God's Care of the Poor. Psalm 113:1-9

Transcription

1 1 God's Care of the Poor Psalm 113:1-9

2 2 Text: God's Care of the Poor Commentary by Clyde M. Miller Psalm 113:1-9 1: Praise the Lord. Praise, O servants of the Lord, praise the name of the Lord, 2. Let the name of the Lord be praised, both now and forevermore. 3. From the rising of the sun to the place where it sets the name of the Lord is to be praised. 4. The Lord is exalted over all the nations, his glory above the heavens. 5. Who is like the Lord our God, the One who sits enthroned on high, 6. Who stoops down to look on the heavens and the earth? 7. He raises the poor from the dust and lifts the needy from the ash heap; 8. he seats them with princes, with the princes of their people. 9. He settles the barren woman in her home as a happy mother of children. Praise the Lord. NIV Introduction:

3 3 I. In subject matter, Psalm 113 is an excellent sequel to the two previous psalms. A. Psalm 111 shows how God's works reveal him as powerful, gracious, merciful, righteous, and faithful. B. Psalm 112 shows how the God-fearing man emulates the nature of God as he graciously lends to the poor in his time of need. C. Psalm 113 shows how God Himself cares for the poor as well as the affluent. II. In Judaism, Psalm are known as "The Egyptian Hallel"; Psalm are sung before the Passover meal and Psalm , after it. A. These psalms are also sung at the feasts of Pentecost, Tabernacle and dedication (Hanukkah or Lights). Commentary: Call to Praise Psalm 113:1, Praise the Lord. Praise, O servants of the Lord, praise the name of the Lord. I. "Servants" could refer to the priests or Levites, or to the nation. II. For the significance of "the name of the Lord", see the comments on Psalm 111:9. A. Psalm 111:9, He provided redemption for his people; he ordained his covenant forever holy and awesome is his name. NIV

4 4 The Exalted Lord Psalm 113:2-4, Let the name of the Lord be praised, both now and forevermore. From the rising of the sun to the place where it sets the name of the Lord is to be praised. The Lord is exalted over all the nations, his glory above the heavens. NIV Psalm 113:2, Let the name of the Lord be praised, both now and forevermore. NIV I. For the last half of the verse, compare Psalms 115:18; 121:8; 125-2: and 131:3. A. Psalm 115:18, It is we who extol the Lord, both now and forevermore. Praise the Lord. NIV B. Psalm 121:8, The Lord will watch over your coming and going both now and forevermore. NIV C. Psalm 125:1, As the mountains surround Jerusalem, so the Lord surrounds his people both now and forevermore. NIV D. Psalm 131:3, O Israel, put your hope in the Lord both now and forevermore. NIV E. The expression means continually throughout one's lifetime. Psalm 113:3, From the rising of the sun to the place where it sets the name of the Lord is to be praised. NIV I. Geographically, God should be praised everywhere, poetically stated as from east to west.

5 5 Psalm 113:4, The Lord is exalted over all the nations, his glory above the heavens. NIV I. God, who is exalted above men and nations, is worthy of universal praise. God Helps the Needy Psalm 113:5-9, Who is like the Lord our God, the One who sits enthroned on high, who stoops down to look on the heavens and the earth? He raises the poor from the dust and lifts the needy from the ash heap, he seats them with princes, with the princes of their people. He settles the barren woman in her home as a happy mother of children. Praise the Lord. NIV Psalm 113:5-6, Who is like the Lord our God, the One who sits enthroned on high, who stoops down to look on the heavens and the earth? NIV I. God is not only the transcendent (separated) one, but he is also the immanent (near) one in time of need (Psalm 102:18-22; 138:6 and Isaiah 57:15). A. Psalm 102:18-22, Let this be written for a future generation, that a people not yet created may praise the Lord: The Lord looked down from his sanctuary on high, from heaven he viewed the earth, to hear the groans of the prisoners and release those condemned to death. So the name of the Lord will be declared in Zion and his praise in Jerusalem when the peoples and the kingdoms assemble to worship the Lord. NIV B. Psalm 138:6, Though the Lord is on high, he looks upon the lowly, but the proud he knows from afar. NIV

6 6 C. Isaiah 57:15, For this is what the high and lofty One says he who lives forever, whose name is holy: "I live in a high and holy place, but also with him who is contrite and lowly in spirit, to revive the spirit of the lowly and to revive the heart of the contrite." NIV Psalm 113:7, He seats them with princes, with the princes of their people. NIV I. "Dust" and "ash heap" refer to the city dump, where the abjectly poor and the diseased might be forced to remain. Psalm 113:8, He seats them with princes, with the princes of their people. NIV I. By strong contrast, these pitifully poor ones are seated with the princes who enjoy royal luxuries. Psalm 113:9, He settles the barren woman in her home as a happy mother of children. Praise the Lord. NIV I. Barrenness was considered a disgrace in ancient Near Eastern culture, Genesis 30:1-3. A. Genesis 30:1-3, When Rachel saw that she was not bearing Jacob any children, she became jealous of her sister. So she said to Jacob, "Give me children, or I'll die!" Jacob became angry with her and said, "Am I in the place of God, who has kept you from having children?" Then she said, "Here is Bilhah, my maidservant. Sleep with her so that she can bear children for me and that through her I too can build a family." NIV

7 7 B. God is here pictured as causing one who had been disgraced to receive lasting joy. II. Psalm 113:7-8 reveal verbal similarities to the Song of Hannah, 1 Samuel 2:8. Psalm 113:9 reflects the situation with Hannah, I Samuel 1:1-28 and 1 Samuel 2:1-11. A. Psalm 113:7-8, He raises the poor from the dust and lifts the needy from the ash heap; he seats them with princes, with the princes of their people. NIV B. I Samuel 2:8, He raises the poor from the dust and lifts the needy from the ash heap; he seats them with princes and has them inherit a throne of honor. "For the foundations of the earth are the Lord's; upon them he has set the world." NIV C. Psalm 113:9, He settles the barren woman in her home as a happy mother of children. Praise the Lord. NIV D. I Samuel 1:1-28, There was a certain man from Ramathaim, a Zuphite from the hill country of Ephraim, whose name was Elkanah son of Jeroham, the son of Elihu, the son of Tohu, the son of Zuph, an Ephraimite. He had two wives; one was called Hannah and the other Peninnah. Peninnah had children, but Hannah had none. Year after year this man went up from his town to worship and sacrifice to the Lord Almighty at Shiloh, where Hophni and Pinehas, the two sons of Eli, were priests of the Lord. Whenever the day came for Elkanah to sacrifice, he would give portions of the meat to his wife Peninnah and to all her sons and daughters. But to Hannah he gave a double portion because he loved her, and the Lord had closed her womb. And because the Lord had closed her womb, her rival kept provoking her

8 8 in order to irritate her. This went on year after year. Whenever Hannah went up to the house of the Lord, her rival provoked her till she wept and would not eat. Elkanah her husband would say to her, "Ha nah, why are you weeping? Why don't you eat? Why are you downhearted? Don't I mean more to you than ten sons?" Once when they had finished eating and drinking in Shiloh, Hannah stood up. Now Eli the priest was sitting on a chair by the doorpost of the Lord's temple. In bitterness of soul Hannah wept much and prayed to the Lord. And she made a vow, saying, "O Lord Almighty, if you will only look upon your servant's misery and remember me, and not forget your servant but give her a son, then I will give him to the Lord for all the days of his life, and no razor will ever be used on his head." As she kept on praying to the Lord, Eli observed her mouth. Hannah was praying in her heart, and her lips were moving but her voice was not heard. Eli thought she was drunk and said to her, "How long will you keep on getting drunk? Get rid of your wine." "Not so, my lord, " Hannah replied, "I am a woman who is deeply troubled. I have not been drinking wine or beer: I was pouring out my soul to the Lord. Do not take your servant for a wicked woman. I have been praying her out of my great angu8sh and grief. Eli answered, "Go in peace, and may the God of Israel grant you what you have asked of him." She said, "May your servant find favor in your eyes." Then she went her way and ate something, and her face was no longer downcast. Early the next morning they arose and worshiped before the Lord and then went back to their home at Ramah. Elkanah lay with Hannah is wife, and the Lord remembered her. So in the course of time Hannah conceived and gave birth to a son. She named him Samuel, saying, "Because I asked the Lord for him."

9 9 When the man Elkanah went up with all his family to offer the annual sacrifice to the Lord and to fulfill his vow, Hannah did not go. She said to her husband, "After the boy is weaned, I will take him and present him before the Lord, and he will live there always." "Do what seems best to you," Elkanah her husband told her. "Stay here until you have weaned him; only may the Lord make good his word." So the woman stayed at home and nursed her son until she had weaned him. After he was weaned, she took the boy with her, young as he was, along with a three-year-old bull, an ephah of flour and a skin of wine, and brought him to the house of the Lord at Shiloh. When they had slaughtered the bull, they brought the boy to Eli, and she said to him, "As surely as you live, my lord, I am the woman who stood here beside you praying to the Lord. I prayed for this child, and the Lord has granted me what I asked of him. So now I give him to the Lord. For his whole life he will be given over to the Lord." And he worshiped the Lord there. E. 1 Samuel 2:1-11, Then Hannah prayed and said: "My heart rejoices in the Lord; in the Lord my horn is lifted high. My mouth boasts over my enemies, for I delight in your deliverance. There is no one holy like the Lord; there is no one besides you; there is no Rock like our God. Do not keep talking so proudly or let your mouth speak such arrogance, for the Lord is a God who knows, and by him deeds are weighed. The bows of the warriors are broken, but those who stumbled are armed with strength. Those who were full hire themselves out for food, but those who were hungry hunger no more. She who was barren has borne seven children, but she who has had many sons pines away. The Lord brings death and makes alive; he brings down to the grave and raises up. The Lord sends poverty and wealth; he humbles and he exalts.

10 10 He raises the poor from the dust and lifts the needy from the ash heap; he seats them with princes and has them inherit a throne of honor. For the foundations of the earth are the Lord's; upon them he has set the world. He will guard the feet of his saints, but the wicked will be silenced in darkness. It is not by strength that one prevails; those who oppose the Lord will be shattered. He will thunder against them from heaven; the Lord will judge the ends of the earth. He will give strength to his king and exalt the horn of his anointed." Then Elkanah went home to Ramah, but the boy ministered before the Lord under Eli the priest. NIV F. Hannah is used by the psalmist as a typical example of the way the Lord helps the destitute. Application: I. God is to be praised as the supreme one who stoops down from His throne on high to help the needy and poor. A. If He chooses to do so, He can lift high the lowly and cause them to rise to the position of important persons in society. II. Such greatness and goodness reveal the fact that God is worthy of our devotions.

11 11 Questions Psalm 113:1-9 (Questions based on NIV text) 1. " the." 2. ", O of the, the of the. Let the of the be, both and. From the of the to the where it, the of the is to be." 3. "The is over all the, his above the. Who is like the our, the who on, who, down to look on the and the?" 4. "He the from the and the from the ; he them with, with the of their. He the in her as a of."

12 " the." 6. In what ways can Psalm 113 be considered a sequel of Psalm 111 and 112? 7. In Judaism, how are Psalms used on special occasions? 8. Explain the meaning of servants, the name of the Lord, and forevermore as used in verses 1 and God is to be praised, from the to the. God is of. 10. and refers to the,, where the and the might be to remain. By, these

13 13 are with the who. 11. was considered a in is here pictured as causing one who had been to. 12. How are Psalm 113:7-9 and 1 Samuel 1:1-2:11 similar? 13. is to be as the one who down from His on to the and. 14. If He to do so, He can the and them to to the of in. Such and reveal the fact that is of our. 15. How do you praise God? In what other ways can we praise God?

14 14