The earliest
as well as the most sublime of poetic utterances known to man are found in the
Scriptures. Before the oldest of the world's poets had sung, the shepherd of
Midian recorded those words of God to Job --in their majesty unequaled,
unapproached, by the loftiest productions of human genius:
"Where wast thou
when I laid the foundations of the
earth? . . .
Or who shut up the
sea with doors,
When it brake
forth; . . .
When I made the
cloud the garment thereof,
And thick darkness
a swaddling band for it,
And prescribed for
it My decree,
And set bars and
doors,
And said, Hitherto
shalt thou come, but no further;
And here shall thy
proud waves be stayed?
"Hast thou
commanded the morning since thy days began,
And caused the
dayspring to know its place? . . .
"Hast thou entered
into the springs of the sea?
Or hast thou walked
in the recesses of the deep?
Have the gates of
death been revealed unto thee?
Or hast thou seen
the gates of the shadow of death?
Hast thou
comprehended the breadth of the earth?
Declare, if thou
knowest it all.
"Where is the way
to the dwelling of light,
And as for
darkness, where is the place thereof? . . .
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"Hast thou entered
the treasuries of the snow,
Or hast thou seen
the treasuries of the hail? . . .
By what way is the
light parted,
Or the east wind
scattered upon the earth?
Who hath cleft a
channel for the water flood,
Or a way for the
lightning of the thunder;
To cause it to rain
on a land where no man is;
On the wilderness,
wherein there is no man;
To satisfy the
waste and desolate ground;
And to cause the
tender grass to spring forth?"
"Canst thou bind
the sweet influences of Pleiades,
Or loose the bands
of Orion?
Canst thou bring
forth Mazzaroth in his season?
Or canst thou guide
Arcturus with his sons?"
Job 38:4-27, R.V.;
38:31, 32.
For beauty of
expression read also the description of springtime, from the Song of Songs:
"Lo, the winter is
past,
The rain is over
and gone;
The flowers appear
on the earth;
The time of the
singing of birds is come,
And the voice of
the turtle is heard in our land;
The fig tree
ripeneth her green figs,
And the vines are
in blossom,
They give forth
their fragrance.
Arise, my love, my
fair one, and come away."
Canticles 2:11-13,
R.V.
And not inferior in
beauty is Balaam's unwilling prophecy of blessing to Israel:
"From Aram hath
Balak brought me,
The king of Moab
from the mountains of the East:
Come, curse me
Jacob,
And come, defy
Israel.
How shall I curse,
whom God hath not cursed?
And how shall I
defy, whom the Lord hath not defied?
For from the top of
the rocks I see him?
And from the hills
I behold him:
Lo, it is a people
that dwell alone,
And shall not be
reckoned among the nations. . . .
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"Behold, I have
received commandment to bless:
And He hath
blessed, and I cannot reverse it.
He hath not beheld
iniquity in Jacob,
Neither hath He
seen perverseness in Israel:
The Lord his God is
with him,
And the shout of a
King is among them. . . .
Surely there is no
enchantment against (margin) Jacob,
Neither is there
any divination against (margin) Israel:
Now shall it be
said of Jacob and of Israel,
What hath God
wrought!"
"He saith, which
heareth the words of God,
Which seeth the
vision of the Almighty: . . .
How goodly are thy
tents, O Jacob,
Thy tabernacles, O
Israel!
As valleys are they
spread forth,
As gardens by the
riverside,
As lignaloes which
the Lord hath planted,
As cedar trees
beside the waters."
"He hath said,
which heard the words of God,
And knew the
knowledge of the Most High: . . .
I shall see Him,
but not now:
I shall behold Him,
but not nigh:
There shall come a
Star out of Jacob,
And a Scepter shall
rise out of Israel. . . .
Out of Jacob shall
come He that shall have dominion."
Numbers 23:7-23,
R.V.; 24:4-6, R.V.; 24:16-19.
The melody of
praise is the atmosphere of heaven; and when heaven comes in touch with the
earth, there is music and song--"thanksgiving, and the voice of melody." Isaiah
51:3.
Above the
new-created earth, as it lay, fair and unblemished, under the smile of God,
"the morning stars sang together, and all the sons of God shouted for joy." Job
38:7. So human hearts, in sympathy with heaven, have responded to God's
goodness in notes of praise. Many of the events of human history have been
linked with song.
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The earliest song
recorded in the Bible from the lips of men was that glorious outburst of
thanksgiving by the hosts of Israel at the Red Sea:
"I will sing unto
the Lord, for He hath triumphed gloriously:
The horse and his
rider hath He thrown into the sea.
The Lord is my
strength and song,
And He is become my
salvation:
This is my God, and
I will praise Him;
My father's God,
and I will exalt Him."
"Thy right hand, O
Lord, is glorious in power,
Thy right hand, O
Lord, dasheth in pieces the enemy. . . .
Who is like unto
Thee, O Lord, among the gods?
Who is like Thee,
glorious in holiness,
Fearful in praises,
doing wonders?"
"The Lord shall
reign for ever and ever. . . .
Sing ye to the
Lord, for He hath triumphed gloriously."
Exodus 15:1, 2,
6-11, 18-21, R.V.
Great have been the
blessings received by men in response to songs of praise. The few words
recounting an experience of the wilderness journey of Israel have a lesson
worthy of our thought:
"They went to Beer:
that is the well whereof the Lord spake unto Moses, Gather the people together,
and I will give them water." Numbers 21:16. "Then sang Israel this song:
"Spring up, O well;
sing ye unto it:
The well, which the
princes digged,
Which the nobles of
the people delved,
With the scepter,
and with their staves."
Numbers 21:17, 18,
R.V. {Ed 162.3}
How often in
spiritual experience is this history repeated! how often by words of holy song
are unsealed in the soul the springs of penitence and faith, of hope and love
and joy!
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It was with songs
of praise that the armies of Israel went forth to the great deliverance under
Jehoshaphat. To Jehoshaphat had come the tidings of threatened war. "There
cometh a great multitude against thee," was the message, "the children of Moab,
and the children of Ammon, and with them other beside." "And Jehoshaphat
feared, and set himself to seek the Lord, and proclaimed a fast throughout all
Judah. And Judah gathered themselves together, to ask help of the Lord: even
out of all the cities of Judah they came to seek the Lord." And Jehoshaphat,
standing in the temple court before his people, poured out his soul in prayer,
pleading God's promise, with confession of Israel's helplessness. "We have no
might against this great company that cometh against us," he said: "neither
know we what to do: but our eyes are upon Thee." 2 Chronicles 20:2, 1, 3, 4,
12.
Then upon Jahaziel
a Levite "came the Spirit of the Lord; . . . and he said, Hearken ye, all
Judah, and ye inhabitants of Jerusalem, and thou King Jehoshaphat, Thus saith
the Lord unto you, Be not afraid nor dismayed by reason of this great
multitude; for the battle is not yours, but God's. . . . Ye shall not need to
fight in this battle: set yourselves, stand ye still, and see the salvation of
the Lord. . . . Fear not, nor be dismayed; tomorrow go out against them: for
the Lord will be with you." 2 Chronicles 20:14-17.
"And they rose
early in the morning, and went forth into the wilderness of Tekoa." 2
Chronicles 20:20. Before the army went singers, lifting their voices in praise
to God --praising Him for the victory promised.
On the fourth day
thereafter, the army returned to Jerusalem, laden with the spoil of their
enemies, singing praise for the victory won.
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Through song,
David, amidst the vicissitudes of his changeful life, held communion with
heaven. How sweetly are his experiences as a shepherd lad reflected in the
words:
"The Lord is my
Shepherd; I shall not want.
He maketh me to lie
down in green pastures:
He leadeth me
beside the still waters. . . .
Though I walk
through the valley of the shadow of death,
I will fear no
evil: for Thou art with me;
Thy rod and Thy
staff they comfort me." Psalm 23:1-4.
In his manhood a
hunted fugitive, finding refuge in the rocks and caves of the wilderness, he
wrote:
"O God, Thou art my
God; early will I seek Thee:
My soul thirsteth
for Thee, my flesh longeth for Thee,
In a dry and weary
land, where no water is. . . .
Thou hast been my
help,
And in the shadow
of Thy wings will I rejoice."
"Why art thou cast
down, O my soul?
And why art thou
disquieted within me?
Hope thou in God:
For I shall yet
praise Him,
Who is the health
of my countenance,
And my God."
"The Lord is my
light and my salvation;
Whom shall I fear?
The Lord is the
strength of my life;
Of whom shall I be
afraid?"
Psalms 63:1-7,
R.V.; 42:11; 27:1.
The same trust is
breathed in the words written when, a dethroned and crownless king, David fled
from Jerusalem at the rebellion of Absalom. Spent with grief and the weariness
of his flight, he with his company had tarried beside the Jordan for a few
hours' rest. He was awakened by the summons to immediate flight. In the
darkness, the passage of the deep and swift-flowing stream must be made by that
whole company of men, women,
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and little
children; for hard after them were the forces of the traitor son.
In that hour of
darkest trial, David sang:
"I cried unto the
Lord with my voice,
And He heard me out
of His holy hill.
"I laid me down and
slept;
I awaked; for the
Lord sustained me.
I will not be
afraid of ten thousands of people,
That have set
themselves against me around about."
Psalm 3:4-6.
After his great
sin, in the anguish of remorse and self-abhorrence he still turned to God as
his best friend:
"Have mercy upon
me, O God, according to Thy loving-
kindness:
According unto the
multitude of Thy tender mercies
blot out my
transgressions. . . .
Purge me with
hyssop, and I shall be clean:
Wash me, and I
shall be whiter than snow."
Psalm 51:1-7.
In his long Life,
David found on earth no resting place. "We are strangers before Thee, and
sojourners," he said, "as all our fathers were: our days on the earth are as a
shadow, and there is no abiding." I Chronicles 29:15, R.V.
"God is our refuge
and strength,
A very present help
in trouble.
Therefore will not
we fear, though the earth be removed,
And though the
mountains be carried into the midst of
the sea."
"There is a river,
the streams whereof make glad the City
of God,
The holy place of
the tabernacles of the Most High.
God is in the midst
of her; she shall not be moved
God shall help her,
at the dawn of morning. . . .
The Lord of hosts
is with us;
The God of Jacob is
our refuge."
"This God is our
God for ever and ever:
He will be our
guide even unto death."
Psalms 46:1,2;
46:4-7, R.V., margin; 48:14.
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With a song, Jesus
in His earthly life met temptation. Often when sharp, stinging words were
spoken, often when the atmosphere about Him was heavy with gloom, with
dissatisfaction, distrust, or oppressive fear, was heard His song of faith and
holy cheer.
On that last sad
night of the Passover supper, as He was about to go forth to betrayal and to
death, His voice was lifted in the psalm:
"Blessed be the
name of the Lord
From this time
forth and for evermore.
From the rising of
the sun until the going down of the same
The Lord's name is
to be praised."
"I love the Lord
because He hath heard my voice and my
supplications.
Because He hath
inclined His ear unto me,
Therefore will I
call upon Him as long as I live.
"The sorrows of
death compassed me,
And the pains of
hell gat hold upon me:
I found trouble and
sorrow.
Then called I upon
the name of the Lord;
O Lord, I beseech
Thee, deliver my soul.
Gracious is the
Lord, and righteous;
Yea, our God is
merciful.
"The Lord
preserveth the simple:
I was brought low,
and He helped me.
Return unto thy
rest, O my soul;
For the Lord hath
dealt bountifully with thee.
For Thou hast
delivered my soul from death, mine eyes
from tears, and my
feet from falling."
Psalms 113:2, 3;
116:1-8.
Amidst the
deepening shadows of earth's last great crisis, God's light will shine
brightest, and the song of hope and trust will be heard in clearest and
loftiest strains.
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"In that day shall
this song be sung in the land of Judah;
We have a strong
city;
Salvation will God
appoint for walls and bulwarks.
Open ye the gates,
That the righteous
nation which keepeth the truth may
enter in.
Thou wilt keep him
in perfect peace,
Whose mind is
stayed on Thee: because he trusteth in Thee.
Trust ye in the
Lord forever:
For in the Lord
Jehovah is everlasting strength."
Isaiah 26:1-4.
"The ransomed of
the Lord shall return, and come with singing unto Zion; and everlasting joy
shall be upon their heads: they shall obtain gladness and joy, and sorrow and
sighing shall flee away." Isaiah 35:10, R.V.
"They shall come
and sing in the height of Zion, and shall flow together unto the goodness of
the Lord: . . . and their soul shall be as a watered garden; and they shall not
sorrow any more at all." Jeremiah 31:12.