Psalm 89:1

Psalm 89:1

I will sing - regardless!

This poignant Psalm is both a sad reminder of the past, glorious days of the reign of King David but also, a joyful reminder of the glorious reign of the Lord God for those who obey and serve Him. The song is credited to Ethan the Ezrahite and was probably written after Nebuchadnezzar, the Babylonian Emperor, ransacked Jerusalem and effectively put paid to the state of Israel. Ethan is shocked and saddened by these events and he recalls, on numerous occasions, the wonderful days when the nation was at its zenith under David’s rule. Ethan is perplexed by the very thought that the Lord would abandon His people and allow the crown to be cast into the dust. Once again, we will encounter the twin qualities of love and faithfulness which characterize the rule of the Lord God and the Psalm ends with a prayer for restoration and a plea for Him to reverse the catastrophic events that He obviously caused to take place. 

V1        The couplet of love and faithfulness occur together in later verses in the Psalm and here they are in all their glory, the two reminders of the way in which the Lord God has historically dealt with His people.  I guess that this Psalm is doing what many other Psalms do, reminding the Lord of His positive attributes as a way of cajoling Him to return to them and reverse what is going on amongst His people. In other words, if God loves them and He is truly a faithful God, then surely, He must step in and save Israel from its present dilemma! I wonder if we dare use such bargaining tools when negotiating with the Lord? It’s kind of holding Him to account, there’s an element of arm-twisting that somehow feels “not quite right!” And yet it’s a constant theme in some of the Psalms and there doesn’t seem to be a negative reaction from heaven. I suspect that the Lord prefers us to say what we think and to express ourselves honestly rather than covering up!

Dare we then, proclaim that we will sing of the Lord’s great love forever and that we will make His faithfulness known to all generations, regardless of what may be happening to us and around us? Let’s give Ethan the benefit of the doubt and believe that this godly man means what he says and that in the midst of the national crisis he will indeed keep singing the virtues of the Lord. Can we keep singing when disaster is looming around us? 

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