Day 790: All day, every day - Psalm 113

1 Praise the Lord! Praise, O servants of the Lord, praise the name of the Lord! 2-3 Blessed be the name of the Lord from this time forth and for evermore! From the rising of the sun to its setting, the name of the Lord is to be praised!

4-6 The Lord is high above all nations, and his glory above the heavens! Who is like the Lord our God,who is seated on high, who looks far down on the heavens and the earth?

7-9 He raises the poor from the dust and lifts the needy from the ash heap, to make them sit with princes, with the princes of his people. He gives the barren woman a home, making her the joyous mother of children. Praise the Lord! (Psalm 113 English Standard Version)

The theme of this Psalm is stated in the first verse. It's a call for those who see themselves as ‘servants of the Lord’ to give Him heartfelt praise. By ‘Lord’, he is referring to the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, the one who made His special name known to Moses when He spoke to him out of a bush that was on fire, yet not consumed by the flames. When does the Psalm writer say it’s appropriate to praise God? (vs 2-3)

It's not just a Sunday thing! And it wasn't only for people who lived before the arrival of all the amazing technology of our modern world. Any time of day is suitable to praise the Lord, and this will be done by many people in many places not only in this world's history, but through all eternity in the new heavens and earth which He will bring about.

The writer gives at least two reasons for praising God. What's the first one he speaks of in vs 4-6?

It's simply because of God’s exalted position. People are quick to heap praises upon fellow mortals who are in positions of power. Whether its musicians or actors, kings or presidents, or the latest personality glamorized by the media, the public eagerly spreads the fame of the one they favour. But God is high over all the nations. His glory is even beyond the scrutiny of NASA's telescopes and satellites. He is worthy of our wonder and our worship.

What's another reason why God's praise should be in our thoughts all day and every day? (vs 7-9)

It's because of the sort of God He is, and the tender mercies He shows. He is so exalted in glory, yet He stoops to the aid of the poor and the barren woman. How different from the gods the nations invented. By poor and needy here we mustn't think of people who are too lazy to work and who expect others to look after them. It refers to people who were were crushed and exploited by despots. It can even refer today to Christians who are persecuted for their faith.

In yesterday's devotion the writer in Proverbs spoke of barren women in a more negative sense. But today's reading shows how many a barren woman's prayers were heard by the Lord. Perhaps the most well known examples in the Bible are Abraham's wife Sarah, who eventually bore Isaac, and Elkanah's wife Hannah, who gave birth to Samuel. And when we read that God gave such woman a home, we can think of the widow Naomi and her daughter Ruth who came to live in the home of a good man named Boaz.

We can think also of how when Jesus was in agony on the cross He saw his mother and the disciple whom he loved standing nearby. And we read that “He said to his mother, 'Woman, behold, your son!' Then he said to the disciple, 'Behold, your mother!' And from that hour the disciple took her to his own home.” (John 19:26-27) Such is the One who the Psalm writer is calling us to love and praise every day of our life. Oh may God's praise never be just 'a Sunday thing' for us. May our love for Him be constant from the rising of the sun to it's going down. Praise the Lord!