PSALM 9
With cross references & topics
Psa 9:1-20 A psalm for the director of music (chief musician); muth-labben (to the tune of the favorite melody, 'The Death of the Son'). An acrostic poem (the 1st word of each stanza begins with a successive letter of the Hebrew alphabet-- see PerspectivesB B.2. for the other acrostic poems). Prob. written after David had a victory over the Philistines, perh. after the final victory, in 2ndSa 5:22-25 (after which the ark was taken to Israel). Said to: address being alone; deal with poverty; provide joy & vindication:
I will praise YOU, O LORD (YAHWEH), with all My heart; I will tell of all YOUR Wonders. I will be glad & rejoice in YOU; I will sing praise to YOUR Name, O Most High GOD (Supreme GOD). My enemies turn back; they stumble & perish before YOU. For YOU have upheld My right & My cause; YOU have sat on YOUR Throne, judging righteously. YOU have rebuked the nations & destroyed the wicked; YOU have blotted out their name for ever & ever. Endless ruin had overtaken the enemy, YOU have uprooted their cities; even the memory of them has perished.
The LORD (YAHWEH) reigns forever; HE has established HIS Throne for judgment. HE will judge the world in righteousness; HE will govern the people with justice. The LORD (YAHWEH) is a refuge for the oppressed, a stronghold in times of trouble. Those who know YOUR Name will trust in YOU, for YOU, LORD (YAHWEH), have never forsaken those who seek YOU.
Sing praises to the LORD (YAHWEH), enthroned in Zion; proclaim among the nations what HE has done. For HE who avenges blood remembers; HE does not ignore the cry of the afflicted. O LORD (YAHWEH), see how My enemies persecute Me! Have mercy & lift Me up from the gates of death, that I may declare YOUR Praises, in the gates of the daughter of Zion [virgin Jerusalem-- Zion was yet focused in the tent of the holy hill, as the temple had not yet been constructed on Mt. Moriah (that was done by Solomon, David's son). Note in Isa 37:22 we have the original Jerusalem being referred to as the virgin daughter of Zion, followed immediately by the saying, the non-virgin daughter of Jerusalem tosses Her head as You flee-- the Israeli citizens were flippant about the woes, the result of the practices of the priests. See PSALM 6 Hos<5>. S.a. PSALM 11 Jer, PSALM 27 Isa & PSALM 34 Zec] & there rejoice in YOUR timely (not eternal) Salvation.
The nations have fallen into the pit that they have dug; their feet are caught in the net they have hidden. The LORD (YAHWEH) is hidden by HIS Justice; the wicked are snared by the work of their hands. Higgaion [recall Psa 7 was shiggaion (with turbulent lyrics)]SELAH
The wicked return to the grave, all the nations that forget GOD (the Majestic ONE). But the needy will not always be forgotten, nor the hope of the afflicted ever perish. Arise, O LORD (YAHWEH), let not man triumph; let the nations be judged in YOUR Presence (non-Israelites be judged Facing YOU). Strike them with terror, O LORD (YAHWEH); let the nations know they are but men. SELAH
We saw in PSALMS 5 Psa that David prayed: The arrogant cannot even stand in YOUR Presence (Facing YOU).
=====
Gen <1> 8:20-21 <2> 9:1,5-6 <1> After the flood: Noah built an altar to the LORD (YAHWEH); the LORD (YAHWEH) smelled the pleasing (an agreeable) aroma & (YAHWEH) said in HIS Heart: Never again will I curse the ground because of man, even though (for) every inclination of his heart is evil from his childhood. And never again will I destroy all living creatures, as I have done. <2> Then GOD (the Majestic ONE) blessed Noah & his sons, saying, Be fruitful & increase in number & fill the earth. And for your [Noah's & all descendants'] lifeblood I will surely demand an accounting. I will demand an accounting from every animal. And from each man too, I will demand an accounting for the life of his fellow man. Whoever sheds the blood of man, by man shall his blood be shed. Compare this to John 8:3-7, where Jesus told he that was without sin to cast the 1st stone against the adulteress (who apparently broke the marriage vows, but shed no blood-- see Lev 20:10 & Deu 22:22). Now as to Christians-- it would seem we Christians, since we were washed clean, should be the 1st to judge others. But that would make 1stJoh 1:9 (near the end of the Bible), about confessing our sins & being cleansed (the topic being Christians walking in the light) seem foolish. Fact is, though most Christians do not practice sin, we do sin (1stCor 5:5 tells us what to do about one who is visibly practicing sin). We should not presume that we will come-to-our-senses & confess before further sinning (grieving the Holy Spirit-- leading to practicing sin), thereby frustrating any maturity. We should be the 1st to judge ourselves-- & hasten to confess!
===
1stPet 2:18-25 The soil-styles of receipt were covered in PSALM 6 Receive-n-Listen, Believe, MatureDealing with the soil Mentioned there (also in PSALM 8 Pray, Believe-n-Talk, ReceiveDealing with the mountain) was that the type of soil (heart) can be influenced by one's allotment at birth (birth defects, family situations, etc), but very quickly it is a matter of choice, the manner in which 1 receives/responds to the Word of GOD. A loathsome predicament serves to illustrate this-- the matter of slavery: Slaves, submit yourselves to Your masters with all respect-- together with God, they may/may not deal with the sin, not only [just] to those who are good & considerate, but also to those who are harsh. For it is commendable if a man bears up under the pain of unjust suffering because He is conscious of GOD. But how is it to Your credit if You receive a beating for doing wrong & endure it? But if You suffer for doing good & endure it, this is commendable before GOD. To this response You were called, because Christ suffered for You, leaving for You an example, that You should follow in His steps. Quoted from Isa 53:9 is a Distant prophecy He committed no sin, & no deceit was found His mouth. EOP When they hurled their insults at Him, He did not retaliate; when He suffered, He made no threats. Instead, He entrusted himself to HIM who judges justly. He himself bore our sins in His body on the tree, so that We might come to die to sins & live for righteousness; by His wounds You Christians have been healed. For You were like sheep going astray. but now You have returned to the Shepherd & Overseer of Your souls.
Isa 31:1-2 Still regarding slavery, but also matters like terrorism: Woe to those who go down to Egypt [elsewhere] for help, who rely solely on horses, who trust in the multitude of their [Egypt's] chariots & in the great strength of their own horsemen, but do not look to the Holy ONE of Israel for guidance, or seek help from the LORD. Yet HE too is wise & can bring disaster-- as in the old incomplete saying, "the Lord helps those who help themselves." He is not consulted-- he who more efficiently will recompense evil; HE does not take back HIS Words-- he has no need to wager/gamble, or analyze/conclude. HE will quickly rise up not only against the house of the wicked, he will deal against those who help evildoers. In Psa 20:7-8 we find: Some seek & trust in chariots & some others seek & trust in horses, but our priority is to trust in the Name of the LORD Our GOD. They are brought to their knees & fall, but We rise up & stand firm.
Exo <1> 5:2 <2> 7:5 <3> 16:12-24,31,35 <1> When Moses 1st returned to Egypt: Moses & Aaron went to Pharaoh & said, 'This is what the LORD, the GOD (YAHWEH, the Majestic ONE) of Israel, says: Let MY People go, so that They may hold a festival to ME in the desert. Pharaoh said, 'Who is the LORD (YAHWEH), that I should obey HIM & let Israel go. I do not know the LORD (YAHWEH) & I will not let Israel go.' <2> Before any signs & plagues took place: The Egyptians will know I am the LORD (YAHWEH) when I stretch out MY Hand against Egypt & bring the Israelites out of it. <3> Now in the wilderness-- but before Mt. Sinai: I have heard the grumbling of the Israelites. This not to be confused with the time after Mt. Sinai, when they grumbled again, & God sent them quail again (see Num 10:11; 11:1-33)-- this time covering the ground 3' thick. But while the meat was still between Their teeth, HE struck Them with a severe plague. Moses, Tell them, 'At twilight You will eat meat, & in the morning You will be filled with bread.' That evening quail came & covered the camp, & in the morning there was a layer of dew around the camp. When the dew was gone, thin flakes like frost on the ground appeared; Moses said, 'It is the bread the LORD (YAHWEH) has given You to eat. This is what the LORD (YAHWEH) has commanded: each one is to gather as much as He needs. Moses added some common sense: No one is to keep any of it until morning.' However, some of Them paid no attention to Moses; They kept part of it until morning, but it was full of maggots (worms) & began to smell. On the 6th day, They [all the Israelites] gathered 2x as much; the leaders of the community came & reported this to Moses. Formerly the Israelites had been told to do no work on the sabbath; something uncommon was called for! The community already anticipated the uncommon-- or perhaps had heard God's prompting, HIS Still Small Voice. He [Moses] said to Them [the reporting leaders]: 'This is what the LORD (YAHWEH) commanded: Tomorrow is to be a day of rest, a holy sabbath to the LORD (YAHWEH). So bake what You want to bake & boil what You want to boil. Moses again added, for those lacking common sense: Save whatever is left & keep it until morning.' So They saved it until morning, as Moses commanded, & it did not stink or get maggots in it. The people of Israel called the bread manna. The Israelites ate only manna 40 yrs., until They came to a land that was settled; they ate [continued eating] manna until They reached the border of Canaan. Edom, et al., had nomadic tribes; a portion of Moab was settled-- there they ate the produce of the land. Actually, they ate manna until shortly after they reached the border of Canaan. Jsh 5:10-12 says the manna ceased 16 days after they crossed the Jordan.