Psalm Meditation 897
Proper 16
August 27, 2017

Psalm 29
1 Ascribe to the LORD, O heavenly beings, ascribe to the LORD glory and strength.
2 Ascribe to the LORD the glory of his name; worship the LORD in holy splendor.
3 The voice of the LORD is over the waters; the God of glory thunders, the LORD, over mighty waters.
4 The voice of the LORD is powerful; the voice of the LORD is full of majesty.
5 The voice of the LORD breaks the cedars; the LORD breaks the cedars of Lebanon.
6 He makes Lebanon skip like a calf, and Sirion like a young wild ox.
7 The voice of the LORD flashes forth flames of fire.
8 The voice of the LORD shakes the wilderness; the LORD shakes the wilderness of Kadesh.
9 The voice of the LORD causes the oaks to whirl, and strips the forest bare; and in his temple all say, “Glory!”
10 The LORD sits enthroned over the flood; the LORD sits enthroned as king forever.
11 May the LORD give strength to his people! May the LORD bless his people with peace!
(NRSV)

There are times in which it seems important to figure out what event inspired the psalmist to write a psalm and to write it in this particular way. Scholars want to know the context of the psalm so that it can be more easily interpreted. Yes, scholarship is important in looking to the Scriptures for both information and inspiration. Once we know the details, We can more readily figure out what each word and phrase might mean. When we get the original figured out we can ask what it might meant to us today, because of or despite the original intent.

Other times it seems good to let the psalm speak as it will to the situation in which we find ourselves. We might not be concerned about meaning and context, we simply let a verse jump out at us and give us what we need in that moment. As long as we don’t set that moment in concrete and make that verse guide the rest of our lives, we can be touched by a verse in a way that would make a scholar shudder. We can let the Bible reflect who we are in the moment.

The psalmist gives us a number of reasons to give glory to God. We can study what each of those reasons means and how they play together to paint a picture of the atmosphere in which the psalm is written. We can read the psalm as an invitation to give God glory for reasons of our own. One is not better than the other. Each way has its uses and informs and instructs us along the way.

August 21, 2017
LCM