Daily Meditations

Psalm 76:2 His dwelling place in Zion As we know, Salem is the shortened version of Jerusalem but the word “salem” is, of course, a derivation of “shalom”, the Hebrew word for peace. So, the name Jerusalem literally means, “the city of peace!” It’s hard to think of any place on earth that has experienced less peace but that is because it is the chosen city of the chosen people – Israel. And God’s dwelling place on earth is always going to be at the centre of conflict between good and evil. Zion was a specific hill to the east of Jerusalem that housed a fortified citadel, and it was the site of David’s royal palace. Zion is adjacent to Mt Moriah where the Temple was built. Zion came to symbolise Jerusalem, the Temple Mount and then Israel itself, because the name means “highest point.”  What is curious about this verse is that the two Hebrew words used here for tent and dwelling-place are similar to those that describe a lion’s den or lair. Maybe there is a deliberate ploy to depict the

Psalm 76:1 God is renowned in Israel It is not always easy to place the Psalms in their actual context. This one is clearly a celebration of all that the Lord God has done to defend Jerusalem and His people, Israel. It is a song of hope and certainty, attributed to Asaph but, as we have seen, it could have been penned by a later member of his Levitical family. Sennacherib, the King of Assyria was defeated by the power of God as a consequence of the faith and prayers of Hezekiah, and Jerusalem was saved from what could have been, complete destruction. Some believe that this song was written at that time.  We will study the Psalm against the background of Israel’s salvation and the protection that God provides for His people, the church.    v1        Isn’t it great to hear of a time and a place where God’s glory and fame reverberate across a land? As a consequence of His saving power and His defence of His people, everyone is talking about the amazing God of Judah and Israel. This gives

Psalm 75:10 All about horns! We’re back to the horns again! it is sobering to stop and recall for a moment, all the headline grabbing rulers who have come and gone in our lifetimes. Usually men, but there have been some women too, who have had their moment of power and glory, who have dominated the world or national stages for a while and then, they are no more. A few of these people have worked for good, many have been corrupt and violent, and for a while they ruled ruthlessly often with a view to feathering their own nests. Then someone, or something, cut off the horns of these raging bulls and they are no more! Any man or woman who uses force or manipulation to make themselves gods to be worshipped by the masses, will have their day and then will be no more. Their reign of terror so often foreshortened and abbreviated at the point when they thought they were invincible. God Himself sees to it! The truly righteous, who live their righteousness by faith, tend to remain unseen and unkn

Psalm 75:9 Praise to the God of Jacob The psalmist here had an eternal viewpoint! Whilst the adherents of the lesser gods, and those who had made themselves gods, might enjoy men’s praises for a time, His praise would last forever! It would resound from earth while our writer was alive on this planet, and it would go on resounding around the throne of Heaven when he left this world. His faith in the righteousness and justice of God would be forever declared and His wonderful deeds would be praised forever. The gods of other nations were nothing, they were lesser spirits who were, at best, created beings, and they were but a charade when compared to the God of Jacob or Israel. Jacob’s God was the only true deity, who had vastly greater power and influence than the lesser beings could ever have. Let us believe this. Let us never stop praising the One who rules supreme. Let us continually declare this truth and sing out the name of our God. The route to well-being and inner contentment is

Psalm 75:8 The cup of wrath The Scriptures, on a number of occasions, describe the Lord holding a cup or being like a cup! This is a metaphor that describes the actions of a host who serves his guests from his wine supply. To the righteous, the Lord offers the cup of blessing or salvation; you will remember that David talks of his cup running over, such is the generosity of His Shepherd King. (Psalm 23:5)  The wicked do not drink from this cup or of this wine, for they are only offered the cup of God’s wrath or judgement. Jeremiah 25:15-28 gives us a vivid description of this cup and its effects. Revelation 14:9-10 tells us about the cup of God’s fury that will be drunk by those who worship the beast or its image and receive its mark on their forehead or hand. The cup being poured out in this verse of Psalm 75 is the cup of wrath. As intoxicating spices are added the wine foams and it is drunk by the wicked of the earth. Not one drop will be left, and not one of the wicked will be able

Psalm 75:6-7 He brings down and He exalts It is good for us to remember that promotions and advancements come from God alone. In fact, it’s probably true to say that very few people understand this principle – even Christians! We are not used to thinking this way, that the Lord God oversees and controls the ways of men to the extent that all positions of power are occupied only by those whom He has appointed. If He numbers the hairs on our heads and sees the sparrows fall, if He knows out thoughts and our words before we voice them, does He not know who will be exalted upon the earth? If He designed and oversees the microcosmic world and also the billions of stars in the sky, who are we to think that we are in control of our own destinies? This is the utter foolishness of the wicked who think that they can live as they please and yet every day of their lives is in the hands of their Maker! Their greatest foolishness is to ignore the One who has given them their existence in the first p

Psalm 75:4-5 Boast no more There are certain people who are born to lead but very few who are born to lead well. It takes a certain kind of self-belief, even arrogance to climb the ladder of command and leadership. Many climb it because they think highly of themselves and will use any means to achieve their ends. Such people will find it impossible to be humble before God and also to avoid the prosect of profiting from their position. We see this scenario played out time and time again amongst politicians and people in positions of power, to the point that those of us who are older and cynical, wonder if there is anyone out there who serves others for the right reasons? It does us all no harm to ask, what are our personal motivations? Do we really care for others more than we care for ourselves? The Psalms often portray the wicked and arrogant as self-seeking, greedy people who victimise others and who take no account of God or His laws. Such people are boastful, not just in their word

Psalm 75:3 Firm pillars! We would all like to think that good will always prevail over evil. However, the Bible suggests that this may not always be so. When the world powers become so godless and immoral that the very foundations of the earth start to quake, God may have to step in. He did it at Babel and He did it at the time of the Flood.  In ancient times the temples of the gods were seen to be microcosms of the created world that also joined up with the heavenly spheres. That is why the buildings were upheld by great pillars with soaring arches and domes. In every temple there was a holy altar that ordinary men dare not approach for they could not come near to the god. It is sad that cathedrals and many churches were built on similar principles and that even today, they are deemed to be temples to a God who does not dwell in buildings and nor does He require the services of a separated, berobed priesthood!  The Bible tells us that when the pillars of our moral world seem to be cru

Psalm 75:2 The God who is in full control Well, verse 1 of this Psalm appeared to be innocuous, didn’t it? Yet it conveys powerful truths that require deeper consideration. This next verse is not dissimilar because it embraces the sovereign choices of God, His control of the times and the seasons, His judgements and the righteousness and truth that guide His decisions. This verse is a reassuring word from heaven, in response to the praises of God’s people on earth. Despite the threats of enemies and the dangers that surround Israel, He reminds them that He is in control. All times are set by Him and it is His responsibility to judge His enemies and when He does, He will do it with equity.  We need to grasp these truths, to have a mindset that tells us that God is always in control, that nothing happens to us without His consent. All things are made by Him. “HE IS” the “I AM.” Every moment in history has come at His appointed time. Every event that unfolds even now is seen by Him and al

Psalm 75:1d He is near! Returning to those powerful verses in Exodus 3:14-15 We see that God not only named Himself as the “I AM WHO I AM” but, in verse 15, He also describes Himself as the LORD! The Hebrew word for Lord here is YHWH, a name that has lost its proper pronunciation. Some have incorrectly turned this sacred name into Jehovah by combining it with the vowels of Adonai (another name for Lord.) It is most likely that YAHWEH is the correct pronunciation, but the Jews thought it too holy to be uttered anyway! YAHWEH means, HE IS or HE WILL BE. Thus, when God speaks of Himself, He is “I AM” and when we speak of Him we say, “HE IS.”    There is so much more that can be discovered about the Name of God but let’s get back to our Psalm. Verse 1 tells us that  “Your Name is near.”  The Jews, of course, had a dwelling place for God and while they wandered in the wilderness His Name was amongst them, for He dwelt in the Tabernacle. The Tabernacle building, with its sacred objects, was

Psalm 75:1c Continuing thoughts about "I AM" In John’s Gospel the Lord described Himself as the “I AM” seven times. Each one of these statements an affirmation that He was equal with God and He was God!  While there was no clearer way that Jesus could have said “I Am God,” He did not stop there. Instead, He continued to dive even deeper into revealing His nature and character by working purposeful miracles and making the following seven descriptive statements about Himself and each has real implications for humanity: 1.       I Am the Bread of Life:   Jesus alone can sustain us, we are but starving beggars looking for food ( John 6 ). 2.       I Am the   Light of the World :  Jesus is the original and eternal source of light in the universe for those who are spiritually blind by birth ( John 8 ). 3.       I Am the Gate of the Sheepfold:  Jesus is the only door to life for those who are lost outside God’s will ( John 10 ). 4.       I Am the  Good Shepherd :  Jesus knows and ca

Psalm 75:1b Jesus and "the Name." Jesus caused enormous outrage when He dared to call Himself by  “the Name ”.  “I am not possessed by a demon,” said Jesus, “but I honour my Father and you dishonour me. I am not seeking glory for myself; but there is one who seeks it, and he is the judge. I tell you the truth, if anyone keeps my word, he will never see death.” At this the Jews exclaimed, “Now we know that you are demon-possessed! Abraham died and so did the prophets, yet you say that if anyone keeps your word, he will never taste death. Are you greater than our father Abraham? He died, and so did the prophets. Who do you think you are?” Jesus replied, “If I glorify myself, my glory means nothing. My Father, whom you claim as your God, is the one who glorifies me. Though you do not know him, I know him. If I said I did not, I would be a liar like you, but I do know him and keep his word. Your father Abraham rejoiced at the thought of seeing my day; he saw it and was glad.” “Yo

Psalm 75:1a Your Name is near This Psalm, like its predecessor, is attributed to Asaph or a member of his Levitical family. It may have been written when the kingdom was under threat from Assyria. The Psalm begins and ends with praise and contains reassurance from heaven and a triumphant response from earth. It could so easily have been composed against the backdrop of modern history and the occasions when the security of the land is threatened.   v1        The central thought in this verse celebrates the fact that God’s Name is near. What is this Name and how can it be near?  God said to Moses at the burning bush, “ I AM WHO I AM”. This is what you are to say to the Israelites: “I AM has sent me to you.” God also said to Moses, “Say to the Israelites, The Lord, the God of your fathers – the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac and the God of Jacob -has sent me to you. This is my name forever, the name you shall call me from generation to generation.”  Exodus 3:14-15. It can hardly be put

Psalm 74:23 The uproar of Your enemies This is one last attempt to appeal to the Lord God’s sense of justice and righteousness. From verse 18 of this Psalm Asaph has been trying to plead the cause of the people but also pleading with God to not let the evil nation of Babylon prevail. Among other reasons, he uses the foolishness of the enemies, the upholding of the covenant promises of God, the rightness of His cause and the oppression of His chosen people, as bargaining tools. Asaph dares to remind the Lord God of His responsibilities to Israel and also to the honour of His own name! As if God cannot hear for Himself, Asaph draws His attention to the noisy voices of His enemies who never stop defying Him and mocking Him. I suppose that if we were enslaved by a foreign power that pours scorn on our God and on our faith, we might feel the same way! In truth, we are entrapped in an evil world by fools who never stop mocking our God. His name is a constant source of blasphemy and the main

Psalm 74:22 “Rise up, O God, and defend Your cause …”   This statement has overtones of my mother calling to me to get up and get ready for school! I don’t think that there is any inference here that God is drowsy and needs to be awakened. I suspect that this is simply a call for immediate action, asking that the Lord should not delay in defending His cause. What is interesting is that you do not make this kind of request if you believe the cause to be lost! The Israelites had not yet given up hope, well at least Asaph hadn’t. He still believed in God. He believed that their captivity would end. He still held on to the Covenant promises and that the Lord would come and save His people and lead them back to the Land of Promise. Could any other nation in the world make such a claim upon a deity? Would any other nation still proceed in hope when all the circumstances pointed to terminal banishment?  Just to stir the Lord up a little bit more, Asaph points out that the foolish Babylonians

Psalm 74:21 Praise in the dark places It’s impossible to know, but I wonder at what point during the captivity in Babylon did Asaph wrote this Psalm? I would suggest that it may have been early on for he talks of retreat here, and the captivity lasted for around 70 years. I think the generation that was still in Babylon in those later years may have stopped thinking about retreating, many would have adapted to life away from the Promised Land. Their oppression was, of course, their slavery but also the fact that they were no longer free to make their own rules, to live their lives corporately for God. They were completely under the control of the Babylonians and the Babylonian way of life. All the things that set them apart from their contemporaries were gone, Jerusalem was gone, the temple was gone, the ceremonies and practices of their religion were gone. Indeed, it must have seemed to them as if God Himself was gone! They were abandoned! And yet Asaph is still writing his songs and

Psalm 74:20 Don't neglect the Covenant This verse is similar so many others in the Psalms. The writers are not frightened to hold God to account, something we would rarely dare to do today. It’s a bit like you and I saying to God, “You’d better check the terms and conditions of our agreement, the wicked have taken up occupation in many places. What are you going to do about it?” God’s Covenant with Israel was that they would be a treasured possession, a kingdom of priest and a holy nation. Exodus 19:5-6. He had promised to drive out the pagan tribes and to establish Israel’s borders. Exodus 23:27-31. God had told the people, “ I will be your God and you will be my people.”  Israel had suffered greatly because of their failure to keep to the Covenant that God had made with them. They were now enslaved by the Babylonians and held captive by a pagan empire. They looked longingly back to their treasured land, to their freedom and to the blessings that their predecessors had enjoyed and

Psalm 74:19 Gentle as doves Doves have always been birds of peace. They are easy to train and affectionate little creatures. Who could imagine a dove being aggressive and confrontational, even the softness of their call touches our hearts? So, Asaph regards Israel as the dove of God, a dearly-loved gentle creature that is petted by its owner – God! I think that this is a description of the Jews that is meant to appeal to God’s kinder nature, for these people have often been combatant, unruly, ungrateful, haughty and proud and rebellious. However, in His mercy, the Lord God has never allowed them to be fully exterminated from the earth; like Carrier Pigeons and Racing Pigeons He has always called the doves of Israel back to their home and the wild beasts have not been able to destroy them.  The Lord has declared the Jews to be His chosen ones, His elect, and He will never go back on His covenant promises. And if you think my description of them is unkind, then remind yourself that you a

Psalm 74:18 Enemies and fools Israel were God’s chosen people. That set them apart from their neighbours. Yes, it made them arrogant at times and it humbled them too. They had no problems with national identity, and little has changed since! The relationship with God was pivotal in their dealings with all peoples. Those who mocked Jehovah were their enemies and His enemies too.  We are also God’s chosen people and those who mock Him are His enemies and ours. That puts us at a significant disadvantage numerically, but it’s still better to be on the side of the Lord. There must be no physical engagement with the enemy for our weapon is the Gospel of Peace. However, we should not forget that mockery of our God only ever comes from enemy lips. The verse talks also about “foolish people” who revile God’s name. As we have seen before, foolishness really means morally deficient. Those people, who think that they are not accountable, that no rules of behaviour apply to them and that they can d

Psalm74:17 God sets all the boundaries “ When the Most High gave the nations their inheritance, when He divided all mankind, He set up boundaries for the people according to the number of sons of Israel.”  Deuteronomy 32:8. “From one man God made all nations, that they should inhabit the whole earth; and He marked out their appointed times in history and the boundaries of their lands.”  Acts 17:26. This Psalm has been reminding us that the Lord God is in control of nature, of the destiny of Israel, of the waters and the seas, of the empires and the tyrannies of man. God controls the day and the night and the sun and the moon. Now we are reminded that He controls the geographical boundaries of the populations, the history of men, the ebbing and flowing of the nations and their changing influences. God also has His hand upon the seasons, and He dictates their beginning and their end. John introduces Jesus into the equation and writes, “ He was with God in the beginning. Through Him all t

Psalm 74:16 God established the sun and the moon “ In  the beginning   God created   the heavens   and the earth.   2  Now the earth was formless   and empty,   darkness was over the surface of the deep,   and the Spirit of God   was hovering over the waters. 3  And God said,   “Let there be light,” and there was light.   4  God saw that the light was good,   and he separated the light from the darkness.   5  God called   the light “day,” and the darkness he called “night.”   And there was evening, and there was morning—the first day.” These, so familiar, words from Genesis 1 remind us of who is in charge! There would be no light without God. There would be no day or night without God. There would be no earth without God. And there would have been no living things unless God had created order out of chaos. The sun, moon and stars would not be fixed in their orbits without God and you and I would not exist unless He ordered our conception. It is because we see God as glorious, righteous

Psalm 74:15 He gives and takes away We are talking about springs, streams and rivers today and, at first glance, this verse seems to contradict itself. One minute God is opening ups springs and streams, the next – He is drying up ever-flowing rivers! Surely, this is to show us that so far as His provision is concerned, He can give and He can take away? In Exodus 6, as a consequence of the Israelites moaning about their status and conditions, Moses is instructed to take some elders from Israel and the staff with which he struck the River Nile, and God says, “ I will stand there before you by the rock at Horeb. Strike the rock, and water will come out of it for the people to drink.”  And it did! And the place was called Massah and Meribah, places of testing and quarrelling. As we well know, the same God parted the Red Sea and the River Jordan, and in those instances, He stopped waters from flowing. He can provide blessing and provision and He can also withdraw them, because He is God and

Psalm 74:13-14 Crushing the monsters! There are at least 3 ways of viewing these verses. They talk of monsters and a Leviathan, using imagery that seems more in keeping with fairy tales than the Bible!  Some say that the monster and the Leviathan are images borrowed from the myths of the Canaanites, and that the creator-god overcame these in order subdue the chaos of the primeval earth. I ask myself, why would the Bible need to borrow myths from the Canaanites? We believe this book to be the inspired Word of God not a foray into the legends of the ancient peoples. Others suggest that these creatures were real and that they were connected to the dinosaurs and other beasts that roamed the earth and swam in the seas before mankind was created. Who knows what really happened, perhaps there were dinosaurs before the flood? Did that devastating disaster cause upheaval to the earth’s crust, destroying all the living creatures and producing the kind of fossil remains that are being found today

Psalm 74:12 Salvation, throughout the ages This verse literally reads that,  “God is my King from a long time ago, He is the One who has been bringing salvation to the earth, throughout the ages.”  Of course He has! He made the earth. He is its Creator. He has watched over every tiny detail of the natural world. He has carefully revealed what man needs to know at any given point in time. He has been the inspiration behind all of man’s greatest discoveries. He has breathed life into every baby that has been born. He has counted the hairs on our heads and numbered the sparrows when they die. He has granted life to all living things and watched in sorrow as we fade, after a short time of occupancy on the planet. He is the beginner of all things and the end of all things – the Alpha and Omega. He has called out to men and women to know Him and serve Him. He has constantly stepped into history to save us from destroying ourselves. Best of all, He has done everything possible for us to know