PRAISE YE THE LORD. (Part 5)
Psalm 147. Verses 10-14 read:
He delighteth not in the strength of the horse: He taketh not pleasure in the legs of a man. The LORD taketh pleasure in them that fear him, in those that hope in his mercy. Praise the LORD, O Jerusalem; Praise thy God, O Zion. For he hath strengthened the bars of thy gates; He hath blessed thy children within thee. He maketh peace in thy borders, and filleth thee with the finest of the wheat.
The reasons for which men ought to praise God are endless. One does not need any effort to see God’s goodness and the works of his hand. It is, therefore, a grievous act of ingratitude for a man not to praise the Lord. The psalmist continues with the chronology of God’s acts of generosity towards men. God is self-sufficient and in an exclusive class. He is the sole creator, and he does not rely on the strength of a horse or the legs of man. Beloved, God operates in the divine realm, far above beasts and humans.
God’s commitment to men is matchless. He delights or has great interest in those who fear him and hope in his mercies. Such men are always at the behest of God. The psalmist calls on Jerusalem, the city of God, and on Zion, the Mount of God, to praise the Lord. Zion symbolises the church of Jesus Christ. Thus, the church of Jesus Christ owes the Almighty God a wealth of praise. The Church is the habitation of God, and praise is the means by which God inhabits his church.
Praise guarantees the protection of the gates or access points of the church of Jesus Christ. It secures it as with bars, making it impenetrable to evil. In the atmosphere of praise, evil and wickedness are judged and condemned. When praise is released, God blesses the children of Zion, makes peace within its borders, and he fills it with the finest of grain. It is to our detriment to stay away from the praise of God. May the church of God take up its duty of letting praise continually fill God’s habitation, that is, the church of Jesus Christ. This guarantees God’s goodness upon God’s covenant people.
SHALOM 🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏