Psalms 46-48
Dear RTB’ers,
No doubt, thousand of scholars (possibly hundreds of thousands) have studied the Psalms through the years. I am not one of them. The Psalms are difficult for me. Maybe it’s poetry, in general? Maybe it’s an unknown context for which a particular psalm was written? Maybe it’s a metaphorical tool used by many psalms to speak of the God whom they can never fully know? For whatever reason, I find the Psalms to be difficult. It’s why John and I focused on the Psalms and the Wisdom literature back in 2022, to help us (me!) get a better grip on this more difficult literature. However, returning a few years later, I am not much wiser and the Psalms remain difficult for me.
So, what of today’s reading? Both STS and my Study Bible suggest that these three psalms form a trilogy, with the praise of Psalm 47 in the middle connecting the other two psalms. Psalm 46 and Psalm 48 both speak of the city of (our) God … the city of the great King … the city of the Lord of Hosts … (Ps. 46:1,4; 48:1,2,8), presumably Jerusalem. Or possibly a later heavenly Jerusalem? A bulwark against all enemies! God is in the midst of her; she shall not be moved. … Within her citadels. God has made Himself known as a fortress. (vv. 46:5a, 48:3) But Jerusalem was destroyed – in Jeremiah’s time (the Exile) by the Babylonians and again in A.D. 70 by the Romans. So, these two psalms must be speaking of the future heavenly Jerusalem? Yes, I am not a Psalms scholar!
There is one verse, however, that I can read and understand more clearly: Be still, and know that I am God .. I will be exalted in the earth. (v. 46:10) Yes, that I understand. Be still…
Blessings!
See also:
“Be still…” Yes. (Thanks, Fred.)
No matter who you are or what’s going on in your life, God reminds us that He is present with us in stillness and waiting.
Rev. David Brannen used to refer to “The Holy echo” of God when a certain theme or message seems to show up in several different places—a conversation, daily Bible reading, discussion with a friend, podcast, etc.—and this one is showing up a lot for me lately.
Waiting on God is mentioned over and over in Scripture. Today in another devotional I received by email, there were several passages on how waiting for God builds our trust and awareness. And in my news feed there was an article (very interesting) about how stillness and reflection time are important parts of our lives (citing this as a regular practice of none other than Bill Gates and Leonardo DaVinci).
I have a tendency to fret. Perhaps God is saying something He wants me to hear. Hmmm…
Blessings on your Sabbath!
STS suggests reading Psalms 46-48 in the light of II Kings 18-19. To that end, you might want to take a look at June 23 (2023) / II Kings 18:17-19:7; Isaiah 36:2-37:7 and June 24 (2023) / II Kings 19:8-37; Isaiah 37:8-38; II Kings 20:20-21.
As for “the city of God,” see June 26 (2023) / Isaiah 25-27.