Psalms

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Psalm 29

1 A psalm of David. Acknowledge the Lord, you heavenly beings, acknowledge the Lord’s majesty and power.⁠ 2 Acknowledge the majesty of the Lord’s reputation. Worship the Lord in holy attire. 3 The Lord’s shout is heard over the water; the majestic God thunders, the Lord appears over the surging water. 4 The Lord’s shout is powerful; the Lord’s shout is majestic. 5 The Lord’s shout breaks the cedars; the Lord shatters the cedars of Lebanon. 6 He makes them skip like a calf, Lebanon and Sirion like a young ox. 7 The Lord’s shout strikes with flaming fire. 8 The Lord’s shout shakes the wilderness; the Lord shakes the wilderness of Kadesh.⁠ 9 The Lord’s shout bends the large trees and strips the leaves from the forests. Everyone in his temple says, “Majestic!” 10 The Lord sits enthroned over the engulfing waters;⁠ the Lord sits enthroned as the eternal king. 11 The Lord gives his people strength; the Lord grants his people security.⁠

Texts in conversation

What the Names of the Temple Pillars Really Mean

Hebrew Bible

Summary

The temple pillars Jachin and Boaz in 1 Kings 7 are likely translated as “he establishes it in strength,” a blessing formula, which Psalm 29 echoes as it uses similar language to declare that God gives strength to his people.

Passages

1 Kings 7:21

Hebrew Bible

19 The tops of the two pillars in the porch were shaped like lilies and were six feet high. 20 On the top of each pillar, right above the bulge beside the latticework, there were 200 pomegranate-shaped ornaments arranged in rows all the way around. 21 He set up the pillars on the porch in front of the main hall. He erected one pillar on the right side and called it Yakin; he erected the other pillar on the left side and called it Boaz. 22 The tops of the pillars were shaped like lilies. So the construction of the pillars was completed. 23 He also made the large bronze basin called “The Sea.” It measured 15 feet from rim to rim, was circular in shape, and stood 7½ feet high. Its circumference was 45 feet.

600–501 BCE (scholarly estimate) Read in 1 Kings

Psalm 29:11

Hebrew Bible

8 The Lord’s shout shakes the wilderness; the Lord shakes the wilderness of Kadesh. 9 The Lord’s shout bends the large trees and strips the leaves from the forests. Everyone in his temple says, “Majestic!” 10 The Lord sits enthroned over the engulfing waters; the Lord sits enthroned as the eternal king. 11 The Lord gives his people strength; the Lord grants his people security.

600–201 BCE (scholarly estimate) Read in Psalms

References

"... The deity enters the temple while bestowing blessings on the king and the people, as recorded on the columns flanking the temple entrance named Jachin and Boaz (1 Kings 7:21-22). These names are plausibly construed as a blessing formula meaning, 'My he [Yahweh] establish [the temple/king/people] in strength.' This reading of the names compares well with the blessing expressed in Psalm 29:11, 'May Yahweh give strength to his people!' ..."

Mark S. Smith, Where the Gods Are: Spatial Dimensions of Anthropomorphism in the Biblical World (New Haven, CT: Yale University Press, 2016), 34–35.

References are not endorsements of their contents. Read each reference in full to understand its author's intentions in using these texts.

Psalms150 psalms

What the Names of the Temple Pillars Really Mean

Summary

Passages

1 Kings 7:21

Psalm 29:11

References

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