Psalm 92
It is good to give thanks to the Lord
And to sing praises to Your name, O Most High;
2 To declare Your lovingkindness in the morning
And Your faithfulness by night,
3With the ten-stringed lute and with the harp,
With resounding music upon the lyre.
4 For You, O Lord, have made me glad by what You have done,
I will sing for joy at the works of Your hands.
5 How great are Your works, O Lord!
Your thoughts are very deep.
6 A senseless man has no knowledge,
Nor does a stupid man understand this:
7 That when the wicked sprouted up like grass
And all who did iniquity flourished,
It was only that they might be destroyed forevermore.
8 But You, O Lord, are on high forever.
9 For, behold, Your enemies, O Lord,
For, behold, Your enemies will perish;
All who do iniquity will be scattered.
10 But You have exalted my horn like that of the wild ox;
I have been anointed with fresh oil.
11 And my eye has looked exultantly upon my foes,
My ears hear of the evildoers who rise up against me.
12 The righteous man will flourish like the palm tree,
He will grow like a cedar in Lebanon.
13 Planted in the house of the Lord,
They will flourish in the courts of our God.
14 They will still yield fruit in old age;
They shall be full of sap and very green,
15 To declare that the Lord is upright;
He is my rock, and there is no unrighteousness in Him.
Years ago, I designated the “Birthday Psalm” for our family to be Psalm 90. It was one of my children’s birthdays and I decided to choose a Psalm to begin a family tradition. It was 7:00 in the morning of a school day, so I had to think quickly. I chose, opened and read. Psalm 90 is a depressing psalm most of the way through, about how we groan through life and return to dust when we die. I briefly regretted my choice! But I had selected it because of verse 12. “Teach us to number our days that we may present to you (God) a heart of wisdom.” That remains my prayer for myself and my loved ones, so at least in my mind, the tradition stuck.
On the occasion of my 60th birthday tomorrow, I think instead of Psalm 92. “It is good to give thanks to the Lord…” The verses that now have become most meaningful to me are 14 and 15. “They will still yield fruit in old age; they shall be full of sap and very green, to declare that the LORD is upright; He is my rock, and there is no unrighteousness in Him.”
There was a song we sang back in the 80’s and 90’s with the students to whom we ministered. We sang the first four verses, then skipped 5-11, and picked up again in verse 12. The students always laughed at verse 14, because of the idea of being full of sap and very green. But as I turn 60 and feel the slowing of my body, those verses are very meaningful to me.
God doesn’t call me to stay young and beautiful and physically strong. That would be impossible. Thankfully, I do not have to be young to declare that He is upright. In fact, it is far more compelling to declare His uprightness at an older age. By His grace, I was saved at 14, and by His grace I am still here, having passed through many “dangers, toils and snares.” He has been upright and faithful and his lovingkindness has never failed me. My age, my chronic pains, and my decreased physical energy all make me look forward to heaven. It will be a place of celebration, worship, feasting, enjoying the new heavens and new earth, seeing God clearly, face to face, and knowing Him fully. What a future we have as members of God’s family, made righteous by faith in Him!
Today, I was tempted to only quote those excerpts of the Psalm that we sang. I am a little uncomfortable quoting verses 5-11. I could not imagine singing those verses, belting them out like the other eight verses. But they are true, albeit uncomfortable. They are deeply sobering. Someday, God’s foes, and mine by virtue of my loyalty to Him, will perish. The Scripture teaches that God does not rejoice over even one soul perishing, and so neither do I. But God is honest. He tells us of His judgment so that we can prepare for it, so that we can choose to escape it.
There is a rightness to God’s judgment – that is one thing the Psalm calls us to declare. In verse 11, when the psalmist talks about looking exultantly on my foes, I believe those foes are first God’s foes, and that the exultation comes from the completion of God’s righteous judgment, not from glee over the fate of evildoers.
While I live out my days, my calling is to declare His lovingkindness, faithfulness and uprightness to fellow believers and unbelievers alike. Today I invite all to make Him their rock. There is plenty of room on this Rock. Become the friend of God. Come and receive His lovingkindness. Come and sing His praise. For this continual praise, thanks and declaration, I pray to be full of sap and very green!