Psalms — Chapter 133

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1A song of ascents. Of David. Behold, how good and pleasant it is when brothers live together in harmony!

2It is like fine oil on the head, running down on the beard, running down Aaron’s beard over the collar of his robes.

3It is like the dew of Hermon falling on the mountains of Zion. For there the LORD has bestowed the blessing of life forevermore.

1Behold, how good and how pleasant it is for brethren to dwell together in unity!

2It is like the precious ointment upon the head, that ran down upon the beard, even Aaron’s beard: that went down to the skirts of his garments;

3As the dew of Hermon, and as the dew that descended upon the mountains of Zion: for there the LORD commanded the blessing, even life for evermore.

1Behold, how good and how pleasant it is For brethren to dwell together in unity!

2It is like the precious oil upon the head, That ran down upon the beard, Even Aaron`s beard; That came down upon the skirt of his garments;

3Like the dew of Hermon, That cometh down upon the mountains of Zion: For there Jehovah commanded the blessing, Even life for evermore. Psalm 134 A Song of Ascents.

1A song of ascents; by David. Look! How good and how pleasant it is when brothers truly live in unity.

2It is like fine oil poured on the head, which flows down the beard— Aaron’s beard, and then flows down his garments.

3It is like the dew of Hermon, which flows down upon the hills of Zion. Indeed, that is where the Lord has decreed a blessing will be available—eternal life.

1See how good and how pleasant it is for brothers to live together in unity!

2It is like the precious oil on the head, that ran down on the beard, even Aaron’s beard; that came down on the edge of his robes;

3like the dew of Hermon, that comes down on the hills of Zion: for there Yahweh gives the blessing, even life forever more.

Summary
Authorship & Background
Map & Geography
Commentary
Videos
Articles
Reflection

Summary

This short Song of Ascents, attributed to David, opens by declaring how good and pleasant it is when brothers live together in unity (v. 1). That unity is compared to precious oil poured on Aaron's head, running down his beard and robes, and to the dew of Hermon falling on the mountains of Zion (vv. 2-3a). The psalm closes by noting that it is there, in that unity, that the LORD has commanded his blessing — life forevermore (v. 3b).

Authorship & Background

Author: Multiple authors — primarily David (73 psalms attributed), plus Asaph (12), Sons of Korah (11), Solomon (2), Moses (1), Heman (1), Ethan (1), and anonymous. The Psalter was compiled over approximately 1000 years and served as Israel's hymnal and prayer book. The book is divided into five 'books' (1-41, 42-72, 73-89, 90-106, 107-150), paralleling the five books of Moses.
Classification: Song of Ascents / Wisdom Psalm
Attributed Author: David (superscription: "A Song of degrees of David")
Key Themes: The goodness of unity, anointing that flows from head to body, refreshing dew from above, commanded blessing, brethren dwelling together
Historical Context: Psalm 133 is one of the most beloved short psalms — only 3 verses celebrating the beauty of unity among God's people. When pilgrims from all twelve tribes gathered in Jerusalem for festivals, this psalm captured the joy of togetherness. David (who unified the kingdom after years of civil war) was uniquely qualified to praise unity. The two images — anointing oil flowing down Aaron's beard and Hermon's dew descending on Zion — both move downward: blessing flows from above onto the gathered community. Where unity exists, God commands blessing. Unity doesn't earn blessing; it's where God designates it.
How Good and How Pleasant It Is (v.1): Behold, how good and how pleasant it is for brethren to dwell together in unity. Three verses, and the first states the subject without arguing for it. Dwelling together had a literal sense for pilgrims sharing quarters at a feast, and a national sense for tribes that spent much of their history at odds; the psalm does not choose between them.
The Precious Ointment upon the Head (v.2): It is like the precious ointment upon the head, that ran down upon the beard, even Aaron's beard: that went down to the skirts of his garments. The comparison is the anointing of a high priest, and the whole force of it is in the running down: the oil is poured at one point and arrives everywhere, so unity is described as something that starts at the head and reaches the hem. It is an extravagant amount of oil, and the extravagance is intended.
As the Dew of Hermon (v.3a): As the dew of Hermon, and as the dew that descended upon the mountains of Zion. Hermon is in the far north and Zion is a hundred and twenty miles south, so dew from one does not fall on the other. The impossibility is the point rather than a mistake: the psalm is claiming that the moisture of the wettest mountain in the land arrives on the driest hill, which is what unity between distant parties would be.
There the LORD Commanded the Blessing (v.3b): For there the LORD commanded the blessing, even life for evermore. The last clause tells the reader where the two images were heading. There means the place where brethren dwell together, and what is said to be there is not a good atmosphere but a command already issued. The psalm ends by making unity the address at which a blessing was left.

Map & Geography

  • Zion (v.3): The hill on which Jerusalem/the Temple stood; often used poetically for God's dwelling.

Places on this map

  • JerusalemJerusalemA hill town about 2,500 feet up in the central spine of Judah, roughly 35 miles inland from the Mediterranean and 15 miles west of the Jordan. It sits on no trade route and has no river, which is why it mattered as a fortress and a sanctuary rather than as a market. Wikipedia

Towns sit on their excavated or traditional site. Regions, rivers and seas are ringed rather than dotted, because for those a single point is only an anchor. Coastlines from Natural Earth.

Commentary

  • Enduring Word (David Guzik): enduringword.com Verse-by-verse commentary on this chapter, written for the everyday reader and freely available online.
  • Jamieson-Fausset-Brown (1871): blueletterbible.org A critical and explanatory commentary on the whole Bible, more concise than Matthew Henry and closer to the Hebrew and Greek, with attention to historical and geographical detail. Public domain.
  • Matthew Henry's Exposition (1710): blueletterbible.org A devotional verse-by-verse commentary in the Puritan tradition, still among the most widely read three centuries on. Public domain.

Videos

Psalms 130-134 | From the Depths to the Heights | Bible Study
Spoken Gospel

Psalm 133 - The Blessed Unity of God’s People
David Guzik

Articles

  • GotQuestions.org: gotquestions.org On the whole book: an overview of Psalms -- who wrote it, when, why, and how it fits the rest of Scripture.

Links open on the publisher's own site. Nothing here is reproduced on this page.

Reflection

  • Unity Is Both Good and Enjoyable (v.1) — The psalmist doesn't just call unity among God's people right, he calls it pleasant — genuinely good to experience. Is the unity in your church or family something you actually enjoy, or just something you tolerate?
  • Blessing That Flows From Above (v.2) — The image of oil poured on Aaron's head running down over his robes pictures blessing that originates above and flows downward onto the whole community. Are you waiting to manufacture unity yourself, or receiving it as something God pours out?
  • Where God Commands Blessing (v.3) — The psalm ends by declaring that it is in that place of unity where the Lord has commanded His blessing, life forevermore. What would change in your relationships if you believed unity itself was the place God chooses to bless?