This is Episode #191 and today we’ll read Psalms 133-139 together. I will praise you because I have been remarkably and wondrously made.
Transcript
Joy: You’re listening to Season 2 of the Lifting Her Voice podcast. This is Episode #191 and today we’ll read Psalms 133-139 together. I will praise you because I have been remarkably and wondrously made.
Welcome
Welcome to the Lifting Her Voice podcast, Season 2! I’m your host, Joy Miller, and I invite you to grab your Bible and join me – from the beginning – simply reading God’s word together. We built some spiritual muscles in 2020 with just the New Testament. But this year we’re going all out, cover-to-cover, Old Testament and New. So, whether with your first cup in the morning, your commute to work, or as the last thing on your mind before sleep, God’s Word will equip you for every good work. I’m really glad you’re here!
Psalm 133
Living in Harmony
A song of ascents. Of David.
How delightfully good
when brothers live together in harmony!
It is like fine oil on the head,
running down on the beard,
running down Aaron’s beard
onto his robes.
It is like the dew of Hermon
falling on the mountains of Zion.
For there the Lord has appointed the blessing —
life forevermore.
Psalm 134
Call to Evening Worship
A song of ascents.
Now bless the Lord,
all you servants of the Lord
who stand in the Lord’s house at night!
Lift up your hands in the holy place
and bless the Lord!
May the Lord,
Maker of heaven and earth,
bless you from Zion.
Psalm 135
The Lord Is Great
Hallelujah!
Praise the name of the Lord.
Give praise, you servants of the Lord
who stand in the house of the Lord,
in the courts of the house of our God.
Praise the Lord, for the Lord is good;
sing praise to his name, for it is delightful.
For the Lord has chosen Jacob for himself,
Israel as his treasured possession.
For I know that the Lord is great;
our Lord is greater than all gods.
The Lord does whatever he pleases
in heaven and on earth,
in the seas and all the depths.
He causes the clouds to rise from the ends of the earth.
He makes lightning for the rain
and brings the wind from his storehouses.
He struck down the firstborn of Egypt,
both people and animals.
He sent signs and wonders against you, Egypt,
against Pharaoh and all his officials.
He struck down many nations
and slaughtered mighty kings:
Sihon king of the Amorites,
Og king of Bashan,
and all the kings of Canaan.
He gave their land as an inheritance,
an inheritance to his people Israel.
Lord, your name endures forever,
your reputation, Lord,
through all generations.
For the Lord will vindicate his people
and have compassion on his servants.
The idols of the nations are of silver and gold,
made by human hands.
They have mouths but cannot speak,
eyes, but cannot see.
They have ears but cannot hear;
indeed, there is no breath in their mouths.
Those who make them are just like them,
as are all who trust in them.
House of Israel, bless the Lord!
House of Aaron, bless the Lord!
House of Levi, bless the Lord!
You who revere the Lord, bless the Lord!
Blessed be the Lord from Zion;
he dwells in Jerusalem.
Hallelujah!
Psalm 136
God’s Love Is Eternal
Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good.
His faithful love endures forever.
Give thanks to the God of gods.
His faithful love endures forever.
Give thanks to the Lord of lords.
His faithful love endures forever.
He alone does great wonders.
His faithful love endures forever.
He made the heavens skillfully.
His faithful love endures forever.
He spread the land on the waters.
His faithful love endures forever.
He made the great lights:
His faithful love endures forever.
the sun to rule by day,
His faithful love endures forever.
the moon and stars to rule by night.
His faithful love endures forever.
He struck the firstborn of the Egyptians
His faithful love endures forever.
and brought Israel out from among them
His faithful love endures forever.
with a strong hand and outstretched arm.
His faithful love endures forever.
He divided the Red Sea
His faithful love endures forever.
and led Israel through,
His faithful love endures forever.
but hurled Pharaoh and his army into the Red Sea.
His faithful love endures forever.
He led his people in the wilderness.
His faithful love endures forever.
He struck down great kings
His faithful love endures forever.
and slaughtered famous kings —
His faithful love endures forever.
Sihon king of the Amorites
His faithful love endures forever.
and Og king of Bashan —
His faithful love endures forever.
and gave their land as an inheritance,
His faithful love endures forever.
an inheritance to Israel his servant.
His faithful love endures forever.
He remembered us in our humiliation
His faithful love endures forever.
and rescued us from our foes.
His faithful love endures forever.
He gives food to every creature.
His faithful love endures forever.
Give thanks to the God of heaven!
His faithful love endures forever.
Psalm 137
Lament of the Exiles
By the rivers of Babylon —
there we sat down and wept
when we remembered Zion.
There we hung up our lyres
on the poplar trees,
for our captors there asked us for songs,
and our tormentors, for rejoicing:
“Sing us one of the songs of Zion.”
How can we sing the Lord’s song
on foreign soil?
If I forget you, Jerusalem,
may my right hand forget its skill.
May my tongue stick to the roof of my mouth
if I do not remember you,
if I do not exalt Jerusalem as my greatest joy!
Remember, Lord, what the Edomites said
that day at Jerusalem:
“Destroy it! Destroy it
down to its foundations!”
Daughter Babylon, doomed to destruction,
happy is the one who pays you back
what you have done to us.
Happy is he who takes your little ones
and dashes them against the rocks.
Psalm 138
A Thankful Heart
Of David.
I will give you thanks with all my heart;
I will sing your praise before the heavenly beings.
I will bow down toward your holy temple
and give thanks to your name
for your constant love and truth.
You have exalted your name
and your promise above everything else.
On the day I called, you answered me;
you increased strength within me.
All the kings on earth will give you thanks, Lord,
when they hear what you have promised.
They will sing of the Lord’s ways,
for the Lord’s glory is great.
Though the Lord is exalted,
he takes note of the humble;
but he knows the haughty from a distance.
If I walk into the thick of danger,
you will preserve my life
from the anger of my enemies.
You will extend your hand;
your right hand will save me.
The Lord will fulfill his purpose for me.
Lord, your faithful love endures forever;
do not abandon the work of your hands.
Psalm 139
The All-Knowing, Ever-Present God
For the choir director. A psalm of David.
Lord, you have searched me and known me.
You know when I sit down and when I stand up;
you understand my thoughts from far away.
You observe my travels and my rest;
you are aware of all my ways.
Before a word is on my tongue,
you know all about it, Lord.
You have encircled me;
you have placed your hand on me.
This wondrous knowledge is beyond me.
It is lofty; I am unable to reach it.
Where can I go to escape your Spirit?
Where can I flee from your presence?
If I go up to heaven, you are there;
if I make my bed in Sheol, you are there.
If I fly on the wings of the dawn
and settle down on the western horizon,
even there your hand will lead me;
your right hand will hold on to me.
If I say, “Surely the darkness will hide me,
and the light around me will be night” —
even the darkness is not dark to you.
The night shines like the day;
darkness and light are alike to you.
Remarkably and Wondrously Made
For it was you who created my inward parts;
you knit me together in my mother’s womb.
I will praise you
because I have been remarkably and wondrously made.
Your works are wondrous,
and I know this very well.
My bones were not hidden from you
when I was made in secret,
when I was formed in the depths of the earth.
Your eyes saw me when I was formless;
all my days were written in your book and planned
before a single one of them began.
God, how precious your thoughts are to me;
how vast their sum is!
If I counted them,
they would outnumber the grains of sand;
when I wake up, I am still with you.
Your Enemies are My Enemies
God, if only you would kill the wicked —
you bloodthirsty men, stay away from me —
who invoke you deceitfully.
Your enemies swear by you falsely.
Lord, don’t I hate those who hate you,
and detest those who rebel against you?
I hate them with extreme hatred;
I consider them my enemies.
Search me, God, and know my heart;
test me and know my concerns.
See if there is any offensive way in me;
lead me in the everlasting way.
Close
Psalms 133 & 134 are the final two Songs of Ascents. I wonder if you had the same two thoughts that I did. First, how cool is it that we can read these words about oil running down Aaron’s beard and understand what’s going on because we’ve read the Torah. Scripture builds on top of Scripture. The more we read, the more we understand. The more we understand, the more we know the heart of God.
Second, the direction to lift up your hands in Psalm 134 caught my attention. There’s something all encompassing about the lifting up of our hands in praise to God, isn’t there? Not only is there praise in that act but there’s also surrender and need. When a child lifts her hands up to Daddy to be held or comforted or provided for, there is no shame there. Only the consent that she can’t do something for herself. Or. That she turns to him because she can. Do we do that to God? Do we do it often enough? I think it pleases Him. He simply wants our acknowledgment that He is God.
Speaking of acknowledgment, Psalm 136 says over and over what we too should repeat every day to ourselves and anyone who will listen. His faithful love endures forever. Did it strike you like it did me, that, practically speaking, the writer of this psalm made 25 entries into his gratitude journal? I wonder if he realized that. I wonder if he meant to do that. I wonder if God meant for that to be an example to us.
Psalm 139
And now, the pièce de résistance, the masterpiece. My favorite psalm by a pretty fair margin. Psalm 139. I have quoted parts of this song to you repeatedly. I am consumed with these words…David’s song is what I want my song to be. Admittedly, I have an affection for the New International Version since that is the translation in which I memorized these verses. But the soul of the psalm is not lost in the CSB. Awe is the word. This song conjures awe.
I am in awe that He knows me so well. I suppose the unspoken ending is that He knows everything about me and still loves me. Awe. Awe that He knew me before I existed in a physical state and that He ordained all of my days before even one began. I wonder how many days I have. What is it like to be in the presence of the Lord? How is all of this possible? Matthew tells us that all things are possible with God. Even the ability to ruminate about these things we don’t know or understand is proof that we are fearfully and wonderfully made!
Indeed I pray that He search me more, and that He sweep away anything I do or say or think that is not pleasing to Him. There are so many things He needs to purge in me. I must remain attentive for a lifetime. Do you love this psalm? I would love to hear from you. You can share your thoughts at Lifting Her Voice.com, Facebook, Instagram or Twitter.
See You Tomorrow!
Thank you for joining me here today. I pray that by spending time in His Word every day, you will by changed. Visit me at Lifting Her Voice.com with your comments and questions. And don’t forget to visit the Blog page while you’re there. If you like the podcast, it would be great if you’d give it a five-star review and share it with everyone you know. Don’t forget to subscribe wherever you get your podcasts. See you tomorrow!
Unless otherwise noted, all Scripture quotations are taken from the Christian Standard Bible(r), Copyright (c) 2017 by Holman Bible Publishers. Used by permission. Christian Standard Bible(r) and CSB(r) are federally registered trademarks of Holman Bible Publishers.
Show Notes
- Awesome Video of Solomon’s Temple
- These will help! Overview videos of all books of the Bible
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Bible Study Resources
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