Slideshow image

1 I will sing of the Lord’s great love forever; with my mouth I will make your faithfulness known through all generations. 2 I will declare that your love stands firm forever, that you have established your faithfulness in heaven itself. 3 You said, “I have made a covenant with my chosen one, I have sworn to David my servant, 4 ‘I will establish your line forever and make your throne firm through all generations.’” 5 The heavens praise your wonders, Lord, our faithfulness too, in the assembly of the holy ones. 6 For who in the skies above can compare with the Lord? Who is like the Lord among the heavenly beings? 7 In the council of the holy ones God is greatly feared; he is more awesome than all who surround him. 8 Who is like you, Lord God Almighty? You, Lord, are mighty, and your faithfulness surrounds you. 9 You rule over the surging sea; when its waves mount up, you still them. 10 You crushed Rahab like one of the slain; with your strong arm you scattered your enemies. 11 The heavens are yours, and yours also the earth; you founded the world and all that is in it. 12 You created the north and the south; Tabor and Hermon sing for joy at your name. 13 Your arm is endowed with power; your hand is strong, your right hand exalted. 14 Righteousness and justice are the foundation of your throne; love and faithfulness go before you. 15 Blessed are those who have learned to acclaim you, who walk in the light of your presence, Lord. 16 They rejoice in your name all day long; they celebrate your righteousness. 17 For you are their glory and strength, and by your favor you exalt our horn. 18 Indeed, our shield belongs to the Lord, our king to the Holy One of Israel. 19 Once you spoke in a vision, to your faithful people you said: “I have bestowed strength on a warrior; I have raised up a young man from among the people. 20 I have found David my servant; with my sacred oil I have anointed him. 21 My hand will sustain him; surely my arm will strengthen him. 22 The enemy will not get the better of him; the wicked will not oppress him. 23 I will crush his foes before him and strike down his adversaries. 24 My faithful love will be with him, and through my name his horn will be exalted. 25 I will set his hand over the sea, his right hand over the rivers. 26 He will call out to me, ‘You are my Father, my God, the Rock my Savior.’ 27 And I will appoint him to be my firstborn, the most exalted of the kings of the earth. 28 I will maintain my love to him forever, and my covenant with him will never fail. 29 I will establish his line forever, his throne as long as the heavens endure. 30 “If his sons forsake my law and do not follow my statutes, 31 if they violate my decrees and fail to keep my commands, 32 I will punish their sin with the rod, their iniquity with flogging; 33 but I will not take my love from him, nor will I ever betray my faithfulness. 34 I will not violate my covenant or alter what my lips have uttered. 35 Once for all, I have sworn by my holiness—and I will not lie to David— 36 that his line will continue forever and his throne endure before me like the sun; 37 it will be established forever like the moon, the faithful witness in the sky.” 38 But you have rejected, you have spurned, you have been very angry with your anointed one. 39 You have renounced the covenant with your servant and have defiled his crown in the dust. 40 You have broken through all his walls and reduced his strongholds to ruins. 41 All who pass by have plundered him; he has become the scorn of his neighbors. 42 You have exalted the right hand of his foes; you have made all his enemies rejoice. 43 Indeed, you have turned back the edge of his sword and have not supported him in battle. 44 You have put an end to his splendor and cast his throne to the ground. 45 You have cut short the days of his youth; you have covered him with a mantle of shame. 46 How long, Lord? Will you hide yourself forever? How long will your wrath burn like fire? 47 Remember how fleeting is my life. For what futility you have created all humanity! 48 Who can live and not see death, or who can escape the power of the grave? 49 Lord, where is your former great love, which in your faithfulness you swore to David? 50 Remember, Lord, how your servant has[g] been mocked, how I bear in my heart the taunts of all the nations, 51 the taunts with which your enemies, Lord, have mocked, with which they have mocked every step of your anointed one. 52 Praise be to the Lord forever! Amen and Amen. (Psalm 89)

We remind ourselves that this whole psalm is a prayer. Please read it a couple of times before reading these notes and read the Psalm a few more times during the day, if you could, to let the message sink into your inner being.

Psalm 89 is easily recognized in its two movements, from creation to selection and from exultation to lamentation.

The first movement sees God’s people praising God for his creation, dominion and kingship over all creation. In the heavens , He is supreme. He rules over the surging sea. He created the North an the South. He founded the world and all that is in it. He is King to the Holy one of Israel.

The first movement then goes on to see God’s people remembering themselves as the covenant people beginning with the anointing of David. From the generality of dominion over the world, we come in this movement to the one person that God exalted - David and with him the one people. This covenant relationship emphasizes on faithfulness, love, protection and it is forever.

Psalm 89 has a second movement. The second movement initially sees God’s people in exultation over God’s faithfulness, righteousness, and justice. They rejoice in His name all day long. The Lord is their shield and their strength.

Then in Psalm 89:38, The second movement transitions from exultation into lamentation. The occasion is probably the destruction of Jerusalem by Nebuchadnezzar in 597 bc. God’s people lost their temple, their country, their families and their selfhood, as they became exiles. They were aware that what was happening had to do with their breaking of the Davidic covenant. They were not justifying themselves. Rather , they beseech God to remember His part of the covenant and call on His faithfulness to restore them.

Psalm 89 ends with a doxology, praising God. The Psalm ends in the same way it begins, affirming God is God.

What impresses me most is the way how these two movements come to the same conclusion.

The first movement goes from the world, the heavens and the earth to the one, David. But the everlasting covenant described in verses 27-29 and 35-37 cannot just refer to David. Only one person will fit the description - Jesus, the messiah.

The second movement goes from exultation to lamentation. But the sufferings described in verses 44, 45 and 50-51 fit perfectly the sufferings of Jesus, the messiah.

Psalm 89 teaches us about God’s sovereignty and his special everlasting covenant with David. It also teaches us about the the efficacy of praise, worship and thankfulness. But perhaps the most important message of this Psalm is that it tells us who Christ is. This messianic component in the psalm should be noted.

So, how are we to respond to this Psalm 89? Is it just a Psalm of the Israelites ? Are we onlookers of a privileged and suffering nation ? No, we are not observers; we are participants. Further more, we are bearers and descendants of this Davidic covenant with its glory and shame. Therefore we too exult God and sing His praises. We too lament when we are broken. When we suffer, we should not be surprised, as it is part of the package.

Yet, suffering does not crush us, we continue to sing. God is the other party to the covenant. And He is faithful. He remembers.