Meditations on the Psalms

We glorify Him with praise: Praise the LORD!(verse 1a). The Hebrew simply says "Hallelujah", which has become an international word in the languages of the world, just like another Hebrew word "Amen", which means "steadfast, constant and trustworthy". When we say "Amen" after a prayer, we mean, May it be so, or May you answer, Lord, because You are constant, steadfast and trustworthy. You must fulfil Your promises to answer whoever calls upon You. The psalm praises the Lord and calls others to do the same, For it is good to sing praises to our God; for it is pleasant, and praise is beautiful(Psalm 147:1).

We glorify Him with a whole heart: I will praise the LORD with my whole heart(verse 1b). The psalmist praises the good Lord with his whole heart because of their love relationship, for The secret of the LORD is with those who fear Him, and He will show them His covenant (Psalm 25:14). The Lord deserves to be praised with a heart united in fear of Him, for He is the one and holy God to whom we pray both in public and in secret, at times of joy as well as at times of sadness, as the apostle admonishes: Is anyone among you suffering? Let him pray. Is anyone cheerful? Let him sing psalms(James 5:13).

We glorify Him with the upright: In the assembly of the upright and in the congregation(verse 1c). The psalmist praises Him in the assembly of his private circle, where he meets his upright friends. They are the godly ones who agree with him in loving the Lord. His motto is: As for the saints who are on the earth, they are the excellent ones, in whom is all my delight (Psalm 16:3). As though he says to them, Rejoice in the LORD, O you righteous! For praise from the upright is beautiful(Psalm 33:1). For He is a God who ...is greatly to be feared in the assembly of the saints, and to be held in reverence by all those around Him (Psalm 89:7).

The Lord's works are great: The works of the LORD are great, studied by all who have pleasure in them(verse 2). The goodness of the great Lord is evident in the great good works of the Lord, in terms of their power, impact and abundance. How precious also are Your thoughts to me, O God! How great is the sum of them! If I should count them, they would be more in number than the sand; when I awake, I am still with You(Psalm 139:17,18). He gives to all liberally and without reproach, and He is good to all those who truly seek Him. Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and comes down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow of turning. Of His own will He brought us forth by the word of truth, that we might be a kind of firstfruits of His creatures (James 1:17,18). He created the universe and man, then saw that what He made was very good (Genesis 1:31). His care is great and good, for He waters the hills from His upper chambers; the earth is satisfied with the fruit of Your works ... O LORD, how manifold are Your works! In wisdom You have made them all. The earth is full of Your possessions ... May the glory of the LORD endure forever; may the LORD rejoice in His works (Psalm 104:13,24,31).

Great also are the works of Christ; all of which are in agreement with His statements. He fed five thousand people with five loaves of bread and two fish (John 6:1-15) because He did not want to send them away hungry to their own houses, in case they should faint on the way. Then He said I am the bread which came down from heaven (John 6:41). Again he said, I am the light of the world. He who follows Me shall not walk in darkness, but have the light of life (John 8:12), then opened the eyes of the one born blind (John 9). Again He said, I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in Me, though he may die, he shall live. And whoever lives and believes in Me shall never die (John 11:25,26), and commanded Lazarus, who had died four days earlier, to come out of his tomb, and Lazarus rose again (John 11:43).

Yet the greatest of all God's good works is changing man's heart and forgiving his sins. This is the work of divine grace. In this respect the Scriptures say about the believers, For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them (Ephesians 2:10). The Lord makes a new man out of the wicked, as the Bible says, Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation (2 Corinthians 5:17). This is what happens to the penitent person who returns to God.

These good works are studied by all who have pleasure in them People must study them, ponder on them and think them over. Blessed is the man ... [whose] delight is in the law of the LORD, and on His law he meditates day and night(Psalm 1:2).

The Lord's works are just: His work is honorable and glorious, and His righteousness endures forever(verse 3). The Lord's works are honourable and glorious, showing His constant, unchangeable justice. This powerful Lord is just in all He does. His spokesman Moses said about Him, He is the Rock, His work is perfect; for all His ways are justice, a God of truth and without injustice; righteous and upright is He (Deuteronomy 32:4). And God said through His prophet Isaiah, Ask Me of things to come concerning My sons; and concerning the work of My hands, you command Me. I have made the earth, and created man on it. I—My hands—stretched out the heavens, And all their host I have commanded (Isaiah 45:11,12).

We may wonder: Since God is so honourable and glorious in all He does, and since His justice is constant and active, why does He then allow the weak to be harmed? Why does He let the believers suffer at the hands of the wicked? Why does He allow the strong to hurt others, or to force their will on them? How often do we see injustice done by employers to employees, by landowners to labourers, and by rulers to their subjects? The answer is that God's treatment of the wicked is one of justice. He gives him freedom of action because He forces no one to do good, and He is patient with the wicked person that he may repent. But at the same time He must deliver the believer from his temporary trouble, just as Christ said that the tribulation of the angel of the church of Smyrna will only last ten days (Revelation 2:10). It neither lasts nor continues. The Scriptures say to the suffering believers, In this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while, if need be, you have been grieved by various trials, that the genuineness of your faith, being much more precious than gold that perishes, though it is tested by fire, may be found to praise, honor, and glory at the revelation of Jesus Christ (1 Peter 1:6,7).

The Lord's works are wonderful (verses 4-6):

The Lord's words are good (verses 7b,8):

The Lord's redemption is good: He has sent redemption to His people; He has commanded His covenant forever: Holy and awesome is His name(verse 9). A redeemer is someone who ransoms a prisoner, or releases the debtor from his debts. The redeemer is also the next of kin, the care-taker and the saviour. To say that the Lord redeemed His people is to say that He is near them, that He is their care-taker. Christ declared that He had come to proclaim the Jubilee, the acceptable year of the LORDin which the prisoners are to be released and the broken-hearted are to be set free (Luke 4:19). Thus He declared that He is our Redeemer, our care-taker, our next of kin, who alone can redeem us from our sins. He also said, No longer do I call you servants... but I have called you friends (John 15:15). God sent redemption to His people when He brought them out of Pharaoh's bondage, and made Pharaoh and his army a ransom for them. Then again He sent redemption to His people when He brought them back from captivity, and said to them through the prophet Jeremiah, If you can break My covenant with the day and My covenant with the night, so that there will not be day and night in their season, then My covenant may also be broken with David My servant, so that he shall not have a son to reign on his throne, and with the Levites, the priests, My ministers. As the host of heaven cannot be numbered, nor the sand of the sea measured, so will I multiply the descendants of David My servant and the Levites who minister to Me (Jeremiah 33:20-22).

Through this redemption from the bondage of the devil and the bondage of Pharaoh the Lord showed that He is the holy One who deserves our love, glorification, reverence, fear, adoration and worship, so that every knee should bow to Him, of those in heaven, and of those on earth, and of those under the earth (Philippians 2:10).

The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom: The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom; a good understanding have all those who do His commandments(verse 10a,b). The kind of wisdom meant here is not the mere head knowledge of philosophical matters, but rather the practical application of God's commandments. This is true piety. Moses advised his people, saying, And now, Israel, what does the LORD your God require of you, but to fear the LORD your God, to walk in all His ways and to love Him, to serve the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul(Deuteronomy 10:12). Solomon the wise admonished, Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter: Fear God and keep His commandments, for this is man’s all (Ecclesiastes 12:13). And the apostle Peter gives us this piece of wisdom, Honor all people. Love the brotherhood. Fear God. Honor the king (1 Peter 2:17).

Piety and fear of the Lord give a man understanding and wisdom in all he does. Job says, Behold, the fear of the Lord, that is wisdom, and to depart from evil is understanding (Job 28:28). Solomon the wise also says, Wisdom is the principal thing; therefore get wisdom. And in all your getting, get understanding (Proverbs 4:7). And Hosea adds, Who is wise? Let him understand these things. Who is prudent? Let him know them. For the ways of the LORD are right; the righteous walk in them, but transgressors stumble in them (Hosea 14:9). Christ said, Therefore whoever hears these sayings of Mine, and does them, I will liken him to a wise man who built his house on the rock: and the rain descended, the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house; and it did not fall, for it was founded on the rock (Matthew 7:24,25). And finally: Good understanding gains favor (Proverbs 13:15).

The fear of Lord inspires praise to Him: His praise endures forever(verse 10c). The psalmist ends the psalm with praise, just as he started it. He said, His righteousness endures forever(verse 3), and so do all His attributes, which inspire the believer and encourage him to lead a life of piety and to praise God here on earth. Later, when the believer comes into his heavenly inheritance, he will continue to praise Him for ever. I will sing to the LORD as long as I live; I will sing praise to my God while I have my being. May my meditation be sweet to Him; I will be glad in the LORD (Psalm 104:33,34).

What is the meaning of "hallelujah" and "amen"?

What do we mean when we say that God is our Redeemer?

The father of the house: Praise the LORD! Blessed is the man who fears the LORD, who delights greatly in His commandments(verse 1). To fear the Lord is to love, revere and obey Him. The man who fears the Lord enjoys obeying His commandments day after day, and his delight is in the law of the LORD, and in His law he meditates day and night (Psalm 1:2). He says, I delight to do Your will, O my God, and Your law is within my heart (Psalm 40:8). He calls on God to Make me walk in the path of Your commandments, for I delight in it ... Oh, how I love Your law! It is my meditation all the day (Psalm 119:35,97). Our conduct is shaped by the ideas with which we feed our minds. If we read disturbing news we get disturbed, and if we read profane books we make ourselves vulnerable to profane temptations. But if we read the Word of God and really enjoy it we find that it encourages us to fear God. How happy is the man who fears the Lord, because fearing the Lord is the basis of happiness for both the father of the house and its individuals. He raises a banner that says, But as for me and my house, we will serve the LORD (Joshua 24:15). The God-fearing father of the house lifts up this prayer: You will show me the path of life; in Your presence is fullness of joy; at Your right hand are pleasures forevermore (Psalm 16:11).

The children of the house: His descendants will be mighty on earth; The generation of the upright will be blessed(verse 2). Since the time when God saw that it was not good that man should be alone, and He made him a helper suitable to him, we find that the Bible emphasizes the importance of the family and the necessity of both parents and children fearing God. The upright God-fearing man is blessed in his house and in his mighty descendants who are known for their good reputation. The aroma of their piety spreads throughout the earth. The Scriptures say about them, Who is the man that fears the LORD? Him shall He teach in the way He chooses. He himself shall dwell in prosperity, and his descendants shall inherit the earth (Psalm 25:12,13). But the meek shall inherit the earth, and shall delight themselves in the abundance of peace (Psalm 37:11). Such a blessing was also given to Abraham: Abraham shall surely become a great and mighty nation, and all the nations of the earth shall be blessed in him? For I have known him, in order that he may command his children and his household after him, that they keep the way of the LORD, to do righteousness and justice, that the LORD may bring to Abraham what He has spoken to him (Genesis 18:18,19).

The God-fearing person will also have mighty descendants on earth. These are the spiritual descendants he wins over from the sinful world, like the apostle Paul did when he gave birth to spiritual descendants in the faith. He said to some of them, I do not write these things to shame you, but as my beloved children I warn you. For though you might have ten thousand instructors in Christ, yet you do not have many fathers; for in Christ Jesus I have begotten you through the gospel. Therefore I urge you, imitate me (1 Corinthians 4:14-16). All those who return to God in repentance will hear: Now, therefore, you are no longer strangers and foreigners, but fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God (Ephesians 2:19).

The riches of the house (verse 3):

The light of the house: Unto the upright there arises light in the darkness; He is gracious, and full of compassion, and righteous(verse 4). God may sometimes permit darkness to surround the righteous, or allow them to walk in darkness. But in the valley of the shadow of death they fear no evil, for the Lord is with them (Psalm 23:4). Christ said, In the world you will have tribulation; but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world (John 16:33). God's light will shine in darkness upon the upright, those who have a right standing with God, and it will be said about them: Light is sown for the righteous, and gladness for the upright in heart (Psalm 97:11). It will be said also, If you extend your soul to the hungry and satisfy the afflicted soul, then your light shall dawn in the darkness, and your darkness shall be as the noonday (Isaiah 58:10). Because the light of God shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not comprehend it (John 1:5). In God's light we see light (Psalm 36:9).

As to the source of the light that arises over the believer in the midst of his darkness, it is the Lord's grace, compassion and righteousness. Therefore he says along with his fellow believers, Not unto us, O LORD, not unto us, but to Your name give glory, because of Your mercy, because of Your truth (Psalm 115:1). It is an act of the Lord's mercy that darkness does not alter the faith of the believer; rather it deepens it. When storms blow on a living tree planted by rivers of water, its roots grow even deeper into the earth. When a harsh trial afflicts the believer, it deepens his faith within him. Christ said much the same thing to Peter, Simon, Simon! Indeed, Satan has asked for you, that he may sift you as wheat. But I have prayed for you, that your faith should not fail; and when you have returned to Me, strengthen your brethren (Luke 22:31,32).

The generosity of the house: A good man deals graciously and lends(verse 5a). Despite the darkness that may surround the believer, he is generous and charitable, because he wants to be like the loving God, because he realizes that all he has is a gift from God. He is not the owner, but a steward entrusted by God to dispense what he has. He should use what he has wisely, sharing mercy, money, knowledge and good advice with those around him. In doing so he obeys the commandment: If there is among you a poor man of your brethren, within any of the gates in your land which the LORD your God is giving you, you shall not harden your heart nor shut your hand from your poor brother, but you shall open your hand wide to him and willingly lend him sufficient for his need, whatever he needs (Deuteronomy 15:7,8). Solomon the wise said, Cast your bread upon the waters, for you will find it after many days (Ecclesiastes 11:1). Isaiah advised, Is it not to share your bread with the hungry, and that you bring to your house the poor who are cast out; when you see the naked, that you cover him, and not hide yourself from your own flesh?(Isaiah 58:7). Christ Himself also commanded, Give, and it will be given to you: good measure, pressed down, shaken together, and running over will be put into your bosom. For with the same measure that you use, it will be measured back to you (Luke 6:38). Paul encourages us to share with God's people who are in need. Practice hospitality (Romans 12:13 NIV).

David gave a generous donation for the building of the Lord's temple, then said, But who am I, and who are my people, that we should be able to offer so willingly as this? For all things come from You, and of Your own we have given You (1 Chronicles 29:14). Think of someone you can help to get back on his feet, so that your own heart may be filled with joy, for God loves a cheerful giver (2 Corinthians 9:7).

The discretion of the house: He will guide his affairs with discretion(verse 5b). The God-fearing person who deals graciously and lends mercifully manages all his affairs in business and work with discretion, integrity and justice. He never wrongs anyone just to get rich or accepts a bribe to increase his wealth. Money is a stern master, and once love of money rules the heart corruption sets in. The rich are tempted to wrong the poor and the helpless, although Solomon the wise says, He who oppresses the poor reproaches his Maker, but he who honors Him has mercy on the needy (Proverbs 14:31). The rich may also be afflicted with the disease of pride, because they assume that their wealth was a product of their own intelligence. They may make money their god and put their trust in it rather than in God. They may become too miserly to give to the poor, live in fear of losing their wealth, or be given to believe that their friends love them only as long as they can take advantage of them. But fearing God spares the God-fearing person these temptations and grants him victory over them. Now godliness with contentment is great gain. For we brought nothing into this world, and it is certain we can carry nothing out(1 Timothy 6:6,7).

The steadfastness of the God-fearing person in this life: Surely he will never be shaken(verse 6a). The God-fearing person is not afraid of injustice, the wicked or the future. He will never be removed (Proverbs 10:30) because he obeys the commandment: Cast your burden on the LORD, and He shall sustain you; He shall never permit the righteous to be moved (Psalm 55:22). When bad news came to Job, one thing after the other, he did not sin nor charge God with wrong, so the Lord accepted him, restored his losses and gave him twice as much as he had before (Job 42:9,10). The prophetic utterance was fulfilled to him, You will keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on You, because he trusts in You. Trust in the LORD forever, for in YAH, the LORD, is everlasting strength (Isaiah 26:3,4).

The steadfastness of the God-fearing person's memory after his death: The righteous will be in everlasting remembrance(verse 6b). The good memory of the righteous will remain forever with both men and God. The memory of many world leaders has been lost, and many others are only remembered for what they did wrong. The name of the righteous, however, is written in the book of life and his memory is sweet to God and to the heart of the people of his household and the members of his church. Who amongst us can forget David's psalms or Joseph's purity as he refused to sin? Who can forget God's answer to Hezekiah's prayer? Or ignore the apostle Paul's journey to take the good news of Christ to the nations? Who amongst us can forget their own God-fearing mother or righteous father? Truly The memory of the righteous is blessed, but the name of the wicked will rot (Proverbs 10:7).

The steadfastness of the God-fearing person in spite of the evil tidings: He will not be afraid of evil tidings; his heart is steadfast, trusting in the LORD. His heart is established; he will not be afraid, until he sees his desire upon his enemies(verses 7,8). When one's conscience is set at ease he does not fear evil tidings, but says, My heart is steadfast, O God, my heart is steadfast (Psalm 57:7). Say to the righteous that it shall be well with them (Isaiah 3:10). And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose (Romans 8:28). It is like Peter who was sleeping in prison, although he was bound by chains, waiting for his execution the next day (Acts 12:1-11). As to the wicked, he flees when no one pursues (Proverbs 28:1) just like Cain said, Anyone who finds me will kill me(Genesis 4:14). It is very true that The fear of the wicked will come upon him, snd the desire of the righteous will be granted (Proverbs 10:24).

Blessed is the man who fears the LORD, who delights greatly in His commandments. He will not be afraid until he sees God's judgment inflicted upon his enemies, for He who dwells in the secret place of the Most High shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty ...A thousand may fall at your side, and ten thousand at your right hand; but it shall not come near you. Only with your eyes shall you look, and see the reward of the wicked (Psalm 91:1,7,8).

The steadfastness of the God-fearing person in giving: He has dispersed abroad, he has given to the poor; his righteousness endures forever; his horn will be exalted with honor(verse 9). The God-fearing person is generous and open-handed, for Pure and undefiled religion before God and the Father is this: to visit orphans and widows in their trouble, and to keep oneself unspotted from the world (James 1:27). He disperses abroad and gives to the poor, and There is one who scatters, yet increases more; and there is one who withholds more than is right, but it leads to poverty (Proverbs 11:24). He who sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and he who sows bountifully will also reap bountifully (2 Corinthians 9:6). The apostle Paul quoted what the psalmist says here in Psalm 112 in his second epistle to the Corinthians (2 Corinthians 9:9). Paul was talking about the rich churches that helped the poor churches. True believers disperse abroad and give to the poor, so their righteousness endures forever in God's sight and before men. On the Last Day they will hear Christ say, Come, you blessed of My Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world ... Assuredly, I say to you, inasmuch as you did it to one of the least of these My brethren, you did it to Me (Matthew 25:34,40). Even if all he has is a dry morsel of bread, the Lord will bless it for the believer who will eat with his family in peace and harmony. The Lord will make it better than a house full of feasting with strife (Proverbs 17:1). Solomon was right as he said, Better is a dinner of herbs where love is, than a fatted calf with hatred (Proverbs 15:17).

The Lord rewards the believer who disperses abroad and gives to the poor by making his horn exalted with honour. This figure of speech is borrowed from the horn of an animal that lifts up its head after fighting another animal and defeating it. Hannah, the mother of the prophet Samuel, lifted up a song to God when He gave her a child after many years of barrenness, during which the other wife of her husband provoked her severely to make her miserable. She said, My horn is exalted in the LORD (1 Samuel 2:1). When the believer gives the tenth of his income to the Lord's work and to charity, the Lord lifts up his head.

The steadfastness of the God-fearing person in the face of evil-doers: The wicked will see it and be grieved; he will gnash his teeth and melt away; the desire of the wicked shall perish(verse 10). It is very strange that a man who fears God should have enemies. But unfortunately when God honours the godly, the wicked resents those blessings! But the resentment of the wicked and their gnashing of teeth will harm no one but the wicked himself. He will melt away in rage and grief, while the godly lifts his voice with grateful singing to God, saying with the psalmist, The LORD is on my side; I will not fear. What can man do to me? The LORD is for me among those who help me; therefore I shall see my desire on those who hate me ... The LORD is my strength and song, and He has become my salvation. The voice of rejoicing and salvation is in the tents of the righteous; the right hand of the LORD does valiantly (Psalm 118:6,7,14,15).

In the final verse in the psalm, the psalmist calls the sinner to repentance in that he declares the blessing God bestows upon God-fearing people. They delight in the Lord who shall give them the desires of their hearts, while evildoers shall be cut off (Psalm 37:4,9). Blessed is the man who walks not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor stands in the path of sinners, nor sits in the seat of the scornful ... He shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water, that brings forth its fruit in its season, whose leaf also shall not wither; and whatever he does shall prosper. The ungodly are not so, but are like the chaff which the wind drives away (Psalm 1:1,3,4).

Explain this statement: Our conduct is shaped by the thoughts with which we feed our minds.

How can you explain verse 3b of this psalm in the light of the statement, as poor, yet making many rich(2 Corinthians 6:10)?

The servants of the Lord praise the Lord: Praise the LORD! Praise, O servants of the LORD, praise the name of the LORD!(verse 1). The psalmist calls his hearers to praise the Lord because they are His devoted, faithful servants, to whom the Lord says, But you, Israel, are My servant, Jacob whom I have chosen, the descendants of Abraham My friend. You whom I have taken from the ends of the earth, and called from its farthest regions, and said to you, 'You are My servant, I have chosen you and have not cast you away' (Isaiah 41:8,9). The believers are the servants of the Lord because He bought their souls and all that they possess. A servant or a slave used to be purchased with money, but the believers were purchased by Christ, not with gold or silver, but with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot (1 Peter 1:19). By means of this purchase we became His own property, thus we begin to call to Him, submit to His directions and praise His name.

All creation belongs to the Lord who brought it into being, perfected it and sustained it. So, what can a servant offer to his Creator and Master but continual praise, for angels sing to Him, Holy, holy, holy is the LORD of hosts; the whole earth is full of His glory (Isaiah 6:3). TThe heavens declare the glory of God; and the firmament shows His handiwork ... You shall go out with joy, and be led out with peace; the mountains and the hills shall break forth into singing before you, and all the trees of the field shall clap their hands (Psalm 19:1; Isaiah 55:12). Therefore by Him let us continually offer the sacrifice of praise to God, that is, the fruit of our lips, giving thanks to His name (Hebrews 13:15).

True believers cherish the title "servant of the Lord". It was the title given to Moses 18 times in the Old Testament (starting in Deuteronomy 34:5 and ending in 2 Chronicles 24:6,9). It was also the title of Joshua the son of Nun, Moses' successor (Joshua 24:29; Judges 2:8), as well as the title of Elijah the prophet who said to the Lord, I am Your servant (1 Kings 18:36). This was the title given by Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon, to the three young men whom he cast into a fiery furnace because they obeyed God rather than himself (Daniel 3:26). Even Mary, the mother of Jesus, used that title when the angel Gabriel gave her the good news of giving birth to the Saviour Messiah: Behold the maidservant of the Lord! Let it be to me according to your word. (Luke 1:38). It is a title that Paul held dear and almost always used in the introduction of his epistles. He wrote in Romans 1:1, Paul, a bondservant of Jesus Christ and in Titus 1:1, Paul, a bondservant of God. He did not forget that he fell facedown before Christ's light, saying, What shall I do, Lord? (Acts 22:10). Both Peter and Jude cherished that title and used it to identify themselves in 2 Peter 1:1 and Jude 1:1 respectively.

When we disobey the Lord and take control of our life's rudder, we grow weary and find out that we have made a big mistake. We cry out to Jesus to be the King, the One who has control over our lives. We learn the lesson Jonah learned in the belly of the fish, as he headed in the direction opposite to where God wanted him to go. Instead of heading for the Iraqi Nineveh to the north-east, he headed for the Spanish Tarshish in the far west. He boarded a ship bound there, but a strong storm blew over the ship and threatened to sink it, endangering the passengers, the cargo and Jonah himself. Only when they threw him overboard were they saved. Then the fish swallowed Jonah and took him where God wanted him to be, back to the starting point (Jonah 1:3,17; 2:10). As Jonah obeyed God's command, God blessed him and the people of Nineveh through his preaching. As a result, the whole city repented and sat in sackcloth and ashes. Let us remember that we are God's servants, that we have no right to go anywhere other than where He wants us to go. Let our prayer be: Make me Your servant, for then I will be free. Force me to give up my sword to You, for then I will be victorious. To reach the throne I must cast down my crown at Your feet, and to stand erect with my head lifted up I must bow down before You. Then we will praise God because we will be the servants of the Lord.

Praising the Lord through all ages: Blessed be the name of the LORD From this time forth and forevermore!(verse 2). The name of the Lord is blessed everywhere and at all times. He is called, Our Father in heaven, hallowed be Your name (Matthew 6:9). Because people have gone far away from God, we sometimes believe, as Elijah did, that there is no one left to worship the Lord but us. But the Lord encourages us the way he did Elijah and says, I have reserved seven thousand in Israel, all whose knees have not bowed to Baal, and every mouth that has not kissed him (1 Kings 19:18). The apostle Peter said to the household of Cornelius, In truth I perceive that God shows no partiality. But in every nation whoever fears Him and works righteousness is accepted by Him. The word which God sent to the children of Israel, preaching peace through Jesus Christ—He is Lord of all— (Acts 10:34-36). He is in truth Lord of all those who get to know Him as Saviour, those who say, But we will bless the LORD from this time forth and forevermore. Praise the LORD!(Psalm 115:18).

Praising the Lord everywhere: From the rising of the sun to its going down the LORD’s name is to be praised(verse 3). The name of the Lord is always praised everywhere, from East to West. The sun sets in one some place only to rise in another somewhere else on the earth. Everywhere that the sun rises or sets there is someone who praises and glorifies the Lord, because in that place He has a faithful people, of whom He says, From the rising of the sun, even to its going down, My name shall be great among the Gentiles; in every place incense shall be offered to My name, and a pure offering; for My name shall be great among the nations (Malachi 1:11). Again He says, Then I will restore to the peoples a pure language, that they all may call on the name of the LORD, to serve Him with one accord (Zephaniah 3:9).

The greatness of the Lord owing to His exalted nature: The LORD is high above all nations, His glory above the heavens(verse 4). The LORD Most High is awesome; He is a great King over all the earth ... The LORD reigns; let the peoples tremble! He dwells between the cherubim; let the earth be moved! The LORD is great in Zion, and He is high above all the peoples. Let them praise Your great and awesome name— He is holy (Psalms 47:2; 99:1-3). Solomon built a great temple for the Lord; it was a marvel of grandeur for Solomon and his people. But in his prayer at the temple's dedication he wondered in humility, But will God indeed dwell on the earth? Behold, heaven and the heaven of heavens cannot contain You. How much less this temple which I have built! (1 Kings 8:27). Solomon's temple was not small, but it was nothing compared to the Lord's greatness. Therefore all creation lifts up its song to Him and says, You are worthy, O Lord, to receive glory and honor and power; for You created all things, and by Your will they exist and were created(Revelation 4:11). The redeemed creation will also shout and say, Blessing and honor and glory and power be to Him who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb, forever and ever! (Revelation 5:13).

The greatness of the Lord owing to His uniqueness: Who is like the LORD our God, Who dwells on high(verse 5). Moses and the children of Israel chanted this song to Him after the Exodus: Who is like You, O LORD, among the gods? Who is like You, glorious in holiness, fearful in praises, doing wonders? (Exodus 15:11). Moses said to Him after crossing the Sinai desert, O Lord GOD, You have begun to show Your servant Your greatness and Your mighty hand, for what god is there in heaven or on earth who can do anything like Your works and Your mighty deeds? (Deuteronomy 3:24). The prophet Isaiah wondered, To whom then will you liken God? Or what likeness will you compare to Him? (Isaiah 40:18). Indeed, is the creature equal to the Creator? Is there any similarity between perfection and imperfection, or between strength and weakness? Is the generous rich person the same as the poor person who receives charity? God is characterized by perfect love; for God is love (1 John 4:8,16). He is indeed the Almighty, the Holy One and the absolute Truth. In His love He looks after His creation, be it flowers, birds or human beings. The very hairs of our heads are all numbered by Him (Matthew 10:30). Christ said that two sparrows were sold for a copper coin and five sparrows were sold for two copper coins, but the sparrow that was missed by the seller was not missed by God! Then He added, You are of more value than many sparrows (Luke 12:7).

The Lord beholds things below: Who humbles Himself to behold the things that are in the heavens and in the earth?(verse 6). For the Lord even the heavens are far below Him, not to mention the earth. He is the Creator of all things whether in heaven or on earth, yet He humbles Himself to meet the needs of the needy, deliver the oppressed and save sinners from their sins and troubles. The Lord looked into Pharaoh's prison and saw the righteous Joseph imprisoned for his purity. The Scriptures say about him, They hurt his feet with fetters, he was laid in irons ... The king sent and released him, the ruler of the people let him go free. He made him lord of his house, and ruler of all his possessions, to bind his princes at his pleasure, and teach his elders wisdom (Psalm 105:18-22). The Lord humbled Himself to behold the lower regions of the prison of sin that Augustine made when he indulged in impure sexual relations. But God created out of him Saint Augustine, the bishop and expositor of the divine Word. God is still the Father, the Shepherd and the Guardian. For the eyes of the LORD are on the righteous. And His ears are open to their cry (Psalm 34:15), because For the eyes of the LORD run to and fro throughout the whole earth, to show Himself strong on behalf of those whose heart is loyal to Him(2 Chronicles 16:9).

The Lord raises the poor: He raises the poor out of the dust, and lifts the needy out of the ash heap, that He may seat him with princes— with the princes of His people(verses 7,8). The Lord chose Gideon who was threshing wheat in the winepress, in order to hide it from the invading Midianites (Judges 6:11,14). He chose Saul the Benjaminite who was looking for the lost donkeys of his father (1 Samuel 9:3). And He also chose David His servant, and took him from the sheepfolds; from following the ewes that had young He brought him, to shepherd Jacob His people, and Israel His inheritance. So he shepherded them according to the integrity of his heart, and guided them by the skillfulness of his hands (Psalm 78:70-72). The blessed Virgin sang, My soul magnifies the Lord, and my spirit has rejoiced in God my Savior. For He has regarded the lowly state of His maidservant; for behold, henceforth all generations will call me blessed ... He has put down the mighty from their thrones, and exalted the lowly (Luke 1:46-48,52). Christ chose a few fishermen to make disciples out of them, and to make them fishers of men (Matthew 4:19). The apostle Paul said, But God has chosen the foolish things of the world to put to shame the wise, and God has chosen the weak things of the world to put to shame the things which are mighty; and the base things of the world and the things which are despised God has chosen, and the things which are not, to bring to nothing the things that are, that no flesh should glory in His presence (1 Corinthians 1:27-29). You may compare the condition of the prodigal son when he was far away from his father's house and did not even have pig food, with his condition after he returned to his father's house. A big celebration was held in his honour, in which the fattened calf was slaughtered, and he was given a pair of shoes to wear as a sign of sovereignty and a ring to put round his finger because his father's full trust in him was restored (Luke 15:22). In this way God replaces poverty with riches, disgrace with honour, the last row with the place of prominence, sadness with joy, the bondage of sin with the liberty of the glory of the sons of God, and blindness with spiritual sight. The greatest work of all was when Christ descended into the lower parts of the earth that He might fill all things. He gave some to be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists and some pastors and teachers (Ephesians 4:9-11).

The Lord gives to those who are deprived: He grants the barren woman a home, like a joyful mother of children. Praise the LORD!(verse 9). Maybe the psalmist had Sarah, Abraham's wife, in mind. She had lost hope in giving her husband a child at the age of ninety. So she suggested that he marry her servant Hagar so that God's promise to Abraham could be fulfilled, that he could become the father of many nations. But the Lord performed the miracle with Sarah, and told her she would have a son. The promise was so strange that Sarah laughed and thought it impossible by human means. But God's true promise was fulfilled, and Sarah gave birth to Isaac (whose name means "laughter"). And Isaac was the father of Jacob, the father of the tribes of Israel.

Hannah, Elkanah's wife, was humiliated by her adversary Peninnah, because Peninnah had children while Hannah was barren. So Hannah went to the temple and complained to God of the bitterness of her soul in such a lengthy prayer that the high priest thought she was drunk. God answered her request and granted her Samuel, of whom she later said, For this child I prayed, and the LORD has granted me my petition which I asked of Him (1 Samuel 1:27). Afterward, God made him a great leader of his people.

Give the names of four persons who were proud to be called "servants of God".

Explain how God sees things below.

He brought them out: When Israel went out of Egypt, the house of Jacob from a people of strange language(verse 1). The Exodus of the Israelites out of Egypt makes every believer proud of the Lord's miraculous deeds for His own people. Equally, it is an object of praise and thanksgiving to the Lord who promised and will fulfil His promise. He remains faithful and cannot deny Himself. The Israelites were given an honourable reception when they first came to Egypt by Joseph's Pharaoh, and left it honourably after the defeat of Pharaoh of Exodus. Both in coming and going, God honoured His people! This is the experience of every believer who loves the Lord. God created man in His image, according to His likeness. Man was modelled after the Merciful One, and was given great authority and position by Him. But when man sinned, he came under God's just judgment. Therefore Christ came to restore everyone who believes in Him as Lord and Redeemer to his former life, through the second birth. For just as through one man sin entered the world, and death through sin, and thus death spread to all men, because all sinned—... much more those who receive abundance of grace and of the gift of righteousness will reign in life through the One, Jesus Christ (Romans 5:12,17).

Egypt was a land of bondage that did not know the Lord; it used a strange language in speech and worship and it worshipped foreign gods. But the Lord rescued His people from the scribe who recorded the names of slaves, from the tax-collector who received the taxes and from the architects who designed the towers that were built by slave labour. The prophet Isaiah said, Your heart will meditate on terror: 'Where is the scribe? Where is he who weighs? Where is he who counts the towers?' You will not see a fierce people, a people of obscure speech, beyond perception, of a stammering tongue that you cannot understand (Isaiah 33:18,19).

He dwelt among them: Judah became His sanctuary, and Israel His dominion(verse 2). The Lord brought His people out of the land of bondage and dwelt amongst them. He made them His sanctuary, the object of His attention, care and dominion. He commanded Moses to prepare a tabernacle where He could meet His people to reveal His will to them (Numbers 17:4). The tabernacle was also called "sanctuary", where He dwelt among His people (Exodus 25:8). The tent was in the middle of the camp of the children of Israel, according to the order explained in the Book of Numbers chapter 2. God's holiness was then revealed to them there through the ceremonies of worship that they practiced, as well as His holy presence. His grace was also confirmed, because being holy He humbled Himself to dwell among them so that they could love and worship Him. Every believer says about Him, the God to whom I belong and whom I serve (Acts 27:23). The psalmist did not settle for speaking only about the tent, but went on to consider the whole nation as a dwelling-place for the Lord. In doing so he was repeating what God had told them already, You have seen what I did to the Egyptians, and how I bore you on eagles’ wings and brought you to Myself. Now therefore, if you will indeed obey My voice and keep My covenant, then you shall be a special treasure to Me above all people; for all the earth is Mine. And you shall be to Me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation (Exodus 19:4-6). Thus they became His sanctuary, namely His holy temple in which He glorified Himself, and it could be said about them, But you are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, His own special people, that you may proclaim the praises of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light (1 Peter 2:9).

Barriers fell: The sea saw it and fled; Jordan turned back(verse 3). The LORD will fight for you, and you shall hold your peace...Then Moses stretched out his hand over the sea; and the LORD caused the sea to go back by a strong east wind all that night ... So the children of Israel went into the midst of the sea on the dry ground, and the waters were a wall to them on their right hand and on their left (Exodus 14:14,21,22). The clouds poured out water; the skies sent out a sound; Your arrows also flashed about(Psalm 77:17). You divided the earth with rivers. The mountains saw You and trembled; the overflowing of the water passed by. The deep uttered its voice, and lifted its hands on high (Habakkuk 3:9,10). When they tried to walk in the path the Lord created between the waves, the water closed up on the Egyptians, sinking them together with their chariots into the sea that God used to deliver His people. When the enemy comes in like a flood, the Spirit of the LORD will lift up a standard against him (Isaiah 59:19).

The psalmist mentions another incident when the water fled before the people of the Lord, on the day they crossed the Jordan under the leadership of Joshua. The Lord said to him, 'And it shall come to pass, as soon as the soles of the feet of the priests who bear the ark of the LORD, the Lord of all the earth, shall rest in the waters of the Jordan, that the waters of the Jordan shall be cut off, the waters that come down from upstream, and they shall stand as a heap' ... So the waters that went down into the Sea of the Arabah, the Salt Sea, failed, and were cut off; and the people crossed over opposite Jericho (Joshua 3:13-17).

Difficulties yielded: The mountains skipped like rams, the little hills like lambs(verse 4). When God gave the Law to Moses Mount Sinai was completely in smoke, because the LORD descended upon it in fire ... and the whole mountain quaked greatly (Exodus 19:18). The mountains gushed before the LORD, this Sinai, before the LORD God of Israel (Judges 5:5). Today, the haughty sinner stands in panic at the Lord's voice pronouncing judgment on the sinners. He will never rest nor have peace until he takes shelter in the atonement of Christ, the great sacrifice. God's Law condemns the sinner to death. Yet, at the same time, it directs him to the way of salvation through redemption, which God provided in the cross, for without the shedding of blood there is no remission of sins. Whoever takes shelter in the redeeming Christ can sing, Therefore we will not fear, even though the earth be removed, and though the mountains be carried into the midst of the sea(Psalm 46:2).

The spectators were amazed: What ails you, O sea, that you fled? O Jordan, that you turned back? O mountains, that you skipped like rams? O little hills, like lambs?(verses 5,6). When the psalmist wrote this psalm by the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, he felt as though he was transported by the Spirit to the time of the Exodus and stood among the survivors, viewing the work of the Lord set before him. So he asked the Red Sea and the Jordan River why they retreated before the people of God, and Mount Sinai together with the mountains surrounding it why they skipped like rams and lambs. He expressed his surprise at the speed with which nature obeyed and submitted to the command of the Lord, in contrast to Pharaoh and his people's disobedience! These unshakable mountains were shaken. Nowadays we still see the shaking of both physical and moral constants, on which we rest our lives. One such shaky constant is money and its purchasing power, which teaches us the lesson: Do not trust in oppression, nor vainly hope in robbery; if riches increase, do not set your heart on them (Psalm 62:10). Another is health, which totters at the attack of disease, just as it was with Job who said, My bone clings to my skin and to my flesh, and I have escaped by the skin of my teeth (Job 19:20). Friends are yet another shakeable constant of whom Paul said, At my first defense no one stood with me, but all forsook me. May it not be charged against them. But the Lord stood with me and strengthened me (2 Timothy 4:16,17). The same can apply to the family. They may desert you through betrayal or death, as Ruth expressed it, ...if anything but death parts you and me (Ruth 1:17). All these flee or come to an end, and only God's faithfulness, love and care remain for us. These only are constant. Thus we can say to difficulty, Who are you, O great mountain? Before Zerubbabel you shall become a plain! (Zechariah 4:7).

The difficulties will yield: Tremble, O earth, at the presence of the Lord, at the presence of the God of Jacob(verse 7). If the sea fled and mountains skipped like rams, why does not the earth tremble at the presence of the Lord, the Master over all the earth? His lightnings light the world; the earth sees and trembles. The mountains melt like wax at the presence of the LORD, at the presence of the Lord of the whole earth. The heavens declare His righteousness, and all the peoples see His glory (Psalm 97:4-6). [His] voice then shook the earth; but now He has promised, saying, 'Yet once more I shake not only the earth, but also heaven.' Now this, 'Yet once more,' indicates the removal of those things that are being shaken, as of things that are made, that the things which cannot be shaken may remain. Therefore, since we are receiving a kingdom which cannot be shaken, let us have grace, by which we may serve God acceptably with reverence and godly fear. For our God is a consuming fire (Hebrews 12:26-29). The Master over all the earth is the God of Jacob, "the God of the covenant" who reserved His revelations, mercies and promises to Jacob, the father of the tribes. He is the God of the covenant who did not deal with Jacob according to his works, but according to the abundance of His own love, which changed Jacob, turning him who was born second into someone who struggled with God. He is also the God of the New Testament who met the needs of the wedding in Cana of Galilee, granted Nicodemus a new birth, made the Samaritan woman repent, restored the lame man of Bethesda to health, provided bread for the hungry multitudes and opened the eyes of the man born blind. He is the light of the world, the Good Shepherd who protects His flock, and the Creator who raised Lazarus from the dead. Every time we partake of the Lord's Supper we hear the precious words, This is My blood of the new] covenant, which is shed for many for the remission of sins (Matthew 26:28). This God of the covenant is at work in nature and in the hearts of men. I will praise You, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made; marvelous are Your works, and that my soul knows very well (Psalm 139:14).

The thirsty will be satisfied: Who turned the rock into a pool of water, the flint into a fountain of waters(verse 8). He is the God of Providence. He brought His people out of bondage, walked with them in an arid desert for forty years, during which He filled them with manna and quail. When they murmured at the lack of water, He ordered Moses in the Wilderness of Sin to strike the rock to bring forth water to satisfy the people. Moses did so ... So he called the name of the place Massah and Meribah, because of the contention of the children of Israel, and because they tempted the LORD, saying, 'Is the LORD among us or not?' (Exodus 17:6,7). But they soon forgot the Lord's deed, argued with Moses in the Wilderness of Zin for water. So he struck the rock. Water came out abundantly, and the congregation and their animals drank.... This was the water of Meribah, because the children of Israel contended with the LORD, and He was hallowed among them (Numbers 20:11,13).

With this great, good God all barriers of opposition fall down, and thirsty souls get satisfied, because with Him everything is possible. But without Him we can do nothing. So let us ask Him with hope, pray without ceasing and expect with patience, for He turns want into abundance. He will hasten it in its time, in His wise ways and merciful heart. Therefore do not worry, saying, 'What shall we eat?' or 'What shall we drink?' or 'What shall we wear?' But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you (Matthew 6:31,33).

Why did the early church sing this psalm at Easter time?

Name the three miracles that accompanied the Exodus.

His name is to be glorified in honour of His character: Not unto us, O LORD, not unto us, but to Your name give glory(verse 1a). With all humility the choir begins to sing this psalm, asking the Lord to glorify His own name, because they are not worthy to ask this request of Him. They are not asking for themselves, but rather ask Him to glorify His name through the deliverance of His people, for he who persecutes them persecutes Him (Acts 9:4), and he who touches them touches the apple of His eye (Zechariah 2:8). This was Daniel's prayer: O my God, incline Your ear and hear; open Your eyes and see our desolations, and the city which is called by Your name; for we do not present our supplications before You because of our righteous deeds, but because of Your great mercies. O Lord, hear! O Lord, forgive! O Lord, listen and act! Do not delay for Your own sake, my God, for Your city and Your people are called by Your name (Daniel 9:18,19). The Lord answers, Therefore say to the house of Israel, 'Thus says the Lord GOD: "I do not do this for your sake, O house of Israel, but for My holy name’s sake, which you have profaned among the nations wherever you went. And I will sanctify My great name, which has been profaned among the nations, which you have profaned in their midst; and the nations shall know that I am the LORD," says the Lord GOD, "when I am hallowed in you before their eyes"' (Ezekiel 36:22,23). For My name’s sake I will defer My anger, and for My praise I will restrain it from you, so that I do not cut you off. For My own sake, for My own sake, I will do it; for how should My name be profaned? And I will not give My glory to another(Isaiah 48:9,11).

The faithful believer lifts up his prayer to the Lord in Christ's name, because He accepts us on the ground of His salvation on the cross, and because through His intercession we wait for an answer. Therefore, having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom also we have access by faith into this grace in which we stand, and rejoice in hope of the glory of God (Romans 5:1,2).

His name is to be glorified in honour of His mercy and truth: Because of Your mercy, because of Your truth(verse 1b). The singers go on to say to the Lord that if He does not intervene to deliver them, the heathen (as well as those who are weak in the faith) will assume the He did not show mercy on His people, nor fulfil what He had promised them. Yet such a claim cannot be reconciled with the Scripture: And the LORD passed before him and proclaimed, 'The LORD, the LORD God, merciful and gracious, longsuffering, and abounding in goodness and truth' (Exodus 34:6). Therefore Moses said to the people, The LORD did not set His love on you nor choose you because you were more in number than any other people, for you were the least of all peoples; but because the LORD loves you, and because He would keep the oath which He swore to your fathers, the LORD has brought you out with a mighty hand, and redeemed you from the house of bondage, from the hand of Pharaoh king of Egypt (Deuteronomy 7:7,8).

The Lord called Abraham out of Ur of the Chaldeans and gave him one promise, which He fulfilled in his mercy and truth. As for us, the New Testament believers, He has called us by His glory and virtue, granting us greater and more precious promises, through which we may be partakers of the divine nature (2 Peter 1:3,4). How happy we are with His name by which we have been called and His promises given us in Christ our Redeemer.

His name is to be glorified so that the heathen may be shamed: Why should the Gentiles say, 'So where is their God?'(verse 2). The singers go on to request the name of the Lord to be glorified so that the heathen may not ask them, "Where is your God?" All the Lord's works are great, revealed and seen in creation, nature, providence and above all in redemption. But God is an invisible Spirit, therefore the heathen ask the people of the Lord, "Where is your God?" When the people of the Lord cry out and do not get an immediate answer, the heathen ask them further, If your God is there, why does He not intervene on your behalf and save you? One psalmist once cried out in the dejection of his soul, My tears have been my food day and night, while they continually say to me, 'Where is your God?' ... Why are you cast down, O my soul? And why are you disquieted within me? Hope in God; for I shall yet praise Him, the help of my countenance and my God (Psalm 42:3,11).

His name is to be glorified to show His power: But our God is in heaven; He does whatever He pleases(verse 3). With this verse the singers answer the question of the heathen. Their God dwells in heaven, sees all their persecutors and hears their prayers. He is our Father in heaven, at work on earth, and does as He pleases. He made the Pleiades and Orion; He turns the shadow of death into morning and makes the day dark as night; He calls for the waters of the sea and pours them out on the face of the earth; the LORD is His name (Amos 5:8). If the heathen think He deserted His people simply because they are troubled, let them know that He is the living Saviour and that all the troubles His children go through are by His permission. Let the children say, Do not rejoice over me, my enemy; when I fall, I will arise; when I sit in darkness, the LORD will be a light to me. I will bear the indignation of the LORD, because I have sinned against Him, until He pleads my case and executes justice for me. He will bring me forth to the light; I will see His righteousness (Micah 7:8,9), and Now no chastening seems to be joyful for the present, but painful; nevertheless, afterward it yields the peaceable fruit of righteousness to those who have been trained by it(Hebrews 12:11).

Idols are lifeless: Their idols are silver and gold, the work of men’s hands. They have mouths, but they do not speak; eyes they have, but they do not see; They have ears, but they do not hear; noses they have, but they do not smell; They have hands, but they do not handle; feet they have, but they do not walk(verses 4-7). These verses were quoted in Psalm 135:15-18. They are an extension to the choir's song, in which they answer the heathen who asked them, What profit is the image, that its maker should carve it, the molded image, a teacher of lies, that the maker of its mold should trust in it, to make mute idols? Woe to him who says to wood, 'Awake!' to silent stone, 'Arise! It shall teach!' Behold, it is overlaid with gold and silver, yet in it there is no breath at all. But the LORD is in His holy temple. Let all the earth keep silence before Him (Habakkuk 2:18-20). They have cast their gods into the fire; for they were not gods, but the work of men’s hands—wood and stone. Therefore they destroyed them. Now therefore, O LORD our God, save us from his hand, that all the kingdoms of the earth may know that You are the LORD, You alone (Isaiah 37:19,20). As to the Lord, Job says to Him, Your hands have made me and fashioned me ... Did You not pour me out like milk, and curdle me like cheese... You have granted me life and favor, and Your care has preserved my spirit (Job 10:8,10,12). Idols have mouths but they do not speak, but the Lord speaks through inspiration in the Bible and whispers words of love, counsel and peace in our hearts, deep within us, for God, who at various times and in various ways spoke in time past to the fathers by the prophets, has in these last days spoken to us by His Son, whom He has appointed heir of all things, through whom also He made the worlds (Hebrews 1:1,2).

Sadly, even today we still see people making idols to worship. Although these idols are different in form from those the ancients tried to make, yet they are similar in their qualities. How many people worship the idols of knowledge, money, social status, sports, sex and drugs! These things are most important in their lives, and they turn away from worshipping the one true God, because where your treasure is, there your heart will be also (Matthew 6:21).

Idol-worshippers are lifeless: Those who make them are like them; so is everyone who trusts in them(verse 8). Worshippers resemble their deaf, dumb and blind idols. Although the breath of the Almighty gave them life to know and worship Him and to live for Him so that they may have life eternal, they walked after vanity and their hearts were darkened. The god of this age has blinded the minds of unbelievers, so that they cannot see the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God (2 Corinthians 4:4 NIV). Being past feeling, they no longer responded to the Lord's voice, thus condemning themselves to destruction. For even if there are so-called gods, whether in heaven or on earth (as there are many gods and many lords), yet for us there is one God, the Father, of whom are all things, and we for Him; and one Lord Jesus Christ, through whom are all things, and through whom we live(1 Corinthians 8:5,6).

The call to the children of Israel: O Israel, trust in the LORD(verse 9a). This call is extended by the choir director. Trusting in the Lord means having confidence in His power that raises up, carries and delivers. He is the One who said, Listen to Me, O house of Jacob, and all the remnant of the house of Israel, who have been upheld by Me from birth, who have been carried from the womb: Even to your old age, I am He, and even to gray hairs I will carry you! I have made, and I will bear; even I will carry, and will deliver you (Isaiah 46:3,4). Trust also means complete submission and surrender to the good will of the Lord, that He will perform it. Cast your burden on the LORD, and He shall sustain you; He shall never permit the righteous to be moved (Psalm 55:22).

The choir replies to the director, He is their help and their shield (verse 9b). So we may boldly say: 'The LORD is my helper; I will not fear. What can man do to me?' (Hebrews 13:6).

The call to the priests: O house of Aaron, trust in the LORD(verse 10a). This call came from the director. The choir answers the director, He is their help and their shield (verse 10b).

The call to the God-fearers: You who fear the LORD, trust in the LORD(verse 11a). The director calls everyone who fears the Lord, from every tribe, tongue, nation and people, whose hearts have been enlightened by the Lord, those who knew Him and followed Him, to trust in Him for He accepts men from every nation who fear him and do what is right (Acts 10:35 NIV).

The Lord is mindful of those who trust in Him: The LORD has been mindful of us; He will bless us(verse 12a). He is Lord of the heavens, who is mindful of His creatures and looks after them. He does not even forget a sparrow that falls to the ground (Matthew 10:29). For He shall give His angels charge over you, to keep you in all your ways (Psalm 91:11). Behold, God is my salvation, I will trust and not be afraid; For YAH, the LORD, is my strength and song; He also has become my salvation (Isaiah 12:2). The God-fearing people may think in times of adversity that God has forgotten them, but He encourages them with the promises: Can a woman forget her nursing child ... Surely they may forget, yet I will not forget you. See, I have inscribed you on the palms of My hands; your walls are continually before Me (Isaiah 49:14-16).

The Lord is mindful of man in his sinful state. He is eager to bring him to repentance, reminding him of the precious and great promises which He will fulfil for him. He is mindful of him in his material needs and blesses him. He is mindful of him in his sickness, so He heals him, saying, Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and dine with him, and he with Me(Revelation 3:20). The God-fearers will shout, Bless the LORD, O my soul, and forget not all His benefits (Psalm 103:2).

The Lord blesses those who trust in Him: He will bless the house of Israel; He will bless the house of Aaron. He will bless those who fear the LORD, both small and great(verses 12b,13). The choir sang a reply to the director that God is mindful of all those who trust in Him. They sing that He blesses them with His blessing, which makes one rich, and He adds no sorrow with it (Proverbs 10:22). He blessed Abraham when he obeyed and made him a blessing (Genesis 12:2,3). And He blesses the believing descendants of Abraham from every race and people. He blesses those who fear the Lord, those who are small, young in age or in the faith. He blessed the repentant thief who called out to Him, Lord, remember me when You come into Your kingdom (Luke 23:42). He also blesses those who are great and advanced in age, those who spent a long life of intimacy, love and worship with Him. He blessed Simeon the elder and Anna the prophetess who were awaiting the salvation of the Lord in the birth of Christ, and saw it with their own eyes (Luke 2). Blessed is every one who fears the LORD, who walks in His ways ... You shall be happy, and it shall be well with you. Your wife shall be like a fruitful vine ... Your children like olive plants all around your table ... Behold, thus shall the man be blessed who fears the LORD(Psalm 128).

The Lord increases His blessing to those who trust in Him more and more: May the LORD give you increase more and more, you and your children. May you be blessed by the LORD, who made heaven and earth(verses 14,15). These two verses are sung by the choir director. He gives them as an answer to the choir's statement that God is mindful and will bless. He says to the choir that the Lord will increase His blessing to them by increasing their number and bestowing upon them an abundance of blessings. The Lord fulfilled His promise to Abraham that his descendants will be as numerous as the sand on the seashore and the stars in the skies. As they came to Egypt following Joseph's invitation, the Israelites were only a small number. But as they left it, they were a large multitude. He had blessed them with all care and tenderness, as Moses said, The LORD your God has multiplied you, and here you are today, as the stars of heaven in multitude. May the LORD God of your fathers make you a thousand times more numerous than you are, and bless you as He has promised you! (Deuteronomy 1:10,11). The choir director asks the Lord to bless the members of his own generation, giving them one blessing after another and grace after grace, that they may be the Lord's own people and that their own offspring may be blessed and also become the Lord's people. As a result all of them will hold this motto: But as for me and my house, we will serve the LORD (Joshua 24:15). Their descendants shall be known among the Gentiles, snd their offspring among the people. All who see them shall acknowledge them, that they are the posterity whom the LORD has blessed(Isaiah 61:9), just as Timothy's faith was described as genuine faith, which dwelt first in his grandmother Lois and his mother Eunice (2 Timothy 1:5).

May you be blessed by the LORD.The blessing of the Lord who created heaven and earth comes upon all those who fear Him. He gives them the treasures of heaven and earth, that they may praise Him and be blessed by Him and for Him. He makes them the salt of the earth and the light of the world, that their light may so shine before men, so that they may see their good works and glorify their Father in heaven (Matthew 5:13-15).

All praise the Lord (verses 16-18):Here the choir answers the director.

God blesses the God-fearing ones with the blessings of heaven and earth, so they bless Him during their lifetime on earth, as well as when they stand before His throne crying out, "Hallelujah." Praise the Lord! Glory to God!

Explain how the psalmist expresses his humility in verse 1a.

How can the children of Israel show their trust in the Lord?

The psalmist loves prayer: I love the LORD, because He has heard my voice and my supplications(verse 1). He loves to pray to the Lord because the Lord answers him. He says in another place, I will love You, O LORD, my strength (Psalm 18:1). The apostle John said, We love Him because He first loved us (1 John 4:19). God is love and all His works are out of love. It is He who said, Yes, I have loved you with an everlasting love; therefore with lovingkindness I have drawn you (Jeremiah 31:3). The verse could also mean that the psalmist loves to have his prayer heard by the Lord. In fact, the verse may be interpreted both ways. The psalmist loves to have his prayer heard by the Lord, because he entreats Him. He also loves the Lord Himself, and therefore he directs his prayer to Him and waits for the answer. Had he not loved the Lord, he would not have called upon Him, and had he not trusted in Him, he would not have called upon Him either.

The psalmist continues to pray: Because He has inclined His ear to me, therefore I will call upon Him as long as I live(verse 2). An answered prayer leads to more prayer. The Lord inclined His ear in compassion and affection for the psalmist, so he resolved to continue to pray as long as he would live: Blessed be the LORD, because He has heard the voice of my supplications! ... Save Your people, and bless Your inheritance; shepherd them also, and bear them up forever(Psalm 28:6,9). The psalmist is happy not only with the answer to his prayer, but also with the intimacy with God, because in prayer he speaks with his beloved. Some of us talk with Him only in time of need, and He listens to us because He says, Call upon Me in the day of trouble; I will deliver you, and you shall glorify Me(Psalm 50:15).

But there are those who delight in talking with Him all the time. Some pray-ers may be tempted to stop praying because the Lord, they think, has delayed His answer, or is not going to answer at all. Those say, We prayed but He did not hear. We will not go on praying until He grants us what we asked for. But the believer knows that the Lord always answers. He may grant him what he asked for, He may delay it for some time, or He may not give him what he asked for because it is harmful to him and will do him no good. Christ said, And shall God not avenge His own elect who cry out day and night to Him, though He bears long with them? I tell you that He will avenge them speedily. Nevertheless, when the Son of Man comes, will He really find faith on the earth?” (Luke 18:7,8). In order to reassure us, the Bible uses a figure of speech from human activity, for it says about prayer that God listened and heard them; so a book of remembrance was written before Him for those who fear the LORD and who meditate on His name (Malachi 3:16). So let us continue praying in order to enjoy the Lord Himself before enjoying His gifts.

The motive to pray: The pains of death surrounded me, and the pangs of Sheol laid hold of me; I found trouble and sorrow. Then I called upon the name of the LORD: 'O LORD, I implore You, deliver my soul!'(verses 3,4). The psalmist found himself impelled to pray to the Lord who answered him when he was suffering from a severe sickness that almost killed him, bringing him so close to death that he could feel its pains. His soul was filled with trouble and sorrow as he saw death and the grave closing in on him like hunters setting traps to catch him. The psalmist did not know Christ who has abolished death and brought life and immortality to light through the gospel (2 Timothy 1:10). But his strong faith made him seek refuge with God in the time of his trouble and call upon Him, because He had said, I am the LORD, who heals you (Exodus 15:26).

The Lord heals in His own way, owing to the favour of His love and according to what is best for the believer... He may heal by means of medicine, as He healed King Hezekiah using the medical prescription administered to him by Isaiah (2 Kings 20:1,7). Or He may answer and heal by means of a miracle, for He is the Lord who has not changed and still meets our needs. He may also respond without healing by strengthening the believer in his sickness with the amount of grace that is sufficient for him. He said to Paul after he had prayed three times for the thorn of his sickness to be removed from him, My grace is sufficient for you, for My strength is made perfect in weakness (2 Corinthians 12:9). The Lord may also answer by taking the sick person away from the world of pain and bring him into the heavenly glory, granting him a glorified body on the last day.

Because the Lord is gracious: Gracious is the LORD, and righteous; yes, our God is merciful(verse 5). He answers because He shows compassion on the weary. He answers despite man's unworthiness, because He is righteous, gracious and is faithful to fulfil His promises. The LORD, the LORD God, merciful and gracious, longsuffering, and abounding in goodness and truth (Exodus 34:6). He has made His wonderful works to be remembered; the LORD is gracious and full of compassion (Psalm 111:4). Out of the abundance of His grace He says, Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you (Matthew 7:7).

Because the psalmist is weak: The LORD preserves the simple; I was brought low, and He saved me(verse 6). In the face of his sickness and the surrounding dangers, the psalmist feels he is simple, in need of wisdom and experience. He knows that the testimony of the LORD is sure, making wise the simple(Psalm 19:7). He trusts that the Lord of heaven and earth has hidden wisdom from those who think they are wise and prudent, and has revealed it to the simple who are like children in their readiness to believe and be taught (Matthew 11:25). He is persuaded that God has chosen the despised and those who are not, to grant them favour (1 Corinthians 1:27-29). In his simplicity and lowliness, the psalmist cannot help himself, so he asks the Lord to save him, and cries out along with Hezekiah when Rabshakeh threatened him, The LORD was ready to save me; therefore we will sing my songs with stringed instruments all the days of our life, in the house of the LORD(Isaiah 38:14-20).

Because the psalmist is waiting: Return to your rest, O my soul, for the LORD has dealt bountifully with you. For You have delivered my soul from death, my eyes from tears, and my feet from falling. I will walk before the LORD in the land of the living(verses 7-9). The psalmist is waiting for his soul to be at rest once again, the way it was before troubles and pains of death surrounded him, so he tells his soul to quit worrying and rest assured. The psalmist had already asked himself, Why are you cast down, O my soul? And why are you disquieted within me? Hope in God, for I shall yet praise Him for the help of His countenance (Psalm 42:5). At another time he said to his soul, Bless the LORD, O my soul; and all that is within me, bless His holy name! Bless the LORD, O my soul, and forget not all His benefits (Psalm 103:1,2). In Psalms 42 and 103 he called upon his soul to hope in God and thank Him, and in this psalm he calls upon it to rest in God, because God has dealt with it bountifully. Then the psalmist says, I will sing to the LORD, because He has dealt bountifully with me (Psalm 13:6).

The Hebrew word for "rest" here occurs in the plural. The meaning, then, is that the Lord dealt with the psalmist bountifully and gave him rest on all sides, as Solomon said. But now the LORD my God has given me rest on every side; there is neither adversary nor evil occurrence (1 Kings 5:4). It may be known that "Noah" means rest, and Noah's rest was in the ark. Our rest, however, is in Christ, the ark of deliverance for our lives, in whom we are saved. He said, Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest (Matthew 11:28). Through His redemption, which forgives all transgressions, we obtain rest from the torture of conscience. Through the sanctification of His Holy Spirit we escape the power of sin because He overcomes it. Through His generous giving we get rid of anxiety because He is the God of Providence. Then we are as sorrowful, yet always rejoicing; as poor, yet making many rich; as having nothing, and yet possessing all things (2 Corinthians 6:10).

The psalmist's expectation of rest is owing to his previous great experiences with the Lord. He had delivered his soul from physical death and the death of sin, as well as his eyes from tears and his feet from falling. The psalmist expressed this idea elsewhere as follows: He also brought me up out of a horrible pit, out of the miry clay, and set my feet upon a rock, and established my steps (Psalm 40:2). The Lord is his Creator; He breathed into the dust and man became a living being (Genesis 2:7). He is the one who preserves life, for the psalmist says, For You have delivered my soul from death. Have You not kept my feet from falling, that I may walk before God in the light of the living?(Psalm 56:13). God comforts the grieving and wipes away the tears of those who are in pain, and He redeems their lives from destruction (Psalm 103:4). Thus they live and walk before the Lord in the land of the living, in the light of God's law and the light of His own person, enjoying His loving care, fixing their eyes on Him, being joyful in Him, trusting Him and having both inward and outward peace. There will come a day when God will wipe away every tear from their eyes; there shall be no more death, nor sorrow, nor crying. There shall be no more pain, for the former things have passed away (Revelation 21:4).

Bewilderment that came before thanksgiving (verses 10,11):In these two verses the psalmist declares his faith despite being confused by two problems: his affliction and the lies of those around him. In spite of them the believer is still thankful.

An inquiry that preceded thanksgiving (verses 12-14):

Two reasons for giving thanks (verses 15,16):

How he gave thanks (verses 17-19):

Meditating on verses 7-9 of this psalm, what does the psalmist call upon his soul to do? What is the difference between this call and his call upon his soul in Psalms 42 and 103?

Mention two things that confused the psalmist. How did his confusion end?

They praise Him for His kindness: For His merciful kindness is great toward us(verse 2a). God's mercy must be strong because it was able to put up with the heavy load of humanity's sins. The believer exclaims, For Your lovingkindness is before my eyes (Psalm 26:3). Man needs God's strong kindness because He is weak. For all have turned aside, they have together become corrupt and fallen short of the glory of God. Therefore God's mercy was made manifest to all mankind and that the Gentiles might glorify God for His mercy, as it is written: 'For this reason I will confess to You among the Gentiles, And sing to Your name.' (Romans 15:9).

"His love is great" in the sense that it prevailed like the waters of the Great Flood, which covered all the high hills under the heavens (Genesis 7:18-20). The reason for this is to cover the abundance of our sins and to overflow with forgiveness: When we were overwhelmed by sins, you forgave our transgressions (Psalm 65:3 NIV). But where sin abounded, grace abounded much more (Romans 5:20). And the grace of our Lord was exceedingly abundant, with faith and love which are in Christ Jesus (1 Timothy 1:14) to save the sinner who is far away from God.

To prevail means to overcome. The source of mercy is the Most High Lord, who dwells in heaven. All those who live under His heavens seek to be at His mercy, so that He would prevail against and overcome all the powers of evil. His strong love overcomes the hardness of our stony hearts and turns them into hearts of flesh that call out to the living God. For as the heavens are high above the earth, so great is His mercy toward those who fear Him; As far as the east is from the west, so far has He removed our transgressions from us (Psalm 103:11,12).

Our need as human beings for God's mercy is as great as our need for life itself: For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who suppress the truth in unrighteousness ... being justified freely by His grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus (Romans 1:18; 3:24). Therefore He says: 'Awake, you who sleep, Arise from the dead, And Christ will give you light'(Ephesians 5:14).

They praise Him for His truth: And the truth of the LORD endures forever. Praise the LORD!(verse 2b). God is faithful in His character, promises and deeds. He is the Rock, His work is perfect; for all His ways are justice, a God of truth and without injustice; righteous and upright is He (Deuteronomy 32:4). David said to him, And now, O Lord GOD, You are God, and Your words are true (2 Samuel 7:28). For what if some did not believe? Will their unbelief make the faithfulness of God without effect? Certainly not! Indeed, let God be true but every man a liar. As it is written: 'That You may be justified in Your words, and may overcome when You are judged' (Romans 3:3,4). The apostle Paul admonishes the believers from both Jewish and pagan backgrounds: Therefore receive one another, just as Christ also received us, to the glory of God. Now I say that Jesus Christ has become a servant to the circumcision for the truth of God, to confirm the promises made to the fathers (God's promises to Abraham in his descendants to send Christ) and that the Gentiles might glorify God for His mercy, as it is written (in Psalm 18:49): 'For this reason I will confess to You among the Gentiles, and sing to Your name.' And again, he says (in Deuteronomy 32:43), 'Rejoice, O Gentiles, with His people!' And again (Psalm 117:1), 'Praise the LORD, all you Gentiles! Laud Him, all you peoples!' And again, Isaiah says (Isaiah 11:1,10), 'There shall be a root of Jesse; and He who shall rise to reign over the Gentiles, in Him the Gentiles shall hope (for salvation)'(Romans 15:7-12).

In Christ we see God's prevailing kindness: Grace and truth came through Jesus Christ (John 1:17), as much as His constant faithfulness and truth because Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever (Hebrews 13:8).

Name three Gentiles who worshipped the true God.

What is the meaning of "His love is great"?

The motive for the invitation: Oh, give thanks to the LORD, for He is good! For His mercy endures forever(verse 1). The psalmist invites the people of the Lord in general to go up to the house of the Lord to offer Him thanksgiving and praise because our God is good and merciful; His mercy endures forever, it never ends. So they ought to shout to His mercy and sing to goodness. 'The voice of joy and the voice of gladness ...the voice of those who will say: "Praise the LORD of hosts, for the LORD is good, for His mercy endures forever"— and of those who will bring the sacrifice of praise into the house of the LORD. For I will cause the captives of the land to return as at the first,' says the LORD(Jeremiah 33:11). He desires all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth (1 Timothy 2:4).

The recipients of the invitation (verses 2-4):The psalmist invites three categories of people to go along with him to the temple of the Lord. These categories were repeated in Psalm 115:9-11 and 135:19.

The director sings to thank the Lord for deliverance from distress: I called on the LORD in distress; the LORD answered me and set me in a broad place. The LORD is on my side; I will not fear. What can man do to me? The LORD is for me among those who help me; therefore I shall see my desire on those who hate me(verses 5-7). The director, who is perhaps a priest, walks ahead of the people, singing these verses by himself, surrounded by the choir, travelling Jerusalem's streets, heading for the temple to worship the Lord. The director mentions that he had called upon the Lord in his distress, and He answered and delivered him. He declares to the choir and those walking with him on the way to the temple that the Lord set him free from his distress. He is no more afraid because the Lord is among those who help him. He also provided helpers to assist him so that his enemies could not harm him. When I cry out to You, then my enemies will turn back; this I know, because God is for me(Psalm 56:9). Let your conduct be without covetousness; be content with such things as you have. For He Himself has said, 'I will never leave you nor forsake you.' So we may boldly say: 'The LORD is my helper; I will not fear. What can man do to me?' (Hebrews 13:5,6). It shall come to pass that before they call, I will answer; and while they are still speaking, I will hear (Isaiah 65:24). Because he has set his love upon Me, therefore I will deliver him; I will set him on high, because he has known My name (Psalm 91:14).

The choir declares the way to deliverance from distress: It is better to trust in the LORD than to put confidence in man. It is better to trust in the LORD than to put confidence in princes(verses 8,9). The choir answered the director and said that the Lord is the only refuge and protection. When King Artaxerxes gave Nehemiah letters for the governors of the different Persian regions, to provide him with whatever he needed to build the walls of Jerusalem, and to guard him on his way (Nehemiah 2:7-9), the enmity of Sanballat and Tobiah did not stop! The book of Nehemiah explains the continuous opposition by means of political threats: Will you rebel against the king? (Nehemiah 2:19); mockery: Whatever they build, if even a fox goes up on it, he will break down their stone wall (Nehemiah 4:3); military resistance (Nehemiah 4:8); conspiracy to murder Nehemiah (Nehemiah 6:2; 10:11) and intimidating letters (Nehemiah 6:19). The main reason for Nehemiah's victory was that his heart was always directed toward God (Nehemiah 2:4). How true is the advice: Do not put your trust in princes, nor in a son of man, in whom there is no help. His spirit departs, he returns to his earth; in that very day his plans perish (Psalm 146:3,4).

The director and the choir proclaim victory:In verses 10-18 we hear the solo singing of the director indicating that danger is coming, but the choir confirms that victory is coming from the Lord. The director is persuaded and declares that his victory is through the name of the Lord.

The director: Open to me the gates of righteousness; I will go through them, and I will praise the LORD (verse 19).The gates of the temple were closed so that the music director should call out to have them opened. In this way the psalmist and his choir, along with the people joining them, could make known their desire to offer worship, singing and thanksgiving to the Lord. This is what David meant by saying, Lift up your heads, O you gates! Lift up, you everlasting doors! And the King of glory shall come in (Psalm 24:9). The gates were already open, but the place had to be made ready for receiving the King of glory. The psalmist calls the temple gates the gates of righteousness because the just and righteous God dwells within them, and because the Lord justifies (makes righteous) whoever enters by them in worship, surrenders to Him and confesses his sins. To be made righteous means to have a right, acceptable standing with God. Christ entered that gate by His own merit, but we enter it by Christ's merits and his atoning work for us. Therefore, having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ (Romans 5:1).

The priests respond: This is the gate of the LORD, through which the righteous shall enter (verse 20).Establishing the condition for entering the gates of righteousness, the priest says that entrance is restricted to those righteous who obtained their righteousness from God, because they cried out along with the tax collector, God, be merciful to me a sinner! (Luke 18:13). He went down to his house justified. It will be said to them, Open the gates, that the righteous nation which keeps the truth may enter in. You will keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on You, because he trusts in You (Isaiah 26:2,3).

The director shouts aloud: I will praise You, for You have answered me, and have become my salvation. The stone which the builders rejected has become the chief cornerstone. This was the LORD’s doing; it is marvelous in our eyes (verses 21-23).The psalmist met God's requirements, asked for His forgiveness, and God answered him and has become his salvation. Thus the stone that the builders rejected became the cornerstone of his life, because it is a formidable and huge stone, binding the walls together and completing the whole building. God said of it, Behold, I lay in Zion a stone for a foundation, a tried stone, a precious cornerstone, a sure foundation; whoever believes will not act hastily (Isaiah 28:16). This was the Lord's doing; it is marvellous in our eyes, because it symbolizes Christ Himself, according to what He revealed to us (in Matthew 21:42; Mark 12:10,11; Luke 20:17). Yet, the children of Israel rejected Him saying, Can anything good come out of Nazareth?(John 1:46). They used to wonder, Is this not the carpenter’s son? Is not His mother called Mary? And His brothers James, Joses, Simon, and Judas?... So they were offended at Him (Matthew 13:55,57). He came to His own, and His own did not receive Him. But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, to those who believe in His name (John 1:11,12). Talking to the Jews, the Apostle Peter revealed this truth: This is the 'stone which was rejected by you builders, which has become the chief cornerstone.' Nor is there salvation in any other, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saveds no other name under heaven given to men by which we must be saved (Acts 4:11,12). The apostle Paul, too, said this of Him as he wrote to the believers, built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ Himself being the chief cornerstone (Ephesians 2:20).

The choir sings: This is the day the LORD has made; we will rejoice and be glad in it. Save now, I pray, O LORD; O LORD, I pray, send now prosperity (verses 24,25).The choir singers were convinced that the day of salvation had come from the Lord. For Christ, the cornerstone, is the coming Saviour, and the day of His coming is a day of rejoicing. When the angel Gabriel announced to the Virgin that she would conceive and give birth to a child to be called "Jesus", she sang, My soul magnifies the Lord, and my spirit has rejoiced in God my Savior (Luke 1:46,47). Do not be afraid, the angel said to the shepherds on the day of His birth, for behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy which will be to all people (Luke 2:10). And the angelic choir sang, Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, goodwill toward men!(Luke 2:14). Now everyone who hears this good news should shout, Save now, I pray, O LORD; O LORD, I pray, send now prosperity. Do not let the chance of salvation slip by for Behold, now is the accepted time; behold, now is the day of salvation (2 Corinthians 6:2).

The priests respond: Blessed is he who comes in the name of the LORD! We have blessed you from the house of the LORD (verse 26).When the righteous, who are in a right standing with God, enter into the Lord's temple, the priests bless them from the house of the Lord and say, "Hosanna", meaning "Save, O Lord". It is the shout that the people lifted up on the day of Christ's triumphant entry into Jerusalem: Hosanna to the Son of David! Blessed is He who comes in the name of the LORD! Hosanna in the highest! (Matthew 21:9). Blessed is He who came to save and rescue. Blessed, too, is he who comes from the land of destruction to be saved by Christ and enjoy His fellowship. The priests bless Christ and glorify Him because He comes in the name of the Lord to save all those who turn to Him for protection and all those who receive Christ as Saviour.

The shout of the priests, the director, and the choir: God is the LORD, and He has given us light; bind the sacrifice with cords to the horns of the altar. You are my God, and I will praise You; You are my God, I will exalt You. Oh, give thanks to the LORD, for He is good! For His mercy endures forever (verses 27-29).The Lord is God, and He is the light. Christ said, I am the light of the world. He who follows Me shall not walk in darkness, but have the light of life (John 8:12). The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light; those who dwelt in the land of the shadow of death, upon them a light has shined (Isaiah 9:2). For you were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Walk as children of light (Ephesians 5:8).

Mention two places where Psalm 118 was quoted in the New Testament.

In verses 2-4 of this psalm there is an invitation to three kinds of people for them to give thanks. What are these three kinds?

Why is Psalm 119 called "the psalm of the saints"?

Psalm 119 calls the Word of God by seven other names. Write them down.

The enemy launches a verbal attack: Deliver my soul, O LORD, from lying lips and from a deceitful tongue(verse 2). Lying and false accusations abound in our world. The psalmist said about the liars, For there is no faithfulness in their mouth; their inward part is destruction; their throat is an open tomb; they flatter with their tongue (Psalm 5:9). They speak idly everyone with his neighbor; with flattering lips and a double heart they speak. May the LORD cut off all flattering lips, and the tongue that speaks proud things, who have said, 'With our tongue we will prevail; our lips are our own; who is lord over us?' (Psalm 12:2-4). People may try to rationalize their lying, claiming that it is a white lie or a small lie, but the commandment clearly says, Therefore, putting away lying, 'Let each one of you speak truth with his neighbor,' for we are members of one another(Ephesians 4:25). A deceitful tongue twists what is straightforward and It defiles the whole body, and sets on fire the course of nature; and it is set on fire by hell... It is an unruly evil, full of deadly poison (James 3:6-9).

This complaint was picked up by all the Israelites in the land of their captivity as they felt the persecution of the majority who worshipped idols all around them. They, a minority, worshipped Yahweh, the only living God who commanded them: Hear, O Israel, the LORD our God, the LORD is one (Mark 12:29). This complaint can also express the condition of a certain person in a specific place suffering from a specific difficulty. Whether this was a collective or a personal complaint, it was obviously the object of the Lord's concern.

Christ experienced the same thing that the suffering psalmist experienced, and said to those who rejected His doctrine, Why do you not understand My speech? Because you are not able to listen to My word. You are of your father the devil, and the desires of your father you want to do. He was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaks a lie, he speaks from his own resources, for he is a liar and the father of it. But because I tell the truth, you do not believe Me (John 8:43-45).

The Lord punishes the deceitful tongue: What shall be given to you, or what shall be done to you, you false tongue? Sharp arrows of the warrior, with coals of the broom tree!(verses 3,4). In these two verses the psalmist asks the wicked: What is the payment you expect from ruining the reputation of your brother? What will you gain? For there is nothing hidden which will not be revealed, nor has anything been kept secret but that it should come to light (Mark 4:22). But I say to you that for every idle word men may speak, they will give account of it in the day of judgment. For by your words you will be justified, and by your words you will be condemned (Matthew 12:36,37). The arrows of God's judgment and the fire of His justice must be turned against the wicked. God is a just judge, snd God is angry with the wicked every day. If he does not turn back, He will sharpen His sword; He bends His bow and makes it ready. He also prepares for Himself instruments of death; He makes His arrows into fiery shafts (Psalm 7:11-13). Who sharpen their tongue like a sword, and bend their bows to shoot their arrows—bitter words, that they may shoot in secret at the blameless; suddenly they shoot at him and do not fear... But God shall shoot at them with an arrow; suddenly they shall be wounded. So He will make them stumble over their own tongue; all who see them shall flee away(Psalm 64:3,4,7,8).

The arrows of the warrior, the Lord, will hit every wicked man with coals of the broom tree! The people used the roots of broom trees for burning because they would burn for a long time and produce a good, strong fire. This is what is described by the psalmist as he says, Let burning coals fall upon them; let them be cast into the fire, into deep pits, that they rise not up again(Psalm 140:10). Whoever runs away from the Lord will incur upon himself coals of the broom tree that burn for a long time. This is what happened to Cain after killing his brother Abel; he ran away from the presence of the Lord and dwelt in the land of Nod (a Hebrew word meaning "wandering" and "drudgery"). The believer suffers pain from the lying lips and the deceitful tongue. But the Lord shall bring forth his righteousness as the light, and his justice as the noonday (Psalm 37:6). He will assist him in enduring the lies, which must be exposed and punished, for the trial is but for a moment and the victory must surely come. Just as Christ's resurrection came after His crucifixion, so must the believer be lifted up above his troubles.

It is an alienation in far countries: Woe is me, that I dwell in Meshech, that I dwell among the tents of Kedar!(verse 5). Meshech was the son of Japheth (Genesis 10:2). His descendants inhabited what is now western Iran and Armenia. The modern-day name Moscow may have been derived from Meshech. Kedar was the second son of Ishmael (Genesis 25:13). His descendants were a tribe of nomadic Bedouins who lived in Arabia and were con-tinually fighting each other and their neighbours (Genesis 16:12). How far removed were Meshech and Kedar from God's temple! Most likely the psalmist does not mean that he lived in Meshech in the far North or in Kedar in the far South, rather he expresses a state of emotional alienation as though he were living in a far country among people who trouble him, in the midst of a heathen, godless society. In those far countries the psalmist did not have any chance of offering sacrifices to God or worshipping in His temple.

It has gone on for too long: My soul has dwelt too long with one who hates peace. I am for peace; but when I speak, they are for war(verses 6,7). The psalmist's woes continued because the neighbours among whom he was living were warlike. They did not love peace the way he did. The Scripture says, Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God (Matthew 5:9). The psalmist had described himself as a man of prayer (Psalm 109:4). This is why it was hard for him, being devoted to prayer and peace, to live among those who hated peace and loved war. In order to avoid the sufferings the psalmist went through, we must obey the exhortation of the apostle Paul: Do not be unequally yoked together with unbelievers. For what fellowship has righteousness with lawlessness? And what communion has light with darkness? And what accord has Christ with Belial? Or what part has a believer with an unbeliever? And what agreement has the temple of God with idols? For you are the temple of the living God... Therefore 'Come out from among them and be separate, says the Lord. Do not touch what is unclean, and I will receive you. I will be a Father to you, And you shall be My sons and daughters'... Therefore, having these promises, beloved, let us cleanse ourselves from all filthiness of the flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of God(2 Corinthians 6:14-7:1).

To every believer who says, I am for peace; but when I speak, they are for war we offer two pieces of advice:

Mention two of the five possibilities of the occasion for writing Psalms 120-134.

How does God punish the deceitful tongue?