Psalm 76 - You are radiant

Psalm 76 - You are radiant

Read: Psalm 76 vs 1-12

The Bible tells the story of God’s dealings with His creation, quite literally from beginning to end. In that sense the span of the Bible is unimaginably big, starting with creation (Genesis 1:1) and ending with a ‘new creation’ (Revelation 21:1).

Running the length of this great story is the account of how God has come to call a people to be His people. When God first called Abram He promised that He would bless Him and give Him a land of His own. After arriving in the Promised Land Israel eventually settled with Jerusalem as their capital, home to their King and home to God’s Temple. Jerusalem symbolised the safety and security of the people. 

In 2 Kings 19 all of that safety and security came under enormous threat. The mighty Assyrian army laid siege to Jerusalem and threatened to overrun it. However God intervened in a miraculous way, the Assyrian’s were defeated by God Himself as God defended His city and His people (the story is told in 2 Kings 19:32-37).

It seems that it is this event, one of many moments in history when God came to the defence of His people that is remembered and sung about in Psalm 76. Remembering this intervention of God on behalf of His people gives Asaph great grounds for praise (vs 1-2) but also a deep awareness that this God is to be worshipped and feared (vs 7).

The theme of God as the defender of His people, like so much in the Old Testament, finds its ultimate fulfilment in Jesus. In 1 John 2:1 Jesus is described as the One who today sits at God’s right hand in heaven defending us when we sin (as we all do). Jesus defends us not by excusing us but by presenting His work on the cross as the sacrifice that frees us from the judgment we deserve.

Psalm 76 leads us to praise, and serve, a God who has defended His people, and to a Saviour, who even today stands ready to defend you; until that time when He will welcome you home into a new creation and into a new Jerusalem, where God will dwell and where we His servants will serve Him in joy and in thankful praise (Revelation 21:2, 22:3).

Prayer: Father you know sometimes I feel very weak and at times I feel defeated. Thank you that even today Jesus is at Your right hand to defend me. Thank you that I can rely on Him in the face of every threat I face. Amen.