Heart of a Psalmist - Worshipping Christ Through The Psalms

PSALM 8: O LORD, OUR LORD Jesus, The Son of Man

This psalm tells the good news of how Christ became a man to suffer for our sins and how he has restored mankind to the highest and most honorable position in God’s creation. It reveals one of the great purposes of praise, to stop the enemy and avenger. It is an emerging portrait of the coming Messiah who was both the eternal Son of Yahweh, and the Son of Man.

The three divisions of the psalm are:

I CHILDREN AND INFANTS - The Song of Praise- 1,2 II CROWNED WITH GLORY - The Son of Man- 3-5 III IN CHARGE OF EVERYTHING - The Sovereign Over Creation- 6-9

INTRODUCTION:

“ To the chief Musician. On the instrument of Gath. (Al Gittith) A Psalm of David. ”

(NKJV) The meaning of the word (al Gittith) is uncertain but several possibilities arise. “Some think it refers to Gath, and may refer to a tune commonly sung there, or an instrument of music there in- vented, or a song of Obed Edom the Gittite, in whose house the ark rested, or better still, a song sung over Goliath of Gath. Others, tracing the Hebrew to its root, conceive it to mean a song for the winepress, a joyful hymn for the treaders of grapes 1 .” “The gittith was, therefore, an instrument giving forth a joy- ous sound 2 …” The same inscription is found in Psalms 81 and 84 which are both joyous and happy in nature. This psalm is upbeat and positive in all its verses. “ O Lord, our Lord, the majesty of your name fills the earth! Your glory is higher than the heavens.”(1) The actual translation of ‘ O Lord, our Lord ’ would be…” O Yahweh, our Adonai … ” Yahweh is the re- demptive name of God in the Old Testament and is referring to God who has made his son Jesus to be the ‘Adonai’ or ‘Lord’ of all. Jesus left no doubt to his identity when he addressed the Jewish people and said: “ …before Abraham was, I am. ” (Jn. 8:58) Using the word for ‘the timeless being’ he claimed unashamedly to be the Son of the eternal God of the patriarchs of the Old Testament. His name is to be praised in heaven and earth for all time. “ Because of this, (his death on the cross) God raised him up to the heights of heaven and gave him a name that is above every other name, so that at the name of Jesus every knee will bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is lord, to the glory of God the Father.” (Phil.2:9-11) As David meditates upon the night sky he concludes that the majesty of Yahweh and His Son is greater than all of the heavens and their glory! God is not just a title or a concept but a knowable and reachable divine being that is so worthy of love and devotion. Worshiping God involves His ‘name’ as that is his address. l. CHILDREN AND INFANTS - The Song of Praise 1,2

“ You have taught children and nursing infants to give you praise. They silence your enemies who were seeking revenge.” (2)

There is a beautiful simplicity displayed in this verse. The creator of the heavens and earth and all of mankind has ordained the giving of praise, even by small children, as a powerful canceling agent to all the attacks of the enemy and avenger of our souls. Jesus quoted this psalm as his enemies came against him: “ The leading priests and the teachers of religious law saw these wonderful miracles and heard even the little children in the Temple shouting, ‘praise God for the son of David.’ But they were in- dignant and asked Jesus, ‘Do you hear what these children are saying?’ ‘Yes,’ Jesus replied. ‘haven’t you ever read the Scriptures? For they say,

‘You have taught children and infants to give you praises.’” (Mt. 21:15,16)

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