In just the three verses of Psalm 133 David emphasizes something that is too often forgotten in Christendom: how much God wants us to get along with one another. The images are foreign to us: This precious oil poured on the head running down into the beard sounds mighty messy. And what does that dew of Hermon represent?
Might we liken the “oil” image to the renewal a man feels after a professional shave and haircut? Or how a woman feels after a trip to the salon?
In a land where water is scarce, dew is especially important to crops, and the dew was especially heavy on Mt. Hermon, Israel’s highest mountain.
Unity then brings freshness to our lives and hope for the future.
When brethren treat one another like anything but beloved family – even (and perhaps especially) in the name of orthodoxy (or truth) – they fall outside God’s approval and blessing. It is possible to be right, and act wrong, but it is not possible to act wrong and be like God – or to enjoy His blessing: life forevermore.
It is possible to get along with our brethren because we are so seldom with them. But that is not the unity David is talking about – nor the one God blesses. This unity comes from determined effort, and the effort is required precisely because we are together so much. And so, the blessing of God is in response to us living in community with one another, interacting with one another, and learning to love one another as God loves us.