Psalm 47 Celebrate by Singing Praises!

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I love the exuberance of this psalm! The whole psalm is like a spiritual endzone celebration
after a BCS bowl game win or after a walk-off home run in the World Series. 

Previously I have shared devotional thoughts on both the first strophe (v.1-4) and the third strophe (v.8-9). But until now I have not specifically targeted the second strophe (v.5-7), the very heart of this psalm. In this post, I will correct this omission as I briefly summarize my thoughts on each section(strophe) of this psalm and tie them all together devotionally with a contemporary application.

Psalm 47 is classified as an “enthronement psalm” celebrating the coronation of a righteous king and the beginning of his just reign. Such psalms look beyond the historical enthronement of any particular Israelite king to that of the coming Messiah, who will be the King of kings. We are quite good at celebrating inaugurations and opening ceremonies, touchdowns, goals, and home runs. If only we were so invested in the work of the Spirit!

I) The Shout of Victory (v.1-4)

"Clap your hands, all peoples! Shout to God with loud songs of joy! For the LORD, the Most High, is to be feared, a great king over all the earth. He subdued peoples under us, and nations under our feet. He chose our heritage for us, the pride of Jacob whom he loves."

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As I write this at the New Year, crowds of people are clapping and cheering for their favorite football teams in bowl games or playoff games. Basketball fans are clapping and cheering for their teams too. However, more importantly, there is so much to shout and applaud God for! Not the least of which is the things we have seen Him do in our lives. I am also amazed that "He chose our heritage for us." He placed us on this planet and in our families on purpose. But when was the last time we clapped and shouted to God with loud songs of joy? It doesn't take us very long to forget what awesome things he has done for us...but the more we rehearse what he has done the more we will remember his goodness and lovingkindness and be filled with abiding joy! The joy of the Lord cannot be taken away by another team’s touchdown or a referee’s missed pass interference call. This is a bigger-picture joy and celebration of the victory of the Lord God and his vindication of his people.

II) Responding in Chorus to the Assent of the King (v.5-7)

God ascends among shouts of joy,
the Lord, among the sound of trumpets.
Sing praise to God,        sing praise;
 sing praise to our King,  sing praise!
Sing a song of wisdom,
                  for God is King of all the earth.

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on Unsplash

In verse 5 we see the king ascending to be enthroned with great shouts of joy. As a Christian, it is hard to read this without thinking of Jesus’ triumphal entry into Jerusalem at the beginning of passion week. While the victory that set us free was unexpectedly won on the cross through the willing death of the Messiah rather than by a military or political victory, he rose from the dead on the third day, and on the 40^th day, he ascended into heaven! Oh, how we should celebrate his ascension! Christians throughout history have used Psalm 47 to celebrate Ascension Day in the church calendar. Yet this is more about living in light of his past victory and current enthronement than about celebrating one day in the year.

In verses 6-7 the psalmist uses a single Hebrew word (zāmar) five times which is translated as “sing praise!” The early Greek translation (LXX) of this verse uses the word psallo to interpret zāmar, this is no surprise since it also means to sing praises. However, the root of this word refers to the process of making music on a stringed instrument. How might such music be made? By plucking, strumming, twanging, bowing, etc. I would suggest that this call to sing praise is more than mere singing, but certainly not less.

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So let me ask, how can we live our entire life in a way that what we do resounds with divine praise and celebration? What if all that we do strums the joyful chords of gratitude for a loving redemption, the healing notes of peace, mercy, and righteousness that flow from our being forgiven, the sustaining notes of faith and hope in the person of the Great King? Indeed, this speaks to the way we sing in our worship services and gatherings, but it also calls to us in our work situations, inviting and even urging us to work and live as an instrument of praise.

Perhaps, if you are like me, this will require some tuning and some practice!

III) The Reign of the King and

God reigns over the nations;
God is seated on His holy throne.
      The nobles of the peoples have assembled
                     with the people of the God of Abraham.
For the leaders [lit., shields] of the earth belong to God;
He is greatly exalted. (CSV)

Nations where readers of this Psalms blog live... 

I am so glad that God is not subject to the whims of any individual nations, or even to groups of nations such as the UN; rather, he is sovereign over all nations and peoples. I look forward to the still-future day when we see v. 9 come to pass in all fullness, the day when the nobles of the peoples will gather as the people of the God of Abraham (i.e., by faith)! Certainly, this would make the world a better place!

Another aspect of this passage is that it reveals that God wants to include all nations in his kingdom. Will we come and encourage others to come with us?

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This psalm urges us to respond to the victory of our God and King by living out a life that accurately declares who our God is and by our work we participate in his symphony of goodness.

In my last post, we saw the nations raging against God (46:6), but here we see them coming in peace as the people of the God of Abraham! Don't you long for the day when world leaders come to God by faith recognizing that he alone is our great king and defender? I do.

Several things jump out to me here: 1) God reigns over all the nations, not just one of them. 2) The rulers of multiple peoples will be gathered together under the banner of the Abrahamic covenant. 3) The defenses of the earth are ultimately in God's hands—not Captain America's for Yahweh is sovereign over the earth. 4) He is highly exalted whether we admit it or not.

This psalm focuses not on the nation per se, but on celebrating and living lives of worship before the victorious king. As a result, allow me to speak briefly about the troubling issue of nationalism. 

The following is not a politically partisan statement but a biblical call to align ourselves and our faith communities with the larger purposes of the Kingdom of God rather than worldly empires.

The Smallness of Nationalism, even Christian Nationalism

While I love my country and appreciate the great diversity of countries around the world, as people of God we have higher citizenship and greater loyalty than could ever be tied to an earthly nation. Though I am not an expert in this area of socio-political theory, I think there are a few things simple enough for me to point out.

While the common history, language, and cultural heritage of a nation can be a community strength and helps maintain unity and peace for its people, it is ultimately too weak, too small, and too temporary, to become the primary focus for followers of Christ. Here are several ways that nationalism is less than God’s best for us.

• 

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  It assumes entitlement and exceptionalism and seeks its own good over the good of
  others.
• It claims a primary loyalty from its people that should be given only to Christ.
• It assumes a right of ownership over land, language, wealth, and power of which we can only be stewards.
• It belittles the sovereignty of God by taking credit for both the building up and the pulling down of nations. This is pervasive in all political factions.
• It dims our views of the imago Dei in others for it magnifies differences between the members of the select in-group and all others (out-groups).
• It gives its adherents an ample excuse for not loving their enemies.

Having said these things, it may surprise you that while I am in favor of immigration reform I am not in favor of open borders, election tampering on any level, or a weak national defense. However, these national distinctives should be used in a way that benefits citizens and sojourners alike and humbly works for the good of all. Heaven, the Kingdom of God, no matter what your view is/will be made up of every tribe, tongue, and nation (e.g., Isa 66:18; Rev. 5:9-10; 7:9-10)—not just one, or a politically select few.

While contending for righteousness in society, the American church has often not thought as broadly as it should as “world Christians” and has narrowed its focus to making the most change for its "me and mine."

So much more could be said, so many more questions could be asked and attempted to answer, and so many objections could be entertained. Yet, this post is overlong already.

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I will suggest the following "rapid test" to indicate whether our hearts have been exposed to and infected by earthly nationalism, which is highly contagious. If we took a nasal swab that somehow captured trace DNA of our recent speaking, sniffing, snorting, and even breathing out forcefully, what would such a test reveal? 

For which of the following 3-Rs would we test positive?

• Passion for demanding and/or defending our own rights?
• Fomenting rebellion against some perceived political power, moral standard, or people?
• Consistently rejoicing in the reign of the King who will not show partiality but will make all things right?

Such a 3-R test is not comfortable, but it is needed if we are to heed the call to “sing praises” to our God and King Jesus Christ. One day, Psalm 47 will be fulfilled and its strains incorporated into the heavenly song! As it is written,

And they sing the song of Moses, the servant of God, 

                and the song of the Lamb, saying,

“Great and amazing are your deeds,
    O Lord God the Almighty!
Just and true are your ways,
    O King of the nations!
 Who will not fear, O Lord,
    and glorify your name?
For you alone are holy.
    All nations will come
    and worship you,
for your righteous acts have been revealed.” (Rev. 15:3-4)