Psalm 149 Summary - 5 Minute Bible Study
Psalm 149 Short Summary:
The author of Psalm 149 encouraged all the godly people of Israel to sing songs of praise to God with dancing, melody making, and with the sounds of the lyre and tambourine. He also encouraged the warriors of Israel to praise the Lord. They were honored to be tools in the hand of God to carry out His campaigns of justice and judgement.
Psalm 149 Summary
AUTHOR:
The author of Psalm 149 is unknown.
NEW TESTAMENT REFERENCES:
No Known New Testament References.
THEMES:
Praising God with music and swords.
DEFINITIONS:
Lyre (149:3) - A small hand-held stringed instrument with a U-shape. It is similar to the harp in that the musician plucks the strings to create the music.
Fetters (149:9) – A chain with shackles used to restrain a prisoner.
OUTLINE:
“LET ISRAEL BE GLAD IN HIS MAKER” (149:1-5):
The psalmist wanted the godly men of the nation of Israel to sing a new song of praise to God. He wanted them to rejoice in their King, not their human king, but their divine King.
Their love for the Lord was to spill out in dancing, melody making, and in the sound of the lyre and tambourine.
Their worship would be a joy to God’s heart, because He found pleasure in His people.
PRAISING GOD FOR USING ISRAEL AS AN INSTRUMENT OF HIS JUDGEMENT (149:6-9):
The warriors of Israel were to praise God with swords in their hands.
There swords would be used to “execute vengeance on the nations and punishments on the peoples” (149:7).
The idea seems to be that Israel was to worship God even as they went to war, because God would use them to punish wicked people and evil foreign kings.
They were a tool in God’s hand to ensure judgement and justice were carried out.
This was a great honor, and they were to praise God for allowing them to be a part of His global plan.
APPLICATION:
The second half of Psalm 149 is a good example of why its always important to understand verses in context.
If I wanted to justify a Christian military takeover or a crusade, I might pull verses 6-9 out of context and say, “Look! Right here! God encourages us to take up our swords with praise on our lips and execute judgement against the unbelievers!”
Hopefully, if I did that, someone would point out to me that Psalm 149 is written to the people of Israel, not to modern believers.
Ancient Israel received direct instructions from God about military engagements, and God often told them why He was sending them to war against a foreign power.
No such instruction is given to the disciples of Jesus. This instruction is never repeated by Jesus, the Apostles, or any of the authors of the New Testament.
Its not appropriate to take a command like this and try to apply it forward in time to a nation that isn’t ancient Israel.
Context is key!
