Psalm 33:2
2 Praise [yadah] the LORD [Yahovah] with harp [kinnowr]: sing [zamar] unto him with the psaltery [nebel] and an instrument of ten strings [`asowr]. KJV-Interlinear
2 Give thanks to the Lord with the lyre; make melody to him with the harp of ten
strings! ESV
The previous psalm demonstrated
the need for, and the method of, completing ones spiritual life. This psalm is an extension of that psalm, in
that, when you advance in your spiritual life, you achieve a happiness that is
not otherwise available to you by any other means, in life.
And here we have two
instruments that describe the results of ones spiritual advancement.
The harp or lyre, is a
general term for a stringed instrument.
It symbolizes the music that is the response to an emotional
appreciation, that otherwise cannot be expressed in words. The spiritual life is constructed with the
words from God, but our appreciation is beyond words that we cannot express.
Our music is that of the heart,
from deep within. Something that we can
feel, but really lack the understanding to express in other than music, the
music of the soul.
The ten-stringed instrument
emphasizes the number of strings. Ten is
typically used in the scriptures to describe a perfect thing. In our expressions, we say that he or she is a
ten, or that something is rated on a scale from one to ten. The ten being the equivalent of perfection,
beyond which there is no further perfection.
This is not numerology,
which is a false science or theory, but merely the expression using numbers, to
symbolize a perfect thing. The
consistent use of numbers in their various forms, only add to the divine design
that God instituted long ago.
So it is the expression
of a perfect union of doctrine resulting in music in the soul. This is the objective of happiness and
completeness for which we should all strive.
And the only way to
achieve this is to abide by Gods mandates, from which the Bible is saturated
with instructions. We have only to learn
them, but more than that, we need to pursue them.
Human life plus positive
volition plus Bible doctrine, utilized and applied consistently by means of
Gods design in the divine process, results in the perfect life.
