Psalm 36 Continued…
Psalm 36:5-9 Your love, O Lord, reaches to the heavens, your faithfulness to the skies. Your righteousness is like the mighty mountains, your justice like the great deep. O Lord, you preserve both man and beast. How priceless is your unfailing love! Both high and low among men find refuge in the shadow of your wings. They feast on the abundance of your house; you give them drink from your river of delights. For with you is the fountain of life; in your light we see light.
Verse 5 begins with the words, “Your love…” The Hebrew noun here is HESED (God’s Love). It occurs 245 times in the Old Testament, 127 of those are in the Psalms. The King James translates this word as “mercy” or “lovingkindness,” the ESV usually renders it as “steadfast love,” and the NIV will either just translate it as “love” or “unfailing love.”
HESED is an attribute of God that defines his character. It also defines his relationship to Israel and to our world. The Decalogue puts God’s HESED up against evil, revealing that, while the sins of the fathers may fall on the third and fourth generation, the Lord shows HESED to thousands of generations of those “who love me and keep my commandments. (Exodus 20:6; 34:7)
The beautiful imagery described here is showing that God’s HESED (LOVE) reflects that he is Creator God of Genesis 1, who brings the world into existence, and, according to David, sustains it by his LOVE.
But more than sustaining a universe out there, God, through his HESED, sustains my own life and yours as well. We cannot draw breath or even have our heart beat one time without his love. Take a moment right now to dwell upon the love of God.
If I may be so bold as to change the lyrics slightly to a popular worship song…
Before I spoke a word, You were singing over me
You have been so, so good to me
Before I took a breath, You breathed Your life in me
You have been so so kind to me
Oh, the overwhelming, never-ending, HESED love of God
Oh, it chases me down, fights ’til I’m found, leaves the 99
And I couldn’t earn it
I don’t deserve it, still You give yourself away
Oh, the overwhelming, never-ending, HESED love of God
PRAY
Thank you Lord for your HESED Love!