Psa 92:3 | KingComments | STEP | Those who have seen the perishableness of man (Psalm 90) and have been given an eye for the Messiah (Psalm 91), for that man the Sabbath rest dawns (Psalm 92). About the meaning of the Sabbath rest we read in Hebrews 3 and 4. On that day he praises the lovingkindness, Adonai, and faithfulness of the LORD. Psalm 92 shows us prophetically what is found in the heart of the believing remnant. They are “the ones who follow the Lamb wherever He goes” ( ). They have seen Christ in Psalm 91 and have become followers of Him, just like the Lord’s disciples in the Gospels. Division of the psalm The psalm has the stylistic figure of a chiasm, which is a stylistic figure consisting of a repetition with a reversal. This chiasm – we can also speak of a ‘pyramid form’ – at the same time gives the layout of the psalm: A. The work of redemption is accomplished ( ). ---B. The consequences for the antichrist and his followers ( ). ------C. The Most High is the eternal LORD ( ). ---B. The consequences for the hostile nations ( ). A. The consequences of the work of redemption for the believers ( ). We see that through this figure of speech, attention falls on the middle verse: “But You, O LORD, are on high forever” ( ). The glorification of God is the purpose of creation. Because of sin, man falls short of the glory of God ( ). Salvation results in God being glorified beyond measure! This “psalm” is also “a song”, which underscores its character as a song of giving thanks. It is impossible to view the glory of the Lord Jesus in a cold, sober, distant manner. Every aspect of God’s glory that is taken into the heart will bring thanksgiving and worship. We see that here with the faithful remnant of Israel. See also at Psalm 65:1. It is the only psalm that has in its heading “for the Sabbath day”. The Sabbath is the weekly day of rest ( ). God gave that day to His people to remember especially on that day that He rested from His work of creation ( ) and that redemption is also entirely His work ( ). The Sabbath day is the day of rest of God’s creation work. Its full realization is the thousand-year realm of peace, which is the Sabbath of God’s work of redemption ( ). Resting on the Sabbath day means acknowledging that God is the origin of all things. Then the God-fearing Jew renounces all his own interests to think only of God and give thanks to Him for Who He is and what He has done. This will be the occupation in the realm of peace, which may well be called the millennial Sabbath. The Sabbath is not meant to be a day of rest only in the sense that no work is done. Rest does not mean doing nothing. Rest means that the work is accomplished and as a result there is praise, giving thanks and worship. God also wants His people to praise Him on that day and also come together for it ( ). According to God’s original intention, the Sabbath is not a burden, but a delight. That intention will be enjoyed by God’s people in the realm of peace. The writer of the letter to the Hebrews makes it clear to the Jewish believers, who are a type of the faithful remnant, that for the people of God the Sabbath rest means entering into the rest of God. To enter into the rest of God requires obedience of faith ( ). Looking to the Lord Jesus gives so much comfort and encouragement that the believing remnant praises and give thanks to the LORD. In the realm of peace they will have entered into the rest of God. It is not just right or justified, but “it is good to give thanks to the LORD” ( ). Literally it says: “Good it is to give thanks to the LORD.” This makes it clear that the emphasis is on the word “good”. This is consistent with what the Lord Jesus says in John 4: “The true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth; for such people the Father seeks to be His worshipers” ( ). Good also implies lovely and pleasing ( ). It is a good activity and it has a good effect. Thanksgiving is to the glory of God and makes us happy and gives us peace. It is not only an obligation, but a desire. Above all, there is the desire of God Himself to be given thanks and praised. He is enthroned upon the praises of Israel ( ). The LORD is worthy of being given thanks; He has done countless things worthy of thanksgiving. Who He is and what He has done gives abundant reason to praise Him. His “name” expresses fully Who He is. As we see more of that – for us to that the Father name is added – we will sing praises to that “name”. The name “Most High” is God’s name, or the name of the Messiah, in the realm of peace, where He will reign as the Most High over all the works of God’s hands. That great Sabbath will be full of the singing of psalms to His glory because He has fulfilled all His promises. It is good at the beginning of each new day or new period, “in the morning”, to “declare” God’s “lovingkindness” ( ). “In the morning” we can apply to the realm of peace. It is the “morning without clouds” of which David speaks ( ). The morning is the end of the night. Here it speaks of the new covenant on the basis of the blood of Christ, the blood of the new covenant ( ). That is the foundation of the lovingkindness of God, the rich blessing of God on the basis of the covenant love of God. All the mercy, love, care, all His wonders and all His acts in favor of them in the past will be declared, or proclaimed, throughout the Sabbath of the realm of peace ( ). We can also apply this to our lives, in which that morning has arrived through the coming of the Lord Jesus into our lives. We can continually sing of His lovingkindness, Adonai, of His favors ( ). When the morning has passed and the day is over, evening falls and night comes. We look back on the day and can then praise His faithfulness. At the end of the day we will testify to the faithfulness of God, Who has not been unfaithful for a moment. The thanksgiving takes place throughout the day. In the sacrifices it is expressed by the daily burnt offering which is offered twice a day: in the morning and in the evening ( ). If we apply the night to our lives, there can be nights in life, times when everything seems dark and hopeless. Then it is good to think of His faithfulness. He is and remains faithful even when we are going through a difficult time. When we think of His faithfulness, a song of thanksgiving comes into our hearts in the midst of the difficulties. When giving thanks, singing psalms and declaring, various musical instruments are used ( ). They do not drown out the singing, but accompany the singing with melodious music. It is not about the melody but about the words (cf. ; ). What the LORD has done is a continual source of joy ( ). By this, above all, are meant His deeds in redemption. As a result, entering into His rest has become possible. When we see that, it makes us rejoice. The same applies to the “works of Your hands”. Except in the work of redemption, we also see them in creation as a whole. We see them in all His ordinances, everything He instituted at creation, such as marriage and the family. He upholds it. About that we may sing joyfully. We come to the exclamation: “How great are Your works, O LORD!” ( ; cf. ; ). His works are the outworking of His thoughts. His works make His thoughts known. We see this in the work of redemption and in the work of judgment that He exercises over the wicked and the antichrist. All His deeds and works refer to Him, Who with all His deeds and works carries out a plan devised by Him. His thoughts are unfathomable by man, for they “are very deep” (cf. ; ; ). We, New Testament believers, can come to know His thoughts through His Spirit Whom He has given us ( ).

‏ Psalms 92:3

Introduction

Those who have seen the perishableness of man (Psalm 90) and have been given an eye for the Messiah (Psalm 91), for that man the Sabbath rest dawns (Psalm 92). About the meaning of the Sabbath rest we read in Hebrews 3 and 4. On that day he praises the lovingkindness, Adonai, and faithfulness of the LORD. Psalm 92 shows us prophetically what is found in the heart of the believing remnant. They are “the ones who follow the Lamb wherever He goes” (Rev 14:4). They have seen Christ in Psalm 91 and have become followers of Him, just like the Lord’s disciples in the Gospels.

Division of the psalm

The psalm has the stylistic figure of a chiasm, which is a stylistic figure consisting of a repetition with a reversal. This chiasm – we can also speak of a ‘pyramid form’ – at the same time gives the layout of the psalm:

A. The work of redemption is accomplished (Psa 92:1b-4).

---B. The consequences for the antichrist and his followers (Psa 92:5-7).

------C. The Most High is the eternal LORD (Psa 92:8).

---B. The consequences for the hostile nations (Psa 92:9-11).

A. The consequences of the work of redemption for the believers (Psa 92:12-15).

We see that through this figure of speech, attention falls on the middle verse:

“But You, O LORD, are on high forever” (Psa 92:8).

The glorification of God is the purpose of creation. Because of sin, man falls short of the glory of God (Rom 3:23). Salvation results in God being glorified beyond measure!

It Is Good to Give Thanks to the LORD

This “psalm” is also “a song”, which underscores its character as a song of giving thanks. It is impossible to view the glory of the Lord Jesus in a cold, sober, distant manner. Every aspect of God’s glory that is taken into the heart will bring thanksgiving and worship. We see that here with the faithful remnant of Israel. See also at Psalm 65:1.

It is the only psalm that has in its heading “for the Sabbath day”. The Sabbath is the weekly day of rest (Exo 20:8-11). God gave that day to His people to remember especially on that day that He rested from His work of creation (Gen 2:2) and that redemption is also entirely His work (Deu 5:12-15). The Sabbath day is the day of rest of God’s creation work. Its full realization is the thousand-year realm of peace, which is the Sabbath of God’s work of redemption (Heb 4:9).

Resting on the Sabbath day means acknowledging that God is the origin of all things. Then the God-fearing Jew renounces all his own interests to think only of God and give thanks to Him for Who He is and what He has done. This will be the occupation in the realm of peace, which may well be called the millennial Sabbath.

The Sabbath is not meant to be a day of rest only in the sense that no work is done. Rest does not mean doing nothing. Rest means that the work is accomplished and as a result there is praise, giving thanks and worship. God also wants His people to praise Him on that day and also come together for it (Lev 23:3). According to God’s original intention, the Sabbath is not a burden, but a delight. That intention will be enjoyed by God’s people in the realm of peace.

The writer of the letter to the Hebrews makes it clear to the Jewish believers, who are a type of the faithful remnant, that for the people of God the Sabbath rest means entering into the rest of God. To enter into the rest of God requires obedience of faith (Heb 3:18-19). Looking to the Lord Jesus gives so much comfort and encouragement that the believing remnant praises and give thanks to the LORD. In the realm of peace they will have entered into the rest of God.

It is not just right or justified, but “it is good to give thanks to the LORD” (Psa 92:1b). Literally it says: “Good it is to give thanks to the LORD.” This makes it clear that the emphasis is on the word “good”. This is consistent with what the Lord Jesus says in John 4: “The true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth; for such people the Father seeks to be His worshipers” (Jn 4:23b). Good also implies lovely and pleasing (Psa 147:1).

It is a good activity and it has a good effect. Thanksgiving is to the glory of God and makes us happy and gives us peace. It is not only an obligation, but a desire. Above all, there is the desire of God Himself to be given thanks and praised. He is enthroned upon the praises of Israel (Psa 22:3). The LORD is worthy of being given thanks; He has done countless things worthy of thanksgiving. Who He is and what He has done gives abundant reason to praise Him.

His “name” expresses fully Who He is. As we see more of that – for us to that the Father name is added – we will sing praises to that “name”. The name “Most High” is God’s name, or the name of the Messiah, in the realm of peace, where He will reign as the Most High over all the works of God’s hands. That great Sabbath will be full of the singing of psalms to His glory because He has fulfilled all His promises.

It is good at the beginning of each new day or new period, “in the morning”, to “declare” God’s “lovingkindness” (Psa 92:2). “In the morning” we can apply to the realm of peace. It is the “morning without clouds” of which David speaks (2Sam 23:4). The morning is the end of the night. Here it speaks of the new covenant on the basis of the blood of Christ, the blood of the new covenant (Mt 26:28). That is the foundation of the lovingkindness of God, the rich blessing of God on the basis of the covenant love of God.

All the mercy, love, care, all His wonders and all His acts in favor of them in the past will be declared, or proclaimed, throughout the Sabbath of the realm of peace (Psa 136:1-26). We can also apply this to our lives, in which that morning has arrived through the coming of the Lord Jesus into our lives. We can continually sing of His lovingkindness, Adonai, of His favors (Psa 89:1b).

When the morning has passed and the day is over, evening falls and night comes. We look back on the day and can then praise His faithfulness. At the end of the day we will testify to the faithfulness of God, Who has not been unfaithful for a moment. The thanksgiving takes place throughout the day. In the sacrifices it is expressed by the daily burnt offering which is offered twice a day: in the morning and in the evening (Exo 29:38-42).

If we apply the night to our lives, there can be nights in life, times when everything seems dark and hopeless. Then it is good to think of His faithfulness. He is and remains faithful even when we are going through a difficult time. When we think of His faithfulness, a song of thanksgiving comes into our hearts in the midst of the difficulties.

When giving thanks, singing psalms and declaring, various musical instruments are used (Psa 92:3). They do not drown out the singing, but accompany the singing with melodious music. It is not about the melody but about the words (cf. Eph 5:19; Col 3:16).

What the LORD has done is a continual source of joy (Psa 92:4). By this, above all, are meant His deeds in redemption. As a result, entering into His rest has become possible. When we see that, it makes us rejoice. The same applies to the “works of Your hands”. Except in the work of redemption, we also see them in creation as a whole. We see them in all His ordinances, everything He instituted at creation, such as marriage and the family. He upholds it. About that we may sing joyfully.

We come to the exclamation: “How great are Your works, O LORD!” (Psa 92:5; cf. Isa 28:29; Rom 11:33-34). His works are the outworking of His thoughts. His works make His thoughts known. We see this in the work of redemption and in the work of judgment that He exercises over the wicked and the antichrist.

All His deeds and works refer to Him, Who with all His deeds and works carries out a plan devised by Him. His thoughts are unfathomable by man, for they “are very deep” (cf. Job 11:7; Psa 40:5; 1Cor 2:11b). We, New Testament believers, can come to know His thoughts through His Spirit Whom He has given us (1Cor 2:9-10 ; 12).