The September 11th attacks was the most talked about monumental event of 2001. According to http://www.americandialect.org/, the WORD OF THE YEAR winner for 2001 is 9-11 (and its equivalents). Previous word-of-the-year winners tend to trigger a defining memory of the times: "Y2K" in 1999; the prefix "e-" in 1998, as in e-commerce; and "millennium bug" in 1997.
The good-vs-evil theme of this psalm is striking. Contrast
this with the language used by Bush in characterising the war on terror.
The day after the infamous attacks Bush said, "This will be a monumental
struggle of good vs. evil, but good will prevail." He kept
stressing this theme throughout the anti-terror campaign even right up
to now with his "axis of evil" remark referring to Iraq, Iran and North
Korea.
However, the main evidence in Psalm 101 pointing to 9-11 is verse 3, "I will set no wicked thing before mine eyes: I hate the work of them that turn aside; it shall not cleave to me."
Picture the action of the planes that crashed into the
WTC Twin Towers. They TURNED ASIDE (detoured) and CLEAVED to the buildings
and refused to be unstuck!
The picture below is taken from http://www.cnn.com/SPECIALS/2001/trade.center/map.html. It shows vividly the meaning of TURNING ASIDE.
When I first read the phrase " the work of them that turn aside" I was not sure what it meant. NKJV & NASB render "the work of those who fall away". NIV renders "the deeds of faithless men". But why did KJV render "TURN ASIDE"?
It's conceivable the Holy Spirit is describing the work of those men who are WAYWARD, who FALL AWAY TO ONE SIDE, who walk not on a STRAIGHT PATH, i.e. who TURN ASIDE. The WAYWARDNESS of these faithless men is captured graphically, metaphorically, and literally in the picture above.
Such CROOKED behaviour is best described by Solomon,
Proverbs
2:12 To deliver thee from the way of the evil man, from the man that speaketh FROWARD things;
2:13 Who leave the paths of uprightness, to walk in the ways of darkness;
2:14 Who rejoice to do evil, and delight in the FROWARDness of the wicked;
2:15 Whose ways are CROOKED, and they FROWARD in their paths:
These 4 verses are jam-packed with descriptions of
the terrorists: evil, wicked, crooked, froward (perverse, TWIST & TURN!).
No wonder Psalm 101 is full of them.
| 101:1 A Psalm of David. I will sing of mercy
and judgment: unto thee, O LORD, will I sing.
2 I will behave myself wisely in a perfect way. O when wilt thou come unto me? I will walk within my house with a perfect heart. 3 I will set no wicked thing before mine eyes: I hate the work of them that TURN ASIDE; it shall not cleave to me. 4 A FROWARD heart shall depart from me: I will not know a wicked person. 5 Whoso privily slandereth his neighbour, him will I cut off: him that hath an high look and a proud heart will not I suffer. 6 Mine eyes shall be upon the faithful of the land, that they may dwell with me: he that walketh in a perfect way, he shall serve me. 7 He that worketh deceit shall not dwell within my house: he that telleth lies shall not tarry in my sight. 8 I will early destroy all the wicked of the land; that I may cut off all wicked doers from the city of the LORD. |
The TURNING ASIDE & CLEAVING actions of the two planes that crashed into WTC seem to be hidden in Psalm 101:3. Overall the tone of Psalm 101 does fit in Bush's hardline position of "those not with us are against us".
However, there is more. The Hebrew word for "turn aside" is even more revealing!
7750. suwt, soot; or (by perm.) cuwt, soot; a primitive root; to detrude, i.e. (intrans. and fig.) become (wrongly practise; namely, idolatry):--turn aside to.The meaning of the word "detrude" will blow you away!
Detrude \De*trude"\ (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Detruded; p. pr. & vb. n. Detruding.] [L. detrudere, detrusum; de + trudere to thrust, push.] To thrust down or out; to push down with force. --Locke. (http://onlinedictionary.datasegment.com/word/Detrude/)
The word "detrude" describes perfectly the action of the planes plunging into the sides of the Twin Towers with every intention "to thrust down or out" or "to push down with force". It's amazing! The WTC is literally DOWN-AND-OUT! And a person who is down-and-out is without home and money!
There are other interesting contextual moods captured by this psalm: the longing of two peoples looking for their Messiah:
Psalm 101:2 I will behave myself wisely in a perfect way. O when wilt thou come unto me? I will walk within my house with a perfect heart.
The Jews look forward to the time when the Temple
shall be built at the coming of the Messiah. The Christians look forward
to DWELLING WITH GOD IN HIS HOUSE.
Psalm 101:6 Mine eyes shall be upon the faithful of the land, that they may dwell with me: he that walketh in a perfect way, he shall serve me.
Psalm 101:7 He that worketh deceit shall not dwell within my house: he that telleth lies shall not tarry in my sight.