Upside Down – Psalm 113

A text – Psalm 113

¹ Praise the Lord!
Praise, O servants of the Lord; praise the name of the Lord.

² Blessed be the name of the Lord from this time on and forevermore.
³ From the rising of the sun to its setting, the name of the Lord is to be praised.
⁴ The Lord is high above all nations and his glory above the heavens.

⁵ Who is like the Lord our God, who is seated on high,
⁶ who looks far down on the heavens and the earth?
⁷ He raises the poor from the dust and lifts the needy from the ash heap,
⁸ to make them sit with princes, with the princes of his people.
⁹ He gives the barren woman a home, making her the joyous mother of children.
Praise the Lord!

A reflection:

Why would anyone be praising God from morning until night forever? The psalmist urges us to do so. But why? Who is this God? What is the Lord our God like, so that we are so impressed and thankful that we praise the Holy Name of God continuously? What does our God do to make us want to give praise and thanks 24 hours a day?

OK, God is seated on high, looking down on heaven and earth and then what? Does God do what a king does? Appreciating fine art, praising gifted composers for making music, smelling beautiful temple incense and noting the burnt offerings of humans? No.

Here’s why we praise God: God raises the poor, lifts the needy from the ash heap, to make them sit with princes, gives the barren woman a home with children. God gets down in the dirt, heals the wounds no one will go near, looks suffering humans in the eye and loves them. Loves us. Meets us in our sorrow and knows our pain. God, who could reside clean and above-it-all in heaven, meets us in the mud and takes us to a banquet and sits us next to a prince. Turns everything you might expect upside down. Out of love.

A prayer:

Lord God, Thank you for loving us. Thank you for the psalms that paint pictures of your mighty life and what you give to us though we are lowly. Thank you for caring about us. We give you thanks and praise you every day and every night.  Amen.