Within Your temple, O God, we contemplate Your loving devotion. Within Your templeThe phrase "Within Your temple" refers to the sacred space where God's presence dwells among His people. In the Hebrew context, the word for temple is "הֵיכָל" (heikal), which signifies a palace or sanctuary. The temple in Jerusalem was the center of worship and a symbol of God's covenant with Israel. Historically, the temple was a place where the Israelites gathered to offer sacrifices and seek God's guidance. This phrase emphasizes the importance of worship and the centrality of God's presence in the life of the believer. It invites us to reflect on the significance of gathering in places of worship today, where we can experience God's presence and grow in our faith. O God
The invocation "O God" is a direct address to the Almighty, acknowledging His sovereignty and authority. The Hebrew word for God here is "אֱלֹהִים" (Elohim), a plural form that denotes majesty and power. This name for God is used throughout the Old Testament to emphasize His supreme power and divine nature. By addressing God directly, the psalmist demonstrates a personal relationship with the Creator, reminding us of the privilege we have to approach God in prayer and worship. It is a call to recognize God's greatness and to submit to His will in our lives. we contemplate
The phrase "we contemplate" suggests a deep, meditative reflection on God's character and deeds. The Hebrew root "חָשַׁב" (chashav) means to think, plan, or esteem. This implies an intentional and thoughtful consideration of who God is and what He has done. In the context of worship, contemplation involves more than just passive observation; it requires active engagement of the heart and mind. This encourages believers to take time to ponder God's attributes, His faithfulness, and His works, leading to a deeper understanding and appreciation of His nature. Your loving devotion
"Your loving devotion" translates the Hebrew word "חֶסֶד" (chesed), which is often rendered as lovingkindness, mercy, or steadfast love. This term encapsulates God's covenantal love and faithfulness towards His people. It is a love that is unwavering and enduring, rooted in His promises and character. Throughout the Bible, God's chesed is demonstrated in His actions towards Israel and ultimately through the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ. This phrase calls believers to remember and celebrate God's unwavering love, which is the foundation of our relationship with Him and the source of our hope and security. Persons / Places / Events 1. GodThe central figure in this verse, representing the divine presence and the object of worship and contemplation. 2. TempleThe sacred place where God's presence dwells, symbolizing a place of worship and reflection for the Israelites. 3. Loving Devotion (Hebrew: ?????, chesed)A key attribute of God, often translated as lovingkindness, mercy, or steadfast love, reflecting His covenantal faithfulness. Teaching Points Contemplation in WorshipWorship is not just about singing or rituals; it involves deep contemplation of God's attributes, especially His loving devotion. The Significance of God's PresenceThe temple symbolizes God's presence among His people. Today, believers are the temple of the Holy Spirit, emphasizing the importance of living in awareness of God's presence. Understanding God's Loving DevotionGod's chesed is a foundational aspect of His character. Reflecting on this can deepen our trust and relationship with Him. Corporate and Personal WorshipWhile the verse speaks of collective worship within the temple, it also encourages personal reflection on God's love in our daily lives. Covenantal FaithfulnessGod's loving devotion is tied to His covenant with His people. Understanding this can strengthen our faith in His promises. Bible Study Questions 1. How does the concept of God's "loving devotion" (chesed) in Psalm 48:9 enhance your understanding of His character? 2. In what ways can you create a "temple" in your own life where you regularly contemplate God's attributes? 3. How does the idea of being the temple of the Holy Spirit (1 Corinthians 6:19) influence your daily walk with God? 4. Reflect on a time when you experienced God's loving devotion in a tangible way. How did it impact your faith? 5. How can the practice of contemplating God's loving devotion within a community of believers strengthen the church? Connections to Other Scriptures 1 Kings 8:27-30Solomon's prayer at the dedication of the temple emphasizes God's presence and the importance of the temple as a place of prayer and contemplation. Psalm 136Repeatedly highlights God's "loving devotion" (chesed), reinforcing the theme of God's steadfast love throughout Israel's history. Hebrews 10:19-22Discusses the new way opened through Jesus, allowing believers to draw near to God with a sincere heart, paralleling the access to God's presence in the temple. People Korah, Psalmist, TarshishPlaces JerusalemTopics Kindness, Love, Loving, Lovingkindness, Loving-kindness, Meditate, Mercy, Midst, O, Steadfast, Temple, Thoughts, UnfailingDictionary of Bible Themes Psalm 48:9 8166 theology Psalm 48:1-14 7271 Zion, as symbol Psalm 48:9-10 8662 meditation Library A Song of Deliverance
'Great is the Lord, and greatly to be praised in the city of our God, in the mountain of His holiness. 2. Beautiful for situation, the joy of the whole earth, is mount Zion, on the sides of the north, the city of the great King. 3. God is known in her palaces for a refuge. 4. For, lo, the kings were assembled, they passed by together. 5. They saw it, and so they marvelled; they were troubled, and hasted away. 6. Fear took hold upon them there, and pain, as of a woman in travail. 7. Thou breakest …
Alexander Maclaren—Expositions of Holy ScriptureThe Mystery
Of the Two Witnesses prophesying in Sackcloth. Two witnesses or prophets sent by God, clothed in sackcloth, are to preach, while the Gentiles are treading under foot the court of the people of God, or the holy city. These are the interpreters and assertors of Divine truth, who should deplore that foul and lamentable contamination of the Church of Christ, by continual complaints, and whom God would raise up as unceasing monitors to the Christian world, committing whoredom with the Gentiles, and as …
Joseph Mede—A Key to the Apocalypse Sermon on the Mount Continued Its Woes in Strict Agreement with the Creator's Disposition. Many Quotations Out of the Old Testament in Proof of This.
"In the like manner," says He, [3982] "did their fathers unto the prophets." What a turncoat [3983] is Marcion's Christ! Now the destroyer, now the advocate of the prophets! He destroyed them as their rival, by converting their disciples; he took up their cause as their friend, by stigmatizing [3984] their persecutors. But, [3985] in as far as the defence of the prophets could not be consistent in the Christ of Marcion, who came to destroy them; in so far is it becoming to the Creator's Christ that …
Tertullian—The Five Books Against Marcion But I Marvel, If, as it is Allowed to Put Away a Wife Who...
7. But I marvel, if, as it is allowed to put away a wife who is an adulteress, so it be allowed, having put her away, to marry another. For holy Scripture causes a hard knot in this matter, in that the Apostle says, that, by commandment of the Lord, the wife ought not to depart from her husband, but, in case she shall have departed, to remain unmarried, or to be reconciled to her husband; [1950] whereas surely she ought not to depart and remain unmarried, save from an husband that is an adulterer, …
St. Augustine—On the Good of Marriage St. Malachy's Apostolic Labours, Praises and Miracles.
[Sidenote: 1140, October] 42. (23). Malachy embarked in a ship, and after a prosperous voyage landed at his monastery of Bangor,[576] so that his first sons might receive the first benefit.[577] In what state of mind do you suppose they were when they received their father--and such a father--in good health from so long a journey? No wonder if their whole heart gave itself over to joy at his return, when swift rumour soon brought incredible gladness even to the tribes[578] outside round about them. …
H. J. Lawlor—St. Bernard of Clairvaux's Life of St. Malachy of Armagh Departure from Ireland. Death and Burial at Clairvaux.
[Sidenote: 1148, May (?)] 67. (30). Being asked once, in what place, if a choice were given him, he would prefer to spend his last day--for on this subject the brothers used to ask one another what place each would select for himself--he hesitated, and made no reply. But when they insisted, he said, "If I take my departure hence[821] I shall do so nowhere more gladly than whence I may rise together with our Apostle"[822]--he referred to St. Patrick; "but if it behoves me to make a pilgrimage, and …
H. J. Lawlor—St. Bernard of Clairvaux's Life of St. Malachy of Armagh 'He Uttered his Voice, the Earth Melted'
'Then Isaiah the son of Amos sent to Hezekiah, saying, Thus saith the Lord God of Israel, That which thou hast prayed to Me against Sennacherib king of Assyria I have heard. 21. This is the word that the Lord hath spoken concerning him; The virgin, the daughter of Zion, hath despised thee, and laughed thee to scorn; the daughter of Jerusalem hath shaken her head at thee. 22. Whom hast thou reproached and blasphemed? and against whom hast thou exalted thy voice, and lifted up thine eyes on high? even …
Alexander Maclaren—Expositions of Holy Scripture Of Love to God
I proceed to the second general branch of the text. The persons interested in this privilege. They are lovers of God. "All things work together for good, to them that love God." Despisers and haters of God have no lot or part in this privilege. It is children's bread, it belongs only to them that love God. Because love is the very heart and spirit of religion, I shall the more fully treat upon this; and for the further discussion of it, let us notice these five things concerning love to God. 1. The …
Thomas Watson—A Divine Cordial The Eternity of Heaven's Happiness.
Having endeavored, in the foregoing pages, to form to ourselves some idea of the glorious happiness reserved for us in heaven, there still remains to say something of its crowning glory--the eternity of its duration. This is not only its crowning glory, but it is, moreover, an essential constituent of that unspeakable joy which now inebriates the souls of the blessed. A moment's reflection will make this evident. Let us suppose, for the sake of illustration, that on the last day, God should thus …
F. J. Boudreaux—The Happiness of Heaven Epistle ii. To Anastasius, Bishop of Antioch.
To Anastasius, Bishop of Antioch. Gregory to Anastasius, Patriarch of Antioch. I have received the letters of your most sweet Blessedness, which flowed with tears for words. For I saw in them a cloud flying aloft as clouds do; but, though it carried with it a darkness of sorrow, I could not easily discover at its commencement whence it came or whither it was going, since by reason of the darkness I speak of I did not fully understand its origin. Yet it becomes you, most holy ones, ever to recall …
Saint Gregory the Great—the Epistles of Saint Gregory the Great Notes on the Third Century
Page 161. Line 1. He must be born again, &c. This is a compound citation from John iii. 3, and Mark x. 15, in the order named. Page 182. Line 17. For all things should work together, &c. See Romans viii. 28. Page 184. Lines 10-11. Being Satan is able, &c. 2 Corinthians xi. 14. Page 184. Last line. Like a sparrow, &c. Psalm cii. Page 187. Line 1. Mechanisms. This word is, in the original MS., mechanicismes.' Page 187. Line 7. Like the King's daughter, &c. Psalm xlv. 14. Page 188. Med. 39. The best …
Thomas Traherne—Centuries of Meditations Psalms
The piety of the Old Testament Church is reflected with more clearness and variety in the Psalter than in any other book of the Old Testament. It constitutes the response of the Church to the divine demands of prophecy, and, in a less degree, of law; or, rather, it expresses those emotions and aspirations of the universal heart which lie deeper than any formal demand. It is the speech of the soul face to face with God. Its words are as simple and unaffected as human words can be, for it is the genius …
John Edgar McFadyen—Introduction to the Old Testament Links Psalm 48:9 NIVPsalm 48:9 NLTPsalm 48:9 ESVPsalm 48:9 NASBPsalm 48:9 KJV
Psalm 48:9 Commentaries
Bible Hub |
