Hi, and welcome back to our study. It’s a difficult routine for busy people to make a part of life. It says something about your priorities, that you want to make God first. May God bless your efforts.

There are, of course, a lot of repeated items in these chapters, but there is a beautiful psalm in chapter 16, some of which ended up in Psalm 105:1-15. Naturally, there’s much to much here to look at this beautiful psalm in detail, but let’s look at one of the jewels in the treasure box.

Before we dive in, however, let me clarify what’s being done in the larger context. Yesterday I mentioned that David was seeking to restore the true religion of Israel by bringing the ark of God to Jerusalem. The Tabernacle was to be part of that restoration ultimately as 2 Sam. 15:24,25,32 tells us at the time of David’s retreat from Jerusalem. But at this point and in chapter 17 it is clear that the ark was residing in a tent set up specially by David for the ark and that the Tabernacle was remaining (at least for the moment) in Gibeon. Just wanted to clarify.

Anyway, back to the psalm — I’m a big fan of 16:9, 10, because it is, I firmly believe, critically important to “sing praises to Him, speak of all His wonders, glory in His holy name, and let the heart of those who seek the LORD be glad.” When we live with this world in our eye and in our minds, we can become discouraged; but when we raise our eyes to the things above — the LORD’s power, His glory, His wonders, His glory — our hearts are made glad and encouraged to continue to follow! I’m constantly amazed at so-called religious folks who want to try to tear down or explain away the wonders of the LORD and try to convince us all that it should make no difference to our faith. How can such “faith” really rely on the LORD? How can it endure? How can — or even why should it — be moral or faithful or committed? Without God’s wonders and intervention in the world’s history, Christianity is just as useless as the rest of the world’s philosophy and religions. With them, however, Christianity is the not only superior, it is in a class all by itself — “truth”. With them we have the confidence to step into the fray everyday (didn’t really mean to rhyme it, but there it is).

And this is the reason for the reiteration of the great story of Abraham, Isaac, Jacob (and in the longer version of this psalm in Psa. 105, the Exodus and wanderings). Have you ever wondered why this story gets repeated so often? Because they needed to remember and we can never tell the stories enough. It’s part of singing “praises to Him, speak of all His wonders”.

See you tomorrow, Lord willing.