Ps. 77.5-6 (memory-liturgy; dialogue-monologue)

I reflect / on the days of the past
of years / long ago
At night / I remember / my songs
I ponder / in my heart – and my spirit / seeks an answer. 

These verse begin to pave the way toward the central questions of the psalm. We have already had a chance to mention the psalmist’s inward turn in reflection, remembering and pondering as seen in verse 3. There, the content of the memory was God. Here, the content is the “days of the past, of years long ago…[and] my songs”. It is not exactly clear, at this point, if the psalmist is thinking of a personal time or if he is entering into the corporate memory of Israel as it reflects on its past. In fact, I think it is both. As the psalm will later detail, it seems plausible that the “days of the past” refer to the time of the exodus—what will take up the bulk of the remainder of the psalm. Further, this ‘memory of the exodus’ is one that, as we know, is liturgically re-enacted often. Hence, it may be that “my songs” are the ‘songs of the covenant’ that were sung in memory of the exodus; of course, it may be also that it has an entirely personal range to it as well. There is some confirmation for this reading in verses 11-12: “Then I remember the deeds of Yhwh, for I do remember your wonders of old. I reflect on all your works, and ponder all your acts.” Here, explicitly, the content of memory is related to the specific “deeds”, “wonders” and “acts” of God. They all occurred “of old”. Structurally, we see “memory of old” – leading into the central questions of the psalm – “memory of old”. It is for this reason that I do not think that the ‘memory’ of the first half is unrelated to the second. Rather, I think the second portion of the psalm is more explicitly fleshing out the content of that memory. In other words, the memory of the psalmist alluded to in these verses (5-6) is the corporate memory of the exodus and the liturgical praise of that memory. I believe this is why these verses are positioned where they are, as the questions that will follow will all surround the covenant. As we have seen, the psalmist’s engagement with the past has been nothing but a torment. Now, we come to see that that ‘past’ is, specifically, the time of the forging of the covenant between God and Israel—the exodus. Hence, when the questions-of-torment are posed they will be ones that flow, directly, from the exodus itself. One final note: in the past the “works of God” were a dialogue with God (they were remembered liturgically). Here, by contrast, the memory of the works is entirely a monologue the psalmist has with himself. Every verb emphasizes this inward and monologic turn: “I reflect…I remember…I ponder”. None of these are addressed to God. Indeed, none of the questions will be posed to God. They are, all of them, contained within the psalmist.