Psalm 115 – Not To Us!
Not to us, the singers of Psalm 115 proclaim, not once but twice. Don’t give the glory to us they say – a sign of true humility. Who do you give the glory to? Do you give glory to false idols or to our God? What do we learn from Psalm 115 – not to us?
Psalm 115
Psalm 115 is another Hallel psalm, sung at Seder meals. It begins with the emphatic statement, not to us. Not to us but to God’s name be the glory. “The repetition of the words, ‘Not unto us,’ would seem to indicate a very serious desire to renounce any glory which they might at any time have proudly appropriated to themselves, and it also sets forth the vehemence of their wish that God would at any cost to them magnify his own name.” (Spurgeon) Enduring Word Bible Commentary Psalm 115
“Not to us, Lord, not to us but to your name be the glory, because of your love and faithfulness.” (1)
“The singer of this psalm understood that when God did wonderful things, the glory should be given to God – not to God’s people (not unto us), even if they are in some sense active in the work. The glory should go unto God and His holy name.” Enduring Word Bible Commentary Psalm 115
Contrast God and Idols
The psalm then contrasts God with the idols of the pagan nations. When the nations ask, “where is their God?” the writer responds – “Our God is in heaven.” The nations were looking for idols, gods made of silver and gold, whereas the God of the Hebrews is not visible. The God of the Hebrews inhabits heaven and does what he pleases.
“Why do the nations say, “Where is their God?”
Our God is in heaven; he does whatever pleases him.” (2-3)
The psalmist goes on to describe the many ways that God differs from the inferior gods of the nations.
“But their idols are silver and gold, made by human hands.
Their idols have mouths, but cannot speak, eyes, but cannot see.
They have ears, but cannot hear, noses, but cannot smell.
They have hands, but cannot feel, feet, but cannot walk, nor can they utter a sound with their throats.
Those who make them will be like them, and so will all who trust in them.” (4-8)
False Idols
They fashioned idols after their own idea of what a god looked like. As found in Enduring Word Bible Commentary Psalm 115:
“The psalmist exposed the folly of idolatry. Men worshipped statues of silver and gold that they themselves made (the work of men’s hands). The idols were fashioned with human body parts (mouths, eyes, ears, noses, hands, feet, and a throat). Yet they couldn’t do with those body parts what their makers could – speak, see, hear, smell, handle, walk, or even mutter. Men worship things so obviously below them!”
“A beautiful contrast is formed between the God of Israel and the heathen idols. He made everything, they themselves are made by men; he is in heaven, they are upon earth; he doeth whatsoever he pleaseth, they can do nothing; he seeth the distress, heareth and answereth the prayers, accepteth the offerings, cometh to the assistance, and effecteth the salvation of his servants; they are blind, deaf, and silent senseless, motionless, and impotent.” (Horne)
“Boice quoted Augustine’s sharp addition to the indictment of idols and their worshippers: “Even the dead surpass a deity who neither lives nor has lived.”
Enduring Word Bible Commentary Psalm 115
The false idols of the nations are so far below the God of the Hebrews, there is no comparison.
Trust in the Lord
The psalmist then tells the Israelites to trust in the Lord.
“All you Israelites, trust in the Lord—he is their help and shield.
House of Aaron, trust in the Lord—he is their help and shield.
You who fear him, trust in the Lord—he is their help and shield.” (9-11)
Why trust in the Lord? Because he is our help and shield. Because he remembers us and blesses us.
“The Lord remembers us and will bless us: He will bless his people Israel, he will bless the house of Aaron,
he will bless those who fear the Lord—small and great alike.” (12-13)
Prayer of Blessing and Praise
Psalm 115 – Not to us, ends with a blessing prayer:
“May the Lord cause you to flourish, both you and your children.
May you be blessed by the Lord, the Maker of heaven and earth.” (14-15)
Followed by words of praise:
“The highest heavens belong to the Lord, but the earth he has given to mankind.
It is not the dead who praise the Lord, those who go down to the place of silence;
it is we who extol the Lord, both now and forevermore.
Praise the Lord.” (16-18)
God has given the earth to us. We need to praise our God while we live and beyond. Now and forevermore.
We Become What We Worship
In the beginning, God made humans in God’s own image and likeness. Since then, we have reversed the order. We make God in our image and likeness. The neighboring nations to the Hebrew nation fashioned idols out of silver and gold. In our days we make idols out of people, institutions, as well as silver and gold. We attach to our God our own vices and failings and then justify our actions based on this. Far too often we see God as we are, not as God truly is.
“F.B. Meyer observed how this principle worked among those who worship idols: “Men first impute to their deities their own vices, as the Greeks and Romans to the gods and goddesses of their Pantheon; and then endeavor to honor them by imitation.” He then noted how it worked in a positive sense among the disciples of Jesus: “This is the Divine method: look and live; trust and be transfigured; abide in Him, and He shall abide in you.” Enduring Word Bible Commentary Psalm 115
Psalm 115 tells us, “Those who make them are like them.” We become what we worship. All reason to be careful what it is we are worshipping – the one true God or false idols, ones created by humans with all of our failings. This “is virtually a spiritual law: we become like what we worship. When we worship the true God who reigns in righteousness, the God perfectly revealed in Jesus Christ, we become like Him. When we worship false and vain idols, we become like them.” Enduring Word Bible Commentary Psalm 115
She Who is Not
Catherine of Siena recognized this temptation to fashion gods to our liking.
“We are repeatedly tempted to identify our desires and designs with the truth. Reality just needs to catch up with us, we think to ourselves. But God’s reality constantly calls us beyond ourselves. Perhaps this is why another saint, Catherine of Siena, often spoke of herself as “she who is not” after her Lord appeared to her one day and said: Do you know, daughter, who you are and who I am? If you know these two things you have beatitude in your grasp. You are she who is not, and I Am He Who Is. Let your soul but become penetrated with this truth, and the enemy can never lead you astray.” Why Jesus Christ preached the intensity of the ordinary – America Magazine
Participants in Twelve Steps programs for recovery from addiction begin with recognizing that only a Power greater than themselves can restore them to sanity. Inherent in that is the understanding that they are not that Power. They realize they are not God. Not to us but to God they turn to be saved from themselves.
Psalm 115 – Not to Us
Psalm 115 – not to us, reminds us that we need to give the glory where it belongs, to our God. Who we give glory to matters. Who we worship matters. Do we worship the one true God who created the heavens and earth, or false idols of our own creating?
(For another take on this psalm, see Psalm 115: Worshiping that which has no Substance – Patricia M Robertson)
This post is part of a series of blog posts on the Psalms. Sign up to follow this blog 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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