Praise Him to the ends of the earth

 

We have thought over Your goodness, God,
In the midst of Your temple.
10 As is Your name, God,
So is Your praise to the ends of the earth;
Your right hand is full of righteousness.
11 Mount Zion shall be glad,
The daughters of Judah shall rejoice
Because of Your judgments.
12 Walk around Zion and encircle her;
Count her towers;
13 Consider her ramparts;
Go through her palaces,
So that you may tell of her to the next generation.
14 For such is God,
Our God forever and ever;
He will lead us until death. (Psalm 48:9-14, NASB)

Wow! Is this a high point of praise, or what? (Grin) 

The psalmist says first that they are in the temple and they are thinking about His lovingkindness.  We've said that this was probably written after a real-live-victory where the Lord God showed His power in saving them from destruction. Why? Because of His great love.

But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. (Romans 5:8)

The story of how God delivered Jerusalem spread, and then so did His praise. He worked His righteous judgment on the wicked kings, and the people spread their joyous praise about it . . . the story went out far and wide, just as our story should. If we have experienced His salvation, then we should be eager to spread praise to the ends of the earth! We must tell others who need a Savior of the God Who offers righteousness and redemption.

Verse eleven might give us pause, in our world today. The Bible portrays God's saints as rejoicing when He pronounces judgment on wicked Babylon in Revelation (Rev. 18:20). Maybe our "culture of tolerance" has rubbed off on us too much, if this makes us uncomfortable. If we are saved, we should rejoice in His righteousness, and that means we are ok with His judgments.

I really like verses twelve and thirteen . . . . the people had been cooped up inside the walls and probably inside the houses, because of the many armies of Sennacherib outside the city. But now the psalmist invites everyone to take a stroll! 

Count the towers! They are all there.

Look at the ramparts! No damage from battle.

Walk through the palaces! They are still beautiful.

Then he says, "tell the next generation." In other words, tell those who were not alive, or not old enough to "get it," what the Lord did to save His people. Seeing the city unscathed is not telling everyone that it was the wonderful city that saved them. It's telling them that everything is undamaged - because of the mighty God Who was faithful to save His people! And that is worth telling the next generation!

Verse fourteen brings us back to the thoughts of verse one: God is great, and He is greatly to be praised. We can trust and follow God because He is faithful to deliver us. Not even the powerful and evil forces of this world can thwart His loving plans for those who dwell in His city. They have His protection, even if they are persecuted, even if they die:

But you will be betrayed even by parents, brothers and sisters, other relatives, and friends, and they will put some of you to death, and you will be hated by all people because of My name. And yet not a hair of your head will perish. By your endurance you will gain your lives. (Luke 21:16-19)

For we know that if our earthly tent which is our house is torn down, we have a building from God, a house not made by hands, eternal in the heavens. (II Corinthians 5:1)

“Do not let your heart be troubled; believe in God, believe also in Me. In My Father’s house are many rooms; if that were not so, I would have told you, because I am going there to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I am coming again and will take you to Myself, so that where I am, there you also will be. (John 14:1-3)

Knowing that the God of Psalm 48 is our God gives us a sense of peace when we are under siege by the world. It also gives us a sense of purpose to spread His glory and to praise Him to the ends of the earth.