Psalm 33: 1 – 22
Is God the Lord of our nation?
1 Rejoice in the LORD, O you righteous! For praise from the upright is beautiful. 2 Praise the LORD with the harp; Make melody to Him with an instrument of ten strings. 3 Sing to Him a new song; Play skillfully with a shout of joy. 4 For the word of the LORD is right, and all His work is done in truth. 5 He loves righteousness and justice; The earth is full of the goodness of the LORD. 6 By the word of the LORD the heavens were made, and all the host of them by the breath of His mouth. 7 He gathers the waters of the sea together as a heap; He lays up the deep in storehouses. 8 Let all the earth fear the LORD; Let all the inhabitants of the world stand in awe of Him. 9 For He spoke, and it was done; He commanded, and it stood fast. 10 The LORD brings the counsel of the nations to nothing; He makes the plans of the peoples of no effect. 11 The counsel of the LORD stands forever, the plans of His heart to all generations. 12 Blessed is the nation whose God is the LORD, the people He has chosen as His own inheritance. 13 The LORD looks from heaven; He sees all the sons of men. 14 From the place of His dwelling He looks on all the inhabitants of the earth; 15 He fashions their hearts individually; He considers all their works. 16 No king is saved by the multitude of an army; A mighty man is not delivered by great strength. 17 A horse is a vain hope for safety; Neither shall it deliver any by its great strength. 18 Behold, the eye of the LORD is on those who fear Him, on those who hope in His mercy, 19 To deliver their soul from death, and to keep them alive in famine. 20 Our soul waits for the LORD; He is our help and our shield. 21 For our heart shall rejoice in Him, because we have trusted in His holy name. 22 Let Your mercy, O LORD, be upon us, just as we hope in You.
In today’s study I want to bring to your attention a key verse. We read in verse 12 “Blessed is the nation whose God is the LORD, the people He has chosen as His own inheritance.”
Is God the LORD of our nation?
I was just reading a survey that went to find out what religious faith was prominent in our nation. The survey indicated that 87 % listed themselves as Christian.
To this crowd the survey went into further detail asking if people believed the Christian doctrines that I will list for all of you. Sadly, the conclusion was that those who agreed with the Christian doctrines lowered the final percentage from 87 % to 7 %.
So, what do Christians believe? The following beliefs are central to Christianity. I will list the doctrine and the scriptures that state them.
. There is only one God (Isaiah 43:10; 44:6, 8; John 17:3; 1 Corinthians 8:5-6; Galatians 4:8-9).
. God is omniscient or "knows all things" (Acts 15:18; 1 John 3:20).
. God is omnipotent or "all powerful" (Psalm 115:3; Revelation 19:6).
. God is omnipresent or "present everywhere" (Jeremiah 23:23, 24; Psalm 139).
. God is sovereign (Zechariah 9:14; 1 Timothy 6:15-16).
. God is holy (1 Peter 1:15).
. God is just or "righteous" (Psalm 19:9, 116:5, 145:17; Jeremiah 12:1).
. God is love (1 John 4:8).
. God is true (Romans 3:4; John 14:6).
. God is the creator of everything that exists (Genesis 1:1; Isaiah 44:24).
. God is infinite and eternal. He has always been and will ever be God (Psalm 90:2; Genesis 21:33; Acts 17:24).
. God is immutable. He does not change (James 1:17; Malachi 3:6; Isaiah 46:9-10).
. God is three in one or a Trinity; God the Father, Jesus Christ the Son, and the Holy Spirit (Matthew 3:16-17, 28:19; John 14:16-17; 2 Corinthians 13:14; Acts 2:32-33, John 10:30,17:11, 21; 1 Peter 1:2).
. Jesus Christ is God (John 1:1, 14, 10:30-33, 20:28; Colossians 2:9; Philippians 2:5-8; Hebrews 1:8).
. Jesus was born of a virgin (Matthew 1:18; Luke 1:26–35).
. Jesus took on flesh and became a man (Philippians 2:1-11).
. Jesus is fully God and fully man (Colossians 2:9; 1 Timothy 2:5; Hebrews 4:15; 2 Corinthians 5:21).
. Jesus is perfect and sinless (1 Peter 2:22; Hebrews 4:15).
. Jesus is the only way to God the Father (John 14:6; Matthew 11:27; Luke 10:22).
. The Holy Spirit is God (Acts 5:3-4; 1 Corinthians 2:11-12; 2 Corinthians 13:14).
. The Bible is the "inspired" or "God-breathed," Word of God (2 Timothy 3:16-17; 2 Peter 1:20-21).
. The Bible in its original manuscripts is without error (John 10:35; John 17:17; Hebrews 4:12).
. Humans were created by God in the image of God (Genesis 1:26-27).
. All people have sinned (Romans 3:23, 5:12).
. Death came into the world through Adam's sin (Romans 5:12-15).
. Sin separates us from God (Isaiah 59:2).
. Jesus died for the sins of every person in the world (1 John 2:2; 2 Corinthians 5:14; 1 Peter 2:24).
. Jesus' death was a substitutionary sacrifice. He died and paid the price for our sins so that we might live forever with him. (1 Peter 2:24; Matthew 20:28; Mark 10:45).
. Jesus resurrected from the dead in physical form (John 2:19-21).
. Salvation is a gift of God (Romans 4:5, 6:23; Ephesians 2:8-9; 1 John 1:8-10).
. Believers are saved by grace; Salvation cannot be earned by human efforts or good works (Ephesians 2:8–9).
. Those who reject Jesus Christ will go to hell forever after they die (Revelation 20:11-15, 21:8).
. Those who accept Jesus Christ will live for eternity with him after they die (John 11:25, 26; 2 Corinthians 5:6).
. Hell Is Real. It is a place of punishment (Matthew 25:41, 46; Revelation 19:20).
. Hell is eternal (Matthew 25:46).
. Jesus will return to the earth (Acts 1:11).
. Christians will be raised from the dead when Jesus returns (1 Thessalonians 4:14-17).
. There will be a final judgment (Hebrews 9:27; 2 Peter 3:7).
. Satan will be thrown into the lake of fire (Revelation 20:10).
. God will create a new heaven and a new earth (2 Peter 3:13; Revelation 21:1).
In 32.7 the Psalmist declared that he would be surrounded by songs of deliverance. Psalm 33 is one of those songs of deliverance. It will be noted that it takes up where Psalm 32 finishes off, urging rejoicing and praise from the righteous and the upright. As we will see as we go through the Psalm, it may have been written in thanksgiving as a result of some great deliverance from national peril, although if so there is no way of identifying which one. On the other hand, it may just be an ode in recognition of the sovereignty of God.
It can be divided up as follows:
1). Introductory Call to Praise (1-3).
2). The Grounds For Praising YHWH (4-12):
• Because of His moral activity (4-5).
• Because of His creative omnipotence (6-9).
• Because of His sovereign rule over the nations (10-11).
• Because of His choice and care of His people (12).
3). A Declaration of God’s Sovereignty Over the World (13-19).
• God looks down on men and sees all that they do (13-15).
• None are saved apart from His sovereign power (16-19).
4). Final Words. The People Wait On YHWH And Hope In Him (20-22).
This is a call to make a loud noise so that all may know that they are praising YHWH and giving Him thanks, using every means at their command.
1 Rejoice in the LORD, O you righteous! For praise from the upright is beautiful. 2 Praise the LORD with the harp; Make melody to Him with an instrument of ten strings. 3 Sing to Him a new song; Play skillfully with a shout of joy.
Once again it is the righteous and upright who are called on to give praise and thanks to YHWH, and to sing aloud and make a loud noise. Indeed, for the upright it is ‘comely’ (seemly, beautiful) to do so. He is to be praised in every way possible. There can be no true participation in His worship by those who are not upright and righteous, at least in intent. Man looks at the outward appearance, but God looks at the heart.
Musical instruments that are called into play, the harp and the ten-stringed guitar. They are to use them without restraint in His praise. And they are to sing a new song, compare Revelation 5.9; 14.3, because He is continually doing new things for them. The idea that the people of God should continually be creating new songs in response to His new mercies is common in Scripture.
4 For the word of the LORD is right, and all His work is done in truth. 5 He loves righteousness and justice; The earth is full of the goodness of the LORD.
The first reason for praising God is because of what He is. The word of YHWH is right (or ‘upright’), He does nothing that will not help to fulfil His purposes of goodness and love; His work is done in faithfulness, so that He can be totally relied on; He loves righteousness and justice, and the earth is full of His lovingkindness.
‘His word’ signifies what He wills to do, He speaks and His purposes go forward. His work is what is accomplished through His word, the fulfilment of His purposes. And all is done because He loves what is right and just, and because the earth is filled with His lovingkindness (Matthew 5.45, ‘He sends His rain on the righteous and the unrighteous’).
6 By the word of the LORD the heavens were made, and all the host of them by the breath of His mouth. 7 He gathers the waters of the sea together as a heap; He lays up the deep in storehouses. 8 Let all the earth fear the LORD; Let all the inhabitants of the world stand in awe of Him. 9 For He spoke, and it was done; He commanded, and it stood fast.
The word of the Lord is not only right and effective in the carrying out of His will, but it is also how He made the heavens. It was important that men realize that all that is in the heavens was created by YHWH. ‘He made the stars also’ (Genesis 1.16). They were made by His word and His Spirit. ‘By the word of the Lord were the heavens made and all their host by the breath (Spirit) of His mouth.’ John 1.3, ‘the Word -- all things were made by Him, and without Him was not anything made that was made’. Genesis 1.2, ‘the Spirit of God hovered over the waters.’ ‘He spoke’ and it was done (Genesis 1). Note how the word and the Spirit are in close alliance through the ‘breath’.
Picturesquely he then goes on to portray YHWH as establishing the earth by gathering up the seas in a heap, and placing them in storehouses, and the tense reminds us that He continues doing so. Thus are they kept within their bounds by Him. ‘In a heap’ might have in mind what happened at the Red Sea (Exodus 15.8), as one of many examples of His control of the sea.
And the result is to be that the whole earth will fear His Name and all its inhabitants will be in awe of Him, for at His word all was accomplished, and at His command all was established. He was sovereign in creation through His word and at His command
10 The LORD brings the counsel of the nations to nothing; He makes the plans of the peoples of no effect. 11 The counsel of the LORD stands forever, the plans of His heart to all generations.
The third reason for praising YHWH is because He brings the counsel of the nations to naught. Whatever they plot against His people will come to nothing. Their thoughts will be of no effect. In contrast His counsel and thoughts are permanent and effective into the distant future, for all generations, and will accomplish all His will.
12 Blessed is the nation whose God is the LORD, the people He has chosen as His own inheritance.
In contrast to the helplessness of the nations before YHWH, the nation whose God is YHWH are blessed. (They are not just happy, they are positively blessed). They are the people whom He has chosen for His inheritance, and they will enjoy all the benefits of His care and watch over them.
13 The LORD looks from heaven; He sees all the sons of men. 14 From the place of His dwelling He looks on all the inhabitants of the earth; 15 He fashions their hearts individually; He considers all their works.
The Psalmist then reminds us of God’s sovereignty over the world as He looks down on it from heaven. Psalm 22.28, ‘for the Kingly Rule is YHWH’s, and He is the ruler over the nations.’ He see all the sons of men, as He looks continually forth from His dwelling place on all the inhabitants of earth. And it is He Who fashions all their hearts (He ‘works within them to will and do of His good pleasure’ - Philippians 2.13; Zechariah 12.1, ‘He shapes the spirit of man within him’) and considers all that they do. Nothing escapes His attention. ‘All things are naked and open to the eyes of Him with Whom we have to do’ (Hebrews 4.13).
16 No king is saved by the multitude of an army; A mighty man is not delivered by great strength. 17 A horse is a vain hope for safety; Neither shall it deliver any by its great strength.
The stress here is on the fact that whatever happens on earth, it is all under His control. Men look for deliverance to their armies and weapons of war, the champion looks to his great strength, the cavalry look to their mighty horses, but all are failing instruments. Unless He determines it they will fail in their purpose. For in the end deliverance or otherwise belongs to YHWH.
‘There is no king saved by the size of an army.’ It may appear so from an earthly point of view, but if so, it was only because it was within YHWH’s purposes. How then can men be certain that they will be saved? And the answer is by trusting in YHWH. ‘Who is like to you, saved by YHWH?’ (Deuteronomy 33.29). 20.7, ‘some trust in chariots and some in horses, but we will make mention of the Name of YHWH our God’.
‘A horse is a vain thing (literally ‘a delusion’) for safety, nor does he deliver any by his great power.’ Powerful and swift though a horse may be, it cannot totally be relied on. Once again it depends on YHWH’s will and purpose. Proverbs 21.31, ‘the horse is prepared against the day of battle, but victory is of YHWH’, and Isaiah 31.1, 3, ‘woe to those who go down to Egypt for help, and stay on horses and trust in chariots because they are many, and in horsemen because they are very strong, but they look not to the Holy One of Israel, nor seek YHWH -- the Egyptians are men and not God, and their horses are flesh and not spirit’. We must therefore put our trust in One Who is God and Who never fails.
18 Behold, the eye of the LORD is on those who fear Him, on those who hope in His mercy, 19 To deliver their soul from death, and to keep them alive in famine.
What matters for those who would be delivered is that they have YHWH’s eye upon them, and that they are united with Him within His covenant, so that He can show them His covenant love and His faithfulness towards them. He it is, and not their fast horses, who can deliver a person from death, and can keep them alive in famine.
20 Our soul waits for the LORD; He is our help and our shield. 21 For our heart shall rejoice in Him, because we have trusted in His holy name. 22 Let Your mercy, O LORD, be upon us, just as we hope in You.
The Psalm approaches the end of the Psalm with a declaration that His people have ‘waited’ for Him. They have looked to Him in confident expectation, both as their help and their shield, the One Who gives them powerful assistance, and the one who protects them from all that their adversaries can throw at them. And they have done this both by rejoicing in Him with their whole beings (their hearts), and by trusting in Him for what He is (trusting in His holy Name). So in view of this they pray that His covenant love, that love which caused Him to choose them and set His Name on them, may truly rest upon them in accordance with their hope in Him.
