Psalms 103:5: “Who satisfieth thy mouth with good [things; so that] thy youth is renewed like the eagle’s.”
Thy youth is renewed like the Eagle. I already said yesterday that this renewing business is really more of a renewal of your passion and love for God like you had in your youth. Now there are other interpretations. Practically every translation translates this renewing or becoming young again like an eagle.
The problem I have with this translation is that an eagle does not become young. Now there is a breed of eagle that is as strong in his old age as his youth and some commentators feel it is a reference to this particular eagle. The only problem is that the eagle is still old and his strength is not renewed it has just been consistent. Another commentator explains how the eagle’s beak grows to a point that he is unable to eat and until he can file his beak down on rock he reaches the point of near starvation. But when that beak is filed down and he eats again his strength is renewed like in his youth. Only problem is that eagle is still in his youth, he has not yet reached old age. Some commentators suggest that this should not be translated as thy youth is renewed as an eagle indicating rightly that an eagle’s youth is never renewed, but that it should be translated as thy youth is renewed and is becomes in its strength like an eagle. Ok, but still that is saying our youth is renewed and it is no more renewed than it is with an eagle.
I see one other possibility and that is to find another word for renewal and youth. That is within reason as the word for youth is not your standard word yalad. It is the word na’uvar which could mean a child or a youth but it really has its root meaning in one’s earlier life or a past time. That could be your youth or childhood, but it could also be a time that is only a couple years back. I do not believe youth is the proper English word to plug in here in this context as, I pointed out, it does not make good sense. Your youth is never renewed, you just keep getting older. Yet, what else would you want to recapture from you youth or a past time but your youthful strength, vitality and vigor? I will tell you what I want to recapture and that is that love for God I felt in my na’uvar. For me na’uvar was just four weeks ago. Until certain events took place in my life my love for God was passionate, strong, vital, but the cares of this world has worn it down over the past four weeks. I do not feel that passion and love for God like I did four weeks ago. So for me this renewal is not for physical strength but for the passion of God.
That still presents the same problem; does an eagle’s passion get renewed? Of course not. But if we use another translation for the word eagle nesher it might be possible. The word nesher is also the word for a vulture. David was resisting overtures to form an alliance with Egypt to defeat the Assyrians. The Egyptian culture had invaded Israel and there were many who desired such an alliance and were seeking all things Egyptian. The Egyptian religion was very familiar to the people of Israel and there was a strong move to embrace the Egyptian religion to show their oneness with Egypt. David took a strong stand against that. Yet, the Assyrian armies breed some of the most powerful horses in the world to pull chariots that were invincible in battle as no other army had the horses to pull those chariots. Yet David said: Psalms 20:7: “Some [trust] in chariots, and some in horses: but we will remember the name of the LORD our God.” I believe David is making the same claim of faith in Psalms 103:5.
The Egyptians worshipped a goddess named Nekhbet. This was the goddess who took the form of a white nesher vulture. The priestess of this goddess were called muu and wore robes made out of the feathers of the white vulture. She was the patron of childbirth who could restore one’s youth. White vultures were considered excellent models of motherhood; they did not have the reputation that vultures have today. The white vulture was the symbol of purity. Soldiers coveted a feather from one of the priestess as protection in battle. To have a sexual relationship with the priestess of the goddess Nekhbet was said to restore your youth, you would run and not grow weary; you would walk and not faint. Sounds familiar?
As the Hebrew word nesher is the same for an eagle and vulture I believe we should render this as a vulture. Consider for a moment that maybe David is making an allusion to the Egyptian goddess Nekhbet. An Egyptian man would seek to recapture his youthful sexual passion through an intimacy with the goddess yet this goddess does not really love him. David is saying that our God loves us, has given us a bridal veil promising to love us into our old age or if our passion dies after just four weeks. He will lift that veil and restore that passion of love as it was in na’uvar past times.
God has many ways to restore that passion, far more than the goddess Nekhbet can offer. For me it was attending a meeting this afternoon with a group of believers who love Jesus with all their hearts. Just being around them, sharing their joy of the Lord, their love, their passion for God and when I left that meeting five hours later God had satisfied my bridal veil (mouth, old age) with (good things) bringing me into harmony with Him and renewing the passionate love of na’uvar (past times) doing what the phony goddess Nekhbet claims to be able to. God actually does it.
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