Psalm 33 - Blessed Is the Nation Whose God Is the Lord

 

Psalm 33 with Commentaries by Dennis Edwards

In some eight manuscripts Psalm 32 and Psalm 33 are found as one continuous psalm. Some scholars therefore consider it the second part of Psalm 32, or an amplification of the last verse where we find, “Be glad in the Lord, and rejoice you righteous: and shout for joy all you that are upright in heart.” Some of the earlier psalms seem to be in pairs, where the idea of one psalm is continued in the next, as is found in Psalm 9 and 10. The fact that Psalm 33 has 22 verses, which is equal to the number of letters in the Hebrew alphabet, makes for regarding it as a complete composition. [Burgh, William de; A Commentary on the Book of Psalms, Dublin, 1860, page 312.]

33:1-2 Rejoice in the Lord, O you righteous: for praise is comely (or appropriate) for the upright. Praise the Lord with harp: sing unto Him with the psaltery and an instrument of ten strings.

A recurrent theme in the Psalms is the importance of thankfulness and praise in our relationship with God. Evangelist Nick Vujicic, who has no arms or legs, says, he has never met a thankful man who was bitter, or a bitter man who was thankful. It’s one or the other. We see Apostle Paul writing, “Rejoice in the Lord always: and again I say, rejoice,” Philippians 4:4. In Colossians he writes,

Colossians 4:15-17 “And let the peace of God rule in your hearts,…and be thankful. Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom; teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord. And whatsoever you do in word or in deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God and the Father by Him.”

In Ephesians he gives a similar message:

Ephesians 5:18-20 “And be not drunk with wine, wherein is excess; but be filled with the Spirit; speaking to yourselves in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord; giving thanks always for all things unto God and the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.”

Psalm 33:3 Sing unto Him a new song; play skilfully with a loud noise.

In the book of Revelation, we find the four beasts and the twenty-four elders falling down and singing a new song when the Lion of the tribe of Judah, the Root of David, the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world, opens the little book and looses the seven seals, Revelation 5:5.

Revelation 5:9-10 “And they sung a new song, saying, You are worthy to take the book, and to open the seals thereof: for you were slain, and have redeemed us to our God by your blood out of every kindred, and tongue, and people, and nation; and has made us unto our God kings and priests; and we shall reign on the earth.”

Later, when the 144,000 tribulation saints arrive in the heavenlies, they also sing a new song.

Revelation 14:2-3 “And I heard a voice from heaven, as the voice of many waters, and as the voice of a great thunder: and I heard the voice of harpers harping with their harps; and they sung as it were a new song before the throne, and before the four beast, and the elders: and no man could learn that song but the hundred and forty and four thousand, which were redeemed from the earth.”

Psalm 33:4 For the word of the Lord is right; and all His works are done in truth.

God’s word is right, and God’s word is true. Throughout the Old Testament we find that God is true to His word.

Psalm 119:160 “Your word is true from the beginning: and everyone of Your righteous judgments endures forever.”

Numbers 23:19 “God is not a man, that He should lie; neither the son of man, that He should repent: has He said, and shall He not do it? Or has He spoken, and shall He not make it good?”

Joshua 23:14b “Not one thing has failed of all the good things which the Lord your God spoke concerning you; all are come to pass unto you, and not one thing has failed thereof.”

Isaiah 34:16 “Seek you out of the book of the Lord, and read: no one of these shall fail, none shall want her mate: for My mouth it has commanded, and His Spirit it has gathered them.”

In the New Testament, Jesus calls Himself, “The way, the truth, and the life,” John 14:6. He says if we continue in His words, we would know the truth, and the truth would make us free, John 8:31-32. Just before His death, He said He was going to the Father, but He would send the Holy Spirit, which would lead and guide us into all truth, John 16:13.

Apostle Paul admonishes us that the greatest spiritual gift is love, and that love rejoices in the truth, 1 Corinthians 13:6. He tells us we should speak the truth in love, Ephesians 4:15.

Psalm 33:5-9 He (God) loves righteousness and judgment: the earth is full of the goodness of the Lord. By the word of the Lord were the heavens made; and all the host of them by the breath of his mouth. He gathers the waters of the sea together as a heap: He lays up the depth in storehouses. Let all the earth fear the Lord: let all the inhabitants of the world stand in awe of Him. For He spoke, and it was done; He commanded, and it stood fast.

In Genesis 1, we see that God spoke the world into existence and it was good. In John 1, we find the Word was in the beginning with God and by the Word all things were made, “and without Him was not anything made that was made,” John 1:1-3. That Word was later made flesh, and dwelt among us, full of grace and truth, John 1:14. His name was Jesus Christ, the only begotten of the Father.

The New Testament epistles give us the same idea.

 Colossians 1:16-17 “For by Him (Jesus) were all things created, that are in heaven, and that are in earth, visible and invisible, whether they be thrones, or dominions, or principalities, or powers: all things were created by Him, and for Him: and He is before all things, and by Him all things consist.”

Hebrews 1:1-3 “God, who at different times and various manners spoke in time past unto the fathers by the prophets, has in these last days spoken unto us by His Son, whom He has appointed heir of all things, by whom also He made the worlds; who being the brightness of His glory, and the express image of His person, and upholding all things by the word of His power, when He had by Himself purged our sins, sat down on the right hand of the Majesty on high.”

Psalm 33:10-11 The Lord brings the counsel of the heathen to nought: He makes the devices of the people of none effect. The counsel of the Lord stands for ever, the thoughts of His heart to all generations.

Similarly in the Proverbs we read,

Proverbs 19:21 “There are many devices in a man’s heart; nevertheless, the counsel of the Lord, that shall stand.”

Eventually the Lord will rule for a thousand years and then for eternity. What God has said shall be done. Jesus said, “Heaven and earth shall pass away, but My words shall not pass away,” Matthew 24:35.

Isaiah 14:27 “For the Lord of hosts has purposed, and who will disannul it? And His hand is stretched out, and who shall turn it back?”

Psalm 33:12 Blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord; and the people whom He has chosen for his own inheritance.

As Apostle Paul has explained in his epistle to the Galatians, “And if you be Christ’s, then are you Abraham’s seed, and heirs according to the promise,” Galatians 3:29. He also wrote, “The Spirit itself bears witness with our spirit, that we are the children of God. And if children, then heirs, heirs of God, and joint-heirs with Christ,” Romans 8:16-17a.

All that believe and obey Jesus Christ are the nation of God, no matter in whatever nation on earth they may exist. We are the children of promise, like Isaac, not the children of the flesh, like Ishmael. As Paul has clarified, “They which are the children of the flesh, these are not the children of God: but the children of the promise are counted for the seed,” Romans 9:8.

God’s spirit is calling all mankind to repent and come into the true Shepherd’s fold. All mankind, each and every person is called in some way. Jesus said, “Many are called, but few are chosen,” Matthew 22:14. So few choose His way, “because straight is the gate, and narrow is the way, which leads to life, and few there be that find it,” Matthew 7:14.

Psalm 33:13-15 The Lord looks from heaven; He beholds all the sons of men. From the place of His habitation, He looks upon all the inhabitants of the earth. He fashions their hearts alike; He considers all their works.

God is watching. For that reason, “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge,” Proverbs 1:7.

Psalm 33:16-19 There is no king saved by the multitude of a host: a mighty man is not delivered by much strength. A horse is a vain thing for safety: neither shall he deliver any by his great strength. Behold, the eye of the Lord is upon them that fear Him, upon them that hope in His mercy; To deliver their soul from death, and to keep them alive in famine.

God is our true strength, our refuge, our protector, our saviour. “It is better to trust in the Lord than to put confidence in man,” Psalm 118:8, the middle verse of the Bible. It is better to trust in the Lord, than to put confidence in anything else to protect and save us. Our obedience to God is our best protection from evil.

Psalm 33:20-22 Our soul waits for the Lord: He is our help and our shield. For our heart shall rejoice in Him, because we have trusted in His holy name. Let Your mercy, O Lord, be upon us, according as we hope in You.

Prayer: Lord, You are our shield and our helper in time of need. We look to You to lead and guide us in the way wherein You would have us walk. You are our hope, help us follow You closely. Let Your mercy and truth guide us and keep us in the path You have for us. Protect us from the snares of the evil one. Be with our loved ones. May You draw them close to You day by day. In Jesus’ name, we pray. Amen.

Originally published February 3, 2025  Link to The Daily Voice - February 3 

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Psalm 32 - The Blessedness of Forgiveness

Psalm 32 A Psalm of David with Commentaries by Dennis Edwards

32:1-2 Blessed is he whose transgression is forgiven, whose sin is covered. Blessed is the man unto whom the Lord imputes not iniquity, and in whose spirit there is no guile.

David had sinned in the situation with Bathsheba. His sexual desires led to the death of Uriah, Bathsheba’s husband. David tried to hide his sin. He had Uriah killed in battle purposely by enemy fire through withdrawing his protection. Psalm 51 describes David’s lament and repentance to the Lord on being found out by the prophet Nathan. The situation is detailed in 2 Samuel 11 & 12. Traditionally, Psalm 32 is another psalm of repentance connected with the Uriah/Bathsheba event.

Psalm 32:3-4 When I kept silence, my bones waxed old through my roaring all the day long. For day and night Your hand was heavy upon me: my moisture is turned into the drought of summer. Selah.

In the Old Testament we read,

Proverbs 28:13 “He that covers his sins shall not prosper: but whoso confesses and forsakes them shall have mercy.”

In Hebrews we find,

Hebrews 12:11 Now no chastening for the present seems to be joyous, but grievous, nevertheless afterward it yields the peaceable fruit of righteousness unto them which are exercised thereby.

David did hide his sin. It wasn’t until the prophet Nathan came and exposed him that he repented and confessed. No doubt God had been working on him as we see in the lines of the psalm “my moisture is turned into drought of summer.” Let’s read the account from Samuel.

2 Samuel 12:7-14 “And Nathan said to David, you are the man. Thus says the Lord God of Israel, I anointed you king over Israel, and I delivered you out of the hand of Saul; And I gave you your master's house, and your master's wives into your bosom, and gave you the house of Israel and of Judah; and if that had been too little, I would moreover have given unto you such and such (more) things.

“Wherefore have you despised the commandment of the Lord, to do evil in His sight? You have killed Uriah the Hittite with the sword, and have taken his wife to be your wife, and have slain him with the sword of the children of Ammon. Now therefore the sword shall never depart from your house; because you have despised me, and have taken the wife of Uriah the Hittite to be your wife.

“Thus says the Lord, Behold, I will raise up evil against you out of your own house, and I will take your wives before your eyes, and give them unto your neighbour, and he shall lie with your wives in the sight of this sun. For you did it secretly: but I will do this thing before all Israel, and before the sun.

“And David said unto Nathan, I have sinned against the Lord. And Nathan said unto David, The Lord also has put away your sin; you shall not die. Howbeit, because by this deed you have given great occasion to the enemies of the Lord to blaspheme, the child also that is born unto you shall surely die.”

David’s sin was great, but his repentance was also great. Through it, we, the sinner, have received some beautiful prayers of repentance that have been a blessing to ourselves, and to many other sorrowful sinners like David. We all have fallen short of the glory of God.

Psalm 32:5 I acknowledge my sin unto You, and my iniquity have I not hid. I said, I will confess my transgressions unto the Lord; and You forgave the iniquity of my sin. Selah.

We see that David acknowledged his sin once he was caught. How much better for us to confess our sins to the Lord knowing that He knows them anyway.

Jesus said that there is nothing hidden that shall not be revealed. He said, that which was done in secret shall be shouted upon the housetops, Luke 12:2-3. In the Old Testament we read, “Be sure your sin will find you out,” Numbers 32:23b.

The epistle of John deals with the question of covering, or confessing our sin.

1 John 1:8-9 “If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sin, He (God) is faithful and just to forgive us our sin, and cleanse us from all unrighteousness.”

The truth is that we have all sinned and come short of the glory of God. There is none of us who only does good. We are all sheep that have gone astray, and have all together become filthy. We have turned everyone to his own way.

But God has offered us a way of salvation from our rebellious condition. If we come unto Him in repentance, rather than try to hide in the trees of the forest like Adam and Eve did, we can be saved. God has laid on Jesus the iniquity of us all, and has made His soul an offering for our sin.

“What must we do? Repent, and be baptised … in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost,” Acts 2:37b-38.

Isaiah 59:2 But your iniquities have separated between you and your God, and your sins have hidden His face from you, that He will not hear.

But “the Lord’s hand is not shortened, that it cannot save; neither His ear heavy, that He cannot hear,” Isaiah 59:1. We just need to confess and forsake our sins.

Isaiah 55:6-7 “Seek the Lord while He may be found, call upon Him while He is near: Let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts: and let him return unto the Lord, and He will have mercy upon him; and to our God, for He will abundantly pardon.”

In Micah we find the same sentiment.

Micah 7:18-19 “Who is a God like unto You, that pardons iniquity, and passes by the transgression of the remnant of His heritage? He retains not His anger forever, because He delights in mercy. He will turn again; He will have compassion upon us; He will subdue our iniquities; and You will cast all their sins into the depths of the sea.”

Psalm 32:6-7 For this shall every one that is godly pray unto You in a time when You may be found: surely in the floods of great waters they shall not come nigh unto him. You are my hiding place; You shall preserve me from trouble; You shall compass me about with songs of deliverance. Selah.

The Lord has promised to keep us from the hour of trouble that shall come upon the whole world, because we have kept His word, and not denied His name, Revelation 3:10. He has told us that He has created us, has formed us, has redeemed us, and has called us by name; and we are His, Isaiah 43:1. He continues,

Isaiah 43:2 “When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and through the rivers, they shall not overflow you: when you walk through the fire, you shall not be burned; neither shall the flame kindle upon you.”

Psalm 32:8 I will instruct you and teach you in the way which you shall go: I will guide you with my eye.

God promises to be our guide throughout life. His word can help do the job, if we spend time reading and meditating on it.

Psalm 119:105 “Your word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path.”

Psalm 119:9 “Wherewithal shall a young man cleanse his way? By taking heed thereto according to Your word.”

Psalm 32:9 Be not as the horse, or as the mule, which have no understanding: whose mouth must be held in with bit and bridle, lest they come near unto you.

Apostle James uses the same imagery of the horse with the bit and bridle in his chapter on the tongue and the problem we have controlling it in James 3. God can help us control our tongue and our other desires, if we come unto Him with all our hearts. Jesus said,

Matthew 11:28 “Come unto me, all you the labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.”

Maybe your heavy laden with sin and problems which you can’t seem to get the victory over. Jesus is saying to come to Him and He will give you rest from the constant strife or defeat you are experiencing. He will bring victory.

Matthew 11:29 “Take My yoke upon you and learn of Me; for I am meek and lowly of heart: and you shall find rest for your souls.”

He wants us to find that place of peace and rest of spirit, not the constant striving, the constant anguish of heart and mind and soul. But we have to come unto Him. We have to cast our burdens, our problems, even our sins upon Jesus. His shoulders are broad enough to carry any load of sin or guilt or addiction we may be struggling with and bring victory.

Psalm 32:10 Many sorrows shall be to the wicked: but he that trusts in the Lord, mercy shall compass him about.

The choice is ours: self-righteously carry our own sin; or confess and forsake our sin, that God may extend His mercy to us.

James 4:6b & 10 “God resists the proud, but give grace unto the humble… Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord, and He shall lift you up.”

Psalm 32:11 Be glad in the Lord, and rejoice, you righteous: and shout for joy, all you that are upright in heart.

We can be glad. We can rejoice. We can shout for joy. Why? Because we have believed on the name of the Son of God. Our sins are pardoned and we are washed in the blood of the Lamb. We have no fear of death, nor fear of judgment for our sins, because we have repented of them, confessed them, forsaken them, and been made new. “Old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new,” 2 Corinthians 5:17b.

Have you believed on the name of the Son of God? He calls us all to just come as we are and He will make us new. We’ve got to do the coming. He’ll do the rest!

Originally published February 1, 2025

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Thanksgiving for Deliverance from Death - Psalm 30

Dennis Edwards

A Reflection on Psalm 30

Psalm 30:1 “I will extol Thee, O Lord; for You have lifted me up, and have not made my foes to rejoice over me.”

David is giving God thanks that his enemies, including his father-in-law, the former King who sought to slay him, have not been victorious over him.

Psalm 30:2-3 “O Lord my God, I cried unto You, and You have healed me. O Lord, You have brought up my soul from the grave: You have kept me alive, that I should not go down to the pit.”

Again, David is thanking the Lord that he is alive. The Lord answered him when he cried and healed him from his depression or from his sickness, in so much, that he did not die. He is thankful.

Psalm 30:4 “Sing unto the Lord, O ye saints of His, and give thanks at the remembrance of His holiness.”

A common thread throughout the psalms is thanksgiving and praise to God for His goodness unto the children of men. It is good for us to give thanks and praise unto the Lord. The last verse in the last psalm gives the main messages of the Psalms.

Psalm 150:6 “Let everything that has breath praise the LORD. Praise ye the LORD:”

Or like we know it in the New Testament,

1 Thessalonians 5:18 “In everything give thanks, for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you.”

Psalm 30:5 “For His anger endures but a moment; in His favour is life: weeping may endure for a night, but joy comes in the morning.”

The Old Testament tells us that God is slow to anger and merciful. When God appeared before Moses the Lord proclaimed to him,

Exodus 34:6b-7a “(I) The Lord, The Lord God (am) merciful and gracious, longsuffering, and abundant in goodness and truth, keeping mercy for thousands, forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin.”

The same idea is paraphrased in the psalms.

Psalm 134:8-9 “The Lord is gracious, and full of compassion; slow to anger, and of great mercy. The Lord is good to all: and His tender mercies are great over all His works.”

Some 44 times in the Psalms is repeated the phrase, “His mercy endures for ever.”

Psalm 118: 1-4 & 29 “O give thanks unto the LORD; for His is good: because His mercy endures for ever. Let Israel now say, that His mercy endures for ever. Let the house of Aaron now say, that His mercy endures for ever. Let them now that fear the LORD say, that His mercy endures for ever…O give thanks unto the LORD; for He is good: for His mercy endures for ever.”

Psalm 136:1 “O give thanks unto the LORD; for He is good: for His mercy endures for ever.”

Psalm 136 has 26 lines and each line ends with “for His mercy endures for ever.”

Contrary to the idea that the God of the Old Testament is a monster, God proclaims that He is good and merciful and slow to anger. When He does get angry at us for our rebellion or sin, it lasts but for a moment. We may end up with a serious problem because of our sin, our health may be damaged, or a relationship may be broken, but as we cry out to God with our tears, His compassion fails not. We are once more brought back into harmony with Him and our problem is resolved, whatever it may have been. Joy comes flooding back into our lives.

Psalm 30:6 “In my prosperity I said, I shall never be moved.”

God warned the children of Israel, and He warns us today to beware of prosperity.

Deuteronomy 9:11,12,14,17,18,19 “Beware that you forget not the Lord your God, in not keeping His commandments, and His judgments, and His statutes,…Lest when you have eaten and are full,…Then your heart be lifted up, and you forget the Lord your God,… And you say in your heart, My power and the might of mine (own) hand has gotten me this wealth. But you shall remember the Lord your God: for it is He that gives you power to get wealth…And it shall be, if you do at all forget the Lord your God, and walk after other gods, and serve them, and worship them, I testify against you this day that you shall surely perish.”

Psalm 62:10b “If riches increase, set not your heart upon them.”

Apostle Paul, admonished us, also.

1 Timothy 6:6-10 “But godliness with contentment is great gain. For we brought nothing into this world, and it is certain we can carry nothing out. And having food and raiment let us be therewith content. But they that will be rich fall into temptation and a snare, and into many foolish and hurtful lusts, which drown men in destruction and perdition. For the love of money is the root of all evil: which while some coveted after, they have erred from the faith, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows.”

In our prosperity we have the tendency to forget God. David is confessing that he, too, forgot God in His prosperity He sinned grievously in the incident with Bathsheba. God’s anger was upon him for a moment. David confessed and truly repented and found forgiveness in God’s mercy.

Psalm 30:7 “Lord, by Your favour You have made my mountain to stand strong: You did hide Your face, and I was troubled.”  

It is only God’s mercy that we are able to stand. If we were rightly judged for our sins, no one would stand. When our relationship with God becomes cloudy through neglect or sin, we sense his lack and anxiety comes in and we are troubled.

Psalm 30:8 “I cried to thee, O Lord; and unto the Lord I made supplication.”

When we are troubled, when that cloud over shadows us, we cry unto the Lord once again. Apostle Paul gives the same solution to our moments of anxiety.  He tells us, if we cry unto the Lord in prayer and in supplication with thanksgiving, God will hear our prayer and send peace of heart and mind unto our souls.

Philippians 4:6-7 “Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God. And the peace of God, which passes all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.”

Psalm 30:9 “What profit is there in my blood, when I go down to the pit? Shall the dust praise thee? Shall it declare Your truth?”

David questions whether in death we will be able to praise the Lord and speak of his truth.

Psalm 30:10 “Hear, O LORD, and have mercy upon me: LORD, be my helper.”

Again, he calls upon the Lord for mercy. He calls upon God to help him.

Psalm 30:11-12 You have turned my morning into dancing: You have put off my sackcloth, and girded me with gladness. To the end that my glory may sing praise to You, and not be silent. O LORD my God, I will give thanks unto You for ever.”

When God’s joy is taken from us, we become weak, downcast, and discouraged. After we spend time pleading with God, pouring out our heart and soul in prayer, seeking His face; God answers and renews or restores our joy. It is the joy of the Lord that gives us strength. Once again, we are able to sing and to praise and to give thanks. We enter into His presence with praise, and with thanksgiving, and we cannot be silent for His mercy endures for ever.

If you’re downcast, don’t stay there, fight for joy. The joy of the Lord, His happiness, your praise to Him, your thankfulness to Him, will give you the strength to carry on. Don’t mettle in discouragement, for the devil is as a roaring lion seeking whom he may devour. He devours and smothers our joy in sadness or melancholiness. Fight for joy, it’s your lifeline. It’s God strength in you and a gift of the Holy Spirit. Fight for happiness. In everything give thanks. Let everything that has breath praise the Lord, who is the author and finisher of our faith. Praise the Lord, you children of men, for God is worthy of our praise. He will bless us and help chase the clouds away, as we praise and give thanks to Him forever.

Originally published January 25, 2025

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The Voice of the Lord in the Storm! - Psalm 29

Psalm 29 - A Psalm of David with commentaries by Dennis Edwards

Psalm 29:1-2 “Give unto the Lord, O you mighty, give unto the Lord glory and strength. Give unto the Lord the glory due His name; worship the Lord in the beauty of holiness.”

We should give to God the best part of our lives, not just the leftovers of our days. The first moments of each day, as much as possible, we should give to the Lord. We should worship Him with our rising thoughts and words, for His glory is above the heavens and He is worthy of our praise and thanksgiving.

Psalm 29:3 “The voice of the Lord is upon the waters: the God of glory thunders: the Lord is upon many waters.”

The first aspect of the above verse is the inexplicable fact that when people are sick or having troubles, they often go to the seaside and sit by the beach and listen to the calming effects of the waves as they break upon the shore. In their search for comfort, for answers, for solace, people often seek out a lonely spot on an isolated beach to walk with their thoughts and hear the "voice of the Lord upon the waters."

The second aspect is that the psalmist may in fact be reminiscing over the creation event found in Genesis 1.

Genesis 1:1-3 “In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth, And the earth was without form and void; and darkness was upon the face of the deep. And the spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters. And God said, Let there be light: and there was light.”

In the above verses we find God the Father sending forth His Spirit to create through His spoken Word, or Voice. We see the Father, the Son, which was the Word or Voice Who later became flesh in Jesus, and the Holy Spirit, which God sent to move upon the face of the waters.

All throughout the first chapter of Genesis we see God speaking the creation into existence. God spoke and it was so. “And God said,” in other words, God’s spoken Word was the medium of creation.

In Genesis 3:8, when God walks in the Garden of Eden, He is called, “the voice of the Lord God.” Adam and Eve heard “the voice of the Lord God walking in the garden.” The “God body” that appeared to Adam and Eve walking in the garden was the Voice of the Lord God, or the Word of the Lord God. The Gospel of John clarifies who that Word was and is.

John 1:1-3 “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. The same was in the beginning with God. All things were made by Him; and without Him was not anything made that was made.”

John 1:14 “And the Word was made flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory of the only begotten of the Father full of grace and truth.”

Jesus Christ is the Word of God who walked with Adam and Eve in the garden in some sort of “God body.” Jesus was the creating force of the universe with God the Father and the Holy Spirit and later became flesh by His natural birth through Mary.

The Apostle Paul writes similarly.

Colossians 1:15 “(Jesus) is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of every creature: for by Him were all things created, that are in heaven, and that are in earth, visible and invisible, whether they be thrones or dominions, or principalities, or powers: all things were created by Him, and for Him: and He is before all things, and by Him all things consist.”

In the book of Hebrews we find a parallel statement.

Hebrews 1:1-4 “God, who at sundry times and in diverse manners spoke in time past unto the fathers by the prophets, has in these last days spoken unto us by His Son, whom He has appointed heir of all things, by whom also He made the worlds; who being the brightness of His glory, and the express image of His person, and upholding all things by the word of His power, when He had by Himself purged our sins, sat down on the right hand of the Majesty on high, being made so much better than the angels, and has by inheritance obtained a more excellent name than they.”

Jesus is and was the creating “Voice of the Lord” we find in Genesis and in the Psalms and who spoke to the prophets in the Old Testament.

Psalm 29:4 “The voice of the Lord is powerful; the voice of the Lord is full of majesty.”

We need to hear His voice daily to have the confidence that we are walking in the paths He desires for us. When we hear His voice, we have peace, no matter what circumstances we are facing. Hearing His voice has a powerful effect upon us.

Isaiah 55:3a “Incline your ear, and come unto Me: hear, and your soul shall live.”

Hearing His voice gives us the peace that passes all understanding. When we are anxious and pour out our soul unto the Lord in prayer and supplication with thanksgiving, God promises to hear us and answer our prayer. He may not answer as we wish, but He promises to send us the peace we need to face whatever situation we are in. His voice is powerful and hearing His voice personally causes us to experience a peace from God that is beyond human understanding.

Psalm 29:5-6 “The voice of the Lord breaks the cedars; yea, the Lord breaks the cedars of Lebanon. He makes them also to skip like a calf; Lebanon and Sirion like a young unicorn.”

God’s voice is over all of nature. By Him all things consist and are held together.

Psalm 29:7 “The voice of the Lord divides the flames of fire.”

Isn’t it interesting that we like to sit in front of a fire and watch the flames. We are mesmerized by how the flames are divided in the fire. It’s God’s voice that divides the flame within the fire. Again, we see God upholding all things by the word of His power.

Psalm 29:8-9 “The voice of the Lord shakes the wilderness; the Lord shakes the wilderness of Kadesh. The voice of the Lord makes the hinds to calve, and discovers the forests: and in His temple does every one speak of His glory.”

God is the one who brings forth new life. Apostle Paul in Acts 17:28a said, “For in Him we live and move and have our being.”

Psalm 29:10 “The Lord sits upon the flood; yea, the Lord sits King forever.”

Some scholars believe David is referring back to the Genesis Flood and God’s judgment on the world at that time. But David may very well be inferring a future judgment, where God or Jesus will bring the world into submission to His will and finally sit as King forever.

Psalm 29:10 “The Lord will give strength unto His people; the Lord will bless His people with peace.”

But in order to receive the strength and peace that we need, it is necessary for us to “Come unto Him.” In Isaiah we read,

Isaiah 40:29-31 “He gives power to the faint; and to them that have no might He increases strength. Even the youths shall faint and be weary, and the young men shall utterly fall: but they that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint.”

Jesus communicates the same message in the Gospel of Matthew.

Matthew 11:28-30 “Come unto Me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you, and learn of Me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls. For My yoke is easy, and My burden is light.”

The Apostle Paul has the same formular. He says,

Philippians 4:7-8 “Be careful (or anxious) for nothing; but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your request be known unto God. And the peace of God that passes all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Jesus Christ.”

In the psalms we read,

Psalm 119:165 “Great peace have they which love Your law: and nothing shall offend them.”

In another place in Isaiah, we see its meditating on Jesus that gives us peace or rest of mind.

Isaiah 26:3 “You will keep him in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on You, because he trusts in You.”

The strength is there. The power is there. The peace is there, but we need to do our part and come unto Jesus. We need to take time with Him. We need to take time with Jesus, today. If we read His word, if we get alone with Him, if we pour out our hearts in prayer, if we thank Him for His many blessings; He promises to answer and supply all our needs. But He’s waiting on us to come unto Him.

Please, don’t tarry with the chores and duties of life, and the preoccupations of the day. Choose the better part. Choose to take time alone with God, early before the day starts, if possible. With Him, you’ll find the strength, and power, and peace you need to carry on the tasks set before you. He’ll give you the strength, and power, and peace you need. It's a promise. Just come unto Him!

Prayer: Jesus, I really don’t know how to approach You. I don’t know how to “Come unto You.” Help me in my feeble efforts, my feeble attempts. Help me as I pour out my problems and worries to you in prayer. I thank you for my many blessings. Please hear my prayer and draw me closer to You. Help me to learn more of You and become Your child and follower. In Jesus’ name, I pray. Amen.

Originally published January, 28, 2025.

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