WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:01.320 We're in Psalm 99 today. 00:00:08.519 --> 00:00:10.339 We've almost done 100 psalms. 00:00:13.839 --> 00:00:14.960 100 weeks. 00:00:16.320 --> 00:00:17.580 Did you start with Psalm 1? 00:00:17.719 --> 00:00:17.879 Yeah. 00:00:19.080 --> 00:00:21.339 So you've done it for like 3 years. 00:00:22.379 --> 00:00:22.980 Yeah. 00:00:23.460 --> 00:00:23.900 Nice. 00:00:24.300 --> 00:00:24.679 Wow. 00:00:27.539 --> 00:00:28.359 That's cute. 00:00:28.359 --> 00:00:30.039 Psalm 99. 00:00:33.700 --> 00:00:36.980 Psalm 99 doesn't have a superscription. 00:00:37.159 --> 00:00:39.619 It doesn't have like an explanatory title. 00:00:40.799 --> 00:00:41.679 Nine short verses. 00:00:41.920 --> 00:00:42.920 I'll read it out loud first. 00:00:43.420 --> 00:00:43.820 Get started. 00:00:46.200 --> 00:00:47.879 The Lord reigns. 00:00:48.060 --> 00:00:49.480 Let the peoples tremble. 00:00:50.200 --> 00:00:52.679 He sits enthroned upon the cherubim. 00:00:53.159 --> 00:00:54.299 Let the earth quake. 00:00:54.799 --> 00:00:56.780 The Lord is great in Zion. 00:00:56.780 --> 00:00:58.920 He is exalted over all the peoples. 00:00:59.939 --> 00:01:03.500 Let them praise your great and awesome name. 00:01:04.460 --> 00:01:05.099 Holy is he. 00:01:05.879 --> 00:01:09.540 The king in his might loves justice. 00:01:10.400 --> 00:01:12.140 You have established equity. 00:01:12.700 --> 00:01:15.900 You have executed justice and righteousness in Jacob. 00:01:17.400 --> 00:01:18.719 Exalt the Lord our God. 00:01:18.900 --> 00:01:20.400 Worship at his footstool. 00:01:20.799 --> 00:01:21.520 Holy is he. 00:01:21.519 --> 00:01:25.299 Moses and Aaron were among his priests. 00:01:25.679 --> 00:01:28.340 Samuel also was among those who called upon his name. 00:01:28.979 --> 00:01:31.219 They called to the Lord and he answered them. 00:01:32.219 --> 00:01:34.780 In the pillar of the cloud he spoke to them. 00:01:35.239 --> 00:01:38.259 They kept his testimonies and the statute that he gave them. 00:01:38.979 --> 00:01:41.000 O Lord our God, you answered them. 00:01:41.000 --> 00:01:46.340 You were a forgiving God to them, but an avenger of their wrongdoings. 00:01:47.159 --> 00:01:50.560 Exalt the Lord our God and worship at his holy mountain. 00:01:51.099 --> 00:01:53.219 For the Lord our God is holy. 00:01:53.219 --> 00:02:10.180 In the early 19th century Christian philosopher, Soren Kierkegaard, he said that God is qualitatively, not just quantitatively different from us. 00:02:10.180 --> 00:02:21.780 By that he means that the difference between God is not one of degree, that God's not just a perfect or a better kind of humanity, but that he is something totally different. 00:02:22.439 --> 00:02:23.659 That he is other. 00:02:23.879 --> 00:02:28.640 And another theologian, a Swiss theologian, Karl Barth, says he is, God is holy other. 00:02:29.520 --> 00:02:31.819 H-W-H-O-L-N-Y, holy other. 00:02:32.500 --> 00:02:34.240 He is separate from us. 00:02:34.300 --> 00:02:35.640 He's set apart from us. 00:02:35.659 --> 00:02:36.659 He's unlike us. 00:02:36.740 --> 00:02:37.819 That's what that's referring to. 00:02:37.819 --> 00:02:42.939 And that's really the basic meaning of the word holy, which is repeated four times in this psalm. 00:02:43.079 --> 00:02:44.519 Twice it says, holy is he. 00:02:45.039 --> 00:02:45.719 Holy is he. 00:02:45.840 --> 00:02:57.379 So even though we normally contrast the word holy to something that is sinful, or, you know, the actual biblical contrast is to contrast what is holy from what is common. 00:02:57.979 --> 00:03:04.799 So Leviticus 10.10 says, you are to distinguish between the holy and the common, and between the unclean and the clean. 00:03:04.800 --> 00:03:15.460 So the fact that God is holy in this sense is not something that obviously we talk about very much, or in our culture, we don't appreciate that fact very much. 00:03:15.460 --> 00:03:23.180 Because we like to, I think, bring God down to our level, make him seem a little more accessible, make him feel, seem more relatable. 00:03:23.719 --> 00:03:25.939 I think we like to bring God down to our level for that reason. 00:03:27.000 --> 00:03:35.300 And, but because of that, I think people also tend to not practice submission and humility before God, but rather they bargain with God. 00:03:35.300 --> 00:03:42.620 And the way we live, and the way we talk to him, and we pray, we like to get concessions from him instead of submitting to him totally. 00:03:43.380 --> 00:03:50.120 And I think doing this, even though it's well intended, has the unintended consequence of making scripture less relatable to us. 00:03:50.120 --> 00:03:53.140 Because the God that scripture portrays is a holy God. 00:03:53.980 --> 00:03:59.620 And thinking about God in this way and bringing God down to our level makes God seem foreign to us. 00:03:59.620 --> 00:04:02.980 And so Psalm 99 is really a good corrective to that. 00:04:03.379 --> 00:04:11.620 It helps us to, it teaches us that we should exalt the holy God who forgives yet avenges wrongdoers. 00:04:12.599 --> 00:04:16.699 So exalt, lift up, we should lift him up instead of bringing him down to our level. 00:04:16.899 --> 00:04:19.620 And so in first five verses it talks about God's awesomeness. 00:04:20.379 --> 00:04:23.439 And then in six to nine it talks about God's answer. 00:04:24.160 --> 00:04:29.160 These are the reasons why we should exalt him, his awesomeness and the way he answers us. 00:04:29.620 --> 00:04:32.959 And so verses one to five speak of God's awesomeness. 00:04:34.019 --> 00:04:40.019 And nowadays, right, we say all kinds of pedestrian, ordinary things are awesome, right? 00:04:40.500 --> 00:04:43.000 So it's kind of, the word has kind of lost its force. 00:04:43.180 --> 00:04:51.920 But really, the awesome in its original sense, awe-inspiring, like producing fear, reverence, awe in us. 00:04:52.019 --> 00:04:53.759 God's awesome in that way, as it says. 00:04:55.399 --> 00:04:58.100 And verse one says, the Lord reigns. 00:04:58.300 --> 00:04:59.180 And we're in Psalm 99. 00:04:59.620 --> 00:05:01.759 And let the peoples tremble. 00:05:02.240 --> 00:05:04.180 He sits enthroned upon the cherubim. 00:05:04.240 --> 00:05:05.459 Let the earth quake. 00:05:06.259 --> 00:05:08.259 The two clauses are parallel in verse one. 00:05:08.420 --> 00:05:12.899 So it's the Lord reigns and he sits enthroned upon the cherubim are parallel, right? 00:05:13.160 --> 00:05:16.139 So cherubim is just a plural word for the word cherub, right? 00:05:16.519 --> 00:05:17.319 And it's an angel. 00:05:17.680 --> 00:05:19.019 It's a celestial being. 00:05:19.019 --> 00:05:30.799 And so this powerful angelic beings that inspire awe in us, like their wings, is like God's throne. 00:05:30.979 --> 00:05:31.579 Or like, I don't know. 00:05:31.979 --> 00:05:34.019 When I think of throne, I think of like the toilet, right? 00:05:34.019 --> 00:05:37.939 It's like, but it's like the, his, it's what he sits on, right? 00:05:37.939 --> 00:05:40.519 These mighty beings, they form their angels. 00:05:40.659 --> 00:05:41.919 And that's what God sits on. 00:05:41.979 --> 00:05:43.060 That's how great God is. 00:05:43.500 --> 00:05:46.839 And when you're in his presence, it makes us tremble, it says, right? 00:05:48.319 --> 00:05:49.759 And then parallel to that, right? 00:05:50.360 --> 00:05:53.379 The word peoples refers to all the peoples of the earth, people groups. 00:05:53.379 --> 00:05:56.560 And then also it makes the earth quake, right? 00:05:57.420 --> 00:06:03.420 And this is, we don't like to think about it, because we don't really often think about when we go to God's presence, it makes us tremble, right? 00:06:03.459 --> 00:06:05.360 It fills us with fear and awe. 00:06:05.439 --> 00:06:07.860 But that's what happens over and over again throughout scripture. 00:06:08.420 --> 00:06:15.060 It's kind of like, I mean, in much lesser degree, when a girl goes into the office in school to meet with the principal, right? 00:06:15.060 --> 00:06:16.279 She trembles, right? 00:06:16.279 --> 00:06:23.959 Or when an employee walks into the office to meet with his CEO for the first time, right? 00:06:24.279 --> 00:06:25.059 He trembles. 00:06:25.319 --> 00:06:28.019 Or when a citizen meets her president, right? 00:06:28.419 --> 00:06:29.699 He trembles, right? 00:06:29.759 --> 00:06:34.159 Maybe not literally, but nervous, right? 00:06:34.239 --> 00:06:35.319 Butterflies, right? 00:06:35.459 --> 00:06:36.699 You tremble. 00:06:36.939 --> 00:06:38.959 There's a sense of reverence and awe. 00:06:38.959 --> 00:06:49.719 And I think it's because as people, we don't do enough trembling before God that we do a lot of worrying and trembling in our own lives. 00:06:50.799 --> 00:06:56.339 And I think it's because we don't do enough trembling before God, we do so much fretting before men. 00:06:56.839 --> 00:07:00.719 We're afraid because we don't quite grasp how powerful God is. 00:07:00.839 --> 00:07:05.099 We worry because we don't quite grasp how fully in control God is, right? 00:07:05.100 --> 00:07:11.140 And we worry because we don't quite fully grasp how in control he is. 00:07:12.180 --> 00:07:20.120 By failing properly to exalt the holy God, we elevate and magnify our own problems, our own lives. 00:07:20.700 --> 00:07:25.340 And I think that's a consequence of us not trembling as we should before God's presence. 00:07:26.160 --> 00:07:33.060 Verses 2 to 3 tell us further that the Lord is great in Zion, which is another name for Jerusalem, the city of God. 00:07:33.060 --> 00:07:35.759 But God's not confined to that locality. 00:07:36.139 --> 00:07:39.000 In fact, verse 2 continues, he's exalted over all the peoples. 00:07:39.519 --> 00:07:43.500 Jerusalem is his chosen dwelling place, but his rule is over all the peoples. 00:07:44.000 --> 00:07:49.000 And therefore, verse 3 says, let them praise your great and awesome name. 00:07:49.439 --> 00:07:50.300 Holy is he. 00:07:51.000 --> 00:07:53.540 God reigns over all, so all people should praise him. 00:07:53.540 --> 00:07:57.819 And that's also such a kind of countercultural idea, right? 00:07:57.960 --> 00:08:10.420 Because we like to, it's ever since the Enlightenment, people tend to separate, like, kind of relegate religious views and faith and beliefs to kind of a real private opinion, right? 00:08:10.500 --> 00:08:14.100 Well, that's a matter of private opinion, personal choice. 00:08:14.220 --> 00:08:16.520 Don't let anyone tell anyone else what they should believe. 00:08:16.640 --> 00:08:18.100 You should have your own belief, right? 00:08:18.100 --> 00:08:20.800 But biblically speaking, that's not the case. 00:08:20.939 --> 00:08:22.300 It's religious truth. 00:08:22.439 --> 00:08:25.600 Spiritual realities are not matters of personal opinion. 00:08:26.020 --> 00:08:26.920 They're matters of truth. 00:08:27.600 --> 00:08:28.800 They're public truths. 00:08:29.480 --> 00:08:34.259 And therefore, in here, it's because God is God over all peoples. 00:08:34.420 --> 00:08:36.680 He's saying that all of them should praise him. 00:08:37.100 --> 00:08:37.980 That's the reality. 00:08:38.240 --> 00:08:38.980 That's the truth. 00:08:38.980 --> 00:08:44.019 And so he did this, I think, who was it? 00:08:44.279 --> 00:08:45.720 At the U.S. Center, I wrote it down. 00:08:45.779 --> 00:08:46.800 Daniel Moynihan. 00:08:47.080 --> 00:08:51.840 I've never heard of him, but apparently he's the one that said this popular thing that people quote all the time. 00:08:52.379 --> 00:08:57.379 Everyone is entitled to their own opinions, but they are not entitled to their own facts, right? 00:08:57.840 --> 00:09:07.980 And the fact is that God is real, and the fact is that God rules over all, and for that reason, we ought to exalt him, and every people should worship him. 00:09:07.980 --> 00:09:11.000 That's the reality that this psalm is proclaiming. 00:09:11.420 --> 00:09:24.180 So then we should ask ourselves, do we think of our faith in God as a private affair, personal thing to keep to ourselves, or do we see this as something that we should share and invite the whole world to participate in? 00:09:24.980 --> 00:09:27.960 And it's not like we're breaking some bad news, right? 00:09:28.000 --> 00:09:29.659 I mean, we're sharing good news, right? 00:09:29.920 --> 00:09:32.460 We're telling people something that they should rejoice in is good. 00:09:32.560 --> 00:09:33.600 Verse 4 says this, 00:09:33.600 --> 00:09:36.659 The king in his might loves justice. 00:09:36.659 --> 00:09:38.740 You have established equity. 00:09:38.959 --> 00:09:41.379 You have executed justice and righteousness in Jacob. 00:09:42.120 --> 00:09:43.519 This is a comforting truth, right? 00:09:43.579 --> 00:09:46.639 Because a king who is mighty can do all kinds of things. 00:09:46.740 --> 00:09:48.559 A king who is mighty can become a tyrant. 00:09:49.059 --> 00:09:50.879 He could do all kinds of bad things. 00:09:51.199 --> 00:09:51.719 But here it says, 00:09:51.819 --> 00:09:54.459 The king in his might loves justice. 00:09:54.980 --> 00:09:56.679 He doesn't love money. 00:09:56.799 --> 00:09:58.419 He doesn't love cruelty. 00:09:58.759 --> 00:10:00.039 He doesn't love power. 00:10:00.120 --> 00:10:01.419 He loves justice. 00:10:01.419 --> 00:10:06.039 And he has established equity, executed justice and righteousness in Jacob. 00:10:06.039 --> 00:10:09.759 And so when his rule is enforced over the earth, 00:10:09.759 --> 00:10:11.319 and when his kingdom is established, 00:10:11.500 --> 00:10:15.579 then there should be rejoicing and submission to him. 00:10:15.860 --> 00:10:16.919 So then if that's the case, 00:10:17.019 --> 00:10:19.459 why wouldn't we want to tell the world about his reign? 00:10:19.699 --> 00:10:22.959 Why wouldn't we want to bring the world under the influence of the kingdom of God 00:10:22.959 --> 00:10:23.839 and submission to him? 00:10:23.840 --> 00:10:28.500 And that's why verse 5 concludes the first section of this psalm with the refrain. 00:10:29.060 --> 00:10:30.800 Exalt the Lord our God. 00:10:31.379 --> 00:10:33.379 Worship at his footstool. 00:10:33.960 --> 00:10:34.920 Holy is he. 00:10:35.340 --> 00:10:37.700 To approach God as our equal, 00:10:38.040 --> 00:10:39.320 to take him for granted, 00:10:39.639 --> 00:10:41.240 to treat him like our lackey, 00:10:41.379 --> 00:10:43.160 or this little genie in the bottle, 00:10:43.460 --> 00:10:45.560 is to demean him and to lower him. 00:10:45.899 --> 00:10:48.060 But this psalm tells us we should instead lift him up. 00:10:48.139 --> 00:10:49.700 We should exalt the holy God 00:10:49.700 --> 00:10:51.540 and worship at his footstool. 00:10:51.539 --> 00:10:54.539 So that's God's awesomeness. 00:10:55.219 --> 00:10:55.939 And then second part, 00:10:56.419 --> 00:11:00.019 the second reason for exalting God is his answer, 00:11:00.139 --> 00:11:01.259 the way he answers us. 00:11:01.839 --> 00:11:03.019 Verses 6 to 9. 00:11:04.000 --> 00:11:07.659 Verses 6 to 7 recount how in the past God answered his people. 00:11:07.799 --> 00:11:08.039 It says, 00:11:08.500 --> 00:11:10.539 Moses and Aaron were among his priests. 00:11:10.919 --> 00:11:13.399 Samuel also was among those who called upon his name. 00:11:13.839 --> 00:11:16.079 They called to the Lord and he answered them. 00:11:16.779 --> 00:11:18.879 In the pillar of the cloud he spoke to them. 00:11:18.879 --> 00:11:21.259 They kept his testimonies and the statute. 00:11:21.539 --> 00:11:22.699 That he gave them. 00:11:23.559 --> 00:11:26.219 Moses, Aaron, and Samuel were all 00:11:26.219 --> 00:11:27.620 in different parts of Israel's history. 00:11:27.740 --> 00:11:30.620 People who interceded on behalf of God's people. 00:11:30.779 --> 00:11:34.360 Who stood before God and for Israel. 00:11:35.559 --> 00:11:38.120 And in Exodus 32 to 34, for example, 00:11:38.459 --> 00:11:40.719 when the people of Israel made the golden calf 00:11:40.719 --> 00:11:43.480 and worshipped the calf in the wilderness, 00:11:44.079 --> 00:11:44.919 in Moses' absence, 00:11:45.179 --> 00:11:47.939 Moses came back and he executed God's judgment 00:11:47.940 --> 00:11:50.500 by putting to the sword some of the people, 00:11:50.620 --> 00:11:51.340 some of the idolaters. 00:11:51.760 --> 00:11:54.260 But he also intervened on behalf of the rest of God's people 00:11:54.260 --> 00:11:55.480 to avert God's wrath. 00:11:55.920 --> 00:11:58.460 And he says in Exodus 32, 30 to 34. 00:11:59.020 --> 00:12:01.160 The next day Moses said to the people, 00:12:01.420 --> 00:12:03.260 you have sinned a great sin 00:12:03.260 --> 00:12:05.380 and now I will go up to the Lord. 00:12:05.379 --> 00:12:07.700 Perhaps I can make atonement for your sin. 00:12:08.240 --> 00:12:10.220 So Moses returned to the Lord and said, 00:12:10.399 --> 00:12:12.740 Alas, this people has sinned a great sin. 00:12:13.200 --> 00:12:15.299 They have made for themselves gods of gold. 00:12:15.580 --> 00:12:18.240 But now if you will forgive their sin, 00:12:18.820 --> 00:12:19.480 but if not, 00:12:20.080 --> 00:12:21.779 please blot me out of your book 00:12:21.779 --> 00:12:22.740 that you have written. 00:12:23.740 --> 00:12:24.879 But the Lord said to Moses, 00:12:25.240 --> 00:12:26.539 whoever has sinned against me, 00:12:26.659 --> 00:12:28.139 I will blot out of my book. 00:12:28.460 --> 00:12:29.179 But now go, 00:12:29.340 --> 00:12:30.440 lead the people to the place 00:12:30.440 --> 00:12:31.759 about which I've spoken to you. 00:12:32.120 --> 00:12:32.379 Behold, 00:12:32.379 --> 00:12:34.120 my angel shall go before you. 00:12:34.639 --> 00:12:34.899 Nevertheless, 00:12:35.220 --> 00:12:36.120 in the day when I visit, 00:12:36.179 --> 00:12:37.759 I will visit their sin upon them. 00:12:38.259 --> 00:12:39.419 That's a wonderful picture 00:12:39.419 --> 00:12:40.860 of what it means to be an intercessor. 00:12:41.259 --> 00:12:43.220 Moses stands between the people 00:12:43.220 --> 00:12:44.519 who are facing God's judgment 00:12:44.519 --> 00:12:45.379 and before God 00:12:45.379 --> 00:12:46.120 and says, 00:12:46.220 --> 00:12:46.419 God, 00:12:46.480 --> 00:12:48.019 if you're going to blot them out, 00:12:48.179 --> 00:12:49.320 rather have blot me out 00:12:49.320 --> 00:12:50.460 from the book of life instead, 00:12:50.639 --> 00:12:51.419 from here to from here, 00:12:51.519 --> 00:12:52.460 blot me out 00:12:52.460 --> 00:12:53.679 and take these people 00:12:53.679 --> 00:12:54.639 to the promised land. 00:12:55.840 --> 00:12:58.399 And God doesn't take him up 00:12:58.399 --> 00:12:59.200 on that offer. 00:13:00.279 --> 00:13:01.919 Moses should be grateful for that. 00:13:02.379 --> 00:13:05.620 But next is number 16. 00:13:05.720 --> 00:13:07.840 We see an example of Aaron 00:13:07.840 --> 00:13:09.220 doing the similar thing. 00:13:09.740 --> 00:13:14.259 So they grumble against Moses and Aaron. 00:13:14.460 --> 00:13:14.740 First, 00:13:14.840 --> 00:13:16.059 this is after Korah's rebellion. 00:13:16.159 --> 00:13:17.500 They try to rebel against Moses 00:13:17.500 --> 00:13:18.179 and his leadership. 00:13:18.799 --> 00:13:19.460 And afterward, 00:13:19.700 --> 00:13:21.039 God strikes Korah 00:13:21.039 --> 00:13:22.039 and his faction down. 00:13:22.340 --> 00:13:22.879 But afterward, 00:13:23.000 --> 00:13:23.740 they're still grumbling 00:13:23.740 --> 00:13:25.179 and complaining to Moses and Aaron. 00:13:25.399 --> 00:13:26.759 So that plague breaks out 00:13:26.759 --> 00:13:27.679 with God's wrath 00:13:27.679 --> 00:13:29.019 within the camp. 00:13:29.480 --> 00:13:30.120 And then it says 00:13:30.120 --> 00:13:31.200 that Aaron 00:13:31.200 --> 00:13:32.879 took his priestly censer 00:13:32.879 --> 00:13:33.360 and the fire 00:13:33.360 --> 00:13:33.940 from the altar 00:13:33.940 --> 00:13:34.580 of the tabernacle 00:13:34.580 --> 00:13:35.700 to carry it quickly 00:13:35.700 --> 00:13:36.480 to the congregation 00:13:36.480 --> 00:13:38.060 to make atonement for them. 00:13:38.179 --> 00:13:39.060 Same word that was used 00:13:39.060 --> 00:13:39.840 in Exodus 32. 00:13:40.480 --> 00:13:41.419 Number 16.48 00:13:41.419 --> 00:13:42.100 says that Aaron 00:13:42.100 --> 00:13:43.860 stood between the dead 00:13:43.860 --> 00:13:44.460 and the living 00:13:44.460 --> 00:13:46.019 and the plague was stopped. 00:13:46.120 --> 00:13:46.259 Again, 00:13:46.360 --> 00:13:47.220 that's a picture of him 00:13:47.220 --> 00:13:48.460 interceding. 00:13:48.659 --> 00:13:50.019 That's why his name 00:13:50.019 --> 00:13:50.700 is mentioned here. 00:13:51.179 --> 00:13:52.179 Samuel does the same thing. 00:13:52.259 --> 00:13:53.620 When Israel seeks a king, 00:13:54.139 --> 00:13:55.320 rejects the theocracy 00:13:55.320 --> 00:13:56.560 and seeks a monarchy 00:13:56.560 --> 00:13:57.460 instead of wanting God 00:13:57.460 --> 00:13:57.980 as their king. 00:13:58.100 --> 00:13:58.980 Once a human king 00:13:58.980 --> 00:13:59.920 in 1 Samuel 12, 00:14:00.340 --> 00:14:01.160 Samuel intercedes 00:14:01.160 --> 00:14:01.920 on their behalf 00:14:01.920 --> 00:14:03.879 and they ask him 00:14:03.879 --> 00:14:04.800 to pray for him 00:14:04.800 --> 00:14:06.180 so that they wouldn't die. 00:14:06.639 --> 00:14:07.540 And then Samuel says to them, 00:14:07.639 --> 00:14:08.060 Ask for me, 00:14:08.160 --> 00:14:08.879 far be it from me 00:14:08.879 --> 00:14:09.560 that I should sin 00:14:09.560 --> 00:14:10.120 against the Lord 00:14:10.120 --> 00:14:11.519 by ceasing to pray for you 00:14:11.519 --> 00:14:12.860 and I will instruct you 00:14:12.860 --> 00:14:13.320 in the good 00:14:13.320 --> 00:14:14.600 and the right way. 00:14:15.060 --> 00:14:16.320 So Moses, Aaron, 00:14:16.400 --> 00:14:16.940 and Samuel 00:14:16.940 --> 00:14:18.180 were all intercessors 00:14:18.180 --> 00:14:19.360 that stood between God 00:14:19.360 --> 00:14:19.800 and man 00:14:19.800 --> 00:14:21.180 and they were successful 00:14:21.180 --> 00:14:22.400 in their own way, 00:14:22.480 --> 00:14:23.300 in their own time. 00:14:24.060 --> 00:14:25.120 And so verse 8 says, 00:14:25.340 --> 00:14:26.400 it remembers that. 00:14:26.399 --> 00:14:26.659 It says, 00:14:26.740 --> 00:14:27.459 O Lord our God, 00:14:27.759 --> 00:14:28.799 you answer them. 00:14:29.340 --> 00:14:30.559 You are a forgiving God 00:14:30.559 --> 00:14:31.000 to them, 00:14:31.279 --> 00:14:32.319 but an avenger 00:14:32.319 --> 00:14:34.019 of their wrongdoings. 00:14:35.879 --> 00:14:37.100 This kind of seemingly 00:14:37.100 --> 00:14:37.799 contradictory, 00:14:37.980 --> 00:14:38.959 these attributes of God, 00:14:39.019 --> 00:14:39.139 right? 00:14:39.220 --> 00:14:40.899 He is both forgiving 00:14:40.899 --> 00:14:42.220 and avenging. 00:14:43.000 --> 00:14:44.959 That comes from Exodus 34, 00:14:45.139 --> 00:14:45.319 right? 00:14:45.980 --> 00:14:47.159 But how can God 00:14:47.159 --> 00:14:48.179 simultaneously be 00:14:48.179 --> 00:14:50.059 forgiving and avenging? 00:14:50.600 --> 00:14:51.079 Because throughout 00:14:51.079 --> 00:14:51.620 the Old Testament, 00:14:51.740 --> 00:14:52.559 some people seem to get 00:14:52.559 --> 00:14:53.259 what they deserve, 00:14:53.720 --> 00:14:54.779 but then there are 00:14:54.779 --> 00:14:55.319 these other people 00:14:55.320 --> 00:14:56.379 that don't seem to get 00:14:56.379 --> 00:14:57.040 what they deserve. 00:14:57.640 --> 00:14:58.460 God's people are 00:14:58.460 --> 00:14:59.780 repeatedly unfaithful to him, 00:14:59.980 --> 00:15:01.080 but God repeatedly 00:15:01.080 --> 00:15:02.120 shows them mercy 00:15:02.120 --> 00:15:03.180 and spares them 00:15:03.180 --> 00:15:04.120 and keeps his 00:15:04.120 --> 00:15:04.680 step-by-step love 00:15:04.680 --> 00:15:05.500 and covenant with them. 00:15:05.540 --> 00:15:06.800 Again and again, 00:15:06.879 --> 00:15:07.680 he forgives them. 00:15:08.160 --> 00:15:10.160 So that's a violation 00:15:10.160 --> 00:15:11.120 of God's character. 00:15:11.720 --> 00:15:12.960 Because verse 4 said earlier 00:15:12.960 --> 00:15:13.680 that the king 00:15:13.680 --> 00:15:14.379 in his might 00:15:14.379 --> 00:15:15.640 loves justice. 00:15:16.280 --> 00:15:17.580 You have established equity. 00:15:18.140 --> 00:15:19.460 You have executed justice 00:15:19.460 --> 00:15:20.520 and righteousness in Jacob, 00:15:20.520 --> 00:15:22.280 but to let the guilty go 00:15:22.279 --> 00:15:23.879 and to not punish them 00:15:23.879 --> 00:15:25.620 is not loving justice. 00:15:25.740 --> 00:15:26.620 That's the subversion 00:15:26.620 --> 00:15:27.519 of God's justice 00:15:27.519 --> 00:15:28.059 and righteousness. 00:15:29.159 --> 00:15:29.559 And so then, 00:15:29.679 --> 00:15:30.879 how can God do this 00:15:30.879 --> 00:15:31.779 and still rule 00:15:31.779 --> 00:15:32.600 with equity? 00:15:33.220 --> 00:15:34.179 And that's arguably, 00:15:34.679 --> 00:15:35.759 and as Paul points out, 00:15:35.860 --> 00:15:37.480 one of the probably 00:15:37.480 --> 00:15:38.559 most important 00:15:38.559 --> 00:15:39.579 theological questions 00:15:39.579 --> 00:15:40.720 that runs through 00:15:40.720 --> 00:15:41.519 the Old Testament. 00:15:42.039 --> 00:15:43.139 And it doesn't find 00:15:43.139 --> 00:15:44.319 a satisfactory answer 00:15:44.319 --> 00:15:46.419 until Christ comes 00:15:46.419 --> 00:15:48.179 to show how God 00:15:48.179 --> 00:15:49.319 can be both forgiving 00:15:49.320 --> 00:15:50.379 and avenging. 00:15:51.060 --> 00:15:52.980 Romans 3, 21-26 00:15:52.980 --> 00:15:54.120 explains it this way, 00:15:54.720 --> 00:15:55.340 But now, 00:15:55.820 --> 00:15:57.000 the righteousness of God 00:15:57.000 --> 00:15:58.060 has been manifested 00:15:58.060 --> 00:15:59.160 apart from the law, 00:15:59.520 --> 00:16:00.240 although the law 00:16:00.240 --> 00:16:00.980 and the prophets 00:16:00.980 --> 00:16:02.100 bear witness to it, 00:16:02.400 --> 00:16:03.600 the righteousness of God 00:16:03.600 --> 00:16:04.320 through faith 00:16:04.320 --> 00:16:05.360 in Jesus Christ 00:16:05.360 --> 00:16:06.140 for all who believe. 00:16:06.660 --> 00:16:07.800 For there is no distinction, 00:16:08.160 --> 00:16:09.400 for all have sinned 00:16:09.400 --> 00:16:10.420 and fall short 00:16:10.420 --> 00:16:11.340 of the glory of God 00:16:11.340 --> 00:16:12.400 and are justified 00:16:12.400 --> 00:16:13.740 by his grace 00:16:13.740 --> 00:16:14.580 as a gift 00:16:14.580 --> 00:16:15.520 through the redemption 00:16:15.520 --> 00:16:16.940 that is in Christ Jesus, 00:16:17.240 --> 00:16:18.500 whom God put forward 00:16:18.500 --> 00:16:19.500 as a propitiation 00:16:19.500 --> 00:16:20.200 by his blood 00:16:20.200 --> 00:16:20.860 to be received 00:16:20.860 --> 00:16:21.620 by faith. 00:16:22.440 --> 00:16:24.139 This was to show 00:16:24.139 --> 00:16:25.460 God's righteousness 00:16:25.460 --> 00:16:26.980 because in his 00:16:26.980 --> 00:16:28.080 divine forbearance 00:16:28.080 --> 00:16:28.659 he had passed 00:16:28.659 --> 00:16:29.899 over former sins. 00:16:30.460 --> 00:16:31.159 It was to show 00:16:31.159 --> 00:16:31.799 his righteousness 00:16:31.799 --> 00:16:32.860 at the present time 00:16:32.860 --> 00:16:34.340 so that he might be just 00:16:34.340 --> 00:16:35.860 and the justifier 00:16:35.860 --> 00:16:36.480 of the one 00:16:36.480 --> 00:16:37.720 who has faith in Jesus. 00:16:38.159 --> 00:16:38.720 You guys follow 00:16:38.720 --> 00:16:40.039 his logic there, right? 00:16:40.100 --> 00:16:41.639 In divine forbearance, 00:16:41.860 --> 00:16:42.659 God had passed 00:16:42.659 --> 00:16:43.740 over former sins, 00:16:44.019 --> 00:16:45.120 thus calling into question 00:16:45.120 --> 00:16:46.159 God's justice, 00:16:46.519 --> 00:16:47.399 calling into question 00:16:47.399 --> 00:16:48.579 God's righteousness. 00:16:49.500 --> 00:16:51.279 But God vindicated himself 00:16:51.279 --> 00:16:52.379 and displayed his righteousness 00:16:52.379 --> 00:16:53.799 by offering Jesus 00:16:53.799 --> 00:16:55.000 as the atoning sacrifice. 00:16:55.639 --> 00:16:56.699 So Jesus, God's son, 00:16:56.779 --> 00:16:57.279 paid the penalty 00:16:57.279 --> 00:16:58.139 for our sins 00:16:58.139 --> 00:16:59.279 and absorbed the wrath 00:16:59.279 --> 00:16:59.600 of God 00:16:59.600 --> 00:17:00.659 directly toward us 00:17:00.659 --> 00:17:02.199 so that we who repent 00:17:02.199 --> 00:17:02.840 of our sins 00:17:02.840 --> 00:17:03.919 and believe in Jesus Christ 00:17:03.919 --> 00:17:05.299 can experience God 00:17:05.299 --> 00:17:06.379 as the forgiving God 00:17:06.379 --> 00:17:08.000 instead of the avenging God. 00:17:08.299 --> 00:17:09.639 That's how God 00:17:09.639 --> 00:17:10.559 can be both forgiving 00:17:10.559 --> 00:17:12.039 and avenging. 00:17:13.180 --> 00:17:14.619 And that's the good news 00:17:14.619 --> 00:17:15.679 that Psalm 99 00:17:15.679 --> 00:17:17.199 ultimately points to 00:17:17.199 --> 00:17:18.959 because, yes, 00:17:19.119 --> 00:17:20.539 Moses, Aaron, and Samuel 00:17:20.539 --> 00:17:21.879 interceded on God's behalf, 00:17:22.079 --> 00:17:23.839 but they're all dead now, right? 00:17:24.639 --> 00:17:27.159 And they can't really 00:17:27.159 --> 00:17:29.459 help us now. 00:17:29.739 --> 00:17:31.279 And God couldn't take Moses' 00:17:31.279 --> 00:17:35.579 life and punish him 00:17:35.579 --> 00:17:36.720 for his people's sins 00:17:36.720 --> 00:17:37.740 because he was not worthy 00:17:37.740 --> 00:17:38.779 for that task. 00:17:39.220 --> 00:17:41.079 But Jesus is worthy 00:17:41.079 --> 00:17:41.639 of that task. 00:17:41.799 --> 00:17:42.799 He stands between 00:17:42.799 --> 00:17:43.639 the living and the dead. 00:17:43.819 --> 00:17:45.960 He stands between us, 00:17:46.099 --> 00:17:46.940 our sinful people, 00:17:47.019 --> 00:17:47.879 and between God. 00:17:48.160 --> 00:17:49.700 And he pays the penalty 00:17:49.700 --> 00:17:50.319 for our sin. 00:17:50.799 --> 00:17:53.299 And so Hebrews 7, 23, 25 00:17:53.299 --> 00:17:54.099 speaks of the fact 00:17:54.099 --> 00:17:55.480 that now even though 00:17:55.480 --> 00:17:56.240 many priests, 00:17:56.240 --> 00:17:57.779 they died and they passed away, 00:17:58.099 --> 00:17:58.879 they couldn't continue 00:17:58.879 --> 00:17:59.899 their office and ministry. 00:17:59.900 --> 00:18:00.720 But he says, 00:18:00.880 --> 00:18:02.800 Jesus holds his priesthood 00:18:02.800 --> 00:18:03.460 permanently 00:18:03.460 --> 00:18:05.380 because he continues forever. 00:18:06.000 --> 00:18:06.460 Consequently, 00:18:06.640 --> 00:18:07.960 he is able to save 00:18:07.960 --> 00:18:08.980 to the uttermost 00:18:08.980 --> 00:18:10.120 those who draw near 00:18:10.120 --> 00:18:11.360 to God through him 00:18:11.360 --> 00:18:13.519 since he always lives 00:18:13.519 --> 00:18:15.240 to make intercession 00:18:15.240 --> 00:18:16.860 for them. 00:18:17.820 --> 00:18:18.759 Right now, 00:18:19.800 --> 00:18:21.120 in God's heavenly court, 00:18:21.740 --> 00:18:22.500 at the right hand 00:18:22.500 --> 00:18:23.000 of the Father, 00:18:23.440 --> 00:18:24.480 Jesus is making 00:18:24.480 --> 00:18:25.600 intercession for us. 00:18:26.480 --> 00:18:28.040 We would not pass 00:18:28.040 --> 00:18:28.480 that court, 00:18:28.480 --> 00:18:29.460 we would not pass 00:18:29.460 --> 00:18:29.980 that judgment, 00:18:30.319 --> 00:18:31.220 but he is making 00:18:31.220 --> 00:18:32.079 intercession for us 00:18:32.079 --> 00:18:33.759 right now and for eternity. 00:18:34.279 --> 00:18:35.339 Jesus is doing that 00:18:35.339 --> 00:18:36.339 for us and he will never 00:18:36.339 --> 00:18:37.640 fail in that task 00:18:37.640 --> 00:18:38.680 because he lives forever. 00:18:39.180 --> 00:18:40.220 Because he was raised 00:18:40.220 --> 00:18:40.740 from the dead. 00:18:40.940 --> 00:18:42.099 He defeated sin and death. 00:18:42.940 --> 00:18:44.319 And that's all the more 00:18:44.319 --> 00:18:44.980 reason we should 00:18:44.980 --> 00:18:45.960 exalt the Lord 00:18:45.960 --> 00:18:47.380 as verse 9 concludes. 00:18:47.579 --> 00:18:48.539 Exalt the Lord, 00:18:48.620 --> 00:18:49.039 our God, 00:18:49.220 --> 00:18:49.920 and worship 00:18:49.920 --> 00:18:51.000 at his holy mountain 00:18:51.000 --> 00:18:52.039 for the Lord, 00:18:52.140 --> 00:18:52.880 our God, 00:18:53.220 --> 00:18:54.059 is holy. 00:18:54.059 --> 00:18:54.919 God bless you. 00:18:54.919 --> 00:18:55.339 Amen. 00:18:55.339 --> 00:18:55.440 Amen. 00:18:55.519 --> 00:18:55.599 Amen. 00:18:55.599 --> 00:18:55.960 Amen. 00:18:57.179 --> 00:18:57.740 Amen. 00:18:57.799 --> 00:18:59.000 Amen. 00:18:59.000 --> 00:18:59.419 Amen. 00:18:59.460 --> 00:18:59.819 Amen. 00:18:59.819 --> 00:18:59.859 Amen. 00:19:00.000 --> 00:19:00.099 Amen. 00:19:14.359 --> 00:19:14.859 Amen. 00:19:14.919 --> 00:19:15.179 Amen. 00:19:15.179 --> 00:19:15.339 Amen. 00:19:15.740 --> 00:19:15.799 Amen. 00:19:15.799 --> 00:19:16.079 Amen. 00:19:16.079 --> 00:19:16.099 Amen. 00:19:16.099 --> 00:19:16.259 Amen. 00:19:16.259 --> 00:19:16.279 Amen. 00:19:16.279 --> 00:19:16.319 Amen. 00:19:18.359 --> 00:19:19.200 Amen. 00:19:19.200 --> 00:19:19.720 Amen. 00:19:19.720 --> 00:19:19.839 Amen. 00:19:19.839 --> 00:19:20.440 Amen. 00:19:20.440 --> 00:19:20.859 Amen. 00:19:20.859 --> 00:19:21.099 Amen. 00:19:21.099 --> 00:19:21.339 Amen. 00:19:21.339 --> 00:19:21.779 Amen. 00:19:21.779 --> 00:19:21.879 Amen. 00:19:21.879 --> 00:19:22.139 Amen. 00:19:22.139 --> 00:19:22.259 Amen. 00:19:22.259 --> 00:19:22.279 Amen. 00:19:22.279 --> 00:19:22.879 Amen. 00:19:22.879 --> 00:19:23.899 Amen.