This is our 1,100th Pastor’s
Chat since we started doing them back in March 2020. I trust they have been as
much a blessing to you in reading and listening to them as they have been to me
in doing and producing them. I know that it is only by God’s grace that I wake
up very early every morning, (without an alarm), to do them. It is my desire to
continue doing these on a daily basis, as the Lord gives us wisdom and strength
to do so. Thanks so much for your encouragements, and also your partnership in
sharing these brief Bible devotions with others.
Psalm 48 is the third of three Psalms (Psalm
46, 47 and 48), written to commemorate the defeat of the Assyrian army in the
days of Hezekiah that we read about in 2 Kings 18-19 and Isaiah 37. These Psalms
are the work of an eyewitness, probably either the king or Isaiah the prophet. They
were written to be sung by the sons of Korah who led the celebration and
worship in the temple. We can hardly imagine the relief of the Jewish people
when they discovered that miraculously, overnight, the dreaded foe was no more.
But these Psalms are also Messianic. We
have no trouble drawing the obvious parallel between the exultation of the
people here, and the sighs of relief which will ascend to God in fervent
thanksgiving in a coming day when the armies of the beast are similarly
overthrown (Revelation 19). We are not
surprised to detect in this Psalm prophetic overtones which carry us forward to
the coming threatened destruction of Jerusalem and extermination of the nation,
to the return of Christ and the deliverance of Israel from the horrors of the
great tribulation.
The emphasis in Psalm 48 is on the Lord
and Mount Zion. Other psalms about Zion are Psalms 76, 84, 87, 122, and 132. As
believers today we are citizens of the Zion that is above (Gal. 4:21-31; Heb.
12:18-24; Phil. 3:20), and rejoice that the Lord cares for us even as He cared
for His ancient people Israel. This Psalm deals with four important topics.
The first one is God and His Holy City
(vv. 1-3). In this first section, the people of Jerusalem speak about their
city with pride and gratitude. David took Mount Zion from the Jebusites (2 Sam.
5:6-9; 2 Chron. 11:4-7) and made Jerusalem the capital of his kingdom. Ideally
situated 2500 feet above sea level, the city was almost impregnable. Not far
away was the juncture of the north-south and east-west trade routes, important
for the economy and for communications.
David brought the ark of the covenant to
Jerusalem, and this made Zion a "holy mountain," for the Lord dwelt
there (Psalms 2:6; 3:4; 15:1; 43:3; 99:9). Jerusalem became known as "the
city of God" (vv. 1, 8) and the "city of the Great King"
(v. 2; 47:2; see Matt. 5:35). Notice the greatness belongs to the Lord and not
to the city (47:9), for in His grace, the Lord chose Zion (78:68; 132:13). The
Jews saw Jerusalem as a beautiful city (50:2), a safe fortress, and "the
joy of all the earth".
Spiritually speaking, the city has
brought joy to all the earth because outside its walls Jesus died for the sins
of the world, and from Jerusalem first sounded out the Gospel of Jesus Christ.
One day in the future, Jerusalem will be the center of Christ's glorious
kingdom (Isa. 2 and 60). The safety of Jerusalem was not in her location or her
walls (vv. 12-14) but in her God; for He was their fortress (v. 3; see Psalm 46:1,
7). It was in the defeat of Sennacherib's army that God "made himself
known as a stronghold" (v. 3, NASB).
This great city is beautiful because it
is the place where God has made Himself known to the whole earth. It is only
through the cross of Jesus Christ that we can experience God and know Him!
Have you ever bowed humbly at the cross
and accepted the Lord Jesus Christ as your Savior? If not, why not today?
God bless!
