Eld Chew Chong Kiat

[This is a sequel to the first meditation on Psalm 84 entitled “Longing to be in the House of My God!” (v1-4) published on 26 April 2020.]

Introduction

The Psalmist exclaimed the loveliness of the house of God and greatly desired to be in the house of God again. He declared “Blessed are they that dwell in thy house” (v4a). Why? Because, “they will be still praising thee.” (v4b) Yes, blessed and happy indeed is the man that loves the house of the Lord because he loves God and is found in the house of God to worship God, for that is a prelude of heaven. They who trust in God “will be still praising” Him in joy and in woe, for such have learnt to rejoice in Him always.  

The Psalmist continued to describe the portrait of the blessed man in the next four verses, as one who because of his love for the house of God is on a journey to Zion to appear before God.

Ps 84:5 Blessed is the man whose strength is in thee; in whose heart are the ways of them.
6 Who passing through the valley of Baca make it a well; the rain also filleth the pools.
7 They go from strength to strength, every one of them in Zion appeareth before God.
8 O LORD God of hosts, hear my prayer: give ear, O God of Jacob. Selah.

What is one who is blessed of God like?

• He is a Man of God (v5 – synthetic parallelism). God is described in verse 1 and 3 as the “LORD of hosts”, the self-existing and eternal One who is mighty in battle; in verse 2 as “the living God” as opposed to dumb idols; in verse 3 as “my King and my God” to emphasise the personal relationship that the blessed man has with God. The blessed man is one whose source of strength is in God. He trusts not in horses and chariots but in the name of the LORD. (Psalm 20:7) The blessed man knows in his heart that God is the one who empowers him. He knows that he is weak and can do and achieve nothing if not for God. He knows the secret of strength is made perfect in weakness because of the sufficiency of the grace of God (2Cor 12:9-10). He says with the Apostle Paul, “for when I am weak, then am I strong.” Man’s strength used to be in the arm of the flesh which is now weakness to the blessed man. He realizes that he is always in a spiritual battle. The strength that he once leaned upon, like his personal accomplishments and powerful connections in society, are useless in the spiritual battle he has to fight constantly. He realized this from experiences. There had been times when the blessed man used the arm of the flesh to do God’s work and he failed miserably. Whenever he leaned upon God he succeeded. By this he attributes to God all that he is and all the good that is done. He does not credit himself, for He knows that he is only an instrument, a channel through which the wondrous power of God flows, moment by moment.
  
  Using synthetic parallelism, the psalmist elaborates where he derived his God-given strength from. The source is God and through the Word of God. Thus the second line says, “in whose heart are the ways of them”. The heart and not the mind is used here. The Word of God must ultimately flow from the mind to the heart. This leads to obedience. He obeys every jot and tittle of God's Word that he studies and understands. All relationships in his life including his relationship with God, all peoples, his possessions and himself are ordered according to Holy Scriptures. That is why the word “ways” literally means “many highways”. This means that all will be able to see and be blessed by his life. The phrase “of them” is deliberately omitted by the psalmist for emphasis (common way of writing in Hebrew poetry). The emphasis is where the Word of God must reside, i.e. in the heart! God empowers His people to do that which is according to His will. The blessed man distrusts his own inventions and ways, for he knows that if he has his way, he will go astray like a sheep without a shepherd (Isaiah 53:6). “Every way of a man is right in his own eyes” (Proverbs 21:2), but the end thereof is bitterness. So, he cries out to God to show him the way, he acknowledges God in all his ways (Proverbs 3:5-6), and he seeks the ways of God through His words, for therein are the ways of God prescribed and described. 
  
  He is therefore a man of God because he is a man of the Word of God.

• He is a Man of Joy (v6 – synonymous parallelism). The life of the man of God is not without suffering and hardships. In fact, because he is a man of God in the world of evil he will suffer more than the men of sin. He might lose his wealth, friends, family, freedom and even his life because he is a man of God. He will have to pass through the valley of Baca, i.e. valley of weeping! In times like these the ordinary man will become despondent and completely devastated and enter into depression. His life is ruined and ends in self-pity. But the blessed man turns his weeping into joy. The joy is within his soul even when he is weeping outwardly. He does so by clinging on to the promises of God’s Word. The knowledge of the sovereignty of God comforts him and he is refreshed. He knows that his heavenly Father is a faithful God who will never tempt him above what his faith is able to endure. With every temptation, strength will be given to him to bear under the heavy load. His weeping turns to joy in his soul, for all things will work out for his good as he learns to trust in his loving heavenly Father to work all things out for God’s glory. What others see as sadness, he sees as blessings that bring joy to his soul being the man of God that he is. 
  
  The phrase “The rain also filleth the pools” literally means “with benedictions, the rain covers”. (v6b) The synonymous parallelism used here shows us that like rain water that covers the face of the earth, this joy that comes from trusting God covers all sorrows. There is no sorrow that the promises of God cannot help, these bring joy to the man of God’s heart. 
  
  He who trusts and looks to God as his strength and in whose heart is the ways of God (v5), though he passes through vales of sorrows and difficulties in life, does not despair or grow weary because God supplies the pool of water to quench his thirst and to sooth his feet. No impediment will hinder him; no misery too great, no journey too harsh, but God will send sufficient grace, comfort and supply till every one appears before God in Zion (v7). 
  
  We may today be comforted to know that though we may not be allowed to assemble in His house, yet, many have been blessed with silver linings. Many have been more exposed to God's truth than ever before. We cannot meet face to face in praise and worship but the longing in our hearts will one day be fulfilled and we will gather in the presence of God in glory!

• He is a Man of Growth (v7 – synthetic parallelism). The word “go” means to walk and proceed. The blessed man is on a journey. Notice a change of pronoun to “they”. The blessed man is not alone in his journey to Zion. Zion is used instead of Jerusalem because Zion refers to a waymark. It is like a land mark where people who are lost look to, especially those who walk in darkness. Not only is his strength in God but he becomes stronger as he proceeds in his journey. He is encouraged and cheered by the company whose hearts are set towards Zion, to go to the mountain of the LORD. He grows in grace and in the knowledge of God together with his fellow brethren knowing that all of them are heading to the same final destination, i.e. Zion, before the presence of God. 
  
  Strength is in the inner man, not the outward. The outward man will perish; there is no exception even for the blessed man. When he was born again he was a new born babe in Christ. With time he matured through his faithful walk with his Lord according to Holy Scriptures. He knows that visiting Zion would be of no consequence if he has not been living a life of holiness every day of the week. He knows that when he enters Zion he is entering into the very presence of God. His growth is real. It is the work of the Spirit of God in his life. He experiences it daily in all his relationships especially with his LORD. He draws closer and closer to his heavenly Father as he grows. Trust in and devotion with Him become more and more blessed.

• He is a Man of Prayer (v8 – synonymous parallelism) Finally, his prayer life is intimate and sincerely natural. He speaks without ceasing to his heavenly Father like a person taking in breaths. He does not pray only in times of trouble but all the time. His constant communion with God is one of the clearest evidence of spiritual growth. He knows in his heart that his God hears all his prayers. Through the constant study of God's Word his prayers are always answered. The reason is that he prays constantly according to God's holy and sovereign will. In the first line the psalmist addressed God as the LORD God of hosts. The word “LORD” refers to the covenantal relationship he has with God through Christ. This emphasizes the salvific relationship that every child of God has. The phrase “God of hosts” emphasizes the LORD’s power to save and help. He knows that to be able to have joy in times of greatest grief is not from within the man but from God. God has His mighty armies to ensure that nothing happens by accident or chance on earth! The blessed man knows this. Whenever he forgets, sometimes due to the gravity of the depth of sorrow in his heart, he prays. He is able to pray in times like these seeking the LORD because he prays without ceasing. His heavenly Father is not his problem solver. His heavenly Father is the one he loves with all his heart, soul, strength and mind. He knows God hears him all the time. 
  
  Using synonymous parallelism, the psalmist emphasized the intimate relationship he has with his God. God is called the God of Jacob here because Jacob was the old name of Israel which means “usurper.”  This means that even in times of rebellion and sin, the blessed man will cry to God knowing that he will be heard. When he falls into sin, he repents. He will not allow anyone or any tragedy to become a wedge between him and his heavenly Father. Even when Jacob was not a believer the LORD was there for him to help him. The blessed man knows this well in his prayerful walk with his LORD. He knows he is not perfect and his God does not expect him to be perfect. But he knows that his God demands that he be holy which means that he will cry to him for forgiveness whenever he sins. His heart’s desire is always to sin less and less with time as he grows in faith and trust.

Conclusion -- Here is the portrait of a blessed man: He is a man of God; a man of growth; a man of joy; and a man of prayer.

All believers are blessed. This is the norm and not the exception. Are you a blessed child of God?