Cut Free: Psalm 129

Welcome! We are continuing our series on the Psalms of Ascent, Psalms 120-134. Today’s passage is Psalm 129, and before we dig into the Psalm in earnest, I do want to say a little about it and about others like it. Psalm 129 is an example of what is called an imprecatory psalm. The word imprecatory comes from the Latin word imprecatio which means to pray against. In imprecatory psalms the psalmist prays against his enemies, asking God for various bad things to happen to them. Some other psalms that are imprecatory in nature are Psalms 7, 35, 59, 69, 83, 109, 137, and 139. Some of the things the psalmists say include bring their violence to an end, may they be disgraced and put to shame, may they be like chaff before the wind, consume them in wrath, may they be blotted out, pursue them with Your tempest, and may their descendants be cut off. These are harsh words! What are we to make of them?

Anxiety vs. Fear/Trust in the Lord: Psalm 127-128

Psalm 127-128

A song of ascents. Of Solomon.

Psalm 127
^1aUnless the LORD builds the house,

its builders labor in vain.

Picture yourself as King Solomon making an ascent up the steps to the Temple construction project that your father King David started and left for you to complete.  You have the location and the manpower and the materials, but you were born a child of the king.  You may be the wisest man that ever lived but you don’t have a clue about how to actually build a temple that would actually please the Lord for whom you are building it.  

Ask yourself this question, “Do I want to build this temple and fulfill my father’s dream?”  If you answer this question, “Yes,” then you will quickly realize, like Solomon did, that unless the Lord builds the temple through you, then it is a waste of time because it won’t be pleasing to the Lord or to your father.  It may never be completed, but even if it is, it won’t last.

Unshakable with Tears: Psalm 125-126

Psalm 125

                A song of ascents.

¹     Those who trust in the Lord are like Mount Zion,

which cannot be shaken but endures forever.

²     As the mountains surround Jerusalem,

so the Lord surrounds his people

both now and forevermore.

³     The scepter of the wicked will not remain

over the land allotted to the righteous,

for then the righteous might use

their hands to do evil.

⁴     Do good, O Lord, to those who are good,

to those who are upright in heart.

⁵     But those who turn to crooked ways

the Lord will banish with the evildoers.

Peace be upon Israel.

Our Mercy and Help: Psalms 123-124

Welcome! Today we are looking at Psalms 123 and 124, continuing our series on the Psalms of Ascent. Each of these fifteen Psalms, from 120 to 134, are notated in the Hebrew as a song “of ascents,” or steps. As we have discussed previously, they may have been recited as a group as people traveled to Jerusalem to gather together on the religious holidays that required them to do so. Let’s go ahead and get right into Psalm 123.

I lift up my eyes to You, to You who sit enthroned in heaven. – Psalm 123:1