Psalm 89:11-18, We Have Heard the Joyful Sound

There is a great old “Sunday-Night-Church-Hymn” that begins, “We have heard the joyful sound, Jesus Saves! Jesus Saves!”  The “joyful sound.”  In other words, the “good news,” the gospel!  I suppose the hymn writer, Priscilla J. Owens (1829-1907), had seen these words in Psalm 89:15.  It makes sense; it’s a perfect fit.  (By the way, Priscilla was a school teacher and a Sunday School teacher who wrote her songs mainly for her Sunday School students.  Besides “Jesus Saves” she also wrote “We Have an Anchor.”  What great, joyful songs to sing.)

In Psalm 89 we are encouraged by the litany of blessings pronounced upon those who have heard the joyful sound.  I have some understanding of Hebrew poetry and realize that in some sense we are dealing with synonymous phrases.  But I also understand that the basic idea is expressed in several different ways to give us a fuller appreciation of the abundance of God’s blessing on His people!

·       They walk, O LORD, in the light of your countenance.  In the countenance (face) of the LORD there is no darkness.  It is the glorious brilliance of the glory of God.  Think about this.  God is light and in Him is no darkness at all (1 John 1:5).  In (the Word) was life, and the life was the light of men.  And the light shines in the darkness and the darkness did not comprehend it (Jn. 1:4-5).  Then the lawless one will be revealed, whom the Lord will consume with the breath of His mouth and destroy with the brightness of His coming (2 Th. 2:8).  The LORD bless you and keep you; the LORD make His face shine upon you, and be gracious unto you; the LORD life up His countenance upon you, and give you peace (Num. 6:24-26).

·       In Your name they rejoice all day long.  A person’s “name” encapsulates all that they are.  You say their name; you suddenly bring to mind what they mean to you.  So it is with God.  When God told Moses to go back to Egypt and lead His people out, Moses wanted to know His name so he could tell the people.  God said, I AM WHO I AM … Thus you shall say to the children of Israel, ‘I AM has sent me to you’ … This is My name forever, and this is My memorial to all generations (Ex. 3:13-15).  God proclaimed the fullness of that name to Moses in Ex. 34:6-7, a passage referenced countless times throughout the OT: The LORD, the LORD God, merciful and gracious, longsuffering and abounding in goodness and truth, keeping mercy for thousands, forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin, by no means clearing the guilty, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children and the children’s children to the third and fourth generation.  Thus, The name of the LORD is a strong tower; the righteous run to it and are safe (Prov. 18:10).

We will conclude these thoughts tomorrow.