HelpFinder Bible - Flipbook - Page 851
PSAL M 3
page 481
Book One (Psalms 1–41)
1
2
3
4
5
6
Oh, the joys of those who do not
follow the advice of the wicked,
or stand around with sinners,
or join in with mockers.
But they delight in the law of the Lord,
meditating on it day and night.
They are like trees planted along the
riverbank,
bearing fruit each season.
Their leaves never wither,
and they prosper in all they do.
But not the wicked!
They are like worthless chaff, scattered
by the wind.
They will be condemned at the time of
judgment.
Sinners will have no place among
the godly.
For the Lord watches over the path of
the godly,
but the path of the wicked leads to
destruction.
2
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
1
Why are the nations so angry?
Why do they waste their time with
futile plans?
The kings of the earth prepare for battle;
the rulers plot together
against the Lord
and against his anointed one.
“Let us break their chains,” they cry,
“and free ourselves from slavery
to God.”
1
But the one who rules in heaven laughs.
The Lord scoffs at them.
Then in anger he rebukes them,
terrifying them with his fierce fury.
For the Lord declares, “I have placed my
chosen king on the throne
in Jerusalem,* on my holy mountain.”
The king proclaims the Lord’s decree:
“The Lord said to me, ‘You are my son.*
Today I have become your Father.*
Only ask, and I will give you the nations
as your inheritance,
the whole earth as your possession.
You will break* them with an iron rod
and smash them like clay pots.’”
Now then, you kings, act wisely!
Be warned, you rulers of the earth!
Serve the Lord with reverent fear,
and rejoice with trembling.
2:6 Hebrew on Zion. 2:7a Or Son; also in 2:12. 2:7b Or
Today I reveal you as my son. 2:9 Greek version reads rule.
Compare Rev 2:27. 2:12 The meaning of the Hebrew is
uncertain. 3:2 Hebrew Selah. The meaning of this word is
uncertain, though it is probably a musical or literary term. It
is rendered Interlude throughout the Psalms.
Submit to God’s royal son,* or he will
become angry,
and you will be destroyed in the midst
of all your activities—
for his anger flares up in an instant.
But what joy for all who take refuge
in him!
3
1
2
A psalm of David, regarding the time David
fled from his son Absalom.
O Lord, I have so many enemies;
so many are against me.
So many are saying,
“God will never rescue him!” Interlude*
• Intimacy
PS A LM 1:2
The intimacy of any relationship is a
function of both the amount of time
spent together and the quality of what
is accomplished or shared in that time.
If a parent and child spend three hours
together but those hours are spent
watching television, the time doesn’t
establish intimacy. This psalm suggests
that an intimate relationship with God
grows out of both the quantity and
quality of the time we spend focused
on him. Do you intentionally and
consistently spend time alone
with God?
• Fear
PS A LM 2:11
Reverence puts us on our knees before
God. We honor a God who made the
sun and moon and stars, who put the
planets in their places, who made you
and me. When we are reverent, we
recognize God’s holiness as well as
his power to create, his love as well as
his power to punish, and his provision
as well as his power to withhold. We
rejoice in the Lord, but even as we
delight in him, we do it with the sense
of his greatness and his holiness. We
fear evil or powerful people because
we know they might harm us. We fear
God because we know that he has the
power to harm us and yet has chosen
to love us. We show reverent respect
for God in the same way a child shows
reverent respect for a loving parent
(Romans 8:15).