Psalms 125:1-5
A Song of Ascents.
1 Those who trust in the LORD
Are like Mount Zion,
Which cannot be moved, but abides forever.
2 As the mountains surround Jerusalem,
So the LORD surrounds His people
From this time forth and forever.
3 For the scepter of wickedness shall not rest
On the land allotted to the righteous,
Lest the righteous reach out their hands to iniquity.
4 Do good, O LORD, to those who are good,
And to those who are upright in their hearts.
5 As for such as turn aside to their crooked ways,
The LORD shall lead them away
With the workers of iniquity.
Peace be upon Israel!
The LORD God is our strength and peace, the only one we can trust in for life and purpose. By trusting in Him alone, our faith makes our foundation like a massive mountain, unable to be moved by us or any other but God Himself. We abide forever by the faith appropriated to us by the Lord (Ephesians 2:8), not by us. It is impossible for those dead in sin to find such faith to trust all He says absolutely, especially for our deliverance. This is a difficult truth to appropriate, yet His people have found the truth in and by it. The psalmist reminds we who trust in the LORD that He encompasses us as the firm and unmovable mountains ring Jerusalem for protection, a watchcare which never falters or ends for all time. That is the firm and settled trust (1 Peter 5:10) we have in God’s providence and promises according to His word. Evil and wicked intents of those opposed to our Lord will not endure on the promised land in eternity (Revelation 22:15), only those made righteous in Christ (Romans 5:19). This keeps the righteous in fearful awe to follow the words of the Lord, keeping us from pursuing iniquity. The Lord knows His own, and we are commanded to live righteously by His enabling power and wisdom (2 Timothy 2:19, Romans 8:13, Colossians 3:5). Thankfully He looks at the hearts, for our flesh fails us far too often to earn our standing in Christ. Our upright hearts are ones which are aimed in His direction. But if we continue to pursue unrepentant and unrighteous lives in rebellion, we find ourselves with the ungodly in our rewards. Peace is only found in God’s people in obedience of grace as we are called. Why then follow temporal pleasures (Hebrews 11:25, 1 John 2:15-17) instead of doing God’s will according to His word? The Lord is our strength against sin and our peace with God against a certain judgment apart from His work on our behalf. Let us then follow in a worthy manner (Philippians 1:27) to honor and give glory to God with praiseworthy lives with the one who surrounds us with mountainous protection of peace and a salvation which never fades (1 Peter 1:4) away from our forever hope. This is a song we can wholeheartedly and joyfully sing as we ascend to worship Him!
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