Psalms
66 – 68
Notice something in the next few Psalms. Verse 66:4 is the
first mention:
The entire earth will bow
down to worship You
and will sing glory-songs to You;
they will sing praises to Your name!
It seems like there is a subtle move from God’s chosen
people to the all the nations. Is this setting us up for Jesus or has God
always been there for every nation? We look back at how he blessed King Hiram
but granted that was after this was written, so who knows.
Verse 67:4 is very similar:
May all nations
celebrate together, singing joy-filled songs of praise
to You
because You judge the people fairly
and give guidance to all the nations
of the earth.
Is this acknowledging that God is with all nations and not
just Israel? I know the OT gives us the impression that most nations worship
pagan gods and worthless idols, with Israel being the only nation in God’s
favor. But when nations honor and praise God, they are blessed also, just as
our nation once was.
Verse 68:3 focuses on our personal relationship with God:
But may those who are righteous
rejoice
in the presence of the True God—so may they be glad and
rejoice.
Yes, let them celebrate with joy!
The key to the relationship with God is a pure heart. God
cannot stand sin and therefore we need to be cleansed before God. In OT days
that required an animal sacrifice. Today Jesus took the place as the final
sacrifice. Today we just need to repent and confess in the name of Jesus to be
“righteous” before God and to be in His presence. How cool is that?
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