to cross over · verb, qal active participle, masculine plural construct
valley
בְּעֵ֣מֶקbe.'E.mek
H6010
a vale (i.e. broad depression) · preposition + noun, common masculine singular construct
Baca
הַ֭בָּכָאHa.ba.kha'
H1056
Baca · definite article + noun, common masculine singular absolute
make
יְשִׁית֑וּהוּye.shi.Tu.hu
H7896
to place (in a very wide application) · verb, qal imperfect, 3rd person masculine plural + pronominal suffix, 3rd person masculine singular
well
מַעְיָ֣ןma'.Yan
H4599
a fountain (also collectively) · noun, common masculine singular absolute
rain
מוֹרֶֽהmo.Reh
H4175
an archer · noun, common masculine singular absolute
filleth
יַעְטֶ֥הya'.Teh
H5844
to wrap · verb, hiphil imperfect, 3rd person masculine singular
pools
בְּ֝רָכ֗וֹתbe.ra.Khot
H1293
benediction · noun, common feminine plural absolute
Strong's Exhaustive Concordance (James Strong, 1890/1894), public domain; digitized by Open Scriptures (CC BY-SA). KJV word tagging: eBible.org (public domain). Original-language text, parsing and brief lexicon: STEPBible.org data from Tyndale House, Cambridge (CC BY 4.0).
Cross-references
2 Corinthians 4:17 For our light affliction, which is but for a moment, worketh for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory;
Joel 2:23 Be glad then, ye children of Zion, and rejoice in the LORD your God: for he hath given you the former rain moderately, and he will cause to…
John 16:33 These things I have spoken unto you, that in me ye might have peace. In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have ov…
Romans 5:3-5 And not only so, but we glory in tribulations also: knowing that tribulation worketh patience;
Romans 8:37 Nay, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him that loved us.
Revelation 7:14 And I said unto him, Sir, thou knowest. And he said to me, These are they which came out of great tribulation, and have washed their robes,…
Psalms 68:9 Thou, O God, didst send a plentiful rain, whereby thou didst confirm thine inheritance, when it was weary.
Psalms 66:10-12 For thou, O God, hast proved us: thou hast tried us, as silver is tried.
Cross-references from OpenBible.info (CC BY), in the lineage of the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge (public domain).
Commentary
Matthew Henry on Psalms 84:1-7
The psalmist here, being by force restrained from waiting upon God in public ordinances, by the want of them is brought under a more sensible conviction than ever of the worth of them. Observe,
I. The wonderful beauty he saw in holy institutions (Psa 84:1): How amiable are thy tabernacles, O Lord of hosts! Some think that he here calls God the Lord of hosts (that is, in a special manner of the angels, the heavenly hosts) because of the presence of the angels in God's sanctuary; they attended the Shechinah, and were (as some think) signified by the cherubim. God is the Lord of these hosts, and his the tabernacle is: it is spoken of as more than one (thy tabernacles) because there were several…
Who passing through the valley of Baca,.... Kimchi interprets it a valley of springs, or fountains, taking the word to be of the same signification as in Job 38:16, and mention being made of a well and pools in it, or of mulberry trees, which grow, as he says, in a place where there is no water, and such a place was this; and therefore pools or ditches were dug in it, and built of stone, to catch rain water for the supply of travellers; and so Aben Ezra says, it is the name of a place or valley where were trees, called mulberries; and is by some thought to be the same with the valley of Rephaim, where we read of mulberry trees, 2 Samuel 5:22, the Septuagint render it "the valley of weeping",…
Psalm 84:5-7
5. Blessed is the man whose strength is in thee; the ways are in their hearts. 6. They passing through the valley of weeping, [460] will together make it a fountain; [461] the rain also will cover the cisterns, [or reservoirs.] [462] 7. They will go from strength to strength; [463] the God of gods will be seen in Zion.
5 Blessed is the man whose strength is in thee. David again informs us, that the purpose for which he desired liberty of access to the sanctuary was, not merely to gratify his eyes with what was to be seen there, but to make progress in faith. To lean with the whole heart upon God, is to attain to no ordinary degree of advancement: and this cannot be attained by…
The Church Fathers
Let us see where he arranged the ascents. Listen to what he says: In the valley of tears, in the place which he has set. We read in the book of Judges, when the angel came and preached repentance to the people, saying, You have forsaken the Lord, and the Lord will forsake you; and when the people heard this they wept, and that place was called the Valley of Tears. We have recalled the old history, so that we might flee heresy. But by the valley of tears we can understand, spiritually, this present age. For we are not on the mountain, that is, in the kingdom of heaven, but in the valley, that is, in the darkness of this world; and by our error we have been cast out of paradise with Adam into the valley of tears, where there is repentance, where there are tears. In the valley of tears, in the place which he has set. What did he say? The place which God has set for the contest: so that here we may contend against the devil, against sins, that in the heavens we may be crowned. Why, then, did he give a contest of fighting? Could God not have given us life without a contest? But he gave it as a president of the games; he gave a stadium, where we might wrestle against the vices: so that afterward he might deservedly crown us, not sleeping, but laboring. What follows?
In the valley of tears, in the place which he has set. We read in the book of Judges, when the angel came and preached repentance to the people, saying, You have forsaken the Lord, and the Lord will forsake you; and when the people heard this they wept, and that place was called the Valley of Tears. We have recalled the old history, so that we might flee heresy. But by the valley of tears we can understand, spiritually, this present age. For we are not on the mountain, that is, in the kingdom of heaven, but in the valley, that is, in the darkness of this world; and by our error we have been cast out of paradise with Adam into the valley of tears, where there is repentance, where there are tears. In the valley of tears, in the place which he has set. What did he say? The place which God has set for the contest: so that here we may contend against the devil, against sins, that in the heavens we may be crowned. Why, then, did he give a contest of fighting? Could God not have given us life without a contest? But he gave it as a president of the games; he gave a stadium, where we might wrestle against the vices: so that afterward he might deservedly crown us, not sleeping, but laboring. What follows? For indeed he who gave the law will give a blessing: therefore he gave a place for contending, so that afterward he might give a blessing, he who had given us the law of the contest. They will go from strength to strength. You see that the sense fits together. They will go from strength to strength: therefore they fight here, so that there afterward they may be crowned. They go from strength to strength. He did not say, they will go from weakness to strength: for unless they have been strong here, they will not be stronger afterward. But someone may say, God is merciful. But see what follows: The Lord loves mercy and truth. He is indeed merciful, but also truthful. When you hear "merciful," you ought not to be careless, because there follows, "and truthful." Again, when you hear "truth," do not despair, do not think God to be only cruel: because mercy tempers truth. For "the cup in the hand of the Lord is full of mixed wine, and he has poured out from this into that": that is, from mercy he has tempered truth, and from truth mercy. The God of gods will be seen in Zion. When they have gone from strength to strength, then the God of gods will be seen in Zion. To whom…
Dictionary and topics
Baca — (weeping), The Valley of, A valley in Palestine, through which the exiled Psalmist sees in vision the pilgrims passing in their march towards the sanctuary of Jehovah at Zion. (Psalms 84:6) That it…
Baca, Valley of — (Ps. 84:6; R.V., “valley of weeping,” marg., “or balsam trees”), probably a valley in some part of Palestine, or generally some one of the valleys through which pilgrims had to pass on their way to…
Gittith — A stringed instrument of music. This word is found in the titles of Ps. 8, 81, 84. In these places the LXX. render the word by “on the wine-fats.” The Targum explains by “on the harp which David…
Mulberry — Heb. bakah, “to weep;” rendered “Baca” (R.V., “weeping”) in Ps. 84:6. The plural form of the Hebrew bekaim is rendered “mulberry trees” in 2 Sam. 5:23, 24 and 1 Chr. 14:14, 15. The tree here alluded…
Music, Instrumental — Among instruments of music used by the Hebrews a principal place is given to stringed instruments. These were, (1.) The kinnor, the “harp.” (2.) The nebel, “a skin bottle,” rendered “psaltery.” (3.)…
Baca · Valley of — Valley of
Feasts, The Anniversary · The dangers and difficulties encountered in going up to, alluded to — The dangers and difficulties encountered in going up to, alluded to
Mulberry Tree · General scriptures concerning — General scriptures concerning
Pilgrims And Strangers · As saints they: Are strengthened by God — As saints they: Are strengthened by God
Pools And Ponds · Filled by the rain — Filled by the rain
This second half takes up the "blessed" of the distichic epode (epoodo's) of the first, and consequently joins member to member chain-like on to it. Many hindrances must be cleared away if the poet is to get back to Zion, his true home; but his longing carries the surety within itself of its fulfilment: blessed, yea in himself blessed, is the man, who has his strength (עוז only here plene) in God, so that, consequently, the strength of Him to whom all things are possible is mighty in his weakness. What is said in Psa 84:6 is less adapted to be the object of the being called blessed than the result of that blessed relationship to God. What follows shows that the "high-roads" are not to be und…
The Valley of Weeping probably refers to the anguish that lonely pilgrims endured (see 23:4), rather than to an actual location. • refreshing springs . . . autumn rains: Even when pilgrims feel totally exhausted, the prospect of drawing near to the Lord renews their spirits (cp. Isa 35:6-10; 41:18-20; 43:17-20; 49:10).
Spurgeon's Treasury of David on Psalms 84:6
Who passing through the valley of Baca make it a well; the rain also filleth the pools.
Who passing through the valley of Baca make it a well. Traversing joyfully the road to the great assembly, the happy pilgrims found refreshment even in the dreariest part of the road. As around a well men meet and converse cheerfully, being refreshed after their journey, so even in the vale of tears, or any other dreary glen, the pilgrims to the skies find sweet solace in brotherly communion and in anticipation of the general assembly above, with its joys unspeakable. Probably there is here a local allusion, which will never now be deciphered, but the general meaning is clear enough. There are joys of pi…
What then does God supply by His grace to him whom He taketh hold of to lead him on? He goes on to say: "He hath placed steps in his heart." ...Where does it place steps? "In his heart, in the valley of weeping" (ver. 6). So here thou hast for a winepress the valley of weeping, the very pious tears in tribulation are the new wine of those that love. ...They went forth "weeping," he says, "casting their seed." Therefore, by the grace of God may upward steps be placed in thy heart. Rise by loving. Hence the Psalm "of degrees" is called. ..."He hath placed steps of ascent to the place which He hath appointed" (ver. 7). Now we lament; whence proceed our lamentations, but from that place where the steps of our ascent are placed? Whence comes our lamentation, but from that cause wherefore the Apostle exclaimed that he was a wretched man, because he saw another law in his members, warring against the law in his mind? And whence does this proceed? From the penalty of sin. And we thought that we could easily be righteous as it were by our own strength, before we received the command; "but when the command came, sin revived; but I died," saith the Apostle. For a law was given to men, not such as could save them at once, but it was to show them in what severe sickness they were lying. ...But when sin was made manifest by the law given, sin was but increased, for it is both sin, and against the Law; "Sin," saith he, "taking occasion by the command, wrought in me all manner of concupiscence." What does he mean by "taking occasion by the law"? Having received the command, men tried as by their own strength to obey it; conquered by lust, they became guilty of transgression of this very command also. But what saith the Apostle? "Where sin abounded, grace hath much more abounded;" that is, the disease increased, the medicine became of more avail. Accordingly, my brethren, did those five porches of Solomon, in the middle of which the pool lay, heal the sick at all? The sick, says the Evangelist, lay in the five porches. In the Gospel we have and read it. Those five porches are the law in the five books of Moses. For this cause the sick were brought forth from their houses that they might lie in the porches. So the law brought the sick men forth, but did not heal them: but by the blessing of God the water was disturbed, as by an Angel descending into it. At the sight of the…
The Church Fathers: public-domain translations (Ante-Nicene and Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers), verse-indexed by SermonIndex (CC BY 4.0).
— Illustrative: Of spiritual blessings
Temple, The First · Was called: Zion — Was called: Zion
Valleys · Mentioned in scripture: Baca — Mentioned in scripture: Baca
Wells · Supplied by the rain — Supplied by the rain
Dictionary: Easton's (1897) and Smith's (1863), public domain. Topics: Nave's Topical Bible (1896) and Torrey's Topical Textbook (1897), public domain. Both as parsed by NEUU (CC BY 4.0).
