The Poetry Project
The songs of Ascent are the songs Israel sang on pilgrimage to Jerusalem. Three times a year Jews in the diaspora would come from the corners of the known world to offer worship to the God of Israel. And as the crowds got closer to the Holy City the throngs thickened and began to lift up their songs of praise as a moving choir on the slopes of the Judean hills.
Read Psalm 134:1-3.
Poems for Psalms
(Part of the “Poetry Project”)
Suggested by Psalm 134
We Became a Choir Waking Angels to Worship
The psalm was short.
A tiny hymn of our ancient praise,
A postcard really, just six lines.
Not much more.
What difference could a postcard make?
But the day had been long.
I and my companions were weary,
filled with dust and longing for the well of our father.
As the sun set, the climb up the ascent
was becoming arduous, but we pushed on.
Our objective caught the last rays of the sun on its roof
and offered hope for the end of the journey.
And then it began.
It started as a murmur.
One of my brothers began to hum.
More joined the hum that became a buzz
And then
The melody seemed to catch fire.
A smile crossed a face.
Recognition rose on another’s cheek.
Then another added remembered words to the melody.
Then another’s memory kicked in,
and another, and another.
Soon the sound was stereophonic.
It saturated the air.
It surrounded us, pressed into us.
It lifted us.
Tired legs gained bounce.
Droopy eyes opened.
Hands began to rise toward heaven.
And the song rose too.
We repeated it.
It grew.
We grew.
We became an army bringing joyful tribute to the King.
We became a library of redemption’s story.
We became more than we imagined we could be.
We became a choir waking angels to worship.
We became a people bold to bless the God who made heaven and earth,
and us.
Go to Psalm 135
Fun Quiz: To what does the eighth line refer?
ChosenRebel's Blog 
Are you referring to Jacob’s well where Jesus met the Samaritan woman? I’m not sure if the temple would have been visible from there, but that’s my guess. This is a beautiful poem and I love the idea that our voices of praise can wake angels to worship! You have inspired me.
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Cindy, thanks for the comment and the encouragment. Good try but what I had in mind was David’s longing for a drink from the well of Bethlehem in 2 Samuel 23. David would be seen as one of the “fathers” of the nation and a visit to Bethlehem when on pilgrimage to Jerusalem would have been appropriate and I suspect, normal.
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