Daily Meditations

Psalm 124:8 What a Name! What a confession this is! It should be spoken out at the end of every prayer that is ever prayed,  “Our help is in the Name of the Lord, the Maker of heaven and earth.” There is much made of names today, I’ve been around for a few years and can recall many influential “names” that have come and gone. Politicians, Presidents, Kings and Queens, prominent musicians and scientists, war heroes, celebrities, sports stars – the list is a long one. Each of these individuals has prospered in his or her day but, surprise, surprise, they come, and they go. Many who live in our memories are dead, their influence is gone, their name is assigned to the past, to a different era. Imagine therefore having a name or an influence that never diminishes, that never ends, that does not die. Imagine bearing a name that surpasses all others, in all generations. Imagine having a name that stands for absolute truth, absolute justice, absolute power and absolute hope, a name that is...

Psalm 124:7 The snare has been broken and we have escaped According to the books of Ezra–Nehemiah, after 70 years in captivity to the Babylonian Empire, in 538 BC the Jews in Babylon were allowed to return to the Land of Judah,  due to Cyrus’s decree.  Cyrus was the King of Persia, and the Persian Empire now superseded the Babylonians. After establishing his empire, King Cyrus allowed all subjects to participate in governance. He borrowed the good deeds of other cultures, and some say that this was a sign of his commitment to diversity through culture! What is abundantly clear is that He set the Jews free from their Babylonian Captivity that had taken place all those decades before. Many commentators believe that these events are what are being referred to here  although if that is true, this Psalm could not have been written by David who died in around 970 BC!  Let’s stay with David but take note that even though God works in mysterious ways, there is always an unde...

Psalm 124:6 Torn by their teeth The picture here is, of course, of a wild animal attacking and devouring its prey. The sole aim of ferocious predators is to capture their quarry, kill and then eat the spoils. In the world of marauding beasts, birds or sea creatures there is no place for mercy or kindness, or polite manners.   David sees the onslaught of his human enemies in a similar light. They come with one intent, to hunt him down and to hunt down the Israelite forces. They come to murder and to kill their prey. They might not have wanted to eat their quarry, but they certainly intend to carry off the spoils of war, anything from valuable objects and clothing to potential slaves, and the women for self-gratifying pleasure. Any of those outcomes was as bad as being eaten in David’s mind, he saw the consequences of defeat as being “torn by their teeth.” No wonder he praised the Lord who had obstructed the enemy and saved Israel from ignominious destruction.  Many believers wo...

Psalm 124:4-5 Devastation by the enemy David now uses powerful imagery to demonstrate the deadly nature of the forces against him and his people. The enemy hordes are like a flood that sweeps across the land carrying all before it. They are like the mighty torrent of a tsunami that crashes over everything in its path and causes untold damage and devastation. The enemy army’s pound over their victims like breaking waves that are sent to sweep away everything that stands in their path. These pictures are meant to convey the horror of complete annihilation, of catastrophic destruction, of the removal of Israel from the face of the earth. Chants of a similar nature have been heard across the world since October 7 th , 2023, when the Palestinians invaded Israel from Gaza. The same old grievances and historic enemies are still rampant today, and the land remains surrounded by armies and threats of overwhelming violence, conceived to extinguish the Jewish nation from the face of the earth....

Psalm 124:2-3  Swallowed alive! In Psalm 123 we discovered that the author’s main protagonists were the arrogant and proud. This Psalm suggests that David is speaking on behalf of the nation of Israel, and that he may be referring to the attempts, by hostile forces, to take over his country. There were numerous occasions when large armies advanced on the land and warrior kings from Canaanite nations joined forces to crush the Israelites. In fact, David spent much of the earlier years of his reign seeking to turn them back, to guard his borders and to establish some kind of peace in a land that was constantly at war. You may have noticed that little has changed! You and I may also be the objects of hostile forces, be it other people or be it other factors that appear to be bent on our destruction. We also have to fight against an unseen enemy for it is clear that the Satan never leaves us alone, he is a master tactician and will turn any situation against us. That is why we have to ...

  Psalm 124:1 If the Lord had not been on our side - Psalm 123 had an author begging for the Lord to show mercy in the face of the threats and the arrogant ridicule of his enemies, probably the enemies of the whole nation of Israel. Thus, it is a wonderful antidote to the woes of that Psalm to now be able to read Psalm 124 which turns into an anthem of praise to the Lord who has delivered His people! This is David again, writing after a glorious victory over his enemies, although many scholars attribute these words to another writer who borrowed from David! Who cares about the author or the precise moment that is being described? The truth is, the Lord intervened for His people once again and He will do the same for us just as He did (and does) for Israel. Let’s rejoice with the writer and praise God for our deliverance.   V1           “If the Lord had not been on our side”.   That is such a powerful statement, and it is worthy of a...