Psalm 99 (NRSV)
Read Psalm 99 on biblegateway.com
Verse 1The Lord is king; let the peoples tremble! He sits enthroned upon the cherubim; let the earth quake!
Verse 2The Lord is great in Zion; he is exalted over all the peoples.
Verse 3Let them praise your great and awesome name. Holy is he!
Verse 4Mighty King, lover of justice, you have established equity; you have executed justice and righteousness in Jacob.
Verse 5Extol the Lord our God; worship at his footstool. Holy is he!
Verse 6Moses and Aaron were among his priests, Samuel also was among those who called on his name. They cried to the Lord, and he answered them.
Verse 7He spoke to them in the pillar of cloud; they kept his decrees, and the statutes that he gave them.
Verse 8O Lord our God, you answered them; you were a forgiving God to them, but an avenger of their wrongdoings.
Verse 9Extol the Lord our God, and worship at his holy mountain; for the Lord our God is holy.
Devotion
This is a great psalm of praise, celebrating the Lord as the one who reigns over all the earth. This song was a call for the whole assembly to give thanks to God for being Israel's holy sovereign. The Lord was exalted, enthroned, holy over all the earth.
How often do you hear someone speak about not believing in God or disagree with you about God? Certainly we can't understand the vastness and glory of God, so perhaps we should listen to these differing opinions more carefully. Israel listed in this psalm many great attributes and deeds of God but were the first to recognize that God was beyond their grasp. Perhaps when we gather for worship this Sunday and listen to some who see God differently, we'll worship a God we know more fully.
Prayer
Almighty God beyond our comprehension, we worship you as well as we can yet less than you deserve. You are the ruler of all creation. Open us up today to see you anew, and let us worship you more fully each day. Amen.