A Song of a Thousand Syllables: Psalm 149

A Song of a Thousand Syllables

Psalm 149

I can still believe that a day comes for all of us, however far off it may be, when we shall understand; when these tragedies, that now blacken and darken the very air of heaven for us, will sink into their places in a scheme so august, so magnificent, so joyful, that we shall laugh for wonder and delight.

Arthur Christopher Bacon

The nightingale, known as the night songstress, is one of the most magnificent singers of the animal kingdom. Its ability to sing over a thousand syllables means it is unrivaled and dwarfs other birds in its range and variety. “The powerful but mellow song really requires extended exposure to appreciate - it's not one that can be enjoyed in just a few small snippets” (Duncan). Additionally, its song feels more striking in the night hours against the backdrop of silence, the absence of other noises. Each song is unique, filled with phrases pieced together for a wondrous composition. We, too, like the visually unimpressive nightingale, have a song composed of thousands of syllables of God’s work in our lives.

In music, there are so many elements that come together to produce the finished song. These elements include the pitch, which is the highness or lowness of a sound, and the dynamics, which is the loudness or softness of the musical sounds. Also, music can be rich or muted in its timbre. Its notes have a variety of length and within its length, the note itself changes its intensity from the initial attack to the decay of the sound. Then music has rhythm, its beat, tempo, and meter, which can vary throughout the course of a composition. “Each individual sound defines a moment in time—the time it takes for the sound to emerge and then return to silence” (Jammal). And what I want us to consider is that our lives are a composition, a weaving together of notes, pitch, dynamics, and rhythm. Our song, like the nightingale’s, is composed of a thousand, indeed more than a thousand, syllables. At times, our song may contain unwanted syllables, but it is, and will be, a song of joy crafted by our Lord. Not only does God compose a song of joy out of our entire life, but we have a song of joy to sing while we wait for the revelation of the “scheme so august, so magnificent, so joyful, that we shall laugh for wonder and delight” (Bacon).

The first three verses of Psalm 149 extol us to sing to our Maker, our King, to His name, and make melody to Him. He alone is the reason for the song of joy and the recipient of our song of joy. Just as the nightingale’s song is most striking in the night hours, absent from extraneous noises, so our song of joy, our life lived in joy and because of joy, sung for no other reason except to praise our Maker, is most striking and pure. When the pleasures, comforts, and relationships of this world have failed us, when all has been stripped away, we can still sing and live for joy in the Lord. He has not left us alone. He will never leave us or forsake us. He is designing beautiful purposes that will unfold in time. Just as the nightingale’s song cannot be appreciated in small snippets because it has a myriad of syllables and multiple phrases within the syllables, so our lives, our song, may need the vantage point of eternity to appreciate the masterful orchestrating our Lord has accomplished. He has not made any mistakes. He is not confused or surprised. He is composing our song, writing each note, each syllable, every change in pitch, dynamic, and rhythm, in its proper place. So then, while we anticipate the transforming of all of life’s ups and downs into joy and praise forevermore, let it fuel our here and now to “sing for joy” (Psalm 149:5).

Let’s pray through Psalm 149 that we would trust the Lord with the orchestrating of our life and its different notes and phrases, even the ones that seem out of place or painful. Let’s pray that our life would be one of joy and we would be able to sing for joy while we anticipate the beauty that will be revealed in and through us by His grace and for His glory in eternity.

149:1-5 Praise the Lord! Sing to the Lord a new song, his praise in the assembly of the godly! Let Israel be glad in his Maker; let the children of Zion rejoice in their King! Let them praise his name with dancing, making melody to him with tambourine and lyre! For the Lord takes pleasure in his people; he adorns the humble with salvation. Let the godly exult in glory; let them sing for joy on their beds.

Let’s pray:

▫️We would praise the Lord and sing to Him, rejoicing in the Lord always. Are there any circumstances in which you are finding it difficult to rejoice?

▫️As we walk with the Lord and experience His goodness in our daily life and in the ways He works in our trouble, we would sing a new song, perhaps not with new words, but based on His new mercies and daily kindnesses to us. He has been our help and in the shadow of His wings we can sing for joy (Psalm 63:7).

▫️We would realize that we have reason to rejoice and be glad, even if all the things in our life are difficult and disappointing, our Lord has not changed and we can be glad in Him, in who He is, and in His providential care of us. We would sing for joy to God our strength (Psalm 81:1).

▫️Our hearts would savor the beautiful truth that our Lord takes pleasure in His people. He delights in us because of His Son. His wise, benevolent care is orchestrating all the details of our lives into a beautiful symphony of praise. With the knowledge and comfort of His sovereignty, we would sing for joy.

149:6-9 Let the high praises of God be in their throats and two-edged swords in their hands, to execute vengeance on the nations and punishments on the peoples, to bind their kings with chains and their nobles with fetters of iron, to execute on them the judgment written! This is honor for all his godly ones. Praise the Lord!

‭‭Let’s pray:

▫️His praise would be in our throats and we would fight for joy. Each morning He would satisfy us with His lovingkindness that we would sing for joy and be glad all our days (Psalm 90:14).

▫️The joy of eternity would be written on our hearts. The hope of His coming, the restoration of all things, the execution of justice, and the magnifying of Christ would give us courage and infuse the days of our pilgrimage with joy.

▫️We would remember His words, “Sing for joy and be glad, O daughter of Zion; for behold, I am coming and I will dwell in your midst” (Zechariah 2:10) and “Surely I am coming soon” (Revelation 22:20). These promises and many more would fill our hearts, minds, and mouths with joy.

May the Lord do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think, for His glory and our good. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

Photo credit to siimlukka

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