This Psalm was written in response to the Canaanite people’s worship of the god Baal, whose voice controlled the storms. Seven times throughout these verses, the Psalmist reminds us that it is the Lord’s voice which is in control. It is powerful and full of majesty, it is over the waters and breaks the cedars of Lebanon, it flashes forth flames of fire and shakes the wilderness, it makes the deer give birth and strips the forests bare. The voice of the Lord rules creation and the Lord sits enthroned as king forever.
With these words, the Psalmist sings out, “May the Lord give strength to his people, may the Lord bless his people with peace.”
It isn't difficult to make parallels with Baal, the god of storms and the things which disrupt our lives every day. Most of the time those storms are of our own making, but things get so far out of control that we can no longer see past them to the peace which lies on the other side.
Those are the time when I find that prayers such as this resonate within me. As I pray for strength to simply crawl to the other side, I also pray for peace within me while I do so.
When you read the Psalms, the first thing you will see is that these Psalms are not afraid to cry out in pain and struggle; but the next thing you will discover is that throughout the pain, the Psalmist is always aware of how close God is and how much he is loved by the Lord.
The Lord will bring strength and peace.
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