Psalm 29

¹Ascribe to the LORD, O heavenly beings, ascribe to the LORD glory and strength.

²Ascribe to the LORD the glory due his name; worship the LORD in the splendor of holiness.

³The voice of the LORD is over the waters; the God of glory thunders, the LORD, over many waters. ⁴The voice of the LORD is powerful; the voice of the LORD is full of majesty.

⁵The voice of the LORD breaks the cedars; the LORD breaks the cedars of Lebanon. ⁶He makes Lebanon to skip like a calf, and Sirion like a young wild ox.

⁷The voice of the LORD flashes forth flames of fire. ⁸The voice of the LORD shakes the wilderness; the LORD shakes the wilderness of Kadesh.

⁹The voice of the LORD makes the deer give birth and strips the forests bare, and in his temple all cry, "Glory!"

¹⁰The LORD sits enthroned over the flood; the LORD sits enthroned as king forever.

¹¹May the LORD give strength to his people! May the LORD bless his people with peace!

1. Read the psalm through 2 times. What stands out to you? How many times do you see the word 'LORD'? In the original language, the name David uses is Yahweh (check out the blog entry for Psalm 19 for more information on this name of God). Why do you think David uses this name for God in the psalm?
2. Isaiah 6:3 reads, "And one called to another and said: "Holy, holy, holy is the LORD of hosts; the whole earth is full of his glory!". Compare this verse to verses 1 and 2 from the psalm. I see 3 major things in common: the heavenly beings (angels, referred to as ‘one another’ in Isaiah), the angels telling God that He is holy and that glory comes from God. How do you think this relates to you?
3. Read verses 3-9 together. These verses are filled with different images of God's strength. In which of these images do you most relate to? What other images of nature speak of God's strength to you? In verses 6 and 7, the cities of Lebanon and Sirion are in the north of Israel while Kadesh is in the south. What does this say about the extent of God's presence? In verse 1 we saw the angels declaring the glory of God. According to verse 9, are they alone in this?
4. Read verses 10 and 11. The only other time in scripture we see the word 'flood' is in Genesis 6-11 when speaking of Noah's flood. David is making the point that God was the power behind the flood during the time of Noah, hundreds of years before David, and that He will reign forever! How does it comfort you to know that God is eternal? What two things does verse 11 tell us that God gives us?