The Lord is awe-inspiring, fearsome, fascinating, intriguing, majestic, and full of splendor: breathtaking! Here is what I saw of him and what came to my heart and mind in Psalm 129:4,
"The Lord is righteous; he has cut me free from the cords of the wicked."
Psalm 129 is one of the many psalms that are described in the heading as "A song of ascent." There were three occasions in Israel's calendar given them by the Lord where the nation was to gather in Jerusalem. Jerusalem is up on a hill and so it is often thought these psalms of ascents were songs the pilgrims sang as they made their way up to the gates of the city.
In this psalm the Lord is observed as being righteous and from within that righteousness he kept his people from being dominated by the wicked, "he has cut me free from the cords of the wicked."
There are a number of words within the pages of Scripture that might be thought of as having content to them, that they carry some theological freight. For me, "righteousness" is one of those words. People can obtain a righteous standing before God. It has to be given them because none of us come into this world as righteous- we are all sinners. Paul tells us in Romans 3:22 that God gives us a standing of righteousness in his economy of things through faith. This is the currency that provides us access to heaven following this life, we are "right" before the Lord.
In this psalm, however, it is not people who are recognized as righteous but the Lord himself. What does that mean? To me, it very simply means that the Lord is consistent with himself. He never changes and he always, without fail, is consistent with those qualities within him that define who he is and what his is like.
This I think is the point of the psalmist here. He accounts for the freedom of the Lord's people from the control or domination of the wicked because that is what he does, it is just like the Lord to do such a thing.
Anything of the Lord capture your heart from Scripture today? Share what moved you about him from your Bible reading today. I'd love to hear from you!
If you have someone you would like to receive these ruminations, send me their email address. I'm happy to add them to the list. If you are receiving this and would like to be removed from the list, just reply and let me know.
"The Lord is righteous; he has cut me free from the cords of the wicked."
Psalm 129 is one of the many psalms that are described in the heading as "A song of ascent." There were three occasions in Israel's calendar given them by the Lord where the nation was to gather in Jerusalem. Jerusalem is up on a hill and so it is often thought these psalms of ascents were songs the pilgrims sang as they made their way up to the gates of the city.
In this psalm the Lord is observed as being righteous and from within that righteousness he kept his people from being dominated by the wicked, "he has cut me free from the cords of the wicked."
There are a number of words within the pages of Scripture that might be thought of as having content to them, that they carry some theological freight. For me, "righteousness" is one of those words. People can obtain a righteous standing before God. It has to be given them because none of us come into this world as righteous- we are all sinners. Paul tells us in Romans 3:22 that God gives us a standing of righteousness in his economy of things through faith. This is the currency that provides us access to heaven following this life, we are "right" before the Lord.
In this psalm, however, it is not people who are recognized as righteous but the Lord himself. What does that mean? To me, it very simply means that the Lord is consistent with himself. He never changes and he always, without fail, is consistent with those qualities within him that define who he is and what his is like.
This I think is the point of the psalmist here. He accounts for the freedom of the Lord's people from the control or domination of the wicked because that is what he does, it is just like the Lord to do such a thing.
Anything of the Lord capture your heart from Scripture today? Share what moved you about him from your Bible reading today. I'd love to hear from you!
If you have someone you would like to receive these ruminations, send me their email address. I'm happy to add them to the list. If you are receiving this and would like to be removed from the list, just reply and let me know.
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