"How good and pleasant it is when God’s people live together in unity! It is like precious oil poured on the head, running down on the beard, running down on Aaron’s beard, down on the collar of his robe. It is as if the dew of Hermon were falling on Mount Zion. For there the Lord bestows his blessing, even life forevermore."

Psalm 133:1-3

Israelis commonly dance when singing this psalm, repeating it again and again. The goodness and pleasure that comes from the unity of brothers and sisters is illustrated by two dramatic metaphors. We smell the fragrance of the first—the consecrating oil poured out over Aaron and his sons, over head, beard, and collar; the specification of this oil is set out in Exodus. Unity of believers is not an optional extra. It is a vital part of our faith and mission: ‘By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another' (Jn 13:35).

The second metaphor is the dew of Hermon (in the far north) falling on Zion (in the south). It is probably a reference to abundant dew, like that of Hermon, falling (we know dew does not really fall) on the parched hills of Judea and especially Mount Zion. The promise of this psalm is that there (in Jerusalem) God is going to bestow his blessing.

Apply

Are the words ‘running down … falling’ (vv. 2, 3) a challenge, regarding the humility needed for energetic unity? Or a reminder that this wonderful gift comes down from God?

Closing Prayer

Father, I pray for my relationships with family members and my closest friends, that our bonds of love will grow even stronger and realize greater and greater unity (edited from Encounter with God).