Songs of Ascent- 3

 Songs of Ascent- 

Psalms 120-135

Part 3

Psalm 131

Psalms 131:1-3 (NASB20) 1 A Song of Ascents, of David. 

LORD, my heart is not proud, nor my eyes arrogant; Nor do I involve myself in great matters, Or in things too difficult for me. 2 I have certainly soothed and quieted my soul; Like a weaned child resting against his mother, My soul within me is like a weaned child. 3 Israel, wait for the LORD From this time on and forever.

Perhaps our pilgrim has just caught a glimpse of the temple for the first time and is awe struck at its majesty. It is good to contemplate the majesty and greatness of the Lord. That is perhaps one ting that our modern church has lost. The medieval cathedrals were designed to foster this sense of awe and majesty. Their towering arches made us feel small and encourages us to look up and worship the overpowering majesty of God. From time to time we need to remember that the Lord is greater than all we can imagine and we need to leave behind our pride and arrogance.

I love a loud and lively worship service, but there is also a time for quiet reflection. The old church was better at that but then they left it at that and didn’t continue on into exuberance worship. There is a time to quiet our souls and wait on the Lord and return to a child like faith.

Psalm 132

 Psalms 132:1-5 (NASB20) 1 A Song of Ascents. 

Remember, LORD, in David’s behalf, All his affliction; 2 How he swore to the LORD And vowed to the Mighty One of Jacob, 3 “I certainly will not enter my house, Nor lie on my bed; 4 I will not give sleep to my eyes Or slumber to my eyelids, 5 Until I find a place for the LORD, A dwelling place for the Mighty One of Jacob.”

This next psalm is dedicated to praising the temple and the king. To put this into a New Testament context, we need to not give sleep to our eyes until we find a place for the Lord in our heart. We need to construct a suitable temple of the Holy Spirit in our innermost being.

Psalms 132:7-9 (NASB20) 

7Let’s go into His dwelling place; Let’s worship at His footstool. 8 Arise, LORD, to Your resting place, You and the ark of Your strength. 9 May Your priests be clothed with righteousness, And may Your godly ones sing for joy.

Psalms 132:16 (NASB20) 

“I will also clothe her priests with salvation, And her godly ones will sing aloud for joy.

Remember that we are a royal priesthood, a holy nation, so we should be clothed with righteousness. We need to enter into the presence of the Lord and sing for joy. We are clothed with salvation and sing around for joy.

Psalm 133

Psalms 133:1-3 (NASB20) 1 A Song of Ascents, of David. 

Behold, how good and how pleasant it is For brothers to live together in unity! 2 It is like the precious oil on the head, Running down upon thebeard, As on Aaron’s beard, The oil which ran down upon the edge of his robes. 3 It is like the dew of Hermon Coming down upon the mountains of Zion; For the LORD commanded the blessing there--life forever.

This is my favorite of all the songs of ascents. When I was first saved I lived in a Jewish neighborhood in Pittsburgh. There were many Messianic Jews living there and we would fellowship together. Oftentimes we would all sing and dance to this psalm. Sung in Hebrew, it is one of the favorite Jewish folk songs and dances that has been sung in rejoicing for centuries.

This psalm reminds us that we need brothers. The unity and fellowship of brothers in the faith is one of the key factors that will enable us to lead a godly life. There is a great blessing in such unity and the anointing of the Holy Spirit will flow over such a fellowship and cause much rejoicing.

Psalm 134

Psalms 134:1-3 (NASB20) 1 A Song of Ascents. 

Behold, bless the LORD, all you servants of the LORD, Who serve by night in the house of the LORD! 2 Lift up your hands to the sanctuary Andbless the LORD. 3 May the LORD bless you from Zion, He who made heaven and earth.

Psalm 135

Psalms 135:1-21 (NASB20) 

1 Praisethe LORD! Praise the name of the LORD; Praise Him, you servants of the LORD, 2 You who stand in the house of the LORD, In the courtyards of the house of our God! 3 Praise the LORD, for the LORD is good; Sing praises to His name, for it is lovely. 4 For the LORD has chosen Jacob for Himself, Israel as His own possession. 5 For I know that the LORD is great And that our Lord is above all gods. 

At last, we have completed our journey and are standing in the temple. There is nothing remaking to do by to praise the Lord. Lift up you hands in the holy place and bless the Lord! The Lord is good, sing praises to HIs name!

May the Lord bless you greatly and may you make the journey up to Jerusalem often.The spiritual Jerusalem is available to us always in the New Covenant and the Holy Place is open to us through the blood of the Lamb, Jesus. So rejoice in the Lord and come into His presence to worship as often as you can.

Amen