Psalm 33 – Sing Joyfully!
I love to sing. I sing out my sorrows and my joys. Psalm 33 – Sing joyfully to the Lord, reminds us of the importance and the joy found in singing God’s praise.
Psalm 33
This week’s psalm begins with the admonition to sing joyfully to the Lord.
“Sing joyfully to the Lord, you righteous; it is fitting for the upright to praise him.
Praise the Lord with the harp; make music to him on the ten-stringed lyre.
Sing to him a new song; play skillfully, and shout for joy.” (1-3)
Why do we praise our God? Because of God’s word and his unfailing love:
“For the word of the Lord is right and true; he is faithful in all he does.
The Lord loves righteousness and justice; the earth is full of his unfailing love.” (4-5)
God spoke and the world came to be:
“By the word of the Lord the heavens were made, their starry host by the breath of his mouth.
He gathers the waters of the sea into jars; he puts the deep into storehouses.
Let all the earth fear the Lord; let all the people of the world revere him.
For he spoke, and it came to be; he commanded, and it stood firm.” (6-9)
He also foils the plans of nations:
“The Lord foils the plans of the nations; he thwarts the purposes of the peoples.
But the plans of the Lord stand firm forever, the purposes of his heart through all generations.” (10-11)
All reasons to praise our God.
Blessings of those Who’s God is the Lord
Psalm 33 reminds us we are truly blessed to have our God who watches over us:
“Blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord,
the people he chose for his inheritance.
From heaven the Lord looks down and sees all mankind.” (12-13)
“But the eyes of the Lord are on those who fear him, on those whose hope is in his unfailing love,
to deliver them from death and keep them alive in famine.” (18-19)
The psalm ends with beautiful words of hope in our God and God’s unfailing love. All reasons to sing joyfully to God.
“We wait in hope for the Lord; he is our help and our shield.
In him our hearts rejoice, for we trust in his holy name.
May your unfailing love be with us, Lord, even as we put our hope in you.” (20-22)
Memories of Music and Dance
Music has always been an important part of my life. I can remember lying in my parent’s bed with my sisters and listening to records, golden oldies of their time. And Christmas records and Lawrence Welk on Saturday nights. We didn’t have the money for piano lessons or other instruments. We also didn’t have money for dance lessons. But that didn’t keep us from singing.
I wasn’t much of a dancer, but I remember my mom teaching my brother to waltz for the lead role he had in a junior high school production. “There’s something about a waltz,” my brother sang in the show. Yes, there was.
I didn’t attend any of my high school dances, just wasn’t interested. In fact, I was too shy to dance until I became part of a group of friends who would get up on the dance floor together, dancing in a circle. Each person had to take their turn dancing in the middle. No one was allowed to sit it out. And so, I got over my fear of dancing and I’ve been dancing ever since, much to the chagrin of my children as I get up and dance any time I hear certain music. I also sing along to music on the radio.
Power of Music and Dance
There is a power in music. The rhythm beats along to our heartbeat and inner vibrations of our soul. There is music in the universe. At its core, atoms vibrate to this sound. Masses of vibrating particles make up our bodies. Is it any wonder that music and dance are so powerful?
From earliest times, people sang and danced in celebration and in sorrow. I remember my college years, in a down mood, listening to sad songs or singing them, accompanied by my guitar, until my mood lifted and I was ready to rejoice. This was especially true of religious songs. Music has the power to express our deepest emotions and lift us out of our dark times. God truly turns our mourning into dancing, as stated in Psalm 30:11: “You have turned for me my mourning into dancing;
You have put off my sackcloth and clothed me with gladness.”
Psalm 33 – Sing Joyfully!
And so, let us sing joyfully to our God. Our God formed us out of vibrating particles and instilled music within us. Our God loves it when we sing and dance. As Augustine says, when we sing, we pray twice.
We have so many reasons to rejoice in our God. Perhaps the greatest reason is God’s unfailing love. Let us burst forth in song!
What are some of your reasons for singing?
(For another take on this psalm see: Psalm 33 – Is It Possible to Sing a New Song? – Patricia M Robertson)
This post is part of a series of blog posts on the Psalms. Sign up to follow this blog and and receive a free copy of Still Dancing, the second book in my Dancing through Life Series. click here to sign up
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