But You are holy, enthroned in the praises of Israel. Our fathers trusted in You; they trusted, and You delivered them. They cried to You, and were delivered; they trusted in You, and were not ashamed. (Psalm 22:3-5)
This statement — “But You are holy” — coming on the heels of what seems to be a complaint — “Why have you forsaken me?” — suggests that David resolves within himself that whatever might happen to him is just. In other words, God is Holy and Sovereign which means He does as He wills and what He wills is always righteous and just. The fact that he goes on to describe himself as a worm lends support to this notion. Let’s put it this way: God is holy and we are not, and so, who are we to accuse Him of abandonment when things aren’t going our way? And that being said, notice how David changes course in this prayer — he shifts from “Why aren’t you doing something” to acknowledgement of what He had already done.
As stubborn as Israel had been in times past, God delivered them when they cried out to Him. When they were in Egyptian bondage, “they cried out; and their cry came up to God” (Exodus 2:23). In response to their anguish, He appeared to Moses and said, “I have heard their cry because of their taskmasters” (Exodus 3:7), and He delivered them from Pharaoh and the hand of the Egyptians (Exodus 14:30). In the end, they were not put to shame by their enemies but were delivered by the God of Israel to their amazement and to the dread of their adversaries. It is this fact that brings us to this statement — “But You are holy, enthroned in the praises of Israel.”
The Hebrew word translated as “enthroned” literally means “to sit,” which in turn is used elsewhere in Scripture to denote “dwelling” or “inhabiting” a particular place (hence the rendering of this verse). So then, David suggests that God sits upon, is enthroned upon and desires to dwell among the praises of Israel — in direct contrast to the complaints and accusations of Israel. This is important because, it is the praises of His people (along with their cries and petitions), that provokes God to move on their behalf. In fact, some Jewish commentators have written that God’s Throne also acts as His war chariot when He goes out to do battle on behalf of His people.
Think about that: God is enthroned upon the praises of His people, and if His Throne is also His chariot of war, no wonder Jehoshaphat appointed those who would sing and “praise the beauty of holiness, as they went out before the army” (2 Chronicles 20:21) against their enemies. By the way, when the men of Judah got to the battlefield, their enemies were annihilated. And so the point today is, once again, we are never forsaken, but at the same time, perhaps God is not as motivated to act on our behalf when we are too busy complaining and lobbing accusations of abandonment at Him. He is much more inclined to respond to our praise, our faith and our acknowledgement that we know we will not be put to shame when we trust in the Holy One of Israel.
Blessings and Shalom,
Bill
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