The Lord is awe-inspiring, fearsome, fascinating, intriguing, and majestic in his radiant splendor: breathtaking! Here is what I saw of him today and what came to my heart and mind in Psalm 80:8-12,
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!
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"You transplanted a vine from Egypt;
you drove out the nations and planted it.
You cleared the ground for it,
and it took root and filled the land.
The mountains were covered with its shade,
the mighty cedars with its branches.
Its branches reached as far as the Sea,
its shoots as far as the River."
As the remnant of Israel languished in her captivity in Babylon due to her rejection of God over the years, Asaph makes an observation. He notes it was the Lord himself who brought Israel to the promised land, drove out the previous occupants and planted the nation there. He goes on to note how the nation had flourished there, as he describes it using the metaphor of a mighty cedar with its branches.
Since it was the Lord who brought Israel out of Egypt to transplant her into the promised land, Asaph pleads with the Lord to not allow the remnant of the nation to waste way in captivity. He asks the Lord three times in this psalm to "restore us", verses 3, 7 and 19, and that the nation will not then turn from him as it had done earlier, but call on his name, verse 18.
This is exactly what the Lord will accomplish with the nation. Following the captivity and some adjustment upon their return to the land, the nation would never again abandon the Lord. Not that the nation would no longer have its problems with him, but when Jesus Christ shows up several centuries later, Israel is found to have finally embraced God in such a way that Paul characterizes the unbelieving Jews of his day as "For I can testify about them that they are zealous for God, but their zeal is not based on knowledge." Romans 10:2.
Although as a nation they failed to embrace Jesus Christ as her Messiah, they nevertheless were done with chasing after idols. Now, as Paul says, "I do not want you to be ignorant of this mystery, brothers and sisters, so that you may not be conceited: Israel has experienced a hardening in part until the full number of the Gentiles has come in, and in this way all Israel will be saved. As it is written: 'The deliverer will come from Zion; he will turn godlessness away from Jacob. And this is my covenant with them when I take away their sins.'" Romans 11:25-27. Another painful opportunity for the Jews as the Lord shapes them into what he desires.
The message for me is that when God needs to make adjustments in our lives, he will do it very effectively and while we may find it difficult, and very difficult at times, we will need to bide our time while the Lord brings about what it is he desires to see within us.
you drove out the nations and planted it.
You cleared the ground for it,
and it took root and filled the land.
The mountains were covered with its shade,
the mighty cedars with its branches.
Its branches reached as far as the Sea,
its shoots as far as the River."
As the remnant of Israel languished in her captivity in Babylon due to her rejection of God over the years, Asaph makes an observation. He notes it was the Lord himself who brought Israel to the promised land, drove out the previous occupants and planted the nation there. He goes on to note how the nation had flourished there, as he describes it using the metaphor of a mighty cedar with its branches.
Since it was the Lord who brought Israel out of Egypt to transplant her into the promised land, Asaph pleads with the Lord to not allow the remnant of the nation to waste way in captivity. He asks the Lord three times in this psalm to "restore us", verses 3, 7 and 19, and that the nation will not then turn from him as it had done earlier, but call on his name, verse 18.
This is exactly what the Lord will accomplish with the nation. Following the captivity and some adjustment upon their return to the land, the nation would never again abandon the Lord. Not that the nation would no longer have its problems with him, but when Jesus Christ shows up several centuries later, Israel is found to have finally embraced God in such a way that Paul characterizes the unbelieving Jews of his day as "For I can testify about them that they are zealous for God, but their zeal is not based on knowledge." Romans 10:2.
Although as a nation they failed to embrace Jesus Christ as her Messiah, they nevertheless were done with chasing after idols. Now, as Paul says, "I do not want you to be ignorant of this mystery, brothers and sisters, so that you may not be conceited: Israel has experienced a hardening in part until the full number of the Gentiles has come in, and in this way all Israel will be saved. As it is written: 'The deliverer will come from Zion; he will turn godlessness away from Jacob. And this is my covenant with them when I take away their sins.'" Romans 11:25-27. Another painful opportunity for the Jews as the Lord shapes them into what he desires.
The message for me is that when God needs to make adjustments in our lives, he will do it very effectively and while we may find it difficult, and very difficult at times, we will need to bide our time while the Lord brings about what it is he desires to see within us.
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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