psalm 15, finding home

Psalm 15 Hebrew paragraph divisions:

Psa 15:1 A Psalm of David. Lord, who may abide in Your tabernacle? Who may dwell in Your holy hill?
Psa 15:2 He who walks uprightly, And works righteousness, And speaks the truth in his heart;
Psa 15:3 He who does not backbite with his tongue, Nor does evil to his neighbor, Nor does he take up a reproach against his friend;
Psa 15:4a In whose eyes a vile person is despised, But he honors those who fear the Lord; {n}
Psa 15:4b He who swears to his own hurt and does not change;
Psa 15:5a He who does not put out his money at usury, Nor does he take a bribe against the innocent. {n}
Psa 15:5b He who does these things shall never be moved. {p}

I am not wise enough to see the chiastic structure formed by Psa 15. But I was drawn to the opening and closing verses and so studied the Hebrew root words highlighted (please see the teaching tools of scripture for an explanation of the significance of the root words in ancient Hebrew).

abide: This word is Strong’s H1481, a primitive root, gimal + vav + resh. Gimal = foot, gather, walk; vav = tent peg, add, secure, hook; resh = head of a man, first, top, beginning. Gimal + resh is the partial which indicates the walking man, i.e, the nomad, sojourner, or traveler. The story the ancient pictographs are painting is to gather the tent peg to the nomad, i.e, he stops traveling, he has found a place to sojourn, and he abides there.

tabernacle: This word is Strong’s H168, from the root Strong’s H166, aleph + hey + lamed. Aleph = ox head, strength, power, leader; hey = man with upraised arms, look, reveal, breath; lamed = shepherd’s staff, teach, yoke, to, bind. The hey + lamed is the partial which indicates to shine in the verbal form, or a star in the concrete form, since one looks up (hey) at the stars to guide them (lamed) on the way. The story the ancient pictographs are painting is of the destination at the end of the journey, for the “strong shining” is the light of home to which the “distant shining” of the stars guided the traveler.

Isn’t it interesting that the ancient pictographs are telling the story of nomads, sojourners, travelers in search of home? We are sojourners in this world, like Abraham, the father of all who believe. We don’t find our home here, but in the tabernacle of the Lord, in His holy habitation, we find home. Our home, then, is in the presence of a Person, not a geographical location.

never be moved: This word is the negative of Strong’s H4131, a primitive root, mem + vav + tet. Mem = water, chaos, mighty, blood; vav = tent peg, add, secure, hook; tet = basket, surround, contain, mud. Mem + tet is the partial which indicates water within, i.e. a green branch. Something green is still flexible; it can be shaped to the desired shape and then left to dry. Once the water is removed it is no longer flexible, it retains its shape. The story the ancient pictographs are painting is of being shaken as a green branch moves back and forth in the wind.

How does one abide in His presence, so that we may stop being shaken back and forth by every wind that blows? We do not enter His presence (what the New Testament calls justification or salvation) by our upright works, but in walking uprightly (what the New Testament calls sanctification), we remain there.