Piety!

Faith

# 18 2021 Dev. Psalm 111:2. Piety! Read all of Psalm 111 first. The purpose of these devotionals is to draw closer to God and grow spiritually by applying His Word to our daily living. All passages are taken from the NIV.

Psalm 111:2 “Great are the works of the Lord; they are pondered by all who delight in them.”

Ps.111 starts a new series of 9 Psalms, they are framed by two acrostic poems, Ps.111 and 112 and by one acrostic poem Ps.119 that poem is an acrostic by themes and has 176 verses. The series is the Egypt “Hallalu Yah” (Hallelujah) meaning rejoicing to praise God for His salvation. Not superficially but as a matter of the heart, true piety! The series has a close connection with the songs of Miriam and of Mary Ex.15:1-21, Lk.1: 46-56

Ps 111 is divided into two section of four verses each with a prelude and postlude. V.1 The Hallalu Yah: “Praise the Lord. I will extol the Lord with all my heart in the council of the upright and in the assembly.”

Vs. 2-5 describes God’s works: glorious and majestic, righteous, gracious and compassionate, He provides for His people and “remembers his covenant forever.”

Vs. 6-9 describes the effect of God’s works on His people: God shows his power, He is faithful and just, He is trustworthy, establishing His people in eternity, He “provided redemption for His people”. His covenant is forever.

What we take away from this Psalm is the importance of piety, not only recognizing God’s faithfulness but the desire for our faithfulness to God and our thankfulness for God’s care: “He provides redemption for His people…” Piety is not much talked about today and not often practiced, by all appearances, yet it is an integral part of daily worship and is essential to our witness to the people around us. Amen!

V. 10 is the postlude to parts one and two: “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom; all who follow his precepts have good understanding. To him belongs eternal praise.” Wisdom and understanding is not temporary but is forever, thanks be to God!

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