WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:06.360 Psalm 128, a song of ascents. 00:00:30.000 --> 00:00:59.980 Psalm 128, a song of ascents. 00:01:00.000 --> 00:01:02.979 A favor of his superior for the sake of self-advancement. 00:01:03.399 --> 00:01:06.280 You guys can probably think of a few words just off the top of your heads, right? 00:01:06.780 --> 00:01:24.799 A fauner, a suck-up, a toady, a yes-man, a sycophant, a flatterer, an apple polisher, a bud licker, a cow tower, a brown noser, a groveler, a lick spittle. 00:01:24.900 --> 00:01:25.740 Have you guys heard that before? 00:01:26.439 --> 00:01:27.400 It's really graphic. 00:01:27.599 --> 00:01:28.379 A lick spittle. 00:01:28.379 --> 00:01:32.619 And in other terms, that should not even be mentioned in polite company. 00:01:33.739 --> 00:01:39.739 And there are so many expressions for this kind of thing, I think, because it's so common. 00:01:40.579 --> 00:01:48.019 And because so many people in all kinds of cultures have used their own imagination and creativity to describe it. 00:01:48.019 --> 00:01:54.899 And because I think we'd admit that we all like a good blessing. 00:01:55.299 --> 00:01:57.840 You know, we all like a good blessing from our superiors. 00:01:57.840 --> 00:02:01.840 And the word bless is really the main blessing. 00:02:02.640 --> 00:02:04.640 The idea of blessing is the main theme of this psalm. 00:02:04.719 --> 00:02:09.560 The word bless occurs four times in this short psalm in verses 1, 2, 4, and 5. 00:02:10.039 --> 00:02:15.780 And this psalm reminds us that there is only one true superior who imparts blessing. 00:02:15.780 --> 00:02:27.259 And biblically speaking, it's only God and his representatives who impart good things from God, who bless in this technical sense that is in view here. 00:02:27.259 --> 00:02:33.659 The Bible does describe us as blessing God at times, but that's merely to recognize that he is the blessed one. 00:02:33.659 --> 00:02:40.219 And it is when God blesses his people that he actually imparts good things, actual blessings come. 00:02:42.039 --> 00:02:50.900 And so that's why Psalm 128 teaches us that above all else, we should seek to please the Lord. 00:02:51.419 --> 00:02:57.859 And that's the main point of this psalm is that those who fear the Lord are blessed by the Lord with prosperity and progeny. 00:02:59.620 --> 00:03:03.159 And first we see the promise, this promise in verses 1 to 3. 00:03:03.659 --> 00:03:06.400 And then we see the blessing in verses 4 to 6. 00:03:07.000 --> 00:03:09.740 So first we see the promise of blessing in verses 1 to 3. 00:03:09.900 --> 00:03:10.280 It begins, 00:03:10.479 --> 00:03:14.460 Blessed is to everyone who fears the Lord, who walks in his ways. 00:03:15.139 --> 00:03:19.819 So this tells us that God's not stingy or discriminatory in his blessing. 00:03:20.659 --> 00:03:20.879 It says, 00:03:20.879 --> 00:03:25.159 Blessed is everyone, blessed is everyone who fears the Lord, who walks in his ways. 00:03:25.780 --> 00:03:30.319 To fear the Lord, according to this verse, is to walk in his ways. 00:03:30.319 --> 00:03:34.079 What you fear determines how you walk. 00:03:34.080 --> 00:03:38.120 And so that's a helpful diagnostic question to ask ourselves. 00:03:38.219 --> 00:03:43.240 Because human beings pay attention to and obey what they fear, what they revere. 00:03:44.040 --> 00:03:51.240 Whether it's parents or peers, whether it's governing authorities or scientific experts, 00:03:51.240 --> 00:03:56.400 whether it's diseases, demons, or even death itself, 00:03:56.719 --> 00:04:01.300 people are preoccupied with and pay attention to and obey what they fear. 00:04:02.439 --> 00:04:07.080 And so then what are we paying the most attention to in our own lives? 00:04:07.080 --> 00:04:11.000 What do we listen to most of our lives? 00:04:11.180 --> 00:04:13.440 Is it who God is and what God says? 00:04:13.580 --> 00:04:15.580 Or is it someone or something else? 00:04:17.080 --> 00:04:20.460 Because how we walk is determined by what we fear. 00:04:21.100 --> 00:04:24.100 So those who fear the Lord, those who live in the presence of God, 00:04:24.280 --> 00:04:25.980 those who live under the authority of God, 00:04:26.060 --> 00:04:27.720 those who live for the glory of God, 00:04:28.060 --> 00:04:30.620 they are those who walk in his ways. 00:04:30.620 --> 00:04:34.220 And it is they who fear the Lord, who are blessed by the Lord. 00:04:35.180 --> 00:04:40.000 And then the psalmist unpacks more specifically what this blessing entails in verses 2-3. 00:04:40.620 --> 00:04:42.740 You shall eat the fruit of the labor of your hands. 00:04:42.819 --> 00:04:43.660 You shall be blessed. 00:04:44.340 --> 00:04:45.720 And it shall be well with you. 00:04:46.220 --> 00:04:48.959 Your wife will be like a fruitful vine within your house. 00:04:49.340 --> 00:04:51.780 Your children will be like olive shoots around your table. 00:04:51.779 --> 00:04:56.819 Now I can't hear that phrase, 00:04:58.019 --> 00:05:02.099 you shall be well with you, without thinking of John. 00:05:03.159 --> 00:05:08.399 John shows one of his favorite expressions is be well, right? 00:05:08.819 --> 00:05:10.139 He says it to us a lot. 00:05:11.459 --> 00:05:14.379 It's a great greeting, a very specific, 00:05:14.379 --> 00:05:20.019 but a good greeting. 00:05:20.019 --> 00:05:23.060 And so that's what he's talking about. 00:05:23.139 --> 00:05:25.740 It will be well with you if you fear the Lord. 00:05:26.180 --> 00:05:27.719 And more specifically, he says, 00:05:28.560 --> 00:05:31.019 in verse 2, he promises prosperity, 00:05:31.719 --> 00:05:32.919 the fruit of your labor, 00:05:33.279 --> 00:05:34.839 the fruit of the labor of your hands. 00:05:35.419 --> 00:05:37.019 And in verse 3, he promises progeny. 00:05:38.099 --> 00:05:39.899 Your wife will be like a fruitful vine. 00:05:40.060 --> 00:05:42.459 Your children will be like olive shoots around your table. 00:05:43.419 --> 00:05:47.740 These images of fruit, fruitful vine, 00:05:47.740 --> 00:05:51.079 and olive shoots would have been very evocative 00:05:51.079 --> 00:05:54.980 for people who lived in Israel during this time 00:05:54.980 --> 00:05:57.439 because agriculture and viticulture 00:05:57.439 --> 00:06:00.000 were just such a huge part of their livelihood and culture. 00:06:00.699 --> 00:06:03.780 So imagine just this tightly packed, 00:06:03.860 --> 00:06:07.220 scrumptious clusters of grapes 00:06:07.220 --> 00:06:09.319 all hanging from different parts of the vine. 00:06:09.319 --> 00:06:11.180 And he's promising that, 00:06:11.560 --> 00:06:13.240 hey, that's what your wife will be like 00:06:13.240 --> 00:06:15.120 with all her children in her arms. 00:06:16.259 --> 00:06:19.219 And then imagine new olive shoots kind of springing up. 00:06:19.319 --> 00:06:20.980 Olive shoots spring up all around 00:06:20.980 --> 00:06:23.420 where the roots of the main olive tree is. 00:06:23.600 --> 00:06:25.699 So they all kind of spring up all around it. 00:06:26.019 --> 00:06:28.420 And then they soon grow into full olive trees. 00:06:28.839 --> 00:06:30.060 So imagine, he's saying, 00:06:30.139 --> 00:06:32.240 that's what your dinner table is going to be like 00:06:32.240 --> 00:06:35.000 with all your children shooting up all around you. 00:06:35.000 --> 00:06:37.060 And that's the promise, 00:06:37.180 --> 00:06:38.540 the prosperity and progeny. 00:06:39.480 --> 00:06:41.439 And then in verses 46, 00:06:41.639 --> 00:06:43.699 the psalmist transitions from speaking of the promise 00:06:43.699 --> 00:06:45.839 to the actual blessing. 00:06:46.579 --> 00:06:47.860 He repeats the same themes, 00:06:47.980 --> 00:06:49.459 but this time it's not a promise. 00:06:49.600 --> 00:06:51.779 It's actually an impartation. 00:06:51.939 --> 00:06:53.199 It's a bestowal of blessing. 00:06:53.899 --> 00:06:54.180 So it says, 00:06:54.339 --> 00:06:56.579 Behold, thus shall the man be blessed who fears the Lord. 00:06:56.680 --> 00:06:58.319 The Lord bless you from Zion. 00:06:58.899 --> 00:07:01.019 May you see the prosperity of Jerusalem 00:07:01.019 --> 00:07:02.240 all the days of your life. 00:07:02.240 --> 00:07:04.660 May you see your children's children. 00:07:05.379 --> 00:07:06.819 Peace be upon Israel. 00:07:07.620 --> 00:07:10.180 So the blessings that he mentioned in verses 1 to 3, 00:07:10.279 --> 00:07:13.220 he now personally imparts to God's people. 00:07:13.839 --> 00:07:15.939 Prosperity and progeny for those who fear the Lord. 00:07:16.300 --> 00:07:18.500 Those who fear the Lord are blessed by the Lord. 00:07:19.399 --> 00:07:22.519 And this promise of blessing does, however, 00:07:22.660 --> 00:07:23.879 admit exceptions. 00:07:25.519 --> 00:07:27.060 It's a generalization, 00:07:27.500 --> 00:07:29.319 not an absolutization. 00:07:29.720 --> 00:07:32.459 It expresses what is generally true, 00:07:32.459 --> 00:07:35.519 much like the proverbial sayings that we have in English. 00:07:35.680 --> 00:07:36.599 We say things like, 00:07:36.699 --> 00:07:37.539 Honesty pays, 00:07:38.579 --> 00:07:40.539 which means if you're honest, 00:07:40.680 --> 00:07:41.560 you're going to get rewarded. 00:07:42.680 --> 00:07:44.039 And then we also say things like, 00:07:44.060 --> 00:07:45.379 Cheats never prosper. 00:07:46.919 --> 00:07:49.879 It expresses a truism that is generally true, 00:07:49.979 --> 00:07:52.319 that people who cheat and try to get by that way 00:07:52.319 --> 00:07:53.579 are eventually going to get caught. 00:07:53.579 --> 00:07:56.819 They're not going to prosper for a while, 00:07:56.959 --> 00:07:57.659 for long. 00:07:58.879 --> 00:08:02.060 And so even though these are generally true, 00:08:02.159 --> 00:08:03.620 there are exceptions in life. 00:08:03.800 --> 00:08:05.079 And even the Old Testament 00:08:05.079 --> 00:08:07.659 speaks of these exceptions. 00:08:07.819 --> 00:08:09.959 The book of Job is an entire book full of 00:08:09.959 --> 00:08:12.399 exceptions to this promise. 00:08:12.399 --> 00:08:14.399 He feared the Lord, 00:08:14.500 --> 00:08:15.539 but he lost his prosperity. 00:08:15.719 --> 00:08:16.599 He feared the Lord, 00:08:16.679 --> 00:08:17.839 but he lost his progeny. 00:08:18.159 --> 00:08:19.179 He feared the Lord, 00:08:19.299 --> 00:08:20.039 but he got sick. 00:08:20.120 --> 00:08:20.879 He lost his health. 00:08:22.699 --> 00:08:24.079 And then Habakkuk 3, 00:08:24.179 --> 00:08:25.419 verses 17 to 18, 00:08:25.799 --> 00:08:27.419 also qualify this promise. 00:08:27.620 --> 00:08:27.759 It says, 00:08:27.839 --> 00:08:29.579 Though the fig tree should not blossom, 00:08:30.000 --> 00:08:31.539 nor fruit be on the vines, 00:08:31.919 --> 00:08:33.919 the produce of the olive fail, 00:08:34.039 --> 00:08:35.659 and the fields yield no food. 00:08:36.039 --> 00:08:37.779 The flock be cut off from the fold, 00:08:37.779 --> 00:08:39.500 and there be no herd in the stalls. 00:08:39.960 --> 00:08:42.319 Yet I will rejoice in the Lord. 00:08:42.679 --> 00:08:44.679 I will take joy in the God of my salvation. 00:08:46.100 --> 00:08:47.379 It's especially helpful 00:08:47.379 --> 00:08:48.860 because it uses the same imagery 00:08:48.860 --> 00:08:50.259 of the vines and the olives. 00:08:50.899 --> 00:08:51.899 Yet he says, 00:08:52.019 --> 00:08:53.139 Even when that fails, 00:08:53.220 --> 00:08:54.240 I will rejoice in the Lord. 00:08:54.879 --> 00:08:57.199 These exceptions exist to remind us 00:08:57.199 --> 00:08:59.059 to love the Lord who blesses 00:08:59.059 --> 00:09:01.360 more than the blessings that he bestows. 00:09:01.799 --> 00:09:03.620 Because the ultimate blessing 00:09:03.620 --> 00:09:05.220 that this psalm points to 00:09:05.220 --> 00:09:07.120 is not the things he gives us, 00:09:07.120 --> 00:09:08.439 but it's the Lord himself, 00:09:09.019 --> 00:09:10.759 the God of our salvation. 00:09:10.759 --> 00:09:14.039 And so in the famous Beatitudes 00:09:14.039 --> 00:09:17.779 that Jesus taught Matthew 5, 1 to 12, 00:09:18.120 --> 00:09:19.639 he lists different kinds of people 00:09:19.639 --> 00:09:21.319 who are blessed by God. 00:09:22.100 --> 00:09:22.319 He says, 00:09:22.419 --> 00:09:23.580 Blessed are the poor in spirit, 00:09:23.919 --> 00:09:25.039 blessed are those who mourn, 00:09:25.159 --> 00:09:25.679 the meek, 00:09:25.960 --> 00:09:26.740 those who hunger and thirst 00:09:26.740 --> 00:09:27.299 for righteousness, 00:09:27.600 --> 00:09:28.100 the merciful, 00:09:28.319 --> 00:09:29.179 the pure in heart, 00:09:29.639 --> 00:09:30.539 the peacemakers, 00:09:30.679 --> 00:09:31.419 those who are persecuted 00:09:31.419 --> 00:09:32.600 for righteousness' sake. 00:09:33.059 --> 00:09:34.319 And finally, he says, 00:09:34.320 --> 00:09:35.700 those who are reviled 00:09:35.700 --> 00:09:36.320 and persecuted 00:09:36.320 --> 00:09:38.100 for the sake of Jesus, 00:09:38.300 --> 00:09:39.660 on account of Jesus, 00:09:40.240 --> 00:09:40.560 he says, 00:09:40.640 --> 00:09:41.360 they are blessed. 00:09:42.100 --> 00:09:42.800 And so the summary 00:09:42.800 --> 00:09:43.700 of the Beatitudes 00:09:43.700 --> 00:09:44.680 might be that 00:09:44.680 --> 00:09:46.480 those who follow Jesus 00:09:46.480 --> 00:09:47.920 are blessed. 00:09:49.320 --> 00:09:51.600 And this is the absolute truth 00:09:51.600 --> 00:09:53.500 that the general truth 00:09:53.500 --> 00:09:56.100 of Psalm 128 points to. 00:09:56.100 --> 00:09:58.139 This is the substance 00:09:58.139 --> 00:09:59.960 that the reality, 00:10:00.120 --> 00:10:00.860 that the shadow 00:10:00.860 --> 00:10:03.200 of Psalm 128 points to. 00:10:03.379 --> 00:10:03.759 This is, 00:10:04.759 --> 00:10:06.519 Christ is the fulfillment of it. 00:10:07.159 --> 00:10:09.639 And he is how we receive blessing. 00:10:09.840 --> 00:10:11.379 He is how we have peace. 00:10:11.379 --> 00:10:12.659 Romans chapter 5, 00:10:12.740 --> 00:10:13.560 verses 1 to 2, 00:10:13.879 --> 00:10:14.139 it says, 00:10:14.139 --> 00:10:29.480 So then the benediction 00:10:29.480 --> 00:10:30.360 of verse 6, 00:10:30.559 --> 00:10:31.860 peace be upon Israel, 00:10:32.419 --> 00:10:33.960 was fulfilled in the person 00:10:33.960 --> 00:10:35.580 and work of Jesus Christ. 00:10:36.080 --> 00:10:37.519 Because Jesus has died 00:10:37.519 --> 00:10:39.259 and Jesus has risen victoriously, 00:10:39.379 --> 00:10:40.679 because Jesus has ascended 00:10:40.679 --> 00:10:42.120 and is seated at the right hand 00:10:42.120 --> 00:10:43.200 of the Father interceding 00:10:43.200 --> 00:10:43.939 on our behalf, 00:10:44.139 --> 00:10:46.639 that's why we have peace with God. 00:10:47.139 --> 00:10:49.240 We have been made right with God. 00:10:49.360 --> 00:10:50.899 We have an invincible hope 00:10:50.899 --> 00:10:52.539 in the glory of God. 00:10:53.220 --> 00:10:54.559 And in the eyes of the world, 00:10:54.720 --> 00:10:56.199 we might not look blessed. 00:10:58.100 --> 00:10:59.819 And that's the mistake 00:10:59.819 --> 00:11:00.659 that the prosperity 00:11:00.659 --> 00:11:01.720 gospel preachers make, 00:11:01.879 --> 00:11:02.899 is that they think that 00:11:02.899 --> 00:11:04.159 to be blessed by the Lord 00:11:04.159 --> 00:11:06.379 always means that we'll be blessed 00:11:06.379 --> 00:11:07.220 in the eyes of the world 00:11:07.220 --> 00:11:08.659 in the same terms as the world. 00:11:09.580 --> 00:11:11.639 But that's not necessarily 00:11:11.639 --> 00:11:13.220 the case as we've been talking about. 00:11:13.220 --> 00:11:16.259 But we are the most blessed ones. 00:11:16.720 --> 00:11:18.139 And we should not lose sight 00:11:18.139 --> 00:11:19.680 of the eternal blessedness 00:11:19.680 --> 00:11:22.379 of which we are co-heirs with Christ. 00:11:22.379 --> 00:11:27.439 And so that's what Psalm 128 is about.