The book of Psalms was written mainly by King David, but also by other writers. The end of the composition work would be in the 5th century BCE.
The book of Psalms is a collection of sung poetry. The style is very figurative, which allows for better memorization of the poetic idea. For example, Psalm 1 compares a human who reads the Bible to a tree on the edge of a river that will never lack water: “He will be like a tree planted by streams of water, A tree that produces fruit in its season, The foliage of which does not wither. And everything he does will succeed” (Psalm 1:3). After this easy-to-memorize image, the psalmist makes a simple application of it: “everything he does will succeed”. During this meditative walk through these sung poems, there will be many illustrations that are easy to memorize, to then see their practical value in our lives.
Another way to memorize and understand an idea, is through synonymous parallelism. In this case, the same idea is repeated in a different way. For example, Psalm 1: “Happy is the man who does not walk according to the advice of the wicked And does not stand on the path of sinners And does not sit in the seat of scoffers” (Psalm 1:1). The simple idea is that the man who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked will be happy. The first expression “Happy is the man” is not repeated. However, the reason why he is happy is explained by a first idea, then it is clarified by two other parallel expressions that allow us to understand the first expression expressed in an abstract way. Thus, the attentive reader of the Psalms will understand that not walking in the counsel of the wicked means not having the same conduct as them, not following their way or path and not associating with them by sitting in a seat beside them.
There is the antithetic parallelism: “For evil men will be done away with, But those hoping in Jehovah will possess the earth” (Psalm 37:9). Thesis: “The evil men will be done away with”. Antithesis: “Those hoping in Jehovah will possess the earth”.
Synthetic parallelism consists of adding other ideas to the same repetition, in order to amplify it. For example, Psalm 19:
“The law of Jehovah is perfect, restoring strength.
The reminder of Jehovah is trustworthy, making the inexperienced one wise.
The orders from Jehovah are righteous, causing the heart to rejoice;
The commandment of Jehovah is clean, making the eyes shine.
The fear of Jehovah is pure, lasting forever.
The judgments of Jehovah are true, altogether righteous” (Psalm 19:7–9).
The first expression “The law of Jehovah” is explained in five different ways: The reminder of Jehovah, The orders of Jehovah, The commandment of Jehovah, The fear of Jehovah, The judgments of Jehovah. Then it is written that the law of Jehovah is “perfect”, although easy to understand, this qualifier needs to be specified and this is what the psalmist did five times: trustworthy, righteous, clean, pure and true.
Returning to the first idea, the psalmist explains why the law of Jehovah is perfect: “restoring strength”. Although this expression is easy to understand, it remains very abstract and needs to be clarified and this is what the psalmist does: to restore strength means making the inexperienced one wise, causing the heart to rejoice, making the eyes shine, lasting forever (being unchanged). The synthesis is the fact of completing a first idea, by a second which explains it: “The law of Jehovah is perfect, (why?) restoring strength”. The synthetic parallelism, at the same time clarifies or explains an idea, by amplifying it by other qualifiers or other thoughts.
There are other variations to these three forms of parallelisms mentioned above:
The emblematic parallelism which is nothing more nor less than a metaphorical comparison: “As far off as the sunrise is from the sunset,
So far off from us he has put our transgressions” (Psalm 103:12).
The stairlike parallelism is a repetition of an expression, amplifying it with other qualifiers:
“Give Jehovah his due, you sons of mighty ones,
Give Jehovah his due for his glory and strength.
Give Jehovah the glory due his name.
Bow down to Jehovah in holy adornment” (Psalm 29:1,2).
The introverted parallelism:
1) “The idols of the nations are silver and gold,
2) The work of human hands.
3) A mouth they have, but they cannot speak;
4) Eyes, but they cannot see;
5) Ears they have, but they cannot hear.
6) There is no breath in their mouth.
7) The people who make them will become just like them,
8) As will all those who trust in them” (Psalms 135:15–18).
What is the introverted parallelism in Psalm 135?
Idea (1) corresponds to idea (8):
1) The idols of the nations are silver and gold. 8) As will all those who trust in them.
Idea (2) corresponds to idea (7):
2) The work of human hands. 7) The people who make them will become just like them.
Idea (3) corresponds to idea (6):
3) A mouth they have, but they cannot speak. 6) There is no breath in their mouth.
Idea (4) corresponds to idea (5):
4) Eyes, but they cannot see. 5) Ears they have, but they cannot hear.
A simplified form of the introverted parallelism is by the words:
“Ephraim will not be jealous of Judah,
Nor will Judah show hostility toward Ephraim” (Isaiah 11:13).
Added to the Psalms with parallelisms are the acrostic or alphabetic Psalms which allowed for good memorization (Psalms 9, 10, 25, 34, 37, 111, 112, 119, 145).
The Psalms have prophetic content. Jesus Christ showed the prophetic dimension of the Psalms: “He then said to them: “These are my words that I spoke to you while I was yet with you, that all the things written about me in the Law of Moses and in the Prophets and Psalms must be fulfilled”” (Luke 24:44). On the road to Emmaus, Jesus Christ showed that in the Psalms there are messianic prophecies.
The Psalms enrich our prayers to Jehovah God, the Heavenly Father:
“May my prayer be as incense prepared before you,
My uplifted hands like the evening grain offering” (Psalm 141:2).
The Psalms allow us to see that the psalmists had feelings similar to ours: “Elijah was a man with feelings like ours, and yet when he prayed earnestly for it not to rain, it did not rain on the land for three years and six months” (James 5:17). While the prophet Elijah did not write the Psalms, the disciple James clearly explains that these writers or prophets of the past had the same feelings as we do. These feelings, common to humans, are expressed in the Psalms. For example, when reading Psalm 73, we see how Asaph was affected by the impunity of the wicked. Psalm 51 expresses very well the feelings of guilt when a human has committed a serious sin. This meditation on the book of Psalms will be very rich spiritually, its purpose is to encourage us to read or reread them to strengthen our faith.
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PSALMS 1 (Read on your Bible or in a Bible Online)
Commentary: Bible reading is much more important than commentary. If possible, we should strive to read the Bible every day and meditate on it. Bible reading is to nutrition, what meditation is to digestion. Of course, we should ask God for this understanding of His written thoughts (Matthew 11:25; James 1:5). Bible commentaries should be simple signposts as to the understanding of the text. It is up to each of us to accept or reject the indications. God created us with the capacity to think for ourselves and we are free to choose what seems true to us. And if this is truly the case, Jesus Christ said it would be seen: “All the same, wisdom is proved righteous by its works” (Matthew 11:19). And in doing so, as it is written in this Psalm, we will be like a tree near a stream, constantly irrigated which gives its fruit in its time, and this, whatever the trials of life that we may undergo.
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You are my son, today I have become your father (Psalms 2:7)
PSALMS 2 (Read on your Bible or in a Bible Online)
Commentary on Psalm 2: This is the first prophetic Psalm regarding Christ, being anointed as King. This anointing of Christ, by his Heavenly Father Jehovah God, took place by decree, at his baptism on earth. On this occasion, the Heavenly Father said this, concerning his Son: “This is my Son, the beloved, whom I have approved” (Matthew 3:17, compare with Psalm 2:7). However, it was much later that Christ the King, would inherit the governance of a Heavenly Kingdom. Moreover, Psalm 110 mentions that after Christ’s ascension to heaven, he sat at the right hand of the Heavenly Father in a waiting situation. Psalm 2 describes the moment when his Heavenly Father gives the governance of the Heavenly Kingdom, in the midst of his enemies both heavenly (Satan the devil and the demons) and earthly (all the current nations who do not desire this heavenly governance).
According to the prophecy of Daniel chapter 4, it would seem that Jesus Christ received this Kingdom in 1914, the moment when both Satan the devil and the demons were cast out of heaven, around the earth (Revelation 12:7–9). This is why, according to Psalm 2, the world as a whole has clearly shown that it will not submit to the King Jesus Christ, causing, under the governance of the devil, great misfortunes on earth, until our days (Revelation 12:12). According to Psalms 2:9, Jesus Christ, the warrior King will break the nations, at the Great Tribulation (Daniel 12:1; Matthew 24:21; Revelation 14:18–20; 19:11–21).
PSALMS 3 (Read on your Bible or in a Bible Online)
As the title of this Psalm 3 indicates, David was in serious danger and he prayed for Jehovah, the Heavenly Father, to save him. Jesus Christ, in the prophecy of the last days (Matthew 24 and 25, Mark 13 and Luke 21), said that his disciples and the worldwide people would live through very difficult times. Regarding these difficult situations that we are living through, Jesus Christ gave a simple recommendation concerning prayer: “Keep praying” (Matthew 24:20). Jesus Christ clearly said, in Matthew chapter 6:9,10, that prayers should be addressed to his Heavenly Father alone (as we read in Psalm 3) and not to Jesus Christ, nor to the virgin Mary or other saints.
PSALMS 4 (Read in your Bible or in a Bible Online)
The psalmist asks God to answer his prayer (verse 1). God gives him an answer with a rhetorical (thought-provoking) question (verse 2). Jehovah God, the Heavenly Father, will always know how to distinguish the righteous man (verse 3). Verse 4, shows that we can express, in our prayers, our feelings in a frank and sincere way, like Job (chapter 3) when he was in distress, as well as the prophet Habakkuk (1:2–4) and the psalmist Asaph (Psalm 73). Verses 5 to 8, express faith and confidence, that God will answer his expectations, we just have to be patient during the trials of life.
PSALMS 5 (Read in your Bible or in a Bible Online)
The Heavenly Father understands even feelings not expressed in words: “In like manner, the spirit also joins in with help for our weakness; for the problem is that we do not know what we should pray for as we need to, but the spirit itself pleads for us with unuttered groanings” (Romans 8:26).
PSALMS 6 (Read in your Bible or in a Bible Online)
Throughout the Bible, death is described as the opposite of life and not as a passage to another life (Psalm 146:3,4). Jesus Christ described the death of his friend Lazarus as a sleep: “After he said these things, he added: “Lazʹa·rus our friend has fallen asleep, but I am traveling there to awaken him.” The disciples then said to him: “Lord, if he is sleeping, he will get well.” Jesus, however, had spoken about his death. But they imagined he was speaking about taking rest in sleep. Then Jesus said to them plainly: “Lazʹa·rus has died”” (John 11:11–14). Nevertheless, the Bible as a whole and Jesus Christ in particular taught the hope of the resurrection: “Do not be amazed at this, for the hour is coming in which all those in the memorial tombs will hear his voice and come out, those who did good things to a resurrection of life, and those who practiced vile things to a resurrection of judgment” (John 5:28,29; read also the narrative of the resurrection of Lazarus in chapter 11).
PSALMS 7 (Read in your Bible or in a Bible Online)
The heart and the reins symbolize the secret personality of each human, whether good or bad. God will judge not only our actions, but especially our motives: “So, then, each of us will render an account for himself to God” (Romans 14:12).
Jesus Christ clearly showed that if a human has good motives in his actions, he is spiritually pure. For example, concerning his 11 apostles, he said to them: “Whoever has bathed does not need to have more than his feet washed, but is completely clean. And you men are clean, but not all of you.” For he knew the man who was betraying him. This is why he said: “Not all of you are clean” (John 13:10,11). The twelfth apostle, Judas Iscariot, who betrayed Christ, was not spiritually clean. On another occasion, Jesus Christ taught that what makes a person spiritually unclean is his evil motives: “With that he called the crowd near and said to them: “Listen and get the sense of it: It is not what enters into a man’s mouth that defiles him, but it is what comes out of his mouth that defiles him’” (Matthew 15:10,11). Then he explained to his disciples privately what he had said to the crowd: “Then the disciples came and said to him: “Do you know that the Pharisees were stumbled at hearing what you said?” In reply he said: “Every plant that my heavenly Father did not plant will be uprooted. Let them be. Blind guides is what they are. If, then, a blind man guides a blind man, both will fall into a pit.” Peter responded: “Make the illustration plain to us.” At this he said: “Are you also still without understanding? Are you not aware that whatever enters into the mouth passes through the stomach and is discharged into the sewer? However, whatever comes out of the mouth comes from the heart, and those things defile a man. For example, out of the heart come wicked reasonings, murders, adulteries, sexual immorality, thefts, false testimonies, blasphemies. These are the things that defile a man; but to take a meal with unwashed hands does not defile a man”” (Matthew 15:12–20).
PSALMS 8 (Read in your Bible or in a Bible Online)
“When the chief priests and the scribes saw the marvelous things he did and the boys who were shouting in the temple, “Save, we pray, the Son of David!” they became indignant 16 and said to him: “Do you hear what these are saying?” Jesus said to them: “Yes. Did you never read this, ‘Out of the mouth of children and infants, you have brought forth praise’?”” (Matthew 21:15,16).
God and His Son want that as adults we have the same frame of mind as children when we give them glory, doing so with enthusiasm, modesty and humility: “In that hour the disciples came near to Jesus and said: “Who really is greatest in the Kingdom of the heavens?” So calling a young child to him, he stood him in their midst and said: “Truly I say to you, unless you turn around and become as young children, you will by no means enter into the Kingdom of the heavens. Therefore, whoever will humble himself like this young child is the one who is the greatest in the Kingdom of the heavens; and whoever receives one such young child on the basis of my name receives me also. But whoever stumbles one of these little ones who have faith in me, it would be better for him to have hung around his neck a millstone that is turned by a donkey and to be sunk in the open sea” (Matthew 18:1–6).
PSALMS 9 (Read in your Bible or in a Bible Online)
The nations have sunk down into the pit they made, their own foot has been caught in the net they hid (Psalms 9:15)
There are other verses similar to the one in Psalm (9:15), showing that at end the wicked will reap the fruits of their evil ways. To see this, we must be patient. We must be waiting for God, be in God’s timing, a time that takes its time…
“He excavates a pit and digs it deep,
But he falls into the very hole he made” (Psalms 7:15).
“May disaster come upon him by surprise;
May the net that he hid catch him;
May he fall into it and be destroyed” (Psalms 35:8).
PSALMS 10 (Read in your Bible or in a Bible Online)
For the wicked one boasts about his selfish desires and blesses the greedy one (Psalms 10:3)
This Psalm explains how the wicked oppress the afflicted people. He thinks that God does not exist:
“In his haughtiness, the wicked man makes no investigation;
All his thoughts are: “There is no God”” (Psalms 10:4).
The wicked man feels strong and thinks that he and his offspring will be able to act for a very long time:
“He says in his heart: “I will never be shaken;
For generation after generation
I will never see calamity”’” (Psalms 10:6).
The wicked think that if there is a God, he does not see his actions:
“He says in his heart: “God has forgotten.
He has turned away his face.
He never notices”” (Psalms 10:11).
The psalmist implores God to act, so that the wicked will understand that he will be held accountable for his wicked actions:
“Rise up, O Jehovah. O God, lift up your hand.
Do not forget the helpless ones.
Why has the wicked one disrespected God?
He says in his heart: “You will not hold me accountable”” (Psalms 10:12,13).
The conclusion of this psalm shows the psalmist’s confidence that God will deliver the afflicted from the clutches of the wicked:
“But you will hear the request of the meek, O Jehovah.
You will make their hearts firm and pay close attention to them.
You will render justice to the fatherless and to those who are crushed,
So that mortal man of the earth may no longer make them afraid” (Psalms 10:17, 18).
We must be patient as we wait for that time when God will call the wicked to account.
PSALMS 11 (Read in your Bible or in a Bible Online)
God has set a time when he will settle accounts with all humanity, especially with those who act wickedly. As it is written in this Psalm, God will make humans who behave wickedly disappear. This will happen at the time of the great tribulation mentioned by Jesus Christ in Matthew 24:21 (Read Matthew 24 and 25, Mark 13 and Luke 21).
The apostle Peter illustrated it well in one of his two letters: “First of all know this, that in the last days ridiculers will come with their ridicule, proceeding according to their own desires 4 and saying: “Where is this promised presence of his? Why, from the day our forefathers fell asleep in death, all things are continuing exactly as they were from creation’s beginning.”
5 For they deliberately ignore this fact, that long ago there were heavens and an earth standing firmly out of water and in the midst of water by the word of God; 6 and that by those means the world of that time suffered destruction when it was flooded with water. 7 But by the same word the heavens and the earth that now exist are reserved for fire and are being kept until the day of judgment and of destruction of the ungodly people.
8 However, do not let this escape your notice, beloved ones, that one day is with Jehovah as a thousand years and a thousand years as one day. 9 Jehovah is not slow concerning his promise, as some people consider slowness, but he is patient with you because he does not desire anyone to be destroyed but desires all to attain to repentance. 10 But Jehovah’s day will come as a thief, in which the heavens will pass away with a roar, but the elements being intensely hot will be dissolved, and earth and the works in it will be exposed.
11 Since all these things are to be dissolved in this way, consider what sort of people you ought to be in holy acts of conduct and deeds of godly devotion, 12 as you await and keep close in mind the presence of the day of Jehovah, through which the heavens will be destroyed in flames and the elements will melt in the intense heat! 13 But there are new heavens and a new earth that we are awaiting according to his promise, and in these righteousness is to dwell” (2 Peter 3:3–13).
According to the context of this letter, the “new heavens” represent the kingdom of God, a heavenly government (Matthew 6:9 “thy kingdom come”) and the “new earth,” a righteous humanity before God and the King Jesus Christ (Apocalypse 21:1–4).
PSALMS 12 (Read in your Bible or in a Bible Online)
They speak lies to one another, they flatter with their lips and speak with deceitful hearts (Psalms 12:2)
It is important to understand the point of view of God, on theft and lying. When Adam and Eve sinned by the impulse of the temptation of the devil, there was the lie of the devil and the theft of the fruit belonging to God, by Adam and Eve (Genesis chapter 3). Regarding this biblical narrative, Jesus Christ associated the lie of the devil with homicide: “you are from your father the Devil, and you wish to do the desires of your father. That one was a manslayer when he began, and he did not stand fast in the truth, because truth is not in him. When he speaks the lie, he speaks according to his own disposition, because he is a liar and the father of the lie” (John 8:44). Through this lie of the devil, sin entered the world through the disobedience of the first man, Adam. The result was that death, spiritually and genetically, extended to all of his offspring (Romans 5:12; 6:23). To this situation which seemed hopeless for the whole of mankind, it was necessary for Jehovah God, the Father, to consent to the death in sacrifice of his beloved Son, Jesus Christ (Yehoshuah Mashiah), to save the humanity (John 3:16,36).
From this perspective, we understand better, the words of Jesus Christ when he connects the lie to homicide or murder. In the case of the devil, but also for the earthly son of Satan, who constantly sought to kill him (John 5:18; 7:1). Sometimes people say there are “little” and “big” lies. The problem is, that the “necessity” and the scale of the seriousness of the lies, are often set by the liars themselves. However, to get back to the important idea, it is necessary to know the point of view of God on this issue through the biblical accounts. A simple statement from Christ shows that humanly establishing such a scale of gravity is a mistake: “The person faithful in what is least is faithful also in much, and the person unrighteous in what is least is unrighteous also in much” (Luke 16:10). This can be illustrated by the example of Ananias and Sapphira, his wife, who sold their property to give the money to the Christian congregation in the days of the apostles. However, the record informs us that they withheld some money from the sale for themselves, while leading the apostles to believe that they had given all of it. The result is that God put them to death for telling such a lie (Acts 5:1–11). The biblical observation is simple: lying can have disastrous consequences not only for the victims, but also for the liars themselves.
PSALMS 13 (Read in your Bible or in a Bible Online)
How long, O Jehovah, will you forget me? Forever? How long will you hide your face from me? (Psalms 13:1)
Why has God allowed suffering and wickedness?
God has allowed the suffering in order to respond to the challenge of Satan the devil based the legitimacy of the Sovereignty of God (Genesis 3:1–6). God has allowed the suffering in order to respond to the accusation of the devil against the integrity of human beings (Job 1: 7–12; 2: 1–6). Satan the devil is responsible for the suffering (1 John 5:19). God doesn’t cause the suffering. He only allows this suffering for a determined time (Santiago 1:13; Revelation 21:3,4). The suffering is the result of four major factors: Satan the devil can be directly responsible of suffering (but not always) (Job 1: 7–12; 2: 1–6). The suffering is the result of our general condition of sinner inherited from Adam, thus resulting in old age, disease and death (Romans 6: 23; 5: 12). The suffering can be the result of bad human decisions, in connection with our inherited sinful condition inherited from Adam (Deuteronomy 32:5; Romans 7:19). The suffering may be the result of “time and the unexpected event”, which makes that the person is at the same time, in the wrong place at the wrong time (Ecclesiastes 9:11). The Fate is not a biblical teaching, there is not a fatalistic force which would control our “free will” to do good or to do evil. On the basis of free will, as a gift of God, we decide to make “good” or “bad” by choice (Deuteronomy 30:15).
PSALMS 14 (Read in your Bible or in a Bible Online)
Their actions are corrupt, and their dealings are detestable, no one is doing good (Psalms 14:1)
According to the context of Psalm 14, it is those who do not believe in God, who are acting in this way. Currently, many display their atheism and their contempt for divine standards based on benevolent principles. Hence the description in verse 4, showing that they do not hesitate to oppress people.
The apostle Paul also described the evil behavior that comes from unbelief: “For his invisible qualities are clearly seen from the world’s creation onward, because they are perceived by the things made, even his eternal power and Godship, so that they are inexcusable. For although they knew God, they did not glorify him as God nor did they thank him, but they became empty-headed in their reasonings and their senseless hearts became darkened. Although claiming they were wise, they became foolish and turned the glory of the incorruptible God into something like the image of corruptible man and birds and four-footed creatures and reptiles” (Romans 1:20–23).
Of course, not all who do not believe in God act this way. Likewise, those who say they believe in God can sometimes behave worse than unbelievers by killing in the name of religion and by being hypocrites (Read Matthew 15:1–20).
PSALMS 15 (Read in your Bible or in a Bible Online)
Who may reside in your holy mountain? (Psalms 15:1)
This Psalm 15 is very beautiful and contrasts with Psalms 10 and 14, which describe spiritually fallen humans, not respecting God’s principles.
The two questions at the beginning are synonymous, they mean the same thing, while being expressed differently. The tent of God in question is the tabernacle where the priests rendered sacred service to God. This tent of God is symbolically mentioned in the book of Apocalypse: “With that I heard a loud voice from the throne say: “Look! The tent of God is with mankind, and he will reside with them, and they will be his people. And God himself will be with them” (Apocalypse 21:3). This sacred tent, the Tabernacle was replaced by the Temple built by King Solomon, on the Holy Mountain, mentioned in Psalm 15, Mount Zion.
Those who in the future will “reside” in this sacred place, are humans, redeemed from the earth to live with Christ, they are described as being with Christ, on the Heavenly Mount Zion in the book of Revelation: “Then I saw, and look! the Lamb standing on Mount Zion, and with him 144,000 who have his name and the name of his Father written on their foreheads” (Apocalypse 14:1).
There will also be humans on earth who will serve God in sacred service, the members of the Great Crowd who will have passed through the Great Tribulation, mentioned in the book of Apocalypse: “After this I saw, and look! a great crowd, which no man was able to number, out of all nations and tribes and peoples and tongues, standing before the throne and before the Lamb, dressed in white robes; and there were palm branches in their hands. And they keep shouting with a loud voice, saying: “Salvation we owe to our God, who is seated on the throne, and to the Lamb”” (Apocalypse 7:9–17).
The continuation of Psalm 15 shows that God will choose humans, men and women, according to the mentioned criteria of integrity, simple but essential. For this, He knows how to read hearts: “You, O Jehovah, who know the hearts of all” (Acts 1:24).
PSALMS 16 (Read in your Bible or in a Bible Online)
For you will not leave me in the Grave (Psalms 16:10)
Verse 10, “For you will not leave me in the Grave. You will not allow your loyal one to see the pit”, prophetically alludes to the resurrection of Christ.
Indeed, the apostle Peter, in his talk after the outpouring of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost, used this text from the Psalms to explain that the resurrection of Christ had been prophesied in the Psalms:
“Men of Israel, hear these words: Jesus the Naz·a·reneʹ was a man publicly shown to you by God through powerful works and wonders and signs that God did through him in your midst, just as you yourselves know. 23 This man, who was handed over by the determined will and foreknowledge of God, you fastened to a stake by the hand of lawless men, and you did away with him. 24 But God resurrected him by releasing him from the pangs of death, because it was not possible for him to be held fast by it. 25 For David says about him: ‘I keep Jehovah constantly in front of me, for he is at my right hand that I may never be shaken. 26 On this account my heart became cheerful and my tongue rejoiced greatly. And I will reside in hope; 27 because you will not leave me in the Grave, nor will you allow your loyal one to see corruption. 28 You have made life’s ways known to me; you will fill me with great joy in your presence.’
29 “Men, brothers, it is permissible to speak with freeness of speech to you about the family head David, that he died and was buried, and his tomb is with us to this day. 30 Because he was a prophet and knew that God had sworn to him with an oath that he would seat one of his offspring on his throne, 31 he foresaw and spoke about the resurrection of the Christ, that neither was he forsaken in the Grave nor did his flesh see corruption. 32 God resurrected this Jesus, and of this we are all witnesses. 33 Therefore, because he was exalted to the right hand of God and received the promised holy spirit from the Father, he has poured out what you see and hear. 34 For David did not ascend to the heavens, but he himself says, ‘Jehovah said to my Lord: “Sit at my right hand 35 until I place your enemies as a stool for your feet.”’ 36 Therefore, let all the house of Israel know for a certainty that God made him both Lord and Christ, this Jesus whom you executed on a stake” (Acts 2:22–36).
The resurrection of Christ is the guarantee of the future resurrection of the dead (John 5:28,29).
PSALMS 17 (Read in your Bible or in a Bible Online)
What lesson to draw from the model prayer?
Is it appropriate to repeat this prayer by rote, without thinking about it? On the basis of the declarations of Jesus Christ, it is obvious that no. We can read again what he said about not mechanically repeating, without thinking, always the same things, in our prayers: “When praying, do not say the same things over and over again as the people of the nations do, for they imagine they will get a hearing for their use of many words” (Matthew 6:7).
We must pray to God with love and affection, as when a son and a daughter speak to their father whom they love deeply and sincerely. We must be concerned for His Name, to be sanctified, which includes the desire to defend the reputation connected with the divine Name. We must express to God our sincere desire that his righteous purpose be fulfilled on earth (Matthew 6:9,10). Jesus Christ makes it clear that our prayers, in general, should be an act of worship directed towards God, expressing to Him praises and deep gratitude for the many expressions of love that He manifests to us. The book of Psalms gives many examples of praises we can direct to Jehovah God, such as a pleasant spiritual incense for Him: “May my prayer be as incense prepared before you, My uplifted hands like the evening grain offering” (Psalm 141:2). Jehovah God is very sensitive to the fact that we love Him and that we make him know by our praises and our good conduct: “(God) showing loyal love to the thousandth generation of those who love me and keep my commandments” (Exodus 20:6). Through our prayers and good behavior, let us respond to His Love, BY loving God in return. Psalm 145, is very rich in praise directed to God: “I will exalt you, O my God the King, I will praise your name forever and ever” (Psalms 145:1).
Then we can pray to God, referring more specifically to our personal needs, such as to ask God to help us spiritually and materially. We can share with God our most intimate feelings that concern us, or express to Him our joy in thanksgivings (The biblical book of Psalms is a precious poetic collection of feelings expressed to God). Jesus Christ, in the last part of the prayer, encourages us to ask God to help us to fight against our weaknesses, that the devil is exploiting to tempt us and thus undermine our integrity (Matthew 6: 11–13 Romans 7: 21–25).
PSALMS 18 (Read in your Bible or in a Bible Online)
With the pure you show yourself pure, but with the crooked you show yourself shrewd (Psalm 18:26)
God will always manage to catch the wicked in his own game. Making the perverse people fall into the trap they have dug…
The reign of King David was the prophetic image of the reign of King Jesus Christ. This psalm prophetically alludes to the victorious kingship of Christ, who will be victorious over his enemies, both in the spiritual and earthly spheres (read especially verses 31 to 50).
In the book of Apocalypse, King Jesus Christ is described as a warrior who completes his victory over his enemies:
“And I saw, and look! a white horse, and the one seated on it had a bow; and a crown was given him, and he went out conquering and to complete his conquest” (Apocalypse 6:2).
PSALMS 19 (Read in your Bible or in a Bible Online)
There is no speech, and there are no words, their voice is not heard (Psalms 19:3)
This psalm shows that the divine qualities are seen in creation which silently proclaims it because “there is no speech” (oxymoron). The glory of God’s creation is revealed by the sun all day long in this tent, the sky, pitched by God and which walks as “a bridegroom emerging from the bridal chamber”. The divinity of creation is the testimony of God’s existence: “For his invisible qualities are clearly seen from the world’s creation onward, because they are perceived by the things made, even his eternal power and Godship, so that they are inexcusable” (Romans 1:20).
The continuation of Psalm 19, explains how “The law of Jehovah is perfect, restoring strength”. The application of divine principles in our lives brings immediate and long-term benefits.
PSALMS 20 (Read in your Bible or in a Bible Online)
May he grant you the desires of your heart and give success to all your plans (Psalms 20:4)
This psalm allows us to better understand the reason why Jesus Christ recommends us to pray. Prayer is the main way to be in direct contact with his Heavenly Father, and thus obtain his protection from him (Matthew 6:5–14).
This psalm shows that God is sensitive to the prayers of humans who offer him a whole sacrifice, with all their heart, “May he remember all your gift offerings; May he accept with favor your burnt offering”, because the love they show him costs them and is precious in his eyes and those of his Son Jesus Christ.
Jesus Christ showed that we must persevere in prayer and in our petitions to God:
“Then he went on to tell them an illustration about the need for them always to pray and not to give up, 2 saying: “In a certain city there was a judge who had no fear of God and no respect for man. 3 There was also a widow in that city who kept going to him and saying, ‘See that I get justice from my legal opponent.’ 4 Well, for a while he was unwilling, but afterward he said to himself, ‘Although I do not fear God or respect any man, 5 because this widow keeps making me trouble, I will see that she gets justice so that she will not keep coming and wearing me out with her demand.’” 6 Then the Lord said: “Hear what the judge, although unrighteous, said! 7 Certainly, then, will not God cause justice to be done for his chosen ones who cry out to him day and night, while he is patient toward them? 8 I tell you, he will cause justice to be done to them speedily. Nevertheless, when the Son of man arrives, will he really find this faith on the earth?”” (Luke 18:1–8).
PSALMS 21 (Read in your Bible or in a Bible Online)
You will make them like a fiery furnace at the appointed time when you give them attention (Psalms 21:9)
This psalm prophetically alludes to the Kingship of Christ, represented by that of King David. When the millennial reign of Christ will be established on earth, it will be done with violence and noise because the nations do not want and will not want to grant him authority (Psalms 2; Apocalypse chapter 20). Consequently, they will have to make war on those who oppose his Kingship, during the great tribulation: “Your arrows are sharp, making peoples fall before you; They pierce the hearts of the king’s enemies” (Psalms 45:5; Daniel 12:1; Apocalypse chapter 19).
PSALMS 22 (Read in your Bible or in a Bible Online)
My God, my God, why have you forsaken me? (Psalms 22:1)
This psalm prophetically evokes the circumstances surrounding Christ’s death:
Psalm 22:1: “From the sixth hour on, a darkness fell over all the land until the ninth hour. About the ninth hour, Jesus called out with a loud voice, saying: “Eʹli, Eʹli, laʹma sa·bach·thaʹni?” that is, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?”’” (Matthew 27:45,46).
Psalm 22:7: “And those passing by spoke abusively of him, shaking their heads” (Matthew 27:39).
Psalms 22:8: “He has put his trust in God; let Him now rescue him if He wants him, for he said, ‘I am God’s Son” (Matthew 27:43).
Psalms 22:14: “But he was in such agony that he kept praying more earnestly; and his sweat became as drops of blood falling to the ground” (Luke 22:44).
Psalms 22:16: “When they had nailed him to the stake, they distributed his outer garments by casting lots” (Matthew 27:35).
Psalms 22:18: “And they nailed him to the stake and distributed his outer garments by casting lots over them to decide who would take what” (Mark 15:24).
PSALMS 23 (Read in your Bible or in a Bible Online)
Though I walk in the valley of deep shadow, I fear no harm, For you are with me (Psalms 23:4)
This is the psalm of trust in God the Heavenly Father. As the Great Shepherd, He will always be there to help us in the different stages of our life, provided we trust Him: “Trust in Jehovah with all your heart and do not lean upon your own understanding. In all your ways take notice of him, and he himself will make your paths straight” (Proverbs 3:5,6).
He will be there especially in the moments of our life when we will have the impression of “walking in the valley of deep shadow”, because of more or less serious problems that worry us. In this case, we must do like the psalmist, having trust in God and in his Son Jesus Christ. Jesus Christ the Son whom He appointed as the Excellent Shepherd (John chapter 10:1–16). He is the one who will guide humanity to the future earthly paradise (Apocalypse 7:9–17).
PSALMS 24 (Read in your Bible or in a Bible Online)
Who is this glorious King? (Psalms 24:8)
This glorious King is Jehovah (YeHoWah (Masoretic pointing)). As it is written in the rest of this Psalms, “Jehovah, strong and mighty, Jehovah, mighty in battle”. He is an Almighty God who does not hesitate to wage war against those who challenge His Kingship. For example, concerning the original serpent, Satan the devil, who positioned himself as a rival in Eden, God decreed his destruction. (Genesis 3:15) Concerning the nations (as governments) that refuse to submit to His Son, they will be broken with His iron rod, “You will break them with an iron scepter, And you will smash them like a piece of pottery” (Psalm 2:9).
Why must we accept the Kingship of the Almighty God? Psalm 24 answers: “To Jehovah belong the earth and everything in it, The productive land and those dwelling on it. For he has solidly fixed it on the seas And firmly established it on the rivers” (Psalm 24:1,2). We owe Him our life, He is the source of life, and He is the One who keeps us alive…
PSALMS 25 (Read in your Bible or in a Bible Online)
May integrity and uprightness safeguard me, For my hope is in you (Psalms 25:21)
In the part of the Hebrew text of the Bible, the Old Testament, the word which would come closest to the Greek word for “maturity” or perfection, is the word “integrity”, translated from the Hebrew “tummâh” (Strong’s Concordance (H8538)), which also means “innocence” in the sense, there is not guiltiness. This Hebrew word comes from another root “tôm” (Strong’s Concordance (H8537)), which can mean: complete, integrity, perfect, perfection, right, righteousness: “Until I expire I shall not take away my integrity from myself!” (Job 27:5). Thus, following the example of the faithful servant of God, Job, a human, man or woman, can reach completeness, perfection, integrity, in the eyes of God and of Christ, and this, despite our genetically and spiritually sinful state, inherited from Adam (Romans 5:12).
A way to maintain a state of integrity before God and his Son Jesus Christ, is to know what God’s will is for us:
“Make me know your ways, O Jehovah; Teach me your paths. Cause me to walk in your truth and teach me, For you are my God of salvation” (Psalms 25:4,5).
We can know God’s will by reading and meditating on the biblical texts that we read.
It is appropriate to be aware of our sinful state and ask forgiveness for our sins and strive to improve our behavior both towards God and his Son Jesus Christ, and towards our neighbor:
“Do not remember the sins of my youth and my transgressions. Remember me according to your loyal love, For the sake of your goodness, O Jehovah” (Psalms 25:7).
Jesus Christ said well that the most important thing is to do the will of his Heavenly Father: “Not everyone saying to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter into the Kingdom of the heavens, but only the one doing the will of my Father who is in the heavens will” (Matthew 7:21).
PSALMS 26 (Read in your Bible or in a Bible Online)
Examine me, O Jehovah, and put me to the test, refine my kidneys and my heart (Psalms 26:2)
The symbolic kidneys and heart represent the inner part of people, the personality of the human being, the thoughts that germinate in his heart, and his deepest intentions rooted in the kidneys. God can make these hidden elements, the thoughts and intentions, come out in a visible way by means the actions of people.
The painful situations of life are not caused by God, but they are allowed. Through these unfavorable events, man can reveal the best in himself and thus, his good intentions will be visible to God and humans. Of course, the opposite is true; the trials of life can reveal the worst in man.
Currently, in the difficult time that mankind is experiencing, the works and intentions of people are being revealed to both God and His Son Jesus Christ. The symbolic hearts and kidneys of humans are being examined by God. A prophecy of Apocalypse (Revelation) is being fulfilled: “He also tells me: “Do not seal up the words of the prophecy of this scroll, for the appointed time is near. Let the one who is unrighteous continue in unrighteousness, and let the filthy one continue in his filth; but let the righteous one continue in righteousness, and let the holy one continue in holiness”” (Apocalypse 22:10,11).
PSALMS 27 (Read in your Bible or in a Bible Online)
Even if my own father and mother abandon me, Jehovah himself will take me in (Psalms 27:10)
Verse 10 of Psalm 27 is often understood in the hypothesis of the voluntary abandonment of the parents. However, this is not necessarily the case, because there is necessarily, at a moment in life, the departure of our parents to the abode of the dead. At the time of their death, parents leave their children. In this difficult situation, of the absence of loved ones who have passed away, God the Heavenly Father tells us that He will be with us to comfort us in different ways:
“Do not be anxious over anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication along with thanksgiving, let your petitions be made known to God; and the peace of God that surpasses all understanding will guard your hearts and your mental powers by means of Christ Jesus” (Philippians 4:6,7).
Furthermore, God and His Son Jesus Christ inform us of the hope of the resurrection: “I have hope toward God, which hope these men also look forward to, that there is going to be a resurrection of both the righteous and the unrighteous” (Acts 24:15).
PSALMS 28 (Read in your Bible or in a Bible Online)
Those who are speaking words of peace with their fellow man while evil is in their hearts (Psalms 28:3)
We are living in a time when people and especially some leaders, use deception and practice accusatory inversion. In Isaiah 5:20 it is written: “Woe to those who say that good is bad and bad is good, Those who substitute darkness for light and light for darkness, Those who put bitter for sweet and sweet for bitter!”. This text describes very accurately the perverse and demonic inversions of values of these engineers of lies and murderous manipulation (John 8:44).
In the global health crisis they lied to the people. These shepherds who feed themselves, have forbidden doctors to treat elderly people with inexpensive molecules (read Ezekiel chapter 34). These shepherds who are feeding themselves, have forbidden doctors to treat the elderly with inexpensive molecules. Then these same shepherds who are feeding themselves, ask the children to risk their own health, until their life, for these same old people whom they put in danger of death by forbidding the doctors to treat them. These same shepherds who are feeding themselves, ask children to risk their own health, until their lives, for adults when it should be the opposite, namely that it is adults who should be willing to risk their lives for children, representing the future of humanity…
Psalm 28 shows that we must ask God for help through prayer so that He delivers us from these difficult situations. If we persevere in prayer, making the right decisions for ourselves and our family, God will deliver us through His Son Jesus Christ:
“Pay them back for their deeds,
According to their evil practices.
Repay them for the work of their hands,
According to what they have done.
For they pay no attention to the activities of Jehovah,
Nor to the work of his hands.
He will tear them down and not build them up.
May Jehovah be praised,
For he has heard my pleas for help” (Psalm 28:4–6).
PSALMS 29 (Read in your Bible or in a Bible Online)
The glorious God thunders (Psalms 29:3)
In the book of Proverbs it is written: “The fear of Jehovah is the beginning of knowledge” (Proverbs 1:7). Psalm 29 shows the different reasons that should teach us the fear of God. The manifestations of Divine Power in creation, show His glory, that is, His Authority. The power of water, fire, wind and the sound of thunder being preceded by lightning, demonstrate a tiny part of His omnipotence. We must fear God reverently, with deep respect for His Name and Person.
PSALMS 30 (Read in your Bible or in a Bible Online)
Weeping may come in the evening, but in the morning, there is a joyful cry (Psalms 30:5)
God allows us to have trials. They can be more or less serious. Sometimes, some have the impression of being at the gates of the abode of the dead, living in countries in a situation of war, insurrection and famine: “O Jehovah, you have lifted me up from the Grave. You kept me alive; you spared me from sinking into the pit” (Psalms 30:3).
Others, rightly or wrongly, have the impression that God has hidden his face from them, that is to say that they would be in a situation of disapproval before Him: “But when you hid your face, I became terrified” (Psalms 30:7).
Nevertheless, Jehovah God is never far from those who have sincere faith in Him. He uses trials to make us better men and women, with empathy, compassion, helping and loving our neighbor. In doing so, we will benefit from his loving kindness in a lasting way: “Because being under his anger is only for a moment, But being in his favor is for a lifetime. Weeping may come in the evening, but in the morning, there is a joyful cry” — Psalm 30:5.
PSALMS 31 (Read in your Bible or in a Bible Online)
For you are my crag and my stronghold, for the sake of your name, you will lead me and guide me (Psalms 31:3)
Why does the psalmist use the expression of “for the sake of your name”? The Hebrew word “shem” (שֵׁם), translated by “name”: “a primitive word [perhaps rather from H7760 through the idea of definite and conspicuous position; compare H8064]; an appellation, as a mark or memorial of individuality; by implication honor, authority, character: — base, (in-) fame(-ous), named(-d), renown, report” (Strong’s Corcondance (H8034)).
For example, when Moses asked God, “What is his name?” he knew his Name as such, YHWH (YeHoWaH), but his question was based on the “renown” or “fame” of the Divine Name (Exodus 3:13). Given Jehovah’s response (from the biblical context), and the definition of “shem” (name), we understand that this is the name with its memorial of past actions that was to constitute his reputation:
“So God said to Moses: “I Will Become What I Choose to Become.” And he added: “This is what you are to say to the Israelites, ‘I Will Become has sent me to you.’” Then God said once more to Moses: “This is what you are to say to the Israelites, ‘Jehovah the God of your forefathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, has sent me to you.’ This is my name forever, and this is how I am to be remembered from generation to generation” (Exodus 3:14,15).
The last part of Jehovah’s answer makes it possible to understand the implication of the question of Moses: “I am to be remembered from generation to generation”. The question “what is your name?” Should be understood in the following manner, “What is your “name”, the “memorial” of its past actions connected to your name”. And his answer, “I Will Become What I Choose to Become” is to be put in perspective to the idea that the Israelites and probably Moses, had regarding the name of the gods: To each god his name, connected with his miraculous power. The “I Will Become What I Choose to Become”, also implies, that Moses wanted to know what to say about the miraculous power attached to Jehovah’s Name.
Thus, when Jehovah God speaks of his Name as a “Memorial”, it means that the question of Moses concerning the Name was: What will I say to the Israelites concerning the power of your Name and the extraordinary actions attached to this Name (As Memorial of past actions)? The question of Moses, regarding the Divine Name is inscribed on the capacity of action of the True God, who resides in the power of his Name. Nevertheless, Jehovah’s response is very subtle: In Egypt, every god had a name attached to a very precise miraculous power of action. Thus, in his answer, “I Will Become What I Choose to Become”, Jehovah does not want human intelligence to lock his Name only in one miraculous ability. In the account of Exodus 4:1–9, it is written that Jehovah did four miracles, showing his capacity for creation by turning the staff of Moses into a serpent, and making it become a staff. Also, by making the hand of Moses to have leprosy (destruction) and after, healing it (recreation). Through these two series of two miracles, Jehovah God illustrated his all mightiness, and therefore only his extraordinary actions would reveal the memorial of his name. “I Will Become What I Choose to Become”, it is the action undertaken by God that would give the spiritual meaning to his Name, of Who “He is”.
Thus the expression “for the sake of your name” alludes to the fact that God always acts according to the glory of his Name, his authority and his renown. In the prayer of the Our Father, Jesus Christ clearly showed the importance of the spiritual meaning of the Divine Name: “Our Father in the heavens, let your name be sanctified” (Matthew 6:9)… To sanctify the Divine Name is to reveal its glory and authority and Jesus was the depositary of this Name as authority: “I used to watch over them on account of your own name, which you have given me (…) I have made your name known to them and will make it known” (John 17:11,12,26).
PSALMS 32 (Read in your Bible or in a Bible Online)
Happy is the one whose transgression is pardoned, whose sin is covered (Psalms 32:1)
In the Model Prayer, Jesus Christ showed that we must ask the Heavenly Father for forgiveness for the sins we commit every day: “Forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors” (Matthew 6:12).
Psalm 32 shows that God’s forgiveness is a blessing that allows us to have peace of mind. God forgives the sins of those who have an upright heart: “Happy is the man whom Jehovah does not charge with guilt, In whose spirit there is no deceit” (verse 2). Failure to confess serious sins to God will work on the conscience to the point of removing the inner peace: “When I kept silent, my bones wasted away because of my groaning all day long. For day and night your hand was heavy upon me. My strength evaporated like water in the dry summer heat” (verses 3 and 4). Confession of sins to God has a liberating effect: “Finally I confessed my sin to you; I did not cover my error. I said: “I will confess my transgressions to Jehovah.” And you pardoned the error of my sins” (verse 5).
Sometimes the sins committed are extremely serious and have a disastrous effect on oneself and others. Many men and women have made irreversible mistakes, such as killing many humans (in the context of conflict) or taking part in abortions, sometimes even late. Many of them think that it is impossible that God would forgive them. Add to this a deep feeling of remorse and indignity. Regarding Jehovah’s immense mercy, this is what it says: “”Come, now, and let us set matters straight between us,” says Jehovah. “Though your sins are like scarlet, They will be made as white as snow; Though they are as red as crimson cloth, They will become like wool”” (Isaiah 1:18). This verse is especially addressed to those men and women who sincerely repent before God, asking for forgiveness: God forgives sincere repentance on the basis of the precious blood of Jesus Christ: “My little children, I am writing you these things so that you may not commit a sin. And yet, if anyone does commit a sin, we have a helper with the Father, Jesus Christ, a righteous one. And he is a propitiatory sacrifice for our sins, yet not for ours only but also for the whole world’s” (1 John 2:1,2). Moreover, Jehovah God will resurrect the millions of dead who were victims of the many genocides (John 5:28,29). What is irreversible for man, is not for God (Matthew 19:26 “to God all things are possible”).
It is possible that even if the mercy of God applies to sincere repentance, a feeling of remorse and indignity will continue to harass them. However, they must know that God is greater than hearts: “By this we will know that we originate with the truth, and we will assure our hearts before him regarding whatever our hearts may condemn us in, because God is greater than our hearts and knows all things. Beloved ones, if our hearts do not condemn us, we have freeness of speech toward God; and whatever we ask we receive from him, because we are observing his commandments and doing what is pleasing in his eyes” (1 John 3:19–22).
PSALMS 33 (Read in your Bible or in a Bible Online)
For he spoke, and it came to be, He commanded, and it stood firm (Psalms 33:9)
Psalm 33 glorifies the Word of God. It is often said that the past no longer exists and the future does not exist, while only the present exists. However, if this simple observation is true, the Word of God has the capacity to precede tangible reality, that is, to make the future exist through the certainty of the fulfillment of promises.
For example, in the past, the Word preceded the reality of creation:
“By the word of Jehovah the heavens were made,
And by the spirit of his mouth everything in them” (verses 6 and 7).
The Word of God makes tangible by the certainty of its fulfillment, in a future that normally, by definition does not exist, the announced event:
“For he spoke, and it came to be, He commanded, and it stood firm” (verse 9).
The action of the Word of God is always right and faithful:
“For the word of Jehovah is upright,
And everything he does is trustworthy” (verse 4).
It is a faith in the Word of God and in this future reality that is not seen: “By faith we perceive that the systems of things were put in order by God’s word, so that what is seen has come into existence from things that are not visible” (Hebrews 11:3).
We must have absolute confidence in God’s Word, and give glory to Him: “When those of the nations heard this, they began to rejoice and to glorify the word of Jehovah, and all those who were rightly disposed for everlasting life became believers” (Acts 13:48).
PSALMS 34 (Read in your Bible or in a Bible Online)
The angel of Jehovah camps all around those fearing Him, and he rescues them (Psalms 34:7)
There is a Messianic prophecy that was fulfilled at the death of Christ:
“He is guarding all his bones; Not one of them has been broken” (Psalm 34:20).
The apostle John recorded how this was fulfilled: “Since it was the day of Preparation, so that the bodies would not remain on the torture stakes on the Sabbath (for that Sabbath day was a great one), the Jews asked Pilate to have the legs broken and the bodies taken away. 32 So the soldiers came and broke the legs of the first man and those of the other man who was on a stake alongside him. 33 But on coming to Jesus, they saw that he was already dead, so they did not break his legs. 34 But one of the soldiers jabbed his side with a spear, and immediately blood and water came out. 35 And the one who has seen it has given this witness, and his witness is true, and he knows that what he says is true, so that you also may believe. 36 In fact, these things took place for the scripture to be fulfilled: “Not a bone of his will be broken”” (John 19:31–36).
The angel of Jehovah camps all around those fearing Him, and he rescues them (Psalms 34:7). The whole theme of Psalm 34 is that Jehovah God delivers those who take refuge in Him. Verse 7 does not necessarily mean that every serve of God would have a guardian angel, preserving them from misfortunes because in that case they would not have any serious trials in their lives. This text shows that in one way or another the angel of God will deliver God’s servants from their trials. This of course raises the important question of whether or not God would protect humans in general (For a more detailed examination of the existence of evil on earth, please click on the following link: Why? : http://www.yomelyah.com/435935499).
PSALMS 35 (Read in your Bible or in a Bible Online)
Fight against those who fight against me (Psalms 35:1)
In Psalm 35, God is described as a warrior God. Likewise, His Son Jesus Christ, in the book of Apocalypse, is described as a warrior King who will fight with his angels, against the enemies of the people and especially the people of God. The book of Apocalypse describes the demise of the wicked enemies of mankind in its conclusion: “Look! I am coming quickly, and the reward I give is with me, to repay each one according to his work. I am the Alʹpha and the O·meʹga, the first and the last, the beginning and the end. Happy are those who wash their robes, so that they may have authority to go to the trees of life and that they may gain entrance into the city through its gates. Outside are the dogs and those who practice spiritism and those who are sexually immoral and the murderers and the idolaters and everyone who loves and practices lying” (Apocalypse 22:12–15).
The bull’s face corresponds to the face of a cherub. In Ezekiel (1:10), these four creatures with four faces, are designated by that of a man, a lion, a bull and an eagle. While in Ezekiel 10:14, the face of the bull is designated by that of a cherub. What is the function of a cherub? The first mention of the cherubim is in Genesis (Bible): “So he drove the man out, and he posted at the east of the garden of Eʹden the cherubs and the flaming blade of a sword that was turning continuously to guard the way to the tree of life’ (Genesis 3:24). We understand that cherubim are powerful guardians with a symbolic sword. If the lion is the representation of Jehovah’s sovereignty by the glory and authority of kingship, the bull is an expression of Jehovah’s sovereignty by his almighty. Jehovah God, if necessary, imposes his sovereignty by war, the sword of the cherub, or the terrible power the symbolic horns of the bull. The horns are the symbols of the powerful sovereignty of Jehovah. The facts that two cherubim were on the ark of the covenant show that the cherubim are the guardians of Jehovah’s holiness, through battle or war (if any) (Exodus 25: 17–22). The fact that the Jehovah’s altar, from which the animals were sacrificed, had four horns, one for each angle, demonstrates that the bull’s horns also symbolize the maintenance of the holiness of Jehovah’s creatures by force or war (where applicable) (Leviticus 4: 7,18). It is therefore logical to think that the bull, in the context of sacrifices, whether atonement sacrifice or burnt offerings, is the representation of the righteous and pure human being (Exodus 29:11).
PSALMS 36 (Read in your Bible or in a Bible Online)
With you is the source of life, by your light we can see light (Psalms 36:9)
Jehovah God, the Heavenly Father, is the source of life. He and his Son Jesus Christ are the source of the light of our hope of everlasting life. His Son Jesus Christ is the one who will allow us to obtain eternal life, thanks to his sacrifice: “For God loved the world so much that he gave his only-begotten Son, so that everyone exercising faith in him might not be destroyed but have everlasting life. (…) The one who exercises faith in the Son has everlasting life; the one who disobeys the Son will not see life, but the wrath of God remains upon him. (…) This means everlasting life, their coming to know you, the only true God, and the one whom you sent, Jesus Christ” (John 3:16,36; 17:3).
The resurrection of Jesus Christ is the guarantee of the future resurrection of the dead, whether in heaven or on earth. It is precisely the apostle Paul who wrote it in 1 Corinthians chapter 15, dedicated especially to this theme of the resurrection. While some people in the congregation said there would be no resurrection, here is what the apostle Paul wrote in response:
“Now if Christ is being preached that he has been raised up from the dead, how is it some among you say there is no resurrection of the dead? If, indeed, there is no resurrection of the dead, neither has Christ been raised up. But if Christ has not been raised up, our preaching is certainly in vain, and our faith is in vain. Moreover, we are also found false witnesses of God, because we have borne witness against God that he raised up the Christ, but whom he did not raise up if the dead are really not to be raised up. For if the dead are not to be raised up, neither has Christ been raised up. Further, if Christ has not been raised up, your faith is useless; you are yet in your sins. In fact, also, those who fell asleep [in death] in union with Christ perished. If in this life only we have hoped in Christ, we are of all men most to be pitied” (1 Corinthians 15:12–19; the reader who wishes, may read the whole of chapter 15, about the different kinds of resurrections).
PSALMS 37 (Read in your Bible or in a Bible Online)
He will make your righteousness shine like daybreak, and your justice like the midday sun (Psalms 37:6)
This is a very comforting Psalm, showing that God will make our way succeed if we trust in Him: “Commit your way to Jehovah; Rely on him, and he will act in your behalf” (Psalms 37:5). It shows an aspect that is little mentioned in Christian churches, the hope of eternal life on a earthly paradise, a restored paradise: “Those hoping in Jehovah will possess the earth. (…) The righteous will possess the earth, And they will live forever on it” (Psalms 37:9,29). Jesus Christ spoke of this earthly hope of everlasting life on earth: “Happy are the mild-tempered, since they will inherit the earth” (Matthew 5:5). Thus, a large part of the resurrected ones will come back to life on a paradise on earth (John 5:28,29). Another important point mentioned in this Psalm is the definitive disappearance of the wicked ones, especially during the great tribulation (Matthew 24:21,22): “Do not be upset because of evil men Or envious of wrongdoers. They will quickly wither like grass And shrivel like green new grass” (Psalms 37:1,2).
PSALMS 38 (Read in your Bible or in a Bible Online)
There is no peace within my bones because of my sin (Psalms 38:3)
This Psalm poetically illustrates the psychological and physical effects of a guilty conscience:
“My whole body is sick because of your indignation.
There is no peace within my bones because of my sin.
4 For my errors loom over my head;
Like a heavy burden, they are too much for me to bear.
5 My wounds stink and fester
Because of my foolishness.
6 I am distressed and extremely downcast;
I walk around sad all day long.
7 There is a burning within me;
My whole body is sick.
8 I have grown numb and become completely crushed;
My anguished heart makes me groan aloud” (Psalm 38:3–8).
The psalmist’s concern was to regain a right relationship with God:
“Do not abandon me, O Jehovah.
O God, do not remain far away from me” (Psalms 38:21).
These are the effects of the conscience that legislates, that judges us and either approves of us or condemns us and takes away our peace of mind: “For when people of the nations, who do not have law, do by nature the things of the law, these people, although not having law, are a law to themselves. They are the very ones who demonstrate the matter of the law to be written in their hearts, while their conscience is bearing witness with them, and by their own thoughts they are being accused or even excused. This will take place in the day when God through Christ Jesus judges the secret things of mankind, according to the good news I declare” (Romans 2:14–16). Psalm 38 and this biblical text show that the conscience is linked to our relationship with God and his Son Jesus Christ, because they are the ones who will judge us: “So, then, each of us will render an account for himself to God” (Romans 14:12).
PSALMS 39 (Read in your Bible or in a Bible Online)
I will guard my mouth with a muzzle (Psalms 39:1)
This Psalm shows the importance of controlling the tongue, especially when dealing with “ad hominem”, attacks against our person. We must remain silent even when we are experiencing intense emotional pain:
“I said: “I will guard my step
To avoid sinning with my tongue.
I will guard my mouth with a muzzle
As long as anyone wicked is in my presence.”
I was speechless and silent;
I kept quiet even about what is good,
But my pain was intense.
My heart smoldered inside me.
As I pondered, the fire kept burning” (Psalms 39:1–3).
We must exercise faith that in due time, God will act on our behalf. We just have to be patient and wait for His action in our favor:
“What, then, can I hope for, O Jehovah?
You are my only hope” (Psalms 39:7).
Jesus Christ and John the Baptist were the object of ad hominem attacks, to their person, to their reputation. He showed that by exercising patience, truth and wisdom always triumph over lies:
“With whom will I compare this generation? It is like young children sitting in the marketplaces who call out to their playmates, saying: ‘We played the flute for you, but you did not dance; we wailed, but you did not beat yourselves in grief.’ Likewise, John came neither eating nor drinking, but people say, ‘He has a demon.’ The Son of man did come eating and drinking, but people say, ‘Look! A man who is a glutton and is given to drinking wine, a friend of tax collectors and sinners.’ All the same, wisdom is proved righteous by its works” (Matthew 11:16–19).
Today, the memory of the good deeds of Jesus Christ and John the Baptist are written in the history of humanity, while their slanderers have disappeared like a “mere breath”:
“Surely every man, though he seems secure, is nothing but a mere breath” (Psalms 39:5).
PSALMS 40 (Read in your Bible or in a Bible Online)
Sacrifice and offering you did not delight in (Psalms 40:6)
“Sacrifice and offering you did not delight in”: Jesus Christ showed that mercy and common sense should not be sacrificed for the literal application of the Law. For example, on the Sabbath His disciples began to gather ears of wheat because they were hungry. The Pharisees seized on the opportunity to point out that they were breaking the Sabbath by “gathering” ears of wheat to eat right away. Here is Christ’s answer using one of the thoughts from Psalm 40: “At that time Jesus went through the grainfields on the Sabbath. His disciples got hungry and started to pluck heads of grain and to eat. At seeing this, the Pharisees said to him: “Look! Your disciples are doing what is not lawful to do on the Sabbath.” He said to them: “Have you not read what David did when he and the men with him were hungry? How he entered into the house of God and they ate the loaves of presentation, something that it was not lawful for him or those with him to eat, but for the priests only? Or have you not read in the Law that on the Sabbaths the priests in the temple violate the Sabbath and continue guiltless? But I tell you that something greater than the temple is here. However, if you had understood what this means, ‘I want mercy and not sacrifice,’ you would not have condemned the guiltless ones. For the Son of man is Lord of the Sabbath”” (Matthew 12:1–8).
The apostle Paul explained the meaning of Psalms 40:6–9, showing that the sacrifices of the Law had prophetic value and were now replaced by the sacrifice of Christ:
“For since the Law has a shadow of the good things to come, but not the very substance of the things, it can never, by the same sacrifices that are continually offered year after year, make those who approach perfect. Otherwise, would not the sacrifices have stopped being offered, because those rendering sacred service once cleansed would have no consciousness of sins anymore? On the contrary, these sacrifices are a reminder of sins year after year, for it is not possible for the blood of bulls and of goats to take sins away.
So when he comes into the world, he says: “‘Sacrifice and offering you did not want, but you prepared a body for me. You did not approve of whole burnt offerings and sin offerings.’ Then I said: ‘Look! I have come (in the scroll it is written about me) to do your will, O God.’” After first saying: “You did not want nor did you approve of sacrifices and offerings and whole burnt offerings and sin offerings” — sacrifices that are offered according to the Law — then he says: “Look! I have come to do your will.” He does away with what is first in order to establish what is second. By this “will” we have been sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all time” (Hebrews 10:1–10).
PSALMS 41 (Read in your Bible or in a Bible Online)
Even the man at peace with me, one whom I trusted, who was eating my bread, has lifted his heel against me (Psalms 41:9)
Even the man at peace with me, one whom I trusted, who was eating my bread, has lifted his heel against me (Psalms 41:9).
King David had a special advisor named Ahithophel. He was a man of great wisdom and King David trusted him. However, when Absalom, King David’s son, conspired against him, Ahithophel betrayed the king’s trust. Finally, when Ahithophel realized that God had frustrated his counsel, he went and hanged himself in his house (2 Samuel chapters 15–17). Psalms 41:9 alludes to this betrayal. Nevertheless, this verse has not only historical value, but also prophetic because it mentioned the betrayal of Judas Iscariot, one of the apostles of Jesus Christ:
“I am not talking about all of you; I know the ones I have chosen. But this was so that the scripture might be fulfilled: ‘The one who was eating my bread has lifted his heel against me.’ (…) After saying these things, Jesus became troubled in spirit, and he bore witness, saying: “Most truly I say to you, one of you will betray me.” The disciples began to look at one another, being at a loss as to which one he was talking about. One of the disciples, the one whom Jesus loved, was reclining close to Jesus. Therefore, Simon Peter nodded to this one and said to him: “Tell us whom he is talking about.” So the latter leaned back on the chest of Jesus and said to him: “Lord, who is it?” Jesus answered: “It is the one to whom I will give the piece of bread that I dip.” So after dipping the bread, he took it and gave it to Judas, the son of Simon Is·carʹi·ot” (John 13:18,21–26).
“Happy is anyone who shows consideration to the lowly one;
Jehovah will rescue him in the day of calamity” (Psalms 41:1).
Psalm 41 shows that God places great importance on the help we can give to our neighbor. He shows that God will bless men and women who show compassion by action:
“Jehovah will guard him and keep him alive.
He will be pronounced happy in the earth;
You will never turn him over to the will of his enemies.
Jehovah will sustain him on his sickbed;
During his sickness you will completely change his bed” (Psalm 41:2,3). Jesus Christ, the Son of God, showed that he will use this standard of judgment:
“Then the King will say to those on his right: ‘Come, you who have been blessed by my Father, inherit the Kingdom prepared for you from the founding of the world. For I became hungry and you gave me something to eat; I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink. I was a stranger and you received me hospitably; naked and you clothed me. I fell sick and you looked after me. I was in prison and you visited me.’ Then the righteous ones will answer him with the words: ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? When did we see you a stranger and receive you hospitably, or naked and clothe you? When did we see you sick or in prison and visit you?’ In reply the King will say to them, ‘Truly I say to you, to the extent that you did it to one of the least of these my brothers, you did it to me’’” (Matthew 25:31–46).
PSALMS 42 AND 43 (Read in your Bible or in a Bible Online)
My God, I am in despair. that is why I remember you, from the land of Jordan and the peaks of Hermon, from Mount Mizar (Psalms 42:6)
This part of the book of Psalms mentions the sons of Korah. He was the cousin of Moses and Aaron, a Levite member of the prestigious Kohathite family (of which Moses and Aaron were part). He is known (in the biblical story) for having organized a sedition against Moses and Aaron. Because of his charisma, he led with him, hundreds and later thousands of people to follow him. Finally, God put an end to this rebellion which particularly attacked the priesthood of Aaron (read the story of Numbers chapter 16). Korah had three sons, Assir, Elkanah, and Abiasaph (Exodus 6:24).
The three sons of Korah had the courage not to join in their father’s rebellion. According to the book of Psalms, they and their offspring were among the Levites who specialized in composition, singing, and music. It was King David who established their descendants in this prestigious position (1 Chronicles 6:31–37). In addition, God allowed them to have certain poetic songs that are part of the biblical book of Psalms (Psalms 42–49,84,85,87,88).
Of course, Korah’s sons were not contemporaries of King David. The expression “sons of Korah” can directly refer to the three sons and in this case, it would mean that these Psalms would have been compiled later in the songs of the Tabernacle and then of the Temple. Otherwise the expression “sons of Korah” could mean descendants of the sons of Korah.
This information helps to better understand the allusions mentioned in these two psalms (42 and 43, especially verse 42:6). God remembered the courage of the three sons of Korah by having them mentioned for their faithfulness: “For God is not unrighteous so as to forget your work and the love you showed for his name by ministering and continuing to minister to the holy ones” (Hebrews 6:10).*
PSALMS 44 (Read in your Bible or in a Bible Online)
It was you who saved us from our adversaries, you who humiliated those who hate us (Psalms 44:7)
This Psalm refers to the conquest of the Promised Land. The historical account of these battles can be read in the biblical book of Joshua. As it can be read both in this Psalm and in this book, it was God who acted towards the people who He had chosen:
“It was not by their own sword that they took possession of the land,
And their own arm did not bring them victory.
Rather, it was by your right hand and your arm and the light of your face,
For you took pleasure in them” (Psalm 44:3).
As an example, we can read the story of the capture of Jericho, which was a true miracle caused by God (read Joshua chapter 6).
However, when the Israelites did not respect God’s will, they lost His approval, and He made them retreat before their enemies:
“But now you have cast us off and humiliated us,
And you do not go out with our armies” (Psalm 44:9). And indeed, during the capture of Jericho, something happened that was not in accordance with God’s will, which caused the Israelites to flee before the city of Ai (read the story of Joshua chapters 7 and 8.).
We can also read this alternation between God’s approval and God’s blessings, and God’s disapproval and curses, throughout the book of Judges.
This Psalm 44 teaches us that only God can assure us of long-term blessings, despite the difficulties we encounter, provided that we strive to do His will as best we can:
“Rise up as our helper!
Rescue us because of your loyal love” (Psalm 44:26).
PSALMS 45 (Read in your Bible or in a Bible Online)
You are the most handsome of the sons of men.
Gracious speech flows from your lips.
That is why God has blessed you forever (Psalms 45:2)
The theme of this Psalm is prophetically centered on Jesus Christ as King and his marriage. The prophetic account of the marriage of the Lamb is also found in the book of Apocalypse (19:1–10). God the Father is the One who arranges this marriage:
“God is your throne forever and ever;
The scepter of your kingdom is a scepter of uprightness” (Psalms 45:6).
“And I heard what sounded like a voice of a great crowd and like the sound of many waters and like the sound of heavy thunders. They said: “Praise Jah, because Jehovah our God, the Almighty, has begun to rule as king! Let us rejoice and be overjoyed and give him glory, because the marriage of the Lamb has arrived and his wife has prepared herself. Yes, it has been granted to her to be clothed with bright, clean, fine linen — for the fine linen stands for the righteous acts of the holy ones”” (Apocalypse 19:6–8).
The magnificence of Christ’s heavenly bride is prophetically described in Psalm 45 and Apocalypse, she is called the New Jerusalem:
“The royal consort has taken her stand at your right hand, adorned in gold of Oʹphir” (Psalms 45:9).
“I saw also the holy city, New Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God and prepared as a bride adorned for her husband” (Apocalypse 21:2).
From this union will be born sons of the Kingdom on earth who will represent its authority on earth:
“Your sons will take the place of your forefathers.
You will appoint them as princes in all the earth” (Psalms 45:16).
PSALMS 46 (Read in your Bible or in a Bible Online)
He is bringing an end to wars throughout the earth.
He breaks the bow and shatters the spear;
He burns the military wagons with fire (Psalms 46:9)
The beginning of the Psalm shows that only Jehovah God, the Heavenly Father, is a refuge in times of great upheaval:
“God is our refuge and strength,
A help that is readily found in times of distress” (Psalms 46:1–4).
Jesus Christ, the Son of God, foretold a time of great distress before the end, before the great tribulation, in Matthew (chapter 24), Mark (chapter 13), and Luke (chapter 21). He urged us to be ready for his return that will mean the end of all these troubles: “But know one thing: If the householder had known in what watch the thief was coming, he would have kept awake and not allowed his house to be broken into. On this account, you too prove yourselves ready, because the Son of man is coming at an hour that you do not think to be it” (Matthew 24:43,44).
It is also written in this Psalm this:
“There is a river the streams of which make the city of God rejoice,
The holy grand tabernacle of the Most High” (Psalms 46:4).
This same tabernacle of God is mentioned in the book of Apocalypse, announcing the end of misfortunes on earth:
“With that I heard a loud voice from the throne say: “Look! The tent of God is with mankind, and he will reside with them, and they will be his people. And God himself will be with them. 4 And he will wipe out every tear from their eyes, and death will be no more, neither will mourning nor outcry nor pain be anymore. The former things have passed away”” (Apocalypse 21:3,4).
But before that, God will have to definitively eliminate the evil organizations and those who support them:
“Come and witness the activities of Jehovah,
How he has done astonishing things on the earth.
He is bringing an end to wars throughout the earth.
He breaks the bow and shatters the spear;
He burns the military wagons with fire” (Psalms 46:8,9).
Jehovah God, by means of his Son, King Jesus Christ, will destroy the spear and the chariots of war, the military-industrial complexes and global finance that work hand in hand to organize wars, famines, epidemics in order to reduce the world population through the first world war, the second world war, the cold war and which want their third world war (by means of the conflict in Ukraine). These sons of the devil and these earthly demons will disappear for eternity, at the time of the great tribulation:
“I saw also an angel standing in the sun, and he cried out with a loud voice and said to all the birds that fly in midheaven: “Come here, be gathered together to the great evening meal of God, 18 so that you may eat the flesh of kings and the flesh of military commanders and the flesh of strong men and the flesh of horses and of those seated on them, and the flesh of all, of freemen as well as of slaves and of small ones and great.”
19 And I saw the wild beast and the kings of the earth and their armies gathered together to wage war against the one seated on the horse and against his army. 20 And the wild beast was caught, and along with it the false prophet that performed in front of it the signs with which he misled those who received the mark of the wild beast and those who worship its image. While still alive, they both were hurled into the fiery lake that burns with sulfur. 21 But the rest were killed off with the long sword that proceeded out of the mouth of the one seated on the horse. And all the birds were filled with their flesh” (Apocalypse 19:17–21).
PSALMS 47 (Read in your Bible or in a Bible Online)
God has become King over the nations.
God sits on his holy throne (Psalms 47:8)
The expression of the Psalm giving glory to the Kingship of God the Heavenly Father is found regularly in the book of Apocalypse: “You are worthy, Jehovah our God, to receive the glory and the honor and the power, because you created all things, and because of your will they came into existence and were created. (…) I heard a loud voice in heaven say:“Now have come to pass the salvation and the power and the Kingdom of our God and the authority of his Christ, because the accuser of our brothers has been hurled down, who accuses them day and night before our God! (…) And I heard what sounded like a voice of a great crowd and like the sound of many waters and like the sound of heavy thunders. They said: “Praise Jah, because Jehovah our God, the Almighty, has begun to rule as king!”” (Apocalypse 4:11; 12:10; 19:6).
In Apocalypse 12:10 the Kingship of God is associated with the authority of the King Jesus Christ. He received this authority after his resurrection: “Jesus approached and spoke to them, saying: “All authority has been given me in heaven and on the earth”” (Matthew 28:18).
According to the book of Apocalypse chapter 20, the reign of Christ will last a thousand years: “And I saw thrones, and those who sat on them were given authority to judge. Yes, I saw the souls of those executed for the witness they gave about Jesus and for speaking about God, and those who had not worshipped the wild beast or its image and had not received the mark on their forehead and on their hand. And they came to life and ruled as kings with the Christ for 1,000 years” (Apocalypse 20:4).
When King Jesus Christ will have restored all things, he will return this authority to His Heavenly Father: “But when all things will have been subjected to him, then the Son himself will also subject himself to the One who subjected all things to him, that God may be all things to everyone” (1 Corinthians 15:28).
Thus, as prophetically written in Psalms 45 and 47, Christ’s kingship is based on the Kingship of His Heavenly Father:
“God is your throne forever and ever;
The scepter of your kingdom is a scepter of uprightness” (Psalms 45:6).
PSALMS 48 (Read in your Bible or in a Bible Online)
Beautiful in its loftiness, the joy of the whole earth,
Is Mount Zion in the far north,
The city of the Grand King (Psalms 48:2)
Mount Zion is the biblical symbol of the Davidic kingship which itself represented the Kingship of God. While on earth, Jesus Christ entered Jerusalem, where Mount Zion is, as heir to the Davidic kingship, because he was a direct descendant through his mother and adoptive father (read Matthew 1:1–16 and Luke 3:23–36): “When they got close to Jerusalem and arrived at Bethʹpha·ge on the Mount of Olives, then Jesus sent two disciples, 2 saying to them: “Go into the village that is within sight, and you will at once find a donkey tied and a colt with her. Untie them and bring them to me. 3 If someone says anything to you, you must say, ‘The Lord needs them.’ At that he will immediately send them.”
4 This actually took place to fulfill what was spoken through the prophet, who said: 5 “Tell the daughter of Zion: ‘Look! Your king is coming to you, mild-tempered and mounted on a donkey, yes, on a colt, the offspring of a beast of burden.’”
6 So the disciples went and did just as Jesus had instructed them. 7 They brought the donkey and its colt, and they put their outer garments on them, and he sat on them. 8 Most of the crowd spread their outer garments on the road, while others were cutting down branches from the trees and spreading them on the road. 9 Moreover, the crowds going ahead of him and those following him kept shouting: “Save, we pray, the Son of David! Blessed is the one who comes in Jehovah’s name! Save him, we pray, in the heights above!”” (Matthew 21:1–9).
And then Jesus Christ inherited the kingship in heaven on the heavenly Mount Zion with the 144,000: “Then I saw, and look! the Lamb standing on Mount Zion, and with him 144,000 who have his name and the name of his Father written on their foreheads” (Apocalypse 14:1–5).
Of course, according to Psalms 45 to 48, the Kingship of Christ is the expression of the Kingship of his Heavenly Father, Jehovah God:
“For this God is our God forever and ever.
He will guide us forevermore” (Psalms 48:14).
(Political Zionism is inspired by this biblical teaching. However, it is an ideology that advocates violent means to impose itself, which is contrary to the idea of Jesus Christ (a Jew on earth): “Then Jesus said to him: “Return your sword to its place, for all those who take up the sword will perish by the sword”” (Matthew 26:52)).
PSALMS 49 (Read in your Bible or in a Bible Online)
But God will redeem me from the power of the Grave, for he will take hold of me (Psalms 49:15)
Psalm 49 teaches two important things:
1 — Humans are unable to redeem themselves or their human life on their own:
“None of them can ever redeem a brother
Or give to God a ransom for him,
(The ransom price for their life is so precious
That it is always beyond their reach)” (Psalms 49:7,8).
2 — The psalmist had faith that Jehovah God, the Heavenly Father, would provide this ransom, and could resurrect him. He had faith in the hope of the resurrection:
“But God will redeem me from the power of the Grave,
For he will take hold of me” (Psalms 49:15).
Jesus Christ pointed to Himself as His Father’s means of redemption, or that doorway to the hope of the resurrection:
“Martha said to him: “I know he will rise in the resurrection on the last day.” Jesus said to her: “I am the resurrection and the life. The one who exercises faith in me, even though he dies, will come to life” (John 11:24,25).
Jesus Christ called for His sacrifice to be remembered each year:
“Keep doing this in remembrance of me” (Luke 22:19).
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http://www.yomelyah.com/437355109 .
PSALMS 50 (Read in your Bible or in a Bible Online)
What right do you have to relate my regulations
Or to speak about my covenant? (Psalms 50:16)
In this Psalm, God appears in a fearsome way, as a judge who calls his people to account:
“Our God will come and cannot remain silent.
Before him is a consuming fire,
And a great storm rages all around him.
He summons the heavens above and the earth,
So as to judge his people” (Psalms 50:3,4).
It seems obvious that God is angered by the arrogant attitude of his people:
“Listen, O my people, and I will speak;
Israel, I will bear witness against you.
I am God, your God” (Psalms 50:7).
First of all, God draws attention to the fact that his people cannot claim their merit before Him because of their sacrifices, because the gifts they make are only a restitution of what already belongs to Him:
“For every wild animal of the forest is mine,
Even the beasts upon a thousand mountains” (Psalms 50:9–12).
God desires his people to make sacrifices that count, that is, with good motives, love, mercy, gratitude and trust in Him:
“Offer thanksgiving as your sacrifice to God,
And pay your vows to the Most High” (Psalms 50:14).
Jesus Christ made the same reproach to the Pharisees whose hearts were devoid of love for the people they were supposed to teach: “I desire mercy, not sacrifice. ‘For I came not to call the righteous, but sinners’” (Matthew 9:13).
God then denounces the gap between the knowledge of the wicked who know God’s Law well, but who do not apply it:
“But God will say to the wicked:
“What right do you have to relate my regulations
Or to speak about my covenant?
For you hate discipline,
And you keep turning your back on my words”” (Psalms 50:16,17).
This is exactly the reproach that Jesus Christ made to the Pharisees: “Therefore, all the things they tell you, do and observe, but do not do according to their deeds, for they say but they do not practice what they say” (Matthew 23:3; read the whole chapter 23).
Likewise today, many Christian congregations or assemblies claim to obey Christ and practice the idolatry of statues or idolatry of humans even elevating them to the rank of Christ and God his Father, saying that obeying them is obeying God. Other organizations that call themselves Christian wallow in finance by handling billions of dollars of assets, while Jesus Christ did not even have where to lay his head: “But Jesus said to him: “Foxes have dens and birds of heaven have nests, but the Son of man has nowhere to lay down his head”” (Matthew 8:20).
It is time, before it is too late, for these Christian assemblies to change their attitude, and return to true Christianity as Christ taught us:
“When you did these things, I remained silent,
So you thought that I would be just like you.
But now I will reprove you,
And I will state my case against you.
22 Please consider this, you who forget God,
So that I may not tear you to pieces with no one to rescue you.
23 The one who offers thanksgiving as his sacrifice glorifies me,
And as for the one who follows a set course,
I will cause him to see salvation by God”” (Psalms 50:21–23).
PSALMS 51 (Read in your Bible or in a Bible Online)
Show me favor, O God, according to your loyal love.
Blot out my transgressions according to your great mercy (Psalms 51:1)
As the title of this Psalm indicates, the context is King David’s sin of adultery with Bath Sheba, followed by the murder of her husband, Uriah. This entire dramatic account is in the second book of Samuel (Chapter 11 to 12:1–15).
When David says this,
“Against you — you above all — I have sinned;
What is bad in your eyes I have done.
Therefore, you are righteous when you speak,
You are right in your judgment” (verse 4).
These words may be shocking because King David also seriously sinned against Uriah by committing adultery with his wife and plotting his murder.
The fact that God recorded this narrative of King David’s revolting conduct demonstrates this fact. However, these words must be seen in context, namely that marriage is a provision of God, the prohibition of murder is a law of God, therefore, breaking them by adultery and at the same time by murder is a sin against God.
More generally, Psalm 51 describes the sinful condition of human beings and their propensity to do evil:
“Look! I was born guilty of error,
And my mother conceived me in sin” (Psalms 51:5).
The apostle Paul has well illustrated this sinful human condition that pushes us to do evil. Nevertheless, he showed that through Christ’s sacrifice we can attain the forgiveness of God of our sins:
“I find, then, this law in my case: When I wish to do what is right, what is bad is present with me. I really delight in the law of God according to the man I am within, but I see in my body another law warring against the law of my mind and leading me captive to sin’s law that is in my body. Miserable man that I am! Who will rescue me from the body undergoing this death? Thanks to God through Jesus Christ our Lord! So, then, with my mind I myself am a slave to God’s law, but with my flesh to sin’s law” (Romans 7:21–25).
Jesus Christ called for His sacrifice to be remembered each year:
“Keep doing this in remembrance of me” (Luke 22:19).
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PSALMS 52 (Read in your Bible or in a Bible Online)
Why do you boast about your evil acts, you mighty one? (Psalms 52:1)
As the title of this Psalm indicates, King David is specifically addressing to Doeg the Edomite, who was responsible for the deaths of many priests, including Ahimelech, for helping him to escape from King Saul (read 1 Samuel chapters 21 and 22). Just as Doeg likely ended up paying for his crime after King David’s enthronement, so too will all murderers who currently enjoy impunity end up paying for their crimes: “Outside are the dogs and those who practice spiritism and those who are sexually immoral and the murderers and the idolaters and everyone who loves and practices lying” (Apocalypse 22:15). Jesus Christ alluded to Ahimelech’s courage and common sense when he helped King David and his men: “Now on a sabbath he was passing through grainfields, and his disciples were plucking and eating the heads of grain, rubbing them with their hands. At this some of the Pharisees said: “Why are you doing what is not lawful on the Sabbath?” But in reply Jesus said to them: “Have you never read what David did when he and the men with him were hungry? How he entered into the house of God and received the loaves of presentation and ate and gave some to the men with him, which it is not lawful for anyone to eat but for the priests only?” Then he said to them: “The Son of man is Lord of the Sabbath”” (Luke 6:1–5).
PSALMS 53 (Read in your Bible or in a Bible Online)
Their unrighteous actions are corrupt and detestable (Psalms 53:1)
Psalm 53 aptly describes the mindset of the wicked generation, which acts as if God does not exist or will not hold them accountable for their actions. The apostle Paul aptly described the mindset of this wicked generation in the last days: “But know this, that in the last days critical times hard to deal with will be here. For men will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boastful, haughty, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, disloyal, having no natural affection, not open to any agreement, slanderers, without self-control, fierce, without love of goodness, betrayers, headstrong, puffed up with pride, lovers of pleasures rather than lovers of God, having an appearance of godliness but proving false to its power; and from these turn away” (2 Timothy 3:1–5). Political, commercial, and religious shepherds, arms dealers, and war organizers for the survival of their evil organizations, devour “people as if they were eating bread”, in the Gaza Strip under a continuous stream of bombs every day, in the Russo-Ukrainian war where Slavic brothers are killing one another, in Syria where innocent civilians, including many Christians, are being massacred by religious fanatics. These sons of the devil have no regard for the lives of civilians who only ask to live in peace. However, as written in Psalm 53, the day will come when God himself will scatter the bones of everyone who camps against the innocent…
The day is approaching when King Jesus Christ will come to rescue God’s chosen people, of all nations, tribes, peoples, and tongues (Daniel 12:1; Apocalypse 7:9–17).
PSALMS 54 (Read in your Bible or in a Bible Online)
For he saves me from every distress (Psalms 54:7)
The title of this Psalm explains that David was the subject of another denunciation, this time collectively, while fleeing for his life from King Saul.
Staying on the theme of denunciation, some political dictatorships have used denunciation to keep the people in forced submission. Some globalized American Christian religious dictatorships use the same method of social engineering to punish the slightest offense of opinion, particularly based on Leviticus 5:1:
“If someone sins because he has heard a public call to testify and he is a witness or has seen or learned about it and he does not report it, then he will answer for his error” (Leviticus 5:1). The context of this text is clear: it concerns serious situations, such as curses or other attitudes that could endanger the integrity and life of others. For example, Mordecai revealed an attempted plot against the king, according to Esther 3:21–23. In a congregation and in society in general, it is obvious that it is appropriate to reveal criminal acts, such as sexual abuse, homicide, and theft. But of course, the “curses” (a public call) mentioned in Leviticus do not include simple offenses of opinion. Regardless, if someone has been a victim of such a wicked attitude on the part of these globalized religious dictatorships, they should keep faith that God will, in due time, bring the truth to light:
“Hear the word of Jehovah, you who tremble at his word:
“Your brothers who hate you and exclude you because of my name said, ‘May Jehovah be glorified!’
But He will appear and bring you joy,
And they are the ones who will be put to shame”” (Isaiah 66:5).
“For he saves me from every distress,
And I will look in triumph on my enemies” (Psalms 54:7).
PSALMS 55 (Read in your Bible or in a Bible Online)
Throw your burden on Jehovah,
And he will sustain you.
Never will he allow the righteous one to fall (Psalms 55:22)
Reading this psalm will help spiritually and emotionally those who are in a very worrying situation. It describes the emotional storm of the one in anguish, and the psalmist, while pleading with God for help, shows that one should place one’s complete trust in Jehovah God:
Verses 1–3 explain the reasons for the psalmist’s worries. These could be for other serious reasons, such as war, famine, disease, or other time-related traumas and unforeseen events (read Ecclesiastes 9:11):
“Because of what the enemy is saying
And the pressure from the wicked one.
For they heap trouble upon me,
And in anger they harbor animosity against me” (Psalms 55:3).
Verses 4–8 describe the psalmist’s anguish:
“My heart is in anguish within me,
And the terrors of death overwhelm me.
Fear and trembling come upon me,
And shuddering grips me” (Psalms 55:4, 5).
Verses 12–14 show that the worst opposition does not come from declared enemies, but rather from former companions who have acted treacherously:
“But it is you, a man like me,
My own companion whom I know well.
We used to enjoy a warm friendship together;
Into the house of God we used to walk along with the multitude” (Psalms 55:13, 14).
This passage obviously brings to mind the betrayal of Judas Iscariot mentioned in the Gospel of Luke (22:21, 48).
Verses 16–23 encourage us to rely on God in situations that seem to have no short-term outcome, for which we cannot see a solution. The following verse encourages us to be patient and trust in Jehovah God:
“Throw your burden on Jehovah,
And he will sustain you.
Never will he allow the righteous one to fall” (Psalms 55:22).
PSALMS 56 (Read in your Bible or in a Bible Online)
In God I put my trust; I am not afraid.
What can a mere human do to me? (Psalms 56:11)
This Psalm deals with the fear of man, as in this case (David), learning to overcome it by trusting in God. The title of this Psalm alludes to a distressing situation experienced by David, fleeing from King Saul, recorded in the first book of Samuel (21:10–15):
This Psalm encourages us to put our complete trust in God and overcome the fear of man that may be within us. The fear of man is the concern to gain the approval of others or to avoid their disapproval. When this fear is taken to extremes, it can override our awareness of being in harmony with ourselves (by not lying to ourselves), or worse, place this fear above the fear we naturally owe God.
In David’s case, life and death were at stake. Nevertheless, by trusting in God, he understood how to escape this situation while preserving the integrity of his relationship with God (Samuel 21:10–15). Currently, some followers of Christ in the Middle East are faced with this life-or-death choice when fanatical religious assassins demand that they renounce their faith in Christ. In Syria, they are either killed or mistreated. In the West, Christians who wish to respect their consciences sometimes face a difficult or more subtle choice when faced with globalized American so-called “Christian” religious dictatorships, which demand obedience to their “Talmuds,” placing it above the obedience we naturally owe to God and Christ, through the Bible (Sola Scriptura). In this case, the issue is the social life or death that awaits those facing this crisis of conscience. Some agree to give in to the fear of man, in defiance of their conscience, fueling a voluntary servitude, to borrow an expression from Étienne de la Boétie, fueling and being in part responsible for this globalized religious dictatorship. Other Western Christians, following the example of David in Psalm 56, have decided, like Christians in Syria, the Middle East, and in some African countries, to place their trust in God and in His Son Jesus Christ, at the cost of enormous sacrifice, a long-term social death, sometimes many years, separated from their friends, a son, a daughter, a father, and a mother. Beyond the emotional suffering caused by this painful situation, they apply this biblical maxim found in Psalm 56:
“In God — whose word I praise —
In God I put my trust; I am not afraid.
What can mere man do to me?” (Psalms 56:4, 11).
PSALMS 57 (Read in your Bible or in a Bible Online)
He will send help from heaven and save me.
He will frustrate the one snapping at me (Psalms 57:3)
This Psalm was written during the flight of David and his men from King Saul. They were living in a cave. According to the account in the First book of Samuel, David had an opportunity to kill King Saul, but he did not (read the narrative in 1 Samuel 24:2–7).
The apostle Paul showed the need not to seek revenge, but to rely on God: “Return evil for evil to no one. Take into consideration what is fine from the viewpoint of all men. If possible, as far as it depends on you, be peaceable with all men. Do not avenge yourselves, beloved, but yield place to the wrath; for it is written: “‘Vengeance is mine; I will repay,’ says Jehovah.” But “if your enemy is hungry, feed him; if he is thirsty, give him something to drink; for by doing this you will heap fiery coals on his head.” Do not let yourself be conquered by the evil, but keep conquering the evil with the good” (Romans 12:17–21).
When a person or group of people act badly toward us, we must take a step back like King David in the cave in the presence of King Saul, avoiding taking revenge ourselves, but allowing God to act according to His will toward us: “May Jehovah be the judge, and he will judge between you and me, and he will see and will plead my case and judge me and rescue me from your hand” (1 Samuel 24:15; Matthew 5:39).
PSALMS 58 (Read in your Bible or in a Bible Online)
Can you speak about righteousness when you are silent?
Can you judge in uprightness, you sons of men? (Psalms 58:1)
Jesus Christ said this in the introduction to his Sermon on the Mount: “Happy are those hungering and thirsting for righteousness, since they will be filled” (Matthew 5:6). In some biblical texts below, we can read how this hunger and thirst for righteousness is expressed and what we may feel personally. In Psalm 58, we read how those who hunger and thirst for righteousness will be satisfied by God’s mighty deeds:
“How long, O Jehovah, must I cry for help, but you do not hear? How long must I ask for help from violence, but you do not intervene? Why do you make me witness wrongdoing? And why do you tolerate oppression? Why are destruction and violence before me? And why do quarreling and conflict abound? So law is paralyzed, And justice is never carried out. For the wicked surround the righteous; That is why justice is perverted” (Habakkuk 1:2–4).
“Again I turned my attention to all the acts of oppression that go on under the sun. I saw the tears of the oppressed, and there was no one to comfort them. And their oppressors had the power, and there was no one to comfort them. (…) During my futile life I have seen everything — from the righteous one who perishes in his righteousness to the wicked one who lives long despite his badness. (…) All of this I have seen, and I applied my heart to every work that has been done under the sun, during the time that man has dominated man to his harm. (…) There is something futile that takes place on the earth: There are righteous people who are treated as if they had acted wickedly, and there are wicked people who are treated as if they had acted righteously. I say that this too is futility. (…) I have seen servants on horseback but princes walking on foot just like servants” (Ecclesiastes 4:1; 7:15; 8:9,14; 10:7).
“O God, knock the teeth out of their mouth!
Break the jaws of these lions, O Jehovah!
7 May they disappear like waters that drain away.
May He bend his bow and make them fall by his arrows.
8 May they be like a snail that melts away as it moves along;
Like a woman’s stillborn child who never sees the sun.
9 Before your cooking pots feel the heat of the bramble,
He will sweep away both the moist and the burning twig, as in a storm wind.
10 The righteous one will rejoice because he has seen the vengeance;
His feet will be drenched with the blood of the wicked.
11 Then men will say: “Surely there is a reward for the righteous.
There is indeed a God who judges in the earth”” (Psalms 58:6–11).
PSALMS 59 (Read in your Bible or in a Bible Online)
David composed this Psalm at the very beginning of his flight from King Saul, who wanted to assassinate him, according to the narrative in the first book of Samuel (19:9–17).
“For the sin of their mouth, the word of their lips,
May they be trapped by their pride,
Because of the cursing and deception that they speak” (Psalms 59:12):
Jesus Christ taught that at the last judgment, humans will be judged according to the words of their mouths: “For out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks. The good man out of his good treasure sends out good things, whereas the wicked man out of his wicked treasure sends out wicked things. I tell you that men will render an account on Judgment Day for every unprofitable saying that they speak; for by your words you will be declared righteous, and by your words you will be condemned” (Matthew 12:34–37).
Jesus Christ said that in most cases, the words that come out of the mouth reveal the inner state of our personality (the heart), whether good or bad. Furthermore, he showed that it is appropriate to be careful, because with the tongue one can sin against the Holy Spirit, that is, a sin that condemns to death without the possibility of resurrection: “For this reason I say to you, every sort of sin and blasphemy will be forgiven men, but the blasphemy against the spirit will not be forgiven. For example, whoever speaks a word against the Son of man, it will be forgiven him; but whoever speaks against the holy spirit, it will not be forgiven him, no, not in this system of things nor in that to come” (Matthew 12:31,32).
PSALMS 60 (Read in your Bible or in a Bible Online)
Help us in our distress,
For salvation by humans is worthless (Psalms 60:11)
The context of Psalm 60 is a retrospective of King David’s military conquests (verses 6–9). The title of the psalm mentions a military feat, the capture of Edom (2 Samuel 8:13). Edom was a sister nation of Israel, which has since disappeared, and was located in the far south of present-day Palestine, between the Negeb Desert (to the west) and the Arabian Desert (to the east). It was a very difficult nation to access, which mountains provided a natural defense, to the point of becoming arrogant. This is what we read in Jeremiah’s prophecy about the arrogance of this nation:
“The shuddering you caused has deceived you,
The presumptuousness of your heart,
O you who reside in the retreats of the crag,
Occupying the highest hill.
Although you build your nest high up like an eagle,
I will bring you down from there,” declares Jehovah” (Jeremiah 49:16):
The conclusion of this Psalm shows us that only with God’s help we can achieve success in our actions even when they seem impossible (as in the context of Psalm 60, the military conquest of Edom):
“Help us in our distress,
For salvation by humans is worthless.
By God we will gain power,
And he will trample on our adversaries” (Psalms 60:11,12).
PSALMS 61 (Read in your Bible or in a Bible Online)
“From the ends of the earth I will cry out to you, when my heart grows feeble” (Psalms 61:2):
The heart, in a figurative sense, refers to a person’s feelings and motives. A weakened heart means to be physically, mentally, or even spiritually tired, which can lead to temporary or chronic discouragement or depression. The psalmist wrote that it is in these moments that he will ask God for help, through prayer, so that He can compensate for his lack of physical, mental, or even spiritual energy. The apostle Paul wrote this about this situation:
“So I take pleasure in weaknesses, in insults, in times of need, in persecutions and difficulties, for Christ. For when I am weak, then I am powerful” (2 Corinthians 12:10). A weakened man (or woman) will feel less confident and will be more likely to rely on God’s supplementary help to be resilient or to have endurance in the trials.
When he wrote that he is powerful in the moments when he is weak, he is describing the effect of God’s Holy Spirit in enabling one to be resilient and in persevance in the face of opposition, demonstrating a kind of divine inner strength, given by God: “For all things I have the strength through the one who gives me power” (Philippians 4:13).
PSALMS 62 (Read in your Bible or in a Bible Online)
Indeed, I wait silently for God.
My salvation comes from him (Psalms 62)
This Psalm simply explains why, when faced with difficulties created by opponents, it is generally advisable to remain silent:
“How long will you assault a man in order to murder him?
All of you are as dangerous as a leaning wall, a stone wall ready to collapse.
For they consult together to topple him from his high position;
They take pleasure in lying.
With their mouth they bless, but inside they are cursing” (Psalms 62:3,4).
This Psalm explains why we must remain silent. By labeling opponents as leaning walls, unreliable, and resorting to lies and deceit, it is impossible to have reasonable communication with them in order to calm the situation. In these cases, it is much wiser to remain silent in order to avoid losing our dignity. We must place matters in God’s hands:
“Indeed, I wait silently for God
Because my hope comes from him.
Indeed, he is my rock and my salvation, my secure refuge;
I will never be shaken” (Psalms 62:5, 6).
PSALMS 63 (Read in your Bible or in a Bible Online)
I remember you while upon my bed;
I meditate on you during the watches of the night (Psalms 63:6)
This psalm expresses the delight of a good relationship with God. It is written that we can use the night watches, the moments of sleeplessness, to meditate on our relationship with God. During the night, everything is calm, the body and mind are at rest, and this allows for greater clarity. This time allows us to remember divine principles to make good decisions for the day ahead. They are like help from God, but also from his Son Jesus Christ, as for example his advice in the Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 5–7):
“For you are my helper,
And I shout joyfully in the shadow of your wings.
I cling to you;
Your right hand keeps fast hold on me” (Psalms 63:7,8).
Following the guidance of God and Christ, which a moment of sleeplessness can remind us of, is like a child grasping the hand of a trusted father and not letting go. Of course, through meditation we can pray to God to help us make good decisions, or to overcome worries or emotional pain…
PSALMS 64 (Read in your Bible or in a Bible Online)
Hear my voice, O God, as I plead.
Safeguard my life from the dreadfulness of the enemy (Psalms 64:1)
This psalm describes the sophistication and ingenuity in creating evil, through marketing and social engineering that make lies and criminal acts invisible to the eyes of human law, both from political power and from billionaire religious organizations with their armies of lawyers. However, Jehovah God, the Heavenly Father, and his Son Jesus Christ, see them clearly (Romans 14:12)… Some might become impatient. Nevertheless, the apostle Peter explains why we must learn to be patient:
“Jehovah is not slow concerning his promise, as some people consider slowness, but he is patient with you because he does not desire anyone to be destroyed but desires all to attain to repentance” (2 Peter 3:9).
Thus, among those who currently commit wickedness, some of them have the opportunity to change their attitude and repent of their actions, thus obtaining everlasting life. For those who are in a waiting situation, it is important not to give up, but to continue moving forward, always being vigilant (2 Peter 3:10).
PSALMS 65 (Read in your Bible or in a Bible Online)
The pastures are covered with flocks,
And the valleys are carpeted with grain.
They shout in triumph, yes, they sing (Psalms 65:13)
It is true that it is written in the Bible that a small number of humans will live in heaven, with Christ and the angels (Apocalypse 5:9,10; 7:4–9; 14:1–5). It is also true that the Bible says that there will be a restoration of the earthly paradise that existed in Eden, where a large number of humans, men, women, and children, will live (Genesis 2). Psalm 65 provides a beautiful and comforting description of this. In this future earthly paradise will live the members of the great crowd, mentioned in Apocalypse 7:9–17, and the earthly resurrected, mentioned in Apocalypse chapter 20: “And I saw a new heaven and a new earth; for the former heaven and the former earth had passed away, and the sea is no more. I also saw the holy city, New Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God and prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. With that I heard a loud voice from the throne say: “Look! The tent of God is with mankind, and he will reside with them, and they will be his people. And God himself will be with them. And he will wipe out every tear from their eyes, and death will be no more, neither will mourning nor outcry nor pain be anymore. The former things have passed away”” (Apocalypse 21:1–4).
PSALMS 66 and 67 (Read in your Bible or in a Bible Online)
For you have examined us, O God;
As silver is refined, so you have refined us (Psalms 66:10)
God can refine a people, just as He can refine a particular person, man or woman, whom He considers desirable. For example, here is what is written in Deuteronomy: “Remember the long road that Jehovah your God made you walk these 40 years in the wilderness, to humble you and to put you to the test so as to know what was in your heart, whether you would keep his commandments or not” (Deuteronomy 8:2).
The refining process brought about by God is a test that reveals what is in each person’s heart. The historical narrative in the biblical books of Exodus and Numbers allows us to see how some people behaved well and others were unfaithful to God. In the case of the stubborn Pharaoh of Egypt, he made sure that he would not exalt himself:
“He rules forever by his might.
His eyes keep watch on the nations.
Those who are stubborn should not exalt themselves” (Psalms 66:7). As for those whom God considers desirable, He also puts them through a refining process, a testing process that teaches humility and modesty and can bring out undesirable aspects of their personality, which must be eliminated if they wish to continue to have divine approval:
“If I had harbored anything hurtful in my heart,
Jehovah would not have heard me.
But God did hear;
He paid attention to my prayer.
Praise to God, who did not reject my prayer
Or withhold his loyal love from me” (Psalms 66:18–20).
This text shows that God takes into account the limitations associated with our sinful condition, which causes us to have “hurtful things in our hearts”, He uses patience and mercy so that we may be perfected as choice vessels:
“You will therefore say to me: “Why does he still find fault? For who has withstood his will?” But who are you, O man, to be answering back to God? Does the thing molded say to its molder: “Why did you make me this way?” What? Does not the potter have authority over the clay to make from the same lump one vessel for an honorable use, another for a dishonorable use? What, then, if God had the will to demonstrate his wrath and to make his power known, and he tolerated with much patience vessels of wrath made fit for destruction? And if this was done to make known the riches of his glory on vessels of mercy, which he prepared beforehand for glory” (Romans 9:19–23).
PSALMS 68 (Read in your Bible or in a Bible Online)
Jehovah gives the command: the women proclaiming the good news are a large army (Psalms 68:11)
This psalm celebrates Jehovah God’s victories over the wicked and how he cares for the most vulnerable, widows and orphans:
The women proclaiming the good news are a large army (Psalms 68:11): Some Christian congregations apply this text to women disciples of Christ who are preaching the “good news” (Matthew 24:14 “good news”). The context of Psalm 68 describes military victories celebrated by women who led songs and dances upon the soldiers’ return. The most well-known example, for Bible readers, is that of Miriam, Moses’ sister, who organized women’s dances to celebrate Jehovah’s victory over the Pharaoh of Egypt: “Then Miriam the prophetess, Aaron’s sister, took a tambourine in her hand, and all the women followed her with tambourines and with dances. Miriam sang in response to the men: “Sing to Jehovah, for he has become highly exalted. The horse and its rider he has hurled into the sea”’” (Exodus 15:20,21; the examples of Deborah (Judges 5:1) and Jephthah’s daughter (Judges 11:34)).
PSALMS 69 (Read in your Bible or in a Bible Online)
I have become a stranger to my brothers, a foreigner to the sons of my mother (Psalms 69:8)
Through this psalm, King David expressed to God his suffering and anguish over the dangerous situations he was experiencing. In broad outline, this psalm describes the suffering that Christ endured throughout his earthly ministry until his death:
Some details of Christ’s life are described in this psalm:
“I have become a stranger to my brothers, a foreigner to the sons of my mother” (Psalms 69:8): “His brothers were, in fact, not exercising faith in him” (John 7:5). “But when his relatives heard about it, they went out to seize him, for they were saying: “He has gone out of his mind”” (Mark 3:21). Jesus had four brothers, James, Joseph, Simon, and Jude, and at least two sisters (Matthew 13:55, 56). During his earthly ministry, none of them exercised faith in him; on the contrary, they thought he had lost his mind.
“Zeal for your house has consumed me” (Psalms 69:9): “His disciples recalled that it is written: “The zeal for your house will consume me”’” (John 2:17; Mark 11:15; Matthew 21:12).
“But for food they gave me poison, and for my thirst they gave me vinegar to drink” (Psalms 69:21): “They gave him wine mixed with gall to drink; but after tasting it, he refused to drink it. (…) And immediately one of them ran and took a sponge and soaked it in sour wine and put it on a reed and gave it to him to drink” (Matthew 27:34,48).
The sufferings Christ endured throughout his earthly ministry are summarized by the words of the apostle Paul: “During his life on earth, Christ offered up supplications and also petitions, with strong outcries and tears, to the One who was able to save him out of death, and he was favorably heard for his godly fear. Although he was a son, he learned obedience from the things he suffered. And after he had been made perfect, he became responsible for everlasting salvation to all those obeying him, because he has been designated by God a high priest in the manner of Mel·chizʹe·dek” (Hebrews 5:7–10).
PSALMS 70 and 71 (Read in your Bible or in a Bible Online)
“Do not cast me off in my old age, do not abandon me when my strength fails. (…) Even when I am old and gray, O God, do not abandon m” (Psalms 71:9,18). Twice the psalmist asked God not to abandon him in old age, when humans generally gradually lose their independence. This situation clearly distressed him, as it continues to distress millions of elderly people who are alone. How can God care for elderly people who are alone? At the root of this, is the entire family, the children, or the community where the elderly person lives. Nevertheless, Jesus Christ, the Son of God, reminded us of the commandment to honor our father and mother, that is, to care for them in their old age and to keep them company (Luke 18:20). The apostle Paul also reminded the Christians of Ephesus of this commandment: “Honor your father and your mother” is the first command with a promise: “That it may go well with you and you may remain a long time on the earth” (Ephesians 6:2,3).
Jesus Christ clearly showed that the practice of Christianity must not hinder the implementation of this commandment, by rightly denouncing the abject behavior of the Pharisees in this regard: “Further, he said to them: “You skillfully disregard the commandment of God in order to keep your tradition. For example, Moses said, ‘Honor your father and your mother,’ and, ‘Let the one who speaks abusively of his father or mother be put to death.’ But you say, ‘If a man says to his father or his mother: “Whatever I have that could benefit you is corban (that is, a gift dedicated to God),”’ you no longer let him do a single thing for his father or his mother. Thus you make the word of God invalid by your tradition that you have handed down. And you do many things like this”” (Mark 7:9–13). Some religious organizations (which operate as commercial enterprises) do the same by recruiting young people to serve God (in their opinion, but in fact serving their own financial interests) and at the same time dispossessing many elderly relatives of their only necessary support during their old age.
As Christ so clearly emphasized, what matters is not only the spiritual dimension of the practice of Christianity, but also its humanitarian dimension based on love of neighbor (John 13:34,35; Matthew 25:31–46).
PSALMS 72 (Read in your Bible or in a Bible Online)
Give your judgments to the king, O God, and your righteousness to the king’s son (Psalms 72:1)
This psalm describes the future blessings of the Kingdom of God, mentioned by Jesus Christ, particularly in the model prayer: “Let your Kingdom come. Let your will take place, as in heaven, also on earth” (Matthew 6:10).
As mentioned at the beginning of the psalm, the reign of King Solomon was an early example of this righteous kingship, accompanied by many blessings for the people of Israel, as long as they did the will of Jehovah God, the Heavenly Father (1 Chronicles 22:12 and 29:19). However, in the future earthly paradise, it is King Jesus Christ with the 144,000 heavenly kings and priests who will exercise this kingship on earth in fulfillment of the prayer mentioned in Matthew (6:9,10) (Apocalypse 5:9,10; 7:4–8; 14:1–5). Psalm 72 describes the blessings of God on earth of this kingship. In verse 1, the son of the king is mentioned (who was at that time the future king Solomon), that is to say, the prince, and indeed it is written in the Bible that there will be righteous earthly princes who will represent the heavenly kingship of Christ and the 144,000 kings and priests: “Look! A king will reign for righteousness, and princes will rule for justice” (Esaiah 32:1).
PSALMS 73 (Read in your Bible or in a Bible Online)
As for me, my feet had almost strayed, my steps had nearly slipped (Psalms 73:2)
Asaph, the inspired author of this psalm, expressed his indignation at wickedness and injustice. He honestly explained that he almost strayed spiritually by envying the wicked who seem to be successful in their behavior, by mocking God. Asaph allowed himself to be dominated by a destructive bitterness in the face of this absurd situation.
Following this observation, Asaph expressed his dismay:
“Surely in vain I have kept my heart pure
And washed my hands in innocence.
And I was troubled all day long;
Every morning I was chastised” (Psalms 73:13,14).
However, we see that Asaph was able to pull himself together, regain sound judgment, a discernment that allowed him to better understand the situation from God’s perspective:
“Surely you place them on slippery ground.
You make them fall to their ruin.
How suddenly they are devastated!
How sudden is their finish as they come to a terrible end!” (Psalms 73:18,19).
Psalm 73 can be a help to those who personally suffer injustice. Jesus Christ said that those who hunger and thirst for righteousness will be filled (Matthew 5:6). This psalm shows that in the meantime, we should take refuge in our relationship with God, trusting that He will find a solution to our difficult situation:
“My body and my heart may fail,
But God is the rock of my heart and my portion forever.
Truly, those keeping far from you will perish.
You will put an end to everyone who immorally leaves you.
But as for me, drawing near to God is good for me.
I have made the Sovereign Lord Jehovah my refuge,
To declare all your works” (Psalms 73:26–28).
PSALMS 74 (Read in your Bible or in a Bible Online)
Why, O God, have you rejected us forever? Why does your anger burn against the flock of your pasture? (Psalms 74:1)
Psalm 74 refers to the destruction of Solomon’s temple by the Babylonians in 607 BCE (or 20 years earlier for others). The mention of Asaph is evident (in this and other psalms) of Asaph’s sons as offspring (as with the sons of Korah from Psalm 42 onward) because he was a contemporary of King David (several centuries earlier) (2 Chronicles 35:15).
“Why, O God, have you rejected us forever? Why does your anger burn against the flock of your pasture?” (Psalms 74:1). These two questions allude to God’s rejection of his people Israel, because that nation had fallen into apostasy by worshiping other gods and goddesses. This rejection led to the destruction of Jerusalem and its temple, and the deportation of its population to Babylon for 70 years (verses 3–8; compare with the historical account in 2 Kings chapter 25).
This psalm is a plea to God not to reject his people permanently (verses 2, 11). It recalls God’s miraculous acts to save his people, which contrast with this rejection (verses 11–17). This psalm shows that this situation will not be permanent due to the outrageous attitude of his people’s enemies in this circumstance (verses 18–23).
In general, this psalm shows that God’s discipline, to correct his people (even on an individual level), can be particularly painful. However, it remains temporary for those who accept it in order to improve their behavior:
“In your struggle against that sin, you have never yet resisted to the point of having your blood shed. And you have entirely forgotten the exhortation that addresses you as sons: “My son, do not belittle the discipline from Jehovah, nor give up when you are corrected by him; for those whom Jehovah loves he disciplines, in fact, he scourges everyone whom he receives as a son.”
You need to endure as part of your discipline. God is treating you as sons. For what son is not disciplined by his father? But if you have not all shared in receiving this discipline, you are really illegitimate children, and not sons. Furthermore, our human fathers used to discipline us, and we gave them respect. Should we not more readily submit ourselves to the Father of our spiritual life and live? For they disciplined us for a short time according to what seemed good to them, but he does so for our benefit so that we may partake of his holiness. True, no discipline seems for the present to be joyous, but it is painful; yet afterward, it yields the peaceable fruit of righteousness to those who have been trained by it” (Hebrews 12:4–11).
PSALMS 75 and 76 (Read in your Bible or in a Bible Online)
For God is Judge. He puts one man down and exalts another (Psalms 75:7)
“For he says: “I will cut off all the horns of the wicked,
But the horns of the righteous will be exalted”” (Psalm 75:10).
The horn, in this context, symbolizes glory, which is heard through a fearful sound, and the majesty and authority associated with it. For example, at Mount Sinai, the glory of God’s presence was heard through the sound of the horn: “On the morning of the third day, there was thunder and lightning, and there was a heavy cloud on the mountain and a very loud sound of a horn, and all the people in the camp began to tremble” (Exodus 19:16). The horn of the wicked can be perceived by an arrogant attitude that escapes no one, like the imposing sound of the horn. Jesus Christ warned against such an attitude, which consists of deliberately attracting the attention of others by boasting about the acts of mercy one has performed: “Take care not to practice your righteousness in front of men to be noticed by them; otherwise you will have no reward with your Father who is in the heavens. So when you make gifts of mercy, do not blow a trumpet ahead of you, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, so that they may be glorified by men. Truly I say to you, they have their reward in full. But you, when making gifts of mercy, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, 4 so that your gifts of mercy may be in secret. Then your Father who looks on in secret will repay you” (Matthew 6:1–4). Jesus Christ said about the sound of the trumpet or horn, intended to draw attention to oneself and work for one’s own glory by boasting. Thus, we must let God decide who He will exalt and who He will humble, for He is the only judge (through Christ (Matthew 25:21–46)):
“For God is Judge.
He puts one man down and exalts another.
For there is a cup in Jehovah’s hand;
The wine is foaming and is fully mixed.
He will surely pour it out,
And all the wicked of the earth will drink it, down to the dregs” (Psalms 75:7, 8).
PSALMS 77 (Read in your Bible or in a Bible Online)
And I will meditate on all your activity and ponder over your dealings (Psalms 77:12)
Psalm 77 is the psalmist’s melancholic expression of waiting for God to act and waiting for the fulfillment of hope. Without losing faith, he expresses his perplexity, which provokes his melancholy, through some rhetorical questions:
“Will Jehovah cast us off forever?
Will he never again show his favor?
8 Has his loyal love ceased forever?
Will his promise come to nothing for all generations?
9 Has God forgotten to show his favor,
Or has his anger caused his mercy to cease? (Selah)
10 Must I keep saying: “This is what distresses me:
The Most High has changed his position toward us”?” (Psalms 77:7–10).
However, by meditating on the mighty past deeds of Jehovah God, in his moments of melancholy and perplexity, he strengthens his faith and confidence:
“I will remember the works of Jah;
I will remember your marvelous deeds of long ago.
12 And I will meditate on all your activity
And ponder over your dealings” (Psalms 77:11, 12).
Then he poetically describes this meditation on God’s miraculous actions to deliver his people during their exodus from Egypt (Psalms 77:13–20).
This poetic text shows that it is normal to feel, from time to time, melancholy and perplexity during times of waiting for God by means his actions to deliver us from difficult situations. In the meantime, we must do as the psalmist did, recalling the miraculous actions of God and his Christ while he was on earth. By reading again, for example, the four Gospels, we can recall his miracles of healing and resurrection, which will strengthen our faith in the future fulfillment of God’s promise: “And he will wipe out every tear from their eyes, and death will be no more, neither will mourning nor outcry nor pain be anymore. The former things have passed away” (Apocalypse 21:4).
PSALMS 78 (Read in your Bible or in a Bible Online)
Listen, my people, to my law, Incline your ear to the words of my mouth (Psalms 78:1)
This psalm provides a historical account of the Exodus of the people of Israel from the land of Egypt, culminating in the reign of King David. Psalm 78 particularly emphasizes the rebellious behavior and lack of faith of the people of Israel toward God, saddening and testing Him. Some highlights from Psalm 78, with concise commentary:
“Listen, my people, to my law;
Incline your ear to the words of my mouth.
2 I will open my mouth in a proverb.
I will propound riddles of long ago.
3 The things we have heard and know,
Which our fathers have related to us,
4 We will not hide from their sons;
We will relate to the generation to come
The praiseworthy deeds of Jehovah and his strength,
The wonderful things he has done” (Psalms 78:1–4).
The Bible contains many proverbial sayings and riddles. Some passages in the Bible require God’s help to understand them. For this, we must ask Him in prayer to have insight. Jesus Christ said that this understanding is given to the humble people: “At that time Jesus said in response: “I publicly praise you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because you have hidden these things from the wise and intellectual ones and have revealed them to young children”” (Matthew 11:25).
“Then they would not be like their forefathers,
A stubborn and rebellious generation,
A generation whose heart was unsteady
And whose spirit was not faithful to God” (Psalms 78:8).
A steady heart is willing to obey God; the opposite is a stubborn heart: “You must now circumcise the foreskin of your hearts and stop being so stubborn” (Deuteronomy 10:16).
“Because they did not put faith in God;
They did not trust in his ability to save them” (Psalms 78:22).
Lack of Faith is a serious sin before God that can deprive of the fulfillment of Christian hope: “Moreover, without faith it is impossible to please God well, for whoever approaches God must believe that he is and that he becomes the rewarder of those earnestly seeking him” (Hebrews 11:6).
“Their heart was not steadfast toward him;
And they were not faithful to his covenant” (Psalms 78:37).
A heart that is not steadfast is a heart that does not keep its commitments. Jesus Christ said that we must have only one word: “Just let your word ‘Yes’ mean yes, your ‘No,’ no, for what goes beyond these is from the wicked one” (Matthew 5:37).
“Again and again they put God to the test,
And they grieved the Holy One of Israel” (Psalms 78:41).
To test God is to disappoint Him by an attitude that persists in practicing sin, while at the same time He is patient with that person or group of people: “Jehovah is not slow concerning his promise, as some people consider slowness, but he is patient with you because he does not desire anyone to be destroyed but desires all to attain to repentance” (2 Peter 3:9).
PSALMS 79 (Read in your Bible or in a Bible Online)
Quickly show us your mercy, For we have been brought very low (Psalm 79:8)
Psalm 79 alludes to the historical context of Psalm 74. Here’s a reminder: this psalm refers to the destruction of Solomon’s temple by the Babylonians in 607 BCE (or 20 years earlier for others). It alludes to God’s rejection of his people Israel, because that nation had fallen into apostasy by worshiping other gods and goddesses. This rejection led to the destruction of Jerusalem and its temple, and the deportation of its population to Babylon for 70 years (verses 3–8; compare with the historical account in 2 Kings chapter 25).
However, Psalm 79 is different regarding the petition made to God. It is a call for vengeance against the nations that, at that time, destroyed the nation that represented God’s people:
Is it illogical to think that God will avenge the innocent blood shed throughout human history, especially that of His servants? No. However, it is important to remember that this vengeance does not belong to humans, but rather to God:
“Return evil for evil to no one. Take into consideration what is fine from the viewpoint of all men. If possible, as far as it depends on you, be peaceable with all men. Do not avenge yourselves, beloved, but yield place to the wrath; for it is written: “‘Vengeance is mine; I will repay,’ says Jehovah.” But “if your enemy is hungry, feed him; if he is thirsty, give him something to drink; for by doing this you will heap fiery coals on his head.” Do not let yourself be conquered by the evil, but keep conquering the evil with the good” (Romans 12:17–21).
PSALMS 80 (Read in your Bible or in a Bible Online)
And look upon the son whom you made strong for yourself (Psalms 80:15)
Psalm 80 is a cry for help to the Shepherd of Israel, to the One who sits above the cherubim on the Ark of the Covenant, in the Most Holy Place of the Tabernacle and later of the Temple. Israel is designated by Joseph, and then by his two sons, Ephraim and Manasseh, Benjamin being his brother through their mother Rachel. Benjamin was the first royal tribe, through Saul. This kingship has been transferred to King David and his dynasty, from the tribe of Judah. In this psalm, Israel is symbolized by a vineyard. This psalm evokes the same situation poetically described in Psalms 74 and 79. The psalmist begs God to deliver them from this painful and distressing situation.
Jesus Christ took up this illustration, referring to himself as the vine and his disciples as the branches: “I am the true vine, and my Father is the cultivator. 2 He takes away every branch in me not bearing fruit, and he cleans every one bearing fruit, so that it may bear more fruit. 3 You are already clean because of the word that I have spoken to you. 4 Remain in union with me, and I will remain in union with you. Just as the branch cannot bear fruit by itself unless it remains in the vine, neither can you unless you remain in union with me. 5 I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever remains in union with me and I in union with him, this one bears much fruit; for apart from me you can do nothing at all. 6 If anyone does not remain in union with me, he is thrown out like a branch and dries up. And men gather those branches and throw them into the fire, and they are burned. 7 If you remain in union with me and my sayings remain in you, ask whatever you wish and it will take place for you. 8 My Father is glorified in this, that you keep bearing much fruit and prove yourselves my disciples. 9 Just as the Father has loved me, so I have loved you; remain in my love. 10 If you observe my commandments, you will remain in my love, just as I have observed the commandments of the Father and remain in his love” (John 15:1–10).
From now on, this vineyard of God with its branches constitutes the Israel of God, the Christian congregation (Galatians 6:16; Acts 11:26). This congregation or church is made up of both Jews in the flesh and people of all nations, with the spiritual circumcision of the heart (which represents obedience to God and to Christ (Deuteronomy 10:16)): “For not all who descend from Israel are really “Israel”” (Read Romans chapter 9 and 11:17–24; John 10:16).
PSALMS 81 (Read in your Bible or in a Bible Online)
Shout joyfully to God our strength. Shout in triumph to the God of Jacob (Psalms 81:1)
PSALM 81:
Psalm 81 poetically evokes the Festival of Booths (Tabernacle) or Ingathering, which was celebrated on the 15th of Ethanim (Tishri) of the Hebrew calendar (between September and October). The particularity of this festival was that it was particularly joyful; God wanted every Israelite to rejoice: “God will bless all your produce and all that you do, and you will become nothing but joyful” (Deuteronomy 16:15). Psalm 81 is the poetic expression of this joy:
This joy will be expressed in the future earthly paradise. According to Zechariah’s prophecy, in this Festival of Booths and Ingatherings that will be celebrated, in the future paradise, the Kingship of Jehovah God with joy: “Everyone who is left remaining out of all the nations that come against Jerusalem will go up from year to year to bow down to the King, Jehovah of armies, and to celebrate the Festival of Booths” (Zechariah 14:16). “For since the Law has a shadow of the good things to come” (Hebrews 10:1).
PSALMS 82 (Read in your Bible or in a Bible Online)
Defend the lowly and the fatherless.
Render justice to the helpless and destitute (Psalms 82:3)
Psalm 82 metaphorically refers to human judges as gods, and God asks them to judge justly:
Jesus Christ quoted a passage from Psalm 82 to explain to his audience that his claim to be the Son of God was not blasphemous because this psalm refers to humans in the role of judge as gods: “Jesus answered them: “Is it not written in your Law, ‘I said: “You are gods”’? If he called ‘gods’ those against whom the word of God came — and yet the scripture cannot be nullified — do you say to me whom the Father sanctified and sent into the world, ‘You blaspheme,’ because I said, ‘I am God’s Son’? If I am not doing the works of my Father, do not believe me” (John 10:34–37).
It is obvious that Jesus Christ is the Son of God and not God himself. The apostle Peter said this and commended him for giving such a correct answer: “He said to them: “You, though, who do you say I am?” Simon Peter answered: “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.” In response Jesus said to him: “Happy you are, Simon son of Joʹnah, because flesh and blood did not reveal it to you, but my Father in the heavens did’” (Matthew 16:15–17).
PSALMS 83 (Read in your Bible or in a Bible Online)
May people know that you, whose name is Jehovah, You alone are the Most High over all the earth (Psalms 83:18)
Psalms 83 describes the malice of the nations who defy God, seeking to destroy his people. However, the rest of Psalms 83 shows that God will make them disappear, and in doing so, he will reveal the meaning of his Name, Jehovah (YHWH), through his powerful action:
This psalms clearly shows that God has a Name that appears 7,000 times in the form of the Tetragrammaton YHWH and is pronounced Yehouah (more commonly known as “Jehovah”). (For more information on the Divine Name, please see the study page on the Divine Name (by clicking on the link below): https://yomelyah.fr/meditation-on-the-bible-2/the-divine-name-yhwh-is-pronounced-as-it-is-written/).
The Divine Name YHWH (Yehouah) represents the glory of God. It represents God’s reputation through the extraordinary actions He undertakes, so that the meaning of His name is determined by the action He performs: « I Will Become What I Choose to Become » (Exodus 3:14). His plan revolves around the Divine Name YHWH (Yehouah), as is evident in the prayer of Jesus Christ, in John 17: “I am no longer in the world, but they are in the world, and I am coming to you. Holy Father, watch over them on account of your own name, which you have given me, so that they may be one just as we are one. When I was with them, I used to watch over them on account of your own name, which you have given me; and I have protected them, and not one of them is destroyed except the son of destruction, so that the scripture might be fulfilled” (John 17:11,12). Jesus Christ acted “on account of your own name (God’s name)”. “Simeon has related thoroughly how God for the first time turned his attention to the nations to take out of them a people for his name” (Acts 15:14). This text expresses a similar idea, showing that God has a people “for his name,” thus the meaning of his Name revolves around his will. Incidentally, and this idea will be examined later, God has a people « for » his name, not a people that « bears » his name. The name Israel, representing God’s people in biblical times, did not contain the Tetragrammaton, so it did not « bear » the Divine Name, YHWH (Yehouah). The Divine Name belongs to God and He entrusts it to whomever He wants (by clicking on the link below): https://yomelyah.fr/meditation-on-the-bible/the-divine-name-yhwh-belongs-to-god/ .
PSALMS 84 (Read in your Bible or in a Bible Online)
For a day in your courtyards is better than a thousand anywhere else! (Psalms 84:10)
In Psalms 84, the psalmist, a Levite offspring of the sons of Korah, expresses his joy in serving in the tabernacle, through a sacred service, the place of worship of Yehouah (YHWH « Jehovah »). He expresses his sincere love for the Heavenly Father:
In Revelation chapter 21, the comforting effects of the presence of God’s tent among humanity are described, following the disappearance of the present unjust human system (in the great tribulation): « And I saw a new heaven and a new earth; for the former heaven and the former earth had passed away, and the sea is no more. 2 I also saw the holy city, New Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God and prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. 3 With that I heard a loud voice from the throne say: “Look! The tent of God is with mankind, and he will reside with them, and they will be his people. And God himself will be with them. 4 And he will wipe out every tear from their eyes, and death will be no more, neither will mourning nor outcry nor pain be anymore. The former things have passed away”’ » (Apocalypse 21:1-4).
The presence of the tent of God (or Tabernacle) will correspond to the beginning of the reign of the Kingdom of God on earth through the New Jerusalem, mentioned in the Lord’s Prayer in Matthew (6:9-10). The authority of this heavenly government will be relayed by earthly princes, earthly priests, and the Levites of paradise who will assist the priests, all with the aim of administering the future earthly resurrection during the thousand-year reign of Christ over the entire Earth.
PSALMS 85 (Read in your Bible or in a Bible Online)
« You have pardoned the error of your people;
You forgave all their sin » (Psalms 85:2)
Psalm 85 seems to allude to the period of Israel’s (Jacob’s) return from exile in Babylon; therefore, the sons of Korah mentioned at the beginning are clearly Levites descended from them.
“Will you be furious with us forever?
Will you prolong your anger to generation after generation?
6 Will you not revive us again
So that your people may rejoice in you?
7 Show your loyal love to us, O Jehovah,
And grant us your salvation” (Psalms 85:5-7).
These rhetorical questions are very similar to those found in Zechariah’s prophecy, which alludes to this same historical period:
“So the angel of Jehovah (YHWH) said: ‘O Jehovah of armies, how long will you withhold your mercy from Jerusalem and the cities of Judah, with whom you have been indignant these 70 years?’” (Zechariah 1:12).
In 1513 BCE, God made a covenant with Israel, through Moses, the mediator (Deuteronomy 4:23). From reading the historical biblical books of the Judges, up to 2 Chronicles, it is evident that the 10 tribes of Israel (after the split), and the tribes of Benjamin and Judah, represented by Jerusalem, did not keep this covenant (Zechariah 1:2-6). The 10 tribes were sent into exile in Assyria, while the tribes of Judah and Benjamin to Babylon. Seventy years later, in 537 BCE, Israel (Jacob) returned from this Babylonian exile, benefiting from God’s favor mentioned in Psalm 85 and the prophecy of Zechariah regarding God’s “Seventy Years” of Invective Against His People.
PSALMS 86 (Read in your Bible or in a Bible Online)
« Incline your ear, O Jehovah, and answer me,
For I am afflicted and poor » (Psalms 86:1)
Psalm 86 expresses King David’s pleas for God’s help:
« Incline your ear, O Jehovah, and answer me,
For I am afflicted and poor.
2 Guard my life, for I am loyal.
Save your servant who is trusting in you,
For you are my God » (verses 1, 2).
He specifically asks God to instruct him so that he can overcome the anguish caused by his difficulties:
« Instruct me, O Jehovah, about your way.
I will walk in your truth.
Unify my heart to fear your name » (verse 11).
Today, walking in God’s truth means following Christ, who designated himself as the way and the truth leading to the Heavenly Father and everlasting life:
“I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me” (John 14:6).
PSALMS 87 (Read in your Bible or in a Bible Online)
« His city’s foundation is in the holy mountains » (Psalms 87:1)
Psalm 87 is about of God’s holy mountains:
« His city’s foundation is in the holy mountains.
2 Jehovah loves the gates of Zion
More than all the tents of Jacob » (verses 1, 2).
What do God’s holy mountains represent? Verse 2 answers this by mentioning Mount Zion, where the tabernacle and later the temple in Jerusalem were located. The second mountain is Mount Moriah. Thus, the expression « God’s holy mountains » is a poetic paraphrase for the city of Jerusalem, situated on these two « mountains » (The four chariots coming from between two copper mountains (Zechariah 6:1-3)).
PSALMS 88 (Read in your Bible or in a Bible Online)
« For my soul has been filled with calamity,
And my life is on the brink of the Grave » (Salmos 88:3)
Psalm 88 is a lament describing the psalmist’s misfortunes as being sent by God in the form of an unceasing storm:
« For my soul has been filled with calamity,
And my life is on the brink of the Grave.
4 I am already counted among those going down to the pit;
I have become a helpless man,
5 Left among the dead
Like the slain lying in a grave,
Whom you remember no longer
And who have been separated from your care.
6 You have put me in the lowest pit,
In dark places, in a large abyss.
7 Your rage weighs heavily on me,
And you overwhelm me with your crashing waves » (verses 3-7).
Human nature being what it is, the more one is in misfortune, the fewer friends one has. However, the psalmist describes this phenomenon as being caused by God:
« You have driven my acquaintances far away from me;
You have made me something detestable to them.
I am trapped and cannot escape.
You have driven my friends and companions far away from me;
Darkness has become my companion » (verses 8 and 18).
The psalmist is not accusing, but supplicating that God would cause his suffering to cease, not in death, but while he is still alive:
“My eye is worn out because of my affliction.
I call on you, O Jehovah, all day long;
To you I spread out my hands.
10 Will you perform wonders for the dead?
Can those powerless in death rise up to praise you? (Selah)
11 Will your loyal love be declared in the grave,
Your faithfulness in the place of destruction?” (verses 9-11).
This Psalm raises the question of the reason for suffering. On this subject, some believe that God causes it, and others that God allows it. The former are driven by feelings, much like the psalmist, and the latter by reasoning. However, the logic of feelings at the heart of misfortune is not that of reason, outside of tribulation, and this psalm testifies to this, as does the reading of the biblical book of Job (Meditation on the book of Job ; Why God Allowed Suffering and Wickedness ?).
PSALMS 89 (Read in your Bible or in a Bible Online)
« I have found David my servant;
With my holy oil I have anointed him » (Psalms 89:20)
Psalm 89 gives glory to God and to God’s dominion, represented on earth by King David and his offspring. This Psalm mentions the Davidic covenant between God and King David:
« I have made a covenant with my chosen one;
I have sworn to David my servant:
4 ‘I will firmly establish your offspring forever,
And I will build up your throne for all generations.
I have found David my servant;
With my holy oil I have anointed him.
21 My hand will support him,
And my arm will strengthen him.
22 No enemy will exact tribute from him,
And no unrighteous man will oppress him.
23 I will crush to pieces his adversaries from before him
And strike down those who hate him.
24 My faithfulness and loyal love are with him,
And in my name his strength will be exalted.
25 I will put his hand over the sea
And his right hand over the rivers.
I have sworn in my holiness, once and for all;
I will not tell lies to David.
36 His offspring will endure forever;
His throne will endure like the sun before me.
37 Like the moon, it will be firmly established forever
As a faithful witness in the skies” (verses 3, 4, 20-25, 35-37).
However, for a time this throne has been overthrown when the Babylonians conquered and destroyed Jerusalem in 607 BCE. After this event, the question arose concerning this Davidic covenant:
“Where are your former acts of loyal love, O Jehovah,
That you swore about to David in your faithfulness?” (verse 49).
Centuries later, a man from his lineage presented himself as the permanent successor of King David by entering in Jerusalem as the king anointed by the Heavenly Father; this was King Jesus Christ (Yeshua Messiah). Here is what is written in the prophecy of Zechariah:
Jesus Christ has been anointed as King by his Heavenly Father, Jehovah God, at his baptism in 29 CE. Before the birth of the child Jesus, the angel Gabriel told Mary, his future mother, that her son would become king: « He will rule as King over the house of Jacob forever, and there will be no end to his Kingdom » (Luke 1:33).
PSALMS 90(Read in your Bible or in a Bible Online)
« For a thousand years are in your eyes but as yesterday when it is past, And as a watch during the night » (Salmos 90:4)
Psalm 90 refers to the Heavenly Father as a refuge. The psalmist, Moses, uses the metaphor or image of birth to show that God was there at the beginning of creation; He is timeless, not subject to time:
“O Jehovah, you have been our dwelling place throughout all generations.
2 Before the mountains were born
Or you brought forth the earth and the productive land,
From everlasting to everlasting, you are God” (verses 1 and 2).
Moses, the writer of Genesis, wrote in the first verse that God was before and at the beginning: “In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth” (Genesis 1:1).
Next, the psalmist contrasts God’s time, his perception of time, with the brevity of human existence:
“You make mortal man return to dust;
You say: “Return, you sons of men.”
4 For a thousand years are in your eyes just as yesterday when it is past,
Just as a watch during the night.
5 You sweep them away; they become like mere sleep;
In the morning they are like grass that sprouts.
6 In the morning it blossoms and is renewed,
But by evening it withers and dries up” (verses 3-6).
By divine decree, because of sin, God made the span of human existence comparable to a blade of grass or a flower that sprouts in the morning and disappears very quickly (Genesis 3:19; Romans 5:12). If for God a thousand years are like yesterday, what are we to make of the average length of human life?
“Our days ebb away because of your fury;
And our years come to an end like a whisper.
10 The span of our life is 70 years,
Or 80 if one is especially strong.
But they are filled with trouble and sorrow;
They quickly pass by, and away we fly » (verses 9, 10).
Faced with this situation, the psalmist makes a wise request:
“Teach us how to count our days
So that we may acquire a heart of wisdom” (verse 12) (How to Pray to God (Matthew 6:5-13)).
This is a beautiful request we should make of God, and if we are careful to use our brief lives in the service of God and his Son Jesus Christ, Psalm 90 offers this beautiful conclusion, comforting to each of us:
“May your servants see your activity,
And may their sons see your splendor.
17 May the favor of Jehovah our God be upon us;
May you prosper the work of our hands.
Yes, prosper the work of our hands” (verses 16, 17).
PSALMS 91 (Read in your Bible or in a Bible Online)
« Anyone dwelling in the secret place of the Most High
Will procure himself lodging under the very shadow of the Almighty One » (Psalms 91:1)
Psalm 91 is a poetic description of the divine protection of God’s servants:
“Anyone dwelling in the secret place of the Most High
Will lodge under the shadow of the Almighty.
2 I will say to Jehovah: “You are my refuge and my stronghold,
My God in whom I trust.”
3 For he will rescue you from the trap of the birdcatcher,
From the destructive pestilence.
4 With his pinions he will cover you,
And under his wings you will take refuge.
His faithfulness will be a large shield and a protective wall.
5 You will not fear the terrors of the night,
Nor the arrow that flies by day,
6 Nor the pestilence that stalks in the gloom,
Nor the destruction that ravages at midday” (verses 1-6).
The subject of God’s protection was briefly debated between Jesus Christ and Satan the devil during the temptations. The devil quoted a passage from Psalm 91:
« For he will give his angels a command concerning you,
To guard you in all your ways.
12 They will carry you on their hands,
So that you may not strike your foot against a stone » (verses 11 and 12).
Of course, the devil twisted the meaning:
“He then led him into Jerusalem and stationed him on the battlement of the temple and said to him: “If you are a son of God, throw yourself down from here, 10 for it is written, ‘He will give his angels a command concerning you, to preserve you,’ 11 and, ‘They will carry you on their hands, so that you may not strike your foot against a stone.’” 12 In answer Jesus said to him: “It is said, ‘You must not put Jehovah your God to the test’” (Luke 4:9-12).
The devil asked Jesus Christ to do something absurd simply to prove that he was the son of God, implying that whatever he would do, based on the statements in Psalm 91, God would protect him. Christ’s answer, based on the Bible, showed that we should not take unnecessary risks that could cost us our lives, because in that case, God’s protection would not apply (Deuteronomy 6:16).
Testing God means pushing Him to the limits of His own patience through disobedient behavior (1 Corinthians 10:9). And taking unnecessary risks that could cost us our lives is a form of disobedience to God (Does God protect us? If so, how? If not, why? ; Why God Allowed Suffering and Wickedness ?).
PSALMS 92 (Read in your Bible or in a Bible Online)
« It is good to give thanks to Jehovah
And to make melody to your name, O Most High » (Psalms 92:1)
Psalm 92 shows that we can give glory to God through song and music:
« It is good to give thanks to Jehovah
And to sing praises to your name, O Most High,
2 To declare your loyal love in the morning
And your faithfulness during the nights,
3 Accompanied by a ten-stringed instrument and a lute,
By the melodious sound of a harp » (verses 1-3).
King David was a poet and a musician. He organized groups of Levites who were specialized in singing and music to give glory to God:
« David then told the chiefs of the Levites to appoint their brothers the singers to sing out joyfully, accompanied by musical instruments: stringed instruments, harps, and cymbals » (1 Chronicles 15:16; 2 Chronicles 35:15).
Sometimes (it was not systematic) songs of praise could be accompanied by dances: « Then Mirʹi·am the prophetess, Aaron’s sister, took a tambourine in her hand, and all the women followed her with tambourines and with dances » (Exodus 15:20; 2 Samuel 6:14).
PSALMS 93 (Read in your Bible or in a Bible Online)
»Jehovah himself has become king! » (Psalms 93:1)
The theme of Psalm 93 is the kingship of God:
« Jehovah has become King!
With grandeur he is clothed;
Jehovah is clothed with strength;
He wears it like a belt.
The earth is firmly established;
It cannot be moved.
2 Your throne was firmly established long ago;
From eternity you have existed.
3 The rivers have surged, O Jehovah,
The rivers have surged and roared;
The rivers keep surging and pounding.
4 Above the sound of many waters,
Mightier than the breaking waves of the sea,
Jehovah is majestic in the heights.
5 Your reminders are very trustworthy.
Holiness adorns your house, O Jehovah, for all times » (Psalms 93).
Currently, it is King Jesus Christ who represents the kingship of God, his Father:
« These will battle with the Lamb, but because he is Lord of lords and King of kings, the Lamb will conquer them. Also, those with him who are called and chosen and faithful will do so » (Revelation 17:14).
Nevertheless, Jesus Christ will return this royal authority to his Father:
« For God “subjected all things under his feet.” But when he says that ‘all things have been subjected,’ it is evident that this does not include the One who subjected all things to him. But when all things will have been subjected to him, then the Son himself will also subject himself to the One who subjected all things to him, that God may be all things to everyone » (1 Corinthians 15:27, 28).
PSALMS 94 (Read in your Bible or in a Bible Online)
« Raise yourself up, O Judge of the earth.
Bring back a retribution upon the haughty ones » (Psalms 94:2)
Psalm 94 prophetically announces that God’s judgment and vengeance will be carried out against the wicked and the haughty:
« O God of vengeance, Jehovah,
O God of vengeance, shine forth!
2 Rise up, O Judge of the earth.
Repay to the haughty what they deserve » (verses 1, 2).
Meanwhile, the general impression is that the wicked act with impunity, and those who suffer their oppression wonder when God will exact his vengeance:
« How long will the wicked, O Jehovah,
How long will the wicked continue to exult? » (verse 3).
Currently, the wicked exult with joy; they have free rein; they say to themselves, « God does not exist! » “He sees nothing, he hears nothing, he will do nothing,” so they continue to plot the misery of the oppressed:
“They babble and speak arrogantly;
All the wrongdoers brag about themselves.
5 They crush your people, O Jehovah,
And oppress your inheritance.
6 They kill the widow and the foreign resident,
And they murder the fatherless children.
7 They say: “Jah does not see;
The God of Jacob does not take notice of it.”
(…) Can a throne of corruption be allied with you
While it is framing trouble in the name of the law?
21 They make vicious attacks on the righteous one
And condemn the innocent one to death” (verses 4-7, 20, 21).
Nevertheless, God makes the wicked reason with those who act arrogantly, thinking that he is indifferent to their actions, by telling them that they are but a mere breath in his eyes, and that the day will come when they will pay for their evil deeds:
“Understand this, you who are unreasoning;
You foolish ones, when will you ever show insight?
9 The One who made the ear, can he not hear?
The One who formed the eye, can he not see?
10 The One correcting the nations, can he not reprove?
He is the One who imparts knowledge to people!
11 Jehovah knows the thoughts of men,
That they are but a mere breath” (verses 8-11).
While awaiting God’s judgment and vengeance against the wicked, he corrects the righteous, teaching them patience and endurance as they await their salvation:
“Happy is the man whom you correct, O Jah,
Whom you teach from your law,
13 To give him tranquillity during days of calamity,
Until a pit is dug for the wicked.
14 For Jehovah will not forsake his people,
Nor will he abandon his inheritance.
15 For judgment will once again be righteous,
And all the upright in heart will follow it” (verses 12-15).
(Does God protect us? If so, how? If not, why? ; Why God Allowed Suffering and Wickedness ?)
PSALMS 95 (Read in your Bible or in a Bible Online)
« They shall not enter into my resting-place »(Psalms 95:11)
Psalm 95 and Entering God’s Rest:
“For he is our God,
And we are the people of his pasture,
The sheep in his care.
Today if you listen to his voice,
8 Do not harden your heart as at Merʹi·bah,
As in the day of Masʹsah in the wilderness,
9 When your forefathers tested me;
They challenged me, though they had seen my works.
10 For 40 years I felt a loathing toward that generation, and I said:
“They are a people who always go astray in their hearts;
They have not come to know my ways.”
11 So I swore in my anger:
“They will not enter into my rest”” (verses 7-11).
Entering into God’s rest means having His approval and the peace of mind mentioned by Jesus Christ: “I leave you peace; I give you my peace. I do not give it to you the way that the world gives it. Do not let your hearts be troubled nor let them shrink out of fear” (John 14:27).
After quoting the words found in Psalm 95, the apostle Paul, under inspiration, commented on them:
“Beware, brothers, for fear there should ever develop in any one of you a wicked heart lacking faith by drawing away from the living God; 13 but keep on encouraging one another each day, as long as it is called “Today,” so that none of you should become hardened by the deceptive power of sin. 14 For we actually become partakers of the Christ only if we hold firmly down to the end the confidence we had at the beginning. 15 As it is said, “Today if you listen to his voice, do not harden your hearts as on the occasion of provoking to bitter anger.”
16 For who heard and yet provoked him to bitter anger? Was it not, in fact, all those who went out of Egypt under Moses? 17 Moreover, with whom did God become disgusted for 40 years? Was it not with those who sinned, whose dead bodies fell in the wilderness? 18 And to whom did he swear that they would not enter into his rest? Was it not to those who acted disobediently? 19 So we see that they could not enter in because of lack of faith” (Hebrews 3:7-14; chapter 4).
PSALMS 96 and 97 (Read in your Bible or in a Bible Online)
« For he has come to judge the earth.
He will judge the productive land with righteousness
And the peoples with his faithfulness » (Psalms 96:13)
Psalm 96 addresses the peoples of the whole earth and designates God as the one who will judge the nations with equity:
« Sing to Jehovah a new song.
Sing to Jehovah, all the earth!
2 Sing to Jehovah; praise his name.
Proclaim the good news of his salvation day after day.
3 Declare his glory among the nations,
His wonderful works among all the peoples.
4 Jehovah is great and most worthy of praise.
He is more awe-inspiring than all other gods.
5 All the gods of the peoples are worthless gods,
But Jehovah is the one who made the heavens.
6 In his presence are majesty and splendor;
Strength and beauty are in his sanctuary.
7 Give Jehovah his due, you families of the peoples,
Give Jehovah his due for his glory and strength.
8 Give Jehovah the glory due his name;
Bring a gift and come into his courtyards.
9 Bow down to Jehovah in holy adornment;
Tremble before him, all the earth!” (verses 1-9).
The first nine verses are an invitation to all the nations to bow down before the Heavenly Father.
“Before Jehovah, for he is coming,
He is coming to judge the earth.
He will judge the inhabited earth with righteousness
And the peoples with his faithfulness” (verse 13).
God will judge all the nations faithfully and fairly, through his Son Jesus Christ. Psalm 96 contains a very important teaching point regarding to all the nations currently on earth. This was well summarized by the apostle Peter at the baptism of Cornelius and his family (who were non-Jews):
« At this Peter began to speak, and he said: “Now I truly understand that God is not partial, 35 but in every nation the man who fears him and does what is right is acceptable to him » » (Acts 10:34-35).
And the book of Revelation, which describes the great crowd that will come out of the great tribulation, from every nation, tribe, people, and language, confirms this teaching: God and his Son Jesus Christ make no racial, national, or tribal distinctions:
“After this I saw, and look! a great crowd, which no man was able to number, out of all nations and tribes and peoples and tongues, standing before the throne and before the Lamb, dressed in white robes; and there were palm branches in their hands. (…) These are the ones who come out of the great tribulation, and they have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb” (Revelation 7:9-17 (The Book of Apocalypse – The Great Crowd Coming from the Great Tribulation)).
Psalm 97, following Psalm 96, describes the expression of God’s kingship through the forces of his creation to execute his judgments against his adversaries:
« Jehovah has become King!
Let the earth be joyful.
Let the many islands rejoice.
2 Clouds and thick gloom are all around him;
Righteousness and justice are the foundation of his throne.
3 Fire goes before him
And consumes his adversaries on every side.
4 His lightning bolts light up the land;
The earth sees it and trembles.
5 The mountains melt like wax before Jehovah,
Before the Lord of the whole earth.
6 The heavens proclaim his righteousness,
And all the peoples see his glory » (verses 1-6).
This Psalm concludes with a beautiful exhortation:
« O you who love Jehovah, hate what is bad.
He is guarding the lives of his loyal ones;
He rescues them from the hand of the wicked.
11 Light has flashed up for the righteous
And rejoicing for those upright in heart.
12 Rejoice in Jehovah, you righteous ones,
And give thanks to his holy name » (verses 10-12).
PSALMS 98 and 99 (Read in your Bible or in a Bible Online)
« Let the sea thunder and that which fills it,
The productive land and those dwelling in it.
Let the rivers themselves clap their hands;
All together let the very mountains cry out joyfully » (Psalms 98:7,8)
Psalm 98 shows that the magnificence of God’s creation is the guarantee of his omnipotence and that he is the source of salvation for the nations, and indeed, a source of joy for them, as expressed in these two Psalms (98 and 99):
“Sing to Jehovah a new song,
For he has done wonderful things.
His right hand, his holy arm, has brought about salvation.
2 Jehovah has made known his salvation;
He has revealed his righteousness before the nations.
3 He has remembered his loyal love and faithfulness to the house of Israel.
All the ends of the earth have seen the salvation by our God.
4 Shout in triumph to Jehovah, all the earth.
Be cheerful and shout joyfully and sing praises” (98:1–4).
The following passage poetically describes the sound of the sea water as a roar, and the rivers as a clap of hands:
“Let the sea thunder and all that fills it,
The earth and those dwelling in it.
8 Let the rivers clap their hands;
Let the mountains shout joyfully together
9 Before Jehovah, for he is coming to judge the earth.
He will judge the inhabited earth with righteousness
And the peoples with fairness” (98:7–9).
The same kind of poetic description, this time on a visual level, is found in Psalm 97:5, describing the melting of the mountains, which can represent immense landslides resulting from floods or volcanic eruptions that completely reshape the landscape:
“The mountains melt like wax before Jehovah,
Before the Lord of the whole earth” (97:5).
Psalm 99:1, 2 describes the presence and holiness of God’s kingship through the former ark of the covenant (He sits enthroned above the cherubs), which was in the tabernacle (in the Most Holy Place of the Temple-Sanctuary) and later in Solomon’s temple, built on Mount Zion in Jerusalem:
“Jehovah has become King. Let the peoples tremble.
He sits enthroned above the cherubs. Let the earth shake.
2 Jehovah is great in Zion,
And he is high over all the peoples.
3 Let them praise your great name,
For it is awe-inspiring and holy” (99:1–3).
Psalm 99 mentions three figures who played a pivotal role in the sacred history of Israel. Moses and Aaron were the two brothers who established the foundations of the nation’s priesthood system (the books of Exodus through Deuteronomy). Samuel anointed the first two kings in Israel’s history (the books of 1 and 2 Samuel):
“Moses and Aaron were among his priests,
And Samuel was among those calling on his name.
They would call to Jehovah,
And he would answer them.
7 He would speak to them from the pillar of cloud.
They kept his reminders and the decree that he gave to them.
8 O Jehovah our God, you answered them.
You were a God who pardoned them,
But you punished them for their sinful deeds.
9 Exalt Jehovah our God
And bow down before his holy mountain,
For Jehovah our God is holy” (99:6–9).
PSALMS 100 (Read in your Bible or in a Bible Online)
« We are his people and the sheep of his pasturage » (Psalms 100:3)
Who was the people of God mentioned in Psalm 100 ? At the time this psalm was written, it was to the nation of Israel:
“Shout in triumph to Jehovah, all the earth.
2 Serve Jehovah with rejoicing.
Come into his presence with joyful shouting.
3 Know that Jehovah is God.
He is the one who made us, and we belong to him.
We are his people and the sheep of his pasture.
4 Come into his gates with thanksgiving,
Into his courtyards with praise.
Give thanks to him; praise his name.
5 For Jehovah is good;
His loyal love endures forever,
And his faithfulness through all generations” (Psalms 100).
Who currently represents God’s people? Jesus Christ indirectly answered this question when he mentioned the period of the Great Tribulation: “In fact, unless those days were cut short, no flesh would be saved; but on account of the chosen ones those days will be cut short” (Matthew 24:22).
God’s people are made up of men and women “chosen” by God and Jesus Christ. This people of God, chosen by God and Jesus Christ, will constitute the great crowd that will come out of the great tribulation, from every nations, tribes, peoples, and languages (Revelation 7:9-17 (The Book of Apocalypse – The Great Crowd Coming from the Great Tribulation)).
PSALMS 101 (Read in your Bible or in a Bible Online)
« I will act with discretion in a faultless way » (Psalms 101:2)
In Psalm 101, King David, the psalmist, writes that he desires to act with integrity:
“I will sing about loyal love and justice.
To you, O Jehovah, I will sing praises.
2 I will act with discretion and blamelessness.
When will you come to me?
I will walk with integrity of heart inside my house” (verses 1 and 2).
It is important to clarify the precise meaning of the word “integrity.” The transliteration of the Hebrew word is “tāmîm,” which means: “entire (literally, figuratively or morally); also (as noun) integrity, truth:—without blemish, complete, full, perfect, sincerely (-ity), sound, without spot, undefiled, upright(-ly), whole” (Strong Concordance H8549).
More specifically, this is how it manifests in the conduct of an upright person, according to this Psalm:
« I will not set anything worthless before my eyes.
I hate the deeds of those who deviate from what is right;
I will have nothing to do with them.
4 A crooked heart is far from me;
I will not accept what is bad.
5 Anyone slandering his neighbor in secret,
I will silence.
Anyone with haughty eyes and an arrogant heart,
I will not tolerate.
6 I will look to the faithful ones of the earth,
So that they may dwell with me.
The one walking in blamelessness will minister to me.
7 No deceitful person will dwell in my house,
And no liar will stand in my presence.
8 Every morning I will silence all the wicked of the earth,
To cut off all wrongdoers from the city of Jehovah” (verses 3-8).
Psalm 15 also describes the conduct of an upright person. From the perspective of God and his son Jesus Christ, integrity or “perfection” is entirely attainable for those who have the law of sin within them and who desire to act with integrity (Romans 5:12): “You must accordingly be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect” (Matthew 5:43-48 (Achieving Spiritual Maturity (Hebrews 6:1))).
PSALMS 102 (Read in your Bible or in a Bible Online)
« Do not conceal your face from me on the day that I am in sore straits » (Psalms 102:2)
Here is the title of Psalm 102: “A prayer of the oppressed one when he is in despair and pours out his concern before Jehovah”.
The Psalmist pours out his feelings of despair before God:
“O Jehovah, hear my prayer;
Let my cry for help reach you.
2 Do not hide your face from me in my time of distress.
Incline your ear to me;
Do answer me quickly when I call” (verses 1, 2).
The expression “do not hide your face from me” seems to indicate that perhaps the psalmist has a feeling of unworthiness or guilt that might cause God to hide his face or not hear his prayer.
“All day long my enemies taunt me.
Those who mock me use my name as a curse” (verse 8).
He also feels a sense of abandonment and hostility from those around him. This Psalm is similar to Psalms 51 and 88. The apostle Paul explained that sometimes the person who prays to God may be in a situation where he cannot find the words to explain his situation:
“In like manner, the spirit also joins in with help for our weakness; for the problem is that we do not know what we should pray for as we need to, but the spirit itself pleads for us with unuttered groanings. 27 But the one who searches the hearts knows what the meaning of the spirit is, because it is pleading in harmony with God for the holy ones” (Romans 8:26,27).
We can be reassured that God will understand us, even if we cannot find the right words. Nevertheless, reading Psalms like Psalm 102 or others can help them express exactly what we have felt without being able to put it into words. Thus, the thought expressed by the Psalm testifies that God has understood us in our unspoken groans…
PSALMS 103 (Read in your Bible or in a Bible Online)
« As far off as the sunrise is from the sunset,
So far off from us he has put our transgressions » (Psalms 103:12)
The theme of Psalm 103 is the divine mercy, which allows for the hope of everlasting life:
« Let me praise Jehovah;
Let everything within me praise his holy name.
2 Let me praise Jehovah;
May I never forget all that he has done.
3 He forgives all your errors
And heals all your ailments;
4 He reclaims your life from the pit
And crowns you with his loyal love and mercy.
5 He satisfies you with good things all your life,
So that your youth is renewed like that of an eagle » (verses 1-5).
The idea of everlasting life, healing from illness, and the resurrection linked to God’s forgiveness are expressed subtly or through poetic circumlocutions. For example, the hope of resurrection in verse 4: « He reclaims your life from the pit ». The Hebrew verb, translated as « to reclaim », means « to redeem », which can be translated as « He redeems life from the pit (or grave) » by resurrection (either on earth or in heaven) (Strong Concordance « Gaal » (H1350)). Psalm 103 declares that this forgiveness from God will be in accordance with his justice and mercy (which is an expression of that same justice), making the ransom and eternal life, permanent:
« Jehovah acts with righteousness and justice
For all who are oppressed.
7 He made known his ways to Moses,
His deeds to the sons of Israel.
8 Jehovah is merciful and compassionate,
Slow to anger and abundant in loyal love.
9 He will not always find fault,
Nor will he stay resentful forever.
10 He has not dealt with us according to our sins,
Nor has he repaid us what our errors deserve.
11 For as the heavens are higher than the earth,
So great is his loyal love toward those who fear him.
12 As far off as the sunrise is from the sunset,
So far off from us he has put our transgressions” (verses 6-12).
In order to allow his mercy to be consistent with his justice, the Heavenly Father sent his Son Jesus Christ to redeem us:
“Just as the Son of man came, not to be ministered to, but to minister and to give his life as a ransom in exchange for many” (Matthew 20:28).
The wondrous work of God’s mercy, expressed in Psalm 103, lies in the fact that he transformed a completely hopeless situation into a source of hope (while still upholding his divine standards of justice through his acts of mercy):
“For the wages sin pays is death, but the gift God gives is everlasting life by Christ Jesus our Lord” (Romans 6:23).
What is this truth and this freedom (John 8:32)?
PSALMS 104 (Read in your Bible or in a Bible Online)
« Making his angels spirits,
His ministers a devouring fire » (Psalms 104:4)
The Psalm 104 describes God’s glory clothed in light, whose power is manifested by water, wind, and fire:
“Let me praise Jehovah.
O Jehovah my God, you are very great.
With majesty and splendor you are clothed.
2 You are wrapped in light as with a garment;
You stretch out the heavens like a tent cloth.
3 He lays beams of his upper rooms in the waters above,
Making the clouds his chariot,
Moving on the wings of the wind.
4 He makes his angels spirits,
His ministers a consuming fire.
5 He has established the earth on its foundations;
It will not be moved from its place forever and ever” (verses 1-5).
Psalm 104 mentions how the earth was enveloped in an atmospheric canopy of water. Then, at the time of the flood in Noah’s days, it fell upon the earth, reshaping the continents.
In verse 6, there is the poetic description of the universal flood covering the mountains: “You covered it with deep waters as with a garment. The waters stood above the mountains” (Genesis 7:11,19,20).
Verse 7: the waters of the flood are personified as fleeing, in fear, at the rebuke of God: “At your rebuke they fled; At the sound of your thunder they ran away in panic” (Genesis 8:3).
The following verses will give us information that does not appear in the narrative of Genesis: “Mountains ascended and valleys descended — To the place you established for them. You set a boundary that they should not pass, That they should never again cover the earth” (verses 8,9). This text gives us very interesting information. Under the enormous and sudden weight of the flood waters, valleys were sunk, while in other geographical locations, mountains rose (known by the thrust of Archimedes (name of a famous Greek scholar)). Can we verify the accuracy of this poetic, post-diluvian biblical story?
It is important to know that the Earth’s crust is above a hot magma of molten rocks. Its average thickness is 40 kilometers, but it varies from 25 to 65 kilometers. Some parts are thicker than others. This means that the thinner parts of the Earth’s crust are more fragile, under the weight of a very large quantity of water. According to the poetic information of Psalm 104, the waters of the flood, with their sudden astronomical weights, radically changed the geography of the continents and oceans. The thinner plates of the Earth’s crust gave way under the enormous weight of the waters, while the thicker plates “ascended” to become great mountains (Psalm 104:8).
The rest of the description shows the diversity of God’s creation, as he is described as the source of life:
“How many your works are, O Jehovah!
You have made all of them in wisdom.
The earth is full of what you have made. (. . .)
All of them wait for you
To give them their food in its season.
28 What you give them, they gather.
When you open your hand, they are satisfied with good things.
29 When you hide your face, they are disturbed.
If you take away their spirit, they die and return to the dust.
30 If you send out your spirit, they are created,
And you renew the surface of the ground.
31 The glory of Jehovah will last forever.
Jehovah will rejoice in his works” (verses 24, 27-31).
PSALMS 105 and 106 (Read in your Bible or in a Bible Online)
« He has remembered his covenant even to time indefinite,
The word that he commanded, to a thousand generations » (Psalms 105:8)
Psalms 105 and 106 show that God made a covenant with Abraham by being faithful to his promise despite the repeated disobedience of his descendants, the nation of Israel. These two Psalms are a summary of the history of the nation of Israel, which can be read in the biblical books of Genesis, Exodus, Numbers, Deuteronomy, Joshua, Judges, 1 and 2 Kings, and 1 and 2 Chronicles:
« Give thanks to Jehovah, call on his name,
Make his deeds known among the peoples!
2 Sing to him, sing praises to him,
Ponder over all his wonderful works.
3 Boast about his holy name.
Let the hearts of those seeking Jehovah rejoice.
4 Search for Jehovah and his strength.
Seek his face constantly.
5 Remember the wonderful works he has performed,
His miracles and the judgments he has pronounced,
6 You offspring of Abraham his servant,
You sons of Jacob, his chosen ones.
7 He is Jehovah our God.
His judgments are throughout the earth.
8 He remembers his covenant forever,
The promise he made, to a thousand generations,
9 The covenant he made with Abraham,
And the oath he swore to Isaac,
10 Which he established as a decree to Jacob
And as a lasting covenant to Israel,
11 Saying, “I will give you the land of Caʹnaan
As your allotted inheritance.”
12 This was when they were few in number,
Yes, very few, and they were foreigners in the land” (Psalms 105:1-12).
“But he would see their distress
And hear their cry for help.
45 For their sake he would remember his covenant,
And he would feel pity, moved by his great loyal love.
46 He would cause them to be pitied
By all who held them captive.
47 Save us, O Jehovah our God,
And gather us from the nations
So that we may give thanks to your holy name
And exult in praising you.
48 May Jehovah, the God of Israel, be praised
Throughout all eternity.
And let all the people say, “Amen!”
Praise Jah!” (Psalms 106:44-48).
Let us consider the moving account of the life of Joseph, who was deported as a slave to Egypt for thirteen years. Psalm 105 briefly mentions the harsh conditions he endured:
« He sent ahead of them a man
Who was sold to be a slave, Joseph.
18 With fetters they bound his feet,
His neck was put in irons;
19 Until the time that his word proved true,
The saying of Jehovah is what refined him.
20 The king sent to release him,
The ruler of the peoples set him free.
21 He made him master of his household,
Ruler over all his property,
22 To have authority over his princes as he pleased
And to teach his elders wisdom.
23 Then Israel came into Egypt,
And Jacob lived as a foreigner in the land of Ham » (Psalms 105:17-23).
We can read this captivating and moving story of a righteous man who suffered greatly, refined by God through his trials (according to verse 19), and then propelled to the highest positions in the Egyptian nation, in the book of Genesis chapter 37, 39 to 50.
He will crush your head, and you will strike him in the heel (Genesis 3:15)
PSALMS 107 (Read in your Bible or in a Bible Online)
« For he has satisfied the dried-out soul;
And the hungry soul he has filled with good things » (Psalms 107:9)
In Psalm 107 the Heavenly Father is described as the redeemer who saves his people from perilous situations many times throughout their history:
« Give thanks to Jehovah, for he is good;
His loyal love endures forever.
2 Let those reclaimed by Jehovah say this,
Those whom he reclaimed from the hand of the adversary,
3 Whom he gathered together from the lands,
From the east and from the west,
From the north and from the south » (verses 1-3).
The following verses of this Psalm show how God has saved his people and how he has not always shown gratitude. In doing so, they fell back into a perilous situation, after which they again begged for God’s help, who saved them:
« They wandered about in the wilderness, in the desert;
They did not find a way to a city where they could live.
5 They were hungry and thirsty;
They were faint from exhaustion.
6 They kept crying out to Jehovah in their distress;
He rescued them from their plight.
7 He had them walk in the right way
To come to a city where they could live.
8 Let people give thanks to Jehovah for his loyal love
And for his wonderful works in behalf of the sons of men.
9 For he has satisfied the thirsty
And filled the hungry with good things.
10 Some were living in deepest darkness,
Prisoners in affliction and in irons.
11 For they had rebelled against the word of God;
They disrespected the counsel of the Most High.
12 So he humbled their hearts through hardship;
They stumbled, and there was no one to help them.
13 They called to Jehovah for help in their distress;
He saved them from their plight” (verses 4-13).
These verses do not mention specific historical events, but they can apply to the Israelites leaving Egypt and their 40-year wandering in the desert. Or even to the period of the judges, when the people regularly disobeyed God and then called upon God for help, who raised up judges to deliver them. The continuation of Psalm 107 illustrates this alternation in which God showed compassion each time his people pleaded for his help when he himself was in distress (read the books of Exodus, Numbers, and Judges):
« He brought them out of deepest darkness,
And he tore off their shackles.
15 Let people give thanks to Jehovah for his loyal love
And for his wonderful works in behalf of the sons of men » (verses 14 and 15).
PSALMS 108 (Read in your Bible or in a Bible Online)
« By God we shall gain vital energy,
And he himself will tread down our adversaries » (Psalms 108:13)
Psalm 108 describes God’s glory through his power, manifesting his strength over the enemies of his people:
“Be exalted above the heavens, O God;
May your glory be over all the earth.
6 So that your loved ones may be rescued,
Save us with your right hand and answer me.
7 God has spoken in his holiness:
“I will exult, I will give out Sheʹchem as an inheritance,
And I will measure off the Valley of Sucʹcoth.
8 Gilʹe·ad belongs to me, as does Ma·nasʹseh,
And Eʹphra·im is the helmet for my head;
Judah is my commander’s staff.
9 Moʹab is my washbasin.
Over Eʹdom I will throw my sandal.
Over Phi·lisʹti·a I will shout in triumph.”
10 Who will bring me to the fortified city?
Who will lead me as far as Eʹdom?
11 Is it not you, O God, who have rejected us,
Our God, who no longer goes out with our armies?
12 Help us in our distress,
For salvation by humans is worthless.
13 By God we will gain power,
And he will trample on our adversaries” (verses 5-13).
Manasseh and Ephraim had the status of half-tribes, descendants of their father Joseph. As son of Jacob, he inherited the birthright after Reuben has been deprived of it (Genesis 49:3, 4, 22-26). Of Joseph’s two sons, Ephraim inherited the birthright, which is why his name is often mentioned, later representing the ten tribes of Israel (after the split between Rehoboam (king of the tribes of Judah and Benjamin) and Jeroboam (king of the other ten tribes)) (Genesis 48:17-20).
King David was from the tribe of Judah, which is described as the commander’s staff. Later, the man Jesus Christ, from the tribe of Judah and a descendant of King David, became the commander’s staff through his anointing as king at his baptism. Edom, Moab, and Philistia represent the « adversaries » in the time of King David.
PSALMS 109 (Read in your Bible or in a Bible Online)
« O God of my praise, do not keep silent » (Psalms 109:1)
Psalm 109 describes the acts of wickedness against the psalmist, King David. He asks God to exact vengeance on them:
“O God whom I praise, do not remain silent.
2 For the wicked and the deceitful open their mouths against me.
They speak about me with lying tongues;
3 They surround me with hateful words,
And they attack me without cause.
4 They resist me in response to my love;
But I continue to pray.
5 They repay me with bad for good
And hatred for my love.
6 Appoint a wicked man over him;
May a resister stand at his right hand.
7 When he is judged, may he be found guilty;
May even his prayer be counted as a sin.
8 Let his days be few;
His office of oversight let someone else take.
9 Let his children become fatherless,
And his wife, a widow” (verses 1-9).
The apostle Peter, in a discourse showing the need to replace Judas Iscariot, the apostle who had betrayed Jesus Christ, quoted part of verse 8 from Psalm 109: “His office of oversight let someone else take” (Acts 1:15-26).
If we are in the same situation as the psalmist, it is important not to seek revenge ourselves, but to leave the situation in the hands of God and his Son Jesus Christ:
“Return evil for evil to no one. Take into consideration what is fine from the viewpoint of all men. 18 If possible, as far as it depends on you, be peaceable with all men. 19 Do not avenge yourselves, beloved, but yield place to the wrath; for it is written: “‘Vengeance is mine; I will repay,’ says Jehovah.” 20 But “if your enemy is hungry, feed him; if he is thirsty, give him something to drink; for by doing this you will heap fiery coals on his head.” 21 Do not let yourself be conquered by the evil, but keep conquering the evil with the good” (Romans 12:17-21).
PSALMS 110 (Read in your Bible or in a Bible Online)
« Sit at my right hand
Until I place your enemies as a stool for your feet » (Psalms 110:1)
Psalm 110 is a Messianic prophecy linked to the kingship of Christ, like Psalm 2 (you can read it and see the notes above concerning this psalm):
“Jehovah declared to my Lord:
“Sit at my right hand
Until I place your enemies as a stool for your feet.”
2 Jehovah will extend the scepter of your power out of Zion, saying:
“Go subduing in the midst of your enemies”” (verses 1, 2).
Jesus Christ asked a question about this passage:
“Now while the Pharisees were gathered together, Jesus asked them: 42 “What do you think about the Christ? Whose son is he?” They said to him: “David’s.” 43 He asked them: “How is it, then, that David under inspiration calls him Lord, saying, 44 ‘Jehovah said to my Lord: “Sit at my right hand until I put your enemies beneath your feet”’? 45 If, then, David calls him Lord, how is he his son?” 46 And nobody was able to say a word in reply to him, and from that day on, no one dared to question him any further” (Matthew 22:41-46).
Contemporaries could not answer this question because they saw Jesus as merely a human descendant of King David, and not as a heavenly being of divine essence, as the apostle John clearly explained (chapter 1).
Verses 2 and 5-7 of this Psalm openly announce a future act of war by King Jesus Christ against the nations that oppose his kingship. It will take place during the great tribulation (Matthew 24:21-22):
“Jehovah will be at your right hand;
He will crush kings on the day of his anger.
6 He will execute judgment against the nations;
He will fill the land with dead bodies.
He will crush the leader of a vast land.
7 He will drink from the stream along the road.
Therefore, he will hold his head high” (verses 5-7).
“And I saw, and look! a white horse, and the one seated on it had a bow; and a crown was given him, and he went out conquering and to complete his conquest” (Revelation 6:2).
Psalm 110 mentions that Jesus Christ holds two important roles: king and priest. He holds the role of king by virtue of the fulfillment of the Davidic covenant and his direct lineage (on earth) to him. His role as priest, however, is by divine decree and not through lineage with the high priest Aaron and his family:
“Your people will offer themselves willingly on the day of your military force.
In splendid holiness, from the womb of the dawn,
You have your company of young men just like dewdrops.
4 Jehovah has sworn an oath, and he will not change his mind:
“You are a priest forever
In the manner of Mel·chizedek!”” (verses 3, 4).
Melkizedek is a biblical figure who appears abruptly in the historical narrative and who met Abraham (Genesis 14). It is probable that this was Shem (son of Noah and ancestor of Abraham), but there is no direct indication in the historical context of Genesis to support this conclusion. The apostle Paul explains in detail why King Jesus Christ is also a priest in the manner of Melchizedek in chapters 6 and 7 of the letter to the Hebrews:
“If, then, perfection was attainable through the Levitical priesthood (for it was a feature of the Law that was given to the people), what further need would there be for another priest to arise who is said to be in the manner of Melchizedek and not in the manner of Aaron? (…) And this becomes even clearer when another priest arises who is like Mel·chizʹe·dek, 16 who has become such, not by the legal requirement that depends on fleshly descent, but by the power of an indestructible life. 17 For it is said in witness of him: “You are a priest forever in the manner of Melchizedek”” (Hebrews 7:11, 15-17).
PSALMS 111 and 112 (Read in your Bible or in a Bible Online)
« A memorial he has made for his wonderful works » (Psalms 111:4)
Psalm 111 and the Memorial of the *Divine Name (YHWH):
“Praise Jah!
א [Aleph]
I will praise Jehovah with all my heart
ב [Beth]
In the assembled group of upright ones and in the congregation.
ג [Gimel]
2 The works of Jehovah are great;
ד [Daleth]
They are studied by all those finding pleasure in them.
ה [He]
3 His activity is glorious and splendid,
ו [Waw]
And his righteousness endures forever.
ז [Zayin]
4 He causes his wonderful works to be remembered.
ח [Heth]
Jehovah is compassionate and merciful” (111:1-4).
Thus, when *Yehouah (YHWH ) God speaks of his Name as a « Memorial », it means that the question of Moses concerning the Name was: What will I say to the Israelites concerning the power of your Name and the extraordinary actions attached to this Name (As Memorial of past actions)? The question of Moses, regarding the Divine Name is inscribed on the capacity of action of the True God, who resides in the power of his Name. Nevertheless, God’s response is very subtle: In Egypt, every god had a name attached to a very precise miraculous power of action. Thus, in his answer, « I Will Become What I Choose to Become », he does not want human intelligence to lock his Name only in one miraculous ability. In the account of Exodus 4:1-9, it is written that God did four miracles, showing his capacity for creation by turning the staff of Moses into a serpent, and making it become a staff. Also, by making the hand of Moses to have leprosy (destruction) and after, healing it (recreation). Through these two series of two miracles, God illustrated his all mightiness, and therefore only his extraordinary actions would reveal the memorial of his name. « I Will Become What I Choose to Become », it is the action undertaken by God that would give the spiritual meaning to his Name, of Who « He is ».
* YHWH is the tetragrammaton, or four-letter for the Divine Name. In the New World Translation of the Bible, it appears with the vocalization commonly used for centuries as « Jehovah ». This vocalization is doubly inaccurate because it inserts the pronunciation J instead of I (i) or Y, and the V corresponding to W, which is pronounced « U » or « ou » (not V). The correct vocalization of the Tetragrammaton is YeHou(W)aH, Yehouah. The inaccurate vocalization « Jehovah » is retained in the Bible translation used, just as the inaccurate vocalization of « Jesus, » pronounced Yeshua or Yeshoua, because they are the most known to readers (click on the link to examine the study on the Divine Name in more detail: The Divine Name YHWH is pronounced as it is written).
“Praise Jah!
א [Aleph]
Happy is the man who fears Jehovah,
ב [Beth]
Who takes great pleasure in his commandments.
ג [Gimel]
2 His descendants will be mighty in the earth,
ד [Daleth]
And the generation of the upright will be blessed” (112:1,2).
PSALMS 113 to 118 (Read in your Bible or in a Bible Online)
« Praise Jah, you people! » (Psalms 113:9)
Psalms 113-118, the six Psalms of Hallel. Hallel is a transliteration of the Hebrew verb meaning « to praise » God. Hallelujah means « Praise Jah ». Jah is the diminutive of the Divine Name YHWH.
Here is a simplified definition of Hallel: « Hallel (Hebrew: הַלֵּל, ‘Praise’) is a Jewish prayer, a verbatim recitation from Psalms 113–118 which is recited by observant Jews on Jewish holidays as an act of praise and thanksgiving. » (Wikipedia « Hallel » (full article)). Here are some selected passages:
« Who is like Jehovah our God,
The one who dwells on high?
6 He stoops down to look on heaven and earth,
7 Raising the lowly from the dust.
He lifts up the poor from the ash heap
8 In order to make him sit with nobles,
With the nobles of his people.
9 He gives the barren woman a home
As a happy mother with children.
Praise Jah!” (Psalm 113:5-9).
“When Israel went out of Egypt,
The house of Jacob from a people speaking a foreign language,
2 Judah became his sanctuary,
Israel, his dominion.
3 The sea saw it and fled;
The Jordan turned back.
4 The mountains skipped about like rams,
The hills, like lambs.
5 What made you flee, O sea?
Why, O Jordan, did you turn back?
6 Why did you skip about like rams, O mountains,
Like lambs, O hills? » (Psalm 114:1-6)
“Their idols are silver and gold,
The work of human hands.
5 A mouth they have, but they cannot speak;
Eyes, but they cannot see;
6 Ears they have, but they cannot hear;
A nose, but they cannot smell;
7 Hands they have, but they cannot feel;
Feet, but they cannot walk;
They make no sound with their throat.
8 The people who make them will become just like them,
As will all those who trust in them.
9 O Israel, trust in Jehovah
—He is their help and their shield” (Psalm 115:4-9).
“The ropes of death encircled me;
The Grave had me in its grip.
I was overcome by distress and grief.
4 But I called on the name of Jehovah:
“O Jehovah, rescue me! » (…)
15 Costly in the eyes of Jehovah
Is the death of his loyal ones” (Psalm 116:3, 4, 15).
“Praise Jehovah, all you nations;
Glorify him, all you peoples.
2 For his loyal love toward us is great;
The faithfulness of Jehovah endures forever.
Praise Jah! » (Psalm 117).
“Jehovah is on my side; I will not be afraid.
What can man do to me?
7 Jehovah is on my side as my helper;
I will look in triumph on those who hate me.
8 It is better to take refuge in Jehovah
Than to trust in humans.
9 It is better to take refuge in Jehovah
Than to trust in princes. (…)
22 The stone that the builders rejected
Has become the chief cornerstone” (Psalm 118:6-9, 22).
The stone rejected by the builders represents Jesus Christ who has been rejected by the ruling class of Israel in his time (Acts 4:8-12).
PSALMS 119 (Read in your Bible or in a Bible Online)
« Your word is a lamp to my foot,
And a light to my roadway » (Psalms 119:105)
Psalm 119 contains 176 verses; below are some selected excerpts with brief commentaries:
“Happy are those who are blameless in their way,
Who walk in the law of Jehovah.
2 Happy are those who observe his reminders,
Who search for him with all their heart.
3 They practice no unrighteousness;
They walk in his ways.
4 You have commanded
That your orders be carefully kept” (verses 1-4).
Psalms 15 and 101, like the beginning of Psalm 119, describe what integrity means in practical terms.
“How can a young man keep his path clean?
By keeping on guard according to your word.
10 With my whole heart I seek you.
Do not let me stray from your commandments.
11 In my heart I treasure up your saying
So that I may not sin against you” (verses 9-11).
Purifying one’s path before God means progressively improving one’s behavior to please Him.
“Deal kindly with your servant,
So that I may live and observe your word.
18 Open my eyes so that I may see clearly
The wonderful things from your law. (…)
24 I am fond of your reminders;
They are my advisers” (verses 17,18,24).
The psalmist asks God for insight and wisdom to better understand his commandments (Proverbs 2:1-9).
“Incline my heart to your reminders,
Not to selfish gain.
37 Turn my eyes away from looking at what is worthless;
Preserve me alive in your way” (verses 36, 37).
The sight of worthless things can represent distractions that do not edify us and do not encourage us toward spiritual growth.
“I have examined my ways,
In order to turn my feet back to your reminders.
60 I hurry and do not delay
To keep your commandments” (verses 59, 60).
Reflecting on one’s ways is a way to purify one’s path before God (see verses 9-11).
“It is good that I have been afflicted,
So that I may learn your regulations” (verse 71).
God can use our trials to refine us (James 1:2, 3).
“Your commandment makes me wiser than my enemies,
Because it is with me forever.
99 I have more insight than all my teachers,
Because I ponder over your reminders” (verses 98, 99).
God’s wisdom surpasses that of men, even teachers.
“Your word is a lamp to my foot,
And a light for my path” (verse 105).
God’s word, the Bible, helps us make good decisions in the short-term (a lamp for my foot) and long-term plans (a light for my path).
“Abundant peace belongs to those who love your law;
Nothing can make them stumble.
166 I hope for your acts of salvation, O Jehovah,
And I observe your commandments.
167 I keep your reminders,
And I love them dearly.
168 I observe your orders and your reminders,
For you are aware of all that I do” (verses 165-168).
PSALMS 120 to 134 (Read in your Bible or in a Bible Online)
« I shall raise my eyes to the mountains.
From where will my help come? » (Psalms 121:1)
Psalms 120-134 represent the fifteen Songs of Ascents or Steps. Here is the historical explanation of these fifteen songs from Wikipedia:
« Song of Ascents is a title given to fifteen of the Psalms, 120–134 (119–133 in the Septuagint and the Vulgate), each starting with the superscription « Shir Hama’aloth » (Hebrew: שיר המעלות, romanized: šir ham-ma‘loṯ, lit. ’Song of the Ascents’), or, in the case of Psalm 121, Shir Lama’aloth (Hebrew: שיר למעלות, romanized: šir lama‘loṯ, lit. ’a song on the ascents’). They are also variously called Gradual Psalms, Fifteen Psalms, Songs of Degrees, Songs of Steps, songs for going up to worship or Pilgrim Songs.
« Many scholars believe the title indicates that these psalms were sung by worshippers as they ascended the road to Jerusalem to attend the Three Pilgrimage Festivals[3] (Deuteronomy 16:16). Others think they were sung by the Levite singers as they ascended the fifteen steps to minister at the Temple in Jerusalem.[4] One view says the Levites first sang the Songs at the dedication of Solomon’s temple during the night of the fifteenth of Tishri 959 BC.[5] Another study suggests that they were composed for a celebration after Nehemiah’s rebuilding of Jerusalem’s walls in 445 BC.[6] Others consider that they may originally have been individual poems which were later collected together and given the title linking them to pilgrimage after the Babylonian captivity » (Wikipedia « Songs of Ascents » (full article)).
Below are some selected excerpts:
« I am for peace, but when I speak,
They are for war » (Psalms 120:7)
« Jehovah is guarding you.
Jehovah is the shade at your right hand.
6 By day the sun will not strike you,
Nor the moon by night.
7 Jehovah will guard you against all harm.
He will guard your life.
8 Jehovah will guard you in all you do
From now on and forever » (Psalms 121:5-8).
« I rejoiced when they said to me:
“I rejoiced when they said to me:
“Let us go to the house of Jehovah ». (…)
For the sake of my brothers and my companions I will say:
“May there be peace within you.”
9 For the sake of the house of Jehovah our God,
I will seek good for you » (Psalms 122:1, 8, 9).
« To you I raise my eyes,
You who are enthroned in the heavens.
2 As the eyes of servants look to the hand of their master,
And the eyes of a servant girl to the hand of her mistress,
So our eyes look to Jehovah our God
Until he shows us favor.
3 Show us favor, O Jehovah, show us favor,
For we have had our full share of contempt.
4 We have had our full share of ridicule from the self-assured
And the contempt of the arrogant » (Psalms 123).
« May Jehovah be praised,
For he has not given us as prey to their teeth.
7 We are like a bird that escaped
From the hunter’s trap;
The trap was broken,
And we escaped.
8 Our help is in the name of Jehovah,
The Maker of heaven and earth » (Psalms 124:6-8).
« The scepter of wickedness will not remain upon the land allotted to the righteous,
So that the righteous do not turn to doing what is wrong.
4 Do good, O Jehovah, to those who are good,
To those who are upright in heart » (Psalms 125:3, 4).
« Those sowing seed with tears
Will reap with a joyful shout.
6 The one who does go out, though weeping,
Carrying his bag of seed,
Will surely return with a joyful shout,
Carrying in his sheaves » (Psalms 126:5, 6).
« Unless Jehovah builds the house,
It is in vain that its builders work hard on it.
Unless Jehovah guards the city,
It is in vain that the guard stays awake.
2 It is in vain that you rise up early,
That you stay up late,
That you toil for your food,
Since he provides for his loved ones while giving them sleep » (Psalms 127:1, 2).
« Look! Sons are an inheritance from Jehovah;
The fruit of the womb is a reward.
4 Like arrows in the hand of a mighty man,
So are the sons of one’s youth.
5 Happy is the man who fills his quiver with them.
They will not be put to shame,
For they will speak with enemies in the city gate »(Psalms 127:3-5).
« Happy is everyone who fears Jehovah,
Who walks in His ways.
2 You will eat what your hands worked hard to produce.
You will be happy and will enjoy prosperity.
3 Your wife will be like a fruitful vine within your house;
Your sons will be like shoots of an olive tree around your table »(Psalms 128:1-3).
« Since my youth they have constantly attacked me;
But they have not defeated me.
3 Plowmen have plowed across my back;
They have made their furrows long.”
4 But Jehovah is righteous;
He has cut up the ropes of the wicked » (Psalms 129:2-4).
« If errors were what you watch, O Jah,
Then who, O Jehovah, could stand?
4 For with you there is true forgiveness,
So that you may be held in awe » (Psalms 130:3,4).
« O Jehovah, my heart is not haughty,
Nor are my eyes lofty;
Nor do I aspire to things too great,
Or to things that are beyond me.
2 No, but I have calmed and quieted my soul
Like a weaned child with its mother;
I am contented like a weaned child.
3 Let Israel wait for Jehovah
From now on and forever » (Psalms 131).
« For Jehovah has chosen Zion;
He has desired it for his dwelling place:
14 “This is my resting-place forever;
Here I will dwell, for this is my desire.
15 I will richly bless it with provisions;
I will satisfy its poor with bread.
16 Its priests I will clothe with salvation,
And its loyal ones will shout joyfully.
17 There I will make the strength of David grow.
I have prepared a lamp for my anointed one.
18 I will clothe his enemies with shame,
But the crown on his head will flourish » (Psalms 132:13-18).
« Look! How good and how pleasant it is
For brothers to dwell together in unity!
2 It is like fine oil poured on the head
That runs down the beard,
Aaron’s beard,
And runs down onto the collar of his garments.
3 It is like the dew of Herʹmon
That descends on the mountains of Zion.
That is where Jehovah decreed his blessing
—Life everlasting » (Psalms 133).
« Praise Jehovah,
All you servants of Jehovah,
You who stand in the house of Jehovah during the nights.
2 Raise your hands in holiness
And praise Jehovah.
3 May Jehovah, the Maker of heaven and earth,
Bless you from Zion » (Psalms 134).
PSALMS 135 to 137 (Read in your Bible or in a Bible Online)
« He causes clouds to ascend from the ends of the earth;
He makes lightning for the rain;
He brings the wind out of his storehouses » (Psalms 135:7)
Psalms 135-137 glorify God’s Almighty Power:
“Jehovah does everything he pleases to do
In heaven and on earth, in the seas and all the depths.
7 He causes clouds to ascend from the ends of the earth;
He makes lightning for the rain;
He brings the wind out of his storehouses.
8 He struck down the firstborn of Egypt,
Both man and beast.
9 He sent signs and miracles among you, O Egypt,
Against Pharʹaoh and all his servants.
10 He struck down many nations
And killed mighty kings
11 —Siʹhon the king of the Amʹor·ites,
Og the king of Baʹshan,
And all the kingdoms of Caʹnaan.
12 He gave their land as an inheritance,
An inheritance to Israel his people.
13 O Jehovah, your name endures forever.
O Jehovah, your fame endures for all generations” (Psalms 135:6-13)
Concerning God’s power, here is what the king of Babylon, Nebuchadnezzar, humbly declared after being afflicted for seven years with a mental illness (lycanthropy): “All the inhabitants of the earth are regarded as nothing, and he does according to his own will among the army of the heavens and the inhabitants of the earth. And there is no one who can hinder him or say to him, ‘What have you done?’” (Daniel 4:34-35).
Psalm 136 recalls how God delivered his people Israel from slavery in Egypt to allow them to dwell in the promised land:
“He struck down Egypt’s firstborn,
For his loyal love endures forever.
11 He brought Israel out from their midst,
For his loyal love endures forever,
12 With a mighty hand and an outstretched arm,
For his loyal love endures forever.
13 He split the Red Sea in two,
For his loyal love endures forever.
14 He caused Israel to pass through the middle of it,
For his loyal love endures forever.
15 He shook off Pharʹaoh and his army into the Red Sea,
For his loyal love endures forever.
16 He led his people through the wilderness,
For his loyal love endures forever.
17 He struck down great kings,
For his loyal love endures forever.
18 He killed mighty kings,
For his loyal love endures forever,
19 Siʹhon the king of the Amʹor·ites,
For his loyal love endures forever,
20 And Og the king of Baʹshan,
For his loyal love endures forever.
21 He gave their land as an inheritance,
For his loyal love endures forever” (Psalms 136:10-21).
Psalm 137 is a lament because God allowed his people to be exiled to Babylon for their disobedience (see the Book of Lamentations):
“By the rivers of Babylon, there we sat.
We wept when we remembered Zion.
2 Upon the poplar trees in her midst,
We hung our harps.
3 For there our captors asked us for a song,
Those mocking us wanted amusement:
“Sing for us one of the songs of Zion.”
4 How can we sing the song of Jehovah
On foreign soil?
5 If I should forget you, O Jerusalem,
Let my right hand be forgetful.
6 Let my tongue stick to my palate
If I do not remember you,
If I do not place Jerusalem above
My greatest reasons for rejoicing” (Psalms 137:1-6).
PSALMS 138 (Read in your Bible or in a Bible Online)
« On the day that I called, you also proceeded to answer me;
You began to make me bold in my soul with strength » (Psalms 138:3)
« He is causing vapors to ascend from the extremity of the earth;
He has made even sluices for the rain;
He is bringing forth the wind from his storehouses » (Psalms 135:7)
Psalm 138 indicates that God hears the prayers of the humble:
“Though Jehovah is high, he takes note of the humble,
But the haughty he knows only from a distance” (verse 6).
Jesus Christ, the Son of God, showed the importance of humility, especially when we pray to our Heavenly Father:
“He also told this illustration to some who trusted in their own righteousness and who considered others as nothing: 10 “Two men went up into the temple to pray, the one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. 11 The Pharisee stood and began to pray these things to himself, ‘O God, I thank you that I am not like everyone else—extortioners, unrighteous, adulterers—or even like this tax collector. 12 I fast twice a week; I give the tenth of all things I acquire.’ 13 But the tax collector, standing at a distance, was not willing even to raise his eyes heavenward but kept beating his chest, saying, ‘O God, be gracious to me, a sinner.’ 14 I tell you, this man went down to his home and was proved more righteous than that Pharisee. Because everyone who exalts himself will be humiliated, but whoever humbles himself will be exalted”” (Luke 18:9-14).
PSALMS 139 (Read in your Bible or in a Bible Online)
« Your eyes saw even the embryo of me,
And in your book all its parts were down in writing,
As regards the days when they were formed
And there was not yet one among them » (Psalms 139:16)
Psalm 139 illustrates how God is attentive to each of us, even from conception in our mother’s womb:
“O Jehovah, you have searched through me, and you know me.
2 You know when I sit down and when I rise up.
You discern my thoughts from afar.
3 You observe me when I travel and when I lie down;
You are familiar with all my ways.
4 There is not a word on my tongue,
But look! O Jehovah, you already know it well.
5 Behind and before me, you surround me;
And you lay your hand upon me.
6 Such knowledge is beyond my comprehension.
It is too high for me to reach” (verses 1-6).
For the Creator, the life of a human being begins at conception, when they are still an embryo:
“For you produced my kidneys;
You kept me screened off in my mother’s womb.
14 I praise you because in an awe-inspiring way I am wonderfully made.
Your works are wonderful,
I know this very well.
15 My bones were not hidden from you
When I was made in secret,
When I was woven in the depths of the earth.
16 Your eyes even saw me as an embryo;
All its parts were written in your book
Regarding the days when they were formed,
Before any of them existed” (verses 13-16).
The rule of life for life also applied to a child in its mother’s womb:
“If men should struggle with each other and they hurt a pregnant woman and she gives birth prematurely but no fatality results, the offender must pay the damages imposed on him by the husband of the woman; and he must pay it through the judges. 23 But if a fatality does occur, then you must give life for life” (Exodus 21:22-23).
Therefore, a voluntary abortion constitutes intentional homicide from the perspective of God and Jesus Christ.
PSALMS 140 to 145 (Read in your Bible or in a Bible Online)
« May my prayer be prepared as incense before you,
The raising up of my palms as the evening grain offering » (Psalms 141:2)
Psalm 140 describes the action of the tongue, which can wound or kill like venom.
« Rescue me, O Jehovah, from evil men;
Protect me from violent men,
2 Those who scheme evil in their hearts
And stir up conflict all day long.
3 They sharpen their tongue like that of a serpent;
Venom of vipers is behind their lips. (…) May the slanderer find no place on the earth.
May evil pursue men of violence and strike them down » (Psalms 140:1-3, 11).
The evil action of the tongue can also be compared to that of a sword, which can wound and even kill:
« Thoughtless speech is like the stabs of a sword,
But the tongue of the wise is a healing » (Proverbs 12:18).
The contrasting effects of the tongue, mentioned in this proverb, were also illustrated by the disciple James in his letter:
« Out of the same mouth come blessing and cursing. My brothers, it is not right for things to happen this way. 11 A spring does not cause the fresh water and the bitter water to bubble out of the same opening, does it? 12 My brothers, a fig tree cannot produce olives, or a grapevine figs, can it? Neither can salt water produce fresh water » (James chapter 3).
Psalm 141 shows that we must be careful about the quality of our prayers, paying attention to what we say to our Heavenly Father when we address Him in prayer:
“May my prayer be as incense prepared before you,
My uplifted hands like the evening grain offering.
3 Station a guard for my mouth, O Jehovah,
Do set a watch over the door of my lips” (Psalms 141:2, 3).
Jesus Christ gave good counsel on how to pray to his Heavenly Father (Matthew 6:9-15).
We read in Psalm 142 that our prayers should be sincere, expressing our own feelings:
« With my voice I call to Jehovah for help;
With my voice I plead with Jehovah for favor.
2 Before him I pour out my concern;
Before him I tell about my distress
3 When my spirit fails within me.
Then you watch my roadway.
In the path where I walk,
They hide a trap for me » (Psalms 142:1-3).
We can ask God to help us understand his will, according to Psalm 143:
« Teach me to do your will,
For you are my God.
Your spirit is good;
May it lead me on level ground » (Psalm 143:10).
As for our body language when we pray to God, it varies depending on the place and circumstances. We must be discerning. Some will kneel, others will stand with their heads bowed, others will lift their eyes, or even raise their hands to heaven, like the psalmist:
« I spread out my hands to you;
I am like a parched land that thirsts for you » (Psalm 143:6).
It is important to understand that God loves us and is close to us to the extent that we draw near to him, according to Psalm 144:
« O Jehovah, what is man that you should notice him,
The son of mortal man that you should pay attention to him? » (Psalm 144:3).
« Draw close to God, and he will draw close to you » (James 4:8).
In our prayers, we can simply express praise to God without necessarily making petitions, as we can read in Psalm 145 (here are some selected excerpts):
« I will exalt you, O my God the King,
I will praise your name forever and ever » (verse 1).
« Generation after generation will praise your works;
They will tell about your mighty acts » (verse 4).
« They will bubble over as they recall your abundant goodness,
And they will shout joyfully because of your righteousness » (verse 7).
« Your kingship is an eternal kingship,
And your dominion endures throughout all generations » (verse 13).
« Jehovah supports all who are falling
And raises up all who are bowed down » (verse 14).
“You open your hand
And satisfy the desire of every living thing” (verse 16).
“Jehovah is near to all those calling on him,
To all who call on him in truth.
ר [Resh]
19 He satisfies the desire of those who fear him;
He hears their cry for help, and he rescues them.
ש [Shin]
20 Jehovah guards all those who love him,
But all the wicked he will annihilate” (verses 18-20).
PSALMS 146 to 150 (Read in your Bible or in a Bible Online)
« Happy is the one who has the God of Jacob for his help,
Whose hope is in Jehovah his God » (Psalms 146:5)
Psalms 146-150 conclude the book of Psalms, as do the six Hallel Psalms (Psalms 113-118), beginning with the phrase « Hallelujah, » which means « Praise Jah. » Jah is the diminutive of the Divine Name YHWH. Here are some selected excerpts:
« Do not put your trust in princes
Nor in a son of man, who cannot bring salvation.
4 His spirit goes out, he returns to the ground;
On that very day his thoughts perish.
5 Happy is the one who has the God of Jacob as his helper,
Whose hope is in Jehovah his God » (Psalms 146:3-5).
This psalm clearly states that we should not blindly trust in men, because they are but dust. If some political or religious leaders ask you to place your blind trust in them, this has nothing to do with what is written in the Bible. This psalm tells us to put all our trust in God. Furthermore, Jesus Christ clearly told his disciples to be observant of the actions of those who present themselves as God’s prophets. If they see grapes on thornbushes or figs among thistles, then it is not the time to place blind trust in man, but to identify the liars and religious imposters (Matthew 7:15-19).
Moreover, here is what is written in the book of Jeremiah regarding those who persist in placing their trust in man rather than in God: “Cursed is the man who puts his trust in mere humans,
Who relies on human power,
And whose heart turns away from Jehovah” (Jeremiah 17:5).
“Jehovah is opening the eyes of the blind;
Jehovah is raising up those bowed down;
Jehovah loves the righteous.
9 Jehovah is protecting the foreign residents;
He sustains the fatherless child and the widow,
But he thwarts the plans of the wicked” (Psalms 146:8, 9).
Psalm 147 describes God as caring for his creation:
« Praise Jah!
It is good to sing praises to our God;
How pleasant and fitting it is to praise him!
2 Jehovah is building Jerusalem;
He gathers together the dispersed ones of Israel.
3 He heals the brokenhearted;
He binds up their wounds.
4 He counts the number of the stars;
He calls all of them by name.
5 Our Lord is great and is mighty in power;
His understanding is beyond measure.
6 Jehovah raises up the meek,
But he hurls the wicked to the ground.
7 Sing to Jehovah with thanksgiving;
Sing praises to our God, accompanied by the harp,
8 The One who covers the heavens with clouds,
The One providing rain for the earth,
The One making grass sprout on the mountains.
9 To the animals he gives food,
To the young ravens that call out for it.
10 He does not delight in the power of the horse;
Nor is he impressed by the strong legs of a man.
11 Jehovah finds pleasure in those who fear him,
In those waiting for his loyal love. (…) He hurls down his hailstones like morsels of bread.
Who can withstand his cold?” (Psalm 147:3-11, 17).
One can grasp the contrast between God’s watchful concern for his creation in space, calling each star by name, and his attention to humble human beings on earth.
Psalm 148 is a general call to all of creation, both in heaven and on earth, to give glory to God:
“Praise him, all his angels.
Praise him, all his army.
3 Praise him, sun and moon.
Praise him, all shining stars.
4 Praise him, O highest heavens
And waters above the heavens.
5 Let them praise the name of Jehovah,
For he commanded, and they were created.
6 He keeps them established forever and ever;
He has issued a decree that will not pass away” (Psalms 148:2-6).
How does creation give glory to God? The beginning of Psalm 19 explains it poetically:
« The heavens are declaring the glory of God;
The skies above proclaim the work of his hands.
2 Day after day their speech bubbles forth,
And night after night they reveal knowledge.
3 There is no speech, and there are no words;
Their voice is not heard » (Psalms 19:1-3).
Creation glorifies God, without words or speech, through its beauty and magnificence.
Psalm 149 shows that God remembers his people and delights in them. He will protect them in due time, through his Son Jesus Christ:
“Let them praise his name with dancing
And sing praises to him, accompanied by the tambourine and the harp.
4 For Jehovah takes pleasure in his people.
He adorns the meek with salvation” (Psalms 149:4, 5).
God currently has a people for his Name, whom only he and his Son Jesus Christ know. They will protect them in the day of great distress:
“During that time Michael will stand up, the great prince who is standing in behalf of your people. And there will occur a time of distress such as has not occurred since there came to be a nation until that time. And during that time your people will escape, everyone who is found written down in the book” (Daniel 12:1).
Psalm 150, which concludes the book, is an invitation to give glory to God through music and song:
« Praise Jah!
Praise God in his holy place.
Praise him in the expanse of his strength.
2 Praise him for his mighty works.
Praise him for his exceeding greatness.
3 Praise him with the sounding of the horn.
Praise him with the stringed instrument and the harp.
4 Praise him with the tambourine and the circle dance.
Praise him with strings and the flute.
5 Praise him with ringing cymbals.
Praise him with crashing cymbals.
6 Every breathing thing—let it praise Jah.
Praise Jah! » (Psalms 150).
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Reading and Understanding the Bible (Psalms 1:2, 3)
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