JENNY'S PSALM REFLECTIONS: 74 VERSE 12

This week’s verse is Psalm 74 verse 12.

    "Yet God my King is from of old, working salvation in the earth.”

Background:

This Psalm was written by Asaph, a musician who served in King David’s court. He is known for his beautiful and inspirational music, which was inspired by his deep understanding of Scripture. Asaph’s music was a source of great comfort to the people of Israel, and his Psalms continue to inspire and encourage people today.

Psalm 74 is a lament and expresses the pleas of the Jewish community when under Babylonian captivity. The people are bewildered and in chaos, and their Temple has been destroyed. However, and in response to this, the psalmist recalls what God has done, in “working salvation in the earth.” (verse 12). The Psalm also refers to the crushing of Leviathan, a great sea-monster referred to a few times in the Psalms, in Job, and in Isaiah that stands as a symbol of chaos and rebellion against God (verse 14). 

There will be difficult times and chaotic times, but God walks alongside us, and out of the chaos, there will be comfort. It can sometimes be hard to see, but there are better things in store. The Psalm describes the times of chaos when God broke through and made good when He divided the Red Sea, he broke the armies that attacked his people, he held his people through the wilderness and he opened rocks and provided water (verses 13-15). As described in verse 16, “Yours is the day, yours also the night,” and how true that is. We enjoy the bright times in life, but not the dark. Or perhaps, it is truer to say, that when things are good, we do not appreciate them.

Asaph was going through a night season in his soul as he saw everything around him falling apart. What was his solution? To trust God. 

Remember, hold strong, for God controls the night as well as the day. “Yet God my King is from of old, working salvation in the earth.”

Meditation

1. FIND A QUIET PLACE. 

Make sure that you are in a quiet place. Sit comfortably but alert – feet flat on the floor, back pushed hard against the back of the chair. Start your reflection by being open and ready to God’s presence.

2. Focus on your breathing.

Pay attention to in-breaths and out-breaths. You may think of breathing in God’s life and peace and breathing out any tension.

3. Be aware of your body.

Let your aches and pains be there. Rest your hands in your lap; you don’t need to be doing anything with them now. Rest your feet on the floor; you don’t need to go anywhere. Shrug your shoulders, ease your neck. Take time to become still and repeat verse 12 to yourself. Think of how God has stood by you in times of trouble and how you have felt his support.

4. Say the verses aloud to yourself

 In the stillness, listen to what God might be saying to you. Finish with the prayer below.

Heavenly Father, may we find sustenance in your presence and know that your love holds us through both the dark times and the bright; we ask this through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen