Psalms 114 - 116 (with 2 topics)
Psalm 114 Author anonymous:
When Israel came out of Egypt, the house of Israel from a foreign tongue, Judah became GOD'S Sanctuary, Israel HIS Dominion. The Red Sea looked & fled, later the Jordan River turned back; then the mountains skipped like rams, the hills like lambs. Why was it, O sea, that you fled, O Jordan, that you turned back, you mountains, that you skipped like rams, you hills, like lambs? Answer: You tremble, O earth, at the Presence of the LORD, at the Presence of the GOD of Jacob, who turned the rock into a pool of water to drink, when Moses struck the rock at Rhephidim, the hard rock into springs of water when Moses struck instead of speaking to the rock at Kadesh-- in anger, losing his privilege of entering the promised land (Exo 17:1-5; Num 20:1-12).
BTW, these were living prophecies of the desert into pools of water-- mentioned in Psa 107:35 & Jer 41:18. Both incidents are also covered in PART I, E E.3.(1st & 3rd pts.). Now it could be construed that Jacob's earlier acquisition of Rachel's concubine Bilhah was a Near prophecy of Hannah's situation (barren, but then having 2 sons & 5 grandsons by Bilhah-- 7 total; see Gen 46:23-25; s.a PART I, D D.2.b.iii. & D.5.b.ii.)-- but Rachel later had 2 sons of her own (& 12 grandsons), whereas Hannah herself had 7 children. But then neither was Hannah's life (her having 7 children) exclusively a distant/far distant prophesy concerning Israel. Because Hannah-being-barren was just 1 type of barrens.
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Psalm 115 Author anonymous; said to deal with atheists:
Not to Us, O LORD, not to Us but to YOUR Name be the glory, because of YOUR Love & Faithfulness. Why do the nations say, 'Where is their God?' Our GOD is in Heaven; HE does whatever pleases HIM. But their gods are silver & gold, made by the hands of men. They have mouths, but cannot speak, eyes, but they cannot see; they have ears, but cannot hear, noses, but they cannot smell; they have hands, but they cannot feel, feet, but they cannot walk; nor can they utter a sound with their throats. Those who make them will be like them, & so will all who trust in them-- see below, Scripture Collection #1. O house (nation) of Israel, trust in the LORD--
- HE is potentially Their (the citizens') help & shield. O house (priesthood) of Aaron, trust in the LORD--
- HE is potentially Their (the priests') help & shield. You who fear (respect) HIM, trust in the LORD--
- HE is potentially Their individual help & shield. The LORD remembers Us & 1 day will bless Us: then
- HE will bless the house (nation) of Israel,
- HE will bless the house (priesthood] of Aaron,
- HE will bless all those who fear the LORD-- those small in this world & those great alike.
- May the LORD make You increase, both You 7 Your children.
- May You be blessed by the LORD, the maker of Heaven & earth.
The highest heavens belong to the LORD, but the earth HE has given to man-- how do you suppose we should treat what he has given? It is not the dead who praise the LORD, those who go down in silence; rather, those alive & remaining-- it is We who extol the LORD, both now & forevermore.
Praise the LORD (Heb., Hallelu YAH).
1. Scripture Collection #1 What goes around... 1stCor 13:1-3; 14:1,12 says, In the church, if I can speak in the tongues (languages) of men & angels; if I have the gift of true prophecy & can fathom all mysteries & knowledge; if I have moving faith; if in ministry I give all that I possess to the poor & surrender my body to the flames-- if I do these, but have not overflowing love, I am/gain nothing. Follow the way of love; excel in gifts that build up the church. But true both in/outside the church: 2ndCor 9:6-14 says, Whosoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly; Whosoever sows generously will also reap generously. GOD loves a cheerful giver; You will abound in every good work. As quoted from Psa 112:9, 'HE has scattered abroad HIS Gifts to the poor; HIS Righteousness endures forever.' Recall elsewhere the admonition, Conform to His/HIS Image. Now HE who supplies seed to the sower & bread for food will also supply & increase Your store of seed & will enlarge the harvest of Your righteousness. You will be made rich in every in every way so that you can be generous on every occasion-- sieze the opportunity for generosities, as opposed to building bigger barns, & through Us church organizers Your generosity will result in thanksgiving to GOD. Repeat (beware the pretenders): This service that You perform is not only supplying the needs of GOD'S People but is also overflowing in many expressions of thanks to GOD. Because of the service by which You have proved yourselves, men will praise GOD for the obedience that accompanies Your confession of the gospel of Christ & for Your generosity in sharing with them & (just as) with everyone else. And in Their prayers for You Their hearts will go out to You, because of the surpassing grace GOD has given You. Gala 6:7-9 says, Do not be deceived: GOD cannot be mocked. A man (person) reaps what He sows. The 1 who sows to please His sinful nature, from that nature (flesh, from that flesh) will reap eternal destruction; the 1 who sows to please the Spirit will reap eternal life. But we who did begin to sow to please the Spirit-- Let Us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time We will reap a harvest (treasure laid up in Heaven) if We do not give up. Phil 3:10-11,16-21 says I want to know Christ & the power of His Resurrection & the fellowship of the sharing of His sufferings. We suffer now every time we stretch HIS patience with sin/disobedience/failure-to-love others-- becoming like Him in His death, & so, somehow, to obtain resurrection from the dead. Only let Us live up to what We have already attained. Join with others in following My example-- take note of Those who are live according to the pattern We gave You. Many live as enemies of the cross of Christ. Their destiny is destruction; their mind is on earthly things. But Our citizenship is in Heaven. And We eagerly await a Savior from there, the LORD Jesus Christ, who will transform Our lowly bodies so that they will be like HIS Glorious Body. 1stJoh 3:2 says What WE "up-there" will be like has not yet been made known. But We know that when HE appears WE shall be like HIM. Everyone who has this hope in HIM purifies himself (this is the standard/image to conform to) just as HE is pure.
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Psalm 116 Author anonymous; texted in grape is the passage (v. 10a) that is quoted in the N.T. (see Psalms 12 - 18 Psalm 15 2. N.T. Quotes from Psalms B.):
I love the LORD, for HE heard My voice; HE personally heard My cry for mercy. Because HE turned HIS Ear to Me, I will call on HIM as long as I live. There is absolutely nothing that could happen in the future to change that; that mystifies/frustrates all who would love to eliminate flies-on-walls. The cords of death entangled Me, the anguish of the grave (Sheol) came upon Me; I was overcome by trouble & sorrow.
Then I called upon the Name of the LORD: O LORD, save Me! The LORD is Gracious & Righteous; Our GOD is full of compassion-- an inexhaustible supply. The LORD protects the simplehearted; when I was in great need, HE saved Me. Then I said to myself, Be at rest 1x more, O My soul, for the LORD has been good to You.
For YOU, O LORD, have delivered My soul from death, My eyes from tears, My feet from stumbling, that I may walk before the LORD in the land of the living-- I get to spend an eternity with you, both now & forevermore! I believed; therefore (believed even when) I said, 'I am greatly afflicted.' And in My dismay I said, 'All men are liars-- Roma 3:4 says concerning those who did not have faith, let GOD be True, & every man a liar.
Now, How can I repay the LORD for all HIS Goodness to Me? I will visibly lift up the cup of salvation & in fellowship with other believers call on the Name of the LORD. I will fulfill My vows to the LORD in the presence of all HIS People. I will do whatever is precious in HIS sight. Precious in the Sight of the LORD is the death of HIS Saints-- who consider themselves dead, that They may live for HIM. See below, Scripture Collection #2.
O LORD, truly I am YOUR Servant; I am YOUR Servant, the son of YOUR Maidservant (YOUR Faithful Son); YOU have freed Me from My chains. I will sacrifice a thank offering to YOU & call on the Name of the LORD. I will fulfill My vows to the LORD in the presence of all HIS People, in the courts of the House of the LORD-- in your midst, O Jerusalem.
Praise the LORD.
1. Scripture Collection #2 What He/HE did/does & what we did/do Roma 6:2-5,8,11; 14:7-8,10,12-13; 15:1 says We died to sin; how can We live in it any longer? All of Us who were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into His death; We were therefore buried with Him through baptism into death in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead through the Glory of the FATHER, We too may live a new life. Again, If We have been united with Him in like this in His death, We shall also be united with Him in His resurrection. Now if We died with Christ, We believe We will also arise & live with HIM-- now GOD lives in Us by HIS Spirit (see Ephe below); eventually We will ascend & be with HIM in paradise. In the same way count yourselves dead to sin, but alive to GOD in Christ Jesus. For none of Us lives to himself alone & none of Us dies to himself alone-- whether We live or die, We belong to the LORD. We will all stand before GOD'S Judgment Seat; each of Us will give an account of him/herself to GOD. Therefore let Us stop passing judgment on 1 another-- not to put a stumbling block or obstacle in Your brother's way. We who are strong ought to bear with the failings of the weak & not to please ourselves. The other day I listened as someone was praying loudly, expressing his gratitude to God. Now some would say that he lost his marbles. But 2ndCor 5:13-17 says, If We are out of Our mind, it is for the sake of GOD; if We are in Our right mind, it is for You. For Christ's love compels Us, because We are convinced that One died for all, & therefore all died. And He died for all, that those unsaved who live should (might) no longer live for themselves but for Him who died for them & was raised again. So from now on We regard no 1 from a worldly point of view. Though We 1x regarded Christ in this way, We ds so no longer. Therefore if anyone is in Christ He is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come. Gala 2:20 says, I have been crucified with Christ & I no longer live, but Christ lives in Me. The life I live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of GOD, who loved Me & gave himself for Me. Ephe 2:19-22; 5:1-2 says, You are no longer foreigners & aliens, but fellow citizens with GOD'S People & Members of GOD'S Household, built on the foundation of the N.T. apostles & O.T. prophets, with Jesus Christ himself as the chief cornerstone. In HIM the whole building is joined together & rises to become a holy temple in the LORD. And in Him You are being built together to become a dwelling in which GOD lives by HIS Spirit. Be imitator's of GOD, therefore, as dearly loved children & live a life of love, just as Christ love Us & gave himself up for Us as a fragrant offering & sacrifice to GOD. Colo 1:10; 2:13-14 says, And We pray this in order that You may live a life worthy of the LORD & may please HIM in every way: bearing fruit in every good work, growing in the Knowledge of GOD, being strengthened with all power according to HIS Glorious Might so that You may have great endurance & patience, & joyfully giving thanks to the FATHER, who has qualified You to share in the inheritance of the saints in the kingdom of light. When You were dead in Your sins & in the uncircumcision of Your sinful nature (flesh), GOD made You alive with Christ. HE forgave Us all Our sins, having canceled the written code, with its regulations, that was against Us & that stood opposed to Us; HE took it away, nailing it to the cross. In 2ndTim 2:11-13 we find, If We died with Him, We will also arise & live with Him & with HIM (as we saw); if We endure (remain faithful to-the-end), We will also reign with HIM. If We disown (having 1x ABC'd, are unfaithful by living in denial of) HIM, HE will also disown (deny) Us for reigning. If We in any way are faithless, HE will remain faithful, for HE cannot disown himself. Here Paul referred to several O.T./N.T. passages.
- V. 11 refers is to Roma 6:2-11 (most of which we already saw).
- V. 12 refers to:
- Roma 8:7 which says, The mind of sinful mankind is death, but the mind controlled by the Spirit is life & peace; to
- 1stPet 4:13 which says, Rejoice that You participate in the sufferings of Christ, so that You may be overjoyed when HIS Glory is revealed; & to
- Matt 10:33 which says, just after saying, Do not be afraid of members of the household of Beelzebub; You are worth more than many sparrows> Who ever disowns Me before (in the sight/hearing of) men/women, I will disown Him/Her before My FATHER in Heaven.
- V. 13 refers to:
- Num 23:19 which says, GOD is not like a man, that HE should lie, nor like a son of man, that HE should change HIS Mind-- this was Balaam speaking to Balak, indicating his epiphany, as we saw in Psalm 95 Psalm 95 3. Balaam's Epiphany... BUT (s.a., Psalms 96 - 98 Psalm 96 3. Contrast #4 Balaam vs. Baal) & to
- Roma 3:3 which says, What if some of Them Jews did not have faith? Will their lack of faith nullify GOD'S Faithfulness? Not at all!
Hebr 10:38 quotes Hab 2:4, MY Righteous One (The righteous) shall live by faith (faithfulness). And if He (He) shrinks back, I will not be pleased with Him (Him)-- thus we see that the many times when it appears God changed his mind (like in Noah's day) in reality they were preceded by mankind's unfaithfulness. 1stPet 2:24-25 says, He himself bore Our sins in His body on the tree, so that We might die to sin & live for righteousness; by His wounds You have been healed. For You were like sheep going astray, but now You have returned to the Shepherd & Overseer of Your souls. 1stJoh 1:9; 2:6,10; 5:16-17 says, If We confess Our sins, HE is faithful & just & will forgive Us Our sins & purify Us from all unrighteousness. Whoever claims to live in Him must walk as Jesus did-- I 1x said (somewhere) that we approach full maturity as we progress from talking-the-talk, to talking-the-walk, to walking-the-talk, to walking-the-walk, to walking-the-run, to running-the-run. Whoever loves His brother/sister lives in the light, & there is nothing in Him/Her to make Him (Them) stumble-- as Jesus walked, causing none of His disciples to stumble. If anyone sees (hardly the same as hearing rumors) his/her brother/sister commit a sin that does not lead to death, He/She should pray & GOD will give Him/Her life. There is a sin that leads to death; there is a sin that does not lead to death. The 1 that leads to death? Jesus referred to it as blasphemy of the Holy Spirit-- the stubborn refusal to confess/repent; the persistent denial of God.
