I kept thinking to myself, “I just can’t believe he would do that.” And the thought kept rolling around in my head. I just couldn’t get passed it. “How in the world would he do that?” I kept asking myself. I just couldn’t imagine it. And what made it worse is the thought came to me as I began to mow the yard. A thought occurs to you when you’re doing almost any other task, and you can move on soon and try to distract yourself. But a thought that comes to your mind when you’re mowing is a curse. It’s like feeling a blister on your foot right as you start the marathon. You’ve got a long way to go, doing the same thing over and over, and nothing to distract your thoughts. And that was me. I was mowing back and forth, thinking, “I just can’t believe he would do that.”
But I wasn’t thinking about some evil action someone had done. I wasn’t thinking of someone who’d committed adultery or murder, and I was so taken back, I couldn’t imagine them having done that. No, that’s not what had seized my mind. Nor was I thinking about what someone had done to me, perhaps a friend gossiping or something, and I was struggling to come to grips with the pain inflicted on me. No, that wasn’t it either. Actually, I was thinking about singing.
And I wasn’t thinking about me singing. For better or worse (and probably worse), I’ve never had a problem singing. I sang so much growing up that in the Tankersley house, my parents had to establish a rule that there was no singing at the table. And for my birthday, my wife bought me some speakers to put in the bathroom, perhaps hoping that the sound of good singing from the speakers might drown out mine. The problem was that I couldn’t imagine someone else singing.
You see, I’d started mowing that day thinking about the need to share the gospel with a man that the Lord had allowed me to get to know a bit. I like the guy, but he’s pretty rough. He’s an older man, with rough skin, and brow that seems constantly furrowed. He’s the kind of man we might call a man’s man. He’s a hard man, a tough man, a man who drives a big truck and seems as ready to grunt instructions as speak them. And as I started thinking about sharing the gospel with this man and him coming to place his faith in Jesus Christ, I suddenly found myself smacked with a feeling of pessimism. It’s a pessimism I’ve been tempted with before, when you want someone so desperately to come to Christ but are discouraged since they’ve walked in rebellion so long or are immersed in a sin so deeply.
But this time, my pessimism was that I couldn’t imagine this man singing. I mean, in my mind, I could envision him repenting and believing, but when I imagined him showing up to worship with us on a Sunday morning (where we sing a lot), I couldn’t imagine him singing. The image just didn’t fit in my mind. And I thought to myself, “This is a big deal. I mean, singing is a big part of the Christian life.” I began to wonder if there might be exceptions. Could we start the service by saying, “We’re going to sing in a bit, but if you’re the kind of person that would rather grunt than talk, then feel free to just sit silently during this portion”?
And finally I came to this conclusion: part of the change the Lord does in someone’s heart when he saves them involves turning changing them into someone who praises the Lord with singing. That change might not come over night. It might take place gradually. But it’s a change the Lord works in the hearts of his children. That’s the only solution I could come to as I mowed the grass that day.
And when I look at Psalm 33, I think that conclusion is confirmed because I think Psalm 33 tells us not only that believers are to sing praises to God but that it is becoming of them. They are individuals who find it appropriate. Or, as the psalm says, it is befitting of them to praise the Lord with singing. Therefore, if we are a believer, we should be characterized by a willingness and a delight in praising the Lord. I think that is a truth that we will see in this psalm. So, with that, let’s look at this psalm together.
The psalm is divided pretty easily into three major sections. The first, verses 1-3, calls on us to praise the Lord. The second, verses 4-19, tells us why it is fitting that we praise the Lord. And the third, verses 20-22, conclude the psalm with a declaration of trust and hope in the Lord. Therefore, I want to follow that outline this morning, starting with a call to us to praise the Lord, followed by considering reasons why, and then an exhortation to trust and hope in the Lord. So, first, let’s note in verses 1-3 that . . .
The commands to praise the Lord are all over these first three verses. We are told to shout for joy (v. 1), give thanks with the lyre, make melody with the harp (v. 2), sing to the Lord a new song, and play skillfully on the strings with loud shouts (v. 3). What the Lord commands the reader to do is quite clear.
However, we may question who is really supposed to be doing this. After all, it tells a specific group to do these things. The psalmist says in verse 1, “Shout for joy in the Lord, ” and declares that “Praise befits the .” So, who is he talking about here? Are these commands for a group of people among the Lord’s people who are really good, who don’t struggle with sin like we do? No. The psalmist is here talking about believers. This isn’t a command for good and decent people to sing praises to the Lord, for there aren’t good and decent people. It’s a command for believers to praise the Lord. We see that in verse 18, where the righteous one is described as the one who fears God and hopes in his steadfast love, or in verse 21, where the righteous in the one who trusts in the name of the Lord. You see, we show that we fear the Lord when we trust his Word instead of all others. We show that we hope in the Lord and trust in the Lord when we repent of our sins and place our faith in the crucified and risen Lord Jesus Christ. Those who would have read this psalm originally and been “righteous” were those who trusted that the Lord would indeed send his promised King to bring about their redemption. On this side of the death and resurrection of Jesus, it is those who realize that God has indeed fulfilled that promise by sending us his own Son. So, the righteous and upright are those whose sins have been forgiven because we’re trusting in the Lord Jesus Christ for our forgiveness. This psalm, therefore, commands a people who battle sin day-in and day-out and yet are trusting in the finished work of Christ for their salvation.
Specifically, then, we are commanded to gather as a people and corporately praise the Lord. We’re to employ instruments in praise to God. Specifically in verse 2, the harp and lyre are mentioned, but the idea is not that these are the only instruments we should employ. A look at Psalm 150, where we are commanded to praise the Lord with the lute, trumpet, harp, tambourine, strings, pipe, cymbals, and loud crashing cymbals confirms that the idea is not to limit ourselves but to employ much instrumentation to the end of praising God. That’s why they were created. And we try to do it well, as we see in verse 3 that we should play skillfully. There’s nothing wrong, and indeed everything right, with trying to make sure we employ our instruments skillfully in worship.
And we’re to sing. Verse 3 says specifically that we are to sign to the Lord “a new song.” Throughout the Bible, when God would bring about a new act of deliverance, for his people, they would realize that only singing songs about his past actions were insignificant. This is why in Exodus 15, for example, after the Lord delivered the Israelites from the hand of the Egyptians, Moses and the people of Israel sang a new song about the Lord throwing horses and their riders in the sea, piling up the waters, and destroying Pharaoh. God had done something new, and it needed to be sung about. And with us, we know that something the psalmist didn’t live to see has happened. Jesus has come to live, die, and be raised. This is why much of our singing is about Christ’s redemptive work. It’s why we’ll end today by singing a song that declares that the lamb is worthy of our praise.
Then note as well that these first three verses are bracketed with commands to shout. We are to shout for joy in the Lord, and we are to play skillfully on the strings with loud shouts. The image here is not of a gathered and subdued people. Now, that is not to say that we can never be subdued. It is appropriate for us to gather and sing songs that ask for mercy, confess our sins, and lament. And when we do that, it’s hard to shout for joy and lament at the same time. However, there’s also an appropriateness in shouting.
The command to shout is found numerous times in the Psalter, and every time I find a psalm commanding believers to shout, we are to shout for joy. God expects and even commands us to shout for joy, as we gather to worship him. We should sing loudly. It is good and right to shout, “Amen” (or something like that) as your heart is moved in singing or praying or preaching.
But we might say, “Well, that’s just not me. It’s not my nature.” And if that’s our response this morning, then I’ve got good news. That’s okay. You don’t have to worry about it because the good news is that God can change you. The Christian life is about being changed. Every moment we’re in process of being conformed to the image of Christ. So, god’s continual work in us is to change us. And God can change you. So, if it’s not in your nature to shout for joy, don’t worry, God can change you.
You see, it’s no different than my thought about that man I was thinking about mowing the grass. If he were to repent and believe in the gospel, I would fully expect God’s transforming grace to change him into a man who sings. Why? Because, as verse 1 says, “Praise befits the upright.”
Have you ever been a spectator to some event where someone does something amazing? Perhaps someone performs a great song or plays amazingly on an instrument, and we erupt in applause, don’t we? When something great happens in front of you like that, you don’t even take the time to reason that you should praise. You don’t think to yourself, “That was spectacular, I think it might be deserving of me straightening out my legs so that I stand, and hitting my hands together so that they make noise, and opening my mouth so that I make loud noise with my vocal cords.” That’s not what we do. We just erupt with standing, clapping, and shouting. It’s natural when you’re overwhelmed with something glorious.
This is why the psalmist says that praise befits the upright. I mean, he gets it that pagans don’t praise God. They’re blinded to his glory. But we’re not, are we? We know God. I mean, this morning, if you’ve come in to worship, are reminded that your sins are forgiven because Christ bore the punishment you deserve, that whatever you encounter in life, you’ll be raised with Christ on the last day, then it is fitting for you to praise God. And if you’re not moved in your heart to sing and shout for joy to the Lord, then pray that he’ll change you. Don’t be content with a heart that is unmoved by the Lord and his work for us.
And I’ve already mentioned one reason – the gospel, but the psalmist mentions other reasons for praising God.
The psalmist tells us in verses 4-5 that the Lord’s word is upright and his work is done in faithfulness. What he says and what he does is upright and faithful. And the reason everything he says and everything he does is upright and faithful is because he loves righteousness and justice (v. 5). It’s who he is. He is righteous and just, and so everything he does is righteous and justice. He can do no other. He is love, and so everything he does in all the earth shows his steadfast love (v. 5). One reason to praise God is because his character, his nature, is perfect.
He is always good, holy, just, right, loving, and glorious. He cannot be other than that. James tells us that the lights in the sky have variation, don’t they? Sometimes you go out to see the stars, and their brightness fills the sky. Sometimes you go, and they’re quite dim or altogether impossible to find. The moon is the same way. Sometimes it’s bright and full, other times it’s a sliver, and still other times, it’s gone altogether. But the Father of lights, is not like that. There’s never variation due to change with him because he doesn’t change. He’s always good and faithful. You never have to cry out to him in prayer, wondering if he’s a bit grumpy or quick to get angry. He is perfect in his character, and never changes.
My grandmother’s favorite verse to quote was Hebrews 13:8, which reads, “Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever.” Indeed, that is a reason to praise our Lord. But there’s more. We also see that:
In verses 6-7, the psalmist reminds us that God created the heavens and gathers the sea. I mean, think how overwhelming space and all the stars are to us. God created that. And consider the sea, which is a threat to us if we’re out in the middle of it. Nothing we have can match its power in a storm. And God just gathers it up and stores it. God says to the sea, “Don’t go any further, and it obeys.” And the reality is that this should cause every single person in the world to fear God, and stand in awe of him, we read in verse 8.
Just this week I met with an unbeliever in hopes of him repenting and believing. And one of the things he spoke of was man’s ability to do so many things. In fact, at one point, he said the basically the one thing that scientists have been unable to do is to create life on their own. But what was interesting is that he said that, marveling at man and failing to glory at all in God.
The psalmist, though, reminds us in verse 9 that God “spoke, and it came to be.” God created out of nothing. It is true that God has made man able to do amazing things. The things we can do in the world and in the laboratory are amazing. But there’s a reason why governments (though they seem willing to give out grants for all kinds of odd things) don’t give grants over a proposal that says, “We want to gather in a room with nothing, nothing at all, and see if we can create out of nothing.” And the reason is because we all know it’s impossible. Even the most devout atheist knows it’s a waste of time. We don’t even consider the possibility of doing something with nothing. And there’s a reason why – only God does that. He simply spoke, and there were stars. He spoke, and there were animals. And we could go on and on and on.
And it is the response Paul tells us unbelievers are going to give when they look at the world and fail to glory in the Lord. Paul tells us in Romans 1 that the creation shows for God’s eternal power and divine nature. It screams that our Creator is glorious. Yet men suppress that truth in unrighteousness and would rather worship the created thing than the creator himself. They blind themselves and darken their hearts to the glorious truth around them.
But we know better. We should see and marvel. In fact, we engage in spiritual warfare, I think, when we take time to marvel at the creation. We take up the sword against unbelief when we stop and stand in awe of what God has done. It is reason for praise. And the psalm goes on, noting one other element.
Notice how verses 10-19 go from a big picture view to a smaller view. In verses 10-11 and 13-17, we see the power and might of the Lord as he rules over the earth. In verses 10-11 we are told that God frustrates the plans of the nations as they plot evil against him, and yet his plans are perfectly fulfilled.
We saw this a few weeks ago as we looked at Acts 1:8 and 8:1. In Acts 1:8, Jesus tells his disciples to go and preach the gospel in Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria, and to the ends of the earth. And for seven chapters, Luke tells us that they preached in Jerusalem. But then, men plotted evil against the Lord and against his people. They wanted to crush them. So, they persecuted them.
And Acts 8:1 tells us, “And there arose on that day a great persecution against the church in Jerusalem, and they were all scattered throughout the regions of Judea and Samaria.” The peoples are planning evil. Oh no. What’s going to happen? Acts 8:4, “Now those who were scattered went about preaching the word.” Do you see? Wicked men’s plans frustrated, and God’s plans perfectly fulfilled. The nations are nothing compared to him.
And in verses 13-17 we are reminded that it is God who fashions men’s hearts (v. 15). He sees all that’s going on. He keeps people from sinning in some cases. He thwarts the plans of some. He delivers others. And even when a king is saved through the works of his horses and armies, it wasn’t because their strength was great. It’s because the Lord allowed it. He is the absolute ruler of the earth.
But notice what is then said in verse 12 and verses 18-19. In verse 12 we read, “Blessed is the nation whose God is the LORD, the people whom he has chosen as his heritage.” You see, when Psalm 33 was written, the Lord’s people were a nation – the nation of Israel. But when we get to the New Covenant, the Lord’s people are no longer contained to one nation. Rather, it is those from every nation who have faith in Jesus Christ. In fact, listen how Peter speaks to those who had become believers. He says in 1 peter 2:9-10, “But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light. Once you were not a people, but now you are God’s people; once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy.”
You see, God’s holy nation is now believers all over the world. His people are those who willingly profess their faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. His people are Gentiles and Jews who believe. So, when Psalm 33 says, “Blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord,” this isn’t some kind of language that we see on this side of the resurrection of Christ as the United States or any other geo-political nation. This points us in the New Covenant to all believers – the church.
Of those people, believers in the Lord Jesus Christ, the psalmist wants us to know that the God who rules over all the nations, is specifically focused on us. His eye is on us that he may deliver us from death. So, no matter what we’re going through right now, God’s eye is on you. His care is toward you. He sees what you’re going through. It’s no secret to him. It may be painful, just as Jesus suffered. It may lead you to cry and scream in pain, just as Jesus offered loud cries and tears. But the Lord will eventually deliver you from death, for even if we die, we will be raised. Even if we watch our loved ones waste away from Alzheimers, it’s okay if they know Christ, for our Lord is watching them every minute their outer man is wasting away, and he’s just getting them ready for the day when he will show his might over sin, death, and corruption and will raise them with a glorious, imperishable body. That’ reason to praise God.
So, the concludes, reminding us that:
We know we have plenty of reasons to praise God – for his character, creative might and power, and care for us. Yet right now, we might find ourselves in a time where we wait. We need help. We’re drowning. We’re struggling. And what do we do until then? We trust him, hope in him, cry out for his steadfast love to be showered on us, and we praise him. We praise him because no matter what we face today, he is worthy of praise. And it is more than fitting for one who has been delivered from sin and death through faith in the life, death, and resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ to praise the Lord. Let us then, as we come to the table, come this morning with singing. We will sing, reminding ourselves and one another that though the wrong seems oft so strong, God is the ruler yet, that Jesus who died shall be satisfied, and heaven and earth be one. And as we close, we will sing with loud shouts that our God is holy, and the lamb is worthy of worship. And we will do this because he is worthy of praise, and praise befits the upright. Amen.