29 Bible Reading – The Book Of Psalms (73-89)

A Transcript Of The Video Study

This is the twenty-ninth study in the series, and we are looking once more at the book of Psalms. In our previous study, I pointed out the book of Psalms has been divided into five sub-books, often called the Five Books of Psalms.

Book 1: Psalms 1-41 (1 hr, 5 min to read)
• Total 41: David (37); Anonymous (4)
Book 2: Psalms 42-72 (51 min to read)
• Total 31: David (18); Asaph (1); Korah (7); Solomon (1); Anonymous (4)
Book 3: Psalms 73-89 (36 min to read)
• Total 17: David (1); Asaph (11); Korah (3); Ethan (1); Heman (1)
Book 4: Psalms 90-106 (31 min to read)
• Total 17: David (2); Moses (1); Anonymous (14)
Book 5: Psalms 107-150 (1 hr, 10 min to read)
• Total 44: David (15); Solomon (1); Anonymous (28)

For this study, we are looking at the third book of Psalms, beginning with Psalm 73 and ending with Psalm 89. It takes 36 minutes to read in a single sitting. This is a total of seventeen Psalms, one of which is ascribed to David, eleven to Asaph, three to the sons of Korah, one to Ethan and one to Heman.

In preparation for your reading of this third book, I would like to say three things about it.

First, the New Testament quotations.

Of the seventeen Psalms in the Third Book, the New Testament writers quote from three of them.

Psalm 78—Psalm 78:2 (Matthew 13:35); Psalm 78:24 (John 4:31)

Psalm 82—Psalm 82:6 (John 10:34)

Psalm 89—Psalm 89:20 (Acts 13:22)

As I have pointed out in the previous studies, the New Testament writers quote from the book of Psalms because it is a gospel book. The gospel of the New Testament is the gospel of the Old Testament. There is one gospel, and both Testaments proclaim it. If, therefore, we are to receive any spiritual benefit from the Psalms, we must understand them within the context of the gospel of Christ.

Second, the characters mentioned.

There are seven names recorded in the inspired text of the third book. One of them belongs to God’s elect people—Jacob; the other six belong to the non-elect—Sisera, Jabin, Oreb, Zeeb, Zebah and Zalmunna.

Aside from the names recorded in the inspired text, there are five names mentioned in the inscriptions. Four of them belong to God’s elect people—Asaph, David, Heman and Ethan. It is uncertain into which group one of them belongs—the sons of Korah.

These are the characters mentioned in the third book of Psalms.

Third, the leading message.

As you should know by now, the leading message of the book of Psalms is the masterplan of God for the ages. The masterplan of God for the ages is the administration of His grace to the members of the human race. There is a common grace of God unto creation which extends to the elect and the non-elect alike; but then, there is the special grace of God unto salvation which is designed for and extended only to the elect.

However, there is one part of God’s masterplan for the ages which tends to receive more attention than the other parts—the sanctifying power of the Holy Spirit, especially as it relates to the rule of conduct for the believer’s life. The rule of conduct for the believer’s life is the Gospel Law, which is nothing other than the soul’s union with the Lord Jesus Christ, by virtue of which the life and graces of Christ flow into the soul. And this is the law, you see, which governed the lives of those who wrote the Psalms. They had been regenerated by the Spirit of God, and therefore their souls were in union with Christ, which is the basis upon which they experientially enjoyed a relationship with God.

Now, I would like to give three examples on how the third book of Psalms emphasizes the Gospel Law as the believer’s rule of conduct.

The first example is Psalm 73:24-26: ”Thou shalt guide me with thy counsel, and afterward receive me to glory. Whom have I in heaven but thee? and there is none upon earth that I desire beside thee. My flesh and my heart faileth: but God is the strength of my heart, and my portion for ever.” The Lord guides His people with the counsel of His grace—His special grace unto salvation. There is an eternal counsel which belongs to the TriUne Jehovah, wherein the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit have conversed and covenanted to save their people from their sins. This eternal counsel is made known to the Lord’s people in one of three ways. First and foremost, the counsel of the Lord’s special grace is made known to the soul at the time of the new birth, when the Spirit of God unites the soul with the Lord Jesus Christ. By virtue of that union, the life of Christ flows into the soul making the sinner alive unto God, and, the graces of Christ flow into the soul, enabling the sinner to exercise the fruit of the new nature, among which is saving faith. From this point forward, the Spirit of God communicates the life and graces of Christ to the soul, growing the regenerate sinner in grace and in the knowledge of the Lord Jesus Christ. Another way the Lord makes known the eternal counsel of His special grace is through the revelation of the scriptures, which are able to make us wise unto salvation which is in Christ Jesus. And a third way the eternal counsel of His special grace is made known to sinners is through the proclamation of the good news by gospel preachers. Now, all three of these revelations were available to the writers of the Psalms, and I have no doubt but that this is what Asaph is referring to in Psalm 73. The Lord will guide him with the counsel of His special grace unto salvation. And after guiding him as a stranger and a pilgrim in this world, He will safely conduct him through the valley of the shadow of death and receive him into glory. But you see, so long as the regenerate sinner remains a stranger and a pilgrim in this world, he is blessed with the gift of God’s counsel unto salvation which guides him along the path of his earthly pilgrimage. Henceforth, the Lord is his all in all—who in heaven does he have but the TriUne Jehovah; who on earth does he desire beside the TriUne Jehovah? And look, the Psalmist acknowledges the twofold nature of his soul—that inner conflict between the sinful nature and the righteous nature—when he confesses that his flesh and his heart fail. Are these not references to his sinful nature, sometimes called the flesh, as Jesus called it in John 3, and sometimes called the heart, as Jeremiah called it the seventeenth chapter of his book? Yes, nothing good dwells in the old nature, it profits nothing spiritually and it cannot please God. It fails. But, the Lord God is the strength of his heart. Now the term heart is used in a new sense, referring to the new nature imparted to the soul by virtue of the new birth. The old nature continues to reside in the soul and remains unchanged; but a new nature is imparted to the soul, created in righteousness and true holiness. And it is in this sense that God is the strength of the new nature. As Jesus described it in John 15:5: ”I am the vine, ye are the branches: He that abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit: for without me ye can do nothing.” Christ is the strength of the new nature, for it is by virtue of our union with Him that His life, and power, and graces flow into our souls. Therefore the Psalmist exclaims, the Lord is my portion for ever! That, my dear friends, is nothing other than the Gospel Law which Asaph so beautifully describes in these verses.

The second example is Psalm 79:8,9: ”O remember not against us former iniquities: let thy tender mercies speedily prevent us: for we are brought very low. Help us, O God of our salvation, for the glory of thy name: and deliver us, and purge away our sins, for thy name’s sake.” Here is another example of Asaph describing the Gospel Law. Having been born again, he is made conscious of the enormity of his sins and the defilement of his soul. He struggles to put behind him his transgressions, as they seem to linger like a ghost in his thoughts. He is brought very low, or greatly humbled and under a deep sense of guilt and shame. Where does he go to find relief for his sin burdened and guilt ridden soul? He doesn’t run to the Heart Law, neither does he flee to the Moral Law, nor does he find refuge in the Gospel Law as a mere set of precepts and commandments. No, no! Rather, he runs to the Gospel Law as that living union with Christ, knowing that Christ alone is able to speak peace to his soul and heal the brokenness of his heart. He therefore petitions the Lord, in the light of Christ’s redeeming grace, to remember not against him his former iniquities. He asks the Lord to help him, the God of his salvation. He asks the Lord to deliver him, and purge away his sins. And notice upon what basis Asaph makes these petitions. It is on the basis of His tender mercy in Christ; it is on the basis of the glory of His name, or the glory of the covenant engagements agreed upon by the three persons of the Godhead. For the Father’s name sake, according to His electing love; for the Son’s name sake, according to His redeeming grace; for the Spirit’s name sake, according to His sanctifying power. That, my friends, is another example of Asaph describing the Gospel Law as the rule of conduct that governed his walk with the Lord.

The third example is Psalm 84:5-7: “Blessed is the man whose strength is in thee; in whose heart are the ways of them. Who passing through the valley of Baca make it a well; the rain also filleth the pools. They go from strength to strength, every one of them in Zion appeareth before God.” Here is another example of the Gospel Law as the rule of conduct for the believer’s life. The sinner who has been regenerated by the Spirit of God is truly blessed. That is the meaning of these words—“Blessed is the man whose strength is in thee; in whose heart are the ways of them.” Having been born again, a new nature is imparted to the soul, created in righteousness and true holiness, the very union of the soul with Christ, whose strength and graces flows into the soul. And then notice, after the sinner has been born again, he no longer is a citizen of this world, but a stranger and a pilgrim passing through it, desiring a better country, that is, an heavenly country, wherefore God is not ashamed to be called his God, for He has prepared for him a city. And, it is in this the regenerate sinner, as a stranger and a pilgrim in the world, passes through the valley of Baca, which is a reference to our life on this earth—nothing but a dry dead wilderness, full of hardships and sorrows. Ah, but while passing through the rough and harsh places of this world, he is taught of God to dig wells, the wells of grace in Christ, where he may find refreshment for his parched soul. Do you see, my friends? The Lord will not suffer His people to die in the wilderness, but will send from time to time the showers of gospel blessings to water their souls and revive their spirits. It is in this way they go from strength to strength—the graces of Christ continually flowing into the soul, granting perpetual life, with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places imparted to them. Here is another example of the Gospel Law as it is set forth in the book of Psalms.

Alright, my friends, I must leave it there. I do pray you will be enriched by the gospel of Christ as you read the third book of Psalms this week. Look out for the many descriptions of the Gospel Law, and seek from the Lord a special application of those descriptions to your own soul, that you might stand fast in the liberty wherewith Christ has made you free, not being entangled again with the yoke of bondage.