Sl.121.1.
Seria 'Levantaria Eu Os Meus Olhos Para As Colinas' Uma Pergunta? Há 0, 1, ou 2
Perguntas No Verso?

Will Kinney

Título original: "Psalms 121:1, Doug Kutilek, and the NKJV"

Psalms
121:1, Doug Kutilek and the NKJV

Bible agnostic Doug
Kutilek thinks he has found another glaring error in the King James Bible and he wants to let you know about it.  I call
Mr. Kutilek a Bible agnostic and an unbeliever in the Infallibility of the
Bible simply because he has admitted that he is still searching for the correct
readings and the correct texts and he does not believe that ANY Bible in ANY
language (including “the” Hebrew and much less “the” Greek) IS or ever was the
complete, inspired and 100% true words of God.

I have corresponded with
Mr. Kutilek through several emails and we have gone
back and forth over his biblical agnosticism versus faith in the King James
Bible.

We will now take a look at Mr. Kutilek’s “key” for properly
understanding Psalms 121:1 and then I will respond from the Infallible King James
Bible believer’s position.

Mr. Kutilek writes -
Unlocking a Difficult Verse, By Doug Kutilek

(The Biblical
Evangelist, October 1, 1986)

My experience has been that
such Bible verses as have puzzled me are very often a puzzle to other preachers
as well. One such verse is Psalm 121:1, which reads in the KJV, "I will Lift mine eyes
unto the hills from whence cometh my help." What does this mean?

Obviously, the hills
don't provide help to the believer. The psalmist continues in verse two with
words that seem to plainly contradict verse one: "My help cometh from the
LORD which made heaven and earth." Since Scripture, correctly interpreted,
is never self-contradictory, I was hard put for some while to explain verse
one.

Some writers have
suggested that verse one has reference to the refreshing or exhilarating
feeling of the view from a hilltop a rather feeble and inadequate notion to my
mind.  Some commentaries suggest that the hills here are Mount Zion or
Mount Moriah or some combination of hills on which Jerusalem sit, and where
God's temple stood. While this is perhaps a little better than the mere
"mountain top inspiration" explanation, it doesn't seem entirely
satisfactory to the context.

The key to unlock this
passage is given in the margin of the original edition of the KJV.  Rather
than being a statement, verse one is understood as two questions: "Shall I
lift up mine eyes to the hills? Whence should my help come?"

Hebrew grammar supports
this punctuation. The first clause CAN BE taken as a question (according to the
phenomena of Hebrew grammar, and the second clause must be taken as a question
(the Hebrew clause always introduces a question whenever it is used in the Old
Testament). But taken as a pair of questions, what does verse one have
reference to?

It must be remembered
that the hilltops were the preferred location for pagan shrines employed in the
worship of Baal and Ashteroth and other heathen Canaanite deities. The prophet
Ezekiel clearly depicts this pagan worship: "Then shall they know that I
am the LORD, when their slain men shall be among the idols round about their
altars, upon every high hills, in all the tops of the mountains, and every
green tree and every thick oak, the place where they did offer sweet savour to
all their idols" (6:13). Jeremiah, whose consistent theme is the denunciation of pagan idol
worship on the high hills and under the green trees (2:20; 3:6; 13:27; 17:2), declares the futility of such worship: "Truly in vain is salvation
hoped for from the hills, and from the multitude of mountains: truly in the
LORD our God is the salvation of Israel: (3:23).

And that is exactly the
Psalmist's idea here: 'Shall I join in with those who worship idols on hill
tops? Is my hope and help and salvation to be found there? No, no! My help
comes from the LORD, the true God, the Creator of the universe. I will look to Him,
and trust Him.'

Application of truth
taught here can easily be made to our own day.  Should we trust in the
idols of the hour, the idols of money, self fulfillment, pleasure, escapism,
entertainment, intellectualism? No, we will commit ourselves and our souls to
the God of the Bible. He who does all things well . We will be content to trust
His word and believe His promises, and not rush off after the latest fadish
idol.

-- by Doug Kutilek

Responding to Mr.
Kutilek’s criticism.

First of all, it should
be noted that when Mr. Kutilek speaks of  “the Bible” and “trusting His
word and believing His promises” he has no particular “Bible” in mind that we
can actually trust.

In Mr. Kutilek’s mind,
any and all texts are open to doubt and debate and nothing is sure and
unchanging in his “Bible”.  He could not tell you where to get a copy of
God’s infallible words if his life depended on it.

We might have one some
day, if Doug ever gets around to making up his own mind about what is part of
God’s words and what is not, and he finally comes out with his own Bible
version.  But until that day arrives, (according to Mr. Kutilek’s own
thinking) there is no such thing as a complete and 100% true Holy Bible to be
found anywhere on this earth.  Don’t believe me?  Then just ask him
where we can get one now, and you will see what he really believes.

Secondly, there are many
marginal notes in the King James Bible, but you have to remember two things,
one far more important than the other.  There were some 47 very learned
men whom God used to give us the greatest Bible ever printed in history.
They did not always agree among themselves as to what or how a certain passage
should read.  So when some gave an alternate reading, they sometimes
included it in the marginal notes as expressing another view.  But the
most important thing to remember is the sovereign hand of God was at work in
putting this Holy Bible together and it is what was put IN THE TEXT ITSELF that
is the inspired and infallible words of God.

And Thirdly, in spite of
the fact that Mr. Kutilek is aware of a very reasonable explanation that has
been taught and espoused by many very able Bible commentators in the past as to
why the King James Bible reading is correct, he rejects it out of hand, simply
because he hates the King James Bible only position and prefers to set up his
own mind as his final authority.  Mr. Kutileks arguments about how there
should be two questions in verse one don’t even match up with his NKJV reading.

The NKJV reads: “I will
lift up my eyes to the hills---From whence comes my help?”  You will note
there is only one question in the NKJV and we have to wonder why this person
would lift up his eyes to the hills in the first place, and then ask where his
help is coming from.  Then Mr. Kutilek has to add a bunch of words and an
additional question mark to the text to have it come out meaning what he thinks
it should mean. - “that is exactly the Psalmist's idea here: 'Shall I join in
with those who worship idols on hill tops?”

The NIV, NASB, ESV and
Holman Standard all read like the NKJV with only one question. Yet Mr. Kutilek
tells us there should be TWO question marks in the verse.  So, not even
these other “scholars” got it right, according to Mr. Kutilek’s own humble view.

You see, Mr. Kutilek and
Mr. Kutilek alone is his own final authority.  So until he finally gets
around to writing his own bible version, I guess we poor rubes will have to
keep up to date with Doug’s ongoing revelations  and deep insights so we
too can finally be sure about what God REALLY said.  Ya
think?

Now, let’s look at the
Psalm more closely and see if it makes sense or not.

Psalms 121:1 King James
Bible - “I will lift up mine eyes unto the hills, from whence cometh my help. My
help cometh from the LORD, which made heaven and earth.”

NKJV makes it a single
question - “I will lift up my eyes to the hills— From whence comes my
help?"  Other versions that make it a single question are the ASV,
NASB, NIV, RSV, ESV, Darby, Youngs, ESV, Jehovah Witness New World Translation
and the NET version.  The Catholic Versions are a mixed bag of confusion -
as usual.

Agreeing with the King
James Bible and making Psalms 121:1 a statement are Wycliffe 1395, Matthews Bible 1549, the
Bishops' Bible 1568, the Geneva Bible 1587, Webster's 1833 translation, the
Douay Rheims, Rotherham's Emphasized Bible 1902, Lamsa's 1936 translation of
the Syriac, the KJV 21st Century Version 1994, the Third Millennium Bible 1998,
the 2009 Catholic Public Domain Bible, the English Jubilee Bible 2010.

Other English Bibles that have Psalms
121:1 as a statement and not a question are The Word of Yah
1993, God's First Truth 1999 - " I lift up mine eyes unto the hills,
from where comes my help.", Complete Apostle’s Bible 2005 - “I lifted
up my eyes to the mountains — from where my help shall come.”, the Ancient
Roots Translinear Bible 2008, Bond Slave Version 2009, Biblos Interlinear Bible
2011, Conservative Bible 2011, the Orthodox Jewish Bible 2011 - “(Shir
HaMa’alot) I will lift up mine eyes unto the harim (hills), from whence cometh
ezri (my help).", The Work of God's Children Illustrated Bible
2011,

And the Interlinear Hebrew Old Testament -

http://studybible.info/IHOT/Psalms%20121:1

The Jewish Virtual Library Tanach [full text] 1994 -
"I will lift up mine eyes unto the hills from whence cometh my help."

https://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/tehillim-psalms-chapter-121

The Orthodox Jewish Bible 2011 - "(Shir
HaMa’alot) I will lift up mine eyes unto the harim (hills), from whence cometh
ezri (my help)."

https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Tehillim+121&version=OJB

Foreign Language Bibles that read like the KJB

Luther’s German Bible 1545 - “Ich hebe meine Augen auf zu
den Bergen von welchen mir Hilfe kommt.”, the Spanish Sagradas Escrituras 1569,
Cipriano de Valera Bible 1602, the Spanish Reina Valera 1909, and the 2010
Reina Valera Gomez, Spanish Jubilee Bible 2010 - “ALZARÉ mis ojos á los montes,
De donde vendrá mi socorro.”, the French Martin 1744 and the 1996 French
Ostervald - “J'élève mes yeux vers les montagnes d'où me viendra le
secours.” and the 1649 Italian Diodati - “IO alzo gli occhi a’ monti, Per vedere
onde mi verrà aiuto.”, Czech Kralicka Bible - “Píseň
stupňů. Pozdvihuji očí svých k horám, odkudž by mi přišla
pomoc.", the Russian Synodal Version -
"Возвожу очи
мои к горам,
откуда
придет
помощь
моя.", the Hungarian Károli Bible - “Szemeimet a
hegyekre emelem, onnan jön az én segítségem.”, The Polish Updated Gdansk
Bible 2013 - “Oczy moje podnoszę ku górom, skąd przyjdzie mi pomoc.”,
and the Romanian Fidela Bible 2014 - "ÎMI ridic ochii spre munţi, de unde îmi vine ajutorul."

The Bible Commentators

Adam Clarke agrees with the King James Bible readings and comments:
“Unto the hills- Jerusalem was built upon a mountain; and Judea
was a mountainous country; and the Jews, in their several dispersions, turned
towards Jerusalem when they offered up their prayers to God.”

John Gill comments: “I will lift up mine eyes unto the hills…Not
to the hills and mountains in Judea, looking about to see if the inhabitants of
them, or any bodies of men, appeared upon them to his help in distress; rather
to the hills of Moriah and Zion, where the ark of God, the symbol of his
presence, was, and to whom he looked for assistance and deliverance: or to
heaven, the holy hill of the Lord, and to him that dwelleth there.”

Here is a partial list
of several verses that support this view. Let’s compare some other Psalms and
see what they have to say about the hills.

“I cried unto the LORD
with my voice, and he heard me out of his holy hill. Selah.”  Psalm 3:4

“Yet have I set my king
upon my holy hill Zion.”  Psalm 2:6

“Lord, who shall abide
in thy tabernacle?  who shall dwell in thy holy hill?”  Psalm
15:1

“Who shall ascend into
the hill of the LORD?  or who shall stand in his holy place?”  Psalm
24:3

“O send out thy light
and thy truth; let them lead me; let them bring me unto thy holy hill, and to
thy tabernacles.”  Psalm 43:3

“The hill of God is as
the hill of Bashan; an high hill as the hill of Bashan.  Why leap ye, ye
high hills?  this is the hill which God desireth to dwell in; yea, the
LORD will  dwell in it forever.”  Psalm
68:15-16

“His foundation is in
the holy mountains.”  Psalm 87:1

“Exalt the LORD our God,
and worship at his holy hill; for the LORD our God is holy.”  Psalm
99:9

Other Scriptures reveal
the truth of God’s presence to be found in the mountains.  “And Abraham called
the name of that place Jehovahjireh: as it is said to this day, In the mount of
the LORD it shall be seen.”  Genesis 22:14

“And Moses....came to
the mountain of God, even to Horeb.”  Exodus
3:1

“And the LORD came down
upon mount Sinai, on the top of the mount: and the LORD called Moses up to the
top of the mount: and Moses went up.”  Exodus
19:20

“And the LORD said unto Moses,
Come up to me into the mount, and be there: and I will give thee tables of
stone, and a law, and commandments which I have written; that thou mayest teach
them.”  Exodus 24:12

“Then Joshua bult an
altar unto the LORD God of Israel in mount Ebal.”  Joshua
8:30

Compare Psalms
125:2 where the lofty mountains surrounding Jerusalem are symbolic of God's
watchful presence. "As the mountains are round about Jerusalem, so the
LORD is round about his people from henceforth even for ever."

Other Bible commentators

Matthew Henry - commenting on the reading found in the KJB says:
"I will lift up my eyes to the hills"  - probably he
meant the hills on which the temple was built, Mount Moriah, and the holy hill
of Zion, where the ark of the covenant, the oracle, and the altars were."

John Wesley comments on Psalm 121:1 saying: “Hills - To Sion and Moriah, which are called
the holy mountains.”

Matthew Poole comments on Psalm 121:1 - “Unto the hills; either to Zion and Moriah,
which are called the holy mountains, Psalm
87:1

Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible - Unabridged

- “I will lift up mine eyes unto the hills, from whence
cometh my help. The pilgrims' even-song as they caught the first sight of the
hills (Psalms 121:1) round Jerusalem.”

John Trapp (English Puritan)
Complete Commentary - “I will lift up mine eyes unto the hills -  to Zion and Moriah, where God’s sanctuary is,  Psalms
87:1”

Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible -
Unabridged

- “I will lift up mine eyes unto the hills, from whence
cometh my help. The pilgrims' even-song as they caught the first sight of the
hills (Psalms 121:1) round Jerusalem.”

Daniel Whedon’s Commentary - “ I will lift up mine eyes unto the hills—Not to the
hills of Palestine in general, but to those of Jerusalem and its environs. See
on Psalms
125:2. Mount Zion, in David’s time, and Moriah afterward, were
particularly holy mountains, the abode of Jehovah.”

The King James Bible is
always right.  Accept no substitutes.

By sovereign grace,
believing The Book,

Will Kinney

Return to Articles
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Other English Bibles that have Psalm
121:1 as a statement and not a question are The Word of
Yah 1993, God's First Truth 1999 - " I lift up mine eyes unto the
hills, from where comes my help.", the Ancient Roots Translinear
Bible 2008, Bond Slave Version 2009, Biblos Interlinear Bible 2011,
Conservative Bible 2011, The Work of God's Children Illustrated Bible
2011, Interlinear Hebrew Old Testament - http://studybible.info/IHOT/Psalms%20121:1

Other English Bibles that have Psalm
121:1 as a statement and not a question are The Word of
Yah 1993, God's First Truth 1999 - " I lift up mine eyes unto the
hills, from where comes my help.", the Ancient Roots Translinear
Bible 2008, Bond Slave Version 2009, Biblos Interlinear Bible 2011,
Conservative Bible 2011, The Work of God's Children Illustrated Bible
2011, Interlinear Hebrew Old Testament - http://studybible.info/IHOT/Psalms%20121:1