Praise for the Creator and Sustainer of All

Psalms 33:1-22 

1 Rejoice in the LORD, O you righteous!
For praise from the upright is beautiful.
2 Praise the LORD with the harp;
Make melody to Him with an instrument of ten strings.
3 Sing to Him a new song;
Play skillfully with a shout of joy.

4 For the word of the LORD is right,
And all His work is done in truth.
5 He loves righteousness and justice;
The earth is full of the goodness of the LORD.

6 By the word of the LORD the heavens were made,
And all the host of them by the breath of His mouth.
7 He gathers the waters of the sea together as a heap;
He lays up the deep in storehouses.

8 Let all the earth fear the LORD;
Let all the inhabitants of the world stand in awe of Him.
9 For He spoke, and it was done;
He commanded, and it stood fast.

10 The LORD brings the counsel of the nations to nothing;
He makes the plans of the peoples of no effect.
11 The counsel of the LORD stands forever,
The plans of His heart to all generations.

12 Blessed is the nation whose God is the LORD,
The people He has chosen as His own inheritance.
13 The LORD looks from heaven;
He sees all the sons of men.

14 From the place of His dwelling He looks
On all the inhabitants of the earth;
15 He fashions their hearts individually;
He considers all their works.

16 No king is saved by the multitude of an army;
A mighty man is not delivered by great strength.
17 A horse is a vain hope for safety;
Neither shall it deliver any by its great strength.

18 Behold, the eye of the LORD is on those who fear Him,
On those who hope in His mercy,
19 To deliver their soul from death,
And to keep them alive in famine.

20 Our soul waits for the LORD;
He is our help and our shield.
21 For our heart shall rejoice in Him,
Because we have trusted in His holy name.

22 Let Your mercy, O LORD, be upon us,
Just as we hope in You.

This is a song of praise for the Creator and Sustainer of all creation.  First of all, praise must come from those who are upright or righteous to be acceptable and even beautiful to the Lord or God.  David knew this and pursued knowing and following the LORD in all things, even to his own detriment in the eyes of others around him.  He was truly a man after God’s heart and one who was after God’s heart.  He expressed this praise in song and instrument, skillfully and with loud joyful singing.  The song he sung was new, expressing ongoing praise and not just rote songs over and over; he sung praises from his life as he walked through life.  This is evident throughout the psalms.  Our praise should likewise come from an active and growing faith as our sanctification is exhibited in the working out of our salvation by doing what God prepared for us to do (Philippians 2:10-12, Ephesians 2:10).  God’s work is based on truth, and His word is that truth of righteousness.  His character which we praise is based on what we learn from that word of truth, the goodness of His justice and righteousness as verses 4-5 remind us.  He is fair and pure, and merciful in grace we do not deserve!  This is praiseworthy.  God created everything in the universe by His word (John 1:3, Colossians 1:16), the living Word who is Jesus Christ our Lord.  Each one of us has life by His breath breathed into us by that breath of His word (2 Timothy 3:16), and each wave of the ocean moves by His command.  These things should inspire fearful awe to realize how He simply spoke things into existence by His word (Revelation 4:11).  His counsel, God’s predetermined plans, shape nations rise and fall, and He controls all history over every plan of man to the contrary.  This is His sovereignty over all generations.  Therefore, those whom He chooses, whether a nation or individuals, these He blesses as His inheritance as He looks down from His throne on His beloved creation.  Verse 15 reminds us that He makes each of us unique with plans for what we are to accomplish (Ephesians 2:10), yet also holds us accountable for how we do those things; He looks at our hearts which He made for our faith in willing obedience out of fearful awe and love.  The whole counsel of God demands we do not leave out either the fear or the love, for together they are our reasonable service of worship (Romans 12:1).  All we do then is according to His word and by His strength, never our own, for He alone delivers us from just wrath on our sin (1 Thessalonians 1:10).  We cannot find enough strength in ourselves to do this.  We hope in His mercy and grace to deliver us (2 Corinthians 1:10), now and into eternity into His very presence.  David sang of how he and we then must patiently trust God to help and protect us with joy-filled hearts by faith in the one who is who He is.   Because of this certain hope (Hebrews 6:19) we find His mercy.  That hope itself is worthy of our praise; may our lives sing it loudly!