Psalm 33:12-22
This passage focuses on joy. Joy should be a defining quality of people who follow Jesus.
Steve Brown wrote, in Born Free, “There is a direct correlation between one’s proximity to Christ and the freedom of one’s laughter Christians laugh easily because they don’t have to be God anymore. Christians laugh easily because they have a secret. Christians laugh easily because in His service there is joy.”
Comedian Bob Newhart said, “People with a sense of humor tend to be less egocentric and more realistic in their view of the world and more humble in moments of success and less defeated in times of travail.”
Reformation leader Martin Luther is quoted in Table Talks as having said, “If one could believe just as it is written (in the Bible) then one’s heart would explode for joy.”
Newsman Harry Reasoner said, “Be highly suspicious of any political or social group which never thinks anything is funny about itself and its program.”
And lastly, comedian Will Rogers once observed, “Everything is changing. People are taking their comedians seriously and the politicians as a joke.”
A nation’s destiny is determined by the people’s faithful trust in the Lord.
1. Joy comes from our faithful response to God having chosen us. (12)
A biblical distinction between JOY and happiness is that JOY is based on something the Lord has done for you, where happiness is a reaction to chance and/or circumstance. They feel similar but proceed from different places.
The psalmist expressed two conditions for experiencing the JOY of the Lord: one, your God must be the LORD. Alone among all things that people worship, He is the true God. Two, He has chosen you to inherit His promises. Of all the peoples He created, God chose Abram’s descendants through Isaac to be His people. He gave them special status.
2. The LORD sees us and knows us. (13-15, 18-19)
The LORD observes the entirety of humanity. (13-14) From the vantage point of His heavenly throne, the LORD can see all of us. This is good news for those who seek Him and do righteousness because He sees them and rewards their good deeds. This is bad news for those who reject Him and do evil because He sees them and condemns their misdeeds.
As our Creator, the Lord knows us better than we know ourselves. (15) He knows us inside out; He sees our HEARTS, which refers to one’s inner life. This fact shows God’s concern about motives, attitudes, and intentions. God is aware of EVERYTHING we DO, so our actions and attitudes will be judged by Him. This means that He is not only aware of what we’re thinking and doing, He understands why we’re doing it.
The LORD watches over His people. (18) This is a way of saying He shows favor to:
- THOSE WHO FEAR HIM instead of worrying about worldly things.
- THOSE WHO RELY ON HIS UNFAILING LOVE. His covenant love for His people.
All things will work out to fulfill His will. If you believe that, then you can trust Him instead of your own strength.
The LORD rescues His people from their distress. (19) We can endure and survive most calamities (like DEATH and FAMINE, two usual consequences of war, for example) but only God truly delivers us.
3. We our hope in the Lord alone. (16-17, 20-22)
We must not hope in our own strength. (16-17) These verses express the Old Testament ideal for conducting warfare; it was first and foremost directed and empowered by God.
On a more universal scale, these verses remind us that success is not a matter of brute force or any other worldly means. The psalmist gives us three military examples:
- A KING cannot rely on his ARMY.
- A WARRIOR cannot rely on his GREAT STRENGTH.
- You cannot rely on A WARHORSE save you. A WARHORSE is symbolic of military power (Psalm 20:7; Isaiah 31:1).
The alternative to relying on the world is to rely on the LORD by seeking His guidance first and then following through on His will. This is the only path to the JOY promised in v. 12.
We put our hope in the LORD. (20-22) If we have the level of confidence in God that is affirmed in these verses, we should find it easy to praise Him. We hope in the LORD because He is OUR HELP AND SHIELD. (20) The reference to a SHIELD refers to vs. 16-17, the military examples.
When we trust in the LORD, our hearts REJOICE. (21) We need to daily reaffirm our trust in the LORD. Because His NAME (purpose, activity, and character) is HOLY, we can trust that God’s good will to us will not change. We can rely on Him. We hope in the LORD because His UNFAILING LOVE surrounds us. That is a sign of His protection of us.
A nation’s destiny is determined by the people’s faithful trust in the Lord.
If you agree that we live in difficult times, if our joy and optimism are diminished, what can we do about it? I have some advice. Stop complaining about what we don’t have and utilize what is at hand.
- We have the best news possible: God is real and He has acted in love to draw us to Him.
- We know how to talk, we need only to use our speech to encourage, entertain, and educate to draw others into personal relationships.
- We have access to the world wide web that can be used freely to access good information and to use our words to bless people whom we will never meet.
- The best way to bless people is still person-to-person. The best means of telling the truth is still mouth-to-mouth. People use electronic means of communication because they are more convenient, though they are less effective.
- Human nature has not been changed; we all fear loneliness and rejection, we all hunger for community and acceptance. If we offer people a home, they will come.
God is the most real thing you will ever experience. What’s unreal is the fear that some people try to get you to feel to manipulate you. Be confident; we know God wins!
RESOURCES:
Brett Best, In Pursuit of Praise, 2024, p. 20.
Willem A. VanGemeren, The Expositor’s Bible Commentary, Vol. 5, Psalms, 1991, pp. 279-281.
John W. Biagent, The Zondervan Bible Commentary, Psalms 1-72, 2008, p. 557.
Tremper Longman III, Tyndale Old Testament Commentaries, Psalms, Vols. 15-16, 2014, pp. 166-168.
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