Text of prayer Psalm 131
The prayer can be read in Church Slavonic and Russian. A church service is not complete without the Church Slavonic version of the song. But there is text in Russian.
In Church Slavonic
In Russian
History of writing
As mentioned above, Solomon was the son of King David. It was he who wrote this petitionary song during his reign. King David himself was a very righteous man during his lifetime, but one cannot say that he was ideal. He sinned and always suffered God's punishments.
However, he never turned away from God. Under him, the Ark of the Covenant was transferred to the tabernacle, where it was kept until a certain point. Solomon asks the Lord to give a blessing to move the shrine to a more worthy place. Psalm 131 is dedicated to this event.
If you carefully read the text of the song, you can feel the excitement Solomon felt when he asked the Lord for permission to move the Ark. The ark of the Covenant was the most valuable shrine of the Jewish people, and it required appropriate treatment.
The place to which they wanted to move the shrine was supposed to become the house of God, where everyone who prayed would receive the necessary blessing. Anxiety comes through in the words of the song.
The Great Power of Psalm 79
The Great Power of Psalm 79
by Radomir on Wed Nov 14, 2021 11:30 am
In the Mastery of the Psalter there are very powerful methods that give a quick and very serious effect. One of these methods is working with Psalm 79. This psalm provides very strong help, even when other methods no longer help. Among masters involved in the craft of the Psalter, this psalm is called the “Psalm of Salvation.” If, God forbid, some misfortune or trouble happens to you, someone gets sick or finds themselves in a difficult or difficult situation, then turn to the power of this psalm and Divine help will come. The trouble will go away, help will be provided, and the problem will be eliminated. As the initiates say, “Man sometimes does not see a way out or a path, but God sees hundreds of exits and a thousand paths for help.” To get help in a difficult situation or trouble, you need to light a candle and read “Our Father” 9 times, after that they read the psalm the same 9 times,” then “Our Father” another 9 times, after which they ask:
“O Lord, Holy and Mighty, From the Holy Throne of Your Glory, look mercifully and help (name what help is needed) for the Glory of Your Ineffable Name. Amen.”
You will be very surprised when help comes, sometimes in ways you couldn’t expect, and sometimes in ways you couldn’t expect. Such is the power of this wonderful psalm.
Shepherd of Israel! listen; leading Joseph like sheep, sitting on the Cherubim, reveal Yourself. Arose Your power before Ephraim and Benjamin and Manasseh, and come to save us. God! restore us; May Your face shine and we will be saved! O Lord, God of hosts! How long will you be angry with the prayers of Your people? You have fed them with the bread of tears, and you have given them tears to drink in great measure; you have made us a quarrel with our neighbors, and our enemies mock us. God of strength! restore us; May Your face shine and we will be saved! You brought the vine from Egypt, drove out the nations and planted it; He cleared a place for it, and established its roots, and it filled the earth. The mountains were covered with its shadow, and its branches were like the cedars of God; She has sent out her branches to the sea and her branches to the river. Why have You destroyed her fences, so that all who pass along the way tear her down? The boar of the forest undermines her, and the beast of the field devours her. God of hosts! turn, look down from heaven, and behold, and visit these grapes; guard what Thy right hand has planted, and the branches which Thou hast strengthened for Thyself. He was burned with fire, he was cut off; from the rebuke of Thy face they shall perish. Let Thy hand be upon the man of Thy right hand, upon the son of man whom Thou hast strengthened for Thyself, and we will not depart from Thee; revive us, and we will call on Your name. Lord, God of hosts! restore us; May Your face shine and we will be saved!
Why read Psalm 131?
Despite the main plot of the chant, it can be used if there is a strong need for support or protection. In ancient times, entire nations prayed according to this psalm. And the Lord always listened to their forgiveness. All those in need received the necessary blessing and became happy. Salvation also did not remain a priority; all the righteous received it.
During church services, the Church Slavonic version of the prayer is used. It helps parishioners relax and direct their thoughts in the right direction. At home, you are allowed to read a chant in Russian every day, until the Lord responds to your call.
There are no clear reading rules. You can replace words in the process, but the plot must be presented in a harmonious and clear manner.
Song of Degrees
1 Remember, O Lord, David and all his meekness: 2 as they swear to the Lord, making a promise to Jacob to God: 3 If I go into the village of my house, or go up to the bed of my bed, 4 If I give sleep to my eyes and slumber to my every side, and rest to my soul 5 Until I have found the place of the Lord, a habitation for the God of Jacob. 6 Behold, I heard in Euphratha, I found what I found in the oak fields. 7 Let us go into His villages and worship the place where His nose stood. 8 Arise, O Lord, into Thy rest, Thou and Thy holy ark. 9 Your priests will be clothed with righteousness, and your saints will rejoice. 10 For David's sake, do not turn away the face of your anointed one for your servant's sake. 11 The Lord swear to David in truth, and will not repudiate it: I will plant the fruit of your body on your throne. 12 If your sons keep my covenant and these testimonies which I will teach, their sons will sit on your throne forever. 13 Because the Lord has chosen Zion, he will also make it his dwelling place. 14 This is my rest for ever and ever, here I will dwell as I please. 15 I will bless his trap, I will satisfy his poor, 16 I will clothe his priests with salvation, and his saints will rejoice with joy. 17 There I will make the horn of David grow; I will prepare a lamp for my anointed one. 18 I will clothe his enemies with cold, and on them will My holiness flourish.
Interpretation
- Verse 1-5. The psalmist tells about the events of the past, when King David was looking for an appropriate place to preserve the Jewish shrine - the Ark of the Covenant. For David, this issue was of priority importance. Being a great adherent of the faith, he tried to find fertile land for the construction of the tabernacle.
- Verse 6. Before David carried the Ark to Zion, it was in the city of Ephrath. He learned about this from divine revelation and immediately hurried to the zealous guardian of this unique relic.
- Verse 7. To the Jews this shrine is of the utmost importance. Legend has it that the Lord was near her, so worshiping the Ark was tantamount to worshiping the Lord at His feet.
- Verse 8. The place where the Ark was laid became the house of God. The Kivot itself was constantly removed from its place when it was necessary to go to war. It was believed that the holy power of the relic protected soldiers from defeat and led the Jews to victory.
- Verse 9. For priests there is no such thing as a lie. They never lie because the truth is above all. The Lord loves those who are sincere in soul and thoughts.
- Verse 10-12. The author once again mentions David and his covenant with God. The king promised to lead a righteous life, but also vouched for the righteousness of his descendants. The people of Israel will prosper as long as they are ruled by godly kings from the line of David. But, unfortunately, the descendants of David failed to become a reliable support for their people and fell in sin.
- Verse 13-14. It was important for the Lord to find a place where He would find peace. The choice fell on Jerusalem. He settled there and blessed the city with happiness and prosperity.
- Verse 15-18. Wealth and power are not given to a person through killings and battles. The Lord gives them. Those who are endowed with the grace of God will always be under His protection. The pagans will receive a fitting rebuff. The author reports this as the next king from the line of David. His only desire is to achieve the righteousness that David was known for.
Brief Explanation
One of the kathismas of the Psalter, the 18th, consists of exactly 15 short hymns called “Songs of Ascent” or “Degrees.” Psalm 131 is the thirteenth of them.
This is interesting: Shepherd and psalmist King David
What is the chant dedicated to?
There is no consensus among interpreters about what these short texts, including 131, are.
- Many medieval authors (St. Theophylact of Bulgaria, St. John Chrysostom, others) write that these chants were created in Babylonian captivity and tell about the long journey of the Jews to return to their homeland, to Jerusalem.
- There is also an opinion that these are the hymns of the divine service of the Jerusalem Temple: the priests, ascending to the sanctuary, climbed exactly 15 steps (in Slavic also “degrees”), on each of which a certain psalm was sung, of which 131 were sung on the 13th .
There is also no clarity regarding the authorship of the 131st. The chant could have been created:
- Solomon, the builder of the first temple to the True God, who here mentions his father, St. Davide;
- the Jews who were in Babylonian captivity; it could be the priest Ezra, or the prophets Haggai, Malachi, or unknown authors.
Useful materials
Main themes
Traditionally, interpreters distinguish several meanings. The first is associated with the historical event of the construction of the temple in Jerusalem, the second is prophetic, about the times of the New Testament, the third is associated with spiritual life.
"Place of Peace"
The historical event in question is the construction of the temple, preparations for which began in the time of David. Scripture tells that he was painfully worried about the lack of a permanent place for the Ark of the Covenant, citing the words spoken to him by the prophet. Nathan:
“Behold, I dwell in a house of cedar, and the ark of God is under the tent” (2 Samuel 7:2).
So the saint not only did not exalt himself with the high position of the ruler, but cared about the glory of God. The fulfillment of the king’s intention is the construction of the temple, about which the Lord Himself says: “Behold My rest, here I will dwell.”
Word about Christ
The Byzantine interpreter of the chant, Euthymius Zigaben, says that the words “Rise, O Lord, into Thy rest, Thou and the ark of Thy holiness” refer to Jesus Christ and the Mother of God, who can be understood by the “ark,” as the Ark of the Covenant was called. And some interpreters point out that the words “let us bow down at His foot” mean not only the Ark itself, but also the Cross on which the Savior was crucified. This is the same understanding, as the spiritual writer of the 19th century writes. Ep. Vissarion (Nechaev), is preserved by worship, because the psalm is the 3rd antiphon of the Feast of the Exaltation:
“The Holy Church, in the words of the psalm of the opening verse, invites us to extol with praises Christ our God crucified for us and to worship Him with the thought of Golgotha, which was the place of His crucifixion and thus became the footstool of His feet nailed to the Cross.”
"All Meekness" by David
The first words of the chant have become a kind of household word for many believers who apply them to their lives. This understanding goes back, for example, to the interpretation of the Byzantine author Euthymius Zigaben:
“He calls meekness the unforgettable malice and long-suffering of David towards Saul and his accomplices, also towards Shimei, who reviled him, and many others. The Jews mention here one meekness of David: because David especially perfected himself in this virtue, although through this virtue other Davidic perfections are also revealed. Remember, says, Lord, David, this meek man, who with meekness pleased You.”
Prot. Oleg Stenyaev, in his sermon on the psalm on the Exeget portal on January 30, 2021, says that David is rightly called the friend of God, pleasing to Him.
