Salmos 121
Arthur Pink · Citado em PreceptAustin
Salmos 121
Pink says… Faith is to the soul—what the eye is to the body—namely, that which enables its possessor to look outside of himself and steadfastly fix his gaze on an external object. And hence it is that the exercise and act of faith is so often referred to in the Word under the figure of "lifting up the eyes" and "looking unto the LORD." Look upward! Was not that the very first thing which the blessed Spirit taught you, dear friend, after He had revealed to you your lost condition and made you realize that you were a guilty, polluted, and undone sinner? As the serpent-bitten Israelites were bidden to look up to the brazen serpent upon the pole—so you were taught to look upon the crucified Savior as the One who was willing and able to meet your dire need! "Look unto me—and be saved, all the ends of the earth" (Isa 45:22). Now, as you commenced, so you must continue (Col 2:6). Christ enthroned in glory is henceforth to be the grand Object of your contemplation and adoration. Look up to Him daily and view Him by faith—as the eternal Lover of your soul, as the Lord of your righteousness, as the Bread of life to feed upon. Contemplate Him as "full of grace and truth" (John 1:14). However cold, dull, and corrupt you feel to be in yourself, let your very consciousness of the same, serve to drive you more and more out of yourself, to rest wholly on what He did and suffered for you, and what He now is to you. Since He is your Savior, who loved you and gave Himself for you—make use of Him. Live by faith upon Him, and thereby you will please and honor Him. Look by faith within the veil, and take a view of what your great High Priest is there doing for you: He has all your concerns before Him, and is making all things work together for your good (Rom. 8:28). Let that encourage you to cast all your care upon Him and entrust all your concerns to Him. IT IS GOOD TO LOOK UP! J R Miller notes that… It is good always to look up. Thousands of people dwarf their lives, and hinder the possibilities of growth in their souls—by looking downward. They keep their eyes ever entangled in mere earthly sights, and miss the glories of the hills that pierce the clouds, and of the heavens that bend over them! A story is told of a boy who one day found a gold coin on the street. Ever after this—he kept his eyes on the ground as he walked, watching for coins. During a long lifetime, he found a good number of coins—but meanwhile he never saw the flowers and the trees which grew in such wondrous beauty everywhere; he never saw the hills, the mountains, the sweet valleys, the picturesque landscapes; he never saw the blue sky. To him, this lovely world meant only a dusty road, dreary and unbeautiful, merely a place in which to look for coins. This really is the story of the life of most people. They never lift their eyes off the earth! They live only to gather money, to add field to field, to scheme for power or to find pleasure. Or, if their quest is a little higher, it is still only for earthly things. They never lift up their eyes to God! There is no blue sky in their picture. They cherish no heavenly visions. They are without God in the world. C H
Salmos 121
Pink comments on Psalm 121… For the benefit of young preachers, let us say that were we sermonizing this verse, our divisions would be: 1. A definite decision—"I will." 2. A right resolve—"I will lift up my eyes." 3. An obvious object—"unto the hills" (the Lord). 4. An eager expectation—"from whence comes [not "possibly may come"] my help." It was the look of faith and hope; and such a look is never put to confusion. It was the opposite of slothful inertia or fatalistic apathy. He did not say, "I will wait until I feel moved by the Spirit," but determined upon discharging his own responsibility. He had no right to expect it, unless he sought it—sought it definitely, resolutely, earnestly, believingly. "Therefore will the LORD wait, that he may be gracious unto you" (Isa 30:18); and He often waits for our importunate waiting upon Him, for only then do we really value His gracious supplies. "My help comes from the LORD" (Psalm 121:2). That is a very comprehensive word which includes a great variety of blessings. Let us conclude with a short, "Bible reading" which will serve to open the meaning of this "help" and at the same time, set forth the different favors for which it is the Christian's privilege to look upward. 1. For a daily supply of grace: "In the morning will I direct my prayer unto you, and will look up" (Psalm 5:3). 2. For wisdom: "Neither know we what to do: but our eyes are upon you" (2 Chronicles 20:12). 3. For deliverance from temptations: "My eyes are ever toward the LORD; for he shall pluck my feet out of the net" (Psalm 25:15). 4. For illumination and transformation: "They looked unto him, and were enlightened" (Psalm 34:5). 5. For directions: "As the eyes of servants look unto the hand of their masters,…so our eyes wait upon the LORD our God" (Psalm 123:2). 6. For comfort: "My eyes are unto you…leave not my soul destitute" (Psalm 141:8). 7. For the awing of the heart: "Lift up your eyes on high, and behold who has created these things" (Isa 40:26). 8. For courage: "Not fearing the wrath of the king: for he endured, as seeing him who is invisible" (Heb 11:27). 9. For perseverance: "Let us run with patience the race that is set before us, Looking unto Jesus" (Heb 12:1-2). 10. For the appearing of Christ, "Looking for that blessed hope" (Ti 2:13). My Help! My help comes from the Lord, the Maker of heaven and earth. Psalm 121 For decades the renowned Brooklyn Tabernacle Choir has blessed multitudes through their soul-refreshing gospel songs. One example is their recording from Psalm 121 titled “My Help.” Psalm 121 begins with a personal confession of faith in the Lord who brought all things into existence, and He was the source of the psalmist’s help (vv. 1–2). Just what did this mean? Stability (v. 3), around-the-clock care (vv. 3–4), constant presence and protection (vv. 5–6), and preservation from all kinds of evil for time and eternity (vv. 7–8). Taking their cues from Scripture, God’s people through the ages have identified the Lord as their source of “help” through their songs. My own worship experience includes lifting my voice with others who sang a soulful rendition of Charles Wesley’s, “Father, I stretch my hands to Thee, no other help I know; if Thou withdraw Thyself from me, ah! whither shall I go.” The great reformer Martin Luther got it right when he penned the words, “A mighty fortress is our God, a bulwark never failing; our helper He amid the flood of mortal ills prevailing.” Do you feel alone, forsaken, abandoned, confused? Ponder the lyrics of Psalm 121. Allow these words to fill your soul with faith and courage. You’re not alone, so don’t try to do life on your own. Rather, rejoice in the earthly and eternal care of God as demonstrated in the life, death, resurrection, and ascension of the Lord Jesus Christ. And whatever the next steps, take them with His help. By Arthur Jackson Today's Reflection Father, how grateful we are that Scripture and song remind us that You are our source of help. Help me to not forget that this day. Psalm 121:2 My help comes from the LORD, Who made heaven and earth. (NASB: Lockman) Septuagint (LXX): he boetheia (help) mou para kuriou tou poiesantos (AAPMSG) ton ouranon kai ten gen English Translation of the Septuagint - My help shall come from the Lord, who made the heaven and the earth. My help: Ps 46:1 Ps 124:8 Ps 146:5,6 Isa 40:28,29 Isa 41:13 Jer 20:11 Hos 13:9 Heb 13:6; THE PSALMIST CONFESSES TRUST IN GOD'S HELP My help comes from Jehovah (note) (yhwh) - A confession reflecting the psalmist's faith or trust that God was His Helper. (Have you made this confession recently?) The Helper is none other than Yahweh, the great "I Am", the unchanging, eternal, self-existent, living God, the “I am that I am,” the covenant-keeping God. "The meaning of the name yhwh may best be summarized as “present to act (usually, but not only) in salvation.” The revelation of the name is given to Moses, “I am who I am” (Ex 3:14), and later in a self-presentation, “I am the Lord” (Ex 6:2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8). The name yhwh specifies an immediacy, a presence." (Elwell, W. A: Evangelical Dictionary of Biblical Theology. Grand Rapids: Baker Book House) (See related study on the Name Jehovah) In NT terms one could just as readily say "My help comes from Jesus" for He proclaimed Himself identical with Jehovah (See Jehovah = Jesus) when He said to the Jews Truly, truly, I say to you, before Abraham was born, I Am. (Jn 8:58+) Comment: John uses 7 “I AM's" to describe Jesus: BREAD (Jn 6:35,41,48, 51), LIGHT (Jn 8:12), DOOR (Jn 10:9), GOOD SHEPHERD (Jn 10:14), RESURRECTION & LIFE (Jn 11:25), WAY (Jn 14:6), VINE (Jn 15:1, 5). Beloved, stop for a moment and meditate on each one of these great "I Am" statements by Jesus assessing how each description/name gives us a different aspect of His "multicolored" help. My help… Jehovah - This is a proper perspective! Help from God. Not from other people (although God can and does use other people often) but from Him. It is interesting that even in Christian bookstores, "self help" books have found a popular niche. This Psalm presents the antithesis -- Not "self" help but Savior help! 🙏 THOUGHT - Here's a test question - Where (to whom) do you go first when faced with an obstacle, a difficult trial, a sudden adversity, etc. Do you run to the Rock of your Salvation? Do you see Him as your Help? Are you in distress even as you read these notes? To whom have you taken your burden? Have you cast it on Jehovah? (Cp Ps 55:22) Notice that the psalmist says "my help" implying personal possession, which in turn suggests that he had formerly experienced help from Jehovah. I would think that every believer has had some experience with the help from Jehovah. To be sure, even our very introduction into this grace in which we now stand was totally dependent on His help. The problem with our past experiences of His help is that they are in the past and we have a tendency to be forgetful, especially in the pressure of the moment of a trial or test. God continually called Israel to remember what He had done, so that they might believe what He could do. (E.g., Deut 7:17, 18, 19, Neh 9:17, Ps 77:11, 12, Ps 105:5, Ps 106:7, Ps 143:5, Eccl 12:1, Isa 57:11, Jer 17:2, Lam 3:19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26) OUR GREAT NEED: GOD'S HELP Alexander Maclaren sounds a warning to all saints who are on their journey home… The sense of our own weakness and the consciousness of the perils upon the path ought ever to be present with us all. Brethren! if, on the one hand, we have to cultivate, for a healthy, vital Christianity, a vision of the mountains of God, on the other hand we have to try to deepen in ourselves the wholesome sense of our own impotence, and the conviction that the dangers on the road are far too great for us to deal with. ‘Blessed is the man that feareth always.’ ‘Pride goeth before destruction.’ Remember the Franco-German war, and how the French Prime Minister said that they were going into it ‘with a light heart,’ and how some of the troops went out of Paris in railway carriages labelled ‘for Berlin’; and when they reached the frontier they were doubled up and crushed in a month. Unless we, when we set ourselves to this warfare, feel the formidableness of the enemy and recognise the weakness of our own arms, there is nothing but defeat for us. The Psalmist asks himself, ‘From whence cometh my help?’ and then the better self answers the questioning, timid self: ‘My help cometh from the Lord, which made heaven and earth.’ There will be no reception of the divine help unless there is a sense of the need of the divine help. God cannot help me before I am brought to despair of any other help. It is only when a man says, ‘There is none other that fighteth for us, but only Thou, O God!’ that God comes to help. There is a story in the Book of Chronicles (2Chronicles 20:1-24), about one battle in which Judah engaged, of a very singular kind. The first step in the campaign was that the king of Judah gathered all his people together, and prayed to God, and said, ‘We know not what we shall do. We have no strength against this great multitude that cometh against us, but our eyes are unto Thee.’ Then a prophet came and assured him of victory, and next day they arrayed the battle (2Chr 20:15, 16, 17). It was set in this strange fashion: in the forefront were put the priests and Levites, with their instruments of music, and not soldiers with spears and bows, and they marched out to battle with this song, ‘The Lord is gracious and merciful. His mercy endureth for ever.’ (2Chr 20:21) Then, without the stroke of sword or thrust of spear, God fought for them and scattered their foes. (2Chr 20:22) ‘Which things are an allegory.’ If we recognise our helplessness, God is our help. If we conceit (imagine) ourselves to be strong, we are weak; if we know ourselves to be impotent, Omnipotence pours itself into us. We read once that Jesus Christ healed ‘them that had need of healing.’ (Lk 9:11KJV) Why does the Evangelist not say, without that periphrasis, ‘healed the sick’? Because he would emphasise, I suppose, amongst other things, the thought that only the sense of need fits for the reception of healing and help. If, then, we desire that God should be ‘the Strength of our hearts, and our Portion for ever,’ the coming of His help must be wooed and won by our sense of our own impotence, and only they who say, ‘We have no might against this great multitude that come against us,’ will ever hear from Him the blessed assurance, ‘The Lord will fight for you.’ ‘Stand still, and see the salvation of the Lord!’ (2Chr 20:17KJV) So, brethren! the assurance of faith follows the consciousness of weakness, and both together will lead, and nothing else will lead, to the realization of the vision of faith, and bring us at last, weak as we are, to the hills where the weary and foot-sore flock ‘shall lie down in a good fold, and on fat pasture shall they feed upon the mountains of Israel.’ (Psalm 121:1,2 Looking to the Hills) Albert