Blessed is every one who fears the Lord,
Who walks in His ways.
When you eat the labor of your hands,
You shall be happy, and it shall be well with you.
Your wife shall be like a fruitful vine
In the very heart of your house — Psalm 128
This is an ascending song. The people of Israel would sing this as they traveled to Jerusalem for the feast days—kinda like today when we drive to church on Sunday.
This is a joyful context. God fearers are fixed in the happiness of Yahweh’s omnipresence and, consequently, physically blessed.
By the time they got to verse three, it would be absolutely natural for the husband and wife to be holding hands and thinking about all that ‘being fruitful’ entails…. God bringing them together in marriage, the children at their sides, and the intimacy involved. This Psalm encompasses all the trappings of a righteous ooh la la.
So, next time you sing it, let God see you smile.
