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The Structure, Genre, and Meaning of Psalm 129

Elie Assis

To cite this article: Elie Assis (2017) The Structure, Genre, and Meaning of Psalm 129,
Scandinavian Journal of the Old Testament, 31:1, 142-154, DOI: 10.1080/09018328.2017.1301645

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Scandinavian Journal of the Old Testament, 2017
Vol. 31, No. 1, 142-154, http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/09018328.2017.1301645

The Structure, Genre, and Meaning

of Psalm 129

Elie Assis
Bar-Ilan University, Faculty of Jewish Studies, Department of Bible
Ramat-Gan 52900, Israel
[email protected]
‫ִׁשיר הַ מַ עֲלֹות‬ )‫(א‬
‫ְעּורי‬
ַ ‫ַרבַ ת צְ ָררּו ִׁני ִׁמנ‬
.‫י ֹאמַ ר נָא יִׁ ְש ָראֵ ל‬
.‫גַם ל ֹא יָכְ לּו לִׁ י‬ ‫ְעּורי‬
ָ ‫ַרבַ ת צְ ָררּו ִׁני ִׁמנ‬ )‫(ב‬
.‫הֶ א ֱִׁריכּו לְ מַ ֲע ִׁניתָ ם‬ ‫ַעל גַבִׁ י חָ ְרשּו חֹ ְר ִׁשים‬ )‫(ג‬
.‫קִׁ צֵ ץ עֲבֹות ְרשָ עִׁ ים‬ ‫יְ הֹ וָה צַ דִׁ יק‬ )‫(ד‬
.‫כֹ ל שֹנְ אֵ י צִׁ ּיֹון‬ ‫יֵבֹ שּו וְ ִׁיסֹגּו אָ חֹור‬ )‫(ה‬
.‫שֶ קַ דְ מַ ת שָ לַף יָבֵ ש‬ ‫יִׁ הְ יּו ַכחֲצִׁ יר גַגֹות‬ )‫(ו‬
.‫וְ חִׁ צְ נֹו ְמעַמֵ ר‬ ‫שֶ ל ֹא ִׁמלֵא כַּפֹו קֹוצֵ ר‬ )‫(ז‬
‫בִׁ ְרכַת יְ ֹהוָה ֲאלֵיכֶם‬ ‫וְ ל ֹא אָ ְמרּו הָ עֹ בְ ִׁרים‬ )‫(ח‬
.‫בְ שֵ ם יְ ֹהוָה‬ ‫בֵ ַרכְ נּו אֶ ְתכֶם‬
.
1
A Song of Ascents
“Often have they attacked me from my youth”
—Israel says—
2
“often have they attacked me from my youth,
yet they have not prevailed against me.
3
The plowers plowed on my back;
they made their furrows long.”
4
The LORD is righteous;
he has cut the cords of the wicked.
5
May all who hate Zion
be put to shame and turned backward.
6
They are like the grass on the housetops
that withers before it grows up,
7
with which reapers do not fill their hands
or binders of sheaves their arms,
8
while those who pass by do not say,
“The blessing of the LORD be upon you!
We bless you in the name of the LORD!”
ABSTRACT: Psalm 129 depicts the distress of the people in exile. The com-
mon understanding is that vv. 6-8 is a lament for the downfall of its pre-
sent adversaries. This article proves that this is not the meaning of the

© The Editors of the Scandinavian Journal of the Old Testament

 The Structure, Genre, and Meaning of Psalm 129 143

second half of the Psalm. It contains no appeal to God for salvation or

thanksgiving for an ameliorated situation. Verses 6-8 depict the transience
of the people’s exilic existence. The psalmist likens the people to the roof-
top grass that withers rapidly. The rooftop grass evokes the poverty and
the landlessness of the people that compel them to utilize their rooftops to
grow crops that yield so little that there is almost nothing to harvest. This
situation stands in contrast to the divine blessing of the agriculture in the
Land of Israel. The psalmist’s objective is to convey the harsh reality of
the exile. He juxtaposes this situation against the much awaited future and
against the abundant Divine blessing of the past.
Key words: structure, exile, agriculture, rooftop grass, retribution, divine
blessing,
Genre and Structure: Survey of Research and Discussion
Most scholars consider Psalm 129 a reflection of the exiled Jews’ tribula-
tions, prompted by their harsh treatment by the nations in the wake of the
destruction of 586 BCE.1 No scholarly consensus exists, however, on the
structure of the psalm, its genre and its objective. Dahood divides the psalm
into two parts: the first depicts the hardships endured by Israel throughout
history2 (vv.1-3) while the second solicits the downfall of its present adver-
saries.3 Many scholars do not view verse 4 as part of this petition, but rather
include it in the portrayal of the past; thus, the prevailing opinion places verse
4 within the first section. The psalm is accordingly split into two sub-units:
verses 1-4 and verses 5-8.4 Based on form criticism, Gunkel classified the
psalm as a mixed genre, combining elements of thanksgiving and a popular
song of lament. He regarded verses 1-4 as a song of communal thanksgiving
for past deliverance, and construed verses 5-8 as a popular lament that evokes

1. See Ibn Ezra, Mitrani; Meiri, in: Mikra'ot Gedolot “HaKeter,” Psalms Part II (edit-
ed: M. Cohen), Ramat Gan, Bar Ilan University Press, 2003. See also, e.g.: H. Gun-
kel, Introduction to the Psalms: The Genres of the Religious Lyric of Israel (trans. J.
D. Nogalski; Macon, Mercer, 1998), p. 246; H-J Kraus, Psalms 60-150, A Continen-
tal Commentary (trans H. C. Oswald; Minneapolis, Fortress, 1993), p. 461; E. S.
Gerstenberger, Psalms Part 2 and Lamentations (FOTL, XV; Grand Rapids, Eerd-
mans, 2001), p. 353. Weiser is among the very few who claim that no historical
background event can be determined. Instead, the psalm is a cultic representation of
history in which the congregation celebrated its assurance of God’s salvation. A.
Weiser, The Psalms, A Commentary (OTL; London, Westminster, 1962), p. 771.
2. Keet, too, believes that v. 1 is speaking of the various enemies of Israel: C. C.
Keet, A Study of the Psalms of Ascents: A Critical and Exegetical Commentary upon
Psalms CXX to CXXXIV (London, Mitre, 1969), p. 69.
3. M. Dahood, Psalms III 101-150 (AB; New York, Doubleday, 1970), p. 230.
4. In: F-L. Hossfeld and E. Zenger, Psalms 3, A Commentary on Psalms 101-150
(Hermeneia; trans: L. M. Maloney; Minneapolis, Fortress, 2011), p. 409. Other divi-
sions of the Psalm have been offered; for a survey of opinions and discussion see: A.
J. O. van der Wal, “The Structure of Psalm CXXIX,” VT 38 (1988), pp. 364-367.
144 Elie Assis

the hope for future retribution to be visited upon the nations.5 Kraus under-
stood the second section as a ‘confident conviction’ or a ‘declaration of cer-
tainty’ in keeping with his view that the element of trust predominates in the
psalm. Consequently, he defined the entire psalm as a community prayer
song.6 Kraus perceived the psalm as a congregational prayer relating to per-
sistent gentile hostility throughout the period of the exile and as an articula-
tion of the community’s faith in God. Despite the nations’ ongoing oppres-
sion, depicted in verse 3, they have been unsuccessful in subjugating Israel
(v.2) owing to Divine intervention on Israel’s behalf (v.4).7 Gerstenberger
perceives verses 5-8 as an imprecation. Overall, the psalm wavers between
thanksgiving and lament; it contains elements of the two genres, yet con-
comitantly lacks crucial components of both. Ultimately, he asserts that this
singular psalm best conforms to the genre of a congregational thanksgiving
psalm. The psalm was recited by the deportees or by those who remained in
the land following the events of 586.8 Zenger contends that the psalm does
not comply with any of the classic genres. He considers it a petitionary pray-
er, an appeal to God for liberation from all haters of Zion. He believes the
psalm embodies the anguish caused by social, political and military distress,
alongside anticipation that God will end the individual and collective suffer-
ing endured by Israel throughout its history.9 Zenger views verses 1-4 as a
portrayal of past suffering and verses 5-8 as a prayer for the future. He em-
phasizes that both sections conclude with an invocation of the Tetragramma-
ton.10 Gerstenberger asserts that the phrase ‘Israel says’ evinces the psalm’s
liturgical context.11
In view of the divergent approaches to the division of the psalm and the
diverse attempts to define its genre, the consensus regarding the interpretation
of verses 5-8 as anticipation of the downfall of Israel’s opponents is particu-
larly striking. The outcome of this unity regarding verses 5-8 manifests in the
relatively minor differences of opinion in respect to the psalm’s genre. In this
article I will posit an alternative to the sweeping consensus according to
which verses 5-8 reflect the peoples’ desire that retribution be meted out to
the nations. This new interpretation will elucidate several enigmas within the
psalm and will shed new light on its genre, its structure and objective.

5. H. Gunkel, Die Psalmen (HAT; Göttingen, Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht, 1926), pp.
558-559; Gunkel, Introduction to the Psalms, p. 246. Weiser, The Psalms, p. 771; F.
Crüsemann, Studien zur Formgeschichte von Hymnus und Danklied in Israel (Neu-
kirchen, Neukirchen-Vluyn, 1969), pp. 168-169; L. D. Crow, The Songs of Ascents
(Psalms 120-134): Their Place in Israelite History and Religion (SBLDS, 148; Atlan-
ta, SBL, 1996), p. 81.
6. Kraus, Psalms 60-150, p. 461.
7. Kraus, Psalms 60-150, p. 462.
8. Gerstenberger, Psalms Part 2 and Lamentations, pp. 352-354.
9. Zenger, Psalms 3, A Commentary on Psalms 101-150, p. 408.
10. Zenger, Psalms 3, A Commentary on Psalms 101-150, p. 411.
11. Gerstenbeger, Psalms Part 2 and Lamentations, p. 352.
 The Structure, Genre, and Meaning of Psalm 129 145

It is highly implausible that verses 4-8 constitute anticipation of the down-

fall of Zion’s enemies. The expectation in verse 6 that: “they are like the
grass on the housetops that withers before it grows up”, seems peculiar and
irregular. The conventional interpretation of the verse views it as the psalm-
ist’s wish for the disappearance of Israel’s oppressive enemies, much as the
grass that grows on the rooftops suddenly withers. Several biblical sources
bespeak the grass’s evanescence. Psalm 90,6: “In the morning it springs up
new, but by evening it is dry and withered” (as well as Ps 37,2; 103,15-16
and Isa 40,6-8). Yet this explanation does not comport with what follows:
“with which reapers do not fill their hands or binders of sheaves their arms”.
These concepts, from the agricultural world, relate to the reaping stage, once
the wheat has ripened. If the psalm depicts wild weeds growing on the roof-
tops, why then does it relate the meagerness of the harvest that yielded insuf-
ficient sheaves to fill the harvester’s hands and garments? The psalmist’s
topic is obliteration, not the deficiency of the harvested crop! Even more
problematic, however, is the fact that harvesting is not an action that can per-
tain to the cultivation of weeds. Moreover, the assertion regarding the paucity
of the weeds is difficult to understand. On the contrary – the propagation of
the rooftop weeds only exacerbates the situation. Indeed, none of the sources
that elaborate the rapid withering of the grass relate to its meagerness. Nei-
ther does the psalm’s conclusion concur, in my view, with the interpretation
of verses 5-8 as a wish for the enemies’ downfall. Verse 8 states: “While
those who pass by do not say, “The blessing of the Lord be upon you! We
bless you in the name of the Lord!” If the psalm anticipates the obliteration of
the enemy how does this accord with the refusal to bless the enemy in the
name of the Lord? Is it at all conceivable that the passers-by should bless the
enemies in the name of the Lord? Who, according to this interpretation, are
the passers-by who will, in the future, withhold the Lord’s blessing from the
harassers of the Jews? Kraus, seemingly cognizant of the second problem,
interpreted the second half of verse 8 as the blessing uttered by the priest to
the people of Israel, in contrast with the blessing withheld from the nations as
stated by the first part of the verse.12 This suggestion is difficult to accept
since the verse does not specify that the blessing will inhere upon Israel, ra-
ther it determines that the Divine blessing will not inhere at all. Furthermore,
the verse contains no allusion to a priest. It is more probable that the verse is
alluding to the reapers’ blessing in Ruth 2,4 though the priestly blessing of
Num 6, 22-27 is also embedded in the author’s consciousness.13
It is therefore extremely difficult to interpret these verses as relating to the
enemies of Judah as the anticipated retribution is relatively lenient. Further-
more, the absence of the blessing upon the enemies seems anomalous to this

12. Weiser, The Psalms, p. 772; Kraus, Psalms 60-150, p. 463. Gerstenberger sug-
gests that this blessing was recited by the official leader of the service to the people,
Gerstenberger, Psalms Part 2 and Lamentations, p. 354.
13. On use of the priestly blessing in the Songs of Ascent, see: L. J. Liebreich, “The
songs of Ascents and the Priestly Blessing,” JBL 74 (1955), pp. 33-36.
146 Elie Assis

context which instead invites expectations of a curse to be invoked upon

them. There is a discernible disparity between these verses and, for compari-
son’s sake, the anticipation of punishment in Psalm 137, where the tormented
psalmist pleas for harsh vengeance to be exacted upon his enemies. Most
scholars were indifferent to this matter. Weiser is apparently among the few
who grapple with the problem. He attempts to isolate the identities of the
haters of Zion in verse 5, proposing a distinction between the haters of Zion
of verse 5 and the adversaries who are the subject of the psalm’s first section.
In his view, this verse refers to other haters of Zion, probably those from the
northern kingdom of Israel.14 Weiser argues that if verse 8 were referring to
the enemies mentioned at the beginning of the psalm, then the hope for retri-
bution against the nations is not (sufficiently) severe nor is it detrimental to
them.15 As demonstrated, though Weiser’s assertion is correct his conclusion
that indicates another entity, probably the northern kingdom of Israel, is im-
plausible since the psalm is not addressing the status of Jerusalem but rather
Israel’s oppression by its enemies. Goulder tends to Weiser’s view that the
said haters of Zion are not enemies; instead he posits that they are a traitorous
group within Judah. He hypothesizes that the events depicted in Neh. 13, 4-
14 comprise the backdrop to the psalm. Psalm 129 condemns the Judean trai-
tors who built Tobias an office in the Temple. Nehemiah aggressively resist-
ed this action and Goulder views Psalm 129 as an expression of this opposi-
tion.16 This explanation, however, is also stretched since the psalm contains
no reference to the events of Neh. 13. Indeed, Kraus disputed the opinion that
the haters of Zion were members of the people who maintained a covenantal
relationship with God, as Kraus suggested.17

A New Proposal
The topic of verses 6-8
The key to the psalm’s interpretation lies in the correct understanding of the
verb “they are” “‫ ”יהיו‬in verse 6. The verb has been unanimously assumed by
scholars to be the yiqtol that conveys the future tense. Therefore, many inter-
preted the verses as anticipation of an imprecation to be visited upon the en-
emies.18 Heightening this impression is the fact that the preceding verse,
verse 5, also employs verbs—“be put to shame” “‫ ”יבשו‬and “turned back-
wards” “‫—”יסגו‬in the yiqtol form that are decidedly jussive. In my opinion,

14. Weiser, The Psalms, p. 771.

15. Weiser, The Psalms, pp. 771-772. See also: Crüesmann who claims that the term
‫ שנאי ציון‬never refers to a foreign enemy. He believes that it indicates the northern
tribe of Israel. See: Crüsemann, Studien zur Formgeschichte von Hymnus und
Danklied in Israel, p. 172.
16. M. D. Goulder, The Psalms of the Return (Book V, Psalms 107-150): Studies in
the Psalter, IV (JSOT SS, 258; Sheffield, Sheffield Academic Press, 1998), pp. 74-79.
17. Kraus, Psalms 60-150, p. 461.
18. Crüsemann, Studien zur Formgeschichte von Hymnus und Danklied in Israel, pp.
171-172.
 The Structure, Genre, and Meaning of Psalm 129 147

however, the tense of the verb in verse 6 has been misinterpreted and this
error is the basis from which the misreading of the entire psalm derives. The
verb’s tense can be also construed as the present continuous that conveys a
recurring action, such as in Gen. 29, 2.19 I will, however, preface treatment of
this verse, with a discussion of verse 1, which also contains the verb “says”
“‫ ”יאמר‬in the yiqtol form. Many scholars have construed the inflection of this
verb too as the future tense.20 Yet this interpretation is hardly admissible
since the psalmist is depicting the people’s existing dire situation, and not
some future predicament. Therefore, the possibility that the sentence is im-
plying that they will complain about a future situation is difficult to concede.
Some commentators preferred to interpret the verse as an indication that the
people would, in the future, offer praise to the Lord.21 However, this does not
seem to be the meaning of the sentence; the sentence is rather implying that
the people are currently uttering the words of lament: “Often have they at-
tacked me from my youth”.22 Thus, the yiqtol form of the verb “say” “‫”יאמר‬
should be construed as conveying a recurring lament stating: “often they have
attacked me from my youth”—a refrain reprised by Israel throughout its so-
journ in the exile. This is also the meaning of the verb in Num. 10, 36:
“Whenever it came to rest (=‫ (ּובְ נֻחֹ ה י ֹאמַ ר‬he said, Return, LORD, to the count-
less thousands of Israel”. This explanation also accords well with the repeti-
tion that articulates the people’s recurring complaint over their protracted dire
situation: “often they have attacked me from my youth”… often they have
attacked me from my youth”. This understanding of the yiqtol form also
sheds new light on the meaning of sentence “They are like the grass on the
housetops”, v. 6. I suggest that the word ‫‘( יהיו‬they are’) appears here not in
the future tense but rather in the present continuous, in the sense of a recur-
rent action. This is the verb’s meaning in other sources, for example in
Psalms: 37,18—“The blameless spend their days under the LORD’s care, and
their inheritance will endure forever (=‫”)ונחלתם לעולם תהיה‬23; 90,5—“You
sweep them away as with a flood (=‫ ;)זרמתם שנה יהיו‬they are like a dream, like
grass that is renewed in the morning”.24 According to this proposed interpre-
tation, the verse does not impart a future desire concerning the nations but
rather describes the present. Therefore, the depiction of the situation cannot
pertain to the nations; the only reasonable option is that the psalmist has re-
sumed his depiction of the situation of the people in exile. The verse thus

19. For yiqtol as a repetitive action see: Gesenius’ Hebrew Grammar (2d Eng. ed. by
A. E. Cowley; Oxford, Oxford University Press, 1910), p. 315.
20. See e.g.: KJV; NRSV; JPS; and in all standard commentaries.
21. Radak.
22. Mitrani; Meiri; A. Hacham, Tehilim (vol. 2; (Daat Miqra; Jerusalem, Mosad
HaRav Kook, 1981), p. 129 (Hebrew).
23. JPS. H-J. Kraus, Psalms 1-59, A Continental Commentary (trans. H. C. Oswald;
Minneapolis, Fortress, 1993), p. 402.
24. KJV; NRSV; JPS; Hacham, Tehilim, vol. 2, p. 163; Zenger and Hossfeld, Psalms
2, p. 422.
148 Elie Assis

connotes the transience of Jewish existence in the exile. The Jews’ lot in exile
is one of impermanence and insecurity, like the grass that quickly withers,
before it is reaped. The palmist depicts Jewish existence in the exile as
ephemeral and insignificant. While verse 5 is construed as a wish regarding
the enemies, according to the interpretation suggested herein, verses 6-9, in
contradistinction to the accepted interpretation, portray Judah’s predicament
in the exile. Verse 6, as stated, relates the people’s precarious existence in the
exile and verse 7 continues to elaborate the people’s exilic situation. It too
employs agricultural imagery, this time to underscore the people’s dwindled
state in exile. The withheld benediction in verse 8, relates, according to this
interpretation, to the people’s unpropitious reality in the exile. This is a plau-
sible interpretation of verse 8 since it does not contain a wish regarding the
nations as suggested by most scholars, nor does it describe the people’s
blessed situation as proposed by others. It describes precisely what it con-
tains: the absence of Divine blessing—a depiction exceedingly appropriate to
the Jew’s exilic situation.
According to the interpretation proposed herein, verse 6 lacks a subject.
This problem does not manifest in the conventional method of interpretation
according to which the haters of Zion, referred to at the conclusion of the
preceding verse, constitute the subject of the verb ‫“ יהיו‬they are.” This is yet
another reason for this interpretation’s popularity. In my view, however, the
subject is Israel, referred to in verse 1. Though a shift in the verses’ subject
occurs in the transition between verse 5 and 6, this elicits no great difficulty
for two reasons. First, the phenomenon of transitioning from one subject to
the next, without indicating the subject, is not uncommon in the biblical nar-
rative and is even more prevalent in biblical poetry. Moreover, as I will
demonstrate in due course, the psalm’s topic is a depiction of the people’s
distress in the exile. Though verses 4-5 proceed to discuss the wicked haters
of Zion, the topic of the psalm is not the enemy, and seeking their downfall is
not the psalm’s objective. Indeed, the psalm does not implore God to visit
retribution upon the enemy or beseech Him to succor his people. The focus is
the people’s tribulations and the psalm’s objective is merely to depict this
situation. Since the people are the subject of the psalm, when the psalmist
returns in verse 7 to the main topic—the people – after digressing to discuss
the enemy in verses 4-5, no cues are needed since the topic has never depart-
ed the psalmist’s consciousness or that of his readers’ throughout the course
of the psalm.
Most scholars regard the tense of the verb “cut” ‫ קצץ‬in verse 4 as expres-
sive of God’s modus operandi, and not descriptive of a past situation in
which God “cut the cords of the wicked.”25 The psalm does not suggest any
modification of the depicted grim situation. It portrays, in verse 4, God’s
method of striking at the wicked without even explicitly imploring God to do
so. Though it is nonetheless clear that this verse reflects the psalmist’s antici-

25. Gerstenberger, Psalms Part 2 and Lamentations, p. 353.

 The Structure, Genre, and Meaning of Psalm 129 149

pation of God’s salvation, the psalm was recited during such dire times that
the articulation of this hope is subdued and merely alluded to.

The Structure of the Psalm, its Genre and Significance

The preceding discussion posits a different structure to the psalm.
Verses 1-5 – The distress of the people, oppressed by the enemy, and the
hope for Divine retribution against them.
Verses 6-8 – The despair of the people in view of their exilic condition and
their yearning for more propitious bygone days.
The first section, verses 1-5, opens, in verses 1-3, with a description of the
people’s distress in the exile and of their misery precipitated by their ene-
mies. In verses 4-5, the psalmist expresses his hope that the wicked haters of
Zion will experience retribution. The second part, verses 6-8, begins, in vers-
es 6-7, with a depiction of the harsh agricultural situation that the people
confront, while in verse 8 the psalmist conveys the absence of Divine bless-
ing in this reality as well as yearning for the situation whereby the Divine
blessing inhered among the people. Each section commences with a portrayal
of the current situation, employing an agricultural motif—plowing in the first
section (v. 3) and reaping in the second (v. 7). Each section concludes with
the exposition of a situation antithetical to the present situation. The first
section articulates hope for a future in which the enemy will be punished (v.
5) while the second alludes to the propitious past situation (v. 8). The first
section concludes with the hope that God will punish the wicked in the future
(v. 5) while the final part of the second section (v. 8) yearns for the Divine
blessing of yesteryear. In this manner, the psalm depicts the current situation,
juxtaposed against the hope for a better future and against a more favorable
past.
In contrast with the scholarly view that explicates verses 5-8 as a petition
for retribution against the nations, according to the analysis presented here
these verses continue the depiction of the people’s distress. The requisite
conclusion is therefore, that the psalm does not stress the hope for a better
future but is principally a lament over the present situation, as opposed to
both the future and the past. The emphasis is squarely on the present. This
psalm is thus akin to Psalm 120, which also highlights the dismal present.
According to this proposed interpretation, the psalm contains no elements
of thanksgiving. The psalm is a lament about the situation of the people in
exile though it lacks the elements of an appeal to God for salvation typical of
this genre. This appeal is just barely detectible in the psalmist’s articulation
of trust or wish that God will punish those who hurt his people (v. 4). Con-
ceivably, the understated articulation of these elements of appeal to God can
be explained by the fact that the psalmist’s chief objective in this psalm is
descriptive—to depict the dire situation. Perhaps too, the psalmist’s hope for
salvation was far-fetched as other analogous contemporary sources attest.
Therefore, the psalm’s deviation from the genre of petitionary psalms can be
explained on the one hand by the psalmist’s freedom to employ a known
150 Elie Assis

genre to express a sense of uniqueness. On the other hand, this deviation de-
rives from the special historical situation encountered by the psalmist, of a
seemingly interminable exile. As stated, this is also the genre of Psalm 120.

The Role of the Agricultural Motifs

The agricultural theme occupies pride of place in this short psalm. The psalm
includes three agriculturally related themes which I will attempt to explicate
according to the psalm’s new elucidation. The first appears in verse 3: “The
plowers plowed on my back; they made their furrows long.” The psalmist
likens himself to the earth and the torment inflicted upon him by his attackers
to the act of plowing upon his back, scoring it with long gashes. The word
‫ מענית‬is a furrow created by the plow in the earth.26 Why did the psalmist
employ this unique metaphor to illustrate the suffering of the people? The
imagery of plowing the back is evocative of the nation’s plight. The image of
the people, likened to a person lying prostrated, face down, while the plow
turns his back, bespeaks the powerlessness of the people in the exile. A per-
son lying in this face down position is utterly passive and can offer no re-
sistance. He is, in all probability, a bound captive while the plow scores his
back. This motif of helplessness is particularly difficult for the sufferer to
bear; he does not struggle and he offers no opposition. Beyond the immense
pain is the loss of the ability to counter it. The sufferer must endure the an-
guish and cannot even express his opposition. The choice of the word ‫מענית‬
might also imply that this action constitutes a form of torture—‫עינוי‬.
Beyond the specific significance of this agricultural metaphor, its use
should be viewed as one aspect of the psalm’s overarching agricultural
theme. Accordingly, an examination of the remaining agricultural motifs is in
order. First I will examine the psalm’s final verse, verse 8, which features the
third agricultural allusion: “While those who pass by do not say ‘The blessing
of the Lord be upon you! We bless you in the name of the Lord’.” The
verse’s agricultural context is evoked by the analogy to Boaz’s greetings to
his reapers and their response in Ruth 2,4,27 where the blessing constitutes an
exchange between Boaz, the landowner and his reapers, on the backdrop of
the harvest. In the Boaz story the blessing is a mutual exchange: Boaz greets
the reapers with the blessing “God is with you” and they in turn respond
“God bless you.” Our psalm too, features a dialogue between passers-by who
say “The blessing of the Lord be upon you” and the responders, identified in
the first person plural who say “We bless you in the name of the Lord.” The
conclusion of verse 8 indeed alludes to an agricultural context based on the
clear parallel to the Book of Ruth, yet it is primarily aroused through the im-
mediate context of the verse itself. Verse 7 depicts the meager harvest
gleaned by the reaper, in contrast with the Divine blessing of verse 8. Verse 7
forms part of the psalm’s third agricultural motif. The beginning of the verse
describes the situation in exile in juxtaposition to the situation in the Land of

26. See HALOT.

27. Keet, A Study of the Psalms of Ascents, p. 74; Kraus, Psalms 60-150, p. 462.
 The Structure, Genre, and Meaning of Psalm 129 151

Israel: in contradistinction to the abundant blessing in the land alluded to in

verse 8, in exile the harvest is paltry and the reaper gleans barely a handful.
The verses’ second half continues the theme of the first: the binder, who
makes sheaves of the stalks, cannot even fill his garment with grain in the
customary fashion of the reapers who would fold over the hem of their cloth-
ing to cradle the stalks. The psalmist in verses 7-8 contrasts the meager har-
vest in exile and the absence of blessing with the Divine blessing that inheres
upon the harvest in the Land of Israel.
Verse 8 articulates a threefold blessing. Firstly, the blessing is Divine. The
grain that is produced is awarded by God, reflecting a befitting relationship
between the people, the recipients of the blessing in the ancient period before
the destruction, and God. The people’s enjoyment of their harvest is contin-
gent upon a properly sustained covenantal relationship between themselves
and God, in keeping with the pervasive biblical conception, most conspicu-
ous in Deuteronomy. The second aspect of the blessing herein depicted mani-
fests in the reciprocal salutations, exposited as a dialogue with passers-by,
whereby both parties invoke blessings upon each other. It is possible that this
depiction is intended to portray a well-ordered society. Thirdly, the Divine
blessing at harvest time certainly pertains to the abundance of the agricultural
produce. This abundance contrasts with the current situation of the psalmist
in exile: “with which reapers do not fill their hand or binders of sheaves their
arms.”
Seemingly then, verse 8 alludes to the joyful atmosphere at harvest time
and the people’s assurance that they were the beneficiaries of Divine bless-
ing. This feeling is articulated in the reapers’ mutual greetings, exchanged in
the name of the Lord. The psalmist, who lived in exile at the time of the de-
struction, is nostalgic for the agricultural life, when the people owned their
land, and for the joyous feeling that accompanied the harvest period in the
pre-destruction era.
The psalm opens with an agricultural metaphor and it closes with an allu-
sion to a distinctly agrarian event. The beginning of the psalm relates to the
activity of plowing while its conclusion pertains to the harvest. In this man-
ner the psalmist juxtaposes the two situations- the lives of the Jews in exile,
which he compares to the torture of his back being plowed, and the life of the
nation in its homeland, depicted through another agricultural vignette – the
blessing of harvest time. The exile is characterized by torment and pain: life
in their patrimonial land is Divinely blessed.28
The second agricultural motif figures in verse 6: “They are like the grass
on the housetops that withers before it grows up”. The depiction of the mea-
ger grain in verse 7 continues the portrayal of its transience in verse 6. As I

28. Zenger, too, has noticed the reversal between the plowing at the beginning of the
Psalm, and the harvesting at its conclusion. However, he viewed the punishment of
the enemies, represented by the harvesting, as a role-reversal between them and the
people whose suffering is metaphorically depicted by plowing; see also Zenger,
Psalms 3, A Commentary on Psalms 101-150, p. 408.
152 Elie Assis

already noted, the verb “are” “‫ ”יהיו‬signifies the peoples’ ongoing suffering.
The psalmist employs the simile of “the grass of the housetops” to character-
ize the nation at the threshold of extinction, in a precarious and transitory
situation. The grass that grows on the housetops is so transitory and evanes-
cent that even before it’s pulled, before it can be plucked, it already withers.29
This image, that relates in this psalm to the people, appears elsewhere in rela-
tion to the ephemeralness of the wicked (Psa. 37,2; 90,5; 103,15; Isa. 40, 6-8;
Job 8,12).
Scholars have agreed that the grass indicated in the verse is a wild weed
that is unfit for human consumption but is suitable for animals to ingest.30
This is what is implied by many of the references to this grass in the Bible,
for example: 1 Kings 18,5; Psa. 104,14; Job 40,15; Pro. 27,25. At first blush,
this seems plausible, since our verse echoes the conclusion that existence is
transient like the grass, a motif that we have seen expressed elsewhere. Yet
verse 7 refers explicitly to the paucity of the crop that is insufficient even to
fill the arms of the reaper as he reaps. Since grass designated as animal fod-
der is not reaped, it is difficult to accept that this is what the verse implies.
The word “grass” ‫ חציר‬in the Hebrew Bible harbors another meaning. In
Num. 11,5, grass is cited as a food consumed by the Israelites in Egypt, along
with melons and garlic. This source is certainly not specifying animal feed.
Scholars have identified this plant as the allium porrum—a type of leek.31 I
believe that this is also the meaning of verse 7 of Psalm 129. Only thus can
we make sense of the problem presented in verse 8—that the reaper succeeds
in reaping only a scant measure of grass.32
It seems, therefore, that the psalmist is describing the phenomenon of
rooftop horticulture. I must disclose that I could find no corroboration of this
practice of people growing various crops on their rooftops.33 It is known that

29. Gunkel's suggestion to emend ‫ שֶ קָ ִׁדים ִׁת ְשדֹ ף‬instead of ‫ שקדמת שלף‬has not been
accepted and is not supported by ancient translation, or other textual witnesses. It
does draw some support from 2 Kng 19:26 = Isa 37:27. Gunkel, Die Psalmen, p. 560.
Duhm suggested ‫ חלף‬instead of ‫שלף‬. D. B. Duhm, Die Psalmen (KHAT), Leipzig und
Tübingen: Mohr, 1899, p. 277.
30. M. Ariel, "Hazir, Hazir Gagot, Deshe Bamekorot", Halamish 4 (1986), pp. 25-29
(Hebrew).
31. I. Löw, Die Flora der Juden, II (Wein und Leipzig, R. Loewit, 1924), p. 132; Y.
Feliks, Animals and Plants of the Torah: Illustrated by 200 Pictures (Jerusalem,
Young Israel, 1984), p. 204 (Hebrew); Z. Amar, Flora of the Bible: A New Investiga-
tion Aimed at Identifying All the Plants of the Bible in Light of Jewish Sources and
Scientific Research (Jerusalem, Rubin Mass, 2012), p. 95 (Hebrew).
32. See also Crow, The Songs of Ascent, p. 83.
33. In a private communication with Professor Michael Jurse, he confirmed that there
is no evidence for growing vegetables on roofs and he doubted if it was sensible to
do so. Perhaps large tubs of clay like flowerpots may have been used though this, he
claims, is complete guesswork. He says that here are certainly no written sources
from Babylonia that refer to vegetables grown (rather than stored) on the roof. How-
 The Structure, Genre, and Meaning of Psalm 129 153

roofs were used for sleeping and in the summer it was the preferred venue
where the family would congregate on account of the breeze. The roof was
also an area where fruits such as dates were dried and stored and where
bricks were kept.34 I would posit that at times people would place planters on
the roof in which a small number of simple crops could be cultivated. Since
this was a small-scale and limited enterprise, there is no reason to expect the
sources to refer explicitly to this phenomenon. There is, however, evidence
from later periods, probably relating to the Land of Israel, that rooftops were
utilized for limited domestic horticulture. Shmuel Krauss discussed the fact
that since the roofs were made of packed earth, uncultivated and undesirable
vegetation would sometimes proliferate there and damage the homes. He
speculates that people would also grow various forms of vegetation in plant-
ers placed on the rooftop.35 A number of Tanaitic and Talmudic sources attest
to this practice. The Tosefta Masserot, Chapter 3,9 (p. 85, Zuckermandel
edition) discusses onions implanted in the ground of the attic, in the context
of their status regarding tithes, the sabbatical year and whether it was permis-
sible to pluck them on the Sabbath.36 The Tosefta Shebiit chapter 1:12 (p. 62
Zuckermandel edition) states: “The aloes on the rooftop is maintained but it
is not watered”. Krauss concludes from the Yerushalmi Shvi’it 4 chap.4, 35b
line 52, that the vegetation referred to is not wild but is rather the well-known
aloe plant ‫אלוויי‬. The Tosefta in Shvi’it 3 chap.6, p. 64 also states: “And [dur-
ing the seventh year] they place pitcher shaped vessels of the rooftops and
maintain them and they scruple about neither the [restrictions of the] seventh
year nor [the restrictions] governing' the working of the Land [of Israel]".37
Returning to Psalm 129—since the psalmist is discussing the reaping of
rooftop grass, I would assume that he is referring to crops of leeks, which is a
simple edible plant. The psalm’s depiction of the rooftop cultivation of the
vegetable is emblematic of the Jews’ poverty in the exile. The Jewish depor-
tees were not generally landowners in the exile. It is likely that they were
initially prisoners of war who were settled on tracts of land as serfs, depend-
ent exclusively on the king.38 Denied ownership of the land and faced with a

ever, this by itself may not be indicative because as small-scale domestic production,
it would have been unlikely to generate written documentation in any case.
34. V. H. Matthews, Manners and Customs in the Bible (Peabody, Hendrickson,
1988), p. 48.
35. S. Krauss, Qadmoniyot HaTalmud (vol 1, part 2, Berlin-Vienna, Publisher not
indicated, 1924), pp. 328-329 (Hebrew); [S. Krauss, Talmudische Archäologie, vol. I
(Leipzig, G. Fock, 1966), p. 326 n. 396].
36. For English translation see: The Tosefta, Volume 1 (trans. J. Neusner; Peabody,
2002), p. 291.
37. Translation from: The Tosefta, Vol. 1 (trans. J. Neusner), p. 217
38. B. Oded, Mass Deportations and Deportees in the Neo-Assyrian Empire (Wies-
baden, Reichert, 1979), pp. 98-99. Oded claims that after a while they received fields
in tenure and had to pay taxes. Only in later stage did land become their own proper-
ty. He suggests a similar process in regard to the Judean deportees in Babylon, see:
154 Elie Assis

harsh economic situation, these exiles most probably exploited their homes to
cultivate simple homegrown crops. It is possible that they utilized the roof-
tops of their homes for this limited form of horticulture. The psalmist states,
in verse 6, that this type of vegetation is quick to wither and in verse 7 he
describes the yield as extremely meager. The psalmist continues, in verse 8,
to determine that the passers-by did not proffer the Lord’s blessing over this
‘harvest’. It is at this juncture that the present situation is juxtaposed against
the situation of the people in the pre-exilic period when the Lord’s blessing
inhered at harvest time.

Summary
Psalm 129 depicts the distress of the people in exile. It contains no appeal to
God for salvation or thanksgiving for an ameliorated situation. The anticipa-
tion of retribution against the adversaries is very limited in scope; it appears
in verse 5 not as a petition to God but as a heartfelt desire. In this manner the
psalmist contrasts the harsh present with an auspicious future. Verses 6-8
depict the transience of the people’s exilic existence. The psalmist likens the
people to the rooftop grass that withers rapidly. In the psalmist’s mind, the
rooftop grass evokes the poverty and the landlessness of the people that com-
pel them to utilize their rooftops to grow crops that yield so little that there is
almost nothing to harvest. This situation stands in contrast to God’s copious
blessing of the agriculture in the Land of Israel that is alluded to at the
psalm’s conclusion. The psalmist’s objective is to convey the harsh reality of
the exile. He juxtaposes this situation against the much awaited future and
against the abundant Divine blessing of the past.

B. Oded, The Early History of the Babylonian Exile (8th-6th Centuries B.C.E), (Hai-
fa, Pardes, 2010), p. 169 (Hebrew).