“God is renowned in Judah, in Israel his name is great”.
In the days when this Psalm was written, Israel was split into two kingdoms. There was the northern kingdom, commonly referred to as Israel, and then there was the southern kingdom of Judah. According to this Psalm, God was renowned in Judah and his name was great in Israel. Both kingdoms, even though split, still revered the name of God.
Our lives are often split into two or more kingdoms. Where do our northern and southern kingdoms lie? Is it the secular/sacred split, the great divide between work and church? Most of us have lives that are split between work and home, or secular and sacred. Despite this unnatural dividing line, this Psalm reminds us that God’s name should be revered wherever we are and in all that we do, whether it is at work, home or church.
God’s dwelling-places (verse 2)
The temple of God was in Jerusalem, hence “his tent is in Salem”, but God’s heavenly dwelling is in Zion. How do we relate this scripture to our modern Christian lives? One way of looking at it is that God’s temple is no longer in Jerusalem, but we, as believers in Jesus, are the temple of God, indwelt by the Holy Spirit. As it says in 1 Corinthians 3:16 – “Don’t you know that you yourselves are God’s temple and that God’s Spirit dwells in your midst?“.
So God’s tent is in our hearts, and our heavenly dwelling place is with God at mount Zion, the heavenly Jerusalem. “But you have come to Mount Zion, to the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem. You have come to thousands upon thousands of angels in joyful assembly…” (Hebrews 12:22)
In Zion God “broke…the weapons of war” (verse 3). While we may be citizens of that heavenly dwelling, we are currently still on earth, engaged in an age-old spiritual battle (Ephesians 6:12). We are still hard put to defend ourselves from the fiery darts of the enemy (Ephesians 6:16). Our weapons of war, the full armour of God, are pressed into duty daily or even hourly as we engage in this constant battle (Ephesians 6:10-18). But in Zion, we may finally lay down our swords and shields.
God’s nature
In verse 4 the Psalmist presents us with two beautiful images of God. First he says “You are radiant with light”, and then that God is “more majestic than mountains rich with game”.
There is a close parallel to the first image in the first letter of John; In 1 John 1:5, we find the following powerful statement “This is the message we have heard from him and declare to you: God is light; in him there is no darkness at all“. In Revelations 21:23, we once again encounter a reference to this aspect of God’s nature; “The city does not need the sun or the moon to shine on it, for the glory of God gives it light, and the Lamb is its lamp“.
We know from the story in Genesis that light is the first thing God spoke into existence. In verse 3 he said “Let there be light, and there was light”. Without light, we would not, of course, be able to see the rest of creation. Light reveals truth. In a dark room, we may stumble over objects and merely guess at their nature, but switch on the light and suddenly they ae revealed for what they are and we can move about without mishap.
Light also provides food and nourishment. Without light, there would be no photosynthesis, plants would not be able to thrive and the entire food chain would collapse. By saying God is radiant with light, the Psalmist is not just making a statement about the appearance of God, he is also making a statement about the nature of God as a provider and a sustainer of life, and as a revealer of truth. (“But when he, the Spirit of truth, comes, he will guide you into all the truth.” John 16:13)
The second image in this Psalm is perhaps a bit more opaque to our modern-day understanding. I suppose if would have been easier for us if the Psalmist had said “you are more majestic than mountains” and just stopped there. But why did he add “rich with game?”. When I first meditated on this statement, I was somehow reminded of God’s response in the book of Job (Job 38 onwards).
God challenged Job to consider a variety of animals. Apart from the war-horse, most of the animals were wild animals, like the ostrich, the wild donkey, the eagle and so on. From the narrative in Job, it almost seems as if God attaches a specific value to the “wildness” of these animals and their resistance to being tamed by man; “Who let the wild donkey go free? Who untied its ropes? I gave it the wasteland as its home, the salt flats as its habitat. It laughs at the commotion in the town; it does not hear a driver’s shout.” (Job 39:5-7), for example. And also Job 39:9 – “Will the wild ox consent to serve you? Will it stay by your manger at night?”
It is probably a fanciful idea, but I wonder if the thought of mountains filled with wild game doesn’t add that finer touch of majesty to the image. The wildness of the game on the mountains, untouched by the schemes and devices of mankind, has a majesty and dignity of its own. Perhaps it even adds an element of danger, awe and fear. Fear of the deadly predators roaming the mountains in search of prey. One is reminded of C.S. Lewis’s statement in the Chronicles of Narnia – “Aslan in not a tame lion!”
Finally, the concept of game on the mountains once again adds an element of nourishment. Game that can be hunted for the pot, without cost as a free gift from a generous and merciful creator.
God’s anger
Verses 5 and 6 once again introduces the concept of battle. But this time, the image that is presented is not the heat and bloody action of the battle itself, but rather the sombre and silent landscape of the aftermath. After the battle has been fought, and the field is littered with corpses, silence reigns once more. Valiant warriors the fighters were, but now they “sleep their last sleep”. It is a peace dearly paid for, a solemn quiet after the storm of God’s rebuke. Too late these warriors have learnt the lesson recorded in Proverbs “There is no wisdom, no insight, no plan that can succeed against the Lord“.
In verses 7 to 9, we learn of God’s judgement and anger. “From heaven you pronounced judgment, and the land feared and was quiet”. Yet God’s judgement does not consist solely of righteous anger, it is mixed with mercy, for in verse 9 we are told that God rises in judgement, not because of anger, but rather to “save all the afflicted of the land”.
How wonderful and unsearchable God’s purposes are! Even in His anger and judgement, salvation is His primary goal, and the afflicted of the land are the glad recipients of his mercy.
Verse 10 has two alternate readings. In the first “surely the wrath of mankind brings you praise”, we see the idea of God using the unrighteous acts of wicked men for His own purposes. This is a concept we also encounter elsewhere in the Bible, e.g. Proverbs 16:4 “The Lord works out everything to its proper end—even the wicked for a day of disaster.”
The alternate reading “Surely your wrath against mankind brings you praise”, seems to convey the idea that God’s wrath is, in its very nature righteous and just, and will therefore be praised as a righteous act against the wicked. See, for example, how the martyrs in revelation long for their blood to be avenged by God. “How long, Sovereign Lord, holy and true, until you judge the inhabitants of the earth and avenge our blood?” (Rev 6:10)
Make vows to God
In verse 11 we are encouraged to “make vows to the Lord, and fulfil them”. On an initial reading, this seems to clash with Jesus’s teaching recorded in Matthew 5:34-35 – “But I tell you, do not swear an oath at all: either by heaven, for it is God’s throne;or by the earth, for it is his footstool; or by Jerusalem, for it is the city of the Great King”. Doesn’t this mean we should steer clear of making vows? Anyway, aren’t vows completely out of date and a curiosity of the ancient past?
On further reflection I realised that vows are actually quite common, especially when made in the context of a love-relationship. When we get married, we exchange vows as a token of our love and of our intent. These vows bind us together and help us to get through when times get tough. Many couples even renew their vows after a number of years to strengthen that bond.
There is something about love between couples that make vows seem natural and even necessary. Usually these are vows of eternal fidelity ; “I will love you forever” and exclusivity; “I will love only you”. I wonder if these natural phenomena aren’t a shadow of the more important vows we make to Jesus when he touches our lives. Vows of fidelity “I will follow and serve you for all eternity”, and vows of exclusivity “I will have no other God’s before you”. Of course we could never hope to fulfil any vows without His help, however earnest and pure our intentions are when we make them.
God’s sovereignty
In the final verse we are once again reminded of the sovereignty of the Lord. “He breaks the spirit of rulers; he is feared by the kings of the earth”. All ruling structures on earth are subject to the Lord and His will, and should stand in awe of His mighty power. We often think of ourselves as invulnerable in this electronic age, but the slightest interference from nature brings all our technology to a standstill. Dust from an erupting volcano can easily ground all trans-atlantic air-traffic, for example.
Even through we think of ourselves as strong and self sufficient, our infrastructures and technology are really quite flimsy and easily broken. While the secular world might think it utter foolishness to fear a creator-God, it is quite clear that to fear God still is and always will be the beginning of wisdom.
Delight in the Lord 