DBG - July 8 - Psalms 108-114

This psalm is written by David.  The basis for it appears to be two previous psalms.  We see that vs. 1-5 largely mirror 57:7-11 and vs. 6-13 largely mirror 60:5-12.  There are minor variations that add freshness.  The theme of the song is praise for the God who strengthens.

vs. 1-4 – A call for personal praise.

vs. 5-6 – God glorified through delivering Israel.

vs. 7-9 – God’s victory over the territories in and surrounding the Promised Land.

vs. 10-13 – A call for God to help His warrior in battle against His foes.

This psalm was written by David and given to the chief musician for use in the Temple.  It is plea for deliverance against someone who betrayed the psalmist.  Prophetically, this is linked to Judas by Peter in Acts 16-26.  Historically, it is likely written about Ahithophel.

vs. 1-5 – A call for god to move against the lies and schemes of the wicked. 

vs. 6-15 – A call for judgment against the wicked.

vs. 16-20 – The way of the wicked in choosing cursing over blessing.

vs. 21-25 – That sad state of the petitioner begging for God’s deliverance.

vs. 26-31 – A plea for deliverance.

This psalm was written by David.  This is a Messianic psalm.

vs. 1 – This opening verse is quoted by Christ, applying it to Himself, in Matther 22:42-46 and Mark 12:35-37.  The opening words are “The LORD [Jehovah, referring to the Father] said unto my Lord [Adoni, referring to Christ]”.  It pictures the culmination of the victory of the Messiah seen in Psalm 2 as He rules the world.

vs. 2 – Pictures the Millennial Kingdom.

vs. 3 – The glory of the Millennial Kingdom.

vs. 4 – Though some modern historians disagree, David was a king only and did not serve in a priestly role.  Christ is the one true King and one true Priest.  He is said to be of the order of Melchizedek, the mysterious priest of Jerusalem who simply appears without any credentials or lineage in Genesis 14:18.   This phrase is expounded on in Hebrews 7 to show that Christ could be greater priest than the Levitical priesthood. 

vs. 5 – The “day of wrath” is the conquest of Armageddon preceding the establishment of His throne in Jerusalem.

vs. 6 – The complete and utter defeat and domination of the Messiah over the world.

vs. 7 – This verse is difficult to interpret as it is more poetically descriptive than any other in this psalm.  The idea is that that Christ in His campaign against the wicked will be relentless.  The picture is that the soldier barely pauses for water as he passes by a stream so that his pursuit of the enemy might continue.

No author or superscription is provided for this psalm.  It is composed as an acrostic poem, which is totally lost in translation.  All the verses have one letter per line, not including the open “Praise ye the LORD”.  The first eight verses have two lines each and the final two have three lines each, thus making up the total of the 22 letters of the Hebrew alphabet.  It is a song of praise to God for His mighty works.

vs. 1 – The righteous man praises God in the assembly of the righteous.

vs. 2-3 – The glory of God’s works and character.

vs. 4-6 – God’s power is showed in the Exodus.

vs. 7-8 – The glory of God’s works and character.

vs. 9-10 – Praise returned to God for His redemption.

No author or superscription is provided for this psalm.  It is composed as an acrostic poem, which is totally lost in translation.  All the verses have one letter per line, not including the open “Praise ye the LORD”.  The first eight verses have two lines each and the final two have three lines each, thus making up the total of the 22 letters of the Hebrew alphabet.  It is a song of praise to God for His mighty works.  It is a song of praise to God for His blessings and grace upon the righteous.

vs. 1-2 – The righteous and their children are blessed by God.

vs. 3-4 – The bounty of God’s blessing on the righteous.

vs. 5-6 – The righteous man is firmly established and generous in his giving.

vs. 7-8 – The security and confidence of the righteous.

vs. 9 – The character and state of the righteous. 

vs. 10 – In contrast to the blessing of the righteous, the wicked are punished by God and destroyed.

No author or superscription is provided for this psalm.  It begins a series of psalms (113-118) that are called the Hallel, which are recited by Jews at Passover and other times.  It is a song of praise to God.

vs. 1-3 – Praise to the name of the Lord.

vs. 4-6 – The greatness of God described as above all.

vs. 7-9 – The great God reaches down and raises the state of the humble.

No author or superscription is provided for this psalm.  It is the second psalm of the Hallel.  It is a song of remembrance for the power of God experienced in the Exodus.

vs. 1 – The deliverance of the Israelites from Egypt.

vs. 2 – The sovereignty of God over Israel.

vs. 3-4 – God’s presence of the Lord shakes the world. 

vs. 5-6 – The psalmist asks the world why they react so to God.

vs. 7 – The world is encouraged to respond just as it did to its Creator’s presence

vs. 8 – This verse appears to allude to God’s provision for Israel in the wilderness.  It could also simply refer to God’s power to change Creation for the better, such as seen in Isaiah 35. 

The psalms are arranged with purpose.  Themes blend and develop as we move through them.  Sometimes they are paired for emphasis.  Such is the case of Psalms 111 and 112.  Both are written in acrostic forms.  The two theme are complimentary: the praise of God and His blessings upon the righteous.  The righteous never lack for reasons to praise Him because He is always good to them.  If you cannot count your blessings then you need an eye exam!

Today’s hymn, “Thy Kingdom Come”, was written by Benjamin Beddome.  It speaks of the victorious and conquering Messiah that we saw in Psalm 110.

Ascend thy throne, almighty King,
And spread thy glories all abroad;
Let thine own arm salvation bring,
And be thou known the gracious God.

Let millions bow before thy seat,
Let humble mourners seek thy face,
Bring daring rebels to thy feet,
Subdued by thy victorious grace.

Oh, let the kingdoms of the world
Become the kingdoms of the Lord!
Let saints and angels praise thy name.
Be thou through heaven and earth adored.