Tag: hymnbook
The blessed man!
Scripture reading for June 4th: Psalms 1-6
The Book of Psalms was the hymnbook of the Hebrew people and was used in worship and prayer. The word “psalm” denotes a “song sung to the accompaniment of a plucked instrument.” These psalms had at least seven different authors and were written over nearly a thousand years, from the time of Moses to the return from exile in Babylon. David was one of the primary authors and many reflect his own prayers, worship, fears, and desires as he experience the full range of life in all it’s emotional ups and downs!
The first psalm was about a man who was blessed by God. There were several things this man did not do. He didn’t walk in the counsel of the wicked. He also didn’t stand in the way of sinners or sit in the seat of mockers. This man knew what to avoid because he delighted in the law of the Lord! He meditated on that law day and night. From that law he gained understanding of good and evil, righteousness and wickedness.
The man who was blessed was like a tree planted by streams of water. This tree was always bearing fruit and leafy and green because it’s roots were well supplied with moisture and nutrients. Even when it was dry and hot, it was not lacking because of the water supply it was tapped into.
This blessed man was contrasted with the wicked man. The wicked man was pictured as the chaff of the wheat. The wind came and blew it away. Just like the chaff was separated from the wheat by the wind, so the sinner and wicked man would not stand in the time of God’s judgment! They would be separated from the assembly of the righteous and blessed! God would watch over the righteous but would also make sure the wicked perished!
We are to meditate on the Word of God and focus on the living Word, Jesus Christ the Righteous One! Life flows from Him like a stream of water and in Him we find eternal life! God loves to bless those who sit at His feet, stand in His way and walk by faith in His Word!