Category Archives: Psalms
God Has Been Faithful; Shall We Not Try?
“And He gave to them the lands of the peoples,
The toil of the peoples they possess.
So that they might keep His statutes and watch over His Laws.
Hallelujah!
(Psalm 105:44-45)
The Westminster Shorter Catechism begins with the question as to what our purpose is as human beings. The answer succinctly sets before us two things: “to glorify God” and “to enjoy Him forever.” Yet, how are we to glorify God? Do we glorify God by doing our jobs and making lots of money? Do we glorify God by attending churches that best match our preferences or that suits our sensibilities? Do we glorify God by “living our best life now?” This is an important question to ask, for how can we enjoy Him forever if we do not glorify Him in the here and now?
The Catechism continues by pointing out that it is the Word of God that instructs us how to glorify and enjoy God and that the scriptures teach not only what we are to believe about God, but as to what God commands of us? But, does that mean that the Scriptures give us a kind of smattering of good ideas and good principles? No, the Scriptures are filled with God’s Law for mankind. And, as we close this psalm, we see David, our inspired psalmist, speaking these words…God gave the land to the people (as he had promised Abraham in Genesis 12&15) for a purpose. What is that purpose? To obey God’s Laws.
Probably one of the hardest things for Christians in our age to understand is that God expects our obedience. We do not earn salvation by that obedience, but we do show our gratitude to God by our obedience. We are to live by God’s moral standards. We are to call things evil that God calls evil and we are to love those things that God loves and calls lovely. We are to worship in the manner that God teaches us to worship and we are to sing the songs, hymns, and psalms that He has given us in His Word. Shall we not learn the 150 psalms of the psalter before we learn any other? We shall seek out those sheep and prodigals who have gone astray, we are to tear down every “high place” that the world would set up for its own glory, and we are to take every thought captive to the Word of God…not to the word of men.
Folks, while the Westminster Shorter Catechism begins with the question of our purpose on earth, the older Heidelberg Catechism begins with a question about our only comfort. What is the heart of that comfort? It is that we are “not our own but belong body and soul to our faithful Savior, Jesus Christ.” If we are not our own, why do we think we have a choice when it comes to the manner of life we live, the way we worship, or the way we interact with the world around us? No, we are not our own, we have been bought with a price and Jesus has paid that price. When will the church wake up and start living like it? God has been faithful; shall we not also be faithful? Shall we not try?
The Celebration of Judgment
“He led out His people with jubilation;
With a shout of triumph His chosen ones.”
(Psalm 105:43)
Arguably, what comes to mind with these words is the worship of God’s people at the bank of the Red Sea and as they continue through the wilderness toward the promised land. One of the things that is striking is that not only do the people worship as the Egyptians are destroyed by the waters of the Red Sea, the people of Israel worship again with the fall of Jericho. It may seem logical to see the worship of God’s people on the way out of Egypt and again on the way into Canaan, but what is striking is that in both cases, the people celebrate in worship at the destruction of God’s enemies.
Sadly, this is something that tends to be lacking within our churches today. We often fear praying for God’s wrath against the wicked who oppress us. And, then, when he brings His wrath against them, we shudder and we do not celebrate. While it is right to shudder at the hand of God against His enemies, it is also right to sing praise to Him for their downfall. This is a part of the purpose of the imprecatory psalms. Yes, these psalms were prayed by God’s people in private and dark places, but they were also sung by God’s people in public and communal contexts. We should too.
It is bad enough that many churches would never dream of singing God’s words back to him, but the majority of those who do shy away from what one commentator calls “the war psalms of God.” Yet, the scriptural testimony (which must always be the standard toward which we strive) is that these were sung and sung boldly.
There is one additional element that comes out from the text. Historically, we recognize the worship of God’s people did take place as this verse describes, but grammatically, these words also seem to point us back to God, that God brought His people out and shouted in triumph over His enemies. The simple point is that God is not apologetic about destroying the wicked. He is not apologetic in the here and now and He will not be apologetic in final judgment. His wrath will be poured out on His enemies as He casts them into the fiery pit and the elect that He has redeemed will sing praises in joy at this time as well. As a dear friend once said to a family member, “If you don’t repent, there will come a day when you will find yourself being cast into the pits of Hell and in that day I will praise Jesus for doing it.” It is strong language, but it is the Biblical witness. Jesus’ death was meant to save God’s chosen ones without exception, not all people without exception. And God’s will will be done.
Our Source of Hope – God’s Remembrance
“For He remembered His holy word
To Abraham His servant.”
(Psalm 105:42)
We return to the theme of remembrance. In verse 5, God’s people are called upon to remember the faithful things that God has done; now, we are reminded that God remembers his holy Word to Abraham. In a world where people like to present God as changing and unpredictable, the Scriptures remind us over and over again that God is unchanging, and because God is unchanging, we have hope. Furthermore, because God is unchanging, He is worthy of our worship, for He will lose none of His elect ones through the ages. Indeed, God is resolute in His promises and in that we can find great hope for the future.
Many translations will make an inference here and translate אֶת־דּבַר קָדְשׁוֹ (eth-dabar qadesho) as “His holy promise” instead of “His holy word.” The inference is a natural one because all of God’s Word is given as truth and a promise. In particular, they are looking toward the covenant promise that was given to Abraham and fulfilled as the people entered Canaan (of which the psalmist speaks). That said, it is worth reminding ourselves that the promise of God that is connected to the covenant is not the only aspect of His Word that “God remembers.” No, it is the totality of all He has spoken that stands unwaveringly before God as a neon-sign in the heavens declaring what God has done and what God has yet to do. This is part of God’s eternal Counsel (think Ephesians 1:11) and nothing can shake it. What God has said will come to pass for the joy of the believer and to the dread of the reprobate. What God has said, God will do. Not one “jot or tittle” will ever be lost or forgotten. And once again, in that, we can take hope.
Watered in the Wilderness
“He opened a rock and water flowed out;
They traveled through dry places like a river.”
(Psalm 105:41)
Here we once again have a reminder of God’s provision, not just with manna, but also with water. Most likely this is a reference to the waters of Rephidim (Exodus 17:6), but some also suggest Kadesh (Numbers 20:11). This, of course, also points us toward Christ’s eternal redemption of His people, for the rock was symbolic of Christ (1 Corinthians 10:4).
What is interesting is the contrast that is established here between the wilderness wanderings of Israel and the fulfillment in the Promised Land and the wilderness wanderings of the church as we anticipate the fulfillment in the greater promised land…the new heavens and earth. While God certainly provides for our needs while on earth, provision in abundance is not something we should expect in the here and now (hence the error of the prosperity preachers). In the church age, we pray for our daily bread. In the land to come, Isaiah speaks in this manner:
“The Lord of Hosts will make for every people
On this mountain
A feast of fat and a feast of wine dregs
Fat full of marrow and refined wine dregs.”
(Isaiah 25:6)
The richness of God is to come for God’s elect from every tribe and nation. For now, we still travel through the wilderness with our daily provision from God. We await a better kingdom to come.
Provision
“They asked and he brought quail;
He satisfied them with bread from Heaven.”
(Psalm 105:40)
“Asked” is perhaps the polite way of putting it. The people whined and complained. Yet, how often God humors us in our whining and complaining. It is not that food was unnecessary to the people of Israel during their wilderness wanderings. Indeed, it was essential. Yet, God knows our feeble frames; he made us and knows what we need (Matthew 6:8), he provides for the creatures of the earth (Matthew 6:26), will he also not provide for you? Indeed, He will.
So, why do we fret our days away, worrying about things over which we have little or no control? Why to we lay awake at night fretting about the day to come? Why do our prayers so often sound like complaints rather than “Draw me close to you, Lord”? The simple answer is that we often doubt what we cannot see. So, like Israel complaining about not having meat and wondering what the stuff God provided on the ground happened to be, מן (man — translates as “manna”) means “What is it?,” and then complained because they had too much of it, so we do much the same. Yet, we should follow Jesus’ model, asking for our daily provision and learning to be satisfied with it.
Perhaps think about it from a different perspective. The Bible describes us as servants and slaves of God. A good master provides for his servants and a bad master leaves them alone to fend for themselves. God is a good master, so why do we feel entitled to complain about His provision? I believe that if most Christians looked over their lives, they would see God’s hand at work bringing provision and sustaining them through trial. Perhaps, if we remember this, it will help us avoid all the whining and complaining that often comes from our mouths in prayer.
Shekinah Glory
“He spread a cloud as a screen
And fire illuminated the night.”
(Psalm 105:39)
Here we see the Glory Cloud of God being described in the psalm. It is a veil by day and a veil illuminated by fire by night to provide light. This is often referred to as the “Shekinah Glory of God, which simply means, “The Glory of Yahweh dwelling with us.” It is a symbol of His presence and it stood before the people as a sign of His protection and guidance. Importantly, in the New Testament, such language is applied to Jesus (John 1:14).
Another thing worth noting is that the term that is used to refer to the cloud’s covering over the people is מסך (masak), which is most commonly used to refer to the screen that was placed at the entrance to the Holy Place (see Exodus 26:36; 35:15; 36:37; 39:38; Numbers 3:25, etc.). What is the significance of this? The earthy tabernacle was meant to be a shadow of the eternal tabernacle (Hebrews 8:5) and thus the screen to the Holy Place and the curtain to the Holy of Holies were meant as barriers that blocked people from coming into the presence of God without a sacrifice. Indeed, this cloud did much the same. By becoming the eternal sacrifice, Christ tore down this barrier. So, just as the screen obscured the view of the interworking of the Tabernacle from the outside observer, the cloud obscured the view of God from those who would view from the outside. The veil was torn (Luke 23:45).
Destroying Dedun and the Egypt
“Then He led them out with silver and gold,
And no one in His tribes staggered.
Egypt rejoiced when they left
Because terror had fallen on them.”
(Psalm 105:37-38)
Here we find the account of the plundering of Egypt. The Israelites went to their former masters and asked for things of wealth. This was given to them not because the Egyptians were generous, but because the Egyptians feared the power of the God of Israel. The term translated here as “terror” is פחד (pachad), which means to tremble and shake so greatly due to the fear and dread you have. Egypt was living through a nightmare as God brought them low in bringing his people out of Egypt.
There is an interesting clause in the first verse. The psalmist states that none of the tribes “staggered” or “stumbled” as they went out. The term used in that verse is כּשׁל (kashal), which refers to stumbling under a great burden of weight. The simplest reading is that the Israelites were given wealth and they were strong enough to carry it all out of the land. Yet, I think that there is also a note of irony being used here. While in slavery, the Israelites stumbled under the yoke of Egypt. In their deliverance, they no longer stumbled or staggered under Egypt’s yoke. The phrase seems to anticipate the words of our Lord when He says,
“Take up my yoke upon you and learn from me,
For I am gentle and humble of heart
And you will find rest for your souls.
For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.”
(Matthew 11:29-30)
In the case of Jesus’ statement, you will notice that He is not saying that yokes shall be broken and cast aside. He is saying that His yoke is a better yoke to bear than the yoke of the oppressors of our world. Why is Jesus’ yoke easy? It is because Jesus is a benevolent master. Why is His burden light? It is because He frees our souls from such oppressive masters as the world imposes upon us. It is good because the masters that this world will provide have a habit of crushing you under their boot. Jesus, as Master, gives life and life abundantly.
Too often, professing Christians behave as if they are their own masters. That is certainly not the case. Jesus says that the nature of taking on His yoke is that we learn from Him. If you are not learning from Christ, through His Word, you are not a disciple (for a disciple is a student) and you are most certainly not under Christ’s yoke. Further, a student not only learns facts given by his teacher, but they put those facts into application in life. Whenever I have taught students, I have consistently told them that success in the classroom is not about whether you can earn an “A” on an exam. Success is whether you are living out the principles you have been taught even when you lie down to die.
Another question that sometimes gets asked is whether it is proper to take wealth from pagans. Shouldn’t we only accept benevolence from those who share our faith? This was certainly not the case with the Israelites coming out of Egypt. They were happy to pillage the wealth of Egypt and then repurpose it for Holy things as they traveled to the Promised Land. Nehemiah gladly accepted pagan wealth to fund the rebuilding of the Temple in Jerusalem. Jesus’ parents arguably used the pagan wealth of the Magi to fund their flight to Egypt to protect the Christ child from Herod. Examples abound. If a pagan wishes to give money to a Christian cause, we should welcome it with thanksgiving to God so long as the pagan is not seeking to make us beholden to him.
Why did Egypt rejoice when Israel left? The plagues ended. God removed His people (and thus His influence) from their land. In doing so, God left Egypt devoid of wealth and power, and left them to their wicked idolatry, which eventually destroyed them. Remember, though the presence of God may seem a hard thing if you are trying to justify sin, when God removes His hand of restraint, that sin will consume and destroy a people. This, we are seeing in the western world as we collapse into paganism, idolatry, and the permitting of all sorts of moral evils: homosexuality, pedophilia, adultery, vulgarity, and irrationality. While many of us still pray for revival here in America, it looks like we are on a trajectory for final judgment as a nation. Today, the western world is much more like Egypt than faithful Israel. Dedun was the god of wealth in the Egyptian pantheon…and he seems to be the god that many Americans bow down to today.
Destroying Pharaoh
“And He smote all the firstborn in the land,
The first of their generative power.”
(Psalm 105:36)
On a human level, the tenth plague was certainly the most devastating. We are told that when this took place, there was a great cry across the land of Egypt (Exodus 12:30). The term used in the Hebrew text is צְעָקָה (ts’aqah) which refers to loud yelling and screaming in despair. How the sound of that must have echoed through the land; how eerie it must have been to listen to that as an Israelite who had been delivered.
While this was a judgment against goddesses like Hathor and Isis (both goddesses of motherhood) or Best (the god of children) in the Egyptian cult, but also the various gods and goddesses of the underworld (there are quite a few in the Egyptian pantheon). God is the God over life and death, not the household deities that the Egyptians worshiped. In addition, this was a curse against Pharaoh himself. Pharaoh was seen as the embodiment of Amun-Re and thus, Pharaoh’s firstborn was also treated like a god. He too was struck down by the God of Israel, who made the heavens and the earth.
There is another aspect to this curse that must not be missed. It is a picture — perhaps a small taste — of the final judgment where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth by those who are cast away from the eternal blessedness of God and left under His eternal wrath. There will be shouting and crying and that sound should be a reminder of the blessedness of the Redeemed. Woe to the one who stands against the Almighty God for their only end will be the most intense sorrow that can ever be conceived. And beloved, this judgment is not harsh, though we often think it sounds harsh. No, it is just and it is the rightful judgment for the sin that has been committed. Our problem is that we don’t take our sin as seriously as we ought and (for the believer) we don’t appreciate the grace of God as we ought. When it comes to our redemption, we did not do it nor do we deserve it. Praise be to God that He has done it and has applied it to us as He brings all of His elect to salvation.
Destroying Seth and the False Church
“He spoke, and the locusts came,
Creeping locusts that could not be numbered.
And they ate all the plants in the land
And they ate all the fruit of the ground.”
(Psalm. 105:34-35)
Word choice is always an interesting thing to pay attention to when reading through the psalms. In the first mention of locusts, the term אַרְבֶּה (arbah — migratory locusts) is used. This is what we find in the account of the eighth plague in Exodus 10:4-19 (and a judgment against Seth, the god of the deserts, from which the locust came). In the parallel use in the second clause of verse 34, the term יֶלֶק (yeleq) is used instead. While synonyms are regularly used to reduce redundancy in poetic works, what is interesting about this word choice is that the only other place that יֶלֶק (yeleq) is used is in the prophetic works and it is used to speak about God’s judgment on the people. Certainly, the choice fits the context as David reflects back on the events of the Ten Plagues. These creatures were not only a means to torment the people of Egypt, simply giving Moses leverage to change the Pharaoh’s mind; they were acts of judgment against the Egyptian people for being idolaters.
Sometimes people read the account of the Ten Plagues as a simply a means of God trying to persuade the Egyptian king, making things worse and worse in an incremental manner. But that is not how the Bible presents these plagues. They are not a matter of God hoping that just a little more pain and suffering will bring release to Israel. This is a matter of God bringing His wrath upon a wicked people — wrath that He has ordained that they receive in full measure. This is one of the reasons that we find the words, “God hardened Pharaoh’s heart” several times in the Exodus account. As Peter writes, God knows how to deliver His own while keeping the wicked under judgment.
Often, people in evangelical Christian circles speak about praying for our nation’s repentance. And, it is good and right to pray for such things. At the same time, I wonder sometimes whether or not we are at a point in our country where the full measure of God’s wrath is about to be poured out. Much the same can be said for what “passes” as the Christian church in the western world. God has blessed our world with prosperity and a voice that has opened wide the gates of missionary activity. With that, though, has come the propagation of false truths and false worship — often even of worship that is fueled by worldly things rather than by the Word of God. God has withheld his hand, perhaps in deference to the remnant of True Churches in our land…but the times remind me much of God’s conversation with Abraham…”If I find fifty, if I find forty-five, forty, thirty, twenty, ten…. The number of True Churches grows smaller and smaller every day it would seem.
What, you ask, are the marks of a true church? The Belgic Confession does a nice job of summarizing the Bible’s teaching on this matter. First, a true church is one where the pure doctrine of the Gospel is preached. This means that there is no mixture of Biblical and humanistic or Biblical and non-Christian being taught. What the Bible plainly teaches, this church plainly preaches without compromise or apology. Where the Bible teaches on creation in six-ordinary days, creation in six days is taught. Where the Bible teaches on election and the sovereignty of God over all things, well, this is what is taught. Where the Bible teaches on God’s hatred toward wicked men, God’s hatred toward wicked men is taught and practiced. Where the Bible teaches on the elements of worship (prayer, preaching, Bible reading, singing psalms, listening to the preaching, and proper sacraments, etc…) these things are taught and only these things are practiced.
Secondly, the True Church practices the Sacraments as Christ has instituted them. It leaves the sacraments as two: Baptism and Holy Communion. It does not add a sacrament or subtract from the sacraments. It recognizes those sacraments as Christ has presented them — as signs and seals that must be joined to saving faith to become effective. It does not make the sacraments idolatrous or something to adore. They are signs. And when it comes to the Lord’s Table, where there is no faith, the sacraments are fenced. Thirdly, discipline is practiced for the purpose of chastening sin. The true church takes sin and repentance seriously. It does not treat some sin more softly than other sins. It has the integrity of a body that cares about righteous living and desires to live under the authority of the Word of God in every area. It desires to live by God’s Law and not by the laws of men and practice follows principle.
In all things, these marks can be summarized by the recognition that the church does not belong to the members or to the denomination. The church belongs to Christ. He is its King and Bridegroom and just as a wife is to submit to her husband’s authority, so too, the church is to submit to Christ’s authority. Part of disciple-making, Jesus teaches, is teaching people to obey everything that Christ has taught us — that “Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven” would be the heart’s cry of the Church. Find a church that takes these things seriously and without compromise and you have found a true church. Yet, finding such a church is getting harder and harder.
Solomon writes in Proverbs 31 that an excellent wife is a rare thing to find. Let us, as the church, strive to be that excellent wife to our Bridegroom and King, Jesus Christ, lest we find ourselves consumed by judgment that God is bringing into our land.
Destroying Tefnut and Shu
“He gave them rain showers of hailstones,
And flames of fire in their land.
He smote their vines and their figs
And he smashed into fragments
The trees within their borders.”
(Psalm 105:32-33)
We now arrive at the seventh plague — that of hail and fire. If you live in a part of the world where large hail is common, you know just how damaging that hail can be. In this case, the text describes the trees as being shattered into splinters or fragments. What the Psalmist does not record is that the remaining livestock and the people who remained in the field were also killed by these great falling hailstones (Exodus 9:19). As such, the economy of Egypt was decimated (except for the wheat, which was late to come up – Exodus 9:32), yet again, God preserved his people in Goshen (Exodus 9:26).
What is the purpose of such violence against Egypt? They are idolaters, most certainly, and deserve such judgment. They have wickedly oppressed God’s people. Yet, Moses preserves the ultimate reason for this violence — a reason that the Apostle Paul applies to all of the reprobate; God is doing this to show his mighty power that it may be proclaimed throughout the earth (Exodus 9:16; Romans 9:22-23).
In the Egyptian pantheon, they recognized Tefnut and Shuas twins who ruled the moisture (rain) and air, respectively. Here, God demonstrates that these false gods are unable to stop Him from raining down terror by controlling their domains. Once again, the pagan gods are demonstrated as being inept and impotent when faced with the God of the Bible.
Destroying Geb and Nut
“He spoke and there came swarms,
Gnats in all their boundaries.”
(Psalm 105:31)
Some would suggest that this is simply a reference to the third plague, that of gnats (KJV renders this as lice) throughout the land. Yet, the term עָרֹב (arob) is used to refer to the plague of flies that arrived in the land (fourth plague — see Exodus 8:17) and not to refer to the previous plague. So, here, there are two plagues brought together by the psalmist. Swarms of nuisance insects, first in the form of gnats and then in the form of flies. Yet, with the flies, these creatures only infested the lands of Pharaoh and not the lands where the Israelites dwelt (Exodus 8:22).
In the Egyptian pantheon, Geb (god of the earth) was the husband of Nut (goddess of the air). Interestingly, these plagues are thus joined. The third plague (gnats or lice) begins as Moses throws the dust of the earth (that which is supposed to be controlled by Geb) into the air (the realm of Nut) and it becomes pestilence. Then, from the air (Nut) come flies (swarming nuisance insects) by the command of God. Both of these plagues follow the death of Heqet’s frogs, creatures designed to keep such pests at a tolerable level.
Once again, we find the God of the Bible demonstrating that He has power over the gods and goddesses that the people of Egypt worshiped. In the account of the ten plagues, here would be where the “missing two” plagues would fall. The plague of the death of the livestock (fifth plague) and that of the boils (sixth plague). Since there are no Egyptian deities associated directly with these two plagues, it may be assumed that the psalmist is simply omitting them because his focus is on the idolatry of the Egyptians.
Some would suggest that these are indirect plagues against Hathor and Isis, goddesses that were protectors of the people and their property. Yet, one could argue that every plague is directed at those gods and goddesses who were to be protectors of the people. Another option, might be to argue that the fifth and sixth plagues are plagues that arose out of the third and fourth plagues. For instance, swarms of flies can be very detrimental to a herd of cattle, biting them, sucking their blood, and infecting them with disease. Similarly, if the King James translators are correct that כֵּן (ken) should be translated as “lice,” then the boils could be a result of the sores and sickness that might be described as boils (remember, lice too, can carry infectious disease). Thus, it could be speculated that the sixth plague could be a byproduct of the third plague and the fifth plague a byproduct of the fourth plague. While speculative, it would offer an explanation as to their absence.
Destroying Heqet and Sobek
“The land crept with frogs
In the rooms of their kings.”
(Psalm 105:30)
We find ourselves with a retelling of the second of the Ten Plagues and the language used is much the same as what we find in the Exodus account. Sometimes people speculate as to the purpose of the second phrase about the chambers of the kings. The word used here is הדר (hadar), which is a generic word that refers to any sort of room or private chamber. This may simply reflect the extent to which these frogs were swarming the land, demonstrating that even the king (or kings — leaders) were incapable of escaping the presence of these creatures. Another option is a little more tongue and cheek, recognizing that the purpose of some of this language is designed to show the extent to which God humiliates his enemies. In this case, הדר (hadar) could be understood to be the inner chamber where the king would relieve himself privately (see a parallel in Judges 3:24) — the Pharaoh cannot even go to the bathroom in peace.
There is some discussion as to which Egyptian god this plague is directed against. On one side, Heqet was the goddess of frogs (depicted with a frog’s head). She was the goddess of fertility and birth, which is a good thing when controlled, but when fertility runs amok (too many frogs!), it certainly can be detrimental. The other option we have is Sobek, the Egyptian god of crocodiles. He was associated with fertility (as so many pagan gods are), but also was a god of chaos. The reason that Sobek is significant here is that it was his job (or the job of the crocodiles) to keep the frogs of the Nile under control. Thus, with God putting Sobek under his thumb of judgment, the frogs became a nuance in the land. A third option is that this is a judgment against both of the Egyptian false gods, with Yahweh demonstrating his power over both.
In either case, God continues to use what the Egyptians bow down to in such a way that He humiliates them. How similar this is to Paul’s language in Romans 1, that God uses the sin of those who do not honor His name to bring judgment upon them. Food for thought in our Neo-pagan culture.
Destroying Khnum
“He turned their waters into blood
And he caused their fish to die.”
(Psalm 105:29)
Much as we saw in the previous verse, God is taking apart those things that the people of Egypt worshipped. The Nile River always has been the source of life for Egypt; in the plague, God turned it into a source of death. Not only can blood not sustain fishwife, it also cannot water crops or provide water for the people. And this plague, the first of the ten, affected not just the Nile, but all water in the land of Egypt.
The Egyptian god Khnum was the god of the Nile, of water, and of procreation. And, as we saw with Amun-Ra, their false gods cannot resist the power of the Almighty God of the universe. As we have noted, God is bringing low those gods that were served in Egypt — remember, this is a demonstration of power not just to the Egyptians, but to the Israelites who had fallen into the idolatry of the people around them (Joshua 24:14).
Even today, our human hearts have a bent toward idolatry. We lean toward it and subtly permit elements of it in our lives — sometimes it is not so subtle! Worse yet, we often incorporate it into our worship. This goes beyond the icons of Eastern Orthodoxy or the idols of the Roman church. In fact, anytime we incorporate things in worship apart from what God has explicitly commanded, we have embraced a form of idolatry. Whether this be images of Jesus that we scatter around our churches or homes, choosing to sing humanistic songs, importing art and drama into the service, or just simply engaging in things that manipulate the minds and hearts of the participants to a certain end. It is idolatry because it is not trusting God to lay out in His Word how we are to worship. And God will bring idolatry low, even today. We may not see chalices of water turn into blood, but He will bring the downfall of those who do not honor Him in all things.
Destroying Amun-Ra
“He sent darkness and made the land dark;
They were not rebellious to His Word.”
(Psalm 105:28)
In verses 28-36, we find a retelling of the account of the Ten Plagues brought on Egypt. What is striking about this list is twofold. First, they are not listed in order and second, two of the plagues are absent (the 5th and 6th plagues). Given the detail of this psalm, the omission stands out and given the orderly nature of the account, beginning with the covenant God made with Abraham, again, it seems to be odd that the order has been rearranged. Further, as this psalm contains 48 verses, brevity hardly seems to provide an answer to these questions. What adds to the question is that Psalm 78, which also records the events of the To Plagues, records a different listing, that time, only seven.
Answers abound amongst the commentators. Many see the Exodus account as a redacted body of ancient texts, seeking to offer a composite account of the Exodus. The obvious problem with that reading is twofold. First, it makes the Exodus deliverance more of a folktale and not a historical account. Second, neither Psalm 78 nor Psalm 105 contain the language of the boils…so where did it come from if not from a these psalms? Arguably, then, the answer to these questions must rest within the text, which we will explore across these next verses.
Another point of interest is found here in verse 28. What does it mean that the people did not rebel against God’s Word when he sent the plague of darkness. Curiously, the Septuagint, when translating the Hebrew into Greek, deletes the word “not” and simply states that they “rebelled” against God’s Word. Surely, this cannot refer to the Egyptians, who did not submit to releasing the Israelites until after the 10th plague. So, of whom can it refer? The best answer seems to be that it refers to Moses and Aaron, the subject of the previous verses. They performed the signs of His Word (as verse 27 records) and thus, they did not rebel against His Word. While this might seem to be an odd reading as we look at the chronology of the Exodus event, as we see the chronology of Psalm 105, it makes good and logical sense that Moses and Aaron did not recoil from issuing plagues of judgment against Egypt (yet, how often we shirk from pronouncing judgments against the wicked of our land!).
So, why begin with the ninth plague? Here, we speculate, but it is worth noting that the king of the Egyptian pantheon was Amun-Ra, the god of light. Given that each of the plagues were uttered against the various things that the Egyptians worshipped, it makes sense to see the psalmist begin with this and then end the account with the death of the Pharaoh’s son, the one considered the embodiment of their god. And thus, the false gods fall before the wrath of the one True God.
Miracles in Ham
“They established before them the Word of His signs,
Wonders in the land of Ham.”
(Psalm 105:27)
We have already noted the reference to Egypt as a portion of the land that was given to the sons of Ham (see verse 23 above). Once again, the psalmist uses this ancient reference to break of the language (and perhaps to add a certain degree of consonance with the first clause in this verse). We will not dwell on the specific miracles performed just yet, as the psalmist will do so in the following verses. It should be noted, though, that these miracles are referred to as “signs” in the text — both words, אוֹת (‘oth) and מוֹפֵת (mopheth) carry similar connotations — and these signs are referred to as “signs of His Word.”
Signs, of course, authenticate the messenger, in this case Moses and Aaron. How was Pharaoh to know that these men represented the God of creation? They worked signs and wonders that could not be repeated or undone by Pharaoh’s own magicians. Yet, the sign does not testify to the greatness of the man (men cannot do these things), they testify to the greatness of the God who sent these men. And miracles testify to the Word of the God who sent them.
Sometimes people wonder why there are no miraculous works done today. For instance, why doesn’t God send a prophet to the White House and demand the people repent or there will be plague and famine let loose. The answer to this is that God’s Word has been finally and completely revealed. There is nothing to add to it nor can anything be taken away from it. Thus, the need for authenticating miracles has ceased and thus they are no more.
Slaves and Election
“He sent Moses, his servant;
And Aaron, whom He had chosen, with him.”
(Psalm 105:26)
There are several aspects of this verse that ought to be noted. First, the term עבד (‘ebed), which is commonly translated in our Bibles as “servant,” can also be very naturally translated as “slave.” The Greek word δουλος (doulos — servant, slave, bond-servant) is used in the LXX when translating this word. It is a reminder that our position before God is not as peers but as humble servants/slaves before Him (Matthew 25:21). It is also a reminder that the Apostle Paul, who regularly used the term δουλος (doulos) to describe his relationship to God (and by extension, ours) as similar to that of the relationship Moses had with God (e.g. Romans 1:1; 2 Corinthians 4:5; Galatians 1:10).
The second point of note is that God chose Aaron to accompany Moses (whom God also clearly chose). The Greek equivalent of בחר (bachar), again found in the LXX, is εκλεγομαι (eklegomai), which literally means “to elect.” Once again, we see a picture of God’s divine election to bring about His purposes. In this case, it is the deliverance of Israel from the oppression of Egypt.
What is the practical outworking of this? To deliver Israel from their slavery in Egypt, the strongest nation in the known world at the time, God elected to send a shepherd and his brother. Two men to stand against armies. Indeed, it was two humble men to stand against the proud forces of Pharaoh. This is God’s way. He confounds the worldly-wise for the explicit purpose of demonstrating His power through the weak things of this world (1 Corinthians 1:27). In God’s judgment against Egypt given through the prophet Isaiah, we see God utter these words:
Nevertheless, fools are the princes of Zoar,
The wise counselors of Pharaoh give stupid counsel.
How can you say to Pharaoh,
‘I am the son of wise men, I am son to kings of old?’”
(Isaiah 19:11)
Will you have wisdom or be stupid? If you want the former, it begins by becoming a servant of the Living God. If you rise up in the power of men, you will grow stupid and dull and pride will well up within you which will prevent you from submitting yourself to a mighty God. It is one or the other. God will not be shown up by those He counts as slaves, nor does He seek our counsel (Romans 11:34).
Did God Make Egypt Hate Israel?
“He changed their heart to hate His people —
To behave cunningly with His servants.”
(Psalm 105:25)
Now, wait one minute! Did you notice what the text states here? Who made Egypt hate Israel? Who made Egypt act deceitfully toward Israel? It does not say that Egypt began hating Israel because they saw Israel as a threat (which they were!). What it says is that God changed their hearts so that they would hate Israel and that God made Egypt act deceptively toward Israel. So many people in churches today cling desperately to the notion that they have free will or to notions that God loves everybody. Yet, passages like this are scattered throughout the Scriptures. They remind us that God is sovereign and that while we are responsible for our actions, God superintends them from before the foundation of the world. And, while God does have great love for His elect, he hates the reprobate and keeps them under his hand of judgment (2 Peter 2:9-10).
Thus, it is not just Pharaoh’s heart that God hardened (Exodus 9:12; 10:20), but the heart of all the people of Egypt was hardened against Israel. What is the result of a hardened heart? Hatred and deceit. Why Did God do this? He did so to show His wrath and to destroy Egypt (Romans 9:22) but also so that the people of the earth would fear Him and worship His name (Romans 9:17). Such is part of God’s promise to Abraham (Genesis 15:13-14).
Does that mean that God caused Egypt to sin? Indeed, the Hebrew verb נכל (nakal — “to deceive/behave cunningly”) is in the hithpael stem, meaning that it is a reflexive action that was caused to take place. Reflexive verbs mean that the one taking action is also the one receiving the effects of the action taken. How is this? God is causing the Egyptians to hate His people and as the people act deceptively toward the Israelites, they are also causing damage to themselves — heaping up condemnation upon condemnation into their lives. Such is the nature of sin; it harms the sinner as well as the one sinned against.
In short, while God was causing the Egyptians to do what they most naturally wanted to do and was not restraining their sin as He did in Joseph’s time, God is still sovereign over their actions. God is not guilty of sin — the Egyptians are — but God has indeed brought this about. He has caused it to take place. Such is the consistent teaching of Scripture and such is the plain reading of this psalm. While I may have been somewhat sarcastic in my wording when I began this reflection as I embrace the teaching of Scripture and the complete sovereignty of God, for many, this verse is a fly in the ointment of their humanistic, “free-will” theology.
More Mighty than Our Adversaries
“And His people were made to be very fruitful
And they became more mighty than their adversaries.”
(Psalm 105:24)
Here we have arrived at David’s recounting of Exodus 1:7. In Egypt, the 75 persons who initially came down to Egypt (Acts 7:14) grew to become a multitude. They grew so great, across these 400 years, that the Egyptians feared them and sought to subjugate them in slavery and interbreed with their women, for fear of an uprising.
Yet, has it ever struck you the disparity between the Biblical account told here and the way the people viewed themselves? We are told that they were more mighty than their adversaries. What is implied here is that if the Israelites did choose to rebel against the Egyptians, they would have won. Yet, as we read the Exodus account, the people feared the Egyptians and resisted a revolt against their teaching.
How often it is the same way in the church. We embrace a defeatist mindset and so we never take up spiritual warfare against the strongholds of the devil all around us. We fear reprisals. We fear that we won’t know what to say or how to say it. We fear that we might be defeated by the secular machine that dominates our culture…or by the secular church that has enslaved itself to the culture’s will. Yet, He who is in you is greater than he who is in the world (1 John 4:4) and we are more than conquerors through Him that loved us (Romans 8:37).
That does not mean that our battles will be easy and it does not mean that we will not have our ears boxed in the process. But why fear those who can only harm the body and cannot harm the eternal soul (Matthew 10:28). Until the church realizes that we are more mighty than our adversaries, we will never rise up. Yet, if the church repents of her fear of the world, she will, like the righteous man, rise up repeatedly against her foes (Proverbs 24:16).
And what makes the church so mighty? It is not because we are great; it is because God is great and he is the great warrior of His people (Exodus 15:3). Yet, note that we also have a promise given that anticipates God’s work in the church of creating a mighty army which is strong in the Lord because they walk in His name (Zechariah 10:4-12). This, dear Christian, wherever you are, is what God is working in us through His true church. So, if your church is hiding in timidity or compromising with the world, it is a reminder that you are not in the true church of Jesus Christ.
In the Land of Ham
“And Israel came to Egypt
And Jacob dwelt as an alien in the land of Ham.”
(Psalm 105:23)
Once again we see an illustration of the interconnectedness of the Bible. We know from the account in Genesis that Israel was given the land of Goshen (Genesis 47:1,6). Why refer to this land as the land of Ham? Ham, of course, was the son of Noah who defiled his father (Genesis 9:22). In turn, the line of Ham would historically produce those who were and are the enemies of God. His sons were Cush, Egypt, Put, and Canaan (Genesis 10:6). Their tribal lands would take on the names of their forebears and now we have the connection. Egypt (and its lands) descended from Ham and the Psalmist is giving us a reminder of whose land in which Israel is dwelling for a time.
Another note should be made here. When this verse speaks of Jacob dwelling in Egypt, the term גור (gor) is used, which typically means to dwell as an alien, a dependent, or as one who does not have ownership in the territory in question. If the text were to indicate that Jacob was dwelling in his own land, then the term ישׁב (yashab) would have been used. Why is this distinction important? There are two reasons. The first is that God gave Canaan to Abraham as an inheritance, not Egypt. Thus, it was a place to stay, but it was not their home. The second reason is more of a reminder of that principle to us. Our home, as Christians, is also not on this earth. We are citizens of heaven (Philippians 3:20). Thus, we should not become too comfortable here.
Teaching Wisdom
“To bind his princes at his pleasure
And to teach his Elders wisdom.”
(Psalm 105:22)
We have discussed the notion that Joseph consolidated the power of Pharaoh, making him supreme ruler over the land and subjecting his princes. Yet, the psalmist tells us one further point. He states that Joseph was there to teach the Elders of Egypt wisdom. What are we to make of that?
Here, we need to use some inference, but first, we should ask the question, what is wisdom? It is a word that we use often, but sometimes it is a word that we use without thinking clearly as to what the word means. In Hebrew, the word for wisdom is חָכְמָה (chokmah). The term is used broadly to refer to ones practiced skill at a given trade as well as one’s skillful living. Normally, it is applied when one is using their skills for pious purposes and for the glory of God (see Exodus 28:3; 1 Kings 7:14; 2 Samuel 20:22; 1 Kings 2:6; Psalm 90:12).
In the end, though, wisdom begins with the fear of Yahweh (Psalm 111:10; Proverbs 9:10). A parallel application of this principle is that wisdom is demonstrated by being able to rightly handle and apply the Word of God (Mark 6:2) so that we can rightly divide the Word of Truth (2 Timothy 2:15). Finally, wisdom built on the fear of the Lord also manifests itself in obedience to God’s commands and Laws (Ecclesiastes 12:13; Acts 10:35).
So, how did this apply to Joseph in Egypt when it comes to his teaching their Elders wisdom? To begin with, Joseph was set over all of the house of Egypt because he had greater wisdom and discernment than all of the “wisemen” at the Pharoah’s disposal (Genesis 41:39-40). In this capacity alone, those who were Elders in Egypt would have had to come to Joseph for instruction and guidance. As Solomon wrote, “whoever walks with the wise will become wise” (Proverbs 13:20). So, in this sense, the Elders of Egypt would have learned wisdom from Joseph.
There is another point that is worth bringing into the discussion. Many scholars have noted the similarities in the language and structure between an Egyptian text known as “The Instruction of Amenemope and the book of Proverbs. Yet, Amenemope was written between 300 and 400 years prior to the book of Proverbs, causing some to speculate that Solomon simply appropriated Amenemope’s work. What becomes interesting is that Joseph in Egypt predates the time of Amenemope, implying that just as Solomon was compiling wisdom to include in the book of Proverbs, so too, Amenemope likely was doing the same and either knowingly or unknowingly, many of his proverbs could have easily dated back to Joseph. Solomon, under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, may have preserved some of Joseph’s wisdom, explaining the parallels between these two texts. Yes, this is speculative, but it is a hypothesis worth considering.
The Princes bound to Pharaoh
“The king sent and freed him;
The ruler of the peoples released him.
He put him as lord over his house
And as ruler over all his possessions
To bind his princes at his pleasure
And to teach his Elders wisdom.
(Psalm 105:20-22)
Here, the psalmist continues with the account of Joseph’s deliverance from Pharaoh’s prison, noting once again that this was a result not of the goodwill of Pharaoh, but it was a work of God’s faithfulness to His covenant. In turn, Joseph was not simply freed, but he was elevated to a place of authority that in Egypt, he was second only to Pharaoh (Genesis 41:40).
What is striking is what David writes next in this psalm. Joseph, it is said, bound all of the princes of Egypt to the Pharaoh’s pleasure and teach the Elders of Egypt wisdom. These two lines of verse 22 speak volumes. In brief, during the years of plenty followed by the years of famine, Joseph broke the power of the princes and turned Egypt from a feudal state into a dictatorial monarchy where the Pharaoh reigned supreme.
During the seven years of plenty in Egypt, Joseph instituted a 20% tax on the land owners for the grain they produced (Genesis 41:34). This food, Joseph held to the side to prepare for the years of famine (Genesis 41:49). These seven years of plenty are described as a “great plenty” (Genesis 41:29), which implies that this was not a time of rationing, but of feasting even with this new tax that had been instituted. Likely, few people complained as there was plenty to go around.
When the famine set in, it is clear that the various landowners had reserves from which they could draw for a season (Genesis 41:54). Then, when the people ran out of their own provisions, they looked to Joseph, who controlled Pharaoh’s immense stockpiles of grain. Then, Joseph began selling the grain back to the people (Genesis 41:56). Now, remember from where this grain came. It was the grain of the people that Joseph had acquired due to a new tax. Often, when people think of Joseph’s plan to disseminate grain, they see it as a kind of social subsidy. That is not the case at all, it was taxed from the people and then sold back to them. Pharaoh grew richer and more powerful even in the midst of this economic downturn.
What happened when the people ran out of money? Joseph began exchanging food for livestock (Genesis 47:16). Yet, Joseph did not take up herdsmanship in the service of Pharaoh. No, later Joseph exchanged food for the land of the people as well as for the service of the people (Genesis 47:20-21). Further, Joseph created a system of indentured servitude, allowing the people to keep 80% of what they produced with the final 20% going to Pharaoh. Yet, now Pharaoh owned the land and the people. They were no longer a free people ruled by regional princes, they were slaves of Pharaoh on his property, farming with his seed, and tending to his animals. There was a semblance of ownership, given that the people could keep 80% of what they produced, but there was never an avenue for self-advancement because they did not own the land, the animals, the seed, the tools, or even their own lives. This is essentially what Fascism looks like when it plays itself out.
Why would a man of God (Joseph) empower such an evil system of government? There are two reasons we can draw from the scriptures. The first was to prepare a haven for Joseph’s family when they migrated to Egypt. The second was as a form of punishment for Egypt’s idolatry. Eventually, God would bring his people out of their bondage to a different Pharaoh and would finally judge Egypt for their wickedness.
As I look around our culture, there are many people who seem to be calling for this kind of government. On one hand, there are those who simply desire the government to have social programs galore — that ti would be a kind of baby-sitter for the masses. On the other hand, others are quick to give perks to special interests or large corporations for their own gain. What is the result? It gets harder and harder for the individual to get ahead. Think about it, even in our “free” country, the government has the right to tax our land and other things that we own. We pay for it, we improve it, we preserve it, but the government can take it away if we fail to pay our taxes. I wonder if we realize just how close we are to living under a government akin to that of Egypt after the famine. Perhaps this too, is a form of judgment on America for her idolatry. Something to think about.
Refined by God’s Word
“Oppressed in fetters were his feet;
His life was put in iron
Until such a time as his word came to pass,
The Word of Yahweh refined him.”
(Psalm 105:18-19)
Why did God permit Joseph to spend several years in Pharaoh’s dungeons? Certainly, God’s timing was such that placement in the prison would introduce Joseph to Pharaoh’s baker and cupbearer, which would be the means by which God would introduce Joseph to Pharaoh. Yet, surely, why did Joseph have to suffer in chains for so long — first to the Ishmaelites and then to the Egyptians? David tells us the answer: God was refining him. And by what means was Joseph refined? By the Word of Yahweh — the covenant promises of God.
What is God’s normal means of refining His people? Most commonly, it is through trial and strife. Until we face times of suffering — what David would call “walking through the valley of the shadow of death” — we typically will not grow. Muscle strengthens when it is pushed and tested. Our minds increase in the ability to understand hard concepts through rigorous mental exercise. Likewise, our faith grows when we face persecution and struggle and are forced to rely on God even though we may not understand his design and long-term plan. In cases such as this, God’s Word is and must be enough.
How often we get impatient with God’s timing and look with jealousy at others who have achieved what we have not been able to achieve in life. Nevertheless, it is God who sets the times and places and it is God who ordains both our successes and our failures. The question we should be asking is not, “Why has God not permitted me this or that,” but “What is God teaching me during this season and how shall I grow and be refined as I trust in His Word?” Even after Joseph interpreted the dreams of the Baker and the Cupbearer, it was still another two years before Joseph was lifted from the dungeon (Genesis 41:1). During that time, Joseph was being refined into the man who God would later use to preserve His covenant people. Refining is a process, it takes time, and it is done only in accordance with God’s Word.
God’s Faithful Purposes
“He called a famine upon the land;
All of the grain for bread was ruined,
He sent a man,
To be sold as a slave: Joseph.”
(Psalm 105:16-17)
Our psalmist, David, now begins to retell the story of God’s faithfulness to His people, beginning with the famine and Joseph’s entrance into Egypt. Notice that the famine is spoken about as something that was “called,” though many English translations will render the word קָרַא (qara — “to call” or “to proclaim/decree”) as “sent.” When used in this fashion, קָרַא, usually carries with it legal connotations in the form of a judgment sent out to punish evildoing. In this case, God was judging the land for their idolatry.
Yet, despite the fact that God is bringing judgment upon the wicked who were dwelling in the land of Canaan, God did not forsake his own (who also happened to be dwelling in Canaan at the time). As Peter writes, “God knows how to rescue the godly from trials and keep the wicked under judgment” (2 Peter 2:9). How did God do this? Beforehand, God ordained that Joseph would be sold as a slave into Egypt (through the wicked actions of Joseph’s brothers).
One of the things we need to think about, when it comes to matters like this, is that the events surrounding the sale of Joseph into slavery took place 20 years before Joseph would become the deliverer of his people. By this time, his brothers most likely thought that their brother was long gone or even dead — is it any surprise that they did not recognize him 20 years later (Genesis 42:8)?
Yet, the question that we need to come to terms with is that of God’s timing. We have a bad habit of thinking that God works on our timetable and that “soonness” or “slowness” is judged in the way we judge it. Yet, God’s timetable is different than our own (2 Peter 3:8-9). A friend of mine once told me that he thought that God was the ultimate chess player. He moves His people around where they may serve Him best. Sometimes we remain for a short period in a place and sometimes for longer periods. Sometimes God gives us good experiences in ministry and sometimes he brings about awful experiences and seasons. Yet, even though we may not understand His purposes, He is doing all these things for the building of His kingdom and for the punishment of the wicked. The difference between a chess master and God, of course, is that while a chess master knows the game so well that he can anticipate the moves of his opponent ahead of time, God does not anticipate; He ordains.
His purpose in sending Joseph ahead was the fulfillment of His covenant. His purpose in doing so twenty years before the famine in the land belongs to the secret knowledge of God. We may speculate about God giving Joseph time to mature and forgive, but we are not explicitly told the human element. All we are really told in the Bible is that God had ordered even the sin of Joseph’s brothers “so that many people should be kept alive” (Genesis 50:20). Christians sometimes think that God has failed them when things do not come together as planned. That notion could not be any further from the truth. God has ordained all of these things for the building of His Kingdom in His Son, Jesus Christ.
No Touch – No Do Evil!
“Do not touch my anointed ones;
And my prophets, do not harm.”
(Psalm 105:15)
Perhaps most of us in the Christian faith are used to hearing the language of the “Anointed One” in the singular. Indeed, our Lord Jesus Christ is the Anointed one par excellence; He is the Anointed one that all the other anointed ones point toward. Yet, in the Hebrew Bible, while there is a sense of a Christ, or Anointed One, to come, there are many people that are referred to as “anointed ones” in the Bible. The term is applied to those in the Levitical priesthood (Leviticus 3:3,16), to Samuel (1 Samuel 2:35), Saul (1 Samuel 24:10), David (2 Samuel 19:21; 22:51; 23:1), and even to Cyrus (Isaiah 45:1).
If we are to take the parallelism of this verse very narrowly, it implies that all of the prophets of God can be considered as anointed ones as well. Yet, the Christian understanding has consistently been to refer to all of God’s elect as anointed ones in Christ. Question 32 of the Heidelberg Catechism, for instance, asks the question: “Why are you called a Christian?” In the answer, it reminds us of the fact that “Christ” means “Anointed One,” thus it reads:
“Because by faith I am a member of Christ and am thus a partaker of His anointing, in order that I also may confess His Name, may present myself as a living sacrifice to Him, and with a free conscience may fight against sin and the devil in this life, and hereafter in eternity reign with Him over all creatures.”
Thus, our Lord reminds us that if we are His, then no one can pull us out of the hand of God (John 6:28) and the Apostle Paul likewise reminds us that “if God is for us, who can be against us?” (Romans 8:31). As the psalmist points out, God has always protected His anointed ones from those who would do evil to them. He says, “do not touch” (implying “to cause harm”) and “do not harm” (literally, “do evil”) to his anointed ones and to His spokespersons.
Why then are Christians often so timid? Why are Christians often so fearful about what may happen if they share their faith? Yes, people may feel uncomfortable around us. Yes, we may lose a friend or a job. In some parts of the world, we may even lose our lives. Yet, are we not secure in Christ? Will not God judge the wicked who harm his anointed ones? No, we have a great salvation that has been worked for us by Christ, the Great Anointed One; we should not fear earthly reprisals or persecution.
God Preserves His True Church
“Wandering from nation to nation,
From kingdom to another people group,
He did not permit a man to oppress them,
And He reproved kings over them.”
(Psalm 105:13-14)
As God led his people, they met many different kings and kingdoms. They engaged with the kings of the Canaanite territories. They engaged with the king of Egypt. Then they faced many pagan groups on their trip out of Egypt and into the promised land, all before God gave them a home. And God preserved His own elect remnant in every case and situation.
As David seems to be writing this psalm, here he is also being prophetic. Even though God removed His people from the land as a form of discipline, he still preserved an elect remnant for Himself. Even though the people of the Church have been scattered to the Diaspora, once again, God is preserving His church against the powers of the world.
Sometimes people will say that the existence of national Israel today is proof of God’s faithfulness to His promise. To this, I say, “No!” God’s promises are “yea” and “amen” not in Israel, but in Christ (2 Corinthians 1:20-22) and thus, the sign of God’s faithfulness is not found in a nation made and secured by the other nations, but in the church of Jesus Christ. Though we are scattered to the ends of the earth. Though we are oppressed by false churches that parade in our midst. Though we are assailed by temptation and trial at every turn, God has preserved His elect remnant. And, we can be assured that He will continue to do so on behalf of His true church.
Further, if we desire to bear witness to this provision, it behooves us to leave behind the “pseudo-churches” and pursue the True Church of Jesus Christ that has Christ (and not the traditions of men) as its King. What does said church look like? It preaches the pure doctrine of God from the whole counsel of the Scriptures, administers the sacraments as Christ has instituted them, and practices church discipline to subdue sin in its midst (see Article 29 of the Belgic Confession). If a body falls short of these things and does not repent, it is not a true church and you are trusting your preservation to the hands and traditions of men. That did not work very well for the Pharisees; it will serve you no better.
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