​SUNDAY 27TH APRIL 2025

Ps. 66 - A psalm calling the whole earth to praise the Lord (Pt. 3)

I.  Introduction

We continue our exposition of Psalm 66, which has its roots in a Davidic authorship concerning the nature of God and Israel's worship of Yahweh. However, over time, it was adapted by Hezekiah to express his thanksgiving for Jerusalem's deliverance from an Assyrian invasion (cf. 2 Kgs. 18:13-19:37; Isa. 36-37). Hence, this psalm is interpreted within this Hezekiah context, and the speaker at the end is understood to be King Hezekiah (vv.8-12).

 b. Praise to the God of guidance (vv. 8-12)

Verses 8-12. "Bless our God, O peoples; let the sound of his praise be heard, who has kept our soul among the living and has not let our feet slip. For you, O God, have tested us; you have tried us as silver is tried. You brought us into the net; you laid a crushing burden on our backs; you let men ride over our heads; we went through fire and through water; yet you have brought us out to a place of abundance."

Verses 8-9. If this psalm had been adapted during the reign of Hezekiah, the call to universal worship and thanksgiving is not merely for the revelation of God’s power and care throughout Israel, but also because Assyria was a universally hated and feared nation. God is to be blessed and the 'sound of his praise' is to be heard among all the nations, because he 'has kept our soul among the living and has not let our feet slip.'

The deliverance wrought in Hezekiah's day would furnish a suitable background for every figure used in this psalm.
 
Verses 9-12. The very existence of the nation was at stake, but God kept the people's "soul alive" (v. 9a). They were in danger of a fatal fall; but he did not "allow their foot to slip" (v. 9b).

Verses 10-12. Referring to God's preserving power during their time as enslaved people in Egypt, the psalmist describes a time of severe testing as a nation, in which God 'tried us as silver is tried' (v.10). It was a time of testing that God had initiated and allowed, 'You brought us into the net', however, through it all he brought them 'out to a place of abundance' (vv. 11-12). For a time, they felt cursed in their very loins by the "distress" laid upon them (cf. Isa. 37:3).
 
In addition, the testing of verse 10 is reminiscent of how the Israelites tested God at Massah (Exod. 17:7; Deut. 6:16; 33:8; Ps. 95:8-9). Salvation here is announced as more than a miraculous deliverance but involves God’s guidance and correction. God provided guidance in a physical way via the cloud and the pillar of fire, but also in the form of the giving of the Torah at Sinai. Correction was also needed as this group of enslaved people struggled to become a holy people and priests to the world (Exod. 19:5-6).
 
The deliverance wrought in Hezekiah's day would furnish a suitable background for every figure used in verses 9-12, and in Israel's exodus from Egypt and wilderness wanderings (cf. Isa. 37:3; 43:2).
 
As believers, sometimes the Lord calls upon us to endure some hardship as discipline; through such discipline God is treating us as his children. In the same way that good parents discipline their own children. In fact, if, as believers, we never experience the chastening hand of the Lord, it is questionable whether we are truly his sons and daughters at all.  “Moreover, we have all had human fathers who disciplined us, and we respected them for it. How much more should we submit to the Father of spirits and live! They disciplined us for a little while as they thought best; but God disciplines us for our good, in order that we may share in his holiness. No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it” (Heb. 12:7-11).
 
Verse 12. "You laid a crushing burden on our backs; you let men ride over our heads." Both Egyptian and Assyrian inscriptions would often show the conqueror’s chariot being driven over their prostrate enemies. However, the psalmist is using this phrase metaphorically to describe the extremity of the danger that they were in and the great fear that they felt. However, in spite of going "through fire and through water;" the Lord had them "out to a place of abundance" (v. 12b).
 
My dear brothers and sisters that are currently enduring trials and tribulation, be encouraged, “and the God of all grace, who called you to his eternal glory in Christ, after you have suffered a little while, will himself restore you and make you strong, firm and steadfast” (1 Pet. 5:10). God bless you.
 
(We will continue our exposition of Psalm 66 next week).
 
 

​SUNDAY 20TH APRIL 2025

Ps. 66 - A psalm calling the whole earth to praise the Lord (Pt. 2)

 I. Introduction
 
We continue our exposition of Psalm 66 that has its roots in a Davidic authorship concerning the nature of God and Israel's worship of Yahweh. However, over time it was adapted by Hezekiah to express his thanksgiving in Jerusalem's deliverance from an Assyrian invasion (cf. 2 Kgs. 18:13-19:37; Isa. 36-37). Hence, this psalm is interpreted within this Hezekiah context, and the speaker at the end would seem to be king Hezekiah (vv.8-12).
 
b. Praise to the God of the waters (vv.5-7)
 
Verses 5-7. "Come and see what God has done: he is awesome in his deeds toward the children of man. He turned the sea into dry land; they passed through the river on foot. There did we rejoice in him, who rules by his might forever, whose eyes keep watch on the nations— let not the rebellious exalt themselves. Selah." In verses 5-7, we learn that our God does not demand worship as much as he deserves it.
 
Verses 5-6. The psalmist calls to experience these great deeds of God praised above. As one of God's awesome deeds 'toward the children of man', the psalmist refers to Israel's crossing of the Red Sea, her defeat of the nations, and holding back the waters of the Jordan, enabling them to enter the promised land (cf. Ex.14:1ff; Jos. 3:15-17; 12:1ff).

Verse 7. The last line of the stanza reminds the audience that God sovereignly rules the world and his "eyes keep watch on the nations." This results in two types of people again. You may come and see and rejoice in God's sovereign rule of the world, or you can choose your own path that is bound to fail.
 
This truth should warn all leaders to be careful how they rule. In some countries, some leaders act as if they are above every power. However, these leaders may escape the scrutiny of the European Court of Justice, the African Union and the United Nations or ignore their warnings. Still, they cannot escape the scrutiny of God. He watches and knows their every move. “Nothing in all creation is hidden from God’s sight. Everything is uncovered and laid bare before the eyes of him to whom we must give account” (Heb. 4:13).
 
God has placed such leaders in their office, and he will remove them from office when he so wills (cf. Rom. 13:1). To act as if one is the final authority is to deceive oneself. All delegated authority has been placed there to represent God's authority. Hence, the wise thing to do is to govern on behalf of the God of love and justice and not attempt to be independent of or oppose him.
 
Adam and Eve sought to govern independently of God. When God appointed them to represent him as the image of God on the earth (Gen. 1:27-28), they rebelled by trying to become “like God, knowing good and evil” (Gen. 3:5b), and consequently plunged the whole of humanity into sin (Rom. 5:12).
 
Whatever level of leadership God has called us to serve as believers, i.e. political, parental, employer, religious, etc., whenever we rebel against God’s laws by seeking to be independent of God, we open ourselves to the spirit of witchcraft, idolatry and ungodly practices as a consequence of a depraved mind (cf.1 Sam. 15:23; Rom. 1: 21-28).
 
We live in a world where influential leaders and the people that follow them “have become filled with every kind of wickedness, evil, greed and depravity. They are full of envy, murder, strife, deceit and malice. They are gossips, slanderers, God-haters, insolent, arrogant and boastful; they invent ways of doing evil; they disobey their parents; they have no understanding, no fidelity, no love, no mercy. Although they know God’s righteous decree that those who do such things deserve death, they not only continue to do these very things but also approve of those who practice them” (Rom. 1:29-32).
 
As believers, and especially leaders in various spheres of responsibility, we are called to be an example and a counter-culture to a world that has rejected God. As servants of Christ and those entrusted with the mysteries of God – the glorious gospel, it is required that those who have been given trust from God with the truth of salvation must prove to be faithful (cf. 1 Cor. 4:1-2). Let us be faithful to the Lord and his word in a time of great unfaithfulness. God bless you.
 
(We will continue the exposition of Psalm 66 next week)