Psalm 133
David was king of Judah and Benjamin and ruled in Hebron for seven-and-a-half years. He inherited a divided nation and almost a civil war, but then the Lord gave him a united kingdom (2 Sam. 5; 1 Chron. 12:38–40). He could well have written this psalm when he began his reign in Jerusalem. The people usually journeyed to Jerusalem in family groups (see Luke 2:41–52), so this psalm perfectly suited the situation. It applies to individual believers and churches today, for we also have our "family quarrels" and need to learn to walk together in love. Maintaining the spiritual unity of God's people is the work of every believer, with the help of the Holy Spirit (Eph. 4:1–6), and three ministries of the Spirit are illustrated in this psalm.
Trust God for His Bountiful Blessings (vv. 13–18) God not only chose Israel to be His people and David and his descendants to be His kings, but He chose Zion to be the site of His temple and His throne (the ark). David had desperately wanted to build God a house, but was forbidden to do so, but he gathered the wealth needed, received the plans from the Lord, and bought the property on which the temple would stand. This purchase grew out of the sin David committed when he took a census of the people (2 Sam. 24). When the fire from heaven consumed his sacrifice, David knew that this was the place God had chosen. Other nations had temples, but none of those temples had the glory of the true and living God dwelling in them.
We Are Born of the Spirit (v. 1) When you read the Scriptures, you cannot help but
Psalm 133—134
collar. This suggests that the oil "bathed" the twelve precious stones that he wore on the breastplate over his heart, and this "bathing" is a picture of spiritual unity. When God's people walk in the Spirit, they forget about the externals and major on the eternal things of the Spirit. Externals divide us—gender, wealth, appearance, ethnic prejudices, social or political standing—while the Spirit brings us together and we glorify Christ.
discover that the "brothers" did not always live in unity. Cain killed Abel (Gen. 4), Lot quarreled with Abraham (Gen. 13), Joseph's brothers hated him and sold him for a slave (Gen. 37), and the brothers did not even get along among themselves (Gen. 45:24)! Miriam and Aaron criticized their brother Moses (Num. 12), and some of David's children turned against him (2 Sam. 13–18; and note 2 Sam. 12:10). Our Lord's own disciples frequently quarreled over which one of them was the greatest (Matt. 18:1ff.; Mark 9:33ff.; Luke 22:23ff.), and Paul and Barnabas argued over John Mark and finally broke company and chose new ministry companions (Acts 15:36–41). The church began in visible unity (Acts 2:1, 44, 46), but when you read Paul's epistles, you find a sad story of rivalry and division, and it is not much better today.
We Are Refreshed by the Spirit (v. 3) The Jews were basically an agricultural people, and they depended on the early and latter rains and the dew to water their crops (Deut. 11:10–17). In Scripture, dew symbolizes the life-giving Word of God (Deut. 32:2), the blessing of God that brings fruitfulness (Gen. 27:28, 39; Deut. 33:13, 28), and God's special refreshing on His people (Hos. 14:5; Zech. 8:12). How often we need the refreshment of the Holy Spirit that comes silently but bountifully, like the dew upon the grass! When things are "dry," they begin to wither and fall apart, but when the dew comes, it brings new life and things hold together. Life means unity, death means decay, and the difference is the dew from heaven. Hebron in the far north was the highest of their mountains, nearly ten thousand feet, and Zion was one of the lesser mounts in the land. They were two hundred miles apart, yet God sent His dew to both of them! Travelers report that in some parts of the Holy Land, the morning dew is like a hard rain that falls in the night, saturating everything. The dew speaks of fruitfulness and the anointing oil speaks of fragrance, for the unity of God's people is both "good and pleasant."
It was one thing for the Jewish clans to spend a few days together while traveling to Jerusalem and quite something else to dwell together at home for the rest of the year! Yet they all had a common ancestor in Abraham; they spoke a common language; they worshipped the same God; they were children of the same covenant; they shared a common land; and they were governed by the same holy law. Christians today have experienced the same spiritual birth, worship the same God, declare the same gospel message, preach from the same Scriptures, and are headed for the same heavenly city, but, alas, there is often more division among us than unity! Yet all of us know that spiritual oneness in Christ (Gal. 3:26–29; Eph. 4:1–6) is both "good and pleasant." There is an artificial "unity" that is based on "least common denominator" theology and is more organizational uniformity than the kind of spiritual unity for which Jesus prayed (John 17:11, 21–23). This we must avoid. Those who have truly been "born of God" (1 John 2:29; 3:9; 4:7; 5:1, 4, 18) belong to the same family and need to love one another.
What does the word there refer to in verse 3? Probably two things: (1) Zion and Jerusalem, for it is there God commanded His blessing (132:13–18; Lev. 25:21; Deut. 28:8), for "salvation is of the Jews" (John 4:22); and (2) where there is unity among His people (v. 1). The Holy Spirit is grieved by the sins that bring division (Eph. 5:25–32). Both images—the oil and the dew—remind us that unity is not something that we "work up" but that God sends down. When we get to the heavenly Zion (Heb. 12:18–29), there we will enjoy perfect unity "life forevermore." But why not seek to have that kind of unity today? "Will You not revive us again, that Your people may rejoice in You?" (85:6 nkjv).
We Are Anointed by the Spirit (v. 2) At his ordination, the high priest was anointed with the special oil that was compounded according to the directions God gave Moses (Ex. 30:22–33). He and the other priests were also sprinkled with the oil and the blood from the sacrifices (Ex. 29:1–9, 21). In Scripture, oil is a symbol of the Holy Spirit (Isa. 61:1–3; Zech. 4; Luke 4:17–19; Acts 10:38), for this anointing was given to priests, prophets, and kings, all of whom needed the Spirit's help to be able to minister effectively (1 Sam. 16:13). We often hear Christians pray for "an anointing of the Spirit" on God's servants, yet each true believer has already been anointed of God. This anointing establishes us so that we do not fall (2 Cor. 1:21–22) and enlightens us so that we do not go astray (1 John 2:20, 27). Every believer needs this strengthening and teaching ministry of God's Spirit.