Heavenly Devotion: Psalm 30 – A song of David for the dedication of the Temple or David’s house

(Written by Tan Yu Chai)

Life is often a cycle of ease and disease, comfort and discomfort or pain and gain. Yet, we see David begins and ends this Psalm with the pledge to praise God – ‘I will extol You, O LORD’ (v.1a) and ‘O LORD my God, I will give thanks to You forever’ (v.12b).

David deeply recognises the grace, mercy and providence of God in his life. David had near death experiences from the attacks of his enemies (v.1b) and sickness (v.2-3). God delivered him from all these.

Sing, therefore, praise therein to such a God of mercy and grace. For in view of eternity, truly ‘His anger is but a moment and His favour is for a lifetime’ (vv.4-6). There is tremendously exhilarating and securely lasting assurance in the unchanging love of God – if you knoweth Him and loveth Him.

David, in his desperate moments, asked and pleaded with God ‘What profit is there in my death?…Will the dust praise You..?’ (v.9). It is a sincere and curious way of pouring out to God. Not that God needs anyone to praise Him and David was pleading our God of mercy for help.

O my Lord, my hope is in Christ alone – where You are, is where I am home.

 

Let’s read Psalm 30

A Psalm of David. A song at the dedication of the temple.

1 I will extol you, O Lord, for you have drawn me up

and have not let my foes rejoice over me.

2 O Lord my God, I cried to you for help,

and you have healed me.

3 O Lord, you have brought up my soul from Sheol;

you restored me to life from among those who go down to the pit.

4 Sing praises to the Lord, O you his saints,

and give thanks to his holy name.

5 For his anger is but for a moment,

and his favor is for a lifetime.

Weeping may tarry for the night,

but joy comes with the morning.

6 As for me, I said in my prosperity,

“I shall never be moved.”

7 By your favor, O Lord,

you made my mountain stand strong;

you hid your face;

I was dismayed.

8 To you, O Lord, I cry,

and to the Lord I plead for mercy:

9 “What profit is there in my death,

if I go down to the pit?

Will the dust praise you?

Will it tell of your faithfulness?

10 Hear, O Lord, and be merciful to me!

O Lord, be my helper!”

11 You have turned for me my mourning into dancing;

you have loosed my sackcloth

and clothed me with gladness,

12 that my glory may sing your praise and not be silent.

O Lord my God, I will give thanks to you forever!

 

Let’s pray

O Lord, our Father, we want to praise and worship You today. Help us not to ask why bad things happened to us, but help us to learn as David did to praise and give thanks to You through the challenges and sorrows of life. For it is through such hard and sorrowful times that we come to know intimately the Man of Sorrow, Jesus Christ our Lord.

Thank You, Lord for sparing our life so that we can be vessels of praises to You and jars of clay to love and serve our brothers and sisters and all people whom You have sovereignly put in the paths of our life.

Father, spare us in Your grace and mercy, shape us and use us till we see You in glory. Amen