Psalms Reading – 1.29.2022
Psalm 30
A psalm. A song. For the dedication of the temple. Of David.
1 I will exalt you, LORD,
for you lifted me out of the depths
and did not let my enemies gloat over me.
2 LORD my God, I called to you for help,
and you healed me.
3 You, LORD, brought me up from the realm of the dead;
you spared me from going down to the pit.
4 Sing the praises of the LORD, you his faithful people;
praise his holy name.
5 For his anger lasts only a moment,
but his favor lasts a lifetime;
weeping may stay for the night,
but rejoicing comes in the morning.
6 When I felt secure, I said,
“I will never be shaken.”
7 LORD, when you favored me,
you made my royal mountain stand firm;
but when you hid your face,
I was dismayed.
8 To you, LORD, I called;
to the Lord I cried for mercy:
9 “What is gained if I am silenced,
if I go down to the pit?
Will the dust praise you?
Will it proclaim your faithfulness?
10 Hear, LORD, and be merciful to me;
LORD, be my help.”
11 You turned my wailing into dancing;
you removed my sackcloth and clothed me with joy,
12 that my heart may sing your praises and not be silent.
LORD my God, I will praise you forever.
In this psalm, we see an intimate picture of God. His anger at David’s sin causes Him to bring David close to death, but His mercy leads to David’s healing, redemption, and renewed praise. David begins with thanks to God for his deliverance (vv. 1–3), followed by instruction to the congregation to praise the Lord (vv. 4–5). David then reflects on his own arrogance (vv. 6–7) and his desire to be spared so that he might praise God (vv. 8–10). He ends with joyful thanks and praise (vv. 11–12).
The title is interesting for a couple of reasons. First, the temple was not built during David’s reign even though he deeply desired to be its builder. He did gather many of the materials so that Solomon could have a huge head start. Here, we discover, he, also, wrote a song for when the temple would be dedicated long after he would have passed on.
The second reason this is interesting is that the text of the song does not say anything about the temple itself. It mentions the royal mountain where the temple would stand, but nothing about the building itself. Other psalms which speak of David’s desire to stay at the house of the Lord is what we might expect to be his song of dedication.
Even though the temple was the highly prized location, where His presence dwelt in the Holy of Holies, this psalm rightly reminds us that God is much bigger than any building. We like our buildings, we need our buildings, but we need something more. We need God who cannot be contained by any structure. We need a personal encounter with God. We need to respond to God as His people in a community at worship but also in faith and trust as we submit our lives to Him in ongoing praise.
If this is meant for the dedication of the temple, David seems to foreshadow what the temple will be in the New Testament- every believer will be home to the Holy Spirit. This is our prayer of consecration as temples of God.
Memory Verse:
Psalm 25:4-5, Show me your ways, Lord, teach me your paths. Guide me in your truth and teach me, for you are God my Savior, and my hope is in you all day long.
Question(s) to Consider:
What are the implications that you are the temple of God? How will you dedicate yourself to the Lord?