STUDY OF PSALMS - Chapters 88-92

PSALM 88 – “Hello Darkness My Old Friend”

(Psalm of Sons of Korah)

This is the last psalm by the Sons of Korah. The superscription says: “according to Mahalath Leannoth” (may designate this as a psalm of penitence associated sickness) and “A Maskil of Heman the Ezrahite”.

Heman was a Son of Korah and was known for his great wisdom. He was a singer, musician, prophet and the king's seer. He was also blessed with 14 sons and 3 daughters who were  musicians and singers (1 Chronicles 25:5-6).

This individual Lament Psalm is considered the saddest of all the psalms because it ends with very little hope of rescue. But God uses even our pain. And in this earnestly urgent petition for relief, the psalmist finds humility.

Psalm 88 is often linked together with Psalm 22 in traditional worship settings for Good Friday scripture reading.

Vs. 2 – Purpose of the psalm: “Let my prayer come before You.”

Vs. 3-5 – To summarize, “It feels like I am dying and there is no hope and there never will be and God hates me so I'm just gonna go eat worms.” (We've all been there... amiright?)

Vs. 6-7 – Heman tells us that God is the one who has caused him to be so desolate because of His wrath and anger against him. He never mentions that God's wrath is misplaced or unfair... just that it is overwhelming.

Vs. 8-9 – There are many similarities to Job's suffering in this psalm.  The suffering Job endured was also caused by God when He allowed satan to torment him. Like Job, Heman hangs on to the threads of his faith, continually calling out to God in helpless submission.

Vs. 10-12 – In the OT there was a great deal of uncertainty about the afterlife. They did not yet have the revelation of resurrection we gained through Jesus, which is clearly seen in the four rhetorical questions asked by Heman, who painted a bleak picture for life beyond the grave:

• Departed Spirits
• In the Grave
• Abaddon (place of destruction)
• The Darkness
• The Land of Forgetfulness

Vs. 15 – Whatever the source of Heman's distress, it had lasted his entire life.

Vs. 16 – Job also referred to the “terrors” of God (Job 6:4)

Vs. 18 – The prayer began in faith and ended in depression. Hello, darkness my old friend.

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PSALM 89 - “Steadfast Love of the Lord”

(Maskil of Ethan the Ezrahite)

The title of this psalm is "A Contemplation of Ethan the Ezrahite".  Ethan the Ezrahite is thought to be another name for Jeduthun, who was one of the choirmasters (1 Chronicles 15:19). Like Heman, Ethan was also famous for his wisdom.

Although this psalm celebrates the Davidic covenant as a special gift from God, it is actually a Community Lament, expressing sorrow for God's wrath against the anointed. There is a sharp contrast between the two sections of this song.

SECTION ONE: VERSES 1-37 – THE COVENANT CELEBRATED

Vs. 1 - “I will sing about the LORD's faithful love forever”: From the very first words, the psalmist focuses on God's covenant love (hesed/chesed).

Vs. 2 – Faithful love is “built up” forever... a covenant promise.  

Vs. 3-4 – God's covenant with David (2 Samuel 7:8-16); God promised to establish David's seed forever and “build up” his throne for all generations. This promise began with Solomon but was perfectly fulfilled in the Messiah, the Son of David (Matthew 12:23).

💛NUGGET: When God says forever, He means it. He is the only One who knows what forever looks like.

Vs. 5-7 – Praise to God from His council of angels on High.

Vs. 8-10 – Praise to the God of Armies who can rule the raging seas and crush Rahab. (Jews thought of the sea as a dangerous place of chaos. Here – as in Job 9:13 – Rahab is understood to be a mythological beast of chaos.)

Vs. 11-12 – Praise to God from His earthy creations... the majestic mountains of Tabor and Hermon shout for joy at His name!

Vs. 13-14– God's strong right hand is exalted. Four essential attributes of Yahweh are given:

• Righteousness
• Justice
• Faithful Love
• Truth

Vs. 15-17 – God's people rejoice that they can walk in the light of God's face. When God's right hand is exalted, his people are exalted and strengthened.

Vs. 18 – The “shield” of Israel was their king, who belonged to the Lord.

Vs. 19 – The vision referred to is found in 2 Samuel 7:1-17 when God visitied Nathan the prophet (the “holy one”) in a dream.

Vs. 24 - “Horn” is used to represent strength or power.

“None of his enemies shall be able to prevail against him. It is worthy of remark that David was never overthrown; he finally conquered every foe that rose up against him. Saul’s persecution, Absalom’s revolt, Sheba’s conspiracy, and the struggle made by the partisans of the house of Saul after his death, only tended to call forth David’s skill, courage, and prowess, and to seat him more firmly on his throne.” (Clarke)

Vs. 26 – “He will cry to me, you are my Father”: This psalm was truly fulfilled in Christ, the Son of God.

Vs. 27 – “First-born is not always to be understood literally in Scripture. It often signifies simply a well-beloved, or best-beloved son; one preferred to all the rest, and distinguished by some eminent prerogative. Thus God calls Israel his son, his first-born, Exodus 4:22.” (Clarke)

Vs. 28 – God will never revoke His covenant.

💛NUGGET: Just as this psalm reassured God's people thousand of years ago, we can claim the same assurance that HIS STEADFAST LOVE NEVER FAILS.

Vs. 29 - “His seed also I will make to endure forever, and his throne as the days of heaven”: This promise is only fulfilled in the forever reign of Jesus.

Vs. 30-34 – The consequences of dishonoring the covenant with God are outlined. Punishment – not death – is promised. “Nevertheless My lovingkindness I will not utterly take from him, nor allow My faithfulness to fail.” Despite disobedience, the Lord promised to remain faithful to His covenant.

Vs. 35 – Only God can swear by God.

SECTION TWO: VERSES 38-51 – THE COVENANT IN QUESTION

Vs. 38-45 – The tone of the psalm abruptly changes as sharp accusations are made against the Lord, suggesting that God has broken His covenant with “His anointed”. “You have made his glory cease and cast his throne down to the ground.”

Vs. 46-51 – The frustrated psalmist questions God's motives and the purpose of life, in general. He switches to the first person in verse 47.

Vs. 52 – The psalm closes with a Doxology to end Book III. It includes a call to praise followed by a congregations response ("Amen and amen").

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BOOK IV – CHAPTERS 90-106

PSALM 90 - “Life is Short”

This psalm is titled, “A Prayer of Moses the man of God”. Generally, the OT uses “man of God” as a title for a prophet.

This is the only song of Moses in the psalms, but there are two other songs in the OT (Exodus 15; Deuteronomy 32), as well as the blessing of the tribes of Israel in Deuteronomy 33. This is the oldest psalm.

Psalm 90 is a Community Lament asking God to take mercy on His people and bless them. We should read and sing this song as heirs of the generation that came out of Egypt.

“The historical setting is probably best understood by the incidents recorded in Numbers 20: (1) the death of Miriam, Moses’ sister; (2) the sin of Moses in striking the rock in the wilderness, which kept him from entering the Promised Land; and (3) the death of Aaron, Moses’ brother.” (James Montgomery Boice)

The psalm falls into four stanzas.

STANZA ONE – VERSES 1-2: THE LORD IS ETERNAL

Vs. 1 – The psalm begins and ends with an affirmation of who God is. If it was written by Moses during the wilderness trek to Canaan, God was their refuge, shelter and protection, both spiritually and physically.

💛NUGGET: With God as our refuge, we are never homeless!

Vs. 2 – God exists independently of His creation and is eternal.

STANZA TWO – VERSES 3-6: MAN'S LIFE IS FLEETING

Vs. 3 – Unlike God, humans are not eternal and will return to worm food at death. Genesis 3:19: “For dust you are, and to dust you shall return.”

Vs. 4 – God is not held to human time constraints. In Hebrew, the expression “a thousand years” implies infinity. God carries the days and weeks and months and years away “like a flood”.

STANZA THREE – VERSES 7-11: WE ARE CONSUMED BY GOD'S WRATH

Vs. 9-10 – “We finish our years like a sigh.” Seventy or eighty years is neither a threshold or a limit, rather an estimated lifespan by the psalmist. His intent is to emphasize what he views as the futility of life: no matter the length of the years, they are filled with “labor and sorrow” and pass quickly until we “fly away”.

VIDEO:  https://youtu.be/uA4JyAONd_I

[If Moses sounds, a bit pessimistic here, it's understandable. Think about what was happening around him... corpses everywhere. In 40 years of God-imposed wilderness wandering, an entire generation (except Joshua and Caleb) died off. The number is estimated to be well over one million by commentator Adam Clark. So many funerals! So many graves in the desert! Moses had to be overwhelmed by the manifestation of God's wrath.]

STANZA FOUR – VERSES 12-17: TEACH US WISDOM

Vs. 12 – “Teach us to number our days”: Teach us to be wise and make the most of our short lives.

“Of all arithmetical rules this is the hardest – to number our days. Men can number their herds and droves of oxen and of sheep, they can estimate the revenues of their manors and farms, they can with a little pains number and tell their coins, and yet they are persuaded that their days are infinite and innumerable and therefore do never begin to number them.” (Thomas Tymme) 

Vs. 15 – Moses understood that we would need a little humbling in our lives. His prayer was for God to allow the joys of our life to balance the inherent sorrows.

Vs. 17 – This is a wonderful prayer, that God would “establish the work of our hands”. Moses was asking God to bring us success at in the pursuit that we are called to do... and that all we do be done to His glory. If God has called you to be a garbage truck driver, you can find favor in the fact that you are an Ordained Garbage Collector. (I'm pretty sure I am an Ordained Procrastinator.)

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PSALM 91 – “Under His Wings”

This is a Wisdom Psalm, written to instill greater faith in God's people. We are not given any information about this psalm and can only guess as to the authorship. Since there are some common themes with Psalm 90, some commentators believe Moses to be the author . Since it also shares similar themes to Psalms 27 and 31, others point to David as the psalmist.

 

“In the whole collection there is not a more cheering Psalm, its tone is elevated and sustained throughout, faith is at its best, and speaks nobly.”  (Charles Spurgeon)

Vs. 1-2 – God is our protector and refuge. This is the overlying theme of the psalm. If we are dwelling in the “shadow of the Almighty”, we must be standing very near to Him.

Four wonderful titles or names for God are used in these verses:

Most High (Elyon)
Almighty (Shadday)
The LORD (Yahweh)
My God (Elohay)

Vs. 4 – “His truth shall be your shield and buckler”: The Hebrew word for “buckler” refers to something that is wrapped around a person for his or her protection, i.e. protective armor.

Vs. 5 – If believers are constantly filled with fear, they are not embracing the promises of God as our protector and comforter.

Vs. 6-8 – Without a doubt, God's faithful are not immune to disease and calamity. These verses are describing events (plague, pestilence, destruction) that are sent by God in punishment to the wicked. Under those circumstances, the faithful are assured of God's protection and “will only see” the punishment of the wicked.

Vs. 9-10 – A repeat of the promise that during times of judgment, no evil or harm will come to those who have made God their refuge.

Vs. 11-13 – Send in the angels!! God also protects us and cares for us by placing his angels in charge over us. This verse verifies what I have always suspected – it takes more than one guardian angel to get the job done. I have an angel to take the wheel when I'm driving and an angel that keeps the plane in the air when I'm flying and an angel that helps me find my lost shoes...

If I had only one guardian angel, she would be exhausted.

NOTE: Verses 11 and 12 were twisted by satan as he tried to tempt Jesus in the wilderness (Matthew 4:5-7; Luke 4:9-12). Satan left out the phrase, “to keep you in all your ways”.

Vs. 14-16 – In these final verses, God promises deliverance, protection and salvation to those who love Him. He promises to satisfy us with a long life... in eternity with Him.

💛NUGGET: God doesn't promise to deliver us OUT of trouble... but He does promises to be with us IN trouble (verse 15).

“There are blessings that some believers miss out on, simply because they are always fretting and do not trust God as they should. Here the psalmist quotes God as saying that the blessings are for those who love God and acknowledge his name (verse 14), call upon him (verse15), and seek satisfaction in what he alone can provide.” (Boice)

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PSALM 92 - “A Song for Sabbath”

This psalm is titled “A Song for the Sabbath day” and is the only song in the book that was especially written for the Sabbath day. The name of the author is not mentioned.

In Israel, the Sabbath was set aside for a day of rest and sacred assembly (Leviticus 23:3). This is a hymn of thanks and praise to God.

VERSES 1-5: GIVE THANKS BECAUSE OF WHO GOD IS & WHAT HE HAS DONE

Vs. 1-3 – It is good to praise God at all times. These verses show different ways we can worship God:.

Thanksgiving
Singing
Declaration
Playing Instruments
Rejoicing
Shouting for Joy
Day and Night

VERSES 6-9: GIVE THANKS BECAUSE GOD WILL TRIUMPH OVER THE WICKED

The psalmist admonishes people who reject the wisdom of God. A contrast is drawn between the faithful and the unfaithful... God's enemies will perish.

Vs. 8 – This single verse is the central message of the psalm... “But You, Lord, are on high forever.” This is also central to our faith. God is the MOST High.

VERSES 10-15: GIVE THANKS BECAUSE GOD CAUSES THE RIGHTEOUS TO FLOURISH

Vs. 10a – “Lifted up my horn” denotes restored strength and vitality.

💛NUGGET: The original Greek translators translated the wild ox (now extinct) incorrectly as “one-horned”, which was subsequently translated as a UNICORN.  Yes, once upon a time, there were unicorns in the Bible. 

Vs. 10b – “Fresh oil, in such a context, speaks eloquently of a renewed anointing…or consecration, to serve God. There may be the additional thought of preparing a ‘living sacrifice’, since the verb is used elsewhere not for anointing but for moistening the meal-offering with oil before presenting it at the altar (Exodus 29:40).” (Kidner)

Vs. 12-14 – The cedar trees of Lebanon were known for their majesty, strength, durability, beauty, and usefulness... all traits of the righteous. God's faithful will continue to bear fruit in their old age. 

Vs. 15 – The righteous declare that the LORD is upright by the way they live. They “bear fruit” not to bring glory to themselves, but to bring honor to God and reflect His glory to others.

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READING FOR TOMORROW:  Chapters 93-97

LINK TO READING PLAN:

 https://bibleplan.org/plans/psalms-in-a-month/