psalm 34 | TASTE AND SEE THAT THE LORD IS GOODThe first psalm we will be looking at is Psalm 34, a psalm of David. Here is a little background of this psalm from Enduring Word Commentary: "A fugitive from Saul, David went to the Philistine city of Gath but found no refuge there and narrowly escaped. Those events are recorded in 1 Samuel 21:10-22:1. Following that, David went to the cave at Adullam where many desperate men joined him. This joyful and wise psalm seems to have been written from that cave, and sung in the presence of those men. Abimelech was probably a title given to rulers among the Philistines; the ruler's proper name was Achish (1 Samuel 21:10)." With that in mind, let's take a closer look at this psalm, which was basically DAVID'S PSALM OF PRAISE TO THE LORD, EVEN WHILE BEING IN A CAVE. VERSES 1-3. In the first three verses, we see AN OVERFLOW OF DAVID'S PRAISE to the Lord. He writes, "I will extol the Lord at all times; His praise will always be on my lips. I will glory in the Lord; let the afflicted hear and rejoice. Glorify the Lord with me; let us exalt his name together." Through just these three verses, we see David's great faith in the Lord- that no matter what may come, he would choose to ALWAYS praise the Lord in the midst of it. VERSES 4-7. In verses 4-7, we see DAVID TESTIFY OF GOD'S DELIVERANCE AND FAITHFULNESS TO HIM. He says: "I sought the Lord, and he answered me; He delivered me from all my fears. Those who look to Him are radiant; their faces are never covered with shame. This poor man called, and the Lord heard him; He saved him out of all his troubles. The angel of the Lord encamps around those who fear Him, and He delivers them." Here we see that in all David went through, God was faithful to deliver him from it all if he sought Him. When he says "this poor man," he refers to himself, emphasizing all the times he cried out to the Lord. The part where David says, "the angel of the Lord encamps around those who fear Him," shows the amazing truth that in the countless times David was on the run trying to escape from those who wanted to kill him, GOD WAS PRESENT. VERSES 8-10. In verses 8-10, DAVID INVITES US TO TESTIFY with him of the goodness of God in our lives. He says to TASTE AND SEE that THE LORD TRULY IS GOOD, and the one who takes refuge in Him is BLESSED. He declares that those who fear the Lord (not in "fear," meaning terror, but "fear," meaning respect and reverence for the Lord) will lack NOTHING. David's exact words in these verses are the following: "Taste and see that the Lord is good; blessed is the one who takes refuge in Him. Fear the Lord, you His holy people, for those who fear Him lack nothing. The lions may grow weak and hungry, but those who seek the Lord lack no good thing." VERSES 11-16. In the rest of this chapter, we see the tone shift a bit- after discussing praising the Lord, DAVID MOVES ON TO TALK ABOUT FEARING THE LORD. He encourages them to keep their tongues away from evil, not tell lies, and choose to seek peace and PURSUE IT. He says in verses 11-14: "Come, my children, listen to me; I will teach you the fear of the Lord. Whoever of you loves life and desires to see many good days, keep your tongue from evil and your lips from telling lies. Turn from evil and do good; seek peace and pursue it." Then in verses 15-16, David talks about how GOD SEES AND HEARS THE RIGHTEOUS. He writes: "The eyes of the Lord are on the righteous, and His ears are attentive to their cry; but the face of the Lord is against those who do evil, to blot out their name from the earth." VERSES 17-22. Finally, we come to verses 17-22, which talk about GOD'S CARE FOR HIS PEOPLE. In these verses, David remembers the character of God amid his circumstances. He declares that the Lord is kind, compassionate, faithful, and loving. He writes in these verses: "The righteous cry out, and the Lord hears them; he delivers them from all their troubles. The Lord is close to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit. The righteous person may have many troubles, but the Lord delivers Him from them all; he protects all his bones, not one of them will be broken. Evil will slay the wicked; the foes of the righteous will be condemned. The Lord will rescue His servants; no one who takes refuge in Him will be condemned.'' psalm 100 | A PSALM OF THANKSGIVINGThe next psalm we will be looking at is Psalm 100, a short, familiar psalm many of us may recognize as we have heard it being read during the Thanksgiving season in November. One reason that might be is because this psalm is actually entitled ''A Psalm of Thanksgiving'' in the New Living Translation (NLT) of the Bible. Here we will see the reason behind WHY WE PRAISE THE LORD. VERSES 1-2. In verses 1-2, we see an invitation for ALL LANDS to worship and rejoice in the Lord. These verses say: ''Shout for joy to the Lord, all the earth. Worship the Lord with gladness; come before Him with joyful songs.'' VERSE 3. So why should we praise God? Verse 3 tells us that we should praise God because He is our CREATOR, SHEPHERD, and THE ONE TRUE GOD. Verse 3 says: ''Know that the Lord is God. It is He who made us, and we are His; we are His people, the sheep of His pasture.'' VERSE 4. Then in verse 4, we see once again an invitation to PRAISE THE LORD: ''Enter His gates with thanksgiving and His courts with praise; give thanks to Him and praise His name.'' VERSE 5. Finally, in verse 5, we see another reason why we should praise the Lord: He is GOOD, LOVING, AND FAITHFUL. Verse 5 tells us: ''For the Lord is good, and His love endures forever; His faithfulness continues through all generations.'' psalm 150 | LET EVERYTHING THAT |
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