Some of the language of Psalm 84 suggests that it may have been sung by God’s people as they made pilgrimage to Jerusalem; the pilgrimage may even have been led by the king. One of the places the people pass through on the way to the temple is “the valley of Baka,” which can be translated as “The Valley of Tears.” It may have been a literal place, or a metaphorical reminder of the people’s suffering. But either way, the song reminds those who sing it of the beauty that can spring up along the way.

When reading Psalm 84, one gets the sense that the psalmist feels a bit rootless when away from the temple, almost envying those who get to spend more time there. That includes not only those with priestly duties, but…the birds. Sparrows and swallows have made their nests there. Did the Korahites think of their twittering as praise? We might also think of how Jesus used the image of tiny sparrows to teach his followers about the tender care of God.

Typically, we speak casually of “going to church” without thinking about the meaning of what we’re saying. As you may already know, however, the New Testament word that’s translated as “church” doesn’t refer to a building; it refers to a people. Still, how should we understand a song like Psalm 84, in which the psalmist aches to be in the temple? The psalmist isn’t longing for the building per se, but for the presence of God. And that should give us pause when we think of the New Testament image of believers as temples of the Holy Spirit…