Psalm 29:1-9 March 25, 2009

Ps 29:1-9 "Ascribe to the LORD, O mighty ones, ascribe to the LORD glory and strength. 2 Ascribe to the LORD the glory due his name; worship the LORD in the splendor of his holiness. The voice of the LORD is over the waters; the God of glory thunders, the LORD thunders over the mighty waters. 4 The voice of the LORD is powerful; the voice of the LORD is majestic. 5 The voice of the LORD breaks the cedars; the LORD breaks in pieces the cedars of Lebanon. 6 He makes Lebanon skip like a calf, Sirion like a young wild ox. 7 The voice of the LORD strikes with flashes of lightning. 8 The voice of the LORD shakes the desert; the LORD shakes the Desert of Kadesh. 9 The voice of the LORD twists the oaks and strips the forests bare. And in his temple all cry, "Glory!" NIV

Glory and strength belong unto God, he is deserving of worship, even the angels are only a shadow; created beings in contrast to the uncreated eternal God. This psalm is a call to reverence. This psalm is a call to holy fear. This psalm is a call to acknowledge the power and splendor that belong only to the Lord Almighty! David has seen the splendor of God. He was obviously rich in revelation concerning the Lord. Every one of his psalms is a reflection of his understanding of God’s infinite greatness. Above all beings God is set apart and glorious. There is no other God like unto Him in all of the heavenly realms. And it is in the light of this reality that David is calling to us; “Ascribe to the Lord…” as if to say, “give Him the praise that He deserves, recognize His worth, surrender to His power, worship His majesty.”
Psalm 29 is a living contrast between the natural power and beauty of a thunderstorm and the eternal power and beauty of the Living God and his powerful voice. “The God of glory thunders”... what an image this paints of the power of the Lord? Who has not been awed by the power of a giant thunderclap as it shakes the heavens or felt the ground tremble around them at the booming sound of a powerful storm. Every one of these is but a dull reflection of the glory that is the Almighty God.
David invests seven verses in describing the wonderful power and majesty of the voice of the Lord. On one hand he is describing it from the context of its might; powerful, thundering, majestic. On the other he speaks of its authority over creation; changing nations, stripping forests bare, twisting, shattering as if to say that nothing created can withstand the voice of the Lord if its force is directed against them. What a powerful motive to fear the Lord. What an intense call to fear the Lord and yet what is so wonderful about the Lord is reflected in the diversity of how he presents himself throughout the pages of scripture. If this were the only image of God speaking we would be left to conclude that he is powerful but not loving, not intimate. But our God has chosen to display his strength in one passage and other facets of his person elsewhere as is reflected in the story of Elijah on Mt. Horeb in I Ki. 19:11-13. In this encounter with Elijah God speaks to him and reveals himself to Elijah but He is not in the wind, not in the earthquake, not in the fire. Instead God chooses to reveal himself in a whisper. What a contrast! Our God can make himself known as the God of power and might or the God of infinite whispers, so deep that they speak into the very depth of our soul. It is important that we recognize God’s power, that we accept his dominion over us, but at the same time it is vital that we embrace the whispers of God as well or we will miss out on the fullness of who he is to us. Today, take time to listen for the whispers of God.