Phrases in The 🦅Eagle’s Message versus Psalm 23

[Eljorahir]

Question:
Have you heard before that Tolkien may have used some phrases, imagery, or themes from Psalm 23 particularly in the chapter “The Steward and the King”?
Is there anything to see here, or is it a nothing burger?

I know it's not much, but today a line of text in the chapter, “The Steward and the King” caught my attention. I thought it sounded familiar outside of Tolkien and after a little googling I arrived at Psalm 23.:

An eagle proclaims:
“…he shall dwell among you all the days of your life.”
Psalm 23:
Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life: and I will dwell in the house of the Lord for ever.

Then I noted a rod and a staff are both in the Psalm and at the gates of Gondor a few pages later.


The Steward and The King:
…there came a great Eagle flying, and he bore tidings beyond hope from the Lords of the West, crying:

Sing now, ye people of the Tower of Anor,
For the Realm of Sauron is ended for ever,
And the Dark Tower is thrown down.

Sing and rejoice, ye people of the Tower of Guard,
For your watch hath not been in vain,
And the Black Gate is broken,
And your King hath passed through,
And he is victorious.

Sing and be glad, all ye children of the West,
For your King shall come again,
And he shall dwell among you all the days of your life.

And the Tree that was withered shall be renewed,
And he shall plant it in the high places,
And the City shall be blessed.

Sing all ye people!

And the people sang in all the ways of the City.
The days that followed were golden, and Spring and Summer joined and made revel together in the fields of Gondor.

Psalm 23 (King James Version):
1 The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want.
2 He maketh me to lie down in green pastures: he leadeth me beside the still waters.
3 He restoreth my soul: he leadeth me in the paths of righteousness for his name's sake.
4 Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me.
5 Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of mine enemies: thou anointest my head with oil; my cup runneth over.
6 Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life: and I will dwell in the house of the Lord for ever.

 

[Squint-eyed Southerner]

Yes, I'm sure the echoes were deliberate on Tolkien's part -- as were parts of Smaug's oration to Bilbo.

 

[Eljorahir]

Yes, I'm sure the echoes were deliberate on Tolkien's part -- as were parts of Smaug's oration to Bilbo.

I did manage to find one from Smaug's oration. Maybe there are more.

Smaug: 'Girion Lord of Dale is dead, and I have eaten his people like a wolf among sheep, and where are his sons' sons that dare approach me?...'
Mathew 10:16: 'I am sending you out like sheep among wolves."

 

[Eljorahir]

I guess I should have checked The Tolkien Gateway first. They have an article about the Eagle's message..

Tom Shippey explains the clear inspiration of the poem from the Biblical style and language, specially the Psalms. "Sing and rejoice" resembles the "Rejoice in the Lord" from Psalm 33, while the whole poem resembles Psalm 24: "Lift up your heads, O ye gates; and be ye lift up, ye everlasting doors; and the King of glory shall come in." The imagery is also reminiscent of the Christian defeat upon the gates of hell and Christ's coming.

That poem always did remind me of being in church.

 

[Idril Celebrindal]

There is a passage in The Hobbit that reminds me of Hebrews 12:1-2
The Hobbit, p 135:
"This is your expedition after all. Think of the treasure at the end, and forget the forest and the dragon, at any rate untill tomorrow morning!

Part of Hebrews 12:1-2:
...let us throw off everything that hinders us ... and let us run with perceverance the race marked out for us. Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross...

I think there are a few other verses in the Bible that call Jesus our treasure, although I can't recall them now.
There have been many other times reading Tolkiens works, especially the end of TH, where I recall some Bible verse that seems simmilar to what I am reading.