Happy is he who has the God of Jacob for his help, whose hope is in the Lord his God, who made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that is in them; who keeps truth forever.
--Psalm 146:5-6 (NKJV)
From the daily Bible reading on August 24, 2013 of Psalm 146; Luke 20:20-21:4; Job 6-7.
The 146th Psalm is the first of five joyous praise hymns that close out the Book of Psalms. We do not know their author, or authors, but each of the five share the distinction of opening and closing with the declaration, "Praise the Lord!" (or "Hallelujah!" in Hebrew). The 146th begins with a call to praise God and then proceeds to list many reasons why.
One very interesting admonition in this psalm is contained in verse 3: "Do not put your trust in princes, nor in a son of man, in whom there is no help." The psalmist is saying that we should not look to mortal man for our salvation, not even to princes or others of great wealth and influence. No man of his own resources or efforts can provide for his own salvation nor that of any other person. So mortal man is not where we should place our trust or our faith. This, then, is a truthful statement. But what is interesting is the use of the term "son of man". Jesus' favorite thing to call Himself (considering how many times He did so) was the Son of Man, always written with a capital "S" and a capital "M" and preceded by the definite article "the", denoting Him as the one and only Son of Man. Obviously the Son of Man is indeed our source of help and our only means of redemption. But our psalmist speaks of "a" son of man, just some man born of man, any mortal man. In them there is no help.
Today's focus verses declare that they whose help is the God of Israel, whose hope is in the Lord, are happy. When we look to God for our help, our strength, we are blessed. When we put our faith in Him and trust in Him as the promise of all our hope, He will reward us. This is God, who made heaven and the earth and the sea, and everything that is in them. He brought all of creation into being with just His breath and a few words. We can put all our hope and trust in Him because He keeps truth forever. Everything He has ever promised has come to pass. He is sovereign and supreme. Nothing is beyond His capability. He is eternally just. His justice works for the good to all those who love Him and obey His voice, yet frustrates the wicked who practice iniquities. God will reign forever, with Jesus right there at His side. And if we believe and remain faithful, some day we will stand in His presence, washed clean by the blood of Jesus Christ, and be allowed by our Lord's great grace to live with Him in paradise for all time. Praise the Lord! Amen.
O God in heaven, may we never cease to praise You and the holy name of Jesus Christ our Lord! Your goodness is great and endures forever. Your faithfulness to us has no end. In You we are blessed. You are our only hope, the promise of our salvation through Jesus our Savior. Praise the Lord! In the beautiful name of Jesus we pray. Amen.
One very interesting admonition in this psalm is contained in verse 3: "Do not put your trust in princes, nor in a son of man, in whom there is no help." The psalmist is saying that we should not look to mortal man for our salvation, not even to princes or others of great wealth and influence. No man of his own resources or efforts can provide for his own salvation nor that of any other person. So mortal man is not where we should place our trust or our faith. This, then, is a truthful statement. But what is interesting is the use of the term "son of man". Jesus' favorite thing to call Himself (considering how many times He did so) was the Son of Man, always written with a capital "S" and a capital "M" and preceded by the definite article "the", denoting Him as the one and only Son of Man. Obviously the Son of Man is indeed our source of help and our only means of redemption. But our psalmist speaks of "a" son of man, just some man born of man, any mortal man. In them there is no help.
Today's focus verses declare that they whose help is the God of Israel, whose hope is in the Lord, are happy. When we look to God for our help, our strength, we are blessed. When we put our faith in Him and trust in Him as the promise of all our hope, He will reward us. This is God, who made heaven and the earth and the sea, and everything that is in them. He brought all of creation into being with just His breath and a few words. We can put all our hope and trust in Him because He keeps truth forever. Everything He has ever promised has come to pass. He is sovereign and supreme. Nothing is beyond His capability. He is eternally just. His justice works for the good to all those who love Him and obey His voice, yet frustrates the wicked who practice iniquities. God will reign forever, with Jesus right there at His side. And if we believe and remain faithful, some day we will stand in His presence, washed clean by the blood of Jesus Christ, and be allowed by our Lord's great grace to live with Him in paradise for all time. Praise the Lord! Amen.
O God in heaven, may we never cease to praise You and the holy name of Jesus Christ our Lord! Your goodness is great and endures forever. Your faithfulness to us has no end. In You we are blessed. You are our only hope, the promise of our salvation through Jesus our Savior. Praise the Lord! In the beautiful name of Jesus we pray. Amen.
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