Solitary, Only Sons In Families: Psalm 68:6

Ps 68:6  God setteth the solitary in families: he bringeth out those which are bound with chains: but the rebellious dwell in a dry land.

The Psalmist in the text is not talking about solitary folk being adopted into families of moms, dads, siblings, grandparents, aunts, uncles and cousins. So, what is the Psalmist really saying? The first use of the word "families" (Strong's #1004, "bayith") was used in the instructions given to Noah for the building of the inside of the ark.

Ge 6:14 Make thee an ark of gopher wood; rooms shalt thou make in the ark, and shalt pitch it within <01004> and without with pitch.

Abraham was a type of the Lord Jesus Christ who left his father's house for another land.

Ge 12:1 Now the LORD had said unto Abram, Get thee out of thy country, and from thy kindred, and from thy father’s house <01004>, unto a land that I will shew thee:

We see "bayith" translated many times in the context of a father's house in the book of Genesis, and then, in chapter 39 we find the word translated as "prison". Wow, what a drastic change. Joseph was in the "bayith" ("house") that was the inside of the ark, but now it's called a "prison".

Ge 39:20 And Joseph’s master took him, and put him into the prison <01004>, a place where the king’s prisoners were bound: and he was there in the prison <01004>.

Turning back to Psalm 68:6, it's easy to see Joseph's imprisonment in the same light as the solitary in families (the household of God) and being bound with chains.

Ps 68:6  God setteth the solitary in families: he bringeth out those which are bound with chains:

Bayith ("families") is also the "house of God" and "all the house of Israel":

Ex 40:38 For the cloud of the LORD was upon the tabernacle by day, and fire was on it by night, in the sight of all the house <01004> of Israel, throughout all their journeys.

Bayith ("families") was within the vail.

Le 16:15 Then shall he kill the goat of the sin offering, that is for the people, and bring his blood within <01004> the vail, and do with that blood as he did with the blood of the bullock, and sprinkle it upon the mercy seat, and before the mercy seat:

"Bayith" is also the "house of bondage":

De 13:10 And thou shalt stone him with stones, that he die; because he hath sought to thrust thee away from the LORD thy God, which brought thee out of the land of Egypt, from the house <01004> of bondage.

"Bayith" can also refer to the house of the wicked.

Pr 3:33 The curse of the LORD is in the house <01004> of the wicked: but he blesseth the habitation of the just.

The elect must be delivered out of the house of bondage, just as Joseph had to be delivered from his prison. I do not believe the body of Christ is delivered out of the land of Egypt, from the house of bondage, or the prison, until Christ returns to judge the quick and the dead.

Only Sons, Only Begotten Son

In the Bible, does "only son", or "only child" refer to a son's or child's birth order status in a household? Or, does it really mean "unique"? With just a few comparisons of the word "solitary" (Hebrew "yachiyd", Strong's #3173) in Psalm 68:6, a ton of correction can be received. All six translations of the phrase "only son" in the Old Testament is "yachiyd". In Genesis 22:2, God instructed Abraham to offer his "only son", Isaac.

Ge 22:2  And he said, Take now thy son, thine only son Isaac, whom thou lovest, and get thee into the land of Moriah; and offer him there for a burnt offering upon one of the mountains which I will tell thee of.

Isaac was Abraham's only son by Sarah at the time and Abraham's rightful heir, but he was not his "one and only" son. Ishmael was in Abraham's loins, just as Levi's life was acknowledged in his ancestor, Abraham, even before he was born to Jacob.

Heb 7:9 And as I may so say, Levi also, who receiveth tithes, payed tithes in Abraham.

10 For he was yet in the loins of his father, when Melchisedec met him.

We have to understand how God communicates, because it's not the way man twists His truths into his own lingo. Here are a few examples of the way God would say "one and only", using other Hebrew words:

1Ki 8:9 There was nothing in the ark save <07535> the two tables of stone, which Moses put there at Horeb, when the LORD made a covenant with the children of Israel, when they came out of the land of Egypt.

Ge 7:23 And every living substance was destroyed which was upon the face of the ground, both man, and cattle, and the creeping things, and the fowl of the heaven; and they were destroyed from the earth: and Noah only <0389> remained alive, and they that were with him in the ark.

Ec 7:29 Lo, this only <0905> have I found, that God hath made man upright; but they have sought out many inventions.

2Sa 7:22 Wherefore thou art great, O LORD God: for there is none like thee, neither is there any God beside <02108> thee, according to all that we have heard with our ears.

Getting back to the translation of "solitary" ("yachiyd") in Psalm 68:6, it's easy to see a much deeper meaning that is unrelated to the idea of "one and only". We see that Isaac, as Abraham's "only" son, is also the "solitary" who is set in families (the house of God"). The elect are to mourn in sackcloth and ashes "as for an only son".

Jer 6:26 O daughter of my people, gird thee with sackcloth, and wallow thyself in ashes: make thee mourning, as for an only son <03173>, most bitter lamentation: for the spoiler shall suddenly come upon us.

The mourning is not the kind of mouring we would have for a single son, because any loving parent would mourn equally for a son who was not the "one and only" son. Other, surviving children would certainly provide some comfort to ease the parents' loss, but the mourning, itself, would be the same for any son. There is more to an "only son", or "solitary son" than meets the eye.

The word "yahchiyd" which is translated as "solitary" and "only son" comes from the Hebrew word "yachad" (Strong's #3161). It conveys the meaning of being united to something. 

Ge 49:6 O my soul, come not thou into their secret; unto their assembly, mine honour, be not thou united <03161>: for in their anger they slew a man, and in their selfwill they digged down a wall.

Ps 86:11 Teach me thy way, O LORD; I will walk in thy truth: unite <03161> my heart to fear thy name.

The solitary, only sons of God are united to Him because they are set in His family, or household. They are "yachiyd", "solitary", "only sons" and also "desolate and afflicted":

Ps 25:16 Turn thee unto me, and have mercy upon me; for I am desolate <03173> and afflicted.

What about "only sons" in the New Testament? Are we to think of such sons as "one and only" or as "solitary" and "desolate"? In the KJV, we find the phrase "only son" just one time in Luke:

Lu 7:12  Now when he came nigh to the gate of the city, behold, there was a dead man carried out, the only son of his mother, and she was a widow: and much people of the city was with her.

The Greek word translated as "only" in Luke 7:12 is "monogenes" (Strong's #3439). The word "monogenes" comes from the word "mono" (Strong's #3441)and, rather than conveying the idea of "one and only", the true meaning is alone, set apart, or without another.

"mono"

Mt 14:23 And when he had sent the multitudes away, he went up into a mountain apart to pray: and when the evening was come, he was there alone <3441>.

Not "just one", but rather, "with no one else", "solitary".

Mt 18:15 Moreover if thy brother shall trespass against thee, go and tell him his fault between thee and him alone <3441>: if he shall hear thee, thou hast gained thy brother.

"mono" definition - from thefreedictionary.com:

A prefix that means "one, only, single," as in monochromatic, having only one color. It is often found in chemical names where it means "containing just one" of the specified atom or group, as in carbon monoxide, which is carbon attached to a single oxygen atom.

 

The word "containing" in the above definition is the key to understanding the oneness of "monos" and "monogenes".

Here is the glorious PARADOX. Like their Lord Jesus Christ, the elect are solitary. But, they are in placed in the household of God. John 16:32 is the perfect complement to Psalm 68:6.

Joh 16:32 Behold, the hour cometh, yea, is now come, that ye shall be scattered, every man to his own, and shall leave me alone <3441>: and yet I am not alone <3441>, because the Father is with me.

This present life provides for God's people the flood, the Red Sea, the wilderness, the prison, the lion's den and the exceedingly hot fiery furnace. There are storms, shipwrecks, droughts, famines, sickness, earthquakes, and even death. Believers are not yet saved. We are part of the world that is under judgment. If we were not to go through these trials, we would not have to "endure unto the end". This is how we understand words like "endure", "hope", "patience", "promise", "trust", "watch", "continue in prayer" and "walk by faith".