Weds 26 May - Psalm 115
Psalm 115
1 Not to us, Lord, not to us
but to your name be the glory,
because of your love and faithfulness.2 Why do the nations say,
‘Where is their God?’
3 Our God is in heaven;
he does whatever pleases him.
4 But their idols are silver and gold,
made by human hands.
5 They have mouths, but cannot speak,
eyes, but cannot see.
6 They have ears, but cannot hear,
noses, but cannot smell.
7 They have hands, but cannot feel,
feet, but cannot walk,
nor can they utter a sound with their throats.
8 Those who make them will be like them,
and so will all who trust in them.9 All you Israelites, trust in the Lord –
he is their help and shield.
10 House of Aaron, trust in the Lord –
he is their help and shield.
11 You who fear him, trust in the Lord –
he is their help and shield.12 The Lord remembers us and will bless us:
he will bless his people Israel,
he will bless the house of Aaron,
13 he will bless those who fear the Lord –
small and great alike.14 May the Lord cause you to flourish,
both you and your children.
15 May you be blessed by the Lord,
the Maker of heaven and earth.16 The highest heavens belong to the Lord,
but the earth he has given to the human race.
17 It is not the dead who praise the Lord,
those who go down to the place of silence;
18 it is we who extol the Lord,
both now and for evermore.Praise the Lord.
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Meditation on Psalm 115
On a first reading of this Psalm, you may be forgiven for wondering who is speaking to who and about what or whom.
Verse 1 ‘Not unto US, LORD…’
Verses 4-8 ‘THEIR idols…’ Whose idols? The nations’ idols.
Verses 9-11 ‘you ISRAELITES…’
Verses 12-13 ‘HE will bless…’
Verses 14-16 ‘A priestly blessing…’
Verses 17-19 ‘a final blessing from the people…’
TO GOD BE THE GLORY – NOT TO OURSELVES Verses 1-3
We are who we are because of the mercy and grace of God.
We are blessed by God.
We are encouraged by God.
We owe God everything.
It is so easy to focus on ourselves but there are warnings against this.
Chapter 8:12 ‘When you have eaten and are satisfied, PRAISE THE LORD YOUR GOD for the good land He has given you. Be careful that you DO NOT FORGET THE LORD YOUR GOD.
Chapter 8:17-18 ‘you may say to yourself, “My power and the strength of my hands have produced this wealth for me.” But REMEMBER THE LORD YOUR GOD FOR IT IS HE WHO GIVES YOU THE ABILITY TO PRODUCE WEALTH.’
Chapter 9:4-6 ‘After the LORD your God has driven them out before you, do not say to yourself “the LORD has brought me here to take possession of this land BECAUSE OF MY RIGHTEOUSNESS.” No, IT IS NOT BECAUSE OF YOUR RIGHTEOUSNESS OR YOUR INTEGRITY…”
That’s the lesson Gideon had to learn in Judges 7:2 ‘The LORD said to Gideon, “You have too many men. I cannot deliver Midian into their hands or Israel would boast against me, “My own strength has saved me.”
That’s how our Psalm begins – ‘not to us, LORD but to your Name be the glory.’
We give glory to God ‘because of His love and faithfulness.’
Our God is in heaven. He is on the throne and He fulfils everything in accordance with His will.
TO GOD BE THE GLORY – NOT TO THE IDOLS Verses 4-8
The nations of the world still ask the question ‘Where is their God?’
The idols of the nations may have shape and form but they are senseless and useless.
They worship idols of their own making which are silent, blind, deaf, insensitive to smell, cannot feel, rooted to the spot because they cannot walk, unable to make any sound.
What a contrast to ‘our God who is in heaven.’
William Cowper’s hymn, written in the 18th century, has this verse:
‘The dearest idol I have known, whate’er that idol be,
Help me tear if from Thy throne, and worship only Thee.’
TO GOD BE THE GLORY – AS WE TRUST HIM Verses 9-13
Again, we see two different speakers – in verses 9-11 there is the call TO the Israelites to trust and in verses 12-13 there is the response FROM the Israelites.
Notice that the call to trust is to ‘all you Israelites.’ This is not a call just for the leaders – it’s for all.
The meaning of ‘House of Aaron’ is uncertain, other than it refers to the priesthood under Aaron – in modern terms this could refer to those in church leadership.
Why should God’s people trust Him? He is ‘their help and their shield.’
The response from the Israelites is an assurance that the LORD ‘will bless.’ This is repeated five times so that we don’t forget.
TO GOD BE THE GLORY – AS HE BLESSES US Verses 14-18
- blessed by the Creator
- blessed by the One who has entrusted the earth to us
blessed by the One to whom we bring our praise and thanksgiving – ‘now and forevermore.’
(Roger Purdom)
Daily Readings
Thursday 27 May - Psalm 116
Friday 28 May - Psalm 117
Saturday 29 May - Psalm 118
Sunday 30 May - Psalm 119
Monday 31 May - Psalm 120
Tuesday 1 June - Psalm 121