Psalm 75

 

This is a humbling psalm.  By humbling I don’t so much mean that it calls us out and humbles us in exhortation. Rather it is a recognition of who holds everything in the balance and who gets the final say.  Psalm 75 attributes the final judgment to God and God alone.  The questions for us is: do we resonate and agree with what is written here?  We know that one day every knee shall bow and every tongue confess that Jesus is Lord (Romans 14:11), but we have the opportunity to recognize that now and be welcomed into the family with open arms.

When reading this psalm, we must be careful to note the annotations of whois speaking.  Verses 2-5 are words from God and the rest around it is the psalmist speaking.  It is also important to understand that there are two references to horns here, which is a sign of power, but in different contexts.  In verse 4, God is referring to a horn as an instrument.  Essentially, God is saying, “don’t toot your own horn.” Don’t be prideful and boastful because that puts us in a position to be cut down.  Many times throughout the scriptures we are warned about this.  We are reminded that only God can truly lift us up to a place from which we cannot fall.  This is why Jesus is called the Rock, because He is the solid foundation.

In verse 10, horns are referenced again but in the form of being cut off. The imagery here is like cutting the horns off of a bull.  This is a reference to power which we see a lot in the book of Revelation, where there are beasts with multiple horns on their heads and exemplify the power which they hold.  The reference in Psalm 75, however, reminds us that it doesn’t matter how powerful the wicked may seem in this earth, God has the ultimate say and will simply cut them down from their self-exalted state.

On one hand this psalm is a comfort not to worry about how crazy, wicked, and out of control things seem around us.  I know that recently there are many more signs of the end times rising up and some Christians are concerned about it.  Why? If God has the ultimate say and we know we are on the side of His Kingdom, we should welcome the end with open arms!  This psalm is also a reminder towards us not to exalt ourselves or seek after worldly power, because God will judge and render reward to the righteous and judgment to the wicked.  Jesus reminds us in Matthew 6:33

But seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.

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