Friday, August 31, 2018

Year 8, Day 243: Psalms 113-114


Theological Commentary: Click Here



Psalm 113 asks a brilliant question.  Who is like the Lord?  Naturally, we hear this question and see it as a pretty obvious one.  After all, He is the creator.  He is eternal.  He knows all.  From that perspective, who is like Him indeed.



However, I think there is a more profound angle to this question.  We can see this angle by reading the psalm rather than bringing our own thoughts to the psalm.  What is the evidence that the psalmist gives for the Lord’s uniqueness?  The Lord raises up the poor from the dust.  The Lord lifts up the needy out of the ashes.  The Lord makes the barren into the mother of children.  What makes the Lord unique is that he finds value in the people in the world who seem valueless.  Who is like the Lord, indeed!



Psalm 114 brings us back to being in awe of the Lord because of His awesome power.  This psalm reminds us of the true impressive power of the Lord through the story of the exodus.  The Lord brought His people out of bondage in Egypt.  In doing so, the Lord did many powerful things.  He planted the people in a land that was not theirs.  He forced the sea apart.  He brought water out of a rock.  He did other things that the psalm doesn’t talk about.



This is an important point to remember.  Psalm 113 reminds us that God is impressive because of His perspective: He cares about those the world does not.  Psalm 114 reminds us that God is impressive because of His power: He can do things the rest of us can’t.  Who can bring water out of a rock except a God who knows the secrets of the universe?



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