Psalms - Chapters 22-24

well tonight we're going to explore threesomes as we go through the Book of Psalms we quickly notice that a number of the Psalms are messianic psalm that is they are not only very revealing about the Lord Jesus Christ but they're also quoted as such in the New Testament so you'll find different lists of Messianic Psalms some of those lists are very long because most of the Psalms are in some way related to the Ministry of the Lord Jesus Christ there's a subset of those that are more classically called messianic Psalms that are the ones that are actually quoted as such in the New Testament but we're going to take three tonight that are called the shepherd Psalms Psalm 22 23 and 24 as we go through the Book of Psalms you'll notice that many of the Psalms are annotated as Messianic Psalms in the sense that they make some allusion about Jesus Christ and there some of those lists are very long because most of the Psalms a surprising number of them have direct reference to the Messiah of Israel in some way or another there are some of those sums that are a smaller list that are not only messianic Psalms but they're so alluded to in the New Testament in any case these three are called the Shepherd Psalm Psalm 22 23 and 24 and some point to is going to manifestly describe our suffering Savior in fact it is so vivid it reads as if it was dictated by Jesus Christ as he hung on the cross there on Golgotha some 2,000 years ago and it also echoes much of the issues in John 10 in the first 18 verses Psalm 23 is in fact the shepherd some blueberry literally the living shepherd most of us have probably memorized it by now and that it's analogous to the great shepherd passage in Hebrews 13 in the third of the three Psalms we're gonna look at is the exalted sovereign and so we we see Jesus then as the good the great Shepherd and then the chief Shepherd as Peter talks about him in his first letter so the first of these three is the suffering Savior Psalm 22 regarded by many students at prophecy as the high point of the whole Book of Psalms and what was the occasion you know very often we study the Psalms we sort of can visualize when David probably pinned that some here we have this incredible King great warrior but also a poet and a songwriter these are songs for the most part what was the occasion that David wrote this you know it's hard to imagine you even contrived a situation where David would pen this some with a precision of prophecy that's astonishing it doesn't seem to the minds of most scholars most commentators to relate to any particular crisis in David's life many other Psalms do absalom's rebellion or whatever in this case it's very difficult to find this because it's a description of a criminal being executed and very distinctive but there are numerous quotes that have confirmed its messianic role it's quoted in all four of the Gospels and it's also subject in Hebrews chapter two focus so clearly David among other things was a prophet he's so designated in the book of Acts in Chapter two so David's many things warrior king poet songwriter Shepherd in his younger years but he also a prophet and this and if nothing else this particular problem ssam would so be so designated it's going to be about the prayer and suffering on the cross for the first 21 verses then it shifts gears the abandonment by God very strange passage that he's despised by the people he's condemned by the law in in the first 20 verses then it shifts strangely in style which echoes the resurrection in the praise the great assembly the glorious Kingdom and then another allusion to the generations to come a nominal piece of writing by any standard it's a phenomenal piece of writing if you were assigned to do this now with your knowledge of what happened in that critical week in Matthew 27 and so on you could do you have a hard time doing as good a summary both detail and significance but of course so we're going to as we go through this um put ourselves back in our minds eye to that time when Jesus was arrested cemani endured six trials three jewish trials and three roman trials and pilate a very skilled administrator resorted to six different stratagems to try to get off the hook to pass this off but nevertheless virtually got cornered in his world and we all know how in the topology of the period we have the mount moriah that ridge system it's lies between two other Hills between Mount Zion and Mount of Olives we have this ridge system which is the we called Mount Moriah and the City of David at the base of that the thrashing floor that David purchased from aruna to be the site of the temple but a little further to the north and you go up that ridge system you finally get to the peak peak of that ridge system place called Golgotha that's where the Aqua Dots took place in Genesis Genesis 22 not Psalm 22 Genesis 22 where Abraham offers his son realizing he's acting out prophecy that 2,000 years later another father would indeed offer his son on that very spot and that is of course the place that we call Golgotha it's interesting Leviticus requires all this to be on the north side of the camp many people don't realize this all the burnt offerings and sin offerings were to be on the north side and the burnt offerings and Leviticus 1 the sin offerings in Leviticus 6 outside the camp in Leviticus 4 without the gate and Hebrews 13 and that's of course where all this takes place it's astonishing to make a list of the Levitical details that were fulfilled at the crucifixion of Christ Mel Gibson's movie the passion was a fabulous piece of work in many respects but there's two had two problems first problem is it tends to present the crucifixions of tragedy no it was a an achievement planned before the foundation of the world the second thing it failed to really get across of course is who Christ really is God incarnate himself in any case David takes a crack at it here to the chief musician upon the igf Shahar which is means the dough of the morning and we have no idea what that means it may have been a popular tune or a familiar tune to the Jewish here who knows help at daybreak maybe whatever my God my God why has thou forsaken me boy that echoes in our ears as a familiar term that both matthew mark highlight in our ears when we see the crucifixion recorded the gospels my God my God why hast thou forsaken me why art thou so far from helping me and from the words of my roaring these are the opening words on the cross in Matthew 27 and mark 15 my God my God strange turn for him to use this is the only time an eternity that he didn't call him father why didn't he that's a key question to understand because he couldn't he was in our shoes it's interesting Matthew records in Matthew 27 now from the sixth hour there was darkness over all land until the ninth hour three hours of darkness in those three hours and eternity is paid for somehow and about the ninth hour Jesus cried with a loud voice saying Eli Eli lama sabachthani I am that is to say my God my God why has thou forsaken me by the way you find some commentators saying well that was Aramaic not Hebrew that's not true by the way I was quite surprised to get the benefit of a book by Douglas cramp the language of Jesus where he gets into the background not just of this but many places Jesus spoke Hebrew taboc deny is a loanword from aramaic but had been well-established by then and that may sound strange how many of you know the word pork or beef that's french most of us don't know that because it's been adopted in English you wouldn't accuse someone speaking French because he says pork or beef but those are bars in other words there are bars our loan words and said back then a is a originally an Aramaic word that throws a lot of commentators then I won't get into the Eloi Eloi thing that's another whole thing of transliteration but the point is it's in its Hebrew not Aramaic for those that are interested with that then the writer continues oh my god I cry in the daytime but thou here is not and in the night season M not silent but thou art holy o thou that inhabits the praises of Israel our fathers trusted to me they trusted and thou didst deliver them they cried unto thee and they were delivered they trusted in thee and were not confounded see a contrast here the the speaker is conscious of the fact that God didn't abandon in the past why is he abandon him now when he needs him you know it's astonishing to look at the crucifixion most of us as we study that look at it from the point of view of observers ourselves or the Romans or whatever or from the point of view of Christ hanging and they're doing what he's doing on our behalf that was I'm indebted to Pastor Joe folks for making a presentation back we were in the UK at that time when he made a presentation doesn't make very often because he had a case where his son was desperate in need of emergency treatment in hospital so they took him to the emergency ward got some paperwork type of harassment he says if you don't get him in there you're gonna have a neat emergency we gave her as a father he felt the pain of having his son covered with blood of having to be dealt with and from that experience then he points out something interesting that I'd never thought about before have you ever thought about the crucifixion from the father's point of view allowing them to spit to strip to torture beyond recognition and nail him to this cross can you imagine the father standing by and allowing that to happen boy he must love us a lot but the tortured agony of the one being executed is God had forsaken him why because we're his shoes why was God absent John 16 geez brags as I'm not alone because the father is with me he was then that that was the last night he was dying for the sins of the world first John to let the Calvinists chew on that one why it was he abandoned because Paul tells us in second Corinthians 5 he was made sin for a you and I can't imagine what that means we can't imagine a holy God being made sin for man you've got to be kidding he's made a curse for us according to Galatians 3 he goes on and picking up in verse 6 of Psalm 22 but I'm a worm and no man a reproach of men and despised the people it's a worm a creature of the ground helpless frail unwanted this is one of the forgotten I am statements who said a book of John there's a collection of I am steal collection of miracles collection of discourse a collection of I am statements this is one we don't listen I am a worm and no man what did you say a reproach of man and despised of people oh let's see me left me to score and they shoot up the lips and they shake that saying he trusted the Lord that he should deliver him let him deliver him see he delighted in him boy disfigured by his enemies you know from Isaiah 50 that they ripped off his beard you don't find that in your Sunday School film strips even they'll get with his incredible movie the passion couldn't go all the way if even if you knew how wouldn't be acceptable to any audience to realize the degree to which price was disfigured and tortured there are two thieves with him one on the right one on the left according to Malthus 27 they passed by they passed by these riled him wagging their heads and saying ah that destroys the temple and builds in three days save thyself if thou be the Son of God come down from the cross remember the taunts likewise the chief priests mocking him with the scribes and elders said he saved others himself he cannot save if he be the king of Israel let him now come down from the cross and we will believe him he trusted God let him deliver him now if he will have him for he said I am the son of God you know even one of the malefactors which hanged railed on him saying if thou be Christ save thyself and us but the other the other answering rebuked him saying dust I'll not fear God seeing thou art in the same condemnation and we indeed justly for we receive the due reward of our deeds but this man has done nothing amiss Clinton he said oh Jesus Lord remember me when thou comest into thy kingdom boy I wonder if he had any idea that he would go down through eternity as the ultimate example of one that was saved because he contributed nothing nothing in extremis he asked the Lord to remember him and what did Jesus say unto Him verily I say to thee today thou shalt be with me in paradise praise God for that I think he's going to be that guys in for another shock when the rewards are given you'll figure boy I just got there with I got there by the skin of the teeth and I think Lord a parade before him all those that were came to him to save to faith on death row in prisons whatever because of the witness of this verse in Luke anyway let's move on Psalm 22 verse 9 but Thou are he that took me out of the womb thou dismayed me hope when I was upon my mother's breasts I was cast be from the womb thou art my god from my mother's belly be not far from me for trouble is near for there's none to help the agony of Christ acknowledging that he is forsaken of the father something incomprehensible to us I think you and I are gonna spend an eternity discovering what it cost him that we might be there with him he goes on this is a strange verse I've yet to find anyone can explain to me Jesus claims in Psalm 22 verse 12 many Bulls have compass me the strong Bulls of Bashan have beset me round they gaped upon me with their mouths as a ravening and a roaring lion what on earth is this all about have no idea bhishan is that region that we know as the Golan Heights known for cattle raising indeed but it's also known biblically for some other issues it was the land of the Giants the Nephilim the the rough ìiím and OGG the king of the Giants the land of the rough I am in Deuteronomy 3 Lions are often used as enemies because their voracious beasts and that's that's here in several other places but what are these rough ie most people haven't done their homework about ruffling they know a little bit about maybe the Nephilim the strange creatures of Genesis 6 but just 6 they also occurred after that these hybrids there are four tribes that Joshua's instructed to wipe out every man woman and child of these four tribes that sounds harsh to us as New Testament readers when we get into those passages the referee in the II mean the hurry and the Zoom Zoom mean the ref aim is the word Rafa means dead these are the Walking Dead these are strange zombie type characters of some kind odd was the king of them at Bouchon in Deuteronomy 3 Joshua 12 etc we also read about our by Anik and 7 sons the Anakim that were encountered canaan numbers 13 calls them the Nephilim Goliath has four brothers were of that background up in the Golan Heights there are some unexcavated structures the Gilgal Rephaim that is an unexcavated archaeological site in the heights east of the Sea of Galilee north of the ARMA River all the way to Mount Hermon as the area known as Bashan or the Golan Heights and this was the land of the giants the land of these strange creatures so what on earth are what what is Christ hanging he's surrounded by the Bulls of Bashan that mean there's lonely there's there's cattle around him I don't think so I personally don't know I I personally suspect that they made some kind of demonic activity going on but he continues verse 14 I import Outlook has dried up like a potsherd and my tongue cleaveth to my jaws and thou has brought me into the dust of death the dogs have compass me the Assembly of the wicked have inclosed me they pierced my hands and my feet this is clearly a description written by David of crucifixion 700 years before crucifixion was invented it was invented by the Persians about 90 BC widely adopted by the Romans of course even Haman and the gallows in the book of Esther wasn't hanging that's a mistranslation he was impaled he was crucified strangely crucifixion stripped him of his clothing placed him on a cross nails were driven in the hands and the feet then he's dehydrated with intense thirst and what really kills him is suffocation the pressure of the hanging though we can relieve the pressures by pressing up with your feet to relate to give your lungs a chance to get a breath that's why it often would take nine days for someone to actually die that way I mean and because they had to get him off the cross they broke the legs because that would act that would accelerate the whole process they find out when they get to him that he's already died and that's you know we'll get to that in a minute the word exclusive creating is actually taken from this process of execution excruciating comes from crux that crept across there's a tension effect you need to understand you if you've hung a picture you know I'm talking about the if the wire is very stiff the tensions higher if the wires long the tension is no more than a division of the weight but as you spread those things the tension gets higher in fact there's a relationship the smaller angle theta gets the more intense the tension is as a function of the weight that's exactly what the American Medical Association points out in the classic study of this called on the physical death of Jesus Christ published back in 1986 here's a quote from it due to the pain endured by the weight of the body hanging from the nails which damaged the medial nerves and tear at the tarsals the respiratory torture the cramping the pleural effusions concluded that death by crucifixion was in every sense of the word excruciating literally out of the cross he continues like it I may tell all my bones they look and stare upon me they part my garments among them and cast lots upon my vesture this is an astonishing detail when you read in John chapter 19 then the soldiers when they had crucified Jesus took his garments and made four parts to every soldier apart how many soldiers were there there four huh and also his coat now this coat was without seam woven from the top throughout they said therefore among themselves let us not rend it but cast lots for it whose it shall be that the scripture might be fulfilled would say if they parted my raiment among them and for my Wester they did cast lots these things therefore the soldiers did don't misunderstand John's editorial comment I don't think the soldiers did it because they knew that was required by scripture John's inserting an editorial comment here they didn't realize it that's why they were doing it the Jews therefore because it was the preparation that the body should not remain on the cross on the Sabbath day or that Sabbath day was a high day oh really that's not Shabbat that's the feast of unleavened bread this was not on a Friday night by the way that won't work the church has tried to make it that way for not nineteen hundred years it doesn't work it was a Wednesday but anyway besought Pilate that their legs might be broken that they might be taken away then came the soldiers and break the legs of the first and of the other which was crucified with him these soldiers were ordered to break the legs to accelerate the death right more they came to Jesus they saw that he was dead already they break not his legs how strange we were a soldier and you enlisted on a 25 year enlistment when they gave orders they took them seriously why didn't the soldiers do what they were told in spite of the fact he was dead already how sure are they they weren't quite sure that's why the one threw a spear and all that right one of the soldiers with a spear pierced his side and four with there came out blood and water and from that detail is where the American Medical Association can reconstruct the cause of death they saw that a bear record and his record is true and he knoweth that he saith true that ye might believe John again editorializing here where these things were done that the scripture should be fulfilled a bone of him shall not be broken another scripture saith they shall look upon him whom they pierced those are two interesting references by the way we glossed over those as we read them not a bone shall be broken and they shall look upon him whom they pierced that's yet future they haven't done that yet but they will the exodus 12 when the Passover his first Institute in Exodus 12 in one house shall it be and thou shall not carry forth aught of the flesh abroad out of the house neither shall ye break a bone there of strange requirement for eating this lamb but don't break a bone and that goes again and again they shall leave none of it till the morning you know break a bone of it according to all the ordinances that pass over she'll keep it he keepeth all his bones not one of them is broken on psalm 34:20 not just here in 22 the Passover lamb was a foreshadowing of course of our Passover Jesus Christ will come to pass in that day this is Zechariah now speaking of the future it shall come to pass in that day that I will seek to destroy all the nations that come against Jerusalem Zechariah 12 13 14 the big climax the final establishment of the kingdom and God contains I will pour upon the house of David upon the inhabitants of Jerusalem the spirit of grace and of supplications and they shall look upon me the one whom they have pierced and they shall mourn for him as one mourning for his only son and they shall be in bitterness for him as one that is in bitterness for his firstborn I'm the beneficiary a 35-page paper by dr. William Welty on the erroneous and inconsistent rendering of the Asher for praise in the Hebrew that's in the Jewish publication Society of 1917 which is a standard Tanakh among Jews you know a hundred and fifty-eight other occurrences in that publication they render it one way here they twisted because they have thrust them through they tried to hide this and my friend bill had a open a dialogue going on with the rabbis on this issue so he took it on and tracked down every Jewish publication every way they rendered it and it's rendered correctly in every place but here and it's a it's a it's a very very key discovery in the Jewish world they shall look upon me whom they have pierced is what it actually says in the Hebrew it's undeniable and it will yield to come the scholarship it's been glossed over of course in the messer etic in other places let's get back to Psalm 22 verse 19 be not thou far from me O Lord all my strength hast need to help me deliver my soul from the sword My Darling my one of my one and only from the power of the dog saved me from the lion's mouth for thou has heard me from the horns of the unicorns were darling by the means just it means that one and only one and the word unicorn is widely misunderstood it for many years was thought to be a mythical beast but investigations revealed that there was an animal much the size smaller than an elephant very much like a rhinoceros sometimes called a wild bull if you will so that's what the term really is translated to mean caleb is a dog literal it can mean or can just be a term of contempt or a basement the r.e.m is probably the aurochs are the wild bulls which are now extinct now here's where the whole thing takes a shift we shift from the horrors of the execution to the glory that is earned by it goes on read verse 22 it oh ship takes place I will declare thy name unto my brethren in the midst of the Congo I praise thee a big shift from the previous 21 verses he that fear the Lord praise him all ye the seed of Jacob glorify him and fear Him all ye the seed of Israel for he hath not despised nor abhorred the affliction of the afflicted neither hath he hid his face from him but when he cried unto Him he heard my praise shall be of thee in the great congregation I will pay my vows before them that fear him the meek shall eat and be satisfied they shall praise the Lord that seek him your heart shall live forever all the ends of the world shall remember and turn unto the Lord all the Kindred's of the nations shall worship before thee for the kingdom is the Lord's and he is the governor among the nations boy this moves on be long after resurrection morning this goes after the Ascension this is second coming stuff here shifting to Isaiah 25 which portrays the closing of the psalm in effect and in this mountain shall the Lord of Hosts make unto all people a feast of fat things a feast of wines in the leaves of fat things full of Morrow of the leaves well-refined and he will destroy in this mountain the face of the covering cast over all the people and the veil that has spread over all the nations well that sounds like Romans 11:25 for those of you that are familiar with that and he will swallow up death and victory and the Lord God will wipe away the tears from off all their faces boy that sound like New Testament stuff doesn't it was first Corinthians 15 or Revelation with heavy and the rebuke of his people shall be - shall he take away from all the earth for the LORD hath spoken it nice picture Yul Brynner making a state like that don't let it be written so let it be done right Lord has spoken it and it shall be said in that day lo this is our God we have waited for him and he will save us this is the Lord we have waited for him we will be glad and rejoice in his salvation back to Psalm 22 picking up verse 29 and up to the end here all they that be fat upon the earth shall eat and worship all they that go down to the dust shall bow before him what's that saying all they that go down to the dust shall bow before him that sound like a resurrection of all doesn't it and none can keep alive his own soul a seed shall serve him it shall be accounted to the Lord for a generation they shall come and shall declare his righteousness unto a people that shall be born that he hath done this many people missed this that Psalm 22 opens and closes were the first words of the Cross and the last words of the Cross what I mean by that he that he hath done this what does that really say in the Hebrew the prefix is two sentences depending on an active verb applying to it the place of an accusative thus it means constantly that is completed this is why it's translated in the Greek in John 19:30 it is finished he hath done this in the Greek it is to tell us die which means to be finished to be complete and in fact paid in full that's what this was all about he was in our shoes he paid our price complete no discounts paid paid it in full measure on your behalf in mine and I don't think we have the capacity to really understand or even imagine what happened on that cross 2,000 years ago Salvador Dali and trying to capture some canvas chose to use a four dimensional cube in three-dimensional space a tesseract eternity solved in three hours okay that was Psalm 22 that was our warmup ready to go okay let's go to Psalm 23 a little more familiar to most of us the great Shepherd song if you will and some of David the Lord is my shepherd I shall not want he maketh me to lie down in green pastures he leadeth me beside the still waters he restoreth my soul he leadeth me in the paths of righteousness for his name's sake yea though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death I will fear no evil for thou art with me thy rod and thy staff shall comfort me comfort me now prepares the table before me in the presence of mine enemies thou anointest my head with oil my cup runneth over surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life and I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever familiar to most of us some of you may have memorized Shepherds all through the Bible of course Abel was the first martyr who was a shepherd Moses spent 40 years caring for his father-in-law's sheep on Midian David served his father as a shepherd and God has reported as our Shepherd all through the scripture and of course the Messiah is our great Shepherd these idioms are familiar to anyone that's been in the Bible at all old or New Testament what about sheep or sheep right this is a little embarrassing to find out why why she well first of all they're defenseless cheap can't defend some defend themselves neither can you know they're also prone to get lost ask anybody kept sheep if there's a hole in the fence they will find it they need almost constant care you can't drive them like cattle they have to be led well that's interesting think about that how many pastors need to learn that and they're known by name I spent a little bit of time on a cattle ranch I don't recall my father-in-law who had quite a establishment ever calling his Herefords or Charlize my name or Angus I'm sure the same thing sheep known by name now when you go through all this something isn't in the commentaries but I just add as my comment they're also not very bright now you still wonder why God uses sheep to represent metaphorically us the great Shepherd he's the one that he cares and equips us in Hebrews 13 he's the great high priest who ever lives to make intercession for us he died for the Sheep the father gave them to him to take care of and he can brag in John 18 that he has lost none of them in John 17 12 and also in John 18 9 that's a primary boast of the Lord Jesus Christ that if you're saved you were given to him by the father and he can make the boast that of the ones that have been given to him he has lost none prosecution rests let's go through this little more carefully the Lord is my shepherd I shall not want he like making me to lie down in green pastures the verb there by the way is a participle the Lord is shepherding me it's continuous present tense guarded lead provided food rest care bruised all that sort of thing he makes me lie down in green pastures leaves me beside the still waters sheep won't drink from fast moving the streams so they have to dam a little bit to make it calm for them to deal with it he leads gently the term implies the way it struck grammatically structured led gently he resurfaced or leaves me in the paths of righteousness for his name's sake the paths there is a term for ruts by the way well-worn were Hut's he was 39 says avoid strange teachings verse for VA though I walk through the of the shadow of death I will fear no evil for thou art with me thy rod and thy staff they comfort me this bite too many is the central verse of the passage the personal pronoun changes from he to thou or you the David is not speaking about the shepherd he's speaking to the Shepherd here there's a change in structure he is beside us leading and calming our fears our Shepherd is thy rod my staff what rod that's a cudgel for defense this isn't a shepherd's crook that's a staff did you ever know did you know that top of every staff there's a crook did you know that little pun there okay nevermind all right now the shepherd had aced a cudgel to beat to defend the sheep and he had a crook to guide them and assist them or accounting them or examining them now prepares the table before me in the presence of mine enemies thou anointest my head with oil my cup runneth over the term table here is a synecdoche it's the it's the specific for the general or the general for the specific man Dan you've got some nice wheels there am I talking about his tires no I'm talk about his car I music you know we you fall on getting it so it's that's a synecdoche we use the this the the this this the species for the genus in some case you use the genus for the species that's a figure of speech ie presented tables give me a table for I don't know a cuisine the food what you could eat you see now prepares the table before me in the presence of mine enemies thou anointest my head with oil that's what they did at the end of the day for the bruises they might have incurred it former care my cup runneth over indeed surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life and I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever back when we were very active in Calgary Chapel Costa Mesa was very tempted to go get a couple of cocker spaniel puppies and tie them to the front door of Chuck Smith and have them labeled goodness and mercy fairly goodness of all they anyway I've never quite got around to that but anyway and I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever this by the way is the Old Testament equivalent of Romans 8:28 and it's not a reference to the temple because the king did not David's writing King did not reside in the temple that was for the priests when he says the house of the Lord here he's talking about eternity in the father's house forever John 17 first half dozen verses and it's also pictured here implicitly is the fact of the shepherd would lie at night they put the sheep in in a in a enclosure with a door and the Shepherd would sleep across the door to do so the Sheep couldn't get out and that to protect the sheep from any outside intruders and Jesus makes reference to that in John 10 anyone that doesn't come in by the I am the door anyone that comes in any other way as a thief and a robber and also Romans in Revelation 7 deals that so Lord is my shepherd I shall not want that means I shall lack nothing he makes me lie down in green pastures I shall not like provision I shall not lack peace because you decide there's no waters it leaves me a passive righteous I shall not lack guidance these are what summaries here I shall not lack courage of that dark hour the other I walk through the valley of the shadow of death I'll fear no evil thy rod and thy staff they comfort me I shall not lack true comfort that prepares the table for me in the presence of my name is I shall not lack protection preservation and honour thou knowest my head with oil I shall never lack joy that's what oil typically speaks of here my cup runneth over I shall never lack fullness of the blessing there would be ration I got all I need surely goodness and mercy will follow me all the days of my life I shall not lack divine favor during my earthly life and I shall dwell in the house of the Lord forever I shall not lack a heavenly home when my earthly tour is over that's what it says let's stand back for a minute and go back to Gaul Gotha pilots there and what startles me is that he apparently personally wrote a tip lawn to put on the cross pilot wrote at it lawn or a title and put it on the cross the writing was Jesus of Nazareth the King of the Jews this title then read many of the Jews for the place where Jesus crucified was nigh to the city it was written in Hebrew Greek and Latin that's surprising Hebrew obviously because he was Jewish Greek because that was the widely used language of Commerce in that day Latin was coming wasn't really established yet but that was the official language of the Roman Empire Pilate was skilled in all three and he personally apparently did this now any time you and I may miss something the priests come to our rescue here's the epitaph here's what he wrote he actually wrote Yeshua I'm not sure I remember all languages go flow toward Jerusalem write all nations east of Jerusalem go from right to left all nations west of Jerusalem go from left to right I just thought you'd like to know that I don't you do that piece of information what would one Hebrew goes left right so Yeshua hotknot Saraiva melech ha Hooton what does that mean Jesus the Nazarene the King of the Jews straightforward right anytime you and I would miss something the chief priests come to our rescue whenever they're upset there's a half a dozen in those places when they get upset check it out because that's the Holy Spirit's we have underlining something don't miss this then said the chief priests of the Jews to Pilate right not the king of the Jews but that he said I am The King of the Jews and I know that pilots response this is one of his great ones in my mind what I have written I have written in fact what he actually said is what I have written will always remain written and boy indeed it does Pilate is apparently deliberately sticking the needle in because he is aware of how Jews like acrostics many of the Psalms are acrostics all the way through the Bible there are acrostics where they start they go alphabetically or something pilots epitaph if you take the first letter of each word spells yo hey Bob hey the unpronounceable name of God and he apparently did that deliver he did that as a way of putting the needle into these guys that put him in this spot to put eat one to get out of this see half a dozen different ways so that's why they're upset because he's putting it in terms that are very Jewish and that are authoritative yo Dave Ave Yahweh if it some people use all the kinds of argument about exactly how you pronounce it because the vowels aren't pointed yo Dave of a many rabbis will just pronounce the letters rather than pronounce the word there are seven compound titles of Jesus Christ you know Jireh the Lord will provide Rafa the Lord healeth Lord our peril you holy shalom the Lord our peace ghovat sitka knew the Lord our righteousness the Lord ever-present Shama Lord Nissi the Lord our banner and finally Yahweh the raw the Lord our Shepherd it's interesting - and these are all Genesis Exodus Judge Jeremiah Ezekiel Exodus Psalm 23 the Lord is my shepherd okay that's you over ah I shall not want I'll like nothing that's yova Jireh he maketh me to lie down in green pastures that's Jehovah Jireh I shall not lack provision in other words he leadeth me beside the still waters that's Jehovah Shalom I shall not like peace he was store with my soul that you have a Rafa I shall not lack restoration believe me the paths of righteousness that's Hobart sit canoe and the courage and so forth I shall not like courage Yama Yama now prepares the table before me in the presence of mine enemies that means I shall not like protection preservation and honor the whole way Missy so you've got all these the the compound names of your diva they are exemplified in the Shepherd's are okay we got one more and make it I think so we go from our suffering Savior who's also our living shepherd we now are going to get a glimpse of him as the exalted sovereign in some twenty four the earth is the Lord's and the fullness thereof the world and they that dwell therein he has founded upon the Seas and established it upon the floods who shall ascend to the hill of the Lord or who shall stand in his holy place he that hath clean hands and if your heart who hath not lifted up his soul unto vanity nor sworn deceitfully he shall receive blessing from the Lord and righteousness from God of his salvation this is the generation of them that seek Him that seek thy face o Jacob and then we have this curious word Sayla some people think it's a musical annotation others think it's a kinect it's a pause to connect thoughts then we have the interesting close on this one lift up your heads o ye gates be lift up the everlasting doors and the King of glory shall come in who is this King of glory the Lord strong and mighty the Lord mighty in battle lift up your heads o ye gates even lift them up you everlasting doors and the King of glory shall come in who is this King of glory the Lord of Hosts he is the king of glory say 'la again this apparently is an antiphonal psalm there's a Levitical chorus that opens with the first two verses then a leader asked the question and the deliverer of course answers that in verses 4 through 7 the leader then asks the question who is this King of glory and the chorus answers left half of verse 8 and then verse 9 the leader asked the same question the second time and gets a second answer which ties it off this was clearly meant to be sung not all of them were maybe they all were sung many of them are more like poems and many of them are clearly designed to be musically rendered there's a tradition that this is associate this Psalm is associated with David's bringing the Ark of the Covenant and incidentally the mercy seat which is abruptly more relevant to Jerusalem second samuel 6 first man theater star chronicles 15 there's some evidence apparently that it was sung in here it's temple every Sunday which is kind of interesting because Sunday was that was day after Shabbat how interesting but if that's the case then this was probably some at the triumphal entry in any case seems to fit in many ways if you start studying that the early church has signed this Psalm to be read on Ascension Day which is 40 days after the resurrection those are just traditions that are interesting it was certainly recognized that this is a very special form of exultation the psalm of David the earth is the Lord's and the fullness thereof the world and they that dwell therein boy indeed we could spend a lot of time talking about how the earth is indeed the Lord's and everything in it and yet there's a specific piece of ground that he puts his name on and that's what the world is contesting even this to this day the earth is the theatre of the universe of all the stars in the universe this one has a planet around it that God has chosen uniquely and we now begin to understand how uniquely let's call the anthropic principle as we start to make a model of everything we know about the universe we discover there are an astonishing number of ratios that if you change even one part in a million it all falls apart that man that this is it's as if the universe is designed for a man that's why they call in the secular people call it the anthropic principle now fasting in fact now they're also discovering the teleological principle it's not only been designed for Mendeleev it's been designed so that man could discover there are all kinds of mathematical relationships that are tailored so that man could discover and I want to start with that here we won't make it so let's go on the earth is the theater of the universe why because it's the scene of the greatest drama ever played God chose a planet a people in the land and he sent his son there to live to minister and to die to be raised from the dead all so that sinners could be safe bizarre extreme that God went to for us the more you learn about us the more your puzzle did why did he bother and glad he did he founded it upon the Seas and established it upon the floods whoo I was puzzled by that when get in Genesis we're emphases I emphasizes that but anyway that's all through the Bible knowing in Genesis 1 649 it's through a number of the Psalms and elsewhere who should here we have this question raised who shall ascend into the hill of the Lord who shall stand in this holy place and by the way in your notes you can I will take the time here but just shut down Psalm 15 Psalm 15 is a parallel passage for this whole thing but I will call your attention to Revelation chapter 5 where the same question in effect is asked before the redeemed as they stand around the twenty-four Thrones and so it says who is worthy to open the book and to loose the seals are of no man in heaven or on earth neither under the earth was able to open the book neither to look thereon we don't understand what's going on but John did because he sobbed convulsively till notice is hey we've not behold the Lion of the tribe of Judah have prevailed over the book and you know the story goes on same question different response either have clean hands and a pure heart who have not lifted up his soul unto vanity nor sworn deceitfully he shall receive the blessing of the Lord and registers from god of his salvation this is the generation of them that seek Him that seek thy face o Jacob and then the Sayla the the pause to connect it all and that's Psalm 15 is your your repackaging of this whole thing then we have this interesting question lift up your heads o ye gates and be ye lift up ye everlasting doors and the King of glory shall come in and then the parent of the leader says who is this King of glory and the response is the Lord strong and mighty the Lord mighty in battle okay good so far but then the whole thing is repeated the same question lift up your heads o you gates even lift them up ye everlasting doors the King of glory shall come in who is this King of glory comes the question again the Lord of Hosts is the king of glory Sayla now if you're a normal well-adjusted person you say just pretty psalm and you move on but if you've been to one of my Bible studies you know you're no longer just a person when you come across a double thing like this you wonder why why did it why was it asked twice well first of all I me admit I don't really know but that's never slowed me down to indulge with some conjectures is it possible that this was some that first triumphal entry morning when he rode that donkey in but was rejected and wept over Jerusalem because that rejection was rejected the first time maybe the second time he won't be rejected in fact it's rather fascinating to go to acts 7 and study Stephens presentation this young guy is presenting to the Sanhedrin of all people a history lesson on Israel of history and he goes through his presentation he's interrupted and does he's not allowed to finish they stoned him but I encourage you to take that act 7 and outline his talk and try to figure out where he's headed you'll discover that all the way through his talk he points out that Israel always blows it the first time at Kadesh Barnea and gets it right the second time they blow it the first time they get it right the second time the first time they crucify him the next time they'll get it right follow me twice this Psalm was apparently sung at ascension Sunday 40 days after resurrection and maybe the echo of it is looking to his return his ascension and his return and just a thought okay we made it pretty much on time we talked about the suffering savor savior in Psalm 22 the good shepherd of John 10 the living Shepherd in Psalm 23 the great shepherd as Hebrews 13 would identify him and the exalted sovereign so we have the suffering savor savior the the attending ministering Christ and then we have the resulted Christ in Psalm 24 the chief shepherd the good shepherd the great shepherd the chief shepherd by some people's rendering interesting group of songs great song but just a sampler obviously of what we can expect in the Book of Psalms the good news is there's a hundred and forty seven others in there some of which even more dramatic maybe not more dramatic but certainly provocative and so for your next session encourage you to read Psalm 25 through 30 suggest you read them at least fourteen times each what I really mean by that meditate on them but just read them through ones but try to digest them Jeremiah says thy words are found and I did eat them and John does the same thing in in Revelation 10 digest them there's no there's no accident that God uses animals that chew the cud to be idiomatic of the clean animal in contrast they're ones that are not let's stand for a closing word of Prayer

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Length: 54min 23sec (3263 seconds)

Published: Mon Mar 30 2020