Heart of a Psalmist - Worshipping Christ Through The Psalms

‘He is the Lord of the constellations, which in the ancient world were thought of as presiding over fate…This calling is at the same time a creative act and a proclamation of the right of lordship.’ One of the main gods of Babylon was Ishtar, the ‘Queen of Heaven’ that Judah had come to worship during the ministry of Jeremiah. “We will do whatever we want. We will burn incense to the Queen of Heaven and sacrifice to her just as much as we like—just as we and our ancestors did before us, and as our kings and princes have always done in the towns of Judah and in the streets of Jerusalem. For in those days we had plenty to eat, and we were well off and had no troubles!” (Jer. 44:17) Their worship of Ishtar led to the complete destruction and exile of their nation and now the psalmist calls the returning Jews to ‘Praise’ only Yahweh who has a name for each individual star. Stars are symbolic of the constellations of peoples that will praise him for all eternity; “…those who turn many to righteousness will shine like stars forever.” (Dan. 12:3) The unfathomable greatness, power and understanding of God is reflected by his Lordship over the universe that he knows intimately by name. “What a comfort for the church as it traverses its’ ways, that are often so…entangled! Its Lord is the Omniscient as well as the Almighty One. It’s history, like the uni- verse, is a work of God’s infinitely profound and rich understanding.’ All this greatness, power and un- derstanding is attracted to one quality in the human heart; ‘humility.’ Jesus said: “Let me teach you, because I am humble and gentle, and you will find rest for your souls.” (Mt. 11:29) The wicked, whose lives are fueled by pride, return to dust like Adam, the son of man mentioned in the previous psalm. “How great is our Lord! His power is absolute! His understanding is beyond comprehension! The Lord supports the humble, but he brings the wicked down into the dust.” (5, 6) The invitation to praise in verse 1 now turns to a command to praise with thanksgiving, one of the essential ingredients of adoration. This command would fit the situation of Nehemiah’s Festival of the dedication of the Walls of Jerusalem, where the Levites were brought in to lead the last great worship service recorded in the Old Testament. “During the dedication of the new wall of Jerusalem, the Levites throughout the land were asked to come to Jerusalem to assist in the ceremonies. They were to take part in the joyous occasion with their songs of thanksgiving and with music of cymbals, lyres, and harps.” (Neh. 12:27) Nehemiah organized two choirs of Levites to circle the walls in opposite directions singing their praises and playing on the instruments; he led one group, and Ezra the scribe led the other. “The two choirs that were giving thanks then proceeded to the Temple of God, where they took their places…They played and sang loudly and clearly under the direction of Jezrahiah the choir director.” (Neh. 12:40, 42) Baal was ‘the great active god of the Canaanite pantheon, who controlled rain and fertility’ … a ‘fre- quent description of Baal is ‘the rider of the clouds,’. Jezebel, who was married to Israel’s King Ahab sought to replace Yahweh’s worship with that of Baal until Elijah’s dramatic showdown with the Israelite nation on Mount Carmel. “How long are you going to waver between two opinions? If the Lord is God, follow him! But if Baal is God, then follow him!” (1 Kgs. 18:21) Although Elijah convinced the people that Yahweh was the true God that day, both the Northern Kingdom of Israel and the Kingdom of Judah both continued to incorporate Baal worship in their lands. This psalm cemented the fact to the returning ex- iles of Judah, that Baal had nothing to do with the weather, the fertility of the land or the provision of food; these were all the functions of Yahweh alone and he deserved their exclusive praise. The raven was among the most despised birds to the Jews as they fed upon dead flesh and were declared to be unclean by the Levitical laws: “These are the birds you must never eat because they are detestable for you:…ravens of all kinds,” (Lev. 11:13, 15) They are not song birds but emit an annoying and incessant ‘cawing’ sound and yet God used them to feed his prophet Elijah as he prepared him for his spiritual showdown with Baal on Mount Carmel: “Drink from the brook and eat what the ravens bring you, for I have commanded them to bring you food.” (1 Kgs. 17:4) The God who commands the weather Creation- “He covers the heavens with clouds, provides rain for the earth, and makes the green grass grow in mountain pastures. He feeds the wild animals, and the young ravens cry to him for food.” (7-9) II SING PRAISES TO OUR GOD - 7-11 Lord of the Clouds Praise- “Sing out your thanks to the Lord; sing praises to our God, accompanied by harps.” (7)

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