Psalm 33 (Listen)

The Steadfast Love of the Lord

33:1   Shout for joy in the LORD, O you righteous!
    Praise befits the upright.
  Give thanks to the LORD with the lyre;
    make melody to him with the harp of ten strings!
  Sing to him a new song;
    play skillfully on the strings, with loud shouts.
  For the word of the LORD is upright,
    and all his work is done in faithfulness.
  He loves righteousness and justice;
    the earth is full of the steadfast love of the LORD.
  By the word of the LORD the heavens were made,
    and by the breath of his mouth all their host.
  He gathers the waters of the sea as a heap;
    he puts the deeps in storehouses.
  Let all the earth fear the LORD;
    let all the inhabitants of the world stand in awe of him!
  For he spoke, and it came to be;
    he commanded, and it stood firm.
10   The LORD brings the counsel of the nations to nothing;
    he frustrates the plans of the peoples.
11   The counsel of the LORD stands forever,
    the plans of his heart to all generations.
12   Blessed is the nation whose God is the LORD,
    the people whom he has chosen as his heritage!
13   The LORD looks down from heaven;
    he sees all the children of man;
14   from where he sits enthroned he looks out
    on all the inhabitants of the earth,
15   he who fashions the hearts of them all
    and observes all their deeds.
16   The king is not saved by his great army;
    a warrior is not delivered by his great strength.
17   The war horse is a false hope for salvation,
    and by its great might it cannot rescue.
18   Behold, the eye of the LORD is on those who fear him,
    on those who hope in his steadfast love,
19   that he may deliver their soul from death
    and keep them alive in famine.
20   Our soul waits for the LORD;
    he is our help and our shield.
21   For our heart is glad in him,
    because we trust in his holy name.
22   Let your steadfast love, O LORD, be upon us,
    even as we hope in you.

(ESV)

OT summary
The psalmist incites every instrument possible to praise: shouts, thanksgiving, melodies, songs. “Praise befits the upright.” For those dressed with God’s Word, worship is life.

With mere words He made the heavens, gathers the seas, waters the earth. He is the Most High, the Almighty: let all the inhabitants fear and worship Him. He masters the minds of men. Want to humor Him? Just tell Him your plans. It is His counsel that stands forever. The Lord fashions every heart and watches over them.

The foolish look to their handiwork for salvation. But it is the Lord who births, feeds, elects and nurtures. His eye is especially on those who love and fear Him. He is their hope and defense, the source of great gladness.

2 Corinthians 11:1–15 (Listen)

Paul and the False Apostles

11:1 I wish you would bear with me in a little foolishness. Do bear with me! For I feel a divine jealousy for you, since I betrothed you to one husband, to present you as a pure virgin to Christ. But I am afraid that as the serpent deceived Eve by his cunning, your thoughts will be led astray from a sincere and pure devotion to Christ. For if someone comes and proclaims another Jesus than the one we proclaimed, or if you receive a different spirit from the one you received, or if you accept a different gospel from the one you accepted, you put up with it readily enough. Indeed, I consider that I am not in the least inferior to these super-apostles. Even if I am unskilled in speaking, I am not so in knowledge; indeed, in every way we have made this plain to you in all things.

Or did I commit a sin in humbling myself so that you might be exalted, because I preached God’s gospel to you free of charge? I robbed other churches by accepting support from them in order to serve you. And when I was with you and was in need, I did not burden anyone, for the brothers who came from Macedonia supplied my need. So I refrained and will refrain from burdening you in any way. 10 As the truth of Christ is in me, this boasting of mine will not be silenced in the regions of Achaia. 11 And why? Because I do not love you? God knows I do!

12 And what I am doing I will continue to do, in order to undermine the claim of those who would like to claim that in their boasted mission they work on the same terms as we do. 13 For such men are false apostles, deceitful workmen, disguising themselves as apostles of Christ. 14 And no wonder, for even Satan disguises himself as an angel of light. 15 So it is no surprise if his servants, also, disguise themselves as servants of righteousness. Their end will correspond to their deeds.

(ESV)

NT summary
The last thing the apostle wanted to do was boast about his status, but he recognized that he’d been forced by his opposition to do so. Therefore, before he even began, he offered a sincere apology, followed by explanation: his godly jealousy. The apostle’s heart for those he had lead into the kingdom had been wounded by their betrayal to other personalities, away from Christ. His opposers had created factions among his children of the faith. Desperate, Paul resorted to personal testimony in an effort to substantiate his status in their mind again; not for his personal gain, but for theirs in Christ Jesus.