Psalm 9

Today's scripture is Psalm 9. Go here to read it in your preferred version.

I will praise thee, O Lord, with my whole heart; I will shew forth all thy marvellous works.
² I will be glad and rejoice in thee: I will sing praise to thy name, O thou most High.
³ When mine enemies are turned back, they shall fall and perish at thy presence.
⁴ For thou hast maintained my right and my cause; thou satest in the throne judging right.
⁵ Thou hast rebuked the heathen, thou hast destroyed the wicked, thou hast put out their name for ever and ever.
⁶ O thou enemy, destructions are come to a perpetual end: and thou hast destroyed cities; their memorial is perished with them.
⁷ But the Lord shall endure for ever: he hath prepared his throne for judgment.
⁸ And he shall judge the world in righteousness, he shall minister judgment to the people in uprightness.
⁹ The Lord also will be a refuge for the oppressed, a refuge in times of trouble.
¹⁰ And they that know thy name will put their trust in thee: for thou, Lord, hast not forsaken them that seek thee.
¹¹ Sing praises to the Lord, which dwelleth in Zion: declare among the people his doings.
¹² When he maketh inquisition for blood, he remembereth them: he forgetteth not the cry of the humble.
¹³ Have mercy upon me, O Lord; consider my trouble which I suffer of them that hate me, thou that liftest me up from the gates of death:
¹⁴ That I may shew forth all thy praise in the gates of the daughter of Zion: I will rejoice in thy salvation.
¹⁵ The heathen are sunk down in the pit that they made: in the net which they hid is their own foot taken.
¹⁶ The Lord is known by the judgment which he executeth: the wicked is snared in the work of his own hands. Higgaion. Selah.
¹⁷ The wicked shall be turned into hell, and all the nations that forget God. For the needy shall not always be forgotten: the expectation of the poor shall not perish for ever.
¹⁹ Arise, O Lord; let not man prevail: let the heathen be judged in thy sight.
²⁰ Put them in fear, O Lord: that the nations may know themselves to be but men. Selah.

Verse 1 - I will praise God with my whole heart. With my soul. With my mind and my thinking. With my determination and my will. With my conscience and moral character. With my courage. With my emotions and passions. Did you know that phrase "whole heart" means all these things? Do you praise God and please God in all these areas? I know I don't, sadly. I will tell of god's marvelous works because my heart is so full of this!

Verse 2 - I will be glad and rejoice in God. I will sing praises to God because He is most high!

Verse 3 - God's simple presence is so powerful that our enemies (enemies of God) will simply fall and perish just at His presence.

Verse 4 - God sit on His throne judging all of us righteously.

Verse 5 - This judgment on the wicked is totally righteous. Not without cause. 

Verses 6-7 - Our enemies are going to fall eventually. They will just crumble. But God endures forever.

Verse 8 - He sits on His throne and judges us righteously.

Verse 9 - He is our refuge in times of trouble, in times of persecution.

Verse 10 - We can continue to fully put our trust in God because He will never forsake us.

Verse 11 - Sing praises to God and talk about all of His doings (repeat of verse 1)

Verse 12 - If we will humble ourselves and cry out to Him, He will not forget us

Verse 13 - He will have mercy on us and lift us out of the gates of death. He is the God of my salvation!

Verse 14 - He saves us and we should give Him all the glory for that. We must put that praise out in the open. We must continue to rejoice in our salvation! Do not cheapen it. Do not forget what God has saved you and I from. 

Verse 15-20 - When people are wicked they fall into their own traps. They are bringing God's judgment on themselves. All those who refuse God's salvation will certainly go to hell. David begs for God to remind these people of their humanity. We get so puffed up and think we are so special. The truth is, we are so insignificant. We are so weak on our own. Humans are nothing without God. Unfortunately, so many people will not see this until the day of judgment.

I know this scripture is pretty straight-forward, but one thing you can do to go more into it is list all the promises of God in these verses. There are so many!

Questions? Comments?