The Tabernacle of David
“Part II”
Part II. - Table of Contents
Psalms 42 – 72
Title Page
Chapter 42.
Chapter 43.
Chapter 44.
Chapter 45.
Chapter 46.
Chapter 47.
Chapter 48.
Chapter 49.
Chapter 50.
Chapter 51.
Chapter 52.
Chapter 53.
Chapter 54.
Chapter 55.
Chapter 56.
Chapter 57.
Chapter 58.
Chapter 59.
Chapter 60.
Chapter 61.
Chapter 62.
Chapter 63.
Chapter 64.
Chapter 65.
Chapter 66.
Chapter 67.
Chapter 68.
Chapter 69.
Chapter 70.
Chapter 71.
Chapter 72.
Title Page
The Tabernacle of David
A Study of how the Psalms
Define Prophetic Numerology
(Psalms 42 – 72)
“Part II”
By
Russell M. Stendal
Chapter 42.
Forty-two is two times twenty-one (doubling down on the consequences of the fruit of peace), or three times fourteen (the fruit or wellbeing of salvation), or six times seven (mankind being healed and brought to wholeness or completion). Forty-two may also be used in a negative sense to portray the rejection or absence of all of the above.
The first use of this number is when the Levites were given forty-two cities in addition to six cities of refuge that were given to the priests (Numbers 35:6). The Levites were separated unto the Lord as his representatives; therefore, unlike all the other tribes, they were given no land as an inheritance because the Lord was their inheritance (Deuteronomy 10:8–9).
The second use of forty-two occurs where the young (or immature) men of the city of Bethel mocked Elisha, and two bears tore forty-two of them apart (2 Kings 2:23–24). Bethel (meaning “house of God”) had gradually degenerated into humanism and apostasy in the form of calf worship and increasing perversion. Elisha had received a double portion of the spirit of Elijah and had begun to minister spiritual healing in Israel. Consequently, when the young men of Bethel190 mocked him and called him bald (that is, without glory), it led to their immediate demise.191
The third and fourth uses of the number take place when Jehu slew all forty-two men of the brethren of wicked king Ahaziah (who was forty-two when he began to reign) at the shearing house.192 Evil Queen Athaliah, the mother of Ahaziah, was the daughter of wicked King Omri of Israel. Omri was also the father of vile King Ahab, who on top of all his other abominations married the heartless Jezebel. Therefore, the forty-two brethren of Ahaziah slain by Jehu (on the same day that Jezebel died, incidentally) were all related to Ahab and Jezebel.193
The fifth use of forty-two is found in Ezra’s census of those who returned from the Babylonian captivity. These included forty-two sons of Azmaveth (meaning “strong one of death”). The sixth use comes in the census of Nehemiah, in which the men are listed as forty-two men of Bethazmaveth (meaning “house of strength”).194
The seventh and final use occurs in the description of the Gentiles who tread the holy city underfoot for forty-two months (Revelation 11:2). Here, forty-two months195 is the length of time required to cleanse and purify the holy city.
After they passed over the Red Sea, the forty-second camp of the children of Israel was at Gilgal (meaning “circle,” a symbol of perfection) after they crossed the Jordan River on dry ground and entered the promised land.
And let’s not forget: All the generations from Abraham to David are fourteen generations; from David until the carrying away into Babylon are fourteen generations; from the carrying away into Babylon unto the Christ are fourteen generations (Matthew 1:17). Therefore, three times fourteen has to do with Christ, the forty-second generation, which may include us if we are members of the body of Christ.196
Psalm 42
To the Overcomer: Maschil,197 for the sons of Korah.
1 As the hart pants after the water brooks, so does my soul pant after thee, O God.
2 My soul thirsts for God, for the living God; when shall I come and appear before God?
The psalmist knew that the only thing that would cause him to be completely fulfilled and satisfied was the presence of God.
3 My tears have been my food day and night, while they continually say unto me, Where is thy God?
4 I will remember these things; I will pour out my soul in me. When I shall be included in the number; I will go with them to the house of God with voice of joy and praise, dancing in the multitude.
In what number does the psalmist desire to be included? The number of the redeemed.198
5 Why art thou cast down, O my soul? and why art thou disquieted against me? Wait thou for God, for I shall yet praise him for the wellbeing of his presence.
Our soul is cast down and disquieted when we realize with increasing clarity that the things of this world – however necessary some may seem – can never satisfy us. If we belong to God, he will use trials and tribulations to eradicate any wrong desires that may remain in our hearts. Even though we have received grace and mercy from God, we have not yet experienced the wellbeing of standing directly in his presence.
6 O my God, my soul is cast down within me; therefore I will remember thee from the land of Jordan, and of the Hermonites, from the mountain of Mizar.
The land of Jordan is the land of death (to sin, the old man, and the old nature). The Hermonites, or residents of Mount Hermon (or Mount Sion), are those whose citizenship is of heaven, even while they walk upon this earth. The mountains of Mizar (meaning “small”) are the key to maintaining our perspective. It is when we are small in our own eyes that God will bless and prosper us and guide our steps. Saul of Tarsus preferred to be called Paul (“small”) as he humbly walked with God and successfully undertook great apostolic endeavors.
7 Deep calls unto deep at the voice of thy waterspouts; all thy waves and thy billows are gone over me.
There are places where the sea is shallow and somewhat murky, and there are places where it is incredibly deep and crystal clear. The wonders of the deep are truly unfathomable. God’s character is similar. He has created within us a deep void that can only be filled by the fullness of his presence.
Seamen know that waterspouts at sea are essentially the same as tornados or whirl winds on land199 (linked in Scripture to the voice, presence, and judgments of God). In a very short time, the sea can go from being calm and peaceful to boiling with huge waves and billows punctuated with waterspouts, making even the most experienced seaman wonder at times if he and his craft will survive. So it is with life as we navigate this fallen world, which has, for the most part, rejected the truth, grace, and mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ.
8 Yet the LORD will command his mercy in the daytime, and in the night his song shall be with me, and my prayer unto the God of my life.
Even while the psalmist is in the midst of great danger and uncertainty, he is certain that, day and night, he will receive consolation from the Lord.
9 I will say unto God, My rock, why hast thou forgotten me? Why do I go mourning because of the oppression of the enemy?
10 It is as death in my bones when my enemies reproach me; while they say daily unto me, Where is thy God?
11 Why art thou cast down, O my soul? and why art thou disquieted within me? Wait thou for God, for I shall yet praise him, who is the saving health of my countenance and my God.
As we work our way through the trials and tribulations of life here on earth (or even while we are enjoying some of the brief pleasures of this world), we might occasionally wonder if God has forgotten about us. When our enemies’ oppression continues, when they attempt to destroy everything we stand for, and their reproach is as death in [our] bones, when our faith in God is mocked on a daily basis, we need to patiently remember all the promises of God that are included and multiplied in the symbolic meaning of the number forty-two. After all, the longing and thirst for God in our soul will never be fully satisfied until we appear before him in the realm of his presence.
Let us pray.
Heavenly Father, may our thirst and longing for you be completely fulfilled and satisfied, may our enemies be utterly defeated, and may we live in your sight forever. Amen.
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190 When the house of God (Bethel) degenerates into humanism, worship of fallen man (in this case represented by golden calves) and its associated perversions, its inhabitants will never come to maturity in Christ. They will never go beyond the realm of “young men.”
191 When the scribes mocked Jesus, saying he had an unclean spirit, this was his reply: Verily I say unto you, All sins shall be forgiven unto the sons of men and whatever blasphemies with which they shall blaspheme, but whosoever shall blaspheme against the Holy Spirit shall never have forgiveness but is obligated to eternal judgment (Mark 3:28–29).
192 2 Kings 10:13–14; 2 Chronicles 22:2.
193 In his letter to the congregation at Thyatira, Jesus is recorded as saying: Notwithstanding I have a few things against thee because thou sufferest that woman Jezebel (who calls herself a prophetess) to teach and to seduce my slaves to commit fornication, and to eat things sacrificed unto idols. And I have given her time to repent of her fornication, and she repented not. Behold, I will cast her into a bed and those that commit adultery with her into great tribulation unless they repent of their deeds. And I will kill her children with death, and all the congregations [Greek “ekklesia,” meaning “called-out ones”] shall know that I AM he that searches the kidneys and hearts, and I will give unto each one of you according to your works (Revelation 2:20–23).
194 The death of the old man is required if we are to come forth in the house of strength of the new man in Christ.
195 Looking at this from another angle, in Bible prophecy, months can relate to generations. It is in the generation of Christ, the forty-second generation from Abraham, that the holy city is cleansed.
196 For more on the significance of the number, forty-two, see The Correction Factor, Russell Stendal, Ransom Press, Hollywood, Florida.
197 “Maschil” means “for understanding.”
198 Symbolically, the number forty-two has to do with those who will inherit the fullness of Christ and with those who will be cut off from this inheritance. It is imperative that we be included in the number of those who may have unlimited access to the house of God.
199 Waterspouts, however, can be much more spectacular and seem much more threatening, especially at night when lit by lightning.
Chapter 43.
Forty-three is a prime number that does not occur by itself in Scripture, other than in the title of Psalm 43.200 Therefore its significance is shrouded in mystery and does not easily lend itself to analytical curiosity. There are, however, important things about God and his dwelling place that cannot be adequately or even effectively expressed in writing because they require personal experience and revelation (and so it is with some of the numbers described in the Psalms).
Psalm 86 (two times forty-three) has to do with being merciful and centers on asking for and receiving mercy. Psalm 129 (three times forty-three) centers on those who refused to show mercy to Israel.
Psalm 43
1 Judge me, O God, and plead my cause against those who are not merciful; O deliver me from the deceitful and unjust man.
The psalmist’s desire to be judged by God, his wish for God to plead his cause against those who are not merciful, could be a strong indication of his merciful and upright character. This verse links those who are not merciful with the man who is deceitful and unjust.
2 For thou art the God of my strength; why dost thou cast me off? Why do I go mourning because of the oppression of the enemy?
Who is the enemy? Those who are not merciful; those who are deceitful and unjust.
The fact that God seems to give everyone time and opportunity to demonstrate the fruit of their character, whether good or evil, may sometimes cause the righteous to wonder if God has cast them off.
3 O send out thy light and thy truth; let them lead me; let them bring me unto the mountain of thy holiness and to thy tabernacles.
Jesus told his disciples: I AM the way, the truth, and the life; no one comes unto the Father, but by me (John 14:6), and Ye are the light of the world. A city set upon a mountain cannot be hid (Matthew 5:14).
God’s light and truth are fully displayed in Jesus and in the body of Christ; they go well beyond anything that can be expressed in writing. It is when God sends out worthy ambassadors and representatives that we, led by his light and truth, may be brought to God’s tabernacles and the mountain of his holiness.
4 Then I will enter in to the altar of God, unto the God of my exceeding joy; yea, upon the harp will I praise thee, O God my God.
The altar of God is where we may offer ourselves completely to him.
5 Why art thou cast down, O my soul? and why art thou disquieted within me? Wait for God, for I shall yet praise him, who is the saving health of my countenance and my God.
The last line of this psalm is virtually identical to the last line of the preceding psalm, indicating that both may have been written by the same author.
Let us pray.
Heavenly Father, may we be led by your light and by your truth until we are brought unto your tabernacles and the mountain of your holiness. Amen.
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200 It does, however, occur three times as a component of a larger number (Numbers 26:7; Ezra 2:25; Nehemiah 7:29); these describe a group that in one way or another received mercy from God.
Chapter 44.
Forty-four is two times twenty-two (doubling down on the promises of the Word of God) or four times eleven (having to do with the appointed times and how they relate to those whom God has chosen in Christ). The number forty-four does not occur by itself in Scripture, other than in the title to Psalm 44.201
Psalm 44
To the Overcomer for the sons of Korah,202 Maschil.
1 We have heard with our ears, O God, our fathers have told us, what work thou didst in their days in the times of old.
2 How thou didst drive out the Gentiles with thy hand and plant them in their place; how thou didst afflict the peoples and cast them out.
3 For they did not get the land in inheritance by their own sword, neither did their own arm save them, but thy right hand and thine arm, and the light of thy countenance because thy delight was in them.
The sons of Korah were Levites, a tribe who, unlike their brethren of the other tribes, were not given an inheritance of land. The Levites belonged totally to the Lord, and he was their inheritance. Nevertheless, the Levites were given forty-two cities in which to dwell, so they could fulfill their spiritual responsibilities to the other twelve tribes that did receive land as their inheritance. The writer of this psalm acknowledges to God that the conquest of the inheritance203 of all the sons of Israel (whether these sons were spiritual or natural) was by thy right hand and thine arm, and the light of thy countenance because thy delight was in them.
The psalmist continues:
4 Thou art my King, O God; command saving health unto Jacob.
5 Through thee will we push down our enemies; through thy name will we tread under those that rise up against us.
6 For I will not trust in my bow, neither shall my sword save me.
7 But thou hast saved us from our enemies and hast put to shame those that hated us.
8 In God we boast all the day long and praise thy name for ever. Selah.
The writer of this psalm knows that even though we are the people of God – though many of us are like Jacob and continue to wrestle with God – under our present circumstances there will be no saving health (no comprehensive healing and salvation) unless God, our king, gives the command. There have been many wonderful, miraculous victories in the past, but what about now? Have things changed, and if so, why?
9 But thou hast cast us off and put us to shame and doth not go forth with our armies.
10 Thou makest us to turn back from the enemy, and we are spoiled by those who hate us.
11 Thou hast given us over like sheep appointed for food and hast scattered us among the Gentiles.
12 Thou hast sold thy people for nothing and dost not increase thy wealth by their price.
13 Thou makest us a reproach to our neighbours, a scorn and a derision to those that are round about us.
14 Thou makest us a byword among the Gentiles, a shaking of the head among the people.
15 My confusion204 is continually before me, and the shame of my face has covered me,
16 for the voice of him that reproaches and blasphemes by reason of the enemy and of the avenger.
This psalm was written at a time in which the people of God were in defeat, perhaps even in captivity.
17 All this is come upon us; yet we have not forgotten thee, neither have we dealt falsely in thy covenant.
18 Our heart is not turned back, neither have our steps declined from thy way
Even though “Korah” was rebellious, many who are “sons of Korah” have not dealt falsely with God. Our heart is not turned back, and neither have our steps declined from God’s way.
19 though thou hast sore broken us in the place of dragons205 and covered us with the shadow of death.206
20 If we have forgotten the name of our God or stretched out our hands to a strange god,
21 shall not God search this out? For he knows the secrets of the heart.
This psalm is for the “sons of Korah” who have been and are being faithful to God in the midst of this fallen world, even though some of their ancestors have been rebellious. This could describe many of us in the church today.
22 Yea, for thy sake are we killed all the day long; we are counted as sheep for the slaughter.207
Today, there continue to be martyrs for the cause of Jesus Christ.
23 Awake, why sleepest thou, O Lord? Arise, do not cast us off for ever.
24 Why dost thou hide thy face and forget our affliction and our oppression?
25 For our soul is bowed down to the dust; our belly cleaves unto the earth.
26 Arise for our help and ransom us for thy mercies’ sake.
In order for our ransom and deliverance to be complete, the last enemy that must be overcome is death (1 Corinthians 15:26). This will require resurrection at the appointed time (Revelation 20:4–6).
Let us pray.
Heavenly Father, we ask you to bless those of your people who have not forgotten you and have not dealt falsely in your covenant. As we faithfully walk in your ways, please do not remember the rebellions of our ancestors. Arise for our help, and ransom us for your mercy’s sake, until our last enemy is overcome. Amen.
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201 It does, however, occur five times as part of a larger number (1 Chronicles 5:18; Revelation 7:4, 14:1, 3, and 21:17).
202 “Korah” means “baldness” (which is associated with lack of glory). This name is used forty times in Scripture, beginning with a son of Esau (Genesis 36:5). Later, a great-grandson of Levi named Korah (along with Dathan and Abiram) challenged the authority of Moses and Aaron (Numbers 16:1–3). Even though the earth opened up and swallowed Korah, Dathan, and Abiram, and fire smote their 250 followers, the sons of Korah did not die (Numbers 26:10–11). As Levites, they went on to have important spiritual responsibilities in Israel (1 Chronicles 9:19). There are eleven psalms for the sons of Korah, nine of which are dedicated to the Overcomer (this is the second). This story holds out consolation and hope for anyone who has an ancestor (spiritual or otherwise) who was rebellious.
203 The promised land is symbolic of the fullness of our inheritance in Christ.
204 “Babylon” means “confusion,” and it is a symbol of the world system.
205 Where is “the place of dragons”? In Scripture, the dragon relates to the world, and to paganism under the control of Satan, which is making great inroads into Western civilization today.
206 This is a quote from the book of Job. The phrase “the shadow of death” is used twenty times in Scripture. The first ten are in the book of Job, followed by four in Psalms, four in the Prophets, and two in the New Testament. This is the second reference in Psalms and the twelfth in Scripture overall.
207 This is quoted by Paul in Romans 8:36.
Chapter 45.
Forty-five is three times fifteen (which signifies the expansion of the fruit of God’s mercy and grace, as represented by the number fifteen) or five times nine (judgment according to mercy and grace). The number forty-five occurs three times in Scripture.208 The first use is when Abraham was negotiating with God over the fate of Sodom and Gomorrah (Genesis 18:28). The second use is when, after forty-five years, Caleb felt as strong as when he had spied out the land with Joshua at age forty. At this time, Joshua finally granted Caleb the mountain that had long been promised to him (Joshua 14:7–14). The third and final use is when Solomon built the house of the forest of Lebanon with forty-five pillars, fifteen in each row (1 Kings 7:3).
Psalm 45
To the Overcomer: upon Shoshannim lilies, for the sons of Korah, Maschil, A Song of loves.
1 My heart is overflowing with a good word; I speak of the things which I have done concerning the king; my tongue is the pen of a ready writer.
Who is this anonymous writer who speaks of things that he or she has done concerning the king, rather than what he or she has observed?
2 Thou art fairer than the sons of men, grace is poured into thy lips; therefore God has blessed thee for ever.
This image is messianic. The only one fairer than the sons of men, from whose lips the grace of God continually flows and whom God has blessed forever, is Jesus Christ (even though David is a worthy representative).
3 Gird thy sword upon thy thigh, O most valiant, with thy glory and thy majesty. The sword is the Word of God.
4 And in thy majesty be prospered; ride upon the word of truth and of humility and of righteousness;209 and thy right hand shall teach thee terrible things.
5 Thine arrows, by which the peoples fall under thee, penetrate the heart of the enemies of the king.
It is the right hand (symbol of power and authority) that nocks the arrow, draws the bow, and releases arrows that penetrate the heart of the enemies of the king.
In this psalm, the king in the ultimate sense is God the Father, and the one referred to as most valiant is Jesus Christ. The body of Christ will be most valiant as we become one with him (Revelation 19:14).
6 Thy throne, O God, is eternal and for ever, the rod of righteousness is the sceptre of thy kingdom.
7 Thou lovest righteousness, and hatest wickedness; therefore God, thy God, has anointed thee with the oil of gladness above thy fellows.
The above Scripture is quoted in the NT210 and applied to Jesus Christ, the Son of God.
8 All thy garments smell of myrrh and aloes and cassia, out of the ivory palaces, by which they have made thee glad.
His garments, or covering, represent the authority under which he operates. They smell of myrrh (indicative of the cross and redemption), aloes (righteousness), and cassia (worship). The ivory palaces speak of the kingdom of God being extended in fullness.
9 Kings’ daughters were among thy honourable women; the queen stands at thy right hand with a crown of gold from Ophir.
King’s daughters are royalty and represent all the upright and honorable congregations (typed as women)211 who surround the court. The queen, who is the bride, stands at Jesus’s right hand, indicating she has full authority; she has a crown of gold (representing the nature of God) from Ophir (meaning “reduce to ashes”). Those who will reign with Christ are those who have placed their own lives on the altar, so that their own ways, plans, and ambitions are reduced to ashes (Revelation 20:4–6).
For those who are to be included in the bride of Christ, the following advice is given:
10 Hearken, O daughter, and consider and incline thine ear; forget also thine own people, and thy father’s house;
11 so shall the king greatly desire thy beauty; and bow before him, for he is thy Lord.
“To hearken” means “to hear and obey.” In addition to laying down our own plans and ambitions, we are admonished to forget also thine own people, and thy father’s house.
Why? Because if we are to reign and rule with Christ, absolutely all of our allegiance must be to him. There must be no possibility of palace intrigue or competing factions. This is when the king shall greatly desire our “beauty,” and we shall have the opportunity to bow before him as our only Lord.
12 And the daughter of Tyre shall be there with a gift; even the rich among the people shall intreat thy favour.
Who is the daughter of Tyre? Who are the rich among the people? “Tyre” means “rock,” and “the daughter of Tyre” represents those who are on a firm foundation. The “rich among the people” (of God’s heavenly court) are those who have obtained things of eternal value.
13 The king’s daughter is all glorious within: her clothing is of wrought gold.
She is a beautiful sight to behold, but most importantly, she is all glorious within. This includes every aspect of her inner being. Her clothing (or covering) is of wrought gold, representing the nature of God walked out in practice.
14 She shall be brought unto the king in raiment of needlework; the virgins her companions that follow her shall be brought unto thee.
Her raiment (clothing) of needlework represents the painstaking and intricate workmanship involved in following every nudge and impulse of the Holy Spirit. Her companions are virgins, and thus they are pure and undefiled. This is why she delights in associating with them.
Notice the wording where it says that the virgins shall be brought unto thee. Whom is the psalmist referring to here as thee? In the highest spiritual sense, the companions of the bride of Christ will be brought into personal relationship with God the Father.
15 With gladness and rejoicing shall they be brought; they shall enter into the king’s palace.
16 Instead of thy fathers shall be thy sons, whom thou shalt make princes in all the earth.
The psalmist continues to address the bride (of Christ, made up of many members) when he says: Instead of thy fathers shall be thy sons, whom thou shalt make princes in all the earth.
17 I will make thy name to be remembered in all generations; therefore shall the people praise thee eternally and for ever.
This sublime, messianic psalm ends on a very high note, describing what will happen in the eternal future of the beautiful bride of Christ, who lives with the sole purpose of doing his will and, therefore, contributes to the increase of his kingdom that shall have no end (Isaiah 9:6–7; Luke 1:31–33).
Let us pray.
Heavenly Father, may your kingdom come. May your will be done here on earth, even as it is in heaven. May we become one with Jesus, even as he is one with you, and may the sons of God be multiplied and placed as princes in all the earth. Amen.
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208 Forty-five is used in Scripture an additional twelve times as a component of a larger number.
209 Compare this with Revelation 19:11.
210 Hebrews 1:8–9
211 The corporate people of God – congregation – are typed in Scripture as a woman (the bride of Christ).
Chapter 46.
Forty-six is two times twenty-three, thus doubling down on the fact that God is our security (see Psalm 23). This number is used once in Scripture after Jesus cleaned the buyers, sellers, and moneychangers out of the temple.
Then the Jews answered and said unto him, What sign showest thou unto us, seeing that thou doest these things? Jesus answered and said unto them, Dissolve this temple, and in three days I will raise it up. Then said the Jews, This temple was forty-six years in building, and wilt thou raise it up in three days? But he spoke of the temple of his body (John 2:18–21).
The temple that the Jews had spent forty-six years in building was completely destroyed, with not even one stone left on top of another by AD 70; it has still not been rebuilt. On the other hand, the temple of Jesus’s body was resurrected on the third day after he was crucified, and the generation of the many-membered body of Christ continues to increase.
We are now rapidly approaching the beginning of the third prophetic day since Jesus’s resurrection, for with God a thousand years are as a day (Psalm 90:4). At that time, the corporate body of Christ will be raised at the first resurrection (Revelation 20:4–6). For those of us who are hid in Christ, pure and undefiled, the unprecedented upheaval of events scheduled to take place at the end of this age will give no reason to fear.
Psalm 46
To the Overcomer: for the sons of Korah, A Song upon Alamoth.212
1 God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in tribulation.
2 Therefore we will not fear, though the earth be removed and though the mountains be carried into the midst of the sea,
3 though the waters thereof roar and be troubled, though the mountains shake with the violence thereof. Selah.
In prophetic language, “the mountains” can represent secular and religious kingdoms, “the earth” represents Israel and the church – vast sectors of which have demonstrated (for the past three and a half millennia) a penchant to be under some form of law instead of grace – and the waters of “the sea” represent peoples and nations. The prophesied upheaval has already begun and will grow increasingly intense.
4 There is a river, the streams of which shall make glad the city of God, the sanctuary of the tents of the most High.
5 God is in the midst of her; she shall not be moved; God shall help her, as the morning dawns.
The river of God flows from his throne and provides for all the needs of those who truly belong to him. The coming tribulation will bring down every kingdom that is not God’s, and this shall make glad the city of God, which contains the sanctuary of the tents of the most High. This sanctuary is vastly different from any manmade construction (such as the one the Jews spent forty-six years building or the large number of religious buildings which presently dot our landscape) because God is in the midst of her and, therefore, she shall not be moved. It is also heartening to observe that God shall help her, as the morning dawns. The morning dawns to reveal a new day that always begins in the evening (Genesis 1:5).
What is the new day that is about to be revealed? The day of the Lord.
6 The Gentiles raged, the kingdoms were moved; he uttered his voice, the earth melted.
7 The LORD of the hosts is with us; the God of Jacob is our refuge. Selah.
John describes the direct voice of God as seven trumpets that will sound after all the servants of God have been sealed on their foreheads for their protection (Revelation 7:3).
8 Come, behold the works of the LORD, what desolations he has made in the earth.
9 He makes wars to cease unto the end of the earth; he breaks the bow and cuts the spear in sunder; he burns the chariot in the fire.
After the seventh trumpet, there were great voices in the heaven saying: The kingdoms of this world are reduced unto our Lord and to his Christ; and he shall reign for ever and ever (Revelation 11:15).
10 Be still, and know that I am God; I will be exalted in the Gentiles, I will be exalted in the earth.
11 The LORD of the hosts is with us; the God of Jacob is our refuge. Selah.
As we allow God to work in us and through us by the Holy Spirit, we will feel more and more secure, no matter what happens around us. The fact that we are now the temple of God (1 Corinthians 3:16) will become an ever-increasing reality as the morning of the new day dawns. This is when God will help us, the first resurrection will take place, and Jesus will return (Malachi 4:1–3).
Let us pray.
Heavenly Father, we long for the day when you will be exalted in the Gentiles and in all the earth. May all your people be still and know that you are God. May we become aware that we are your temple. Amen.
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212 “Alamoth” means “virgins.
Chapter 47.
The number forty-seven is a prime number having to do with discernment that does not occur by itself in Scripture other than in the title of Psalm 47. This psalm is dedicated to the Overcomer, meaning it is messianic, and it is for the sons of Korah.213
Psalm 47
To the Overcomer: A Psalm for the sons of Korah.
1 O clap your hands, all ye people; shout unto God with the voice of triumph.
2 For the LORD most high is terrible; he is a great King over all the earth.
3 He shall guide the peoples under us, and the Gentiles under our feet.
Speaking to the Messiah, God said: Thou art my Son; this day I have begotten thee. Ask of me, and I shall give thee the Gentiles for thine inheritance and unto the uttermost parts of the earth for thy possession (Psalm 2:7–8). In the NT, Paul states that all the promises of God are yes in him, and in him Amen, by us for the glory of God (2 Corinthians 1:20). Therefore, if we are in Christ, we may also participate in all the promises of God.
4 He shall choose our inheritance for us, the excellency of Jacob whom he loved. Selah.
Letting God be the one to choose our inheritance for us is a very wise decision. In ancient Israel, two and a half tribes chose their own inheritance on what turned out to be the wrong side of the Jordan River (representing death). This is symbolic of those who desire a temporal, earthly inheritance instead of a spiritual, heavenly one. The sons of Korah mentioned in the dedication of this psalm are of the tribe of Levi; God chose to be the inheritance of the Levites, arranging matters so that they belonged completely to him.
5 God is gone up with a shout of joy, the LORD with the sound of the shofar.
When the seven trumpets (or shofarot) described in the book of Revelation sound, a great shout of joy will rise from the people of God, similar to when the walls of Jericho came down on the seventh day when all seven trumpets sounded (Joshua 6:20).
6 Sing praises to God, sing praises; sing praises unto our King, sing praises.
7 For God is the King of all the earth; sing ye praises with understanding.
8 God reigns over the Gentiles; God sits upon the throne of his holiness.
At the sound of the seventh and last trumpet, the mystery of God shall be finished214 and the kingdom of God consolidated over all the Gentiles. Jesus shall reign until he has put all of his enemies under his feet, and the last enemy that shall be destroyed is death.215 Only when death has been defeated shall we truly be able to sing praises with understanding.
9 The princes of the peoples have joined the people of the God of Abraham; for the shields of the earth belong unto God; he is greatly exalted.
Who are the princes of the peoples? Who are the people of the God of Abraham? The princes of the peoples are Gentiles (this is essentially where the church came from), and the people of the God of Abraham are Israel. In Christ, there is no wall of division, but one new man (Ephesians 2:14–22).
What are the shields of the earth?216 Why do they belong to God? The word “shields” (in plural form) occurs twenty-seven times in Scripture (all in the OT). This word has to do with the fruit or outcome of judgment, since we are either shielded or not. About the full armor of God, the NT notes that above all we are to take the shield of faith with which we will be able to quench all the fiery darts of the enemy (Ephesians 6:16). We also know that faith comes by hearing, and the ear to hear by the word of God (Romans 10:17). The shields of the earth belong to God, as he is the only one who can give us a shield of faith; however, we must take this shield and use it. Abraham was a man of faith, just as the God of Abraham is the God of those who have faith. Likewise, the only way for the princes of the peoples (that is, the Gentiles) to join the people of God is by faith.
We also know that even though there are many enemies vying for control of the earth today, in the end, the meek who submit to their master shall inherit the earth (Matthew 5:5).
Let us pray.
Heavenly Father, we desire to leave all matters pertaining to our inheritance in your hands. Deliver us from desiring that which is temporal and corruptible. May we be joint heirs with Christ of the wonderful promises that are for your glory. Amen.
****
213 “Korah” means “baldness” (which is associated with lack of glory). This name is used forty times in Scripture, beginning with a son of Esau (Genesis 36:5). Later, a great-grandson of Levi named Korah (along with Dathan and Abiram) challenged the authority of Moses and Aaron (Numbers 16:1–3). Even though the earth opened up and swallowed Korah, Dathan, and Abiram, and fire smote their two hundred and fifty followers, the sons of Korah did not die (Numbers 26:10–11). As Levites, they went on to have important spiritual responsibilities in Israel (1 Chronicles 9:19). There are eleven psalms for the sons of Korah, nine of which are dedicated to the Overcomer (this is the fifth of them). This story holds out consolation and hope for anyone who has an ancestor who was rebellious, whether spiritually or otherwise.
214 1 Corinthians 15:51–57; Revelation 10:7, 11:15.
215 1 Corinthians 15:25–26; Revelation 20:14.
216 This may have been written after David and his army captured the shields of gold belonging to the slaves of Hadadezer in the events described in 2 Samuel 8:7. Shields of gold can mean two things: 1) Those of the earth think that the riches (symbolized by gold) of this world can shield them and provide them with security. 2) In order to have eternal security, we must be shielded by the righteousness of Christ. Gold can also symbolize the nature of God. David captured the shields of gold and took them to Jerusalem where they were eventually placed in the temple of Solomon. Under the new covenant, we are the temple.
Chapter 48.
Forty-eight is two times twenty-four (doubling down on God’s government), four times twelve (the appointed or set times of divine order), or six times eight (a new beginning for the human race). The number forty-eight occurs twice in Scripture; it was in reference to the total number of cities (with their suburbs) given to the tribe of Levi. This includes six cities of refuge given to the priests and forty-two cities to the Levites (Numbers 35:7; Joshua 21:41). (Note: the Levites were to have cities to live in, but their real inheritance was the Lord.)
Psalm 48
A Song and Psalm for the sons of Korah.
1 Great is the LORD, and greatly to be praised in the city of our God, in the mountain of his holiness.
2 Beautiful for situation, the joy of the whole earth, is Mount Zion,217 on the sides of the north, the city of the great King.
3 God is known in her palaces for a refuge.
Mount Zion is the fortress that defended Jerusalem and seemed impregnable until David captured it. It is also called the city of David (2 Samuel 5:7).
This mountain represents a heavenly counterpart: but ye are come unto Mount Sion218 and unto the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem (Hebrews 12:22). But the Jerusalem of above is free, which is the mother of us all (Galatians 4:26). If we are born again from above, and if the heavenly Jerusalem (Mount Sion) is our mother and God is our father, then we are citizens of heaven.
Mount Zion is the mountain of [God’s] holiness. This means it is reserved exclusively for him, his plans, and his purposes. This fortress is beautiful for situation and defends the entire city of God. Therefore, prophetically it is the joy of the whole earth (remember the meek shall inherit the earth). It is located on the north side of the mountain (the Hebrew says “north wind”). Access into this city is through the cold north wind of adversity, trials, and tribulations. However, God is known in her palaces for a refuge.
4 For, behold, the kings were assembled, they passed by together.
5 They saw it, and so they marvelled; they were troubled and hasted away.
6 Fear took hold upon them there and pain as of a woman in travail.
All of us have been created in the image of God and have the ability to make decisions. We can choose God as our king, or we can attempt to reign over our own life (or even over the lives of others). Yet the day will soon come when the heavens will open and the true city of God will be revealed to those here on earth who consider themselves to be “kings.”219 This is when fear will take hold upon them, and they will experience the pain of a woman in travail.
7 Thou breakest the ships of Tarshish with an east wind.220
What are the ships of Tarshish?221
This phrase occurs six times in Scripture (this being the first) and represents the capacity of man to conquer, sustain, and profit from private or public island and mountain kingdoms,222 according to the ways of this world. The east wind is symbolic of the judgments of God. At the appointed time, the “kings” of the earth along with all their “kingdoms” and “ships” (their means of domination and commerce) will be broken (Revelation 18:17–19).
8 As we have heard, so have we seen in the city of the LORD of the hosts, in the city of our God; God will establish it for ever. Selah.
Faith comes by hearing, and is the substance of things waited for, the evidence of things not seen (Hebrews 11:1). By faith Abraham looked for a city which has foundations, whose builder and maker is God (Hebrews 11:10), and for Abraham and those who follow his example of faith, God has prepared for them a city (Hebrews 11:16)
When we are able to testify that as we have heard, so have we seen in the city of the LORD of the hosts, in the city of our God, our faith has become reality and confirms that God will establish it for ever.
9 We have conceived according to thy mercy, O God, in the midst of thy temple.
We are the temple of God. We are citizens of the heavenly Jerusalem. Most, if not all, of us have passed through times of tribulation and testing in which we have been spiritually sterile, unable to bring forth sons of God so that his name (nature) might be multiplied in the earth. As with Abraham and Sarah, however, the time will come when God’s end-time remnant will declare: We have conceived according to thy mercy, O God, in the midst of thy temple.
10 According to thy name, O God, so is thy praise unto the ends of the earth; thy right hand is full of righteousness.
11 Let Mount Zion rejoice, let the daughters of Judah be glad because of thy judgments.
God will have worthy representatives according to his name (according to his nature), and this is the quality of his praise that will go out to the ends of the earth. His right hand, signifying his power and authority, is full of righteousness (same word as “justice” in Hebrew). Therefore, Mount Zion will rejoice. The daughters of Judah (“Judah” means “praise”) represent all the clean congregations that will be characterized by the quality of praise after the judgments of God separate the tares and chaff from the wheat. Then the people of God will be glad.
12 Walk about Zion and go round about her; tell the towers thereof.
13 Mark ye well her bulwarks, consider her palaces that ye may tell it to the generation following.
When David and his men captured the fortress of Zion, it had been in enemy hands for hundreds of years. Its towers and bulwarks had been considered impregnable. Its palaces were magnificent. The psalmist now encouraged the people of God: Walk about Zion and go round about her. They were to check out her mighty defenses and consider her palaces so that they might tell this amazing story of God’s faithfulness to the generation following.
A similar situation had taken place earlier when the Levites received their forty-eight cities in which to live. These were functional cities with defenses, wells, gardens, vineyards, and houses, as well as grassy suburbs where animals could be pastured.
14 For this God is our God eternally and for ever; he will be our guide even unto death.
This psalm ends on a curious note. In order to enter in to the fullness of what God has in store for us eternally and for ever, it is necessary for our old man and old nature to actually die (1 Corinthians 15:50). Therefore he will be our guide even unto death.
Let us pray.
Heavenly Father, we ask that you will be our guide even unto death so that we might enter into the fullness of our inheritance in Christ. Amen.
****
217 “Zion,” meaning “sustained” or “lifted up,” occurs three times in this psalm, which is out of a total of one hundred and fifty-three times in Scripture.
218 “Sion” is the Greek spelling of “Zion” in the NT, but this spelling also relates to Sion in the OT, which is Mount Hermon (Deuteronomy 4:48; Psalm 65:1). According to the Jubilee Bible translation, the word “Sion” occurs nine times in Scripture: twice in the OT and seven times in the NT.
219 And the heaven departed as a scroll when it is rolled together; and every mountain and island were moved out of their places. And the kings of the earth and the princes and the rich and the captains and the strong and every slave and every free man hid themselves in the caves and among the rocks of the mountains and said to the mountains and to the rocks, Fall on us and hide us from the face of him that is seated upon the throne and from the wrath of the Lamb; for the great day of his wrath is come, and who shall be able to stand before him? (Revelation 6:14–17).
220 The phrase “east wind” occurs twenty-two times in Scripture (the same as the number of letters in the Hebrew alphabet).
221 “Tarshish” means “fortress” or “yellow jasper.”
222 The kingdoms represented by these “islands” or “mountains” have to do with the political, economic, and religious realms that can be somewhat intertwined. In the end, however, only God’s kingdom will remain.
Chapter 49.
Forty-nine is seven times seven (total peace, wellbeing, and freedom – or if used negatively, the lack thereof). This number occurs only once in Scripture; it was when the sons of Israel were told to number seven Sabbaths of years: seven times seven years; and the space of the seven sabbaths of years shall be unto thee forty-nine years (Leviticus 25:8). This numbering was in preparation for sanctifying the fiftieth year and proclaiming liberty throughout the land in the year of Jubilee.
Psalm 49
To the Overcomer, A Psalm for the sons of Korah.223
1 Hear this, all ye people; give ear, all ye inhabitants of the world:
2 Both low and high, rich and poor, together.
This is a vital message for everyone: for all the inhabitants of the world regardless of age, gender, race, religion, or nationality.
3 My mouth shall speak wisdom; and the meditation of my heart intelligence.
4 I will incline mine ear to a parable; I will declare my enigma upon the harp.
The psalmist speaks of wisdom and intelligence. The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom (Psalm 111:10), and the intelligence of the Lord is infinite (Psalm 147:5).
A parable is a true story with a deeper, hidden meaning that is an enigma until it is revealed.
5 Why should I fear in the days of adversity when the iniquity of my heels shall compass me about?
In the days of adversity, many will reap what they have sown. The parable to which we need to incline our hearts pertains to why we should fear in such days. We should fear because in our natural state, all of us compulsively walk in unrighteousness. This being the case, the iniquity of our heels (that is, our continual missteps that we think we have managed to cover up) will eventually encircle us until we are fatally trapped. This is an enigma to the natural man.
6 Those that trust in their wealth and boast themselves in the multitude of their riches;
7 none of them can by any means ransom his brother, nor give God an atonement224 for him;
8 (for the redemption of their soul is of great price, and they shall never pay it)
9 that he should still live for ever and not see corruption.
It is not possible, even for the extremely wealthy, to ransom or give God an atonement for anyone’s soul because when we die, all our natural wealth must be left behind; when we stand before God and face his judgment, we will not be able to draw on any of it. Yet, unless we are ransomed and our sins atoned for, we will never live forever without corruption.
10 For he sees that all the wise men die, likewise the fool and the ignorant perish and leave their wealth to others.
11 Their inward thought is that their houses are eternal and their dwelling places to all generations; they call their lands after their own names.
12 Nevertheless man will not abide forever in honour; he is like the beasts that are cut off.
13 This their way is their folly; yet their posterity approve their sayings. Selah.
In the world, the wise perish along with the foolish and ignorant and leave their wealth to others unless it has been invested in things of eternal value (Matthew 6:19–21). They think their houses or estates are eternal, and they pass their wealth on to their earthly heirs without understanding the parable or solving the enigma.
14 Like sheep they are laid in Sheol; death shall feed on them, and the upright shall have dominion over them in the morning, and their beauty shall be consumed in the grave from their dwelling.
Isaiah wrote: All we like sheep have become lost (Isaiah 53:6). Our redemption is not due to the fact that we are sheep but due to our shepherd, who was willing to lay down his life to redeem us. Those false “sheep” who fail to realize this will eventually be laid in Sheol where death shall feed on them. This is similar to what happens in Jesus’s parable of the rich man and Lazarus, where the rich man finds himself in torment (Luke 16:19–31).
There is a brilliant prophetic promise here: and the upright shall have dominion over them in the morning. In other words, the morning of the day of the Lord will certainly dawn, and the upright will participate in the first resurrection. This is when the wicked will be cut off, and their beauty (or glory) shall be consumed in the grave from their dwelling. In that day, it will be clear to everyone that the homes of the godless will not, contrary to expectation, be inhabited forever.
15 Surely God will ransom my soul from the hand of Sheol when he shall take me. Selah.
The writer of this psalm knew he would die and – like Abraham and Lazarus – would descend to Sheol. He was also inspired by the Spirit of God to declare: Surely God will ransom my soul from the hand of Sheol. The psalmist’s words anticipate the ransom that would occur when Jesus would overcome death, lead captivity captive, and ascend on high (Ephesians 4:8).
16 Be not thou afraid when one is made rich, when the glory of his house is increased;
17 for in his death he shall carry nothing away; nor shall his glory descend after him.
Those who do not understand the parable contained in this psalm will have absolutely nothing in the end, no matter how extensive their riches and glory are here on earth. After they die, they will carry nothing away. They will end up with no riches and no glory.
18 Though while he lives, his life shall be blessed: and men will praise thee when thou art prosperous.
19 He shall enter into the generation of his fathers; they shall never see light forever.
20 Man that is in honour that does not understand is like the beasts that are cut off.
The understanding that comes from God is opposite to the natural man’s way of thinking. The natural man cannot really understand anything unless he has a change of heart. Until that happens, he is like the beasts that are cut off from God.225
Those who understand are merciful and receive mercy (Matthew 5:7). They are forgiven as they forgive others (Matthew 6:12, 14–15). They are willing to afflict their own souls in repentance so that they might understand and receive atonement and reconciliation (Leviticus 23:27–29). Their hearts are clean, and the Spirit of God moves them.226 They love to proclaim liberty.
Let us pray.
Heavenly Father, we ask for the wisdom and understanding that come only from you so that we may understand the parables and enigmas that are veiled to the natural man. Amen.
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223 This is the seventh Psalm for the sons of Korah.
224 The Jewish New Year, Rosh Hashanah, is the beginning of the sacred calendar and falls on the first day of the seventh month of the agricultural calendar on the new moon. This was the case for forty-nine years (seven sevens) until the fiftieth year (the year of Jubilee), which was to be sanctified on the Day of Atonement or Day of Reconciliation, also known as Yom Kippur. This fell on the tenth day of the seventh month and included the blowing of trumpets and the proclamation of liberty throughout the land (Leviticus 25:8–17). All debts were forgiven, all land returned to its original owner, and all slaves placed in liberty. The prophetic fulfillment of everything symbolized by the year of Jubilee is linked to the first and to the second coming of Jesus Christ.
225 Isaiah 61:1–3; Luke 4:18–19.
226 Matthew 5:8; 2 Corinthians 3:17.
Chapter 50.
Fifty is two times twenty-five (doubling down on the consequences of mercy and grace that come from the Holy Spirit) or five times ten (symbolic of the new covenant in which God’s Word, his law, is written in our hearts and souls by the indwelling presence of the Holy Spirit). Fifty is used eighty-one times in the Old Testament and four times in the New Testament, for a total of eighty-five. The number fifty is found in the description of the tabernacle of Moses (eighteen times), the temple of Solomon (held together with gold nails that weighed the same as fifty shekels, according to 2 Chronicles 3:9), and the millennial temple seen by Ezekiel (ten times). It is also used a few times in a negative sense, such as when Absalom had fifty men run before him (2 Samuel 15:1).
The first use of the number fifty is when God, dictating the dimensions of the ark to Noah, specified that it was to be fifty cubits wide (Genesis 6:15). It is also used four times when Abraham began to negotiate with God in an attempt to spare the inhabitants of Sodom if there were fifty righteous people within the city (Genesis 18:24–28).
Psalm 50
A Psalm to Asaph.227
1 The God of gods, even the LORD, has spoken and convocated the earth from the rising of the sun unto the going down thereof.
From the rising of the sun unto the going down thereof describes all the places where there is light. Those who love to walk in the light respond to the voice of God and to his convocation, that is, to the gathering together of the people in his name at his command (Genesis 49:10).
2 Out of Zion, the perfection of beauty, God has shined forth.
Zion is linked to God’s clean and holy people. It is God’s dwelling place, and we are his temple. The temple is where God perfects beauty (glory).
3 Our God shall come and shall not keep silence; a fire shall devour before him, and it shall be very tempestuous round about him.
The second coming is described as a consuming fire (Hebrews 12:18–29) and as a whirlwind (Isaiah 66:15–16) that will devastate the unrighteous.
4 He shall convocate the heavens of above, and the earth, that he may judge his people.
The events surrounding the second coming will shake the heavens and the earth (Hebrews 12:26). God’s elect will be gathered from the uttermost part of the earth to the uttermost part of heaven (Mark 13:27).
5 Gather my merciful ones together unto me, those that have made a covenant with me by sacrifice.
6 And the heavens shall declare his righteousness, for God himself is the judge. Selah.
The elect that will be gathered are God’s merciful ones. They have made a covenant with God by sacrifice – specifically by blood sacrifice. A blood sacrifice means a life for a life; we are to repent and put our own life on the altar so that the life of Jesus may come forth in us by the Holy Spirit. The shed blood of Jesus is the basis for the new covenant. We see here the connection with Pentecost and thus with the number fifty. When we are in a proper blood covenant with God, then the Spirit of God will operate in and through us, and the heavens shall declare his righteousness. God himself is the judge.
7 Hear, O my people, and I will speak; O Israel, and I will testify against thee; I am God, even thy God.
8 I will not reprove thee regarding thy sacrifices; thy burnt offerings are continually before me.
If we are willing to hear his voice, God may testify against his people and say things we may not like. The people of Israel were accustomed to sacrificing animals, and God said he would not reprove them for doing this (in fact, God was the one who instituted the blood sacrifices); however, he dearly wanted them to understand the real meaning of their sacrifices and burnt offerings. Today, there continues to be a problem with people sacrificially fulfilling religious ritual without understanding its true meaning.
9 I will take no bullock out of thy house, nor he goats out of thy folds.
10 For every beast of the forest is mine and the cattle upon a thousand hills.
11 I know all the fowls of the mountains; and the wild beasts of the field are with me.
12 If I were hungry, I would not tell thee; for the world is mine and the fullness thereof.
13 Must I eat the flesh of bulls or drink the blood of goats?
God was not after Israel’s bullocks or goats. What he desired – and still desires – is for his people to surrender their hearts to him, giving him the glory for everything he has done for us. The bullocks were symbolic of sin and the goats symbolic of guilt. In a similar manner, with the help of our new high priest, we are to sacrifice our sin and our guilt so that they may be bled to death on the altar of God and consumed by the fire of God. After the obligatory offering for sin and the obligatory offering for guilt, there was the opportunity for those under the old covenant to voluntarily (now free from sin and guilt) offer themselves to God as symbolized by the peace offering. Jesus, of course, was the real peace offering. Now, after Jesus’s once-and-for-all sacrifice, he can baptize us into the Holy Spirit and fire (Matthew 3:11) so that by the Spirit we may put to death the deeds of the flesh and live (Romans 8:13). The deeds of the flesh have to do with our sin and guilt that must be dealt with.
14 Sacrifice praise unto God and pay thy vows unto the most High
15 and call upon me in the day of trouble: I will deliver thee, and thou shalt glorify me.
Here is a wonderful promise: if we sacrifice praise to God (giving him all the honor and glory), and pay our vows to the Most High (our vow of death to sin and vow of life in Christ as we follow Jesus on the way of the cross), then we may call upon God in the day of trouble. He will deliver us, and we will glorify him. The only way this can possibly work is if God places his Spirit within us and we continually yield to him.
16 But unto the wicked God saith, What part hast thou to declare my statutes or that thou should take my covenant in thy mouth?
17 Seeing thou dost hate chastening and dost cast my words behind thee.
Having such a warning directed by God to Asaph228 is very significant. No matter how talented or gifted a musician may be, they must be personally clean in order to successfully offer sacrifices of praise. Those who are wicked (unclean) hate God’s chastening and cast his words behind them. They have no part in declaring God’s statutes or affirming God’s covenant.
18 When thou didst see a thief, then thou didst consent with him and hast been partaker with adulterers.
How many gifted people (singers included) have stolen God’s glory for themselves? How many talented people have cozied up to spirits that are supernatural but not holy as they seek to establish their careers? I tell you, this is spiritual adultery!
19 Thou didst give thy mouth to evil, and thy tongue frames deceit.
This is what happens when people use their God-given gifts to cater to the world and to the demonic powers controlling it.
20 Thou didst sit and speak against thy brother; thou didst slander thine own mother’s son.
Those who go this route are not afraid to slander their natural or spiritual brethren. Since they have little or no fear of God, they are not careful with their words.
21 These things hast thou done, and I kept silence; thou didst think that I was altogether such a one as thyself, but I will reprove thee and set them in order before thine eyes.
These people think that God is like they are. Some even think that we are in the dispensation of the silence of God. They do not understand that we need to be conformed to the image of God instead of vainly attempting to remake God in our image. God is getting ready to reprove each individual who has acted this way. All of their lies and slander will soon be set in order before our eyes. What a sight.
22 Now consider this, ye that forget God, lest I take you away, and there be none to deliver.
It is instructive to note that in this context, those who disregard God are not warned that if they misbehave, the devil or some other enemy will take them away. Rather, they are told that God might take them away in such a manner that there will be no one capable of delivering them.
23 Whosoever sacrifices praise glorifies me; and to him that orders his ways aright I will show the salvation of God.
Without any limitations or preconditions, God declares: Whosoever sacrifices praise glorifies me. Set before each of us is a basic choice. We can praise ourselves – our group, our race, our nation, our denomination, and so on – or we can sacrifice praise and glorify God instead. We are called to order our ways aright, and the only way to do this is to be led by the Spirit. To be indwelled by the Spirit is to be shown the salvation of God.
Let us pray.
Heavenly Father, we desire to give you all the honor and glory for everything you have done for us, in us, and through us. May we receive an even greater portion of your Holy Spirit so that all of our ways will be ordered aright as we submit to your will and your correction. Amen.
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227 “Asaph” means “collector.
228 There are two references in Scripture stating that Asaph wrote Chronicles (2 Kings 18:18, 37). There is also reference to Asaph son of Berachiah (a Levite), who was one of David’s lead musicians (1 Chronicles 15:17, 19). He was the chief of the musicians appointed to minister before the ark of the LORD and to record and to thank and praise the LORD God of Israel on the day that the tabernacle of David was pitched. Asaph and his brethren were to minister before the ark continually (1 Chronicles 16:1–7, 37). The ark is linked to the realm of the direct presence of God, which is represented by the holy of holies. The sons of Asaph (under Asaph’s direction) were known for prophecy in the court of David (1 Chronicles 25:1–2). An entire dynasty of prophetic cantors descended from Asaph. His sons numbered 128 at the time of the return from the Babylonian captivity under Ezra (Ezra 2:41). This number had risen to 148 by the time Nehemiah dedicated the wall (Nehemiah 7:44). Some of the sons of Asaph were given responsibility overseeing the Levites in Jerusalem and rebuilding the temple (Nehemiah 11:22). These developments symbolize what would later happen at the coming of the Holy Spirit and in yet future events surrounding the second coming of the Lord Jesus Christ. See Appendix A.
Chapter 51.
Fifty-one is three times seventeen (the fruit of serious prayer) and only occurs in Scripture in the title of Psalm 51.229 One hundred and two (fifty-one times two) appears solely in the title of Psalm 102, which is similar in theme. However, one hundred and fifty-three (fifty-one times three) is the number of great fishes (symbolic of the redeemed) that Peter caught in John 21:11. Interestingly, fifty-one times three (or one hundred and fifty-three) is the number of times that the word “Zion” occurs in Scripture. The word “Sabbath(s)” also occurs the same number of times. Therefore, I believe that the number fifty-one has to do with repentance (with a broken spirit and contrite heart) that God can bring to fruition so that we may come out from under the curse,230 enter into his Sabbath rest, and dwell with him in Zion.
Psalm 51
To the Overcomer, A Psalm of David, when Nathan the prophet came unto him, after he had gone in to Bathsheba
1 Have mercy upon me, O God, according to thy mercy; according unto the multitude of thy compassion eradicate my rebellion.
2 Wash me thoroughly from my iniquity and cleanse me from my sin.
3 For I acknowledge my rebellion; and my sin is ever before me.
David knew that he had sinned, had broken the commandments of God, and had committed iniquity by attempting to hide his sin. In God´s eyes, what he had done was rebellion. He had directly attacked God’s authority, in the process blatantly setting a horrible example for everyone else in his kingdom. For this reason, God had Nathan the prophet confront King David. Fortunately, David was brought to profound repentance.
4 Against thee, against thee only, have I sinned and done this evil in thy sight that thou be declared just in thy word and pure in thy judgment.
When God brings us under conviction of sin, a very important part of repentance is for us to acknowledge that God is right and we are wrong.
5 Behold, the pain of my iniquity has caused me to writhe; my mother conceived me so that sin might be removed from me.
6 Behold, thou dost desire truth in the inward parts, and in the secret things thou hast made me to know wisdom.
In the midst of experiencing intense pain caused by his iniquity, David received the revelation that he had been conceived by his mother (descended from a long line of godly ancestors) so that sin (that is, wrong desires and intentions) might be removed from him. This is God’s plan for all of us; yet, we must be willing to repent of our wrong goals, desires, and ambitions and to submit to his chastening.
7 Remove the sin in me with hyssop, and I shall be clean; wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow.
8 Make me to hear joy and gladness that the bones which thou hast broken may rejoice.
The priests used a desert shrub, hyssop, to apply the blood of the sacrifices. Without the shedding of blood, there is no remission of sin. Now, David wants God to remove his sin with hyssop. This, however, looks forward to the death and shed blood of the Lord Jesus Christ. This is why this psalm, which is dedicated to the Overcomer, is messianic.
Our bones are symbolic of our basic structure. None of Jesus’s bones were broken when he died for us. On the other hand, God had to break some of David’s “bones” in order to get him straightened out. The same has been true in one way or another for many of us.
9 Hide thy face from my sins and eradicate all my iniquities.
David knew that if his sins continued to be evident before the face of God, his relationship with God would be blocked. The only way of escape was for God to eradicate all David’s iniquities by exposing and destroying any hidden sin.
10 Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a right spirit within me.
It takes a creative work of God inside of us to have a clean heart, and this work is a prerequisite for us to be able to retain a right spirit.
11 Cast me not away from thy presence and take not thy Holy Spirit231 from me.
David’s request is evidence of his fear of the Lord. David knew that God could cast him away from his presence and take the Holy Spirit from him. David had seen this happen to King Saul.
12 Restore unto me the joy of thy saving health, and thy spirit of liberty shall uphold me.
13 Then I will teach transgressors thy ways, and sinners shall be converted unto thee.
Joy is a fruit of the Holy Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty (2 Corinthians 3:17). When we experience the joy of salvation and of spiritual health, God’s spirit of liberty will uphold us and keep us from falling (Psalm 56:13; Jude 24). Liberty is closely linked to grace. As soon as David is free from the trap into which he has fallen, he plans to use his regained liberty to teach transgressors God’s ways. His hope is that sinners will be converted to God. David plans to teach others how to escape from the clutches of the enemy, and the rest of his inspired psalms bear out this desire.
14 Deliver me from bloodguiltiness, O God, thou God of my salvation, and my tongue shall sing aloud of thy righteousness.
If David is delivered from his predicament, he promises to sing of God’s righteousness, not of his own. David was delivered, forgiven, and restored, but the consequences of his sin (particularly the death of innocent Uriah the Hittite, Bathsheba’s husband) were felt as long as David lived. The lingering consequences were particularly acute whenever one of his sons died or was killed. David lost a total of four sons.
15 O Lord, open my lips; and my mouth shall show forth thy praise.
David knows he is not able to properly express praise and gratitude unless the Lord inspires him and opens his lips.
16 For thou dost not desire sacrifice or else would I give it; thou dost not delight in burnt offering.
It is likely that God’s Spirit reminded David of the words Samuel spoke when God sent Samuel to rebuke King Saul.232
17 The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit: a broken and a contrite heart, O God, thou wilt not despise.
This line sums up the spiritual meaning of the number fifty-one. It is very comforting and reassuring to know that no matter what we may have done in the past, if we come with a broken spirit and a broken and contrite heart, God will not despise us. These are sacrifices that God will always accept.
18 Do good in thy good pleasure unto Zion; build thou the walls of Jerusalem.
Zion is the fortress and citadel of the city of David. David desires for his city to be the place of God’s good pleasure and for God to build the walls of Jerusalem that will protect the city. For us today, we know that there is such a place as the heavenly Jerusalem. When God creates a clean heart in us and brings us into the liberty of the Holy Spirit, then we will fervently desire to live for God’s good pleasure.
19 Then thou shalt be pleased with the sacrifices of righteousness, the burnt offering, the offering that has been totally consumed by the fire; then shall they offer bullocks upon thine altar.
Under the new covenant, we are among the sacrifices of righteousness that will please God. We are called to become living sacrifices (Romans 12:1), and Jesus will baptize us into the Holy Spirit and fire (Matthew 3:11; Luke 3:16). The effect of this baptism will be the eventual removal and eradication of the control of the flesh, along with every trace of sin, iniquity, and rebellion in our being. Then, freed from hindrances, we may live with complete focus on God’s good pleasure for all eternity.
Let us pray:
Dear Lord Jesus, words cannot describe our thanks for your work of redemption. We desire for you to examine our hearts and completely eradicate anything that you do not like. May your Holy Spirit have complete freedom in us, that we may be brought into the glorious liberty of the sons of God. May we use our liberty to help show others that you are the only way. Amen.
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229 Fifty-one also occurs once as part of a larger number (Numbers 2:16).
230 It is interesting to note that the word “thorns,” which has to do with the curse, occurs in fifty-one Scripture passages.
231 This is the first of ninety-seven references to the Holy Spirit in the Jubilee Bible translation (three in the OT, and ninety-four in the NT).
232 And Samuel said, Does the LORD have as great delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices as in hearing the voice of the LORD? Behold, to hear is better than sacrifice and to hearken than the fat of rams. For rebellion is the sin of witchcraft, and to break the word of the Lord is iniquity and idolatry. Because thou hast rejected the word of the LORD, he has also rejected thee from being king (1 Samuel 15:22–23).
Chapter 52.
The number fifty-two occurs six times in Scripture, and another five times as a component of a larger number. Fifty-two is two times twenty-six (acceptance or rejection of the kingdom of God) or four times thirteen (the kingdom of heaven). As with virtually any number, fifty-two may be used in a positive or negative sense. This number, therefore, has to do with God’s mercy and also with his judgment. In the Bible, the first, second, and third uses are associated with King Azariah (which means “whom the Lord keeps”) who reigned fifty-two years in Jerusalem and did what was right in the sight of the Lord (2 Kings 15:3–4). He did not, however, take down the pagan high places instituted by Solomon.
Azariah, also known as Uzziah (which means “the Lord is my strength”), enjoyed great prosperity from the Lord. Azariah won battles against the Philistines, raised up a mighty army, and shored up the defenses of Jerusalem with great engines that were used to cast arrows and stones. But when he was strengthened, he rebelled against the Lord and attempted to burn incense inside the temple, which only the priests were allowed to do. He was struck with leprosy when he refused to listen to the priests’ warnings and lived the rest of his days in a house alone, cut off from the house of the Lord (2 Chronicles 26:16–22).
There were fifty-two sons of Nebo233 among those who returned to Jerusalem from Babylon to rebuild the temple (Ezra 2:29). Nehemiah restored the wall of Jerusalem in fifty-two days (Nehemiah 6:15), and fifty-two men of Nebo are in Nehemiah’s census (Nehemiah 7:33).
Psalm 52
To the Overcomer, Maschil,234 A Psalm of David, when Doeg235 the Edomite236 came and told Saul, and said unto him, David is come to the house of Ahimelech237
1 Why dost thou boast of evil, O strong man? The mercy of God is day by day.
Doeg had authority over all the slaves of King Saul, and he was as merciless as his master. In contrast, David understood that the mercy of God is day by day – it is continually renewed. Jesus said, Blessed are the merciful, for they shall obtain mercy (Matthew 5:7).
2 Thy tongue devises wickedness like a sharp razor, working deceitfully.
3 Thou dost love evil more than good; and lying rather than to speak righteousness. Selah.
Upon hearing Doeg’s evil report, King Saul had Doeg murder all of the priests except for the one who escaped to tell David the unfortunate news (1 Samuel 22).
4 Thou dost love all devouring words, O thou deceitful tongue.
5 God shall likewise cast thee down for ever; he shall cut thee off and pluck thee out of thy dwelling place and root thee out of the land of the living.238 Selah.
On the other hand, David said: I had fainted unless I had believed to see the goodness of the LORD in the land of the living (Psalm 27:13). David had faith in God. But even though Doeg is called a “strong man,” he did not derive his strength from the Lord.
6 The righteous also shall see and fear and shall laugh at him, saying:
7 Behold, this is the man that did not make God his strength, but trusted in the abundance of his riches and strengthened himself in his wickedness.
Doeg, like Satan, strengthened himself in his wickedness. He is an example of a tare – a weed planted by the enemy in the midst of the people of God.
8 But I am like a green olive tree in the house of God; I trust in the eternal mercy of God for ever.
David was able to say, Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life: and I will rest in the house of the LORD for ever (Psalm 23:6). A green olive tree is linked to divine anointing and ultimately to the Anointed One (the Messiah) from whom the anointing of the Holy Spirit flows to the entire body of Christ. It is God’s plan for the Holy Spirit to flow in and through us as part of the redeemed people of God, until we are a blessing to others. This is how God worked in David’s life, which was the exact opposite of what happened in the life of the strong man, Doeg the Edomite, who was over the slaves of King Saul.
9 I will praise thee for ever because thou hast done it, and I will wait on thy name, for it is good before thy merciful ones.
In thirteen Scriptures, God’s sons are described as his merciful ones. God promised David sure mercies as part of an eternal covenant (Isaiah 55:3) that is ultimately fulfilled in Jesus Christ (Acts 13:34). If we are in Christ, we have been brought into this eternal covenant promised to David (Romans 8:17).
Let us pray:
Heavenly Father, may we depend upon your mercy day by day. Like David, may we trust in your eternal mercy forever. Amen.
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233 “Nebo” means “he who speaks,” and it refers to the planet Mercury, which was adored by the pagans. This name is used fourteen times in Scripture.
234 “Maschil” means “for understanding.”
235 “Doeg” means “anxious, fearful.”
236 “Edomite” (“inhabitant of Edom”) and “Edom” (“red”) is associated with Esau, twin brother of Jacob. Edomite also refers to being a doer or builder of private kingdoms.
237 “Ahimelech” means “brother of the king.”
238 “The land of the living” is used in fifteen Scriptures, beginning in Job 28:13. This is its third use
Chapter 53.
Fifty-three is a prime number that does not occur by itself in Scripture aside from the title of Psalm 53. However, fifty-three does occur five times as part of a larger number – three times in the Old Testament as part of the number of one of the tribes of Israel that departed Egypt (Numbers 1:43, 2:30, 26:47), once as part of the number of strangers Solomon found in the land of Israel (2 Chronicles 2:17), and once in the New Testament as part of the number of great fishes caught by Simon Peter at the word of the Lord (John 21:11).
Psalm 53
To the Overcomer upon Mahalath,239 Maschil, A Psalm of David
1 The fool has said in his heart, There is no God. They have corrupted themselves and have done abominable iniquity; there is no one that does good.
There is no human being who does good apart from God. Those who foolishly refuse to acknowledge God have corrupted themselves. Their character has become evil; consequently, they commit evil acts. They have done abominable iniquity but they pretend otherwise.
2 God looked down from heaven upon the sons of Adam to see if there were any that did understand, that did seek God.
3 Every one of them is gone back; they are altogether become filthy; there is no one that does good, no, not one.
The “sons of Adam” are all in the same boat, and David knew it from Scripture. GOD saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth and that every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually (Genesis 6:5). Our only hope is redemption and a spiritual new birth into the family of God.
4 Have the workers of iniquity no knowledge? who eat up my people as they eat bread; they have not called upon God.
Note that the workers of iniquity are contrasted with those who are here referred to as my people. If the workers of iniquity had true knowledge, they would fear God. The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom. Instead, being fools, they prey on God’s people and on one another. They are never at peace.
5 They were there in great fear where no fear was; for God has scattered the bones of him that encamps against thee: thou hast put them to shame because God has despised them.
Those who claim to not believe in God will continue reacting to fear (of circumstances, of man, of the future, etc.) until they are completely undone. They will even be in great fear, when not one of their fears is valid, because God will come on the scene and do something that none of them expects. Then, when it is too late, it will suddenly dawn on them (plural) that God has scattered the bones of him that encamps against thee. Note that the one whose “bones” are scattered is referred to as him (singular) and that the one whom he encamps against – the one who attacks – is referred to as thee (also singular).240
Bones are symbolic of foundational structure and cohesion. God is going to scatter Satan’s bones when Satan encamps against God’s Overcomer (against the Lord Jesus and the body of Christ). Jesus said that a kingdom divided against itself is brought to desolation (Matthew 12:25), and this is exactly what is going to happen to Satan and his kingdom. When the psalmist says Thou hast put them to shame, this is referring to us as the overcoming body of Christ with the Lord Jesus as our Head; he puts to shame those who refuse to acknowledge God. This will be possible because God has despised them.
6 Oh that the saving health of Israel were come out of Zion! When God brings back the captivity of his people, Jacob shall rejoice, and Israel shall be glad.
Salvation is linked to spiritual health. Israel is the people of God (and by extension this includes the Gentile believers of the age of grace). We still need God to bring back the captivity of his people – which means he will turn around their captivity and restore them to how they used to be when he first set them free. Many of God’s people have fallen into bondage to sin, the flesh, the world, and the devil.
This psalm ends on a positive note. It does not say if God brings back the captivity…. rather, the text says when. When God brings back the captivity of his people, Jacob shall rejoice, and Israel shall be glad.
What is the difference between Jacob and Israel? Essentially, the names refer to the same person. However, there is a before and an after.
Jacob’s name means “heel catcher.” From before he was born, Jacob fought against his twin brother, Esau, trying to trip him up.241 It was not until many years later, when an aggrieved Esau with four hundred men was about to catch up with Jacob and his family, that Jacob spent the night wrestling with the Angel of the Lord at Peniel (the name means “the face of God”). That night, God crippled Jacob and then blessed him, changing his name to Israel (meaning “God prevails” or “he who prevails with God”). After this definitive event, Jacob (now Israel) went to be reconciled with his brother Esau (Genesis 32).
Some of God’s people might seem more like “Jacob.” Some might identify more with “Israel” after God crippled his natural walk, blessed him, and changed his name. When God changed Jacob’s name, he changed Jacob’s nature. The bottom line is that When God brings back the captivity of his people, Jacob shall rejoice, and Israel242 shall be glad.
Let us pray:
Dear Heavenly Father, we yearn for the day when you will scatter the bones of the enemy that encamps against us. We yearn for the day when you will break the bondage of the captivity of your people and set your people free into glorious liberty to represent you as you really are. We ask this in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.
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239 “Mahalath” means “meek” and may refer to a musical instrument.
240 The contrast between the use of the plural and the singular in verse 5 shows that in the midst of the confusion of battle the Lord protects individual believers and can use individuals to thwart the enemy. It also shows that he holds individuals among the enemy personally accountable.
241 Even before the twin brothers were born, God chose Jacob and decided that the older brother, Esau, would serve his younger brother. Therefore, Jacob (later Israel) was to be the one who would continue the bloodline of Jesus Christ (Genesis 25:21–26; Romans 9:11–13).
242 It is also worth noting that after Jacob´s name was changed to Israel, the predominant use of this name throughout Scripture applies it to the corporate people of God.
Chapter 54.
The number fifty-four is two times twenty-seven (submitting to the consequences of God`s judgments), six times nine (the purpose of trials), or three times eighteen (the fruit of discipline and chastisement). This number does not occur in Scripture other than in the title of Psalm 54, although it does occur seven times as part of a larger number. All of this speaks of being refined by the trial of our faith (or in other words, judgment with mercy), such as was the case with David and his men in the wilderness.
Psalm 54
To the Overcomer on Neginoth, 243 Maschil, A Psalm of David, when the Ziphims244 came and said to Saul, Does David not hide himself with us?
1 Save me, O God, in thy name and defend me by thy valour.
2 Hear my prayer, O God; give ear to the words of my mouth.
3 For strangers are risen up against me, and oppressors seek after my soul; they have not set God before them. Selah.
David knew that he could not save himself from Saul, who was seeking to destroy him with a vastly superior force. Therefore, he poured his heart out to God. Those who seek to kill David are strangers who have not set God before them.
4 Behold, God is my helper; the Lord is with those that uphold my soul.
David knew he had been chosen and anointed by God and at a time appointed by God, he would be king of Israel instead of Saul. David also knew that the Lord was with those who were in favor of keeping David alive.
5 He shall reward evil unto my enemies; cut them off in thy truth.
Through the Spirit, David declared that God would reward David’s enemies with evil. At the same time, David asked God to cut them off in thy truth. The light of God’s truth will uncover all the nefarious plans of our enemies so that they will be exposed and stopped.
6 I will freely sacrifice unto thee; I will praise thy name, O LORD; for it is good.
7 For he has delivered me out of all trouble, and my eye has seen his desire upon my enemies.
David did not write psalms about his own exploits. He wrote about how God had delivered him out of all trouble and about how his eye hads seen God’s desire come down on his enemies. Many of God’s people identify with this.
Let us pray:
Heavenly Father, we thank you for delivering us out of all trouble and for bringing your desire upon our enemies. Amen.
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242 It is also worth noting that after Jacob´s name was changed to Israel, the predominant use of this name throughout Scripture applies it to the corporate people of God.
243 “Neginoth” means “stringed instruments.”
244 Ziphims are the inhabitants of Ziph (a “refining place”).
Chapter 55.
Fifty-five is five times eleven. Five has to do with mercy and grace. It can also have to do with the exact opposite of mercy and grace. Eleven is connected to Christ and to his elect. Negatively, eleven is associated with antichrist,245 which is a false Christ. Interestingly, the word tribulation(s) occurs fifty-five times in Scripture.
The number fifty-five occurs twice in Scripture; both instances have to do with evil King Manasseh,246 who reigned for fifty-five years in Jerusalem (2 Kings 21:1–2; 2 Chronicles 33:1–2). Fifty-five also occurs once as part of a larger number (Nehemiah 7:20).
Psalm 55
To the Overcomer on Neginoth, Maschil, A Psalm of David
1 Give ear to my prayer, O God, and do not hide thyself from my supplication.
2 Attend unto me and hear me: I mourn in my complaint and make a noise
3 because of the voice of the enemy because of the oppression of the wicked; for they cast iniquity upon me, and in wrath they hate me.
The simple fact that we are servants of the Lord, filled with the genuine Holy Spirit, is enough to draw the ire and hatred of the enemy. It is cause enough for them to bring false accusations and even death threats against us.
4 My heart is sore pained within me, and the terrors of death are fallen upon me.
5 Fearfulness and trembling are come upon me, and horror has overwhelmed me.
6 And I said, Oh that I had wings like a dove! for then I would fly away and be at rest.
7 Behold, then I would flee far away and dwell in the wilderness. Selah.
When man usurps control over the people of God, the enemy is allowed to enter. Many terrors and horrors follow. David soon began to wish that he had wings like a dove so he could fly away and be at rest. The dove represents the Holy Spirit, and her wings represent the liberty we have in Christ when our lives are under the control of the Holy Spirit. Eventually, David’s situation within the corrupt kingdom of Saul got to the point where he had to flee to the wilderness in order to save his life. In the spiritual realm, similar situations abound even today.
8 I would hasten my escape from the windy storm and tempest.
9 Destroy, O Lord, and divide their tongues, for I have seen violence and strife in the city.
10 Day and night they go about it upon the walls thereof; iniquity also and sorrow are in the midst of it.
11 Wickedness is in the midst thereof; deceit and guile depart not from her streets.
When the spirit of antichrist first begins to dominate, all may seem to be well on the surface. The spirit of antichrist is an unholy, supernatural religious spirit. Gifted leaders may come under its sway, and others may follow. It can duplicate many of the things of God, but there is one thing that the spirit of antichrist can never, ever, reproduce: the genuine fruit of the Holy Spirit. Not only that, but the spirit of antichrist will eventually produce evil fruit in the midst of a windy storm and tempest.
This spirit cannot unite; it can only divide. The antichrist’s fruit, first manifested in the personal lives of its leaders, will be full of violence and strife. An example of this is when Saul, without warning, would hurl his spear at David, even while David was ministering to him with his harp. This unholy fruit will replicate day and night, bringing iniquity and sorrow along with wickedness. Deceit and guile will not depart from her streets (the place where the people of the antichrist live out their lives).
12 For it was not an enemy that reproached me; then I could have borne it, neither was it he that hated me that did magnify himself against me; then I would have hid myself from him:
13 But it was thou, who in my estimation was, my lord, and of my own family.247
All of this wickedness that contaminated the people of God was not coming from an outside enemy. It was coming from someone who was supposed to be a godly leader, a person who, in David’s estimation, was my lord, and of my own family.
14 We took sweet counsel together and walked unto the house of God in company. Who would David have taken sweet counsel with? In whose company would he have walked to the house of God?
15 Let them be condemned unto death, and let them go down alive into Sheol for wickedness is in their dwellings and among them.
David is not condemning anyone’s heart or motives. He is reeling from the horrible stench of repeated abominations committed under his very nose.
16 As for me, I will call upon God, and the LORD shall save me.
17 Evening and morning and at noon I will pray and cry aloud, and he shall hear my voice.
The first step in God’s deliverance of David was to help David escape before Saul was able to kill him.
18 He has ransomed my soul in peace from the battle that was against me, for there were many against me.
Saul set many traps for David and attempted to place David in the thick of the battle (1 Samuel 18:17, 21).
19 God shall hear and bring them down, even he that abides from of old. Selah. Because they do not change, nor do they fear God.
David knows that God will hear everything and will bring down all his enemies. God will even bring down he that abides from of old. This is likely a prophetic reference to the demise of Satan.
20 He has put forth his hands against such as be at peace with him; he has defiled his covenant.
21 The words of his mouth were smoother than butter, but war was in his heart; his words were softer than oil, yet they were drawn swords.
Could this be a description of what happened to Saul after the Spirit of the Lord departed from him and was replaced by an evil spirit sent from God?248
22 Cast thy burden upon the LORD, and he shall sustain thee; he shall never suffer the righteous to be moved.
23 But thou, O God, shalt bring them down into the pit of the grave; bloody and deceitful men shall not live out half their days, but I will trust in thee.
As a very young man, David wound up in the middle of an evil palace intrigue. Apparently, this intrigue was perpetuated by a group of unregenerate people assembled by King Saul, who was acting under the influence of an evil spirit sent by the Lord (1 Samuel 19).
The Spirit of the Lord, however, is now upon David. Several things become so clear to David that he can confidently advise those who struggle: Cast thy burden upon the LORD, and he shall sustain thee; he shall never suffer the righteous to be moved. This promise has ministered to countless people who, in times of great difficulty, have faced serious spiritual wrongdoing from previously trusted leaders or family.
David knows beyond any shadow of a doubt that those who continue to perpetrate violence, strife, iniquity, and wickedness by deceit and guile do not come to a good end. David ends this psalm with a line addressed directly to God: But thou O God, shalt bring them down into the pit of the grave; bloody and deceitful men shall not live out half their days, but I will trust in thee.
David trusted God so much that he never lifted a hand against King Saul, or against any of the wicked men employed by Saul. David left all of this in the hands of the Lord.
Let us pray:
Heavenly Father, may we cast our burden upon you when we are in the midst of trials and tribulations. May we continue to trust you instead of taking the law into our own hands. We ask this in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.
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245 The spirit of antichrist (see 1 John 4:3 and 1 John 2:18) is a person who opposes or denies Christ, or a false Christ. The term, “antichrist” occurs five times in the Jubilee Bible translation.
246 King Manasseh deceived the people into doing things even more wicked than the Gentiles that surrounded them. He was eventually taken captive to Babylon where he humbled himself and cried out to the Lord who heard him and brought him back to Jerusalem where he was restored upon the throne and served God (2 Chronicles 33:9-20).
248 Then Samuel took the horn of oil and anointed him from among his brethren; and the Spirit of the LORD prospered David from that day forward. So Samuel rose up and went to Ramah. But the Spirit of the LORD departed from Saul, and an evil spirit from the LORD troubled him. And Saul’s slaves said unto him, Behold now, an evil spirit from God troubles thee. Let our lord now command thy slaves, which are before thee, to seek out a man who is a cunning player on a harp, and it shall come to pass, when the evil spirit from God is upon thee, that he shall play with his hand and thou shalt have relief. And Saul said unto his slaves, Provide me now a man that can play well and bring him to me. Then one of the servants answered and said, Behold, I have seen a son of Jesse of Bethlehem, that is cunning in playing and a mighty valiant man and a man of war and prudent in speech and handsome, and the LORD is with him (1 Samuel 16:13–18). And it came to pass, when the evil spirit from God was upon Saul, that David took a harp and played with his hand; so Saul was refreshed and was better, and the evil spirit departed from him (1 Samuel 16:23).
Chapter 56.
The number fifty-six is two times twenty-eight (signifying the faith that we will be saved from all our enemies), or four times fourteen (denoting God’s heavenly promises for our salvation), or seven times eight (indicating that God will finish the work he has begun in us). In Scripture, fifty-six is used one other time besides in the title of Psalm 56.249 There were fifty-six men of Netophah (meaning “resin-dropping”250) who left Babylon to help restore the temple in Jerusalem (Ezra 2:22).
Psalm 56
To the Overcomer upon: The silent dove in a distant land, Michtam251 of David, when the Philistines252 took him in Gath.253
1 Be merciful unto me, O God, for man would swallow me up; he oppresses me fighting me daily.
When faced with a seemingly impossible predicament, requesting God’s mercy is at the top of David’s prayer list. David describes himself as the silent dove in a distant land. Even though the Spirit of the Lord is upon him, he knows that his enemies will hold virtually anything that he says against him in an all-out attempt to swallow him up.
2 My enemies would daily swallow me up, for they are many that fight against me, O thou most High.
This is a daily battle. David’s describes his enemies as “man.” Today, God’s people continue to be surrounded by the same enemies. We are led by the Holy Spirit in the midst of the fallen, humanistic world that surrounds us.
3 When I am afraid, I will trust in thee.
4 In God I will praise his word, in God I have put my trust; I will not fear what flesh can do unto me.
David battles his fear by trusting in God. In order to overcome fear, we must be in God so that we can praise his word. God’s word declares, In charity [which is the sacrificial, redemptive love of God] there is no fear; but charity that is perfect casts out fear; because fear has torment; from which he that fears is not complete in charity (1 John 4:18).
5 Every day my life is filled with sorrow; all their thoughts are against me for evil.
6 They gather themselves together, they hide themselves, they mark my steps when they wait for my soul.
The state of the world around us fills us with sorrow. Those who reject God and elevate man are our enemies. We can identify with David when he proclaims: all their thoughts are against me for evil. Through the Spirit, David perceives their strategy. They gather themselves together (they operate according to politically correct groupthink, making it difficult for any individual with a keen conscience to oppose them). Additionally, they hide themselves; they do not openly reveal their intention to eradicate even the memory of God from the earth. Also, they mark my steps when they wait for my soul; they scrutinize our every move, looking for any possible way to ambush us.
7 Shall they escape by iniquity? in thine anger cast down the peoples, O God.
Will their iniquity (their cunningly hidden sin) provide an escape for them? No. God’s enemies will not escape individually or corporately, unless they repent. We know that the wrath of man does not work the righteousness of God (James 1:20). The wrath of God will soon be revealed on the day when he will cast down the peoples (bring down the ungodly nations).
8 Thou tellest my wanderings; put my tears into thy bottle; are they not in thy book?
God knows about the wanderings of all his saints (Hebrews 11:37–38). The prayers of the saints were accompanied with tears (including David’s) and have been stored up in bottles, such as the golden vials254 (Revelation 5:8), to be poured out as the wrath of God (Revelation 15:7) upon the apostate earth (Revelation 16:1). The effects of these judgments are described in God’s Book (Revelation 16).
9 When I cry unto thee, then shall my enemies be turned back; in this I know that God is for me.
In the end, David’s worst enemy proved to be his own flesh. This is true for us all. For this reason, it is expedient for us to cry to the Lord and by the Spirit put to death the deeds of the flesh (Romans 8:13). When our hearts are clean and pure and our personal lives are pleasing to the Lord, our external enemies will be rapidly turned back when we cry out to God. When we experience this victory, we will know beyond the shadow of a doubt that God is for us.
10 In God I will praise his word; in the LORD I will praise his word.
11 In God I have put my trust; I will not be afraid of what man can do unto me.
As God’s Word is fulfilled in and through us, our praise will increase and know no bounds. Then we will be filled of joy as a result of putting our trust in God. The time will come when our fear of what man can do to us will be completely gone.
12 Thy promises are upon me, O God; I will render praises unto thee.
13 For thou hast delivered my life from death; thou hast kept my feet from falling, that I may walk before God in the light of the living.255
David knows for certain that God will keep his promises. We can have the same confidence that the sure mercies promised to David will be upon us also. This is truly a great motivation for us to continually praise God as he delivers our life from death and keeps our feet from falling. Let’s all rejoice that we may walk before God in the light of the living.
Let us pray:
Heavenly Father, we delight in the knowledge that your promises are upon us and that you are our God, and we are your people. We thank you and praise you for delivering our lives from death and for keeping our feet from falling. May we walk circumspectly before you in the light of the living. Amen.
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249 Fifty-six is also used three times as part of a larger number (1 Chronicles 9:9; Ezra 2:14, 30).
250 “Netophah” (meaning resin-dropping) could refer to myrrh, which is a key ingredient of the holy anointing oil (Exodus 30:22–25) and a symbol of the way of the cross.
251 A “michtam” is a poem or writing of profound significance.
252 “Philistines” is derived from “Philistim” (meaning “wanders,” “migration,” or “errant ones”).
253 “Gath” means “winepress.”
254 “Vials” are bottles in which the contents may be sealed and preserved.
255 “The light of the living” appears to be a quote from Job 33:30.
Chapter 57.
Other than in the title of Psalm 57, the number fifty-seven, three times nineteen (passing the test), does not occur in Scripture.256
Psalm 57
To the Overcomer upon, Do not destroy, Michtam of David, when he fled from the presence of Saul in the cave.
1 Be merciful unto me, O God, be merciful unto me: for my soul trusts in thee; and in the shadow of thy wings I will make my refuge until these calamities are overpast.
Once again, David’s top priority is to request God’s mercy. Spiritually speaking David knows that the best place of refuge is in the shadow of God’s wings. This is the realm represented by the holy of holies, which is the place of the direct presence of God where holiness (total consecration to God) is a requirement (Hebrews 12:14).
2 I will cry unto God most high, unto God that performs all things for me.
3 He shall send from the heavens and save me from the reproach of him that would swallow me up. Selah. God shall send forth his mercy and his truth.
David is completely consecrated to God. God performs all things for David, who is confident that God will send from the heavens and save him from the reproach of Saul, who thinks that he will swallow David up. Saul not only seeks to kill David but has also spread many ugly lies about him. In response to the reproach of Saul, God shall send forth his mercy and his truth. Quite a promise!
4 My soul is among lions, and I lie even among those that are set on fire, even the sons of men, whose teeth are spears and arrows and their tongue a sharp sword.
On several occasions, David was betrayed by those who he had hoped he could trust (such as Doeg the Edomite and the Ziphims).
5 Be thou exalted, O God, above the heavens; let thy glory be above all the earth.
There is a realm above the heavens. Jesus ascended far above all the heavens, that he might fulfill all things (Ephesians 4:10). Among the things that Jesus fulfilled was the exaltation of God above the heavens, the magnification of God’s glory above all the earth. This will continue until every knee bows and every tongue confesses to God (Isaiah 45:22–25; Romans 14:11).
6 They have prepared a net for my steps; my soul is bowed down; they have dug a pit before me, into the midst of which they are fallen themselves. Selah.
When David found Saul in the cave, he could have destroyed Saul but chose not to. David’s heart smote him when he went so far as to cut off a piece of Saul’s garment (1 Samuel 24:5–7). After showing Saul mercy and sparing his life, David did, however, confront Saul with the truth (1 Samuel 24:8–15). David repeatedly showed Saul God’s mercy and truth. Those who prepared a net for David’s steps and dug a pit before him ended up falling into their own trap. Saul eventually died on his own sword, not on David’s sword. On a vastly larger scale, Satan fell into his own trap when he incited the Jews and the Romans to condemn Jesus.
7 My heart is ready, O God, my heart is willing; I will sing and give praise.
David knows for certain that God will eventually deal with Saul, and with all the ungodly nations surrounding and oppressing his people. David’s heart is ready and willing. He says of this future event: I will sing and give praise.
8 Awake, my glory; awake, psaltery and harp; I myself will arise early.
9 I will praise thee, O Lord, among the peoples; I will sing unto thee among the nations.
David refers to God as “my glory.” When God is glorified, David takes it personally because he is completely identified with God. David promises that he will arise early to praise and glorify God. David wants the glory of God to awake and to spread like the dawn of a new day so that he can praise the Lord among the peoples and sing to the Lord among the nations. 257
David participated in a shadow fulfillment of this, but the awakening of the glory of God in fullness is yet to come. This is nothing less than the unveiled revelation of the glory of God in all of a new creation that has been completely transformed and where there is no longer any curse.
10 For thy mercy is great unto the heavens, and thy truth unto the clouds.
11 Be thou exalted, O God, above the heavens; let thy glory be above all the earth.
Let us pray:
Heavenly Father, we long to experience more and more of your mercy and truth. We long to see you glorified more and more in your people. May those whom you have chosen throughout the past six thousand years of human history awake and rise early in the first resurrection at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.
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255 “The light of the living” appears to be a quote from Job 33:30.
256 Fifty-seven also occurs three times as part of a larger number (Numbers 1:31, 2:8, 31). These verses refer to members of the tribes of Zebulon and Dan who were numbered as part of the army of God that left Egypt. Psalm 114 (fifty-seven times two) also has to do with leaving Egypt.
257 “The peoples” and “the nations” can represent Gentiles who would not otherwise know the Lord. David’s worship isn’t only contained in a specific location such as the tabernacle.
Chapter 58.
Fifty-eight is two times twenty-nine. This number only occurs in Scripture in the title of Psalm 58. In a positive sense, the number twenty-nine has to do with the voice of the Lord. In a negative sense, the number fifty-eight has to do with those who double down on the lies of the “sons of Adam.”
Psalm 58
To the Overcomer upon, Do not destroy, Michtam of David.
1 Do ye indeed speak righteousness, O congregation? do ye judge uprightly, O ye sons of Adam?
This psalm is addressed to a “congregation” that seems to consist of unconverted “sons of Adam.”
2 Yea, in heart ye work iniquity; ye weigh the violence of your hands in the earth.
The heart of the natural man works iniquity and displays itself by the violence of ungodly hands in the earth (Jeremiah 17:9; Matthew 15:19).
3 The wicked are estranged from the womb; they go astray as soon as they are born, speaking lies.
Natural men will go astray as soon as they are born. They will demonstrate this by speaking lies.
4 Their poison is like the poison of a serpent; they are like the deaf adder that stops her ear,
5 which will not hearken to the voice of charmers, charming never so wisely
The lies of the wicked are deadly poison, like the poison of a serpent. In fact, the ancient serpent, the devil, is called the “father of lies” (John 8:44). The wicked with their lies are like the deaf adder that stops her ear [a venomous viper that doesn’t listen], which refuses to hearken to the voice of the charmers, charming never so wisely.
With all of their abilities, the “charmers” are unable to control these wicked serpents and the effects of their poisonous lies. In Scripture, charmers are included in a list of abominations that the Lord refuses to tolerate (Deuteronomy 18:9–12). The charmers of today would undoubtedly include various personalities among the clergy, the entertainment industry, members of the news media, and politicians.
6 Break their teeth, O God, in their mouth; break out the great teeth of the young lions, O LORD.
The “charmers” cannot control the lies coming out of the poisonous mouth of the wicked. These lies can soon become like the great teeth in the mouth of young lions that can rip friend or foe to shreds. David asks God to break out the great teeth of the young lions that Satan has been using to spread his lies.
7 Let them melt away as waters which run continually; when he bends his bow to shoot his arrows, let them be as cut in pieces.
With the melting of all the ice and snow of winter, waters which run continually soak into the ground and usher in the springtime with its green leaves and flowers (and eventual good fruit). Then when he [Satan] bends his bow to shoot his arrows [to send forth his minions with his lies], let them be as cut in pieces. When God returns in judgment, the wicked will melt like ice and will fall like game before a mighty hunter.
8 As a snail which melts, let them pass away, like the untimely birth of a woman, that they may not see the sun.
Satan, his lies, and those who perpetrate them will not be able to stand the light of day. This is the light of the day of the Lord that is fast approaching.
9 Before your pots can feel the fire of the thorns, he shall take them away as with a whirlwind, both living, and in his wrath.
David and his men lived in the wilderness on the edge of the desert. While on the run, they would gather brush with thorns to light a fire under their pots and quickly cook their meals. It will be even quicker when God takes away the wicked in his wrath. The day of the Lord will burn up the “thorns” (which are linked to the curse). When the whirlwind of the presence of the Lord approaches, the wicked and their lies will be no more.
10 The righteous shall rejoice when he sees the vengeance; he shall wash his feet in the blood of the wicked.
Those who insist on being wicked will not only be under our feet; they will be dead while under our feet.
11 So that a man shall say, Verily there is a reward for the righteous; verily there is a God that judges in the earth.
Since the beginning of time, it is characteristic of the righteous to refuse to take the law into their own hands. They prefer to reach out to their enemies with God’s mercy and truth. David sums up their motto: Do not destroy. They have been crying out to God for justice, and their cry will soon be answered.
Let us pray:
Heavenly Father, we ask that you continue to speak righteousness and truth into the earth through our Lord Jesus and the overcoming body of Christ, until all the lies of our enemies are exposed and undone. May you judge uprightly, and may the righteous rejoice when they see your holy judgment against the wicked. Amen.
Chapter 59.
Fifty-nine is a prime number that does not occur by itself in Scripture other than in the title of Psalm 59. Twice it forms part of a larger number that has to do with the members of the tribe of Simeon (meaning “to hear and obey”) who left Egypt as part of the army of God (Numbers 1:23, 2:13).
Psalm 59
To the Overcomer upon, Do not destroy, Michtam of David; when Saul sent, and they watched the house to kill him.
1 Deliver me from my enemies, O my God; defend me from those that rise up against me.
2 Deliver me from the workers of iniquity and save me from bloodthirsty men.
Who are the workers of iniquity and bloodthirsty men from whom David is requesting deliverance and salvation? David is referring to Saul and the men Saul sent who watched the house to kill him.
3 For, behold, they lie in wait for my soul; the strong are gathered against me; I am not in rebellion, nor in sin, O LORD.
4 They run and prepare themselves when I have committed no iniquity; awake to help me and behold.
It does not appear that David ever attempted to publicly undermine Saul in Israel. David certainly never lifted up his hand to kill Saul, even when he had repeated opportunities to do so. David did, however, pour out his heart to the Lord. He pointed out to God that he, David, was not in rebellion nor in sin and that he had committed no iniquity. David’s urgent request to God was awake to help me and behold.
5 Thou, therefore, O LORD God of the hosts, the God of Israel, awake to visit all the Gentiles; be not merciful to any rebellious workers of iniquity. Selah.
David often requested mercy from God for himself. Here, he makes it clear that he is not requesting mercy for any rebellious workers of iniquity. When David insists that the God of Israel should awake to visit all the Gentiles, this means that David wants God to give the Gentiles exactly what they deserve. Gentiles are those who are not in proper covenant with God and whose hearts have not been circumcised (Romans 2:28–29).
6 They will return at evening; they will bark like dogs and go round about outside the city.
7 Behold, they belch out with their mouth; swords are in their lips; for who, say they, doth hear?
Exactly who is David referring to? It seems that David is comparing Saul and his men to Gentiles and dogs (both of which were unclean).
8 But thou, O LORD, shalt laugh at them; thou shalt have all the Gentiles in derision.
9 I will reserve his strength unto thee, for God is my defence.
David is going to let God deal with Saul and his bloodthirsty workers of iniquity.
10 The God of my mercy shall meet me on the way; God shall let me see my desire upon my enemies.
David declares God to be the God of my mercy. David wants God to show him mercy by scattering, bringing down, and proving his enemies wrong. However, he doesn’t ask God to immediately slay his enemies. His hope is that at least some of those in the enemy camp do not really desire to be among rebellious workers of iniquity and may be brought to repentance.
11 Slay them not lest my people forget; scatter them by thy power and bring them down, O Lord our shield.
12 For the sin of their mouth and the words of their lips, let them even be taken in their pride; they shall be subject to weakness and to a curse.
Even though David’s enemies have not yet managed to kill him, the sin of their mouth and the words of their lips are sufficient proof of their guilt. David would like to see their pride dealt with, and he knows that what they have already said and done is sufficient cause to subject them to weakness and to a curse.
13 Consume them in wrath, consume them that they may not be and let them know that God rules in Jacob unto the ends of the earth. Selah.
When David asks God to consume them in wrath, consume them that they may not be, I do not believe that he desires that God immediately kill the wicked. This would contradict what he asks for in verse 11. Rather, David prefers that the wickedness and evil in them will be consumed. (Paul calls this inner evil “the old man” in Romans 6:6, Ephesians 4:22, and Colossians 3:9). David seems to foresee a future for his enemies. After they would be “consumed,” David goes on to state that he wants God to let them know that God rules in Jacob and unto the ends of the earth.
14 And at evening let them return and let them bark like dogs and go round about outside the city.
After these enemies will be dealt with by God, who will put them in their proper place, then David asks that at evening258 let them return and let them bark like dogs and go round about outside the city. Even after being severely dealt with, they are still unclean dogs who will not be allowed inside the holy city.259
15 Let them wander up and down for food and murmur if they are not satisfied.
Apparently, David would like for his enemies to be given another opportunity to show what kind of food they will seek (clean or unclean) to see if they will be satisfied. Jesus said, Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied (Matthew 5:6). Make no mistake: no matter how many opportunities God sees fit to grant our enemies, only those who hunger and thirst for righteousness will ever be satisfied.
16 But I will sing of thy power; I will sing aloud of thy mercy in the morning, for thou hast been my defence and refuge in the day of my trouble.
17 Unto thee, O my strength, will I sing, for God is my defence and the God of my mercy.
No matter what happens regarding his enemies, David will keep his focus on God. He will sing of God’s power. He will sing aloud of God’s mercy in the morning. David will never forget that God has been his defense and refuge in the day of trouble, and it behooves all of us to never forget this. David is utterly and irrevocably convinced that God is his strength, his defense, and his mercy.
Let us pray:
Heavenly Father, we ask that by your grace and through the Holy Spirit anything wrong with our hearts will be exposed and dealt with. May every trace of pride and arrogance vanish. Like David, we desire to have the supreme confidence that you are our strength, our defense, and our mercy. We ask this in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.
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258 The evening is the beginning of the new day.
259 This is similar to the scene described by Ezekiel in which only the sons of Zadok (which means “righteousness”) were allowed inside the sanctuary to minister to the Lord, while all the other unclean priests, who caused Israel to sin, were not slain, but they were required to remain outside and perform menial tasks such as cutting up the meat from the sacrifices (Ezekiel 44:10–16).
Chapter 60.
The number sixty is comprised of two times thirty (signifying a double portion), three times twenty (the fruitfulness of being under God’s Word and covering), four times fifteen (God’s heavenly plan for us to bear the fruit of his mercy and grace), five times twelve (God’s grace and mercy to bring us into the divine order260), and six times ten (the word of man or decisions made by man). It occurs thirty-two times in Scripture (as well as thirty-eight times as part of a larger number).
In Scripture, the first use of the number sixty is found in the narrative of the events that took place when Isaac was sixty years old. At this time, his wife Rebekah (formerly sterile) gave birth to Esau and Jacob (Genesis 25:26). Later in the Bible, we read that Solomon’s Temple was sixty cubits long and twenty cubits wide and thirty cubits high (1 Kings 6:2). Cyrus ordered the house of God at Jerusalem to be rebuilt with the height thereof sixty cubits, and the breadth thereof sixty cubits (Ezra 6:3). Ezekiel saw a temple in which the man who revealed it to him261 made the portals of sixty cubits, each portal of the court and of the portal all around (Ezekiel 40:14). Sixty is used negatively when Nebuchadnezzar the king made a statue of gold, whose height was sixty cubits and its breadth six cubits; he set it up in the plain of Dura, in the province of Babylon (Daniel 3:1).
Psalm 60 starts out negatively with a hard lesson and then moves to the positive.
Psalm 60
To the Overcomer upon Shushaneduth,262 Michtam of David, to teach; when he strove with Aramnaharaim263 and with Aramzobah,264 when Joab265 returned and smote of Edom in the valley of salt twelve thousand.
1 O God, thou hast cast us off, thou hast scattered us; thou hast been displeased; O turn thyself to us again.
2 Thou hast made the earth to tremble; thou hast broken it; heal its breaches, for it shakes.
3 Thou hast showed thy people hard things; thou hast made us to drink the wine of shaking.
4 Thou hast given a banner to those that fear thee that they raise up for the truth. Selah.
This Psalm was evidently written after David and his men learned a lesson the hard way while striving266 to defeat Aramnaharaim and Aramzobah (which seem to symbolize pride and haughtiness). The earth is a symbol of the people of God (and can also represent the promised land). Thus, when God causes the earth to tremble, this is an earthquake that shatters the status quo among the people of God and uncovers the “breaches” that David then asks God to heal. The difficult lesson is the basis for this “michtam” of David, the purpose of which is to teach.
David sums up the hard lesson God taught him and his men by saying: Thou has given a banner to those that fear thee that they may raise up for the truth. The banner given to those that fear God has to do with the covering (and protection) provided by the Spirit of God that is also known as the Spirit of Truth.
5 That thy beloved may be delivered, save with thy right hand and hear me.
The name David means “beloved.” The house of David is beloved by God and will inherit the promises.
6 God has spoken in his holiness; I will rejoice, I will divide Shechem and mete out the valley of Succoth.
Shechem (meaning “back” or “shoulder”) is symbolic of government, which God says is to be placed upon the shoulder of the Messiah, of whom David is a forefather (Isaiah 9:6,7). Succoth (meaning “booths” or “tabernacles”) is associated with the Feast of Tabernacles, which is also known as the feast of the harvest or ingathering (symbolic of the fullness of the kingdom of God). To divide Shechem and mete out the valley of Succoth has to do with the distribution of the inheritance of the Messiah.
7 Gilead is mine, and Manasseh is mine; Ephraim also is the strength of my head; Judah is my lawgiver;
“Gilead” means “hill of witness.” The ultimate hill of witness is Calvary. Manasseh (meaning “one who causes to forget”) and Ephraim (meaning “double ash heap” or “double fruitfulness”) were the two sons of Joseph (meaning “he shall add” or “let God add”). Jacob received Manasseh and Ephraim as his own so that Joseph could have two tribes in Israel – a double portion (Genesis 48:11–22). Jacob blessed Ephraim, the younger, above his brother Manasseh.
With these historical events in mind, David writes in this psalm (a living parable): Ephraim also is the strength of my head. Ultimately, David’s head is the Lord Jesus Christ. The strength of Jesus our head comes forth when we – as the people of God – are broken and reduced to a double ash heap so that God can bring us into total dependence on him. The result of this difficult process is double fruitfulness.
Judah (meaning “praise”) takes his rightful place as our lawgiver. David was of the tribe of Judah, and his messianic descendent Jesus is the Lion of the tribe of Juda, the Root of David (Revelation 5:5). As we allow genuine praise to flow through us, giving God all the glory for everything he has done and is doing, we forget about doing things our way and thoroughly embrace Jesus as our lawgiver. Jesus’s new commandment (or law) is that we love one another (John 13:34–35).
When David prophetically says that Gilead is mine, he is embracing the way of the cross. When he says that Manasseh is mine, he knows that God will cause us, like Joseph, to forget about all the hurts and grief that we have suffered in the past. In fact, God even promises that a time will come when he shall wipe away every tear from off all faces of his people (Isaiah 25:8).
8 Moab is my washpot; over Edom I will cast out my shoe; Philistia, triumph thou because of me.
Remarkably, David goes on to say that Moab (meaning “of her own father”) is my washpot (the people of Moab were the descendants of an incestuous son of Lot). Today, there continue to be many among the people of God who insist on following their own spiritual “fathers” or spiritual directors instead of coming to maturity in Christ under the direct supervision and discipline of God the Father. God, however, will use the mess that man has perpetrated in his name as a “washpot.” Only God can show us what to do in the face of any given situation, but we may have learned the hard way what not to do. Any experience among the “Moabites” will have washed off of us many things that we will never, ever desire to repeat.
Under the law, a Moabite could never enter the congregation of the Lord, not even after ten generations (Deuteronomy 23:3). However, Ruth the Moabitess not only entered the congregation of Israel by grace when she found and married Boaz (the kinsman redeemer) but she also became part of the lineage of Jesus Christ as the great-grandmother of King David (Matthew 1:5–6). Jesus is the fulfillment of Ruth and Boaz’s selfless example. He gave himself for the congregation that he might sanctify and cleanse her in the washing of water by the word (Ephesians 5:26).
When he says, over Edom I will cast my shoe, David is also claiming Edom (the land of Esau) as part of the inheritance of the people of God. Edom (meaning “red”) is symbolic of those who would build their own kingdoms. Some do this while thinking or rationalizing that they are actually building God’s kingdom. At the beginning of the psalm, David talks about a very painful lesson he’d had to learn in this regard. If David could learn (albeit the hard way) the folly of trying to do God’s work apart from God, then there is hope for many others scattered among the people of God who become heavy handed and abusive of others doing things on their own, without guidance and strength from God.
David writes, Philistia, triumph thou because of me. Philistia is the land of the Philistines (meaning “wanderers” or “errant ones”), from whom the land of Palestine eventually derived its name. Many of David’s mighty men were from Philistia, even though the Philistines were mortal enemies of Israel. David’s mighty men triumphed because of David, and David triumphed because of God. During David’s time of exile in Philistia, many of his best men and their families were drawn to him.
Likewise, during our time of exile in a corrupt world controlled by the devil, many spiritual wanderers and errant ones can be drawn to the Lord Jesus Christ if we demonstrate the genuine love of God to one another.
9 Who will bring me into the strong city? Who will lead me into Edom?
10 Surely thou, O God, who had cast us off; and thou, O God, who did not go out with our armies.
Now David wants to know: who will bring him into the strong city?267 And who will lead him into Edom?268
The answer becomes clear in the next verse: God, who had cast us off and who did not go out with our armies (when we attempted to save and justify ourselves with our own self-righteous works) has provided a wonderful Savior by his charity and grace. Jesus Christ will reign from the right hand of the Father until all of his enemies are under his feet (Psalm 8:6; 1 Corinthians 15:25).
11 Give us help from trouble, for vain is the salvation of man.
12 Through God we shall do valiantly, for he it is that shall tread down our enemies.269
When we operate through God, we shall do valiantly. When God tread[s] down our enemies, they have two options. One, the enemies may submit voluntarily and become part of his footstool (part of his temple made without hands from living stones). Two, they may persist in their rebellion but eventually be completely overthrown (1 Chronicles 28:2; Psalm 108:13, 110:1; Malachi 4:3; Hebrews 2:8).
Psalm 60 is dedicated to the Overcomer upon Shushaneduth (which means “the lilies270 of the testimony”). In Scripture, Jesus Christ is linked to the lily.271 There were lilies on the molten sea in the outer court of the temple (2 Chronicles 4:2, 5). The sea was made in Tyre by Hiram, who also made the two pillars272 leading into the porch before the Holy Place. When Hiram273 set up the right pillar, he called the name of it Jachin [“the Lord establishes”]; and in standing up the left pillar he called its name Boaz [“only in him is there strength”]. And upon the top of the pillars was lily work (1 Kings 7:21–22).
Today, we as members of the body of Christ are the temple, and God wants to demonstrate the “lily work” of the nature of Jesus Christ in and through us. He wishes to display the abundant fruit of righteousness that he brings forth in his people.
Jesus said: Consider the lilies how they grow: they toil not, they spin not; and yet I say unto you that Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these (Luke 12:27).
May we be arrayed like one of these in the righteousness of Jesus Christ, bringing forth fruit for the good pleasure of our Lord Jesus and God our Father.
When the beautiful bride of Jesus Christ is finally put on display, many will see and understand why he sacrificed himself for his beloved people, who will be known as the lilies of the testimony:
Where has thy beloved gone, O thou fairest among women? where didst thy beloved separate himself? that we may seek him with thee.
My beloved is gone down into his garden, to the beds of spices, to feed in the gardens, and to gather the lilies.
I am my beloved’s, and my beloved is mine; he feeds among the lilies. (Song of Solomon 6:1–3)
Let us pray:
Heavenly Father, may we learn this lesson and never forget it. You are the one who establishes, and only in you is there strength. May all your people be firmly established and strengthened in the righteousness of Jesus Christ. Amen.
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260 Divine order is God´s way of doing things and may be symbolized by the number twelve.
261 This man, whose appearance was like the appearance of brass, with a line of flax in his hand, and a measuring reed … (Ezekiel 40:3) is likely a representation of Jesus.
262 “Shushan Eduth” means “the lilies of the testimony.”
263 Aram Naharaim: “Aram” means “height” (also “Syria”). “Naharaim” may mean “two who snort.”
264 Aram Zobah: “Aram” means “height” (also “Syria”). “Zobah” means “a plantation.”
265 “Joab” means “the Lord is father.”
266 If we are operating in God, we will not have to “strive.”
267 The boundary of the promised land went through what Scripture describes as the strong city of Zor (Joshua 19:29). Zor, the strong city, is another name for Tyre (“rock”). If Tyre is indeed the strong city that David is referring to, it is worth noting that Hiram, king of Tyre, entered into covenant with David (when he realized that the LORD God of the hosts was with David). Hiram (meaning “white” or “whiteness”) denotes noble birth. Hiram symbolizes being born again. Hiram sent workers and materials to help build David a house (2 Samuel 5:10–12). Later, Hiram, out of his love for David, became Solomon’s key ally who helped build the temple (1 Kings 5:1–12). This prefigures how many “strong cities” of Gentiles would later receive Jesus Christ, voluntarily entering into covenant with him.
268 Unlike Tyre under King Hiram, Edom had to be subdued by force. Psalm 60 is written after Joab returned and smote of Edom in the valley of salt twelve thousand. Edom is a symbol of those who would build their own kingdoms, using God’s name to do it. The twelve thousand of Edom is negatively symbolic of man’s order coming to maturity and being destroyed. The development of these events in the valley of salt means that the entire place was sterile. Nothing green and good could grow there. All kingdoms besides God’s kingdom are likewise sterile.
269 Note that verses 5-12 of Psalm 60 are repeated with a few subtle changes in Psalm 108:6–13, where several verbs are changed to future tense and the last verse ends by saying, Through God we shall do valiantly, for he shall tread down our enemies again [emphasis added]. These changes highlight the prophetic implications of this beautiful passage.
270 The lily has a delightful odor and no thorns. This flower is a symbol of the gifts and calling of God. The costly ointment poured out twice upon Jesus was derived from the lily.
271 Hosea 14:4–7
272 And the chapiters that were upon the top of the pillars were in the form of lilies like those seen in the porch, for four cubits. And the chapiters upon the two pillars had two hundred pomegranates in two orders round about in each chapiter (1 Kings 7:19–20). The lily (symbolic of gifts and callings) is linked to the pomegranates (symbolic of the fruit of righteousness). A chapiter is the capital of a column or pillar.
273 This individual is possibly not the same Hiram as the king of Tyre, although Scripture does not specify.
Chapter 61.
The prime number sixty-one occurs only once in Scripture, other than in the title of Psalm 61. It also appears twice as part of a larger number.
In the battle against the Midianites, the sons of Israel prevailed, and the spoil included sixty-one thousand asses, or donkeys (Numbers 31:34). The prey was to be divided into two equal parts between those that took part in the war and all the congregation. Of the part belonging to the congregation, the portion belonging to the Lord was to be one in fifty. Of the part belonging to the men of war, the portion of the Lord was to be one in five hundred. So, of the part belonging to the men of war the asses were thirty thousand five hundred, of which the tribute for the LORD was sixty-one (Numbers 31:39). Moses gave this tribute to Eleazar, the priest (Numbers 31:41).
Asses are a symbol of man operating in the flesh. All of the asses that once were in bondage to the Midianites were now given the opportunity to serve the people of God. When God delivers us from bondage to the enemy, he also gives us the opportunity to serve his people in one way or another. For being previously the slaves of sin, now ye have been made the slaves of righteousness (Romans 6:20).
Long after the incident with the Midianites, those who came out of captivity from Babylon and returned to Jerusalem to rebuild the temple gave an offering of sixty-one thousand drams of gold toward the project (Ezra 2:69).
Gold can be symbolic of the nature of God. If the number sixty-one is symbolic of being set free from bondage to sin and the flesh to serve our new high priest, Jesus Christ, then when God’s people offer him sixty-one thousand drams of gold, this might be symbolic of us giving him all the glory as we become perfect slaves of righteousness who belong completely to him.
Psalm 61
To the Overcomer upon Neginah,274 A Psalm of David.
1 Hear my cry, O God; attend unto my prayer.
2 From the end of the earth I will cry unto thee when my heart is overwhelmed; lead me to the rock that is higher than I.
When David was exiled in the wilderness, he felt that he was at the end of the earth (at the outer boundary of the promised land). Therefore, he told God, I will cry unto thee when my heart is overwhelmed. David’s petition to God is lead me to the rock that is higher than I.
What rock? If he is asking God the Father to lead him to the rock, then the Father cannot be the rock. It follows that the rock that is higher than David must be Jesus Christ, the Messiah, and that David had enough understanding of this subject to express his strong desire.
3 For thou hast been a shelter for me and a strong tower from the enemy.
4 I will abide in thy tabernacle for ever; I will trust in the covert of thy wings. Selah.
To be sheltered in a strong tower from the enemy is to abide in God’s tabernacle. This is the realm represented by the holy of holies. This is where David knows that God’s wings will always cover him.
5 For thou, O God, hast heard my vows; thou hast given an inheritance to those that fear thy name.
David has made his vows directly to God because he abides in God’s tabernacle where God dwells. David knows about the inheritance that God has given to those who fear his name. This inheritance has to do with the rock (or king) who is higher than David.
6 Thou wilt add days upon days unto the king’s life; his years shall be from generation to generation.
The one who has been granted an endless life is Jesus Christ, and we may share in his life. Unless the Father draws us, it is not possible for us to come to Jesus, who said, No one can come to me unless the Father who has sent me draws him, and I will raise him up in the last day (John 6:44).
Jesus also said, For as the Father has life in himself, so has he given to the Son to have life in himself (John 5:26).
The Scripture is very clear: He that believes in the Son of God has the witness of God in himself; he that does not believe God has made God a liar; because he does not believe the witness that God has testified of his Son. And this is the witness, that God has given eternal life to us, and this life is in his Son. He that has the Son has life; and he that does not have the Son of God does not have life (1 John 5:10–12).
David, aware of God as the sole source of life, cried out to God, asking him to lead me to the rock that is higher than I. David had the witness (Spirit) of God within him, and this is what enabled him to write so many messianic psalms about the future Messiah, Jesus Christ. It would only be through the Messiah that humanity would be reconciled to the Source of their life.
7 He shall abide before God for ever; He is aware of mercy and truth which preserve him.
Jesus Christ is the one who shall abide before God for ever and who is aware of mercy and truth which preserve him. Like David, all of us depend on him for eternal life.
Mercy and truth preserve the king, and his throne is upheld by mercy (Proverbs 20:28).
Jesus extends mercy but he also applies the sword of the truth until even our inward parts are clean (Psalm 51:6).
8 So I will sing thy name for ever, performing my vows each day.
Part of the content of David’s vows was the continual offering of the sacrifice of praise to God, giving him all the glory each day and forever for the privilege of being redeemed to belong to and serve him.
Let us pray:
Heavenly Father, please draw us closer and closer to our Lord Jesus and to you, until like David we may abide in your tabernacle and take shelter under the cover of your wings. May your mercy and truth preserve and uphold us as we live to please you. We desire to give you all the glory for ever and ever. Amen.
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274 “Neginah” means “a stringed instrument.”
Chapter 62.
Sixty-two is two times thirty-one (signifying that to rest in God is victory). This number occurs four times in Scripture. It also can be found another four times as part of a larger number.
The first use of sixty-two is when Scripture records that All these of the sons of Obededom;275 they and their sons and their brethren, valiant men strong for the ministry, were sixty-two, of Obededom (1 Chronicles 26:8). Obededom was one of the doorkeepers for the ark when it was placed in the tabernacle of David. Prior to that, the ark spent three months in the house of Obededom (during which time the Lord blessed Obededom and all that he had) after a failed attempt to bring the ark to Jerusalem on a new cart instead of upon the shoulders of sanctified priests. This error cost the life of a man named Uzza. Obededom was a Gittite from Gath, the city of the Philistines. The second use of sixty-two in the Bible is when Darius the Median took the kingdom, being sixty-two years old (Daniel 5:31). Soon after the defeat of Babylon by the Medes and the Persians, King Cyrus the Persian ordered the reconstruction of Jerusalem and the temple. A remnant returned from Babylon for this purpose after some of God’s people had waited patiently in exile for seventy years.
The third and fourth usages of sixty-two have to do with a prophecy that pinpoints the year Jesus’s ministry would begin. Know therefore and understand that from the going forth of the word to cause the people to return and to build Jerusalem unto the Anointed276 Prince, there shall be seven weeks, and sixty-two weeks, while the street shall be built again and the wall, even in troublous times. And after the sixty-two weeks the Anointed One [Heb. Messiah] shall be killed and shall have nothing: (and the ruling people that shall come shall destroy the city and the sanctuary; whose end shall be as a flood, until at the end of the war it shall be cut off with desolation) (Daniel 9:25–26). As it turned out, the prophecy of the seven weeks and the sixty-two weeks used a “day” to represent a “year.” After Cyrus’s announcement, which caused the people to return and build Jerusalem, there was a forty-nine-year period (seven times seven) in which Jerusalem, the temple, and the wall were rebuilt. This accomplishment was followed by a 434-year period (seven times sixty-two) until Jesus began his ministry on earth. Then, there was a final week (making a total of seventy weeks) in which the Messiah was cut off (Daniel 9:27). (See Appendix B).
Psalm 62
To the Overcomer, to Jeduthun,277 A Psalm of David.
1 Only in God does my soul rest; from him comes my saving health.
2 He only is my rock and my saving health; he is my defence; I shall not be greatly moved.
David is now at rest. He knows for certain that he can count on the sure mercies God has promised him. Yes, there will be trials and tribulations, but due to his rock-solid confidence in God, David can truthfully say that he will not be greatly moved. God’s Spirit has helped David to see that his enemies are hard at work doing each other in. He addresses them with confidence:
3 How long will ye imagine mischief against a man? Shall ye murder each other until ye are as a bowing wall and as a tottering fence?
Even though many – if not most – of David’s enemies live in Israel among the people of God, they are spiritually blind:
4 They only consult to cast him down from his greatness; they delight in lies; they bless with their mouth, but they curse in their inward parts. Selah.
David’s enemies, like some of ours, are consumed with envy because God has lifted him up. They cannot stand the truth because they delight in lies. They bless with their mouth, but they curse in their inward parts. Stop and think about this.
5 My soul, rest thou only in God, for my hope is from him.
6 He only is my rock and my saving health; he is my defence; I shall not be moved.
David’s hope is not only in God but is also from God. Therefore, he can confidently state: I shall not be moved. He makes no exceptions to this immovability.
7 In God is my saving health and my glory; the rock of my strength and my refuge is in God.
David has a clear and powerful witness. He does not give glamorous details of how he outsmarted Saul or the Philistines. No, David’s testimony is: God is my saving health and my glory; the rock of my strength and my refuge is in God. David’s hope is from God and his refuge is in God. It’s all about God, not David.
8 Wait in him at all times; ye peoples, pour out your heart before him; God is our refuge. Selah.
We are admonished to wait in God at all times. David encourages all peoples to pour out your heart before him. Consider this: God is not only David’s refuge; God is our refuge.
9 Surely the sons of Adam are vanity, and the sons of nobles are a lie; to be laid in the balance, they are altogether lighter than vanity.
The natural men, the sons of Adam, are vanity. Their lives are futile. The godless sons of nobles who have been raised with a silver spoon are a lie. They may look impressive on the outside, but inside, their character is seriously deficient. If they were to be laid in the balance, unless God has changed their hearts, there will be nothing of substance; they are altogether lighter than vanity.
10 Trust not in violence and become not vain in the taking of spoil; if riches increase, set not your heart upon them.
11 God has spoken once; twice have I heard this that power belongs unto God.
While in the adversity of the wilderness, David was tested and tried in many areas. Now the victorious king, he is being tested with riches and power. David clearly has his heart set on God instead of on riches, and God has emphasized to David that power belongs unto God. What valuable lessons!
12 Also unto thee, O Lord, belongs mercy, for thou renderest to every man according to his work.
Most important of all, David knows that mercy belongs to the Lord. God will render to every man according to his work.
If our salvation is linked to faith and grace (Ephesians 2:8), and if we depend upon the mercy of the Lord, why is the judgment of each one according to their works? (Revelation 20:12–13). This is because God will judge us according to the fruit that we produce (Matthew 7:16–20). If it turns out that we bear good fruit, this is tangible evidence that God has been working in and through us. This brings us back to faith and grace as we rest in God, allowing him to bring us to victory.
Let us pray:
Heavenly Father, we ask that you bring us into your rest. May our hope be from you. Help us to trust you for everything. May your mercy, truth, and grace so overwhelm us that we will never be moved. We ask this in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.
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275 “Obededom” means “serving Edom.” No matter what his name seems to suggest, God obviously loved his heart and blessed his extended family with sixty-two valiant men who were strong for the ministry.
276 In Hebrew, “anointed” refers to the Messiah.
277 “Jeduthun” means “designated for praise” or “friendship.”
Chapter 63.
Sixty-three is seven times nine (referencing perfect discernment) or three times twenty-one (signifying planting eternal life or death). Aside from the title of Psalm 63, this number does not occur in Scripture.
Psalm 63
A Psalm of David, when he was in the wilderness of Judah.
1 O God, thou art my God; early will I seek thee; my soul thirsts for thee; my flesh longs for thee in a dry and thirsty land where there is no water;
2 in this manner I beheld thee in holiness when I beheld thy power and thy glory.
Water was scarce or nonexistent where David was in the wilderness of Judah. This situation, however, caused him to realize how much he needed God. David says that when he beheld God’s power and glory, he beheld God in holiness.278
3 Because thy mercy is better than life, my lips shall praise thee.
4 Thus will I bless thee in my life; in thy name shall I lift up my hands.
God’s mercy is better than life because his plan is to replace our finite life (that had a beginning and that will certainly have an end) with his eternal life. Jesus said, Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness for they shall be satisfied (Matthew 5:6). If we hunger and thirst for God, he has already planted his eternal life in our being. As we yield to him, our life will bless God. We will lift up our hands in his name (in his nature) and do what is pleasing to him because he has placed his own desires within us.
5 My soul shall be satisfied as with marrow and fatness, and my mouth shall praise thee with joyful lips
6 When I remember thee upon my bed and meditate on thee in the night watches.
Eternal life is not our old life going on forever; it is an entire new quality of life. It is God’s life. We will soon find that this life is the only thing that can satisfy us as we wander in the spiritual desert of this fallen world. At night, whether David was in his bed or on duty as a sentinel, his soul bubbled over with satisfaction as he meditated on God.
7 Because thou hast been my help, therefore in the shadow of thy wings will I rejoice.
In the holy of holies, the ark of the testimony (associated with the direct presence of God) rested under the wings of the cherubim, which were connected to the throne of God. This was known as a deadly realm for mortal man. Under the law, only the high priest could enter once a year on the Day of Reconciliations (or Atonement) and only after making meticulous preparation. The realm of the presence of God represented by the holy of holies is by invitation only, but David had pitched a tent279 for the ark to make a temporary dwelling for it until Solomon could build the temple, and perhaps his reference to the shadow of thy wings280 alludes to the wings of the cherubim that were upon the ark of the testimony281 (Exodus 25:22). See Appendix A.
We know that David had close encounters with the presence of the Lord, and this isn’t the first time he rejoiced in that presence. When David brought the ark of God into the tabernacle, he danced before the LORD with all his might, and David was girded with a linen ephod. So David and all the house of Israel brought up the ark of the LORD with shouting and with the sound of the shofar (2 Samuel 6:14-15).
Where David’s temporary tent for the ark may have given him unprecedented access to the presence of God, now we may receive an invitation to enter this realm in the life of Jesus Christ who died for us so that we may be justified and reconciled with God. He permanently opened the way for his people to enter the realm represented by the holy of holies (Hebrews 10:19, 20).
8 My soul has followed hard after thee; thy right hand has upheld me.
9 But those that sought my soul, to destroy it, descended into the lower parts of the earth.282
The lower parts of the earth are associated with Sheol (Hades in Greek) and the grave (Ezekiel 32:18). Those who reject the presence of God go down, not up, when they die.
10 They shall be slain by the sword; they shall be a portion for foxes.
11 But the king shall rejoice in God; every one that swears by him shall be praised; for the mouth of those that speak lies shall be stopped.
King David was a forerunner and prophetic ancestor of Jesus Christ who is our king. Three thousand years ago, there were people in Israel who would have sworn by David. Of how much more importance is it for us today to swear allegiance to our Lord Jesus Christ?
Those that speak lies will not inherit the kingdom of God. Scripture clearly states that eventually all liars shall have their part in the lake which burns with fire and brimstone, which is the second death (Revelation 21:8). Anyone that makes a lie will be banned from entering God’s holy city (Revelation 21:27).
Let us pray:
Heavenly Father, may your right hand uphold us as we follow hard after you. May your presence completely satisfy our hunger and thirst for righteousness. May the mouth of those who speak lies be stopped. We ask this in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.
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278 Holiness means being consecrated exclusively for God.
279 1 Chronicles 16
280 Other psalms that reference the shadow of God’s wings: Psalm 17:8, 36:7, 57:1, 61:4.
281 In the highest sense, the ark is a representation of Jesus Christ.
282 The phrase the lower parts of the earth occurs in seven Scriptures. This is the first.
Chapter 64.
Sixty-four is two to the fifth power (signifying the eternal consequences of choices), or four cubed (God’s unfailing love), or two times thirty-two (doubling down on victory or defeat), or four times sixteen (resurrection life), or eight times eight (going on to perfection). Other than in the title of Psalm 64, the number sixty-four does not occur in Scripture.283
Psalm 64
To the Overcomer, A Psalm of David.
1 Hear my voice, O God, in my prayer; preserve my life from fear of the enemy.
David knew that physical protection from the enemy is insufficient. Therefore, he prayed for God to preserve his life from fear of the enemy. Fear is a terrible thing. It must be conquered if we are to live in the liberty of the Holy Spirit and bear fruit that is pleasing to God. Fear and unbelief go hand in hand, and they must be defeated if we are to become victorious in Christ.
2 Hide me from the secret counsel of the wicked, from the insurrection of the workers of iniquity:
3 Who whet their tongue like a sword and bend their bows to shoot their arrows, even bitter words
4 That they may shoot in secret at the perfect; suddenly do they shoot at him and fear not.
The insurrection of the workers of iniquity is against God. Yet Scripture is clear that there are many workers of iniquity who pretend (or maybe even actually believe) that they work for God (Matthew 7:21–23). These people whet their tongue like a sword (that is, they sharpen their tongue) and then, like an archer shooting arrows, they release bitter words. They fire off these bitter words in secret. Their target is the perfect. They shoot suddenly, without warning, and they do not fear the consequences of their actions.
Who does David refer to as the perfect? The people in view are all the upright in heart.
5 They encourage themselves in an evil matter; they attempt to hide the snares; they say, Who shall see them?
Wicked workers of iniquity, many of whom are camouflaged as tares among the people of God, set hidden snares for those whose hearts are upright. They are the perpetrators of this evil.
6 They search out iniquities; they perfect and put into effect that which they have invented in the inward thought of each one of them and that which they have devised in their heart.
The one who is upright in heart is the person who has the Lord Jesus in their heart; they will have clean, pure, circumcised, upright hearts. This is because those who have Jesus will have his heart, which is perfect.
Those who do not have the Lord Jesus in their heart (some of whom run around pretending to be Christians) are more than simply workers of iniquity; they take evil a step further; they search out iniquities; they perfect and put into effect that which they have invented in the inward thought of each one of them and that which they have devised in their heart.
7 But God shall shoot at them with an arrow; suddenly shall they be wounded.
One word from God, and the iniquitous will suddenly be wounded. This will happen while they are saying: Lord, Lord have we not prophesied in thy name? and in thy name cast out devils? and in thy name done many wonderful works? All Jesus has to do is say, I never knew you; depart from me, ye that work iniquity (Matthew 7:22–23). The game will be over for them.
Jesus also said, For out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks. The good man out of the good treasure of the heart brings forth good things, and the evil man out of the evil treasure brings forth evil things. But I say unto you, That every idle word that men shall speak, they shall give account thereof in the day of judgment. For by thy words thou shalt be justified, and by thy words thou shalt be condemned (Matthew 12:34–37).
For human beings, there are only two options for living – the good treasure of the life of the Lord Jesus Christ or the evil treasure of the corrupt life of Adam.
One or the other will be found dominant in our hearts on the day that we will be required to give account. The proof of what is really in our hearts will be the words that have been coming out of our mouths.
8 So they shall make their own council and agreements to fall upon themselves; all that see them shall flee away.
The wicked will completely, irrevocably lose their capacity to spread any more lies and rumors. In fact, even their audience will evaporate.
9 And all men shall fear and shall declare the work of God, for they shall understand his doing.
When the present lies and abuses of the workers of iniquity finally receive their due, all the counsels and agreements of the godless will come down on their own heads. There will be no split opinion about this judgment because all men shall fear and shall declare the work of God, for they shall understand his doing.
10 The righteous shall be glad in the LORD and shall become secure in him, and all the upright in heart shall glory in him.
This resolution will effectively put an end to strife and division among the people of God.
Let us pray:
Heavenly Father, please preserve us from fear of the enemy and hide us from the secret counsel of the wicked. May our hearts always be filled with good treasure from you. May we soon see the demise of all the workers of iniquity that continue to persecute us. We ask this in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.
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283 Sixty-four does occur twice as part of a larger number (Numbers 26:25, 43).
Chapter 65.
Sixty-five is five times thirteen, which in a positive sense refers to the kingdom of God that is lifted up by his mercy and grace. This number is used three times in Scripture284 – twice in a positive sense, and once as a negative.285 The first use is found when Mahalaleel (meaning “God is splendor”) lived sixty-five years and begat Jared (meaning “descending”) (Genesis 5:15). The second use of the number sixty-five is when Enoch (meaning “dedicated”) lived sixty-five years and begat Methuselah (meaning “when he dies, then it shall come”) (Genesis 5:21). All these men were antediluvian patriarchs listed in the bloodline of Jesus Christ (Luke 3:37). They lived in an age when the ancient world was rapidly descending into absolute perversion, until God intervened with the flood.
Psalm 65
To the Overcomer, A Psalm and Song of David.
1 Praise doth rest in thee, O God, in Sion and unto thee shall the vow be performed.
Sion286 is Mount Hermon287 (Deuteronomy 4:48), which is the northern boundary of the promised land, also known as Shenir288 (Deuteronomy 3:8–9). Sion is a symbol of the heavenly Jerusalem. This is where praise rests in God. The vow David speaks of will be fulfilled for God in Sion.
What vow is this? I believe this psalm is associated with the vow of Jesus Christ to redeem fallen humanity. Almost immediately after his death and resurrection, the first person that Jesus appeared to was Mary Magdalene. He told her, Touch me not, for I have not yet ascended to my Father; but go to my brethren and say unto them, I ascend unto my Father and your Father, and to my God and your God (John 20:17). According to Scripture, Jesus ascended up far above all the heavens that he might fulfill all things (Ephesians 4:10). Based on the evidence, we can conclude this series of events fulfilled Psalm 65:1.
2 O thou that hearest prayer, unto thee shall all flesh come.
3 Words of iniquity overwhelmed me, but thou shalt purge away our rebellion.
These two verses provide further indications of the messianic dimension of this psalm. Only through the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ will God purge away our rebellion. Note that David wrote this in future tense: thou shalt [future] purge away our rebellion. The vow would be performed approximately one thousand years in the future by Christ himself.
4 Blessed is the man whom thou dost choose and cause to approach unto thee that he may dwell in thy courts: we shall be satisfied with the goodness of thy house even of thy holy temple.
If we are to approach God and dwell in his courts, we must first be chosen. He doesn’t force himself on anyone, and therefore, it is important for us to choose to surrender to God. But it is even more important for him to choose us, birth us by his Spirit, and incorporate us into his family as members of the body of Christ. Just as he chose the people of Israel for himself (Deuteronomy 7:6–9), likewise, they had to choose to serve him (Joshua 24:14–15). When God chooses us and we become part of his family, we can join with David in proclaiming: we shall be satisfied with the goodness of thy house even of thy holy temple.
5 With tremendous things in righteousness wilt thou answer us, O God of our saving health, who art the hope of all the ends of the earth and of those that are afar off upon the sea:
In a previous psalm, David cried to God from the end of the earth (Psalm 61:2). He felt that he was at the outer boundary of the people of God. Even today there are those who are afar off upon the sea of lost humanity. God is their only hope, as he was David’s. When we cry out to God for mercy from a contrite heart and a broken spirit, we will not be rejected. God will answer us like he answered David – with tremendous things in righteousness.
God is willing not only to purge away our rebellion and satisfy us with the goodness of his house, but he also desires to make us part of his temple. The body of Christ is this temple, which is built without hands from living stones. This is where God lives in and among his people. I can’t think of anything more tremendous.
6 Thou art he who doth establish the mountains by thy strength, being girded with valour:
7 He who stills the noise of the seas, the noise of their waves and the tumult of the Gentiles.
In prophetic language, mountains have to do with kingdoms, and the seas represent lost humanity such as the Gentiles (those whose hearts are not circumcised).
8 They also that dwell in the uttermost parts are afraid at thy wonders; thou makest the outgoings of the morning and evening to rejoice.
David has noticed that even those that dwell in the uttermost parts (those who are not even close to being right with God) are afraid289 when they witness his wonders.
What wonders are witnessed by those who dwell in “the uttermost parts?”
9 Thou dost visit the earth, and when thou hast caused it to want, thou dost greatly enrich it with the river of God,290 which is full of water; thou dost prepare their grain, according to thy will.291
10 Thou dost water its rows abundantly; thou dost settle its furrows; thou dost make it soft with showers of rain; thou dost bless its sprouting.
11 Thou dost crown the year with thy goodness, and thy clouds distill fatness.292
When God’s people on the earth are spiritually dry and thirsty, and they desperately acknowledge their need for him, then he causes the river of God to flow from his throne through the spiritual desert. God pours out his Spirit and causes rivers of living water to flow out of our innermost being (John 7:38). These rivers bless us and those with whom we come into contact. Wonder of wonders, in the same way Ezekiel received a word of hope from the Lord about restoration, every living soul, which swims wherever these two rivers293 shall come, shall live (Ezekiel 47:9).
12 They fall upon the habitations of the wilderness; and the hills gird themselves with happiness.
13 The plains clothe themselves with sheep, and the valleys cover themselves with grain; they give shouts of triumph, they even sing.
Over the centuries and at his appointed times, God has answered his people with tremendous things in righteousness. Those that dwell in the uttermost parts have also witnessed many of his wonders. However, the best is yet to come. God is about to pour out his Spirit in fullness, breaking the curse. For we know that all the creatures groan together and travail together until now (Romans 8:22).
In today’s world, the plains don’t clothe themselves with sheep and the valleys don’t cover themselves with grain even though in some areas wild sheep continue to reproduce and there are a few places where grain might seed itself down. Producing an abundant flock of sheep and an abundant harvest of grain requires quite a bit of toil and effort. Figuratively and spiritually, this is the case too. Things are about to radically change as soon as the curse is lifted. The coming of God’s kingdom to earth will be a tremendous time of blessing and productivity (Psalm 67:6).
The time will soon come when God will make the outgoings of the morning and evening to rejoice. There is a new day on the horizon – the great and terrible day of the Lord. It will be wonderful for the upright in heart but terrible for the workers of iniquity. This is when God will crown the year with his goodness. This is when the yoke shall be consumed in the presence of the anointing (Isaiah 10:27).
When the rivers of God’s blessing, his showers of rain, and the “fatness” distilled from his clouds fall upon the habitations of the wilderness; and the hills gird themselves with happiness, this will be pivotal. In that day, just as dry earth responds to drenching, the plains will clothe themselves with sheep (there will be a huge ingathering of the lost), and the valleys will cover themselves with grain (the good fruit of the Spirit will multiply exponentially).
This has never happened in the experience of the sons of Adam. In order for the sheep to multiply in health and safety, great diligence has been required of the shepherds. In fact, the Great Shepherd saw the need to lay down his life for the sheep. Until now, man has cultivated and harvested grain by the sweat of his brow.
None of us has ever seen the valleys cover themselves with grain in this way.
When this psalm is fulfilled, the wilderness, the hills, the plains, and the valleys not only give shouts of triumph, they [will] even sing!
Let us pray:
Heavenly Father, we praise you and thank you for answering us with tremendous things in righteousness. Thank you for choosing us so that we may approach you and dwell in your courts. We anxiously await the fulfillment of your promises in fullness. Amen.
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284 Sixty-five is also used twice as part of a larger number (Genesis 5:23; Numbers 3:50).
285 Isaiah 7:8 contains a prophecy that in sixty-five years, Ephraim would cease to exist as a nation and become a lost tribe
286 “Sion” means “lifted up” or “conspicuous.” It is also the Greek form of “Zion.”
287 “Hermon” means “sublime” or “sanctuary.”
288 “Shenir” (or “Senir”) means “snow-covered mountain.” This word can also be used to describe a seamless coat of mail.
289 Remember that the fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom (Psalm 111:10).
290 See The River of God by Russell Stendal, Ransom Press International, Hollywood, FL.
291 The river of God causes the land (the people of God) to bring forth grain (the fruit of righteousness) according to the will of God.
292 When the river of God flows on the earth, it contains the water of the Word of God. Also, God’s clouds distill “fatness,” and the anointing of God rains upon his land from the “clouds” of his heavenly people who are citizens of Sion and walk upon the earth (Isaiah 45:8).
293 We know that the river of God flows from his throne, but how did it turn into two rivers? The answer is that the bride of Christ has become a fountain of gardens, a well of living waters, that flow from Lebanon (meaning “white mountain,” another reference to Sion) (Song of Solomon 4:15, c.f. Zechariah 14:18)
Chapter 66.
Sixty-six is two times thirty-three (signifying the choice to live in Christ), or three times twenty-two (the fruitfulness of God’s Word), or six times eleven (being chosen by God). The number sixty-six occurs twice in Scripture and four times as a component of a larger number.294 Significantly, there are sixty-six books in the Bible.
The first use of sixty-six in the Bible is found in the story of Jacob’s move to Egypt. All the souls that came with Jacob into Egypt, which came out of his loins, besides Jacob’s sons’ wives, all the souls were sixty-six (Genesis 46:26). The souls that came with Jacob into Egypt were saved from dying of hunger in the famine through the provision that God made through Joseph (an example of Jesus Christ).
The second and final use of sixty-six regards the purification of a woman after childbirth under the law. If she gives birth to a maid child, then she shall be unclean two weeks, according to her separation, and she shall be purifying herself for sixty-six days from her blood (Leviticus 12:5). Under the law, everything having to do with the reproduction of the natural man is unclean; therefore, purification must ensue. Under the new covenant, Jesus Christ gave himself for the congregation that he might sanctify and cleanse her in the washing of water by the word (Ephesians 5:26).
So we see that the number sixty-six has to do with the salvation of the people of God and with the purification of the people of God by the Word of God.
Psalm 66
To the Overcomer, A Song or Psalm.295
1 Make a joyful noise unto God, all the earth,
Due to the rebellion of our ancestors, the ground has been cursed (Genesis 3:17). Consequently, all the earth does not make a joyful noise. This, however, will change as the Word of the Lord is fulfilled (Revelation 22:3).
2 sing forth the glory of his name; put glory into thy praise.
The psalms encourage the people of God, then and now, to sing about things that God has done, is doing, and will do in the future. Many times, God’s people don’t even begin to realize the implications of what they sing. This understanding requires revelation. What we do know is that we are commanded to sing forth the glory of his name. As we glorify his name in song, God tells each one of us as individuals to put glory into [their] praise.
The only way this can possibly be done is if we are filled to overflowing with the Holy Spirit and are radiating the glory of God.
3 Say unto God, How terrible art thou in thy works! Through the greatness of thy power shall thine enemies submit themselves unto thee.
All of us, at one time or another, have been enemies of God. People who enthusiastically participate in praise and worship may still be unwitting or witting enemies of God if they continue to operate according to the flesh instead of putting to death the deeds of the flesh by the Spirit (Romans 8:13). When our hypocrisy dawns on us, or when we think back on some of the things we used to do before God confronted us, we cannot help but say unto God, How terrible art thou in thy works! Through the greatness of thy power shall thine enemies submit themselves unto thee.
The Lord is patient with us, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance (2 Peter 3:9). God wants his enemies to witness the greatness of his power and submit to him before it is too late.
4 All the earth shall worship thee and shall sing unto thee; they shall sing to thy name. Selah.
Sooner than we might imagine, the time will come when the wicked will be eradicated from the earth. This will take place by either their conversion or by their destruction. When this happens, all the earth will worship God and sing to his name. Consider how the certainty of these future events should change how we live here and now.
5 Come and see the works of God; he is terrible in his doing toward the sons of men.
6 He turned the sea into dry land; they went through the river on foot; there did we rejoice in him.
The children of Israel went through the Red Sea on dry land (a miracle that inspired great rejoicing and song). Yet what about Pharaoh and the Egyptian army that pursued the Hebrews? They were defeated when the wheels came off their chariots and the sea raged back in, overwhelming them (Exodus 14:21–31).
God is about to do something even more astounding than the Red Sea crossing. The apostle John was given a revelation from God and saw what will happen at the final judgment: whosoever was not found written in the book of life was cast into the lake of fire (Revelation 20:15). The next verse is a killer: And I saw a new heaven and a new earth; for the first heaven and the first earth were passed away; and there was no more sea (Revelation 21:1). In prophetic language, the sea represents lost humanity. God showed John that the time will come when God will forever turn the “sea” into dry land. Never again will there be lost humanity on the face of the earth.
The entire population of the new earth will forever be in fellowship with God. In this age, all the earth will make a joyful noise unto God!
7 He rules by his power for ever; his eyes watch the Gentiles; the rebellious shall not exalt themselves. Selah.
God knows what power is for, and he knows how to use it. When he sets up his kingdom, no one is going to get away with anything wrong. God will make sure that the rebellious shall not exalt themselves. Stop and think about that. Evil won’t stand a chance when Jesus Christ returns, and this realization should affect the choices we make on our present-day earth.
8 O bless our God, ye peoples, and make the voice of his praise to be heard.
9 It is he who placed our soul into life and did not suffer our feet to slip.
I have the strong feeling that whoever wrote this psalm went through exactly what he (or she) is talking about. The psalmist(s) knows for certain that it was God who placed our soul into life. It was God who did not suffer our feet to slip. Otherwise, we would have slipped to our death. When the awesome magnitude of this sinks into our being, we cannot help but join in and proclaim: O bless our God, ye peoples, and make the voice of his praise to be heard. Fitting gratitude is beyond words.
10 For thou, O God, hast proved us; thou hast refined us as silver is refined.
11 Thou didst bring us into the net; thou didst lay affliction upon our loins.
Once the children of Israel went across the Red Sea on dry land and the waters engulfed the Egyptians, there was no turning back. God brought the Hebrews into the net. They either died in the wilderness or entered the promised land. Those who finally entered into God’s rest were proven and refined in the midst of the affliction that they lived through. This has been God’s plan for his people all along.
12 Thou hast placed a man over our head; we went through fire and through water, but thou didst bring us out into abundance.
Who is the man God placed over our head? For Israel in the wilderness, that man was Moses (an example and forerunner of Jesus Christ). The children of Israel literally went through fire and water. Eventually, God brought those who believed him out into abundance in the promised land – he blessed them after he tested them.
The man who God has placed over our head is the Lord Jesus Christ. As fully God and fully man, he is the only one who can baptize us into the Holy Spirit and fire (Matthew 3:11). God desires to saturate us with his Word, Jesus being the living Word of God. His means of accomplishing this is the Holy Spirit and fire. He will use all the trials, tribulations, and persecutions we face to prove and refine us so that he can bring us out into abundance; this issimilar to how all things help them unto good, to those who according to the purpose are called to be saints (Romans 8:28).
13 I will go into thy house with burnt offerings; I will pay thee my vows,
14 which my lips have uttered and my mouth has spoken when I was in trouble.
In his written Word, God the Father has made awesome promises to his people. In the highest sense, the Word of God is actually a person named Jesus, who has also made some incredible promises (which he has kept even though it cost him intense pain, suffering, rejection, reproach, and, finally, his life). In light of Jesus’s example, if we make vows or promises to God when we are in trouble, we would be wise to keep them. Otherwise, it would have been best to have never made them.
15 I will offer unto thee burnt sacrifices of fatlings with the incense of rams;296 I will offer bullocks with goats. Selah.
“Fatlings” represent the best that we have to offer. Saul got into trouble with God when he refused to destroy the best of the fatlings that he had taken from the enemy.297 When David brought the ark back to the tent that he had pitched for it near his house in Jerusalem, he ensured that when those that bore the ark of the LORD had gone six paces, he sacrificed oxen and fatlings (2 Samuel 6:13). David was careful to always offer God his best.
In terms of burnt sacrifice, rams, bullocks, and goats can represent sin and guilt (Leviticus 1–7). God was not looking for them to offer something instead of the sin and guilt. He wants us to honestly and without reservation (with his help) offer our sin and guilt so that it can be destroyed upon his altar. Everyone needs to know that they really deserve to die for their sin, but God in his mercy has made provision for them, first with the symbolic sacrifice of animals, and later with the once-and-for-all sacrifice of Je[1]sus Christ. Today, if we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness (1 John 1:9). Once we are forgiven and cleansed from all unrighteousness, no guilt remains. Stop and think about it. This is the realm of freedom.
16 Come and hear, all ye that fear God, and I will declare what he has done unto my soul.
17 I cried unto him with my mouth, and he was extolled with my tongue.
The psalmist doesn’t just cry out to the Lord with petty, selfish petitions or with a bunch of free advice to God about how to run his universe. When the psalmist cried to God with his mouth, God was extolled. God was lifted up. God was edified. When we declare what God has done for us, our testimony is not only beneficial for those who fear God, but it is also beneficial to God. It makes God happy and pleased and satisfied and overjoyed to know how much we appreciate all that he has done for us.
18 If I regard iniquity in my heart, the Lord will not hear me:
Isn’t that the truth! Tolerance of sin is the reason why many hypocritical prayers don’t make it past the ceiling. To regard iniquity in our heart is to nurse it, coddle it. For God, this doesn’t do.
19 But verily God has heard me; he has attended to the voice of my prayer.
If God attends to the voice of our prayer, we can be certain that he has heard us.
20 Blessed be God, who has not turned away my prayer nor his mercy from me.
Let us pray:
Heavenly Father, may your Word come forth in and through us, until we put glory into our praise. For we know beyond the shadow of a doubt that you have placed our soul into life and have not allowed our feet to slip. May our sacrifice of praise be acceptable in your sight. Amen.
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294 1 Kings 10:14 and 2 Chronicles 9:13 state that the weight of gold that came to Solomon in one year was six hundred and sixty-six talents of gold. Solomon received the consolidated kingdom of Israel, God’s people. Therefore, the six hundred and sixty-six talents of gold really belonged to God. Later, Ezra 2:13 records a census of the remnant that left Babylon to rebuild Jerusalem and the temple: The sons of Adonikam, six hundred and sixty-six. “Adonikam” means “my Lord has risen.” It follows that the six hundred and sixty-six sons of Adonikam also belong to God. In the NT, Revelation 13:18 states: Here is wisdom. Let him that has understanding count the number of the beast: for the number of man; and its number is six hundred sixty-six. Man without God is a beast (Psalm 49:12; Ecclesiastes 3:18). The antichrist (a false Christ) wants everyone to worship the beast. This is humanism with Satan camouflaged behind it. Man, however, belongs to God, because God is our creator and Jesus redeemed us. Therefore, Satan uses the number six hundred sixty-six to attempt to usurp what really belongs to God.
295 The writer(s) of Psalm 66 and Psalm 67 apparently chose to remain anonymous. Since they are embedded in the midst of psalms clearly identified as being written by David, it is possible that David also wrote these. Ultimately, God is the Author. Psalm 33 is also anonymous, and it seems that Psalm 66 builds on Psalm 33.
296 This is the only place in Scripture that the phrase “incense of rams” occurs. In order to sanctify a person as a priest of God, the law requires a sacrifice of one bullock and two perfect rams (Exodus 29:1). Incense of rams may refer to this requirement. Also, the sacrifice of a ram was required for the atonement of the guilt of someone who had sinned through ignorance (Leviticus 5:15–19).
297 But Saul and the people spared Agag and the best of the sheep and of the oxen and of the fatlings and the lambs and all that was good and would not utterly destroy them, but every thing that was vile and refuse, that they destroyed utterly (1 Samuel 15:9).
Chapter 67.
Sixty-seven is a prime number. Aside from the title of Psalm 67, the number occurs only once in Scripture. This usage is found in the story of Nehemiah and the restoration of the wall of Jerusalem. For this task, the congregation gave an offering of twenty thousand drams of gold and two thousand pounds of silver and sixty-seven priests’ garments (Nehemiah 7:72). Therefore, the number sixty-seven is associated with priests and their garments (representing the direct authority of God that covers them). Under the new covenant, we are in the priesthood of all believers.
Psalm 67
To the Overcomer on Neginoth, A Psalm or Song.
1 God be merciful unto us and bless us and cause his face to shine upon us. Selah.
We know enough about God’s mercy and blessing to realize that we are in desperate need of both. What does it mean to ask God to cause his face to shine upon us? This phrase is used in nine Scriptures, and it has to do with asking God to grant us grace. Think about this: the glory of God’s face is more than sufficient to destroy mortal man. God told Moses: Thou canst not see my face; for no man shall see me and live (Exodus 33:20).298
Curiously, after Moses’s death, the Scripture states: And there never arose a prophet since in Israel like Moses, who had known the LORD face to face (Deuteronomy 34:10). So the question arises: when did Moses see God’s face? Was this incident associated with how he died there in the land of Moab, according to the word of the LORD? (Deuteronomy 34:5).
If we have been prepared by God’s mercy and blessing for a face-to-face encounter with God, then it seems that at the very least, if God grants our request and causes his face to shine upon us that his glory will cause irrevocable damage to whatever remains of the old, carnal man that we have inherited from Adam. This, of course, will be an eternal consequence of his grace. So the psalmist requests that God be merciful unto us and bless us and cause his face to shine upon us.
2 That thy way may be known upon the earth, thy saving health among all the Gentiles.
If by the mercy and grace of God we have been blessed with a personal relationship with Jesus Christ, and if we have had a direct encounter with the face of God, then we will be marked forever.299 We will never be the same. God may send us forth from his throne (located in the realm represented by the holy of holies) as his representatives. Being sent by Jesus Christ involves the duties of being kings and priests – members of a royal priesthood who invite the world to join the family of God. Under the new covenant, all believers now have the possibility of a direct relationship with God the Father, which is through Jesus Christ and by the Holy Spirit. As priests, we can be sent forth from God as his representatives to those out in the world who are lost. As God works in and through his people, the eternal results will be evident among all the Gentiles [emphasis added].
3 Let the peoples praise thee, O God; let all the peoples praise thee.
4 O let the Gentiles be glad and sing for joy, for thou shalt judge the people righteously and shepherd the Gentiles upon the earth. Selah.
If the representatives sent forth from God’s throne are clean in heart, this will inspire true praise to God – here, even other nations add their worship to that of God’s chosen people. There is a huge difference between those who have taken it upon themselves to represent God (including those who have been recruited and proselytized by man) versus those who have truly been chosen by God and have experienced his glory. Stop and think about it.
5 Let the peoples praise thee, O God; let all the peoples praise thee.
6 Then shall the earth bring forth her fruit, and God, even our own God, shall bless us.
7 God shall bless us, and all the ends of the earth shall fear him.
What has been holding the earth back from bringing forth fruit? The curse.
Why don’t all the ends of the earth fear God now? There may be several factors. One is that many people, particularly intellectuals, have great difficulty reconciling a just and loving God with the fallen, cursed world around us. Another factor is that there are many who claim to represent God, yet they have never experienced the direct presence of God. They claim to represent God, but ironically, they have never seen his face or experienced his glory.
God is going to break the curse. He will begin by blessing us, causing his face to shine upon his people.
Let us pray:
Heavenly Father, we join with the psalmist in asking you to be merciful unto us, bless us, and cause your face to shine upon us, so that your way may be known upon the earth and your saving health among all the Gentiles. Let all the peoples praise you. Amen.
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298 And the LORD continued saying, Behold, there is a place by me, and thou shalt stand upon the rock; and it shall come to pass while my glory passes by, that I will put thee in a cleft of the rock and will cover thee with my hand until I have passed by. Then I will take away my hand, and thou shalt see my back parts, but my face [Heb. faces] shall not be seen (Exodus 33:21–23). In light of Moses’s encounter with God’s presence, what happens shortly after is of particular interest. And it came to pass, as Moses came down from Mount Sinai with the two tables of testimony in Moses’ hand, while he came down from the mount, that Moses did not know that the skin of his face shone after he had talked with him. And when Aaron and all the sons of Israel saw Moses, behold, the skin of his face shone; and they were afraid to come near him (Exodus 34:29–30).
299 When Jesus Christ appeared in his glory, John (who was best friends with Jesus during his ministry on earth) fell at his feet as dead (Revelation 1:17). Men such as Isaiah, Ezekiel, and Daniel had similar experiences when they encountered the direct glory of God. One dramatic example of such an experience was when Saul of Tarsus, traveling on the Damascus Road, had the face of Jesus shine on him.
Chapter 68.
Sixty-eight is two times thirty-four (signifying praying by the Spirit) or four times seventeen (God’s answer to the prayers of his people). This number occurs only once in Scripture other than in the title of Psalm 68.300 When David brought the ark to Jerusalem, he left there before the ark of the covenant of the LORD Asaph and his brethren to minister before the ark continually, each thing in its day; and Obededom with their brethren, sixty-eight (1 Chronicles 16:37–38).301
David had sixty-eight people minister before the ark continually. The ark is linked to the presence of God and to the testament of the Lord Jesus Christ (Revelation 11:19). Psalm 68 has to do with God’s plans and purposes, with the intimate prayer, praise, and ministry of chosen vessels before the presence of God, and with his response to their service. See Appendix A.
Psalm 68
To the Overcomer, A Psalm or Song of David.
1 Let God arise, let his enemies be scattered; let those that hate him flee before him.
2 As smoke is driven away; so drive them away: as wax melts before the fire, so shall the wicked perish at the presence of God.
When God decides to arise, the wicked will not stand a chance.
3 But the righteous shall be glad; they shall rejoice before God; they shall dance with joy.
4 Sing unto God, sing psalms unto his name; extol him that rides upon the heavens302 by his name JAH303 and rejoice before him.
When it goes well with the righteous, the city rejoices, and when the wicked perish, there are feasts (Proverbs 11:10). A feast that comes to mind here is the Feast of Tabernacles.304
5 A father of the fatherless and a defender of the widows is God in his holy habitation.
6 God sets the solitary in families; he brings out those who are bound with chains, but the rebellious dwell in a dry land.
God is concerned about the underdog. He has a special place in his heart for the “fatherless,” and he loves to defend “widows.” God is so concerned about the situation of the solitary (those who are lonely) that he places them in “families.” God has gone so far as to make provision for us to be born again by the Spirit into his own family. He brings out those who are bound with chains into freedom. This is what Jesus did with the demon-possessed Gadarene man who was kept bound with chains and in fetters (Luke 8:26–39). Not even a legion of demons could prevent him from coming to Jesus.305 The rebellious,306 however, dwell in a dry land where there is no “rain” (no blessing).
7 O God, when thou didst go forth before thy people, when thou didst march through the wilderness; Selah:
God’s people in Egypt were spiritually “fatherless,” “widowed,” “solitary,” and “bound with chains.” They cried out to the Lord in the midst of their bondage because of the heavy oppression of Pharaoh. At the proper time, God decided to do something about it:
And the LORD went before them by day in a pillar of cloud to lead them in the way and by night in a pillar of fire to give them light that they might walk by day and by night. He never took away the pillar of cloud by day nor the pillar of fire by night from before the people. (Exodus 13:21–22)
This is the story of how God marched through the wilderness by day, and even by night, with his people walking behind him.
8 The earth shook, the heavens also dropped their rain at the presence of God; even Sinai itself was moved at the presence of God, the God of Israel.
9 Thou, O God, didst send a plentiful rain, by which thou didst confirm thine inheritance, when it was weary.
The children of Israel thought they were marching to the promised land to claim their own inheritance (which was true). Yet the people of God are his inheritance. This is what they became when God freed them from the bondage of the enemy. God then confirmed his inheritance by sending a plentiful rain. The earth shook, and the heavens dropped their rain at the presence of God. The rain indicates God’s blessing. Even Sinai307 itself was moved at the presence of God.
10 Thy presence was in thy congregation; thou, O God, by thy goodness thou hast provided for the poor.
God put his awesome presence right into the midst of his congregation (in the tabernacle of Moses, behind the veil, inside the holy of holies), and by his goodness he provided for the poor among them. He gave manna from heaven, water from the rock, and clothes and shoes that never wore out. These events were recorded in Scripture as an example for us from which we can learn.
What God really desires is for us to be his tabernacle. He desires to dwell inside each and every one of us. This is the key to victory. The generation twenty years and older that left Egypt participated in God’s goodness, but with the exception of two men (Joshua and Caleb), they all died in the wilderness. It was their children who appreciated the presence of God and entered the promised land.
11 The Lord shall give a word; great shall be the host of the evangelists thereof.
The Lord shall give a word (future tense). This word is a new covenant in which God promised to put his law in the souls of his people and write it in their hearts (Jeremiah 31:33). David prophesied about this future word, saying that great shall be the host of the evangelists thereof. Today, the new covenant has yet to reach its zenith. Even though there has been a great host of evangelists preaching the gospel for almost two thousand years (sometimes with excellent results), many Scriptures have not yet been completely fulfilled.
12 Kings of armies fled apace, and she that dwells in the house divided the spoil.
13 Though ye be cast among the pots, yet shall ye be as the wings of a dove covered with silver and her feathers with yellow gold.
14 When the Almighty scattered the kings that were in her, she became white as the snow in Salmon.308
Who is the intriguing woman in this prophecy?
We know that she dwells in the house and that she symbolizes an entire congregation. Since the only other Scripture containing the number sixty-eight mentions the sixty-eight people that David assigned to minister before the ark continually, if we can infer that this psalm is describing a congregation (represented by the woman), put the two together, and this is a congregation (or woman) that lives for the express purpose of ministering unto God by day and night. This “woman” dwells in the house of God, in the realm of God’s presence that is represented by the holy of holies and by the tabernacle of David, where it is likely the ark was located when this psalm was written.
The presence of God caused kings of armies to flee as fast as they could go. When the kings fled, what spoil did they leave behind? The spoil could include the people they were controlling, along with all the people’s riches. This “woman” that lived in the house divided the spoil. She got to decide what to do with all the people and wealth that remained after the “kings” fled.
13 Though ye be cast among the pots, yet shall ye be as the wings of a dove covered with silver and her feathers with yellow gold.
Since the pronoun ye is always plural in Old English (and the translation properly expresses the original Hebrew), the woman who dwells in the house represents a corporate group. (This plurality parallels Obededom and his sons and brethren who numbered sixty-eight in total.) The “woman” was cast among the pots. Pots are vessels, and every house has many different vessels. Some are for honorable purposes and some are not (2 Timothy 2:20). God is going to sort this all out and separate the vessels that honor him from those that dishonor him.
The vessels that honor God will be as the wings of a dove covered with silver and her feathers with yellow gold. The wings of a dove propel the dove (a symbol of those who are moved exclusively by the Holy Spirit) above the earth and into the blue sky of the heavenly realm. The wings are covered with silver (which signifies redemption, the “covering” provided by Jesus, the kinsman-redeemer). Her feathers are covered with yellow gold (representing the nature of God).309
Feathers allow wings to fly. It is the “yellow gold” of the nature of God in his people that lifts them up. The reference to her feathers means that these feathers belong to the woman – hence, to a corporate people or congregation. To this day, many individuals have soared like a dove in the realm of the Spirit. Yet he is sorting the “pots” (vessels) and will have an identifiable, corporate people who will move in unison in the Spirit, ministering day and night to God. This is a congregation, not having spot or wrinkle or any such thing (Ephesians 5:27).
14 When the Almighty scattered the kings that were in her, she became white as the snow in Salmon.310
When the Almighty scattered the kings that were in her, those who were making their own kingdoms instead of submitting to God were separated out. The same thing happened when the tares were removed from among the wheat (Matthew 13:30, 40–41).
Then she became white as the snow in Salmon. Scripture includes seven references to Salmon. He was the husband of Rahab,311 and together they were the great-great grandparents of King David and part of the line of Jesus Christ (Matthew 1:5). Rahab and her family were the only ones saved out of Jericho because she received the two spies that Joshua sent with peace; she did this by faith (Hebrews 11:31). It is possible that Salmon was one of those spies.312
That “she” became white as the snow means that the corporate people of God became clean and holy once the workers of iniquity were removed.
15 The mountain of Bashan is the mountain of God; the mountain of Bashan is a high mountain.
“Bashan” means “soft, rich soil.” This name is associated with fruitfulness. The mountain of Bashan correlates with the good ground on which the seed planted by the sower fell (Matthew 13:23). This is where the seed produced a bountiful harvest of thirty, sixty, or one hundred-fold. Fittingly, the mountain of Bashan is a high mountain.
16 Why leap ye, ye high mountains? This is the mountain which God desires to dwell in; yea, the LORD will dwell in it for ever.
David asserts that the Lord will dwell forever in the high mountain (range). The mountain associated with the Lord rep resents those who are the good, fruitful ground. These are the ones who have received his Word and where his Word has produced a bountiful harvest. This harvest will make the high “mountains” leap for joy.
17 The chariots of God are two thousand, thousands of angels; the Lord is among them as in Sinai, in the sanctuary.
Two thousand thousands equals two million. This is two times one hundred cubed. One hundred is symbolic of God’s plans and purposes. If one hundred squared is the completion of God’s plans, then one hundred cubed includes not only the realization of what God has planned but also the future consequences of his plans. A thousand is also symbolic of perfection. A thousand thousands is eternal perfection. Therefore, two thousand thousands is representative of the angels’ decision to faithfully serve God forever.
Interestingly, the chariots of God are identified as angels. Ezekiel describes living creatures who surround the throne of God. They have wheels within wheels, and faces, wings, and hands, and a semblance of human form. Ezekiel later discovers that these beings are cherubim313 (powerful angels linked to the throne and presence of God). David’s description, coupled with Ezekiel 10, makes me wonder if maybe the chariots of God are alive and linked to the living creatures. David wrote elsewhere that the Lord rode upon a cherub and flew: yea, he flew upon the wings of the wind (Psalm 18:10). Could this cherub actually be one of God’s chariots?
Prior to his death, David gave his son Solomon the pattern for everything pertaining to the temple that Solomon was to build. Included was the pattern for the chariot of the cherubim, that spread out their wings and covered the ark of the covenant of the LORD (1 Chronicles 28:18, emphasis added).314
18 Thou hast ascended on high, thou hast led captivity captive; thou hast received gifts for men, yea, for the rebellious also that the LORD God might dwell among them.
This verse is quoted in the New Testament book of Ephesians. Therefore he saith, When he ascended up on high, he led captivity captive and gave gifts unto men (Ephesians 4:8). The apostle Paul’s quotation of this psalm confirms that when David wrote Thou hast ascended on high, he was directly addressing the Lord Jesus Christ.
David wrote prophetically that the coming Messiah (Jesus) has received gifts for men. Paul said that Jesus gave gifts unto men. It took Jesus’s death and resurrection in order for God to pour out his Spirit on all flesh (Joel 2:28; Acts 2:16– 21). The most important gift that we can receive from Jesus is the Holy Spirit. This provision is for the rebellious also that the LORD might dwell among them. We need the Holy Spirit to enable us to put to death the deeds of the flesh (Romans 8).
Without the Spirit of God, we are stuck in a terrible rut (Romans 7).
19 Blessed be the Lord, who daily lades us with benefits, even the God of our saving health. Selah.
God’s mercy and grace (and his gift to us of the Holy Spirit, the Comforter) is not a one-shot deal. Peter wrote: Grace and peace be multiplied unto you in the knowledge of God and of our Lord Jesus (2 Peter 1:2), and Jude wrote: Mercy and peace and charity be multiplied unto you (Jude 2). It is by the Holy Spirit that the Lord daily lades us with benefits.
Stop and think about this.
20 He that is our God is the God of salvation, and unto GOD the Lord belongs the way of escape from death.315
21 Surely God shall smite the head of his enemies, and the hairy scalp of such a one as goes on still in his trespasses.
All of us are heading for death. It is the only way out of this natural world. Here is an interesting dichotomy: He that is our God is the God of salvation [God the Father], and unto GOD the Lord [our Lord Jesus Christ, who is also God] belongs the way of escape from death.
The prophecy here by David – Surely God shall smite the head of his enemies – brings to mind the promise God made to the serpent: I will put enmity between thee and the woman and between thy seed and her seed; that seed shall bruise thy head… (Genesis 3:15). Satan and his seed 316 (that is, the tares that he plants) are enemies of the human race.
Jesus became a man and joined the human race. Therefore, Satan is the head of his enemies. Jesus is the promised seed of the woman that shall bruise (crush) the head of the serpent. Our God, the God of salvation, sent his Son Jesus to die for us and be our way of escape from death. However, according to this prophecy, God shall also smite the hairy scalp317 of such a one as goes on still in his trespasses. When God smites Satan’s head his diehard followers will also be brought down.
22 The Lord said, I will bring again from Bashan, I will bring my people again from the depths of the sea:
Bashan is on the opposite side of the Jordan River from the promised land. Half of the tribe of Manasseh lived in and near Bashan; as 1 Chronicles 5:23 records, they increased from Bashan unto Baalhermon and Senir and unto Mount Hermon. You could get to Mount Hermon (symbol of eternal life) from Bashan by going up the east side of the Jordan. This route bypassed Judea because the headwaters of the Jordan flow out of Hermon. The geography in this verse illustrates that the Lord will bring all those whose hearts have been fertile ground and received his Word into his eternal kingdom. God is going to do this again.
The Lord adds: I will bring my people again from the depths of the sea. Consider this promise in light of what the Lord would say through the prophet Isaiah:
Awake, awake, put on strength, O arm of the LORD; awake, as in the ancient days, in ages past. Art thou not he who cut off the proud one, and he who smote the dragon? Art thou not he who dried up the sea, the waters of the great deep; he who turned the depths of the sea into a way, that the redeemed might pass over? Therefore the ransomed of the LORD shall return and come with singing unto Zion; and everlasting joy shall be upon their head; they shall obtain gladness and joy; and sorrow and mourning shall flee away. (Isaiah 51:9–11, emphasis added)
When David was forced into exile in the land of the Philistines, he surely must have felt that he was in the depths of the sea.
23 Thy foot shall be dipped in the blood of thine enemies and the tongue of thy dogs in the same.
The feet of David (symbolic of the body of Christ) were going to be dipped in the blood of his enemies. In other words, his enemies were going to be subdued under him. The tongue of David’s “dogs” would actually taste the blood (be involved in the actual fighting). In Scripture, “dogs” can refer to Gentiles. David’s “dogs” were mighty Philistine warriors who joined David’s mighty men. They were called the Cherethites (meaning “executioners” or “bodyguards”) and the Pelethites (meaning “the swift”). They were joined by various Gittites from Gath (meaning “winepress”). These men stuck with David through thick and thin (2 Samuel 15:18).
Obededom was a Gittite who had cared for the ark of the Lord in his own home for three months (2 Samuel 6:11). During this time the Lord blessed him and his entire household. He is the man that David put in charge of the group of sixty-eight people – including his sons and brethren, along with Asaph and his brethren (who were priests) – to guard the ark and to minister before the ark day and night.
24 They have seen thy ways, O God, even the ways of my God, my King, in the sanctuary.
Davids “dogs” went from being formidable, rebellious Gentiles to meekly following David and fighting for the army of God. David says of them, They have seen thy ways, O God, even the ways of my God, my King, in the sanctuary. His men had rejected their own ways to follow the radically different ways of God.
Of what sanctuary is David speaking? The holy of holies represents the divine presence of God, but in this case the tabernacle of David was a tent that David pitched in his back yard for the ark! The presence of the ark turned the tabernacle of David into the sanctuary of the direct presence of God.
At the Jerusalem Council, there was a fierce debate regarding whether or not to submit the Gentile believers to the Jewish law (Acts 15). Paul was against this and so was Peter. James backed them up by quoting from the prophet Amos:
In that day I will raise up the tabernacle of David that is fallen and close up its breaches; and I will raise up its ruins, and I will build it as in the days of old: that those who are called by my name may possess the remnant of Edom and all the Gentiles,318 said the LORD that does this. (Amos 9:11–12)
The tabernacle of David had no outer court, no altar for animal sacrifice, no holy place, and no furniture other than the ark. David needed no intermediary priesthood to enter into the direct presence of God before the ark and commune with God whenever he and God chose. At the tabernacle of Moses (which was still at Gibeon319) and the temple of Solomon (which was yet to come), only the high priest could enter the holy of holies. This could only be done once a year, after meticulous preparation on pain of death. But the tabernacle of David was different.
According to James, the tabernacle of David is the pattern for the age of grace. It is to be restored so that the remnant of the Jews and all the Gentiles might seek after the Lord (Acts 15:13–21). Both God’s chosen Jews and the Gentiles who have called upon his name are all part of the congregation. See Appendix A.
When David brought the ark to Jerusalem into the tent he had pitched for it, this is what happened:
25 The singers went before, the players on instruments followed after; in between them were the virgins playing with timbrels.
Virgins are pure and undefiled. The apostle Paul wrote to the Corinthians: For I am jealous over you with the jealousy of God, for I have espoused you to one husband, that I may present you as a chaste virgin to the Christ (2 Corinthians 11:2). We see the importance of purity to God, both in David’s day and in our own.
It is clear that Paul did not consider it necessary to continue as an intermediary. He was following the pattern of the tabernacle of David so that every believer could have a direct relationship with Jesus Christ and with God the Father by the Holy Spirit.
26 Bless ye God in the congregations, even the Lord, ye of the lineage of Israel.
There are many congregations, but there is only one family of God. This is the lineage of Israel that includes everyone with a circumcised heart (Romans 2:28–29).
27 There was little Benjamin as their ruler, the princes of Judah in their congregation, the princes of Zebulun and the princes320 of Naphtali.
Who is little Benjamin? Benjamin was Jacob’s youngest son. His name means “son of my right hand.” The right hand is the place of power and authority. According to Scripture, many of Benjamin’s descendants were left-handed (Judges 3:15; 20:15–16). In Hebrew, “left-handed” literally means that the right hand is incapacitated. If we yield to God’s power and authority and become “left-handed,” then we may walk safely with God. We will move in the direction he is moving, with his powerful right hand holding our left hand.
Why was little Benjamin their ruler? When his favorite son, Joseph, was sold into Egypt, Jacob’s consolation became Benjamin. The other ten brothers who had participated in the treachery spent almost fifteen years watching the consequences develop. They knew that if anything should happen to Benjamin, their father would not survive the grief. Joseph knew this and required the brothers to bring Benjamin to Egypt before they could see Joseph again and get more food (Genesis 42:15–22).
This requirement impacted Zebulon, Naphtali, and the rest of the brothers. Judah321 had to swear to Jacob that he would protect Benjamin and guarantee his safe return. While in Egypt, Benjamin was accused of stealing Joseph’s special cup and faced the possibility of death or life in prison. Judah rose to the occasion, and out of love for Benjamin and concern for his father, he said, “Take me and let my brother go.” In this way, the lives of Jacob and his sons came under the power of little Benjamin. Through it all, God used Benjamin to demonstrate that the hard hearts of the ten brothers had softened. They had changed for the better as they learned to praise God (Judah – praise) and as they learned awesome and wonderful things about intimate relationships (Zebulun – dwelling); at the same time they wrestled with their conscience over what they had done (Naphtali – my-wrestling).
Benjamin was powerful in spite of his “littleness.” Being smaller or younger does not prevent God from fellowshipping with or working through a person. Isaiah prophesied regarding God’s holy mountain: The wolf shall dwell with the lamb, and the leopard shall lie down with the kid; and the calf and the young lion and the fatling together; and a child shall shepherd them (Isaiah 11:6, emphasis added). Jesus said: Whosoever shall not receive the kingdom of God as a little child, he shall not enter therein (Mark 10:15; also see Luke 18:17).
28 Thy God has commanded thy strength; confirm, O God, that which thou hast wrought for us.
God commanded the strength of little Benjamin and of the princes of Israel. This is just a foretaste of what he will do for his clean and holy people as the imminent day of the Lord dawns. God is about to confirm what he has done for us in ways that defy imagination.
What has God wrought for us? God has brought about our redemption and strength. We are now free to follow him by day and by night in the power of the Holy Spirit.
29 From thy temple in Jerusalem shall kings bring presents unto thee.
God’s real temple is the holy city, the new Jerusalem, and she is prepared of God as a bride adorned for her husband (Revelation 21:2).
Presents represent the work of our hands. The works of the natural, unregenerate man are totally unacceptable to God. Cain discovered this when he tilled the ground by the sweat of his brow and brought of the fruit of the ground as a present unto the LORD, only to be rejected along with his present. The only gifts acceptable to God come from his work for us, in us, and through us (which is eternal). The gifts of Abel represent the work of God. This is why Abel was accepted when he brought of the firstborn of his flock and of the fat thereof (Genesis 4:1–5).
People like David, who bring back to God gifts that proceed from what God has done in us (and through gifts that originally came from him), will be accepted along with their presents (Revelation 1:6, 5:10). God will quickly respond to their petition to do what the following verse says.
30 Reprehend the company of spearmen, the multitude of the strong, with the lords of the peoples, trampling them underfoot with their pieces of silver; Destroy thou the peoples that delight in war.
Who are the company of spearmen, the multitude of the strong, with the lords of the peoples that David wants God to reprehend? These people are the minions who are left after God shall smite the head of his enemies, and the hairy scalp of such a one as goes on still in his trespasses. If they do not immediately repent when they are reprehended, they will be trampled underfoot322 with their pieces of silver. David requests that God destroy the peoples that delight in war. Up until now, Satan has maintained control of the kingdoms of this world by stoking strife and war between factions. This is about to end.
What are their pieces of silver? In view are their own works, self-righteousness, false doctrines, humanistic philosophy, and riches. Their trust in anything other than Jesus Christ will condemn them, not save them.
31 Princes shall come out of Egypt; Ethiopia shall soon stretch out her hands unto God.
Egypt (meaning “black”) is a symbol of legalism and of God’s people under the law (Galatians 3:1–4:31). A godly remnant will be left in “Egypt” after the judgments of God fall. Even princes shall come out of Egypt. These princes are sons of God. Ethiopia (meaning “[region of] burnt faces”) is the term that biblical writers used to refer to most of what we today call Africa. Over the millennia, Africa has seen much strife and oppression (much of which continues even while the gospel of Jesus Christ is being extended as never before). Ethiopia (and I believe all of Africa) shall soon stretch out her hands unto God.
32 Sing unto God, ye kingdoms of the earth; O sing praises unto the Lord (Selah):
33 To him that rides upon the heavens of the heavens which were of old; behold, he shall send forth his voice, his mighty voice.
God’s voice is linked to the sound of trumpets. The apostle John would later record: And the seventh angel sounded his trumpet, and there were great voices in the heaven, saying, The kingdoms of this world are reduced unto our Lord and to his Christ; and he shall reign for ever and ever (Revelation 11:15).
When the kingdoms of the earth respond in humility to the mighty voice of God, they will surely sing unto God. They will sing praises unto the Lord. Stop and think about this.
34 Ascribe ye strength unto God; his excellency is over Israel, and his strength is in the clouds.323
Clouds can distil rain and blessing, but they can also be the source of lightning, thunder, and hail. A cloud was God’s sanctuary (or dwelling place) when he led Israel through the desert. Scripture states that we are surrounded by a great cloud of witnesses (Hebrews 12:1). When the Lord Jesus returns, Behold, he comes with the clouds, and every eye shall see him (Revelation 1:7).
35 O God, thou art terrible out of thy sanctuaries; the God of Israel is he that gives strength and power unto his people. Blessed be God.
What are God’s sanctuaries? And how many sanctuaries does God have? God desires to fully dwell in his people. Each one of us can be a sanctuary (a cloud) where the presence of God may dwell. Jesus said: For where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them (Matthew 18:20). John wrote: And I heard a great voice out of heaven saying, Behold the tabernacle of God with men, and he will dwell with them, and they shall be his people, and God himself shall be with them and be their God (Revelation 21:3).
Truly his strength is in the clouds; [for] the God of Israel is he that gives strength and power unto his people. Blessed be God.
Let us pray:
Heavenly Father, we are at a loss for words to describe how we feel about you and all that you have done and are doing for us, in us, and through us. As your eternal plans and purposes develop, we desire to continue to always give you all the glory. We praise you and thank you for what you have seen fit to reveal to us. We yearn for the return of our Lord Jesus Christ and for the complete fruition of all your plans and purposes. Amen.
****
300 Sixty-eight also occurs once as part of a larger number, in the account of Nehemiah. All the sons of Perez that dwelt at Jerusalem were four hundred and sixty-eight valiant men (Nehemiah 11:6). “Perez” means “bursting through.” The sons of Perez were from the tribe of Judah.
301 Later, 1 Chronicles 26:8 records that the sons of Obededom and their brethren were sixty-two. The wording of 1 Chronicles 16:37–38 could indicate that Asaph and his brethren were included in the larger number (which would account for the extra people).
302 God riding upon the heavens is repeated near the end of this psalm. The repetition indicates that we should be careful to fully understand the meaning of the phrase.
303 “JAH” is a shortened form of the Tetragrammaton JHWH or YHWH, which means “I AM.” This is God’s name, which extols God’s eternal existence.
304 One of the three obligatory feasts of the Lord, the Feast of Passover was fulfilled when Jesus died for us as the Lamb of God that takes away the sins of the world. The Feast of Pentecost was fulfilled fifty days later when the Holy Spirit was poured out on those gathered in the upper room. The third feast, the Feast of Tabernacles, has yet to be fulfilled. This is the great feast of ingathering at the end of the harvest that is linked to the personal return of our Lord Jesus Christ.
305 Satan tries everything to get people to follow him of their own free will because those who are deceived, trapped, and bound with chains against their will are prime candidates for God to rescue.
306 The rebellious are those who decide to go against God.
307 “Sinai” means “pointed.”
308 “Salmon” means “sandy.”
309 Blue and yellow, interestingly, are the colors of Israel.
310 God used Salmon to redeem Rahab, just like he would use their son Boaz to redeem Ruth. This is why the woman in this psalm became white as the snow in Salmon. In Christ, the bride of Jesus becomes white as snow.
311 “Rahab” means “a violent catching up” or “rapture.” I believe this ties in with 1 Thessalonians 4:17.
312 “Salmon” means “sandy.” When Salmon discovered Rahab (who turned out to be a hidden treasure in the “sand”) and then recovered her out of Jericho when the wall came down, his actions were reminiscent of the blessing that Moses spoke over Zebulun (meaning “relationship” or “intimacy”) and Issacher (meaning “he brings recompense or gain”) before his death. And to Zebulun he said, Rejoice, Zebulun, in thy going out; and thou, Issachar, in thy tents. They shall call the people unto the mountain; there they shall offer sacrifices of righteousness; therefore they shall suck the abundance of the seas and hidden treasures of the sand (Deuteronomy 33:18–19, emphasis added).
313 “Cherubim” is the plural of “Cherub,” which means “as a child.”
314 God revealed many of these patterns to David in the tabernacle, where Asaph and Obededom were part of the group selected to minister day and night before the ark of God
315 In fact, the last enemy that shall be destroyed is death (1 Corinthians 15:26).
316 Including the antichrist and all those who have the spirit of antichrist.
317 “Hairy scalp” refers to being crowned with pride and arrogance.
318 David had a Gentile from Gath named Obededom (“worker of Edom”) who, with a whole contingent of sons and brethren, ministered at the tabernacle of David before the ark. This prefigures what Jesus Christ would do with the Gentiles during future ages. Isaiah also prophesied regarding the Messiah: And in mercy shall the throne be established; and he shall sit upon it in truth in the tabernacle of David, judging and seeking judgment and hastening righteousness (Isaiah 16:5).
319 1 Chronicles 16:39
320 The word “princes” occurs three times in this verse. This indicates that not only Judah, Zebulun, and Naphtali were ruled by little Benjamin, but their sons (who would later be individually listed as princes in Scripture) would also be ruled by Benjamin. This living parable is part of a prophecy that remains to be fulfilled.
321 “Judah” means “praise;” “Zebulun” means “dwelling” or “tabernacle” (implying an intimate relationship); “Naphtali” means “my wrestling.”
322 Whose feet do you think will trample them under? (See Malachi 4:1–3.)
323 And the twenty-four elders, who sat before God on their thrones, fell upon their faces and worshipped God, saying, We give thee thanks, O Lord God Almighty, who art and wast, and art to come because thou hast taken to thee thy great power and hast reigned. And the Gentiles were angry, and thy wrath is come, and the time of the dead, that they should be judged, and that thou should give the reward unto thy slaves the prophets and to the saints and those that fear thy name, to the small and to the great, and should destroy those who destroy the earth. And the temple of God was opened in heaven, and the ark of his testament was seen in his temple: and there were lightnings and voices and thunderings and earthquakes and great hail (Revelation 11:16–19).
Chapter 69.
Sixty-nine is three times twenty-three. Twenty-three has to do with shepherds. Therefore, sixty-nine has to do with the fruit (good or evil) produced by the shepherds. This number does not occur in Scripture other than in the title of Psalm 69. It is used once as part of a larger number.324
Psalm 69
To the Overcomer upon Shoshannim (lilies), A Psalm of David.
1 Save me, O God; for the waters are come in unto my soul.
2 I sink in deep mire where there is no standing; I am come into deep waters, where the floods overflow me.
3 I am weary of my crying; my throat is dried; my eyes fail while I wait for my God.
David wrote these words while he was sinking, spiritually, into deep mire. He was unable to stand, surrounded by deep waters that were over his head, and the floods were overflowing his soul. His natural and spiritual safety were in doubt. His only hope was to wait for God to act on his behalf. Sooner or later, all of us will identify with David. This will happen when we are in the midst of trouble from which only God can deliver us.
4 Those that hate me without a cause are more than the hairs of my head; those that would destroy me, being my enemies wrongfully, are mighty; then I restored that which I did not take away.
David had so many mighty enemies that hated him without a cause and kept attempting to destroy him325 that in desperation, David restored what he had not taken away.
We have to ask: what is David talking about? Why were his enemies wrongfully his enemies? What did David restore that he had not taken away? We must read on to find these answers.
5 O God, thou knowest my foolishness, and my guiltiness is not hid from thee.
6 Do not let those that wait on thee, O Lord GOD of the hosts, be ashamed for my sake; do not let those that seek thee be confounded for my sake, O God of Israel.
David (like all of us if we are honest) knows that there have been times when he failed God by becoming involved in what he calls foolishness. He also knows that he has been forgiven. Yet due to his persistent feelings of guilt, he senses that he is in deep mire with no footing. His enemies are attacking him without mercy, even though David has done them no wrong. David may have done some things in the past that he is not proud of, but at present he is innocent of the accusations against him. However, David is very concerned that those who wait on the Lord would not be ashamed for his sake and that those who seek God would not be confounded due to his past failures.
Have you ever felt like this?
7 Because for thy sake I have borne reproach; shame has covered my face.
8 I am become a stranger unto my brethren and an alien unto my mother’s sons.
When David brought the ark back to Jerusalem, his wife Michal condemned him for dressing like a simple priest and dancing before the ark. Imagine the reproach of fanatical religious Jews, beginning with some in David’s own household, who could not fathom why David would pitch a tent for the ark beside his house instead of bringing the tabernacle of Moses from Gibeon and carefully putting the ark back behind the veil in the vacant holy of holies.326
9 For the zeal of thy house has consumed me, and the reproaches of those that reproached thee are fallen upon me.
The disciples remembered this verse after Jesus cleaned out the temple by driving out the buyers and sellers (John 2:17). David’s actions may have had a similar effect on the religious buyers and sellers of his day. I can’t imagine David catering to moneychangers outside of the tabernacle of David. And back at Gibeon, the fact that the holy of holies was empty may or may not have put a damper on religious commerce.
10 When I wept with fasting of my soul, thou hast been a reproach unto me.
11 I made sackcloth also my garment, and I became a proverb to them.
12 They that sat in the gate spoke against me, and I was the song of the drunkards.
David’s detractors must have been having a field day down at the gate of the city. They were likely spreading the latest rumors about David, who had come home to become king with hundreds of Philistine and Gentile bodyguards. (These were some of the Cherethites and Pelethites; as noted [previously, Scripture even refers to these as David’s “dogs.”) Then, to top it all off, David apparently named Obededom the Gittite (from Gath, the capital of the Philistines) and his brethren as porters before the ark. It appears that God had David incorporate an entire pagan extended family into the tribe of Levi (whose inheritance was the Lord himself).
13 But I corrected my prayer unto thee, O LORD, in the time of thy good pleasure; O God, in the multitude of thy mercy hear me, in the truth of thy saving health.
What did David need to “correct” regarding his prayer to the Lord? Whatever problem it was that David had perceived in his prayer, he proceeded to make the necessary correction.
I don’t know about you, but there have been occasions when I have been in severe trouble. At such times, I have gone over my prayers with a fine-toothed comb, trying to discover whether or not God was pleased with my attitude, style, and content. Several times, I found out that some major corrections were in order.
14 Deliver me out of the mire, and let me not drown; let me be delivered from those that hate me and out of the deep waters.
15 Let not the violent force of the waters overcome me, neither let the deep swallow me up, and let not the pit shut her mouth upon me.
Anyone who has lived or worked near rivers, seas, or flood zones knows how unpredictable and treacherous the violent force of these waters can be. The sea of lost humanity manipulated by Satan and his demons o can be even more dangerous.
16 Hear me, O LORD, for thy mercy is perceptible, look upon me according to the multitude of thy acts of compassion
17 And hide not thy face from thy slave, for I am in trouble; hear me speedily.
18 Draw near unto my soul and redeem it; deliver me because of my enemies.
David has had a very clear revelation that his soul desperately needs a redeemer. Everyone needs to understand this because without redemption, we are all lost. David had many natural enemies, but in the end, his worst enemy turned out to be the sinful desires of his own flesh.
19 Thou hast known my reproach and my shame and my dishonour; my adversaries are all before thee.
20 Reproach has broken my heart, and I am full of heaviness, and I looked for some to take pity, but there was no one, and for comforters, but I found none.
21 They also gave me gall for my food; and in my thirst they gave me vinegar to drink.
After he had tasted it, Jesus refused to drink the vinegar mingled with gall327 that was offered to him while he was dying on the cross (Matthew 27:34). Vinegar and gall are linked to bitterness. Even if we are given a taste of vinegar mingled with gall, we are not to drink of it. We are to follow Jesus’s example and not become obsessed with or consumed by bitter experiences. Jesus did not give in to bitterness or thoughts of retaliation and revenge; he prayed to God the Father to forgive the ones who crucified him (Luke 23:34). When Jesus the Good Shepherd died for us on the cross, the fruit was redemption, even for his enemies. Redemption became possible for anyone who would repent and place their faith in him.
22 Let their table become a snare before them, and that which should have been for their prosperity, let it become a stumbling block.
23 Let their eyes be darkened that they see not328 and make their loins continually to shake.
A table indicates a source of provision or nourishment. God has a table with wholesome provision from which we may eat. The demons also have a table, and we cannot partake of both (1 Corinthians 10:21). Isaiah prophesies a time when all tables are full of vomit and filthiness, so that there is no place clean (Isaiah 28:8).329 Unclean tables will, therefore, be a snare to those who insist on eating from them. There are congregations today where all the “tables” are unclean.
24 Pour out thine indignation upon them, and let thy wrathful anger take hold of them.
25 Let their palace be desolate, and let no one dwell in their tents.
26 For they persecute him whom thou hast smitten, and they boast that thou hast slain their enemies.
27 Add iniquity unto their iniquity, and let them not come into thy righteousness.
28 Let them be blotted out330 of the book of the living and not be written with the righteous.
The above prophecy came to pass on David’s enemies. In a higher sense, this is what happened to the Jewish religious leaders that rejected Jesus Christ. I believe that there will also be an end-time fulfillment on those who practice apostate religion.
29 But I am poor and sorrowful; let thy saving health, O God, set me up on high.
30 I will praise the name of God with a song and will magnify him with praises.
31 This also shall please the LORD better than the sacrifice of an ox or bullock that struggles with horns and hoofs.
In the tabernacle of David, instead of sacrificing animals with horns and hoofs331 for sin and guilt, there was the sacrifice of praise. David was humble before the Lord. He loved to praise God for who he is and what he has done, is doing, and will do.
32 The humble shall see this and be glad; seek God and thy heart shall live.
33 For the LORD hears the destitute and does not despise his prisoners.
When we understand ourselves to be destitute, at that moment we are prime candidates to receive God’s mercy and grace. Jesus said, Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of the heavens (Matthew 5:3).
We may feel trapped by time and circumstance. When the apostle Paul was imprisoned in dire circumstances, he understood what was ultimately going on and called himself the prisoner of the Lord (Ephesians 4:1). It is so much better for God to consider us his prisoners than for us to be the prisoners of sin.
34 Let the heavens and the earth praise him, the seas, and every thing that moves in them.
35 For God will protect Zion and will rebuild the cities of Judah;332 they shall dwell there and inherit it.
36 The seed of his slaves shall inherit it, and those that love his name shall dwell therein.
God’s slaves belong to him. The seed (singular) of his slaves (plural) is the Messiah.
Jesus said, Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth (Matthew 5:5). Jesus Christ and the members of the body of Christ who meekly follow him will inherit Zion and rebuild the cities of Judah, which signify the communities of those who praise God.
Let us pray:
Heavenly Father, we desire to meekly submit to your discipline and correction. We desire to be among those who will inherit Zion and rebuild the cities of Judah. Amen.
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324 Methuselah lived nine hundred and sixty-nine years (Genesis 5:27). His name means “when he dies then it shall come.” Methuselah died in the year of the great flood. Nine hundred signifies God’s plan for judgment, and sixty-nine is the fruit of the shepherds. In this case, the only fruit that survived the judgment was Methuselah’s grandson Noah, Noah’s wife, their three sons, and the sons’ wives. A total of eight souls were rescued, plus the animals that God sent into the ark.
325 Even though they were wrongfully his enemies, they attempted to destroy him.
326 And David danced before the LORD with all his might, and David was girded with a linen ephod. So David and all the house of Israel brought up the ark of the LORD with shouting and with the sound of the shofar. And as the ark of the LORD came into the city of David, Michal, Saul’s daughter, looked through a window and saw King David leaping and dancing before the LORD, and she despised him in her heart. And they brought in the ark of the LORD and set it in its place, in the midst of the tent that David had pitched for it, and David offered burnt offerings and peace offerings before the LORD. (2 Samuel 6:14–17)
327 The vinegar was infused with wormwood or some other bitter substance that was given as a painkiller during crucifixions.
328 Paul quotes this verse in Romans 11:9–10.
329 Tables have to be waited on. The tabernacle of Moses had a table in the Holy Place (for the showbread and the lampstand). Solomon’s Temple had ten tables in the Holy Place for the priests. However, in the realm represented by the holy of holies, there are no tables. The provision that God has for us is in the ark (which is symbolic of Christ). This is the hidden manna (Revelation 2:17).
330 The expression “blotted out” occurs six times in the Jubilee Bible translation. Three of these usages occur in conjunction with the possibility of someone’s sins being blotted out or not blotted out (Nehemiah 4:5; Psalm 109:14; Acts 3:19). The other three usages occur in conjunction with the possibility of someone’s name being blotted out or not blotted out (Deuteronomy 25:6; Psalm 69:28; Psalm 109:13). It behooves all of us to have our sins blotted out and our names written in the book of life (Revelation 20:15).
331 They can gore and kick similar to the sin and guilt that they represent.
332 It seems that this psalm was written after David and his men captured Zion and were contemplating how God would go about rebuilding the cities of Judah. This would have been about the same timeframe in which David brought the ark to Jerusalem. The fullness of this prophecy, however, has to do with Jesus and his overcomers who will inherit the earth at his second coming.
Chapter 70.
Seventy may be factored as seven times ten (denoting peace and rest according to the Word of the Lord) or fourteen times five (salvation according to God’s mercy and grace). The number seventy is used seventy-three times in Scripture and twenty-eight times as part of a larger number.
Psalm 70
To the Overcomer, A Psalm of David, to bring to remembrance.
David wrote this Psalm to bring to remembrance. What is it that David desires for us to remember? Unless the Lord saves us according to his mercy and grace, we will not be saved. Unless God gives us rest from our enemies, we will never be fulfilled or satisfied. We must never forget that our salvation and rest come entirely from God.
1 Make haste, O God, to deliver me; make haste to help me, O LORD.
2 Let them be ashamed and confounded that seek after my life; let them be turned backward and put to confusion that desire my hurt.
David, like many of us, had a large number of enemies. We have natural enemies and spiritual enemies that desire to hurt us.
3 Let them be turned back for a reward of their shame that say, Aha, aha.
There are many who would be delighted if we fail to overcome.
4 Let all those that seek thee rejoice and be glad in thee, and let such as love thy saving health say continually, Let God be magnified.
Those who seek God with all their heart will rejoice and be glad in him. We cannot save or deliver ourselves. We can, however, say continually, Let God be magnified.
5 But I am poor and destitute; make haste unto me, O God: thou art my help and my deliverer; O LORD, make no tarrying.
Salvation and deliverance are not merely future or hypothetical. There are many times when we have desperate, immediate need of direct, divine intervention.
Let us pray:
Heavenly Father, let those who desire to hurt us be turned back. Let our adversaries be ashamed and confounded. May they be turned backward and put to confusion. May we never waver from our focus of pleasing you. Amen.
Chapter 71.
The prime number seventy-one does not occur in Scripture other than in the title of Psalm 71. It is very interesting, however, that the word “Selah” (meaning “to stop and meditate”) is used 71 times in the Psalms.333
Psalm 71
1 In thee, O LORD, have I waited; let me not be forever put to shame.
As the psalmist waited for deliverance and salvation, he (or she) undoubtedly had time for serious meditation.
It has become clear that unless God intervenes on our behalf, we will be forever put to shame.
2 Deliver me in thy righteousness and cause me to escape; incline thine ear unto me and save me.
3 Be thou my strong habitation unto which I may continually resort; thou hast given a commandment that I should be saved because thou art my rock and my fortress.
In this passage, deliverance and escape are based on the righteousness of the Lord. The self-righteousness of man has nothing to do with the rescue. The salvation sought by the psalmist is based on a promise from God. The promise is that the psalmist will be saved because they have made God their rock and fortress.
4 Deliver me, O my God, out of the hand of the wicked, out of the hand of the perverse and violent man.
5 For thou art my hope, O Lord GOD; thou art my security from my youth.
6 By thee have I been sustained from the womb; thou art he that took me out of my mother’s bowels; my praise has been continually of thee.
This testimony is about hope and security in God (not necessarily in religious behavior or doctrine). God has had his hand on the inspired psalmist since he was in his mother’s womb. This divine sustenance is his basis for trusting God in the midst of danger.
7 I am as a wonder unto many, but thou art my strong refuge.
Anyone who is used by God will be a wonder or an enigma to many. For centuries after Jesus came to earth, people have had long debates over whether or not he was truly from God. In like manner, people will question our legitimacy if we sincerely follow God.
8 Let my mouth be filled with thy praise and with thy glory all the day.
9 Do not cast me off in the time of old age; do not forsake me when my strength fails.
10 For my enemies speak against me, and those that lay in wait for my soul take counsel together,
11 saying, God has forsaken him; persecute and take him for there is no one to deliver him.
As we approach old age, our natural strength wanes. During these years, we may become more greatly aware of our need to depend directly upon God for everything.
12 O God, be not far from me; O my God, make haste for my help.
13 Let them be confounded and consumed that are adversaries to my soul; let them be covered with reproach and dishonour that seek my hurt.
Our soul has many adversaries, both seen and unseen. If we truly belong to God, things will not go well for those who seek our hurt.
14 But I will continually wait and will add upon all thy praise.
15 My mouth shall show forth thy righteousness and thy salvation all the day, for I know not the numbers thereof.
16 I will go in the strength of the Lord GOD; I will make mention of thy righteousness, even of thine only.
17 O God, thou hast taught me from my youth and until now; I shall manifest thy wondrous works.
It is impossible to go wrong praising God for all that he does. As we grow older and more mature (both physically and spiritually), we gather experience and face a very important choice on a daily basis. Either we will glorify God, or we (individually or corporately) will take the credit for God’s work. The psalmist desires to go forward in the strength of the Lord God and only mention his righteousness. God has taught him directly from his youth, and he is confident that he will manifest the wondrous works of God.
18 Now also when I am old and grayheaded, O God, forsake me not until I have showed the strength of thy arm unto the next generation and thy power to every one that is to come,
19 and thy righteousness, O God, unto excellence because thou hast done great things; O God, who is like unto thee!
All of us should be very concerned about showing God’s power and righteousness to the next generation. Where God’s people have failed at this task, our basic society breaks down. This is not about religious indoctrination of our young people. We must demonstrate God’s righteousness through excellence in word and deed if we are to convince the generations that follow us.
20 Thou who hast caused me to see great and sore troubles, shalt return and quicken me and shalt bring me up again from the depths of the earth.
In order to see great and sore troubles, all it takes is for us to be born into this fallen world that surrounds us. Jesus allows all of this for a purpose that’s unintelligible to those who spend their lives seeking the wealth of this world.
Jesus is the one who will return and “quicken” (bring to life) the psalmist and bring him up again from the depths of the earth (bring him up out of the grave by resurrection). God desires to bring forth those whom he has chosen in a first resurrection that is linked to Jesus’s second coming (Revelation 20:4–6).
21 Thou shalt increase my greatness and comfort me on every side.
Jesus said that the humble servant of all will be the greatest in his kingdom (Matthew 23:11–12). He also said that the Holy Spirit is the comforter (John 14:26). This is the inheritance of God’s people.
22 I will also praise thee with an instrument of the psaltery, O my God; unto thee will I sing thy truth with the harp, O thou Holy One of Israel.334
23 My lips shall greatly rejoice when I sing praises unto thee and my soul, which thou hast ransomed.
This psalm, especially these lines, sounds a lot like David’s writing. If he wrote it, however, he chose to remain anonymous.
24 In the same manner my tongue shall talk of thy righteousness every day, for they are confounded, for they are brought unto shame, that seek my hurt.
This promise came true for David and for many others. It also applies to Jesus Christ and to us if we are part of the overcoming body of Christ.
Let us pray:
O Holy One of Israel, we look forward with great anticipation to the day when you will totally confound all of our enemies. We will sing of your righteousness forever. Amen.
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333 When we meditate day and night on the Word of the Lord, we may receive revelation and understanding that go well beyond the surface meaning of the Scriptures. The word “meditate” is used eighteen times in the Jubilee Bible translation. (Twelve of these occurrences are in Psalms.)
334 The Holy One of Israel is mentioned in thirty-one scriptures, all in the OT. This title is messianic.
Chapter 72.
Seventy-two is two times thirty-six (which signifies the decision to submit to God’s order and judgment), or three times twenty-four (the fruitfulness and blessing of participating in God’s plan), or four times eighteen (maturing under God’s heavenly discipline), or six times twelve (man and beast under God’s divine order).335 This number occurs only once in Scripture,336 when after the battle with the Midianites, out of thirty-six thousand oxen that the men of Israel captured, the tribute for the LORD was seventy-two (Numbers 31:38).
Psalm 72
A Psalm for Solomon.
“Solomon” means “peace offering.” The ultimate and final peace offering is the Lord Jesus Christ.
1 Give the king thy judgments, O God, and thy righteousness unto the king’s son.
This psalm is a prayer for Solomon, the son of David who became king, but there is also a parallel to the coming Messiah. Jesus declared himself to be both the root and the offspring of David (Revelation 22:16). As a coronation prayer, this psalm is dedicated to the prosperity of Solomon at the beginning of his reign, but there are many messianic inferences to note throughout it.
2 He shall judge thy people with righteous[1]ness and thy poor with judgment.
The people of Israel greatly appreciated the wisdom and righteous judgments granted by God to King Solomon. This, however, will be as nothing compared to what will happen when the Lord Jesus Christ returns to reign and rule along with those whom he has chosen (Revelation 20:4).
3 The mountains shall bring peace to the people and the little hills by righteousness.
Mountains may symbolize kingdoms. The kingdoms of man do not bring peace. They are always in conflict. However, the “mountains” of God’s kingdom shall bring peace to the people and to the “little hills” of those who are humble. This shall happen by righteousness. 337
4 He shall judge the poor of the people; he shall save the children of the destitute and shall break in pieces the violent.
5 They shall fear thee along with the sun and before the moon throughout all generations.
In some ways King Solomon was a symbol of Jesus, the real peace sacrifice, who is now the ultimate judge. Jesus, as Judge, has a special place in his heart for the children of the destitute. The sun of this world shall soon turn “black” as we await the Sun of righteousness of God’s new day (Malachi 4:1–3). Jesus is the Sun of righteousness, and having been united with him, we may participate in the justice of God’s new day. If we are in Christ, people will also fear us along with the sun. In fact, we will be feared before the moon throughout all generations. The moon is a symbol of much of Israel and the church, both of which have waxed and waned throughout the history of the people of God.
6 He shall come down like rain upon the mown grass as the dew that waters the earth.
7 In his days shall righteousness flourish and abundance of peace until there is no longer any moon.
When the real Solomon returns, he will come down like the rain upon the mowed grass. Remember that all flesh is grass (Isaiah 40:3–8). Jesus will cause the mowed grass (those whose hearts are circumcised) to bloom (to flourish). Their fruit will be the abundance of peace. This will continue until there is no longer any moon, until all the people of God shine forth with the light of Jesus Christ instead of reflecting the “light” of the corrupt sun of this world (Isaiah 30:26).
8 He shall have dominion also from sea to sea and from the river unto the ends of the earth.
9 Those that dwell in the wilderness shall bow before him, and his enemies shall lick the dust.
The pure water of the river of God (Psalm 65:9) will flow through the wilderness, deliver the pure Word of God (which is life) to the seas of lost humanity, and fill the people with knowledge like water fills the sea (Isaiah 11:9). His enemies shall lick the dust. Man was created from the dust of the earth and will return to dust (Genesis 3:19). This is the sentence of God upon fallen man.
10 The kings of Tarshish and of the isles shall bring presents; the kings of Sheba and Seba shall offer gifts.
11 Yea, all kings shall fall down before him; all Gentiles shall serve him.
No enemy will be able stand before the Messiah at his return. There will be a mad scramble to bring him presents and offer him gifts.
12 For he shall deliver the destitute when he cries and the poor that has no helper.
13 He shall have mercy on the poor and destitute and shall save the souls of the poor in spirit.
Jesus was likely referring to this psalm when he said: Blessed are the poor in spir[1]it, for theirs is the kingdom of the heavens (Matthew 5:3).
14 He shall redeem their soul from deceit and violence, and precious shall their blood be in his sight.
Jesus will champion those who are destitute and poor, spiritually or otherwise.
15 And he shall live, and to him shall be given of the gold of Sheba;338 prayer also shall be made for him continually; and daily he shall be given blessings.
Jesus will live forever. He is the Author of eternal life unto all those that hearken unto him (Hebrews 5:9). It will be our privilege and duty to pray for him339 daily and bless him (by giving him all the glory). It was Jesus himself who taught us to pray to the Father: Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven (Matthew 6:10).
16 There shall be planted a handful of grain in the earth upon the tops of the mountains; its fruit shall thunder like Leb anon; and out of the city they shall blossom like the grass of the earth.
At the end of days, there will be a godly remnant on earth. The time will come when their good fruit shall thunder like Lebanon.340 A clean remnant, coming from the city of God, will blossom and be multiplied everywhere like the grass of the earth.
17 His name shall endure for ever; before the sun his name shall be disseminated, and all Gentiles shall be blessed in him; they shall call him blessed.
The name of the Lord Jesus Christ is indelibly linked to his nature. If we are in Christ, participating in his name and nature, then we will also endure forever. When we bless the Lord by hearing and obeying him (his commandment is that we love one another), then his name will be disseminated wherever the Sun of righteousness shines. The Gentiles (those who are not in a proper covenant with God and do not have their hearts circumcised) shall be blessed in him. As this takes place, they shall call him blessed.
18 Blessed be the LORD God, the God of Israel, the only one who does wondrous things
The true God is the only one who does wondrous things. Some of his greatest wonders take place as he works in and through people like us, helping us become a great blessing.
19 And blessed be his glorious name for ever, and let the whole earth be filled with his glory; Amen, and Amen.
20 The prayers of David the son of Jesse are ended.
This is most likely the last psalm that David wrote before he died
Let us pray:
Heavenly Father, we join with David in his prophetic prayer. We desire to pray for our Lord Jesus Christ – that all things be placed under his feet. We desire to bless you and to be a blessing. Amen.
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335 Or in a negative sense, the number seventy-two can mean the exact opposite of all of the above.
336 Seventy-two also occurs six more times in Scripture as part of a larger number.
337 Righteousness is a state of being as well as doing right.
338 Each year, Solomon was given six hundred and sixty-six talents of gold (1 Kings 10:14). “Sheba” means “oath” or “covenant.” Sheba is symbolic of the tribute that is due the Lord Jesus Christ. Satan has been making an all-out attempt to subvert the people of God and take over that which rightfully belongs to God (Revelation 13:18).
339 I know that many people (myself included) enjoy praying to Jesus. Upon his return, as Jesus implements his kingdom here upon the earth, this verse could indicate that the possibility will open up for people like us to pray to God the Father for Jesus, similar to how David prayed for King Solomon.
340 “Lebanon” means “white mountain.
