Ruth 1; Psalm 150

Read Ruth 1; Psalm 150

Passage chosen for meditation: Psalm 150 ESV

1 Praise the Lord!

   Praise God in his sanctuary;

    praise him in his mighty heavens![a]

2 Praise him for his mighty deeds;

    praise him according to his excellent greatness!

3 Praise him with trumpet sound;

    praise him with lute and harp!

4 Praise him with tambourine and dance;

    praise him with strings and pipe!

5 Praise him with sounding cymbals;

    praise him with loud clashing cymbals!

6 Let everything that has breath praise the Lord!

Praise the Lord!

Reflect

This is the very last chapter of the Book of Psalms. It ends with a bang of sounds produced by a powerful ensemble of wind, string and percussion instruments.

No words need to be spoken, which are already spoken. Only wonder, acknowledgement and praise are in order here.

After all, it is the final chapter, with a fitting finish and an anthemic ending!

The following are four inspiring quotes and a bible reference:

“Your life may resemble the psalter with its varying moods, its light and shadow, its sob and smile; but it will end with hallelujahs, if only you will keep true to the will and way and work of the Most Holy.” (Meyer)

"The sound of trumpet is associated with the grandest and most solemn events, such as the giving of the law, the proclamation of jubilee, the coronation of Jewish kings, and the raging of war. It is to be thought of in reference to the coming of our Lord in his second advent and the raising of the dead.” (Spurgeon)

"Mighty’ were the ‘acts’ which God wrought for Israel; and ‘great’ was the Holy One in the midst of his ancient people; but mightier acts did he perform in Christ Jesus, for the redemption of the world.” (Horne)

"And every creature which is in heaven and on the earth and under the earth and such as are in the sea, and all that are in them, I heard saying: “Blessing and honor and glory and power be to Him who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb, forever and ever!"  (Revelation 5:13)

"The one condition of praise is the possession of breath, that is to say, life received from Him must return in praise to Him.” (Morgan)

Relate

This calls to mind the grandest celebration in life. Other than the celebration of God and the Cross, and the second coming of the Lord, what else is there? What else is worthy of such a grand celebration?

May I say the celebration of life at one's death. The irony cannot be more awkward. But that's how this last oeuvre of the Psalms appeals to me, as the grand finale of life. I must admit though that this is all, in a way, triggered by recent events.

With that, I would like to take this opportunity and use this devotional as a form of tribute, in honour of the 3 lives that have gone to be with the Lord in the past year and month. One of them was the husband of a dear colleague, who was cut off in his prime. The other was a dear cousin of mine who passed on in his late sixties, and the last was the dear son and only child of my very good friends and cell members, who was only in his early twenties when he left us so suddenly. All three of them were stalwarts of the faith in their own right.

What's certain to me from all of this is that, though unseen to us, the life of a saint ends on a high note. It culminates in the grand opus: "O death, where is your victory? O death, where is your sting?” (1 Corinthians 15:55). 

For that reason, Psalm 150 is likened to a curtain call for the departed saints where all praise and glory is directed to the Lord who receives a thunderous standing ovation from the heavens. 

Precious indeed in the sight of the Lord is the death of his saints.

Rest

Lord, we thank you for this life of ours, with its ups and downs like those we read in the Psalms. The last chapter assures us beyond the shadow of doubt that everything of yours ends on a high note. We are yours surely, and precious are we to you.

Naville