12/3/19
Tom Lowe
Psalm 126: The Lord Has Done Great Things for Us (KJV)
[Psalm 126 is the seventh in a series of fifteen psalms, all of which have the designation of “A Song of Degrees.”]
Scripture: Psalms 126:1-6 (KJV)
- {“A Song of Degrees.”} When the LORD turned again the captivity of Zion, we were like them that dream.
- Then was our mouth filled with laughter, and our tongue with singing: then said they among the heathen, The LORD hath done great things for them.
- The LORD hath done great things for us; where of we are glad.
- Turn again our captivity, O LORD, as the streams in the south.
- They that sow in tears shall reap in joy.
- He that goeth forth and weepeth, bearing precious seed, shall doubtless come again with rejoicing, bringing his sheaves with him.
Introduction:
The horrors of the siege are gone. The numbing terror of fear is gone. The world superpower has been flung back by the miraculous intervention of God. That is the background of Psalm 126. Martin Luther King may not have coined the saying “Free at last, free at last, thank God, I am free at Last;” but there is no denying that he made it famous. The citizens of Jerusalem had been penned up inside Jerusalem for months, praying that God would come to their aid, and He did just that. When the gates of the city were finally opened, they must have been filled with Joy as they said the same thing as Rev. King―“Free at last, free at last, thank God, I am free at Last.”
The psalm contains only six verses, but they throb with “Joy unspeakable.” The people of God who only a few hours ago thought they would soon die or be taken to Babylon as slaves are now free.
This psalm was composed by Ezra, or some other man of God, when Israel returned from Babylon.
- {A Song of degrees.} When the LORD turned again the captivity of Zion, we were like them that dream.
The generation of Jews that conquered the Promised Land was true to the Lord, and so were their children, but the third generation broke the covenant and turned to idols (Judges 2:7-23). God punished His people in the land by allowing seven nations to invade, rob, and destroy. When Israel’s rebellion became so great that the land itself was being defiled, God took them out of the land and sent them to Babylon for seventy years. Now they had been set free and they could not believe what was happening. The news of the return was so wonderful that those who heard it “were like them that dream”―scarcely able to believe it because of the joy they felt. Yes, they knew that both Isaiah and Jeremiah had promised this “second exodus,” but it was too good to be true. During long years of waiting, they had dreamed of returning home, and now the dream had become reality. God in His grace had forgiven them (Isa. 40:1-2; 44:21-22) and they could make a new beginning. The Jews had lost their song in Babylon (137:1-5), but now they were shouting, laughing and singing! What a witness of God’s faithfulness to keep His promises.
However, not all the Jews had left Babylon
2. Then was our mouth filled with laughter, and our tongue with singing: then said they among the heathen, The LORD hath done great things for them.
Joyous “laughter” and happy “singing” were their understandable reaction.
The surrounding nations, some of whom hated Israel, were utterly astonished at this event and openly confessed that the God of Israel had done great things for them. The Jews replied that indeed, He had done great things for them, and they gave God the glory.
3. The LORD hath done great things for us; whereofwe are glad.
“Is that our testimony among the unsaved?”
God loves the singing and laughter of His saints. Trust and wait! The memory of your present anguish shall soon be forgotten in the uproar of joy (Job 8:21).
Of all the people on the earth we have something to sing about. We have been saved. What happy, joyful people we should be.
4. Turn again our captivity [or, restore our fortunes], O LORD, as the streams in the south.
The captivity had ended and the Jews were praying for the blessing of the Lord on their life in the land. However, not all the Jews had left Babylon, for while many came during the reign of Cyrus (Ezra 1:3), others followed during the reigns of Darius (Ezra 6) and Artaxerxes (Ezra 7-8). It was important that the people return to their land and get to work, but it was also important that God blesses their work (127:1-2). If the Lord did not keep His covenant and send the early and latter rains (Lev 26:4; Deut 11:10-12, 28:12), there would be no crops and their labors would have been in vain
“Turn again” is the beginning of the prayer that God would complete the restoration of His people to their land. The two-fold effect of the restoration was joy for those who returned and honor for God among the nations. Ultimately, this is a prayer for the coming of Jesus, who will complete God’s work among His people. But the prayer is much deeper than a prayer for physical prosperity. Hezekiah was too godly a man to be content with that. This is a prayer for spiritual revival. To be saved was one thing. To be filled with the mighty flowing river of the Spirit of God was something else.
The people asked to be like “the streams in the south1,” which are bone-dry in the summer, until the winter rains renew their flow. The word streams is literally “torrents.” The south is the Negev, the area that the Jews today have made to “blossom as the rose” (Isaiah 35:1). The area was not a desert in biblical times; and following the winter rains, dry channels would become rushing streams overnight
On the surface, Hezekiah wanted God to restore the ravished country to its former beauty and bounty. However, the great promise of this psalm has its wider application in the lesson it has for the nations. They see what God does for and with His people and are forced to admit that it is great. The very existence of the people of God, and His deliverance and restoration of them are a witness to the nations that it is true; God always and continually restores His people, by His presence and His promise.
5. They that sow in tears shall reap in joy. [Sowing and reaping are figurative expressions.]
Here the psalmist speaks to his people a word of comfort in the form of a familiar proverb, “They that sow in tears shall reap in joy.” Is that the price we are prepared to pay? Are we prepared to weep over lost souls, lost sons, lost neighbors and friends? In our society weeping is considered too emotional (and certainly we need to beware of shallow emotionalism). But someone needs to care if people are to be saved. Jesus shed His blood; surely we can shed some tears. Paul could say to the Ephesians that he had warned them day and night with tears.
The proverb is directed to the Lord’s dejected yet repentant and hopeful people. Times are now hard but better times are ahead for Israel.
Jesus wept. Three times in the gospels we are told that He wept. “Strong crying and tears” is the Holy Spirit’s description.
Jesus wept once for a man, a dead man, His friend. Standing before His tomb, sensing the heartbreak around Him, Jesus wept. Knowing that in a moment, He would perform the greatest of all His miracles, and bring back to life a man rotting in the tomb, sensing the heartbreak around Him, He wept at the sorrow and anguish that sin and death brought in its wake.
Jesus wept once for a nation. He stood on the heights outside the city and wept because Jerusalem and the nation had rejected Him. He could see into the future. He could see the appalling things that would happen within the generation. He wept because a nation that had received so many blessings could be so obstinate and stubborn and foolish in its rejection of Him.
He wept once for the world, for the whole world of lost and ruined human beings. In Gethsemane the tears rolled down, mingled with blood―so great was His agony, as He thought of a lost, lost world.
6. He that goeth forth and weepeth, bearing precious seed, shall doubtless come again with rejoicing, bringing his sheaves with him.
There is power in a seed. There is life in a seed. There is life in a seed that can crack concrete. There is power in the Word of God. There is life in God, power to overcome all opposition. We must go out and plant it. We must spread the Word. We must broadcast the gospel.
But what if people do not receive it? That is not our concern. That is God’s concern. He is able to take care of that. We sow the seed. God takes care of the results.
“. . . Shall doubtless come again with rejoicing, bringing his sheaves with him.” God doesn’t promise that everyone will be saved. He doesn’t promise that everyone we speak to will be saved. He does promise that sooner or later we shall get a harvest, that we shall come with rejoicing, with shouts of joy as at harvest time.
Some blessings God sends suddenly, (126:1-3), some come in the course of time (126:4), and some come as we patiently sow and weep (James 5:7). But His promise is secure: in due season we shall reap if we do not lose heart (Gal. 6:9).
Does the psalm remind you of someone? It reminds me of the Lord Jesus Christ who came in humility and sowed His precious seed with tears. Only His Father knows the many tears He shed in His presence in secrete prayer. And it is perfectly proper to apply this to ourselves also. So let us weep and scatter the seed! “Let us not be weary in well-doing; for in due season we shall reap, if we do not faint.
Special notes and Scripture
[1} The wadis of Palestine are similar to overflowing rivers in the rainy season. However, they have little or no water during the summer season, precisely the time when water is needed the most. In the arid desert region south of Jerusalem the periodic flooding of these wadis brought relief and life.