The Word Made Fresh
1Rejoice in the LORD, you who are living right!
It is good for the faithful to praise God.
2So, praise the LORD with the lyre.
Play a tune for the LORD on the ten-stringed harp.
3Sing a new song to the LORD.
Play the stringed instruments with loud shouts.
4The word of the LORD is right,
and God faithfully performs sacred deeds.
5The LORD loves righteousness and justice,
and the whole world is filled with the LORD’s constant love.
6The heavens came into being at the LORD’s command,
and all the things within them were breathed out by the LORD.
7The seas were gathered together as easily as if they were within a bottle,
and the LORD made storehouses for all the waters of the oceans.
8So, let all the people of the world fear the LORD,
and stand in awe of our God.
9God spoke, and everything came into existence.
The LORD ordered it, and it was done.
10The LORD makes the wisdom of the nations seem like nothing,
and plans made by the peoples are thwarted.
11The plans made by the LORD stand forever,
and God’s love goes out to every generation.
12Good for the people who worship the LORD!
They are the people the LORD has chosen as an inheritance.
13The LORD looks down from heaven and sees all humankind,
14and watches the whole population of the earth from the throne.
15The LORD formed all our hearts,
and sees everything we do.
16No king is saved by a great army,
and no warrior is rescued by his own strength.
17Warhorses don’t grant victory;
they are strong, but not strong enough to save us.
18It is a certainty that the LORD watches those who fear God,
and those whose hope is in God’s love.
19They depend on the LORD to spare them from death,
and they are enabled to live through terrible famines.
20All our lives we wait for the LORD
our help and our protector.
21Our hearts are gladdened by the presence of the LORD
because we put our trust in God’s name.
22May your constant love settle upon us, LORD,
for we have put all our trust in you.
Commentary
1-3: An opening chorus of praise that includes musical instruments, singing and shouting – a lively worship service.
4-9: The psalmist gives the reason for praise: the word of the LORD. God’s word is powerful and is the cause for the existence of heaven and earth.
10-12: Since God’s wisdom and counsel is eternal and true the people should acknowledge the sovereignty of God above all human sovereignties.
13-19: The psalmist imagines God looking down to observe the doings of people. It is God who delivers the soul from death; kings and armies and weapons cannot save.
20-22: Therefore, the people call on the LORD to be their help and shield.
Takeaway
Our spirituality should include our acknowledgment of God as creator and the One who maintains the existence of all there is, was, and will be – including ourselves and the generations that will come after us. But God gives us authority over our own behavior and our own faith, and our behavior and our faith determines where we stand personally with God and what will become of us when we have run our course.