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THE TRUE RULER (Psalm 76)

Most Bible teachers believe that Psalms 75 and 76 go together. They were written on the occasion of God’s great victory over Sennacherib (2 Kings 18-19).

King Hezekiah and the people of Israel were scared to death because the Assyrians had come against them. They were outnumbered, outpowered, and outmaneuvered. Yet, God overcame their enemy.

The theme of these two psalms is that God is greater than all the rulers of the world, and He can do exactly as He wishes. Aren’t you glad that He is your King? We are not in the hands of wicked, ignorant men who have no more power than we do.

Psalm 76 begins this way: “In Judah is God known: his name is great in Israel.”

Both Psalms 75 and 76 begin with the name of God. The primary reason He works in this world is because He wants to be known by people.

Verses 2-5: “In Salem also is his tabernacle, and his dwelling place in Zion. There brake he the arrows of the bow, the shield, and the sword, and the battle. Selah.Thou art more glorious and excellent than the mountains of prey. The stouthearted are spoiled, they have slept their sleep: and none of the men of might have found their hands.”

What a humorous verse, illustrating how these men were so proud and now are helpless.

Verses 6-8: “At thy rebuke, O God of Jacob, both the chariot and horse are cast into a dead sleep.Thou, even thou, art to be feared: and who may stand in thy sight when once thou art angry? Thou didst cause judgment to be heard from heaven; the earth feared, and was still.”

That is a powerful statement. Amid all of the noise and the hustle and bustle of life; with all of the posturing and politicizing as people maneuver for access in hopes of seeing their agendas accomplished — when God speaks, everyone and everything stops. God can speak from Heaven and Earth is affected. We should all be praying for that today.

Verse 9: “When God arose to judgment, to save all the meek of the earth. Selah.”

Those who will be blessed in the end are not those who grasp at power or jockey for position. As Christ said in Matthew 5:5, “Blessed are the meek: for they shall inherit the earth.” That is the principle being applied here, because the meek are those who have submitted themselves to God’s rule.

God is not only the Judge of the entire world, as we discussed in the previous study, but He is your Judge. He wants to rule and reign in your heart over every circumstance in your life.

Verse 10: “Surely the wrath of man shall praise thee: the remainder of wrath shalt thou restrain.”

There is a great deal of theology wrapped up in this verse. God uses “the wrath of man.” The Lord can use the most wicked people and the most terrible situations to bring about His purpose. All through the Old Testament, we see pagan kings like Cyrus and Nebuchadnezzar who at first did not even know God, yet became His messengers and His instruments.

The only things that God will allow to pass through His loving and merciful hands are those things that will bring Him the greatest glory. He holds back everything else. If you think there is much evil in the world today, imagine what there would be if God were not restraining it as described in verse 10.

Verses 11-12: “Vow, and pay unto the Lord your God: let all that be round about him bring presents unto him that ought to be feared. He shall cut off the spirit of princes: he is terrible to the kings of the earth.”

The closing verses reiterate the theme of this psalm, which is the fact that all princes and kings of this world must ultimately submit themselves to God, or else they will be cast down. The only true ruler and faithful judge is the Lord Himself.

There are three primary things that God deserves, desires, and demands according to Psalm 76.

1. God is to be known.

Do you know Him as your personal Savior? If not, today is the day. If He is, then don’t stop there. He wants to be your Lord and Master, the ruling presence in your life. Once you know Him that way, you are to make Him known to others. Begin to see all of the things going on in this world as God’s means of revealing Himself to fallen humanity.

2. God is to be feared.

This is mentioned multiple times in this psalm. Verse 8 refers to how “the earth feared,” while it gets more personal in verse 11 when talking about “him that ought to be feared.”

He deserves to be feared because He is the great God. Stand in awe of the Lord. We should never be light or flippant about God or speak about Himself like He is just another one of us. There is none like God, and all of humanity should look at Him that way.

3. God is to be worshipped.

That is what it is all coming to. Remember, these are the Leviticus Psalms which emphasize coming into His presence. Let us bring the sacrifice of praise and honor Him.

In the closing chapters of Revelation, we see that all of the people of the world will worship God eventually and acknowledge who He is. Then, once the believers enter into God’s presence for all eternity, we will worship Him forever. Isn’t that going to be glorious?

Let’s get a head start on it today. Make it your goal to know God, to fear God, and to worship God. Encourage everyone else to do the same.

Get your eyes off people you think are powerful, and focus on the all-powerful God. He alone is worthy of our praise.