Author: Don Guthrie

Re:Verse reading–Psalm 22 (day one)  “I will declare your name to my brothers. . .You who fear the Lord, praise him!. . .For he has not despised or disdained the suffering of the afflicted one.”  (vs 22-24)  Psalm 22 is a prediction of the cross.  For 21 verses, in amazing detail, David narrates both his own troubles and a clear vision of Christ on the cross 1000 years later.  It is impossible to read these verses and not be impressed with the exactness of his words.  In vs 22, however, the mood suddenly shifts.  From suffering to praise, from defeat to victory.  It is a prophecy of the resurrection!  In Philippians 2, the Bible says, “He humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the cross. . .therefore God has highly exalted Him”  (vs 8-9)  The Christian faith rests on this confidence.  We are to be faithful to Him in our sufferings.  He will be faithful to us when they are over.  Those who seek Him are promised a Psalm 22:22 life!

Re:Verse reading–Psalm 16 (day seven)
“I will bless the Lord who has counseled me; indeed, my mind instructs me in the night. . .because He is at my right hand, I will not be shaken”  (vs 7-8)  In David’s time, to be at someone’s “right hand” meant to be his counselor/advisor/confidant.  (Think of Jesus sitting at the “right hand” of God).  When David (vs 8) uses this term to describe God, he is repeating with different words the truth of vs 7.  “I will bless the Lord who has counseled me”.  I wonder how many times David proved this great promise of God.  “Call and I will answer you, and show you great and mighty things that you do not know.”  (Jeremiah 33:3)  “If any man lacks wisdom let him ask of God who gives to all men generously and without reproach and it will be given to him.”  (James 1:5).  What David had,  is what we all need. . . wisdom from the Wonderful Counselor. (Isaiah 9:6)

Re:Verse reading–Psalm 16 (day one)
“I said to the Lord; I have no good besides you. . .I have set the Lord continually before me. . .I will not be shaken.”  (vs 2, 8)  By single I do not mean unmarried.  I mean single-minded–a heart that has resolved the question of priority, of value.  David discovered this early in life.  He concluded that God existed and deserved all of his attention.  God became his criterion for “good”.  God was the person he continually “set before” himself as an ambition or goal.  The unexpected result?  A deep sense of safety!  Even in danger.  Remember the encounter with Goliath?  Remember the years David was unfairly treated by Saul?  Would the same thing work for us?  If we focused on God and set our hearts on Him as our only goal, would we experience the same sort of protection?  Would we be able to look at the future with hope and not dread? Yes!  Praise God, yes!

Re:Verse reading–Psalm 8 (day seven)
“What is man that thou art mindful of him?and the son of man that thou visitest him?” (vs 4–KJV)  When David calculates human worth,  he does not reference accomplishments or bank accounts.  He considers the “visits” of God.  It is the King James translation of the Hebrew word paqad.  The New American Version uses the word “care”.  (Caring for a person= visiting him in his need.  See James 1:27.)  When Jesus promised ” I will not leave you as orphans, I will come to you” (John 14:18), He was continuing a long pattern of God’s love for the human race.  He comes to us!  He visits us!  Can you think back on a time when the Lord came to you in a time of need?  When you experienced the comfort of His guiding presence?  If so, have you reflected on that experience and come to David’s conclusion?  You are loved.  He comes to you in your need.

Re:Verse reading–Psalm 8 (day six).
“When I consider your heavens” (vs 3)  If God is the creator of the material world (as Christians believe) then it is reasonable to expect all things to echo and reflect His character.  A sweet child doesn’t paint an ugly cruel picture.  His “nature” is revealed in what he creates.  So with God.   To be out in nature can, therefore, be  a spiritual experience.  “The heavens declare your glory”  says Psalm 19:1.  “Consider the lilies of the field” counseled Jesus to His disciples.  As Wendell Berry says,  “The best argument for God is to rise at dawn and pick dew-wet red berries in a cup”.  In Romans 1:20, the Bible says , “For since the creation of the world, His invisible attributes, His eternal plan and divine nature have been clearly seen through what has been made“.  Part of the weakness of this present generation is our exile from natural things–our blindness to the creator who made them.

Re:Verse reading–Psalm 2, Psalm 110 (day seven)
“The Lord will extend your mighty scepter from Zion; you will rule in the midst of your enemies.”  (110:2)  It is a strange word to modern ears.  Aggressive.  Assertive.  A God with a back-bone.  Not apologizing to the human race for putting an end to its rebellion, for requiring respect and obedience, for using force.  If people of the 1st century rejected the Messiah because He was not war-like, people of the 21st century do so because He is (or will be).  Perhaps we need this reminder.  The race of men is in active rebellion against God.  His wrath is tempered with mercy (“not wishing any to perish”–2 Peter 3:9) but eventually He will act with great decisiveness to bring the rebellion to an end.  “God has not given us a spirit of timidity” says 2 Timothy 1:7.  It must be because He is not timid, Himself.  I will see you in a few hours, dear friends.

Re:Verse reading–Psalm 2, Psalm 110 (day six)
“The Lord says to my Lord: ‘Sit at my right hand until I make your enemies a footstool for your feet.’ ” (110:1)  Sometimes the best thing to do is wait.  To rest.  Sometimes the instruction from God is to sit and let Him do the work.  “The Lord will fight for you while you keep silent” was the promise that Moses received in Exodus 14:14.  It isn’t always the case.  Until Christ had completed His assignment (the cross) sitting would have been disobedience.  After the cross, further effort would have been disbelief.  Sometimes the Spirit of God whispers to us, “Wait! Rest! Trust!  I will do the work now!”  May God give us the grace to recognize when this moment comes for us.  Sometimes our assignment is to obey and then to leave it in God’s hands.  “Wait on the Lord; Be strong and let your heart take courage; Yes, wait on the Lord.”  Psalms 27:14.

Re:Verse reading–Psalm 2, Psalm 110 (day three)
“The One enthroned in heaven laughs; the Lord scoffs at them.”  Someone has said, “The man who poses the greater menace to others is not the one whose god differs from yours, but the one who fears no god at all.”  As the centurion told Jesus, “I myself am a man under authority…”  The most discerning among us know that each of us answers to someone, and that everyone will give an account for decisions and actions.  Every action we carry out bears the clear markings of our loyalties—to God or to self.  Every action we carry out proclaims whether we believe we are the master or the mastered.  This is why wisdom—and with it life everlasting—begins with the fear of the Lord.

Re:Verse reading–Psalm 2, Psalm 110 (day one)
“The Lord says to my Lord: ‘Sit at my right hand until I make your enemies a footstool for your feet.’ ” (110: 1)  Psalm 110 is quoted more often in the New Testament than any other Psalm.  It figured significantly into the thinking of Jesus  (cf Mark 12:35-37).  Without some guidance, it can be confusing to modern readers.  Two Hebrew words are both translated into English by the word Lord.  In vs 1, the first name is Jahweh.  The second is Adonai.  Vs 2 and 4 also use Jahweh.  Vs 5 translates the word Adonai.  Jahweh is the God the Father.  Adonai means master or Messiah referring to Jesus (even though David could not have supplied the Saviors’s name).  What David reports (in the Spirit) is God the Father to God speaking to the Son.  Over the next six days, I hope we can read this Psalm with new understanding and confidence.  The Lord (Jahweh) made significant promises to our Lord(Adonai)!