Thoughts for the Day

The Greatness and Goodness of God

Rejoice in the Lord, O you righteous.
Praise befits the upright.
Praise the Lord with the lyre;
make melody to him with the harp of ten strings.
Sing to him a new song;
play skilfully on the strings, with loud shouts.

For the word of the Lord is upright,
and all his work is done in faithfulness.
He loves righteousness and justice;
the earth is full of the steadfast love of the Lord.....

Truly the eye of the Lord is on those who fear him,
on those who hope in his steadfast love,
to deliver their soul from death,
and to keep them alive in famine.

Our soul waits for the Lord;
he is our help and shield.
Our heart is glad in him,
because we trust in his holy name.
Let your steadfast love, O Lord, be upon us,
even as we hope in you

(Lectionary, New Revised Standard Version)

Thoughts

I first looked at Psalm 33 in September 2020 when we were still very much in the middle of the Covid pandemic. But the psalm was obviously written centuries ago not after a pandemic but after a famine, itself as dangerous in the Middle East then as a pandemic like Covid or Ebola is today. In the past if the rains didn't come or if locusts ate the crops life suddenly became precarious for whole communities. We might think of all Scripture as being 'God breathed', and this psalm reminds us that God cares for His people, especially "on those who fear him".

But what does "fear" mean, are we to live in terror of God? The Hebrew word used is usually 'yare’, which means reverence and respect, but it's also linked to obedience and being faithful to the covenant (the agreement) the people have made with God. In the Greek in the New Testament the word can describe both dread and veneration, depending on the context. In either language, fear of the Lord goes beyond fear.

Primarily the fear of the Lord includes the image of a heart that loves righteousness and rejects evil. Proverbs 8.13 says “To fear the LORD is to hate evil." In other words fear of God shapes our moral character and adjusts the way we live and the way we behave. When the children of God approach Him humbly with awe and reverence, we can put all our trust in His loving response.

Lord God,
You love justice and righteousness,
and Your eye is upon those who fear You.
Guide us in Your ways,
that we might live a life that gives honour to You
and befits our place as Your children
Amen.