Thursday, April 3, 2014

Reflections on Psalms 93

 Psalms 93(Contemporary English Version)
  1. Our LORD, you are King! Majesty and power are your royal robes. You put the world in place, and it will never be moved.
  2. You have always ruled, and you are eternal.
  3. The ocean is roaring, LORD! The sea is pounding hard.
  4. Its mighty waves are majestic, but you are more majestic, and you rule over all.
  5. Your decisions are firm, and your temple will always be beautiful and holy.

Psalms 93 celebrates the Lord's reign over the earth. It may be intended to lift up the Lord over the gods of other nations - particularly Baal - but it also envisions a time when He will have dominion over all moral and legal orders of life and all people will submit to His rule. The firm establishment of the Lord's reign is the subject of the first two verses.

Verses 3-4 contrast the Lord's power over that of Baal, or any other supposed god. In the pagan Canaanite mythology, Baal overcame Prince Yamm, which is the sea, to gain power over the sea. But this psalm praises the Lord and not Baal as having power over the sea.

In another contrast of the Lord over other gods, verse 5 praises the reliability of God's testimonies and the holiness of His sanctuary. Other gods are capricious and unreliable, which is not surprising since they are the product of the imaginations of capricious and unreliable mankind. The same is true of the holiness of the Lord's sanctuary compared to the corruptness of the temple of Baal and other gods who are the products of corrupt people. Only God is holy.

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