Psalm 147 - Infinite, Yet Limited

Chad Werkhoven
2 hours ago
5 min read

God sovereignly controls the universe, but He takes delight in you.

Psalm 147

1 Praise the Lord.

How good it is to sing praises to our God,

how pleasant and fitting to praise him!

2 The Lord builds up Jerusalem;

he gathers the exiles of Israel.

3 He heals the brokenhearted

and binds up their wounds.

4 He determines the number of the stars

and calls them each by name.

5 Great is our Lord and mighty in power;

his understanding has no limit.

6 The Lord sustains the humble

but casts the wicked to the ground.

7 Sing to the Lord with grateful praise;

make music to our God on the harp.

8 He covers the sky with clouds;

he supplies the earth with rain

and makes grass grow on the hills.

9 He provides food for the cattle

and for the young ravens when they call.

10 His pleasure is not in the strength of the horse,

nor his delight in the legs of the warrior;

11 the Lord delights in those who fear him,

who put their hope in his unfailing love.

12 Extol the Lord, Jerusalem;

praise your God, Zion.

13 He strengthens the bars of your gates

and blesses your people within you.

14 He grants peace to your borders

and satisfies you with the finest of wheat.

15 He sends his command to the earth;

his word runs swiftly.

16 He spreads the snow like wool

and scatters the frost like ashes.

17 He hurls down his hail like pebbles.

Who can withstand his icy blast?

18 He sends his word and melts them;

he stirs up his breezes, and the waters flow.

19 He has revealed his word to Jacob,

his laws and decrees to Israel.

20 He has done this for no other nation;

they do not know his laws.

Praise the Lord.

Canons of Dordt

Point 1 - God's Unconditional Election

Point 2 - Limited Atonement

Articles 1-7

Article 8: The Saving Effectiveness of Christ’s Death

For it was the entirely free plan and very gracious will and intention of God the Father
1. that the enlivening and saving effectiveness of his Son’s costly death
  1. should work itself out in all the elect,
  2. in order that God might grant justifying faith to them only
2. and thereby lead them without fail to salvation.
In other words, it was God’s will that Christ
1. through the blood of the cross
2. (by which he confirmed the new covenant)
1. should effectively redeem
  1. from every people, tribe, nation, and language
  2. all those and only those
    1. who were chosen from eternity to salvation
    2. and given to him by the Father;
2. that Christ should grant them faith
  1. (which, like the Holy Spirit’s other saving gifts, he acquired for them by his death).
It was also God’s will
1. that Christ should cleanse them by his blood from all their sins,
  1. both original and actual,
  2. whether committed before or after their coming to faith;
2. that he should faithfully preserve them to the very end;
3. and that he should finally present them to himself, a glorious people, without spot or wrinkle.

Summary

Psalm 147 is the second in a set of five doxologies (words/songs of praise) that finish out the book of Psalms. The Psalm is divided into three strophes (poetic divisions) separated by calls to praise God. Each strophe unpacks various aspects of God's sovereignty - His control, authority and presence over all things.

The unending scope of God's sovereignty becomes clear in this Psalm. He determines the number of stars and calls them each by name; His understanding has no limit and He sends His commands to the earth.

But God's sovereignty is not just a control over the big and mighty, rather it is just as evident in the the fact that the LORD heals the broken hearted and sustains the humble. What a thought to know that the God whose mighty power directs the cosmos is the same God who gathers in the exiles of Israel and binds up their wounds!

If you've ever made something - be it a work of art or a piece of furniture, or anything else that you see and use often - you know the delight your creation brings you. Think of all the amazing things God has sovereignly created and continues to sustain, and all of the beauty and majesty of His creation - how it all must bring Him delight!

Psalm 147 only mentions one thing in all of creation that the LORD delights in. It's not giant galaxies or complex molecular structures, rather it's simply those who fear Him, who put their hope in His unfailing (covenant) love.

Dig Deeper

The LORD certainly sovereignly sustains and provides for all people and creatures (His sovereignty doesn't just govern the stars, but also provides food for the cattle and for the young ravens when they call!), but He goes above and beyond in what He supplies for His covenant people. For us, He has revealed His word to Jacob, His laws and decrees to Israel.

It's a mystery as to why God's salvation is limited to those whom He's elected, but the Bible makes clear from start to finish the exclusive nature of those He's included in His covenant. He's done this for no other nation; they do not know His law, the Psalmist concludes.

So it is that we refer to the blood of Christ as a limited atonement, even though it is of infinite value and worth, more than sufficient to atone for the sins of the whole world (Point Two, Article Three). Yet His atonement effectively redeems from every people, tribe, nation, and language all those and only those who were chosen from eternity to salvation and given to him by the Father.

Ours is not the task of determining why God chose to redeem some while leaving others in their wickedness and hardness of heart (Point One, Article 6). Our obligation is to simply carry out Psalm 147's imperatives for revealing His saving Word to us:

Praise the LORD... Sing to the LORD with grateful praise; make music to our God on the harp... Extol the LORD... Praise the LORD!

AAA Prayer (About)

ACKNOWLEDGE WHO GOD IS: Our Father, who delights in those who put their fear in Him;
ALIGN YOUR LIFE WITH GOD'S WILL: Thank God for including you in His covenant people, and pray that you would put your hope in His unfailing (covenant) love;
ASK GOD FOR WHAT YOU NEED: