Read Psalm 134
A song of ascents.
1 Praise the Lord, all you servants of the Lord
who minister by night in the house of the Lord.
2 Lift up your hands in the sanctuary
and praise the Lord.
3 May the Lord bless you from Zion,
he who is the Maker of heaven and earth.
Go Deeper
Psalm 134 is the last of the “songs of ascent.” Psalm 134, among the other songs of ascent, were traditionally sung on the road to the great city, Jerusalem. In this psalm, two words stand out because they are used more than once. “Lord” is used five times in the short three verses that make up this chapter. Twice the NIV version instructs us to praise God. The ESV translation uses the word “bless” (instead of praise) three times. But what does it mean to “bless” God, anyway? Can we really add anything to God?
In Strong’s Concordance of the Bible, the definition for “bless” reads as follows: “to kneel; by implication to bless God (as an act of adoration), and (vice-versa) man (as a benefit).” When we bless God, our choice to honor God blesses us in return. Every time! We can honor the “Maker of heaven and earth” by praising Him, loving Him, and knowing Him more.
What type of person should bless and praise the Lord? Psalm 134:1 calls to all who are servants of the Lord. The world should be clear on whom we serve. To serve God is to praise Him. The psalm doesn’t stop clarifying there. Those who bless the Lord are those who “stand in the Lord’s house at night.” Often, we like to keep our “Jesus time” to the scheduled parts of our day such as morning Bible study, Life Group, or Sunday mornings. This psalm tells us that if we are servants of the one true God, we will be caught standing in front of Him, praising, even when it’s not penciled into our schedule.
It is an honor to bless the Lord, to kneel and adore our King, each day. Charles Spurgeon says, “Bless him for permitting you to serve him, fitting you to serve him and accepting your service.” If we need reasons to think about why we should bless the Lord, we can remind ourselves of the gospel. We were slaves to sin headed directly towards eternal death when Christ’s death intervened to make a way for us to be called sons and daughters in His house for eternity. What else would we do but bless Him? And when we live to bless God, our lives are blessed along the way.
Questions
- What are three ways you can “bless the Lord” this week in a way that you typically wouldn’t?
- What about your life indicates you are a servant of the Lord?
- What keeps you from blessing the Lord?
Try This
Today, try paraphrasing this psalm in your own words. Take into consideration the psalmist’s purpose and see how the Lord might speak to you as you reflect over the Word. Here’s an example of a paraphrase below:
“What else would you do now that you’ve seen? Yes, pour out your lives to the Lord.
You are called to serve the one who has served you first. Not just during work hours, but in the quietness of your home, lift praise to the Lord.
His sanctuary is not built with human hands, so raise your hands now, wherever you are, lift your eyes to the Lord.
May the Lord of boundless blessings, of all you see and all that you do not see, bestow much upon from the city of the great King.”
3 responses to “Psalm 134”
“Lift up your hands in the sanctuary
and praise the Lord” (v2).
Lifting up my hands unto the Lord implies both surrender and praise. It’s a release of all I might be holding onto and recognizing that he is divine and worthy of all praise.
2 Lift up your hands in the sanctuary and praise the Lord.
I lift up my hands at sporting events very spontaneously, but “in the sanctuary” does not come so naturally. I need to work on that!
The last song of ascent. That means we have reached the top. That means what? Is it over or just beginning?
Hebrews 13:15 “Through Jesus, therefore, let us continually offer to God the sacrifice of praise; the fruit of lips that openly profess His name.”
Just beginning is where I want to be. Knowing what I know about God and His Word, who and what Jesus did but having that exuberant joy when we first accepted Christ, yes.
BLESSING GOD and PRAISING HIM!!!!! WOOHOO!!!!
God thank You for today, these minutes and YOUR Love!!! Thank You that You love me! Know matter what, when, where, or how, You love me! God I am beyond blessed and thankful. Let me dwell and think on You today in these minutes. Help me to pay attention to the people You place in front of me that I can share the love You have for me. God thank You for my words, actions and thoughts staying focused on You in Jesus name amen!!
WOOHOO!!!!