Slices
Prepare
‘Strength will rise as we wait upon the Lord … Our God, you reign for ever, our hope, our Strong Deliverer … You’re the defender of the weak, you comfort those in need. You lift us up on wings like eagles.’* Reflect on these lyrics.
*‘Strength Will Rise’, Brenton Brown, Ken Riley, Thankyou Music/PRS, © 2005
Bible passage
1 Praise the Lord.
Sing to the Lord a new song,
his praise in the assembly of his faithful people.
2 Let Israel rejoice in their Maker;
let the people of Zion be glad in their King.
3 Let them praise his name with dancing
and make music to him with tambourine and harp.
4 For the Lord takes delight in his people;
he crowns the humble with victory.
5 Let his faithful people rejoice in this honour
and sing for joy on their beds.
6 May the praise of God be in their mouths
and a double-edged sword in their hands,
7 to inflict vengeance on the nations
and punishment on the peoples,
8 to bind their kings with fetters,
their nobles with shackles of iron,
9 to carry out the sentence written against them –
this is the glory of all his faithful people.
Praise the Lord.
Explore
What one phrase from this psalm has struck you particularly? The instruction to sing a new song appears in Psalm 96 and Psalm 98. But here, faithful people, covered by God’s covenant love, are urged three times to sing such a song of praise (vs 1,3,5). Maybe joy robs people of sleep, or maybe sleep is possible, knowing the joy of safekeeping (v 5).
The ancient people of Israel frequently faced life-threatening dangers. But what are we to make of the unexpected intrusion of the warlike language in verses 6–9? Maybe the key lies in the ‘double-edged sword’ (v 6). Today God’s faithful people are endangered, though our struggle is not primarily against flesh and blood (Ephesians 6:12). So, with one edge, we hold on to the sword of the Spirit which is the word of God as we engage in battle (Ephesians 6:17); with the other, we access the joy found in praise at the start of this psalm, knowing God is the Maker of the whole world and reigns as everlasting King (v 2). This is not a tension, but a living reality.
Respond
Allow yourself to rejoice that the Lord takes delight in you (v 4). If possible, sing or listen to a recording of the song ‘Strength Will Rise’ as you wait upon the Lord.
Bible in a year
Read the Bible in a year: Mark 11; 1 Thessalonians 3
Pray for Scripture Union
Give thanks for the recent activities conducted in schools by SU in the Solomon Islands and pray that God will continue to use SU to bring hope to children and young people
