Psalm 89
This Psalm is penned by Ethan the Ezraphite, a man known for his wisdom. He was likely a contemporary of Solomon and alive during David’s reign. Ethan’s words are filled with praise for God, and they concentrate on God’s mercies. This Psalm is sometimes thought of as a declaration of God’s “covenant love” or the loyal love of God.
(14) “Righteousness and justice are the foundation of your throne.
Unfailing love and truth walk before you as attendants.”
Two thoughts struck me from this passage. First, I hope you don’t find yourself reading as I did this morning. I breezed through this 52 verse song to complete my assignment. I saw the familiar phrases of praise, similar to what we have been reading for the past 88 days and I let my mind float to auto-pilot. I was skimming to finish instead of taking the time to comprehend what I was reading. I challenge you today to slow down your reading pace and let the words actually land in your heart. Soak in the meaning and richness of each sentence. Think on the declarations and ponder the power spoken of in these songs. One of the commentaries I looked at said, “The lovingkindness of God lasts forever, so the praise of Him should also be sung forever.” We should never tire of these praises or the opportunity to be awed by the awesome character of our God. If some of these songs seem repetitive, it is only because our God’s unfailing love lasts forever and the author’s heart is overflowing with gratefulness! (vs 2) Did you see that? Our God’s love is UNFAILING and it lasts FOREVER…This one sentence has more meaning than we can grasp if we soaked with it for a lifetime. Spurgeon says, “We have not one, but many mercies to rejoice in, and should therefore multiply the expressions of our thankfulness.” Can we spend the time required in God’s word each day to let our hearts be affected by what we read? (This seems so obvious but I clearly needed the reminder today and maybe other’s do too.)
Second, Ethan knew personally of God’s love and faithfulness. He took meticulous care to specifically list God’s attributes and praiseworthy actions in his song because he wanted others to benefit from God’s faithfulness and mercies. Ethan wanted to spread what he knew and had experienced with God to everyone who would listen. His joy was overflowing and his thankfulness could not be contained. Do we do the same? Are we thoughtful enough to articulate God’s character and our personal experiences with Him to others? Are we overflowing with thankfulness and awe? Are we so filled with excitement that we share with whoever will listen?
I want to live my life craving the words that describe the praises of my Father. I want to soak in the memories of what He has done and is still doing. I want to be able to articulate God’s specific traits and my personal memories of His work throughout my life. I want these thoughts to consume my mind so that His story flows out of my mouth whenever I have the opportunity to share.