Enjoy God's Victories

What a triumphant song! It captures the exhilaration of a military victory. The relief of being out of danger mingles with the excitement of recalling the key moments of the war. The imagery reflects two basic strategies: full open attack of a huge army bearing down like a flood to drown their opponents (3-5); and a tactical ambush like a trap to catch birds (7,8). Both pictures imply initial odds stacked against Israel. Their backs were to the wall, the danger was intense; but now it is over and they are safe.

So, with a roar of celebration, the worshiping assembly responds to their worship leader, “If the Lord had not been on our side …” (1,2). There were many battles in Israel’s history under leaders like Moses, Joshua and David to which this song could be applied. Even during the exile, when Israel no longer had an army, Jewish communities throughout the vast provinces of the Persian Empire narrowly escaped from a deadly trap. The book of Esther, which barely mentions God, indicates she was chosen as queen “for such a time as this.” One might almost say there is a playfulness about the Maker of heaven and earth (8) who loves to hear his people call out the name of the Lord in tight situations and to demonstrate his power to save. C.S. Lewis captured something of that in his descriptions of the lion, Aslan, coming to the rescue (The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe).

We read this psalm today against the sobering backdrop of the message of Jeremiah. There are times when this faith-strengthening exercise stops. The Lord’s arm is not shorter, his hearing is not duller, as another prophet put it (Isa. 59:1,2), but his face turns away as sin raises an ugly barrier. What might have been faith becomes mere wishful thinking.

If there are any sin barriers between you and God, confess them now so they can come down.