Psalm 48
Where God Dwells
How do we define a great city?
Is it by the amount of people living in them? The numbers of mega cities is growing. There are 17 in China alone. A ‘mega city’ is an urban conurbation with ten million or more residents. That is a city with a population greater than Scotland and Wales combined. Population wise, these are the great cities of the world, yet you’ve probably not heard of many of them.
Is it by the age of the city? Girga in Egypt, or Multan in Pakistan, or Beirut in Lebanon can all claim a heritage stretching back five millennia (some Greek cities even further back).
Or is it by current desirability? The home of fashion, Paris or the city so good they named it twice, New York?
This Psalm is clear. The true barometer is none of the metrics above. What makes a place, a people great, is where the Creator of the world dwells.
This is a song of praise. Praise from the people of God in the city of God to the great God who dwells with us.
A song. A psalm of the Sons of Korah.
1 Great is the LORD, and most worthy of praise,
in the city of our God, his holy mountain.2 Beautiful in its loftiness,
the joy of the whole earth,
like the heights of Zaphon is Mount Zion,
the city of the Great King.
3 God is in her citadels;
he has shown himself to be her fortress.4 When the kings joined forces,
when they advanced together,
5 they saw her and were astounded;
they fled in terror.
6 Trembling seized them there,
pain like that of a woman in labour.
7 You destroyed them like ships of Tarshish
shattered by an east wind.8 As we have heard,
so we have seen
in the city of the LORD Almighty,
in the city of our God:
God makes her secure
for ever.9 Within your temple, O God,
we meditate on your unfailing love.
10 Like your name, O God,
your praise reaches to the ends of the earth;
your right hand is filled with righteousness.
11 Mount Zion rejoices,
the villages of Judah are glad
because of your judgments.12 Walk about Zion, go round her,
count her towers,
13 consider well her ramparts,
view her citadels,
that you may tell of them
to the next generation.14 For this God is our God for ever and ever;
he will be our guide even to the end.
In the closing verses of this Psalm, we are invited to walk around the city of God (12). As we wander the streets, we are urged to survey the towers, ramparts and citadels. Everything that secures the people within the walls of city. They are impregnable and unbreakable. They are worthy of praise.
But walk back a few verses with me and we see that our confidence and worship rests in something more than just mere stones stacked one on top of the other. Because we meditate first of the unfailing and unyielding love of God (9). The assurance we have when it comes to the security of God’s people is not a city in the Middle East. It is not a temple constructed by human hands. But it is in the eternal God.
And the eternal God, whose love is unfailing, dwells with his people. At the point this was written, that was in Jerusalem. Now his dwelling place is with his church through his Spirit (Ephesians 2.22). The Holy Spirit is given to each and every person who has put their trust solely in Jesus as their Lord (Ephesians 1.13).
So this Psalm is drawing us to do two things. First, by faith, we see this Psalm fulfilled in the church, as she is in Christ. Second, in hope, we wait to see it fulfilled when the heavenly Zion descends to the earth on the Day of the Lord (Revelation 19-21).
When Jesus proclaimed that the gates of hell shall not prevail against the church, it was because he knew the reality this Psalm points towards. When the kings of the nations conspired and contended with the city of God, they were thrown into disarray and despair (5). For they encountered not a mid-sized city in the Middle East, but where God resided with his people. Instead of seizing the city, they were seized by terror. All shipping vessels are at the mercy of the winds and storms out of the seas. And these nations are at the mercy of the God who dwells with his people in Zion.
When Jesus walked on this earth, the demons quaked before him. They favoured cascading into the sea with swines than confront the true Emmanuel.
And this is to give us confidence as we continue into spiritual battle. Not walking in our own schemes but being strong in the Lord (Ephesians 6.10-12).
But we also hope and long for the city of God to come in its completed glory. Because the city depicted in Revelation is one where all the enemies can never penetrate. They will be cast out in the darkness forever.
The main thrust of this Psalm is the impregnable fortress where God dwells with people. But there is one other picture that I’d like to dwell on for a moment.
The city is described in v3 as “beautiful in its loftiness”. When we see the city described in the Old Testament, we can picture how impressive it was at the time. Large and imposing walls. Streets vibrant with life. The temple filled with worshippers. When we hear of the city described in Revelation, our hearts are energised and inspired. Pavements laid with gold. Precious gemstone everywhere. God shining forth in his glory right at the centre.
But it’s maybe not a word we’d use to describe the church often. The ugly stories are voluminous. But the church truly is beautiful. Broken people being made whole. Slaves redeemed. The outcasts welcomed in. Sinners justified. But that is just the glimmer of the true beauty. For that is Christ himself. Shunned by the world, but the beloved of the Father. The beauty of the universal church is the One who dwells in her.
And so this Psalm is right. It is not the city that is to be praised. But God. Let’s praise him once more for his glorious grace and beautiful presence with us.
Glory be to God the Father, who is great and most worthy of praise.
Glory be to God the Son, who is the strength of his people.
Glory be to God the Spirit, who is the seal of unfailing love to us.
Ever three and ever One.
Home Group: Isaiah 40
How does God comfort his people through the words of Isaiah to his people (1-3; 11)?
In what ways do we see God’s power?
Why is it so important to rely on God’s wisdom?