PSALM 48 Reading Guide December 1-7, 2013
PSALM 48 2 PSALM 48 1 Great is the LORD and greatly to be praised in the city of our God! His holy mountain, 2 beautiful in elevation, is the joy of all the earth, Mount Zion, in the far north, the city of the great King. 3 Within her citadels God has made himself known as a fortress. 4 For behold, the kings assembled; they came on together. 5 As soon as they saw it, they were astounded; they were in panic; they took to flight. 6 Trembling took hold of them there, anguish as of a woman in labor. 7 By the east wind you shattered the ships of Tarshish. 8 As we have heard, so have we seen in the city of the LORD of hosts, in the city of our God, which God will establish forever. Selah 9 We have thought on your steadfast love, O God, in the midst of your temple. 10 As your name, O God, so your praise reaches to the ends of the earth. Your right hand is filled with righteousness. 11 Let Mount Zion be glad! Let the daughters of Judah rejoice because of your judgments! 12 Walk about Zion, go around her, number her towers, 13 consider well her ramparts, go through her citadels, that you may tell the next generation 14 that this is God, our God forever and ever. He will guide us forever.
PSALM 48 3 DAY 1 Read through Psalm 48 once writing down what you find interesting, what you find helpful, and what you don t fully understand. Psalm 48 is, according to the introductory notes in the ESV Study Bible*, a hymn celebrating Zion as God s special city, which he defends for the sake of the world... it recognizes that though material fortresses may have their place, it is crucial that God himself be the defense of his people. John Newton wrote a similar hymn celebrating God s city titled Glorious Things of Thee are Spoken. Glorious things of thee are spoken, Zion, city of our God; He whose word cannot be broken Formed thee for his own abode: On the Rock of Ages founded, What can shake thy sure repose? With salvation's walls surrounded, Thou may st smile at all thy foes. See the streams of living waters, Springing from eternal love, Well supply thy sons and daughters, And all fear of want remove; Who can faint, while such a river Ever flows their thirst t assuage? Grace which, like the Lord, the giver, Never fails from age to age. Savior, if of Zion's city I, through grace, a member am, Let the world deride or pity, I will glory in thy Name: Fading is the worldling s pleasure, All his boasted pomp and show; Solid joys and lasting treasure None but Zion's children know. Read through the notes on Psalm 48 in the ESV Study Bible. Write at least one paragraph highlighting what you learned from the study notes. Reread Psalm 48, personalizing the Psalm as your own prayer. Write out that prayer.
PSALM 48 4 DAY 2 Read Psalm 48 again. In verse 3 the Psalmist writes of Jerusalem s protection: Within her citadels God has made himself known as a fortress. In this verse, the Psalmist highlights the means of Jerusalem s protection: Both the physical and the divine. This is not unique to Jerusalem. As commentator Derek Kidner wrote, There is the same mingling of mundane precautions and miraculous help as in the church s experience. 1 Think through the situation at your church. Where do you see help coming as a mix of mundane precautions and miraculous help? Write about one or two specific ways you see God protecting his church using seemingly mundane precautions. Spend some time thanking Jesus for the continued protection he provides to his church. DAY 3 Read Psalm 48 again. In verses 4-8 the Psalmist describes the situation that caused the Psalmist to write Psalm 48. Read verses 4-8 again and write a few sentences describing what happened. Contrast the response of pagan kings to God s city (verses 4-7) with the response of God s people to God s city (verses 8-11). Write a few sentences explaining what accounts for the difference. As a result of God s defense of his people and his city, God s people looked at the things in their city that represented their protection and strength (verses 12-13) and said, This is God (verse 14). Think about your life. Write down some of the things you rely on to give you protection and power. Write down the things in your life that make you feel secure. Write down the reasons you look to those things for protection, power, and security. If they ve provided you protection, power, and security, write down the ways they ve done that. Do you look at those things and think, This is God? Why or why not? Write out a prayer to God. If you need to, spend some time confessing that you look to other things to provide the power, protection, and security that he promises to give you. Also, thank him for the ways he has protected and provided for you. Be specific in your prayer. Remembering what God has done in the past helps build our faith to ask him to act in the present. We see this in verse 14: He will guide us forever. Think about a specific way you need God to act this week. Remembering what he s done in the past and what he s promised to do in the future, ask him to specifically act in the midst of your present situation. 1 D. Kidner, Psalms 1-72. Downers Grove, IL: Inter-Varsity Press, 1973: p. 179.
PSALM 48 5 DAY 4 Read Psalm 48 again, especially verses 12-14. God s people are encouraged to walk around Jerusalem, noting their reason for confidence and rest (verses 12-13) and instead of taking credit for what they ve built, give credit to God for what he has and will do. God shows them what he does so that they may tell the next generation that this is God, our God forever and ever. He will guide us forever (verses 13-14). Think of ways God has worked in your life. Think of ways you ve seen him work in your church. Who can you tell about the specific ways that God has worked in your life and your church? If you have children, plan on telling them. If you don t, think of someone that needs to know that God will take care of his people forever. Spend some time in prayer, asking God to help you share what he s done for you and your church with them. DAY 5 Read through Psalm 48 twice. Write out at least two paragraphs reflecting on what you ve learned about God, yourself, and others from Psalm 48. Write out at least one thing you hope to apply to your life from Psalm 48. Spend at least 15 minutes sharing what you wrote with a trusted friend or family member. If they read Psalm 48 this week, ask them to do the same. End your time in prayer, thanking God for what he taught you this week. * Purchasing an ESV Study Bible (Wheaton, Ill.: Crossway Bibles, 2008.) will aid you in your understanding of the Psalms. The first day s reading each week assumes you will have access to the notes in the ESV Study Bible. The ESV Study Bible is the most comprehensive study Bible ever published. It will help you understand not just the Psalms, but also the rest of the Bible in a deeper way. You can either buy the Bible (amazon.com, search: ESV Study Bible) or purchase online access to the notes at www.esvbible.org.
PSALM 48 6 Scripture quotations are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version (ESV ), copyright 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved. 2013 Elliot Grudem.