Psalm 150:3-5
What an array of musical instruments or symphony orchestras have today! What rich music they are able to produce compared with the instruments the psalmist mentions in Psalm 150:3-5! There, concerning God, he writes, "Praise Him with the sound of the trumpet; praise Him with the psaltery and harp. Praise Him with the timbrel and dance; praise Him with stringed instruments and organs. Praise Him upon upon loud cymbals praise Him upon the high sounding cymbals."
How emphatic then is the exhortation in verse 2, to praise Him for His mighty acts and excellent greatness! The piercing sound of the trumpet, the softer music of the timbrel, harp, stringed instruments, and organs, and the emphatic accentuation by the cymbal must all be used to sound His praises. And to make it very emphatic the psalmist adds in the next verse, ''Let every thing that hath breath praise the Lord."
That personal note brings this call to praise God to you and me. Do not look at your neighbor and tell him to praise God. With emphasis say that to yourself. Never mind if you have no talent to play those instruments. Do not excuse yourself because you were not born with a beautiful singing voice. Yea, even if you were born as a monotone, this word comes to you. It is the content of your singing and the words that are accompanied by those instruments that counts.
Fittingly the versification of these words declares (PRC Psalter):
Hallelujah! Hallelujah!
All that breathe Jehovah praise;
Let the voices God has given
Joyful anthems to Him raise.
Did you notice how this includes you? Those instruments enrich the music, but praising God means extolling Him for His virtues, and that must be in the minds of those who accompany with musical instruments. Music and musical instruments were designed by God; and we can praise Him for His wisdom, His mighty acts and excellent greatness that gives those to us. But they must be used to praise Him as our God and Savior in Christ. Fill your day then with praise to Him for His love and works of love to those whom He chose in Christ and saved by His blood.
Read: Psalm 81
Psalter versification: #409:5
Words and Music of the Psalter)
Daily Meditations on the Heidelberg Catechism
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Through the Bible in One Year
Read today:
Genesis 35 ; Genesis 36:1-43
Matthew 12:1-21
Psalm 15:1-5
Proverbs 3:21-26
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Quote for Reflection:
"We must each of us, in our several places, serve the Lord and consecrate our service to Him, separate it from other things that are foreign and interfere with it, and direct and design it for the honor and glory of God. We must make the service of God our business, must fill our hands to the Lord -- so the Hebrew phrase is. Those who engage themselves in the service of God will have their hands full; there is work enough for the whole man in that service. The filling of our hands with the service of God intimates that we must serve Him only, serve Him liberally, and serve Him in the strength of grace derived from Him." -- Matthew Henry
Additional Info
- Date: 17-January
Heys, John A.
Rev. John A. Heys was born on March 16, 1910 in Grand Rapids, MI. He was ordained and installed into the ministry at Hope, Walker, MI in 1941. He later served at Hull, Iowa beginning in 1955. In 1959 he accepted the call to serve the South Holland, IL Protestant Reformed Church. He received and accepted the call to Holland, Michigan Protestant Reformed Church in 1967. He retired from the active ministry in 1980. He entered into glory on February 16, 1998.