Beloved, I am glad to share with you today the above theme from Ps 113:1 and following. Indeed, how many motives “the servants of the Lord” have to praise “the name of the Lord” (verse 1); They once lay in the dust of death, yes, on the manure of sin (verse 7). But God lowered Himself to look to the earth (verse 6). Let’s never forget him, however great He may be, He becomes acquainted with all that concerns each of His creatures. He saw their state of complete destitution. And, like the master of the parable, he pleased to invite these poor and wretched people to sit at the great dinner of his grace (Mat 22:2-14; 1 Samuel 2:7-8 and Luke 1:46-55). Jehovah had seen the affliction of his people, heard his cry, known his sorrows. And He went down to deliver Him (Psalm 113:6; Exodus 3:7 ex 3:7-9). He brought him out of Egypt with power. At his command, the Red Sea fled to let God’s people pass through; “the Jordan went back” to give him passage; the rock made its waters flow to quench his thirst. God knows where and how to bring forth refreshment and life to meet the needs of His people. But He will do an even greater miracle on behalf of His people when He changes their hard heart into a source of water for the blessing of the whole earth.
‘Praise, servants of the Lord!’ This psalm contains abundant reasons for all men without exception to praise God. Since the faithful alone have a spiritual perception to recognize the hand of God, the prophet addresses them in particular. And if we consider how cold and insensitive people are in this religious exercise, we will not judge the repetition of the call to praise God superfluous: We all recognize that we are created to praise God’s name, while, at the same time, his glory is not respected by us. Such apathy is rightly condemned by the prophet, in order to incite us to a tireless zeal to praise God. The repetition of the exhortation to praise Him must therefore be seen as referring to both perseverance and ardor in this service.
If, through God’s servants, some prefer to understand the Levites, to whom the task of celebrating his praises under the Law has been entrusted, this is normal provided that they do not exclude the rest of the faithful, on whom God once designated the Levites as leaders and principal musicians, so that he can be praised by all his people without exception. For when the Holy Spirit speaks to the Levites in relation to the subject of God’s praises, it is by design that, by their example, they can show the way to others, and that the whole Church can respond in one chorus. Now that we are all “a royal priesthood”, (1 Peter 2:9) and as Zechariah testifies, (Zechariah 14:21) that under the reign of Christ, the most wicked of the people will be the Levites, there is no doubt that, with the exception of the silent unbelievers, the prophet invites us all in common to render this service to God.
‘Blessed be the name of the Lord, …’ The prophet confirms that God’s praises must be continued throughout our lives. If his name is to be continually praised, it should at least be our sincere effort, during our brief pilgrimage here, so that his memory can bloom after our death. In the next verse, he extends the glory of God’s name to all parts of the earth; that is why our apathy will be totally inexcusable, if we do not resound his praises among ourselves. By law, God could not be praised properly except in Judea by His own people, to whom the knowledge of Him was limited. His works, however, visible to all nations, are worthy of the admiration of the whole world. To the same effect, the following clause concerning the height of the glory of God; for can there be anything more basic than for us to magnify it but rarely and belatedly, considering that it must fill our thoughts with deep admiration? By advocating the name of God so high, the prophet intends to show us that there is no reason for indifference; this silence would have a taste of impiety if we did not strive to the maximum of our ability to celebrate his praises, so that our affections could rise above the heavens.
When he adds that God is above all nations, there is an implicit reproach, by which he attaches to the chosen people the accusation of apathy in the exercise of praise. For can there be anything more absurd than for those who are eyewitnesses to the glory of God, who shines even among the blind, to refrain from making it the theme of their praise? For at the very moment when God conferred on the Jews the exclusive honor of being the custodians of the knowledge of his heavenly doctrine, he was nonetheless, according to Paul, not without witnesses (Acts 14:17; Romans 1:20) After the promulgation of the gospel, his exaltation above the nations was more evident, for then the whole world was placed under his control.
The following verses have been compiled for your edification and grouped together for your better understanding.
The Lord turns situations around:
· Servants of God, the saints so called
1 Kings 18:36 And the fire of the Lord fell, and he consumed the holocaust, the wood, the stones, and the earth, and he absorbed the water that was in the ditch. Ezr 5:11 This is their answer to us: We are servants of the God of heaven and earth, and we are rebuilding the house that was built many years ago; a great king of Israel had built and completed it. Acts 27:23 An angel of the God to whom I belong and serve appeared to me tonight, Rom 1:9 God, whom I serve in my spirit in the gospel of his Son, testifies to me that I constantly mention you, 2 Tim 1:3 I give thanks to God, that my ancestors served, and that I serve with pure conscience, of what night and day I continually remember you in my prayers,
· Universal Adoration, the pinnacle of
Ps 22:28-29 All ends of the earth will think of the Lord and turn to Him; All the families of the nations will bow down before your face. 29 For to the Lord belongs the kingdom: He rules over the nations. Isaiah 66:23 With every new moon and Sabbath, All flesh will come to prostrate itself before me, says Jehovah. Rom 14:11 For it is written: I am alive, says the Lord, Every knee will bow before me, and every tongue will give glory to God. Phil 2:9-11 That is why god also lifted him up sovereignly, and gave him the name that is above every name, 10 so that in the name of Jesus every knee may bend in heaven, on earth and under the earth, 11 and every tongue may confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father. Rev 15:4 Who would not fear, Lord, and glorify your name? For only you are holy. And all nations will come, and bow down before you, because your judgments have been manifested.
· Incomparable God
Ex 15:11 Who is like you among the gods, O Lord? Who is like you magnificent in holiness, Worthy of praise, Performing wonders? Dt 33:26 No one is like the God of Israel, He is carried to heaven to come to your aid, He is with majesty carried on the clouds. Isaiah 40:18 To whom do you want to compare God? And what image will you make its equal? Mk 12:32 The scribe said to him, “Well, master; you have said with truth that God is unique, and that there is none other than him,
· Promised posterity
Gen 15:5 And after leading him outside, he said, Look to the sky, and count the stars, if you can count them. And he said to her: Such will be your posterity. Gen 26:24 Jehovah appeared to him in the night, and said, I am the God of Abraham, your father; fear not, for I am with you; I will bless you, and I will multiply your seed, because of Abraham, my servant. Dt 7:13 He will love you, bless you and multiply you; He will bless the fruit of your womb and the fruit of your soil, your wheat, your must and your oil, the litters of your fat and small cattle, in the land which He swore to your fathers to give you. Rom 4:18 Hoping against all hope, he believed, so that he would become the father of many nations, according to what he had been told: Such will be your posterity.
From all the above, we still note a hymn of joy and praise prepared for the same people and the same period. Men of mediocre condition are not elevated to insignificant sovereignty, but that they are invested with power and authority over the holy people of God, it increases the greatness of the miracle – this has far more consequences than governing in other parts of the earth; for the state or kingdom of the Church constitutes the principal and august theatre where God presents and deploys the pledges of his wonderful power, wisdom and justice. They are rich and sublime accents of gratitude rising to Jehovah in return for all his ways in grace on behalf of his people, expressed in two striking images: the poor raised of dust, and the barren woman living among her sons. The song of Anne (1 Sam. 2) and that of Mary (Luke 1) are very similar to this one because they were, in their day, this poor and sterile woman, and, in mystery, Jerusalem. The works were the subject of praise in Psalm 111; here the subject is higher: it is the name of the Lord who is exalted. In Ps. 113 the subject of praise is more general, even quite universal, but the occasion is the same: This praise is celebrated now and forever; henceforth it is spread throughout the earth, but the one who is celebrated is the God of Israel, who dwells in the very high places, who nevertheless lowers himself to look so low, but in order to exalt those whom he loves, to make them sit with the nobles of his people and to fill with joy in their abode those who were hopeless. Our prayers are with you all.
PRAYER OF ACCEPTANCE OF JESUS CHRIST AS LORD AND PERSONAL SAVIOR
I now invite every person who wants to become a new creation by walking in the truth, to pray with me the following prayer:
Lord Jesus, I have long walked in the lusts of the world ignoring your love for humans. I admit to having sinned against you and ask your forgiveness for all my sins, because today I have decided to give you my life by taking you as Lord and personal Savior. I recognize that you died on the cross of Calvary and rose from the dead for me.
I am now saved and born again by the power of the Holy Spirit. Lead me every day to the eternal life that you give to all who obey your Word. Reveal yourself to me and strengthen my heart and faith, so that your light may shine in my life right now.
Thank you, Lord Jesus, for accepting me into your divine family, so that I may also contemplate the wonders of your kingdom.
I will now choose a nearby waterpoint to baptize myself by immersion, in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.
All adoration, power and glory are yours, now and forever and ever. Amen!
I would be happy to respond to any questions and comments you may have, before sharing with you tomorrow “a reminder of the wonderful events that accompanied the exit from Egypt and the entry into Canaan.”
May the Lord Jesus Christ bless you abundantly.
David Feze, Servant of the Almighty God.