August 23, 2021

From Doom-dom to Freedom

Psalms 96-103

Brooke McCollum
Monday's Devo

August 23, 2021

Monday's Devo

August 23, 2021

Central Truth

Our lives are a glory to the Lord when we are honest about the reality of our situation—we are weak, but He is strong.

Key Verse | Psalm 102: 18-20

Let this be recorded for a generation to come,
so that a people yet to be created may praise the LORD:
that he looked down from his holy height;
from heaven the LORD looked at the earth,
to hear the groans of the prisoners,
to set free those who were doomed to die.

Psalms 96-103

Worship in the Splendor of Holiness

Oh sing to the LORD a new song;
    sing to the LORD, all the earth!
Sing to the LORD, bless his name;
    tell of his salvation from day to day.
Declare his glory among the nations,
    his marvelous works among all the peoples!
For great is the LORD, and greatly to be praised;
    he is to be feared above all gods.
For all the gods of the peoples are worthless idols,
    but the LORD made the heavens.
Splendor and majesty are before him;
    strength and beauty are in his sanctuary.

Ascribe to the LORD, O families of the peoples,
    ascribe to the LORD glory and strength!
Ascribe to the LORD the glory due his name;
    bring an offering, and come into his courts!
Worship the LORD in the splendor of holiness; 1 96:9 Or in holy attire
    tremble before him, all the earth!

10  Say among the nations, “The LORD reigns!
    Yes, the world is established; it shall never be moved;
    he will judge the peoples with equity.”

11  Let the heavens be glad, and let the earth rejoice;
    let the sea roar, and all that fills it;
12      let the field exult, and everything in it!
Then shall all the trees of the forest sing for joy
13      before the LORD, for he comes,
    for he comes to judge the earth.
He will judge the world in righteousness,
    and the peoples in his faithfulness.

The LORD Reigns

The LORD reigns, let the earth rejoice;
    let the many coastlands be glad!
Clouds and thick darkness are all around him;
    righteousness and justice are the foundation of his throne.
Fire goes before him
    and burns up his adversaries all around.
His lightnings light up the world;
    the earth sees and trembles.
The mountains melt like wax before the LORD,
    before the Lord of all the earth.

The heavens proclaim his righteousness,
    and all the peoples see his glory.
All worshipers of images are put to shame,
    who make their boast in worthless idols;
    worship him, all you gods!

Zion hears and is glad,
    and the daughters of Judah rejoice,
    because of your judgments, O LORD.
For you, O LORD, are most high over all the earth;
    you are exalted far above all gods.

10  O you who love the LORD, hate evil!
    He preserves the lives of his saints;
    he delivers them from the hand of the wicked.
11  Light is sown 2 97:11 Most Hebrew manuscripts; one Hebrew manuscript, Septuagint, Syriac, Jerome Light dawns for the righteous,
    and joy for the upright in heart.
12  Rejoice in the LORD, O you righteous,
    and give thanks to his holy name!

Make a Joyful Noise to the LORD

A Psalm.

Oh sing to the LORD a new song,
    for he has done marvelous things!
His right hand and his holy arm
    have worked salvation for him.
The LORD has made known his salvation;
    he has revealed his righteousness in the sight of the nations.
He has remembered his steadfast love and faithfulness
    to the house of Israel.
All the ends of the earth have seen
    the salvation of our God.

Make a joyful noise to the LORD, all the earth;
    break forth into joyous song and sing praises!
Sing praises to the LORD with the lyre,
    with the lyre and the sound of melody!
With trumpets and the sound of the horn
    make a joyful noise before the King, the LORD!

Let the sea roar, and all that fills it;
    the world and those who dwell in it!
Let the rivers clap their hands;
    let the hills sing for joy together
before the LORD, for he comes
    to judge the earth.
He will judge the world with righteousness,
    and the peoples with equity.

The LORD Our God Is Holy

The LORD reigns; let the peoples tremble!
    He sits enthroned upon the cherubim; let the earth quake!
The LORD is great in Zion;
    he is exalted over all the peoples.
Let them praise your great and awesome name!
    Holy is he!
The King in his might loves justice. 3 99:4 Or The might of the King loves justice
    You have established equity;
you have executed justice
    and righteousness in Jacob.
Exalt the LORD our God;
    worship at his footstool!
    Holy is he!

Moses and Aaron were among his priests,
    Samuel also was among those who called upon his name.
    They called to the LORD, and he answered them.
In the pillar of the cloud he spoke to them;
    they kept his testimonies
    and the statute that he gave them.

O LORD our God, you answered them;
    you were a forgiving God to them,
    but an avenger of their wrongdoings.
Exalt the LORD our God,
    and worship at his holy mountain;
    for the LORD our God is holy!

His Steadfast Love Endures Forever

A Psalm for giving thanks.

Make a joyful noise to the LORD, all the earth!
    Serve the LORD with gladness!
    Come into his presence with singing!

Know that the LORD, he is God!
    It is he who made us, and we are his; 4 100:3 Or and not we ourselves
    we are his people, and the sheep of his pasture.

Enter his gates with thanksgiving,
    and his courts with praise!
    Give thanks to him; bless his name!

For the LORD is good;
    his steadfast love endures forever,
    and his faithfulness to all generations.

I Will Walk with Integrity

A Psalm of David.

I will sing of steadfast love and justice;
    to you, O LORD, I will make music.
I will ponder the way that is blameless.
    Oh when will you come to me?
I will walk with integrity of heart
    within my house;
I will not set before my eyes
    anything that is worthless.
I hate the work of those who fall away;
    it shall not cling to me.
A perverse heart shall be far from me;
    I will know nothing of evil.

Whoever slanders his neighbor secretly
    I will destroy.
Whoever has a haughty look and an arrogant heart
    I will not endure.

I will look with favor on the faithful in the land,
    that they may dwell with me;
he who walks in the way that is blameless
    shall minister to me.

No one who practices deceit
    shall dwell in my house;
no one who utters lies
    shall continue before my eyes.

Morning by morning I will destroy
    all the wicked in the land,
cutting off all the evildoers
    from the city of the LORD.

Do Not Hide Your Face from Me

A Prayer of one afflicted, when he is faint and pours out his complaint before the LORD.

Hear my prayer, O LORD;
let my cry come to you!
Do not hide your face from me
    in the day of my distress!
Incline your ear to me;
    answer me speedily in the day when I call!

For my days pass away like smoke,
    and my bones burn like a furnace.
My heart is struck down like grass and has withered;
    I forget to eat my bread.
Because of my loud groaning
    my bones cling to my flesh.
I am like a desert owl of the wilderness,
    like an owl 5 102:6 The precise identity of these birds is uncertain of the waste places;
I lie awake;
    I am like a lonely sparrow on the housetop.
All the day my enemies taunt me;
    those who deride me use my name for a curse.
For I eat ashes like bread
    and mingle tears with my drink,
10  because of your indignation and anger;
    for you have taken me up and thrown me down.
11  My days are like an evening shadow;
    I wither away like grass.

12  But you, O LORD, are enthroned forever;
    you are remembered throughout all generations.
13  You will arise and have pity on Zion;
    it is the time to favor her;
    the appointed time has come.
14  For your servants hold her stones dear
    and have pity on her dust.
15  Nations will fear the name of the LORD,
    and all the kings of the earth will fear your glory.
16  For the LORD builds up Zion;
    he appears in his glory;
17  he regards the prayer of the destitute
    and does not despise their prayer.

18  Let this be recorded for a generation to come,
    so that a people yet to be created may praise the LORD:
19  that he looked down from his holy height;
    from heaven the LORD looked at the earth,
20  to hear the groans of the prisoners,
    to set free those who were doomed to die,
21  that they may declare in Zion the name of the LORD,
    and in Jerusalem his praise,
22  when peoples gather together,
    and kingdoms, to worship the LORD.

23  He has broken my strength in midcourse;
    he has shortened my days.
24  “O my God,” I say, “take me not away
    in the midst of my days—
you whose years endure
    throughout all generations!”

25  Of old you laid the foundation of the earth,
    and the heavens are the work of your hands.
26  They will perish, but you will remain;
    they will all wear out like a garment.
You will change them like a robe, and they will pass away,
27      but you are the same, and your years have no end.
28  The children of your servants shall dwell secure;
    their offspring shall be established before you.

Bless the LORD, O My Soul

Of David.

Bless the LORD, O my soul,
    and all that is within me,
    bless his holy name!
Bless the LORD, O my soul,
    and forget not all his benefits,
who forgives all your iniquity,
    who heals all your diseases,
who redeems your life from the pit,
    who crowns you with steadfast love and mercy,
who satisfies you with good
    so that your youth is renewed like the eagle's.

The LORD works righteousness
    and justice for all who are oppressed.
He made known his ways to Moses,
    his acts to the people of Israel.
The LORD is merciful and gracious,
    slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love.
He will not always chide,
    nor will he keep his anger forever.
10  He does not deal with us according to our sins,
    nor repay us according to our iniquities.
11  For as high as the heavens are above the earth,
    so great is his steadfast love toward those who fear him;
12  as far as the east is from the west,
    so far does he remove our transgressions from us.
13  As a father shows compassion to his children,
    so the LORD shows compassion to those who fear him.
14  For he knows our frame; 6 103:14 Or knows how we are formed
    he remembers that we are dust.

15  As for man, his days are like grass;
    he flourishes like a flower of the field;
16  for the wind passes over it, and it is gone,
    and its place knows it no more.
17  But the steadfast love of the LORD is from everlasting to everlasting on those who fear him,
    and his righteousness to children's children,
18  to those who keep his covenant
    and remember to do his commandments.
19  The LORD has established his throne in the heavens,
    and his kingdom rules over all.

20  Bless the LORD, O you his angels,
    you mighty ones who do his word,
    obeying the voice of his word!
21  Bless the LORD, all his hosts,
    his ministers, who do his will!
22  Bless the LORD, all his works,
    in all places of his dominion.
Bless the LORD, O my soul!

Footnotes

[1] 96:9 Or in holy attire
[2] 97:11 Most Hebrew manuscripts; one Hebrew manuscript, Septuagint, Syriac, Jerome Light dawns
[3] 99:4 Or The might of the King loves justice
[4] 100:3 Or and not we ourselves
[5] 102:6 The precise identity of these birds is uncertain
[6] 103:14 Or knows how we are formed

Dive Deeper | Psalms 96-103

I am thankful that Scripture takes myriad forms and acknowledges the range of human emotion we experience—from praise to despair and all the shades between. This variety is a glory to our Father's creativity and allows His Word to resonate with our heads and hearts, no matter their state, always accomplishing His purposes (Isaiah 55:11).

These psalms, modeling exhortation, lament, meditation, and praise, are for those who:

  • Stand convinced of God's goodness and sovereignty (Psalms 96-99).
  • Desire to bear witness to the Lord's mighty deeds (Psalms 96-99).
  • Long to know that He will never leave us (Psalm 100).
  • Seek to grow in obedience and submission to Christ (Psalm 101).
  • Need to be honest about our pain and lament before our God who sees and cares (Psalm 102).
  • Yearn for His mercy (Psalm 103).

I take heart at reading and meditating on these psalms in a season when "[m]y heart is struck down like grass and has withered" (Psalm 102:4a). My husband and I are groaning under the weight of parenting a hurting child. Our family has experienced mental, emotional, and relational brokenness in light of our son's specific needs and our own expectations and inadequacies. If I were living just for today, and if pleasure and ease were the evidence of His blessing in my life, I would be a woman totally without hope. But because of my faith in Christ, even when I feel weak, I can confidently "[k]now that the LORD, he is God! It is he who made us, and we are his . . . ." (Psalm 100:3). I can confront the lure of my own desire to be perfect when I remember that "the Lord shows compassion to those who fear him. . . . [H]e remembers that we are dust." (Psalm 103:13-14)

Maybe you're groaning under the weight of your own story and need the reminder that we are living in the middle of His Story. In Christ, our brokenness can be traded for His strength. Future generations may yet call us "oaks of righteousness, a planting of the LORD for the display of his splendor." (Isaiah 61:3, NIV)

Discussion Questions

1. Psalm 98:9 talks about welcoming the Lord's judgment of the earth. How can we rejoice before a perfect judge? See 2 Corinthians 5:21. 

2. Psalm 99:8 calls God both forgiving toward Israel while also punishing her for her misdeeds. When has God allowed you to experience the consequence of your sin even if you are ultimately forgiven the wages of your sin through Christ? Read Hebrews 12:5-11 for a reminder that He disciplines those He calls children.

3. Who is the generation after you? In your sphere of influence (work, school, family, neighborhood, ministry), who is learning about God's rescue plan through Jesus because of your life (Psalm 102:18-22)?

4. How can the description of God's mercy in Psalm 103:8-12 encourage you to display mercy toward those in your own life whom you may perceive as undeserving of such?

5. The Lord remembers that we are but dust (Psalm 103:14-18). Do you? Is self-sufficiency or submission to His purpose driving the meditations of your heart and the decisions you make?