16 Sep Meditations on the Psalms #175
Psalm 89 Part 2
vs 5-18 are a magnificent description of the divine attributes. Ethan was probably familiar with David’s words in Psalm 19: ‘The heavens declare the glory of God.’ God was not only to be praised for His ‘faithfulness…in the assembly of the saints,’ but for His staggering work of creation. Understanding the incomparability (holiness) of God should bring forth a sense of awe and praise from His people, especially as they meet together. He is ‘to be held in reverence by all those around Him.’
The name Rahab (v10) means ‘proud one’ and initially refers to Egypt. However, the poet has borrowed and transformed the image from Canaanite mythology. Rahab was the sea God who Yam subdued and killed at creation. Later the prophet Isaiah would use the same imagery and tone in speaking of Yahweh’s great victory over Rahab: ‘Are You not the arm that cut Rahab apart…?’ (Isaiah 51:9)
In the ancient Middle East, there were many legends about the gods who fought other gods in creating the earth. Ethan, Asaph, Job, and Isaiah may have known those stories and used them to draw attention to the true God, Yahweh. It is Yahweh who rules the raging of the sea, even though ancient legends said that Tiamat (the Deep) was the chaotic goddess, defeated by the hero-god Marduk (Bel), or that Yam (the Sea) was defeated by Baal. It is Yahweh who cuts Rahab in pieces, not Marduk or Baal. It is important to note that the Hebrew Scriptures do not simply believe or adopt this Canaanite mythology; they take it and transform it, using it to exalt Yahweh in a way that the Canaanite myths never did. A study of the OT names for the well-known Canaanite mythological sea monsters, like Rahab, shows how purposefully the OT authors used the language to enrich their own poetic conceptions of the supremacy of the one and only true God.
V15-18 declares that those who know God’s incomparable might, His righteousness and His justice, mercy, and truth, make ‘a joyful sound’ because they are ‘blessed.’ They find their ‘strength,’ protection (shield) and favour in the lord.
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