04/26/2026
A Psalm of Asaph.
“The mighty God, even the LORD, hath spoken, and called the earth from the rising of the sun unto the going down thereof. Out of Zion, the perfection of beauty, God hath shined. Our God shall come, and shall not keep silence: a fire shall devour before him, and it shall be very tempestuous round about him.
He shall call to the heavens from above, and to the earth, that he may judge his people. Gather my saints together unto me; those that have made a covenant with me by sacrifice. And the heavens shall declare his righteousness: for God is judge himself. Selah.
Hear, O my people, and I will speak; O Israel, and I will testify against thee: I am God, even thy God.
I will not reprove thee for thy sacrifices or thy burnt offerings, to have been continually before me. I will take no bullock out of thy house, nor he goats out of thy folds.
For every beast of the forest is mine, and the cattle upon a thousand hills. I know all the fowls of the mountains: and the wild beasts of the field are mine. If I were hungry, I would not tell thee: for the world is mine, and the fulness thereof. Will I eat the flesh of bulls, or drink the blood of goats?
Offer unto God thanksgiving; and pay thy vows unto the most High: And call upon me in the day of trouble: I will deliver thee, and thou shalt glorify me.
But unto the wicked God saith, What hast thou to do to declare my statutes, or that thou shouldest take my covenant in thy mouth?
Seeing thou hatest instruction, and castest my words behind thee.
When thou sawest a thief, then thou consentedst with him, and hast been partaker with adulterers. Thou givest thy mouth to evil, and thy tongue frameth deceit. Thou sittest and speakest against thy brother; thou slanderest thine own mother's son.
These things hast thou done, and I kept silence; thou thoughtest that I was altogether such an one as thyself: but I will reprove thee, and set them in order before thine eyes.
Now consider this, ye that forget God, lest I tear you in pieces, and there be none to deliver.
Whoso offereth praise glorifieth me: and to him that ordereth his conversation aright will I shew the salvation of God. “ – Psalm 50
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PSALM 50 – The Judge Speaks
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The book of Psalms is an anthology traditionally divided into 5 books mirroring the Torah, and we are currently in Book II / 5, having concluded Book I at Psalm 41. Book II will conclude at Psalm 72, III at Psalm 89, IV at Psalm 106, and V at 150.
This week we celebrate a significant milestone in our on-going study of the Psalter…. We are at Psalm 50!... what a journey it has been, and what a unique place we find ourselves in today to mark this event! This 1/3rd point in our journey is notable for several things:
1. We meet a new Psalmist – Asaph.
2. We see God referred to as “Elohim” (God) and not just the LORD (“Yahweh’).
3. We see God speaking DIRECTLY in the Psalm
4. We see God as JUDGE, and court is in session ( very unique for a Psalm)
5. We see a unique perspective on what pleases God … more on that later…
There are just 12 Psalms attributed to Asaph. Psalm 50, and Psalms 73-83 (some of these are written by his sons). These are unique in their content and character, and Psalm 50 is especially distinguished by its position in Book II, and not Book III, something which should make us sit up and pay attention!
Asaph himself is identified in the Word in 1 Chronicles 15:16-24 , when David sets up the worship team in Jerusalem…He was a Levite, tracing his Genealogy back to Kohath (Gershon, Kohath and Merari were the three sons of Levi)
“And David spake to the chief of the Levites to appoint their brethren to be the singers with instruments of music, psalteries and harps and cymbals, sounding, by lifting up the voice with joy. So the Levites appointed -Heman- the son of Joel; and of his brethren, -Asaph- the son of Berechiah; ….. ….So the singers, Heman, --Asaph--, and Ethan, were appointed to sound with -cymbals of brass- …”
Asaph was more than a cymbal-bashing singer, he was also a prophet or a “seer”, and this double inspiration is very clear in the unique nature of the Asaphite Psalms, and here, where we do not see the Psalmist, but GOD speaking!
Lastly, the usage of the word Elohim (going back to Genesis) indicates a very “old school” and Northern Kingdom (Israel, as opposed to Judah) view of the divine, also a characteristic of the Asaphite Psalms!!
Now to the Psalm itself….. it can be broken down as follows:
1. God appears in fire and a storm, and calls Heaven & Earth as witnesses, against His saints and His people. COURT is now in SESSION!!
2. He rebukes those that think that He can be placated with ritual offerings and sacrifices. This theme is not novel, it can be found in Amos 5:21-24, Micah 6:6-8, Hosea 6:6, Psalm 51:16-17, Proverbs 21:3, 1 Samuel 15:22 --- Jesus against the Pharisees in Matthew 9:13, 12:7 (quoting Hosea 6:6) , Paul – Hebrews 10:4-10, Romans 12:1.
3. THE BOTTOM LINE FOR HOLY LIVING – DELIVERED IN A PSALM!!!
“Offer unto God thanksgiving; and pay thy vows unto the most High: And call upon me in the day of trouble: I will deliver thee, and thou shalt glorify me. “
4. A stinging rebuke for the hypocrites, and the wicked is then delivered… accompanied with the penalty for ignoring the ignoring the warning…
“These things hast thou done, ---and I kept silence-----; thou thoughtest that I was altogether such an one as thyself: but I will reprove thee, and set them in order before thine eyes. Now consider this, ye that ---forget God----, lest I tear you in pieces, and there be none to deliver.
The silence of God, in the presence of wickedness, is a fact used to argue (a) the nonexistence of God (b) the impotence of God (c) the unwillingness of God to address evil ….
...But it is hallmark of grace and patience, letting the weeds grow for the sake of the crop, and people that forget these warnings, and choose not keep Him in forefront of their minds, would do well to remember it!!
“Whoso offereth praise glorifieth me: and to him that ordereth his conversation aright will I shew the salvation of God. “
A famous phrase—"To glorify God, and to enjoy him forever"—comes from the Westminster Shorter Catechism, first published in 1647. It is the answer to the very first question of the catechism: Q. 1. What is the chief end of man? A. Man’s chief end is to glorify God, and to enjoy him forever.
Just as Praise can result in Salvation, Blasphemy can bring damnation to our heads.
The tongue, and our conversation, should be very tightly controlled, as James says, “Out of the same mouth proceedeth blessing and cursing. My brethren, these things ought not so to be.” (Ja 3:10)
Psalms are songs of Praise, and we are blessed to be able to echo a weekly praise to our God, our Redeemer, our Salvation --- may we constantly offer to God our thanksgiving, and be faithful to our promises, reflecting the Covenant nature of God that swore by Himself with Heaven and Earth as his witnesses, and was faithful to deliver what He had sworn!
Hallelujah!