Blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord

Psalm 33:12-22 from the daily reading in the One Year Bible

Blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord,
The people He has chosen for His own inheritance.

¹³ The Lord looks from heaven;
He sees all the sons of mankind;
¹⁴ From His dwelling place He looks out
On all the inhabitants of the earth,
¹⁵ He who fashions the hearts of them all,
He who understands all their works.
¹⁶ The king is not saved by a mighty army;
A warrior is not rescued by great strength.
¹⁷ A horse is a false hope for victory;
Nor does it rescue anyone by its great strength.

¹⁸ Behold, the eye of the Lord is on those who fear Him,
On those who wait for His faithfulness,
¹⁹ To rescue their soul from death
And to keep them alive in famine.
²⁰ Our soul waits for the Lord;
He is our help and our shield.
²¹ For our heart rejoices in Him,
Because we trust in His holy name.
²² Let Your favor, Lord, be upon us,
Just as we have waited for You.

The psalmist says:  Blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord, The people He has chosen for His own inheritance.  As a nation, we no longer have the right to claim the blessing of God.  We no longer honor Him as Lord. Rather than being revered, He has been rejected. Although our nation was founded as one nation under God, we have now raised many gods above Him. In Isaiah 5:20 God says:  Woe to those who call evil good, and good evil; Who substitute darkness for light and light for darkness; Who substitute bitter for sweet and sweet for bitter!  As a nation, a culture and a society, we deserve woe rather than the blessings of God. We see chaos and turmoil, woe in the very place where God has been rejected and removed. Our cities are no longer safe. In Luke 17:1-2 Jesus says:  “It is inevitable that stumbling blocks come, but woe to him through whom they come! It would be better for him if a millstone were hung around his neck and he were thrown into the sea, than that he would cause one of these little ones to stumble.”  Our educational system, which was once founded on the truth of God’s word, has now become a stumbling block, teaching philosophies, theories, speculations and lies. Rather than teaching and learning from history, they are rewriting history, canceling and eliminating the things that don’t fit their agenda. God and His story were the first to be canceled and eliminated.

God isn’t punishing us for our disobedience and rejecting Him. He has only withdrawn the promise of His blessing. Genesis 1:1-4 says:  In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. The earth was formless and void, and darkness was over the surface of the deep, and the Spirit of God was moving over the surface of the waters. Then God said, “Let there be light”; and there was light. God saw that the light was good; and God separated the light from the darkness.  The words formless and void could also be translated to say chaos and desolation. God turned chaos into order by His presence and His word. Where there is a void of God’s presence and His word, order returns to chaos. Perhaps though it’s not too late. In 2 Chronicles 7:14 God says:  If my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and I will forgive their sin and will heal their land.  Jeremiah 29:11-14 says:  I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. Then you will call on me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you. You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart. I will be found by you.”   He is still the God of creation, the one who turns chaos to order, the one who dispels darkness by His light. We, His people, the ones called by His name need to humble ourselves and pray and seek His face and turn from our wicked ways. He will hear, He will be found if we seek Him with all our hearts.  1 John 1:5-10 says:  God is light; in him there is no darkness at all. If we claim to have fellowship with him and yet walk in the darkness, we lie and do not live out the truth. But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus, his Son, purifies us from all sin. If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness. If we claim we have not sinned, we make him out to be a liar and his word is not in us.   Forgive our sins Lord.

The psalmist says:  The Lord looks from heaven; He sees all the sons of mankind; From His dwelling place He looks out On all the inhabitants of the earth, He who fashions the hearts of them all, He who understands all their works. The king is not saved by a mighty army; A warrior is not rescued by great strength. A horse is a false hope for victory; Nor does it rescue anyone by its great strength. Behold, the eye of the Lord is on those who fear Him,
On those who wait for His faithfulness, To rescue their soul from death And to keep them alive in famine. Our soul waits for the Lord; He is our help and our shield. For our heart rejoices in Him, Because we trust in His holy name. Let Your favor, Lord, be upon us, Just as we have waited for You.  Amen.