... in the name of the Father, and
of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost.
Amen. Through the prayers of our
holy Fathers, Lord Jesus Christ our God, have mercy on us and save us. Amen. Glory
to You, our God, Glory to You.
O Heavenly King,
the Comforter, the Spirit of truth, You are everywhere and fill all things,
Treasury of blessings, and Giver of life: come and abide in us, and cleanse us
from every impurity, and save our souls, O Good One.
Holy God, Holy Mighty, Holy
Immortal, have mercy on us (three times).
Glory be to the
Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost, as it is now, was in the
beginning, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.
Praise the Lord.
Let Israel rejoice in Him Who made him. Let the children of Zion be joyful in their
King.
Let them praise His name in the dance. Let them sing praises to Him with the tambourine
and harp: for the Lord takes pleasure in His people. He will beautify the meek with salvation.
Let the saints be joyful in [His] Glory.
Let them sing aloud on their beds.
[Let]
the high [praises] of God [be] in their mouth, a two-edged sword in
their hand: to execute vengeance on the heathen, punishments on the people; to
bind their kings with chains, their nobles with fetters of iron; to execute on
them the judgment written.
This honor have all His saints.
[1] Psalm
149 begins and ends with the fairly common exhortation to praise found in several
other Psalms of Praise.
This is a public hymn designed for congregational singing.
The remarkable feature of this Psalm is that is consists of a
set of litanies which might be divided in a variety of ways. Here we take note of the pattern of joy,
praise, joy, praise. 1. The children of
Israel are to rejoice in creation. We
often overlook this essential theological aspect of life: we are creatures, and
that is a wonderful thing. The King of
Zion is Yahweh Himself who has created us and is pleased to dwell among us in
His Shekinah Glory. 2.
Dancing and singing are appropriate forms of worship: for God delights in His
creation, takes pleasure in His worshippers, and beautifies them with the
adornment of salvation. Salvation is
unquestionably a gift in this picture.
3. It is impossible that the saints are to be joyful in their own
glory. They are so captivated by His Shekinah
Glory that they sing aloud even in their sleep.
4. The structure of the next sentence needs further investigation. For the time being we stayed with the King
James notion of praise. Now it becomes
very clear that Spiritual Warfare is the main focus of this Psalm of
Praise. This is not jihad. Reflecting on the first item of praise we
realize that this creation was defiled and spoiled by Satan. This warfare is about the clash of the heel
of God’s people against the head of the Serpent. This warfare reaches its climax in the
Crucifixion and Resurrection of Christ.
Physical warfare is not in view: for “[His] kingdom is not of this world
(John 18:36);” “We wrestle not against flesh and blood (Ephesians 6:12).” The particular instruments of battle specified
in this Psalm are joy, praise, dancing, singing, and the Scripture (a two-edged sword). Another principal
weapon is the intentional act of kindness (Proverbs 25:21-22; Romans 12:19-21). We would do well to remember these things
whenever we, as Christians are tempted to undertake the oppression of sinful
people: the homeless, the Jews, other ethnicities, ourselves, the poor, or
anyone else we are tempted to fix by persecution. These are folks we need to wage warfare
against by joyfully praying the Scripture into their lives and ours.
These litanies outline the principal tasks of
believers for all time. It involves the
whole set, not just the execution of vengeance, punishment, binding, and
judgment. Let’s call these evangelization
through worship. These are honors, not drudgeries. We participate in all these high honors (Summa
cum Laude) only because we are in Christ, and only by the grace of Christ
working in us, through the Holy Ghost.
By this grace we are being made into god(s).
“Praise the Lord.”
[2]
Psalm 144:9
[3] If you have been blessed or helped by any of these meditations in
Psalms, please repost, share, or use any of them as you wish.
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