Psalms
Chapter 29
Children of God, Acclaim the Glory and Power of the Lord
Give the Lord, O sons of God,give the Lord glory and strength,
give the Lord the glory due to his name; worship the Lord in great liturgy.
The voice of the Lord is over the waters;the God of glory thunders, the Lord thunders over vast waters.
How powerful is the voice of the Lord,How splendorous is the voice of the Lord.
The voice of the Lord tears up the cedars, the Lord is shattering the cedars of Lebanon.
He makes Lebanon skip like a calf and Sirion like a young wild bull.
The voice of the Lord breaks forth with flashes of fire,
the voice of the Lord makes the wilderness quake,the Lord is shaking the wilderness of Kadesh.
The voice of the Lord makes the oaks shudder, the Lord strips the forests bare, and in his temple all cry, “Glory!”
Over the flood the Lord was sitting; the Lord is King and he reigns forever.
May the Lord give his people strength; may the Lord bless his people with peace!
Commentaries
29
The psalmist praises God’s power displayed in the storm. The strength comes from a mighty hand that calms and moves—a strength man can trust. The psalmist sees the land, shaken from end to end, from the bulk of the Lebanon range in the north to the southern wilds of Kadesh. He is not disturbed: the Lord sits as king above the storm and blesses his people with peace. ‘The Lord’s voice’ speaks through nature, Israel’s law, and the prophets. Most clearly, it spoke through the Son. This same voice, this Word itself, took flesh. At his birth, the angels echoed our psalm, which begins with ‘glory in the highest!’ and ends with ‘peace to people.’ Jesus is both the power and peace of God. We sing this sacred song to the incarnate Word.
A true believer is amazed by God’s mystery and allows himself to be drawn in by Him. He is confident in the greater power of God’s hand, which can immediately save. In Christ Jesus, we have all the answers we need; therefore, no matter what hardships come our way, there should be no reason to panic.