By the word of the Lord the heavens were made,
their starry host by the breath of his mouth.
He gathers the waters of the sea into jars;
he puts the deep into storehouses.
Let all the earth fear the Lord;
let all the people of the world revere him.
For he spoke, and it came to be;
he commanded, and it stood firm.The Lord foils the plans of the nations;
he thwarts the purposes of the peoples.
But the plans of the Lord stand firm for ever,
the purposes of his heart through all generations.Blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord,
the people he chose for his inheritance.
From heaven the Lord looks down
and sees all mankind;
from his dwelling-place he watches
all who live on earth –
he who forms the hearts of all,
who considers everything they do.No king is saved by the size of his army;
no warrior escapes by his great strength.
A horse is a vain hope for deliverance;
despite all its great strength it cannot save.
But the eyes of the Lord are on those who fear him,
on those whose hope is in his unfailing love,
to deliver them from death
and keep them alive in famine.We wait in hope for the Lord;
(Ps. 33:6-22 NIV)
he is our help and our shield.
In him our hearts rejoice,
for we trust in his holy name.
May your unfailing love be with us, Lord,
even as we put our hope in you.
God established creation through His word. He created the universe and the starry sky.
Lift up your eyes and look to the heavens: Who created all these? He who brings out the starry host one by one and calls forth each of them by name. Because of his great power and mighty strength, not one of them is missing.
(Isa. 40:26 NIV)
The power of the Lord is seen in the way that He tames the waters. As you stand on the edge of the ocean you soon realise how humanity has never been able to tame the sea. The power of the waves crashing against the rocks is at once dangerous and beautiful, and many lives have been lost at sea. But to the Lord the raging seas are just something that could be stored in a jar, or stored in a barn the way the farmer stores the grain. How fearful we are as we see the havoc that a tsunami can cause, but to the Lord it is a mere drop of water. As we stand in awe of the sea, how much more should we be in awe of the mighty power of the Lord who rules the sea. The nations of the earth had many false gods who they said ruled the stars and the sea, but they are wrong, there is only one God who put all these things in place, and still today rules these stars, planets and waves of the sea. The whole earth should fear the Lord and revere the creator God. The nations do not make Him Sovereign, He is Sovereign, and all the people need to recognise and acknowledge this.
The world and the universe show order and a great degree of predictability. That is because God established and maintains that order. We are able to practise science because God has created an ordered universe. God’s control over the earth , the sea and the universe is great comfort to His people.
We make plans but God disposes these plans. But the plans of the Lord stand firm for all generations.
The Psalmist turns away from reflection on God’s involvement with creation to His involvement with humanity. The blessing of the people of God is that we are God’s special choice. He chose us to be His inheritance.
The Lord is an all seeing God. From the vantage point of His dwelling place, the Lord watches all who live on the earth. No action, thought or word is unseen or unheard by God. God formed each heart and He understands the motive of every heart. The Lord considers everything that is done and every human is accountable to God.
Some people plan to dominate the lives of others, but neither king nor warrior can guarantee any outcome. Just because some nation has a large army does not mean they will succeed. God rules over humanity, therefore what a nation can achieve can easily be curtailed by God.
Nations build up their weapons with a view to either attack or defend. They may well boast of their capability. They depend upon their own might and power. The coronavirus has shown us how the plans of nations can be so quickly changed.
But the special attention of the Lord is given to His people. The Lord’s eyes are on His people to deliver them and keep them safe. Success does not depend on size or strength because the Sovereign God rules the affairs of humanity. The hope of the people of God is in the unfailing love (hesed) of the Lord. The Psalmist has reflected on the character and work of the Lord. This leads him to a new expression of his trust in the Lord. Whatever happens, the people of God will wait in hope for the Lord, because God is our help and our shield. The sense of security causes the Psalmist to rejoice and he urges us all to rejoice in the Lord. The Psalmist asks that God’s unfailing covenant love (hesed) will rest upon our lives. The one who watches every event places His covenant love upon those who fear Him.
The Psalmist trusts the covenant name of the LORD, because His name is Yahweh and He will do battle for His people therefore we can hope in Him.
Prayer
Father in Heaven, we thank You that Your watchful eye is ever upon us. Forgive us for placing our trust in anything but You. We thank You that Your covenant love rests upon our lives and we are more loved than we could ever imagine or think. Help us to wait upon Your time and enable us to place our hope only in You because we pray in Jesus’ name. Amen