Psalm 29 – The Voice of the Lord is OVER the Waters
By Bunni Pounds
*This blog is part of our weekly, virtual Bible Study through the book of Psalms. For information on how to participate, please visit this page.
God has the final word. There is no one more powerful than Him. His majesty and holiness are unmatched. There is no one like Him.
When He speaks – the waters tremble. When He speaks – we should listen.
“Give unto the Lord, O you mighty ones,
Give unto the Lord glory and strength.
Give unto the Lord the glory due to His name;
Worship the Lord in the beauty of holiness.” (verse 1-2)
I read this section in several versions of the Bible because coming from a political background – “Give unto the Lord, O you mighty ones” instantly took my thoughts to powerful people – elected officials, business leaders, and organization leaders. I thought about people who have “control” or look like they have “control” as the “mighty ones” on the earth. In reality – they might look like they are in control and pulling the strings – but there is only One who sits in the heaven pulling the big strings.
In the New International Version (NIV) – it says, “Ascribe to the Lord, you heavenly beings, ascribe to the Lord glory and strength.”
As I looked up other translations – it became clear that the text is speaking about heavenly beings - powerful angels. If angels that protect us, minister to us, cause things to happen here on earth, and are welding a great amount of power - would bow their knee to the mighty God - why won’t we?
This should speak to the elected officials, the business leaders, and the national leaders that they have less control than they think., regardless. The “mighty ones” are giving Him the honor. If they are ascribing to God the “glory due to His name” – how much more should we do that?
When I read Psalm 29 – I am in awe of a majestic God that ultimately is in control and can do anything He wills to do.
When I read Psalm 29 – I feel small next to a noticeably big God.
“The voice of the Lord is over the waters;
The God of glory thunders;
The Lord is over many waters.
The voice of the Lord is powerful;
The voice of the Lord is full of majesty.” (verses 3-4)
When we think about “the waters” or the “many waters” – what do we think about?
I think about the choppiness of the ocean when Tim and I are supposed to be relaxing but instead I am getting sick to my stomach because of the waves. I also think of being on an East Texas lake when the storms come rolling in and feeling the power of the storm hit the waters. I am not thinking about peaceful waters unfortunately when I think about “many waters”. I am instead thinking about powerful and turbulent waters.
This week – one of our dearest friends’ husband died suddenly. We loved him.
We have felt much turbulence as we have carried her in our hearts and mourned the passing of this beautiful man of God. But it is in these minutes when we are in shock and our world is spinning around us that Jesus speaks to the storms of life and even the internal trouble in our souls and says - “Peace, be still.”
On the Lake of Galilee when He slept in the boat instead of worrying about the storm – He was showing His ultimate control over it. (Mark 4)
He speaks and the world stops.
Why? Because He is powerful and full of majesty.
When God wants something done – there is nothing that can stop it from happening.
In the next verses of Psalm 29 – His voice “breaks the cedars”, “divides the flames of fire”, “shakes the wilderness”, “strips the forest bare” and even “makes the deer give birth.” (verses 5-9). That is a powerful voice of authority!
When a voice is so powerful that it does all of that - the only response that all of creation can give that VOICE is found in verse 9 – “And in His temple everyone says, “Glory!”
Now let’s look at the picture in Revelation 4:1 for a clearer picture of this temple celebration.
Look at THE VOICE and then we will look at the REACTION to the VOICE –
“After these things I looked, and behold, a door standing open in heaven. And the first voice which I heard was like a trumpet speaking with me, saying, “Come up here, and I will show you things which must take place after this.”
Then comes the REACTION in heaven to the VOICE of the Lord….
“The four living creatures, each having six wings, were full of eyes around and within. And they do not rest day or night, saying:
“Holy, holy, holy,
Lord God Almighty,
Who was and is and is to come!”
Whenever the living creatures give glory and honor and thanks to Him who sits on the throne, who lives forever and ever, the twenty-four elders fall down before Him who sits on the throne and worship Him who lives forever and ever, and cast their crowns before the throne, saying:
“You are worthy, O Lord,
To receive glory and honor and power;
For You created all things,
And by Your will they exist and were created.” (verses 8-11)
Why should we, as mere humans, focus on the throne room of heaven?
Why should we raise our gaze regularly to the King of Kings?
But He (Jesus) was in the stern, asleep on a pillow. And they awoke Him and said to Him, “Teacher, do You not care that we are perishing? Then He arose and rebuked the wind, and said to the sea, “Peace, be still!” – Mark 4:38-39
Briefly, here is the truth - in the middle of our troubled storms, the uncertainties of life, or our shattered dreams – God is still on the throne, and He is calming the waters.
“The Lord sat enthroned at the Flood,
And the Lord sits as King forever.” (verse 10)
The New Living Translation says it this way –
“The Lord rules over the floodwaters.
The Lord reigns as king forever.”
In the depths of the waters as we are surrounded by death, pain, heartache, and agony – the Lord rules!
The floodwaters can look large and ominous – but the Lord reigns as King over all of it.
When we look around and all we see are the floods of turbulent waters in these times
– be prepared to hear Him say with a loud VOICE – “Peace be still.”
God has control over the waters. He is here today to speak peace to our souls. As the King – he has control even on this earth and demonstrate that even more vividly more - one day soon.
One day, we will rule and reign on the earth with Him.
Watch Him speak – and peace come to rule forever.
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Watch the video or listen to the audio of our Psalm 29 study HERE
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