Psalm 133

Trinity - Ökumenischer Gottesdienst

Dear congregation,

I. “Behold, how good and pleasant it is when brothers dwell together in unity!” says Psalm 133.

No disagreement there—except that today we would translate the word brothers as brothers and sisters.

“Behold, how good and pleasant it is when brothers and sisters dwell together in unity!”

A glance at today’s festival congregation confirms this. How wonderful that we, as separate congregations, are celebrating worship together. It is a beautiful thing that this is possible! It requires a willingness to meet one another halfway on all sides. We are not content with our separation—but we know that we belong together. Not only because we share a love for the German language and our heritage, but because we are one in Christ.

II. Reading the Bible requires careful attention. If the psalm says that brothers are to dwell together in unity, then the psalmist reveals himself to be a peacemaker.

For when brothers quarrel in the world of the Bible, it means waging war.

Against this background, Psalm 133 must be understood. It is a wise word about peaceful coexistence. It is a word spoken against what many people and nations experience, both then and now. It is a word spoken

against conflict and rivalry.

III. Already on the first pages of the Bible we are told of the cruelties of which brothers are capable. Cain kills Abel.

A few chapters later comes the story of a stolen blessing.

With the help of his mother Rebekah, Jacob deceives his father Isaac and his brother Esau. What we can learn from this story of brothers about blessing and about the peaceful living together described in Psalm 133 is what I would like to explore in this sermon.

For not only Psalm 133 is appointed for today, but also the Aaronic Blessing, which we receive at the end of every worship service:

“The Lord bless you and keep you...”

The Aaronic Blessing ends with the words:

“The Lord give you peace.”

Psalm 133 describes what that peace looks like: brothers and sisters dwelling together in unity.

IV. Jacob and Esau leave no human abyss unexplored. Their story is marked by rivalry and belonging. Love has its season—and sadly, so does hatred.

Even before their birth, the two were rivals. Who would come into the world first?

Who would be first?

For being at the top, being out in front—that is a human understanding of blessing.

This human blessing is where we must begin. It is the blessing that divides.

The divine blessing, however, as we shall see, creates reconciliation among brothers and sisters.

Let us begin with the human blessing. Here it is the father’s blessing.

Why did Jacob want it so desperately?

Why was it so important to him to be the firstborn?

The answer is clear: the firstborn received special favor. To him belonged the blessing and the largest share of his father’s inheritance.

Even our language reflects this human understanding of blessing.

When we say, “That is a blessed person,” we usually do not picture someone especially devout, but someone especially prosperous and healthy.

The blessing of God is often understood in the same way as a father’s blessing: the one whom God blesses becomes wealthy and healthy. Illness and existential hardship are perceived as the opposite. This is the great theme of the Book of Job.

But God’s blessing is different.

This becomes clear in the story of Jacob and Esau. Those who are blessed by God are not recognized by their wealth. They are recognized by the fact that they dwell together in unity and that justice flourishes among them.

Neither the Old Testament nor the New Testament is meant to be read as a guide to conflict between brothers or nations, but as a guide to how peace and harmony can come into being.

V. Let us look at Jacob and Esau from this perspective.

The father’s blessing—the human blessing of the firstborn—separates and divides the brothers. We call that discord. The divine blessing, which Jacob receives after wrestling with God through the darkness of the night, gives him the strength for reconciliation. It is human to desire to be first and best.

It is human to desire wealth and security, even if it comes at the expense of one’s brothers and sisters.

That was true then, and it is true today. It is true in personal life and in the wider human family.

There are the “firstborn” with their full pockets, and there are the others, for whom little remains.

“Behold, how good and pleasant it is when brothers dwell together in unity.”

No one would disagree with that insight. Yet in everyday life we are often far from it.

The stolen human blessing and birthright make Jacob wealthy. At the same time, they turn him into a fugitive—a man on the run, a fearful man.

He is afraid of his brother.

Guilt breeds fear.

VI. God remains at Jacob’s side. That is not an approval of Jacob’s deceit. It is God’s constant call to insight and repentance. It takes Jacob a long time to understand this. But then something begins to change.

Jacob sends a messenger to Esau and tells him: “I am on my way to you with gifts. I bring a gift of blessing and ask for your favor.” The messengers return and tell Jacob that Esau is coming to meet him—accompanied by four hundred men. What does this mean? Is it a military expedition against Jacob? Or is it a peaceful approach, a compromise, a new beginning?

Then comes the long sleepless night in which Jacob wrestles with himself and with God.

Jacob stands in the midst of his fear. Are revenge and war coming toward him?

Will his brother come in peace? Jacob is tormented by guilt. Discord fills him with fear.

This time Jacob does not steal a blessing. This time he confronts the one before him:

“I will not let you go unless you bless me!” Jacob experiences what it means for God to let his face shine upon him in the middle of the night. Jacob experiences God’s grace.

Jacob senses how healing it is when God’s face rests upon him and when peace works within him and then through him.

Later Jacob gives that place a name: Peniel—“I have seen God.” Jacob emerges from this struggle for God’s blessing with an injury. He limps. The next day Jacob and Esau meet.

Jacob presents his gift of blessing. In doing so, he comes toward Esau.

Esau accepts the gift. From then on they walk the same road. Not in lockstep, but each at his own pace.

Different, yet reconciled.

VII. Dear congregation, what about us? For many years I served as the ecumenical officer of our regional church.

The great ecumenical movements arose after the two world wars. It was the conscious decision that Christians should never again shoot at one another in war. Never again should a brother from a neighboring

country be regarded as an enemy. This was the spirit of Psalm 133 and the conviction that, as people blessed by God, we are called to bear witness to God’s peace in the world.

I had wonderful experiences in that ministry. I met so many brothers and sisters from East and West, from North and South—Christians from many different churches and denominations, whether in the Conference

of European Churches or in the World Council of Churches.

A colorful diversity.

There was much willingness to meet one another halfway and a deep longing for reconciliation.

But sadly, there was also the experience of how painfully divided the churches remain. Estranged from one another. Here in Pretoria we experience both realities as well.

We gladly acknowledge our diversity and richness.

Yet there remains something troubling: that we who are blessed are still separated—especially at the Lord’s Table.

Every Sunday we all receive the blessing in our worship services: “The Lord bless you and keep you...”

Do we truly expect something from God’s blessing? Do we wrestle with God as Jacob did?

God’s blessing turned Jacob into a limping man. I like that image very much.

For the one who limps can no longer march. The blessed person loses self-righteousness and begins to recognize God’s righteousness.

Human blessing follows the principle that one person wins. One is first and another is last.

But God’s blessing multiplies when it is shared. Those who are blessed become a blessing for others.

This is what I would like to experience even more here in Pretoria: that we come to understand that we are a blessing to one another. There may be wounds and guilt among us, just as there were between Jacob and Esau. Yet we are and remain brothers and sisters.

So let us take the wisdom of the psalm to heart:

“Behold, how good and pleasant it is when brothers and sisters dwell together in unity.”

Let us wrestle with God and ask him to bless us.

Let us move toward one another—open-hearted, kind, and ready for reconciliation and harmony.

I close with a quotation from Dietrich Bonhoeffer, an insight born in the darkness of war and a commission for us: Whoever has been blessed himself can do nothing else but pass this blessing on.

Indeed, wherever he is, he must become a blessing. Only from the impossible can the world be renewed.

This impossible thing is the blessing of God. Let us receive God’s blessing at the end of this service and trust that God can make the impossible possible: the unity of Christians, a growing fellowship in faith, and perhaps one day even the sharing of bread and wine together.

And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, keep your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus.

Amen.