Psalm 135:1-2

Psalm 35:1-2

Praise the Lord!

What a beautiful Psalm this is as it highlights the countless reasons why Israel should praise the Lord their God. And there are plenty of encouragements for us to do the same! This God is the one, true God, He is Lord not just of Israel but of the whole world. He is God over creation. He is God over every nation, language and tribe across the whole earth and those who do not recognise Him as such are wasting their lives following pointless and powerless idols. Let all religions and all philosophies turn and face Him and see the foolishness of their ways and their unbelief. There is one God, He is the God of the Bible and the God whom we worship. Hallelujah! Let’s enjoy Psalm 135.

 

V1-2    The first call to “Praise the Lord” in this Psalm, goes out to the “servants of the Lord.” Who are these people who “minister in the house of the Lord, in the courts of the house of our God?” Nehemiah 7:73 gives us a little insight into the way the author may have been thinking, it talks about “The priests, the Levites, the gatekeepers, the musicians and the temple servants along with certain of the people.” That’s quite a diverse crowd all responsible for the running of God’s house. Music and singing were an integral part of their daily routines so all of these “servants” would be familiar with the chants, hymns and songs that accompanied the ceremonies and rites that were part of the temple worship. But the invitation to “praise the Lord” was not just about the formal musical repertoire, it was personal too. Let these people sing praise in their hearts and make their own music to God.

This applies as much to modern servants of the Lord as it did to our ancient predecessors. We too, as followers of Christ, belong to God’s Holy Temple. We too are His servants, fulfilling our responsibilities and our divinely appointed roles. We too are instructed to “Praise the Lord”. If we have no song in our hearts and no expression of love and gratitude that bursts out in joyful exuberance, then we need to seriously question what our faith is all about! 

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