Psalm 125
A song of ascents.
1 Those who trust in the Lord are like Mount Zion,
which cannot be shaken but endures forever.
2 As the mountains surround Jerusalem,
so the Lord surrounds his people
both now and forevermore.
3 The scepter of the wicked will not remain
over the land allotted to the righteous,
for then the righteous might use
their hands to do evil.
4 Lord, do good to those who are good,
to those who are upright in heart.
5 But those who turn to crooked ways
the Lord will banish with the evildoers.
Peace be on Israel.
A Pilgrimage with the Psalms of Ascent - Security
I was thinking about quitting this week, what about you? Somewhere within each of us is an unhelpful response that shows up when challenges feel unrelenting or unsolvable. My response is to quit and run away to a mountain cabin with a wood-burning stove, a stream, and endless paths to explore in the quiet, away from responsibility, never to be heard from again. What is yours?
In Psalm 123 the right posture before God in the face of difficulty is portrayed, Psalm 124 reminds us where our help comes from in the midst of that difficulty, and Psalm 125 proclaims the security God provides, no matter the difficulty, especially when life feels too big to bear. As we continue our pilgrimage through the Psalms of Ascent, we are reminded that God is our fortress, he surrounds us, and in him there is peace.
