Tuesday, March 21, 2017

Psalm 78:70-72 and the "Heart" of King David

With respect to King David, the Psalter reads as follows:

He chose his servant David, and took him from the sheepfolds; from tending the nursing ewes he brought him to be the shepherd of his people Jacob, of Israel, his inheritance. With upright heart he tended them, and guided them with skillful hand. (Psa 78:70-72 NRSV)

The Hebrew translated as "upright heart" is כְּתֹם לְבָבוֹ refers to a heart with integrity; the LXX phrase ἐν τῇ ἀκακίᾳ τῆς καρδίας refers to a heart that is innocent and without guile.


What is interesting is that, notwithstanding being fallen (including losing his initial justification due to his murder of Uriah and adultery with Bethsheba, requiring a re-justification), King David and his "heart" is spoken highly, not negatively, of. Why is this interesting? Many Calvinists and others with a deficient anthropology views the "heart" of man as always being something to be spoken negatively about (e.g., Jer 17:9) However, Scripture often speaks highly of the "heart" of man (see The biblical understanding of "heart"). Such is the danger of embracing false theologies such as Calvinism--it results in way too many troublesome texts for one's theology, in this instance, one's anthropology.