“Their voice goes out through all the earth, and their words to the end of the world. In them he has set a tent for the sun, which comes out like a bridegroom leaving his chamber, and, like a strong man, runs its course with joy. Its rising is from the end of the heavens, […]
Written and Imprinted in the Heavens
“Their voice goes out through all the earth, and their words to the end of the world. In them he has set a tent for the sun,” -Psalm 19:4 The word translated “voice” in the ESV is the Hebrew word, kav, also translated “line” in Isaiah 28:10 and here in the KJV. The word kav […]
Documenting the Dissertation
Recently, this post from @JonTyson made its way across my twitter feed and made my heart skip a beat. With a lump in my throat, I read his words, a second, and then a third time. Well folks. The time to finish my Doctorate has officially expired and I didn’t finish my dissertation in time. […]
We All Know That Language
“There is no speech, nor are there words, whose voice is not heard.” -Psalm 19:3 How gloriously appropriate that although man has be divided by language (Genesis 11:9), “the heavens have a common language to teach all men without distinction.” Though we may be limited in our ability to speak to people of different tongues, […]
God is Not Hidden
“Day to day pours out speech, and night to night reveals knowledge.” -Psalm 19:2 The expression “pours out” carries with it the idea of something bubbling up or bubbling over. Day after day, God’s creative nature is revealed in the manner in which he reveals Himself. From a glorious sunrise to the duck-billed platypus, from […]
The Heavens’ Sermon
“The heavens declare the glory of God, and the sky above proclaims his handiwork.” -Psalm 19:1 The parallelism serves to tell the reader exactly how it is that the heavens declare (announce or make clear) the glory (magnificence) of God. It is the sky רָקִיעַ râqîyaʿ, raw-kee´-ah; an expanse or visible arch of the sky:—firmament. […]
No Excuse!
“The heavens declare the glory of God, and the sky above proclaims his handiwork. Day to day pours out speech, and night to night reveals knowledge. There is no speech, nor are there words, whose voice is not heard. Their voice goes out through all the earth, and their words to the end of the […]
The Two Books of God
“The heavens declare the glory of God, and the sky above proclaims his handiwork. Day to day pours out speech, and night to night reveals knowledge. There is no speech, nor are there words, whose voice is not heard. Their voice goes out through all the earth, and their words to the end of the […]
The Lord Lives!
“The Lord lives, and blessed be my rock, and exalted be the God of my salvation— the God who gave me vengeance and subdued peoples under me, who rescued me from my enemies; yes, you exalted me above those who rose against me; you delivered me from the man of violence. For this I will […]
Equipped for the Battle
“For who is God, but the Lord? And who is a rock, except our God?— the God who equipped me with strength and made my way blameless. He made my feet like the feet of a deer and set me secure on the heights. He trains my hands for war, so that my arms can […]
Is Blogging Dead?
The word on the street amongst the cognoscenti is blogs are dead. These aficionados of online argue the way humans consume content is changing and reading is a thing of the past. Blogs are largely being replaced by podcasts and video content. But I don’t buy it! Not entirely, anyway. One argument goes something like this. […]
The Work of God in Us
“For who is God, but the Lord? And who is a rock, except our God?— the God who equipped me with strength and made my way blameless.” -Psalm 18:31–32 Yesterday, we looked at David’s employment of Moses’ song as inspiration for his description of God’s name and character. Thomas Oden also provides a helpful explanation […]
The Ultimate Reality
“For who is God, but the Lord? And who is a rock, except our God?—” -Psalm 18:31 Derek Kidner notes that David’s recurrent use of the word rock (ṣûr; cf. verses 2, 46) points to the Song of Moses as part of David’s inspiration for this psalm (see also Deut. 32:4, 31). David’s reflection on […]
This God is our God Too
“For it is you who light my lamp; the Lord my God lightens my darkness. For by you I can run against a troop, and by my God I can leap over a wall. This God—his way is perfect; the word of the Lord proves true; he is a shield for all those who take […]
He Gives Humility
“With the merciful you show yourself merciful; with the blameless man you show yourself blameless; with the purified you show yourself pure; and with the crooked you make yourself seem tortuous. For you save a humble people, but the haughty eyes you bring down.” -Psalm 18:25–27 There is a sense in which God let’s man […]
According To My Righteousness
“The Lord dealt with me according to my righteousness; according to the cleanness of my hands he rewarded me. For I have kept the ways of the Lord, and have not wickedly departed from my God. For all his rules were before me, and his statutes I did not put away from me. I was […]
Too Mighty for Me!
“He sent from on high, he took me; he drew me out of many waters. He rescued me from my strong enemy and from those who hated me, for they were too mighty for me. They confronted me in the day of my calamity, but the Lord was my support. He brought me out into […]
A Holy Vengeance
“Then the earth reeled and rocked; the foundations also of the mountains trembled and quaked, because he was angry. Smoke went up from his nostrils, and devouring fire from his mouth; glowing coals flamed forth from him. He bowed the heavens and came down; thick darkness was under his feet. He rode on a cherub […]
From the Pit of Despair
“The cords of death encompassed me; the torrents of destruction assailed me; the cords of Sheol entangled me; the snares of death confronted me. In my distress I called upon the Lord; to my God I cried for help. From his temple he heard my voice, and my cry to him reached his ears.” -Psalm […]
Worthy to be Praised
“I love you, O Lord, my strength. The Lord is my rock and my fortress and my deliverer, my God, my rock, in whom I take refuge, my shield, and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold. I call upon the Lord, who is worthy to be praised, and I am saved from my enemies.” […]
Our Masada
“The Lord is my rock and my fortress and my deliverer, my God, my rock, in whom I take refuge, my shield, and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold.” -Psalm 18:2 In verse one, David declared his love for the one who is his strength. In verse two, he expounds on the quality of […]
I Love You, O Lord, My Strength!
“To the choirmaster. A Psalm of David, the servant of the Lord, who addressed the words of this song to the Lord on the day when the Lord delivered him from the hand of all his enemies, and from the hand of Saul. He said: I love you, O Lord, my strength.” -Psalm 18:title–1f This […]
As for Me
“As for me, I shall behold your face in righteousness; when I awake, I shall be satisfied with your likeness.” -Psalm 17:15 The tenor of verse 15 is communal rather than strictly judicial. David’s considers his own state of being in contrast to what the wicked can expect from God. The wicked are earthly and […]
Christianity: Not Always Congeniality
“Arise, O Lord! Confront him, subdue him! Deliver my soul from the wicked by your sword, from men by your hand, O Lord, from men of the world whose portion is in this life. You fill their womb with treasure; they are satisfied with children, and they leave their abundance to their infants.” -Psalm 17:13–14 […]
The Characteristics of the Enemy
“They close their hearts to pity; with their mouths they speak arrogantly. They have now surrounded our steps; they set their eyes to cast us to the ground. He is like a lion eager to tear, as a young lion lurking in ambush.” -Psalm 17:10–12 Note the manner in which David describes his (and God’s) […]
Two Metaphors
“Keep me as the apple of your eye; hide me in the shadow of your wings, from the wicked who do me violence, my deadly enemies who surround me.” -Psalm 17:8–9 David is praying for God’s careful and watchful protection from his enemies and uses two beautiful metaphors to ask for it. First, he asks […]
God Still Answers His Children’s Prayers
“I call upon you, for you will answer me, O God; incline your ear to me; hear my words. Wondrously show your steadfast love, O Savior of those who seek refuge from their adversaries at your right hand.” -Psalm 17:6–7 O Wondrous love and faithfulness of God. Like an infant or child who cries for […]
Piety Without Pretense
“You have tried my heart, you have visited me by night, you have tested me, and you will find nothing; I have purposed that my mouth will not transgress. With regard to the works of man, by the word of your lips I have avoided the ways of the violent. My steps have held fast […]
Thinking Christianly
One of the goals of Classical Christian Education is to teach students how to think Christianly. Naturally, it follows that the first question we need to answer is what it means to think Christianly. At first glance, it seems this expression must mean we are to teach students to think biblically. And that is true, […]
Resist Injustice Justly
“Hear a just cause, O Lord; attend to my cry! Give ear to my prayer from lips free of deceit! From your presence let my vindication come! Let your eyes behold the right!” -Psalm 17:1–2 There are periods in history where injustice seems to prevail at ever turn; and for some, injustice seems to rule […]
A Just Cause
“Hear a just cause, O Lord; attend to my cry! Give ear to my prayer from lips free of deceit!” -Psalm 17:1 David begins with proclaiming his cause or position against his enemies as just. This is not based on feelings or a personal subjective vendetta, as that would be a futile case to bring […]
Unharmed Out of the Flame
“A Prayer of David. Hear a just cause, O Lord; attend to my cry! Give ear to my prayer from lips free of deceit! From your presence let my vindication come! Let your eyes behold the right! You have tried my heart, you have visited me by night, you have tested me, and you will […]
Far Too Easily Pleased
“You make known to me the path of life; in your presence there is fullness of joy; at your right hand are pleasures forevermore.” -Psalm 16:11 Unsurpassed in beauty, the concluding expression sets forth for meditation the very key to vitality and human flourishing. In being delivered from death (vs. 10), David’s physical life is […]
That Blessed Hope
“Therefore my heart is glad, and my whole being rejoices; my flesh also dwells secure. For you will not abandon my soul to Sheol, or let your holy one see corruption.” -Psalm 16:9–10 David rejoices because of the security he has in Christ. Moreover, his rejoicing is not temporal or shallow. It is deep and […]
Never Shaken
“I have set the Lord always before me; because he is at my right hand, I shall not be shaken.” (Psalm 16:8, ESV) Peter quotes this passage from the LXX about the Lord Jesus in his address to those at Pentecost. He says, “For David says concerning him, “ ‘I saw the Lord always before me, […]
The Lord’s Counsel
“I bless the Lord who gives me counsel; in the night also my heart instructs me. I have set the Lord always before me; because he is at my right hand, I shall not be shaken.” (Psalm 16:7–8, ESV) To bless is to speak well of or to praise. David praises God for directing and […]
A Beautiful Inheritance
“The Lord is my chosen portion and my cup; you hold my lot. The lines have fallen for me in pleasant places; indeed, I have a beautiful inheritance.” (Psalm 16:5–6, ESV) David addresses the Lord directly and expresses his great joy in the inheritance he had received from Him. Like the priests, whose inheritance is […]
The Fellowship of the Excellent Ones
“As for the saints in the land, they are the excellent ones, in whom is all my delight. The sorrows of those who run after another god shall multiply; their drink offerings of blood I will not pour out or take their names on my lips.” (Psalm 16:3–4, ESV) David is, in essence, dividing the […]
The Source of Human Flourishing
“I say to the Lord, “You are my Lord; I have no good apart from you.”” (Psalm 16:2, ESV) David not only declares his exclusive trust in and loyalty to the Lord, but he acknowledges Him as the ultimate and unique source of all good. Aristotle noted that there are some goods that are good […]
No Other Refuge
“Preserve me, O God, for in you I take refuge.” (Psalm 16:1, ESV) There are a few occasions in David’s life that may have warranted writing this particular Psalm, but we are not told what it is. Verse one summarizes the entire Psalm, however, expressing the theme of having all his affections centered on and […]
Appropriate Use of Money
“who does not put out his money at interest and does not take a bribe against the innocent. He who does these things shall never be moved.” (Psalm 15:5, ESV) The final indicator of a man who belongs to the Lord is seen in his disposition towards personal gain. In both examples in the passage, […]
A Godly Disposition
“in whose eyes a vile person is despised, but who honors those who fear the Lord; who swears to his own hurt and does not change;” (Psalm 15:4, ESV) The next indicator that a person is one of the Lord’s and will dwell in his holy hill is seen in his rightly ordered disposition. He […]
The Connection Between Your Neighbor and Heaven
“He who walks blamelessly and does what is right and speaks truth in his heart; who does not slander with his tongue and does no evil to his neighbor, nor takes up a reproach against his friend;” (Psalm 15:2–3, ESV) The second criterion of one who will dwell in the Lord’s presence reflects the second […]
Saved Unto Good Works
“He who walks blamelessly and does what is right and speaks truth in his heart;” (Psalm 15:2, ESV) The first set of criteria for who will be allowed to “sojourn” in the tent of God and “dwell” in his holy hill is to walk blameless, do what’s right and speak the truth. The three verbs—walks, […]
A Serious Question to Ponder
Psalm 15:1 (ESV): O Lord, who shall sojourn in your tent? Who shall dwell on your holy hill? The Psalm opens with a question that is answered in the remaining verses. Who will be a guest of God’s gracious hospitality? In the modern world, the belief that anyone can enter God’s presence on the basis […]
Salvation out of Zion
Psalm 14:7 (ESV): Oh, that salvation for Israel would come out of Zion! When the Lord restores the fortunes of his people, let Jacob rejoice, let Israel be glad. This closing prayer reminds us the coming of Messiah was the desire of the godly in every age from Adam to Christ, and the second coming […]
Shaming the Poor
Psalm 14:6 (ESV): You would shame the plans of the poor, but the Lord is his refuge. The original language is a bit difficult and thus the meaning here is disputed, but the general sense seems to be that the ungodly, though fools themselves and in preeminent danger of the terror of the Lord, mock […]
A Great Terror
Psalm 14:4–5 (ESV): Have they no knowledge, all the evildoers who eat up my people as they eat bread and do not call upon the Lord? There they are in great terror, for God is with the generation of the righteous. The fact that the evildoer has no knowledge reveals his brutish nature, one that […]
Without Knowledge
“Have they no knowledge, all the evildoers who eat up my people as they eat bread and do not call upon the Lord?” (Psalm 14:4, ESV) David was amazed at the ignorance of fools and evil men who devour God’s people. The display of their wickedness is most pronounced in their unscrupulous attacks on God’s […]
None Righteous!
“The fool says in his heart, “There is no God.” They are corrupt, they do abominable deeds; there is none who does good. The Lord looks down from heaven on the children of man, to see if there are any who understand, who seek after God. They have all turned aside; together they have become […]