Whoever he was, he was deep into his bible. This unknown writer knew enough – including that Amen indicates strong trust and agreement with a preceding statement – to say this special word twice, rather than just once, and that such a double-verbalization was a bit rarer. Maybe he was looking at a character named Ezra as he inspired a group of people and how they responded to what he had to say (see an illustration of Ezra in action here, as he reads the law to the people [Neh. 8:1-12], as shown in Gustav Dore’s 19th Century English Bible). Or, how about in the way that the first three books of Psalms conclude? Or, better yet, what about when Jesus says this over two dozen times with an equivalent form of the word? Is it not enough to say Amen once? And, to sing it twice, rather than voicing it adds something extra, does it not? Who this songwriter was and what his purpose was remain hidden, and yet the words he wrote have the traces of people and events that we can recognize, and lend us an echo for our own time.
Amen begins early in Israelite history (Numbers 5:22) and runs through the end of John’s vision, in fact the very last word he shares in the bible (Revelation 22:21); John uses it eight times in his visionary book. It is also something that Moses and the priests charged the people to say repeatedly if they accepted the Lord’s leadership and warnings from Mount Ebal (Deuteronomy 27:15-28). But, perhaps the most intriguing episodes are those in which the Amen is repeated, indicating some urgency or a more deeply felt degree of trust. Perhaps saying it twice results when someone is trying to wrap up so much accumulated praise, as in three of the Psalms – each of which conclude successive compilations of this ancient Hebrew songbook with Amen and Amen; Psalms 41:13 (of David) concludes Book I of Psalms; Psalms 72:19 (of Solomon) concludes Book II of Psalms; and Psalms 89:52 (of Ethan the Ezrahite) concludes Book III of Psalms. When the people had completed rebuilding the wall around Jerusalem, and assembled to hear Ezra who stood high above them to remind them of ‘the Lord, the great God’ (Neh. 8:6) and His law, they were attentive in a way that they had not been for quite some time, for they were no longer exiles. And so, they responded with gusto, with two Amens. Our equivalent today might be Hoorah and some wild jumping up and down, like when fanatical people spontaneously react to a team winning the championship. It’s a feeling of triumph on top of the mountain. But, the most frequent use of this phrase or its equivalent is by the God-Son, Jesus. The gospel writer John records Jesus uttering the phrase truly, truly (in many versions, like the English Standard Version) 25 times, as He instructed various people, trying to get their attention. (See Him saying verily, verily/very truly/truly, truly [the equivalent of amen, amen] in John 1:51; 3:3,5,11; 5:19,24-25; 6:26,32,47,53; 8:34,51,58; 10:1,7; 12:24; 13:16,20-21,38; 14:12; 16:20,23; 21:18.) It seems like I must say back to Him, ‘I’m listening, Lord.’
So, what were the most important things that Jesus or the others were talking about that inspired ‘Amen and Amen’? There’s a lot there, enough to spend a lifetime trying to grasp. Our unidentified poet/songwriter has whittled them down with his words that have us calling out to God – just to be able to address Him is overwhelming, if you think about it long enough. But, what about ‘when the Lord shall come again’? That also is too vast to comprehend, is it not, though Paul has tried to picture it for us (1 Thessalonians 4:16-17)? His ‘glory’ will be evident then, if what I see about me every day isn’t enough already to make that clear. Consider Him, and whether even two Amens are enough. Our unnamed, shadowy poet whose song we can sing must have thought the same thing, because the two Amens are actually sung no less than 11 times in this short space of music, in less than two minutes (see link to a rendition of it below). And, we can sing it over and over again, however many times we want to. Isn’t He worth it, Amen?
Hear it sung here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iaxP4RaBm3A
See information on the picture here: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:109.Ezra_Reads_the_Law_to_the_People.jpg …The author died in 1883, so this work is in the public domain in its country of origin and other countries and areas where the copyright term is the author's life plus 100 years or fewer. This work is in the public domain in the United States because it was published (or registered with the U.S. Copyright Office) before January 1, 1931. …found inside this document -- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ezra
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