic” south, chaos and eternal destruction in the abyss.

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