Psalm 105:4 - Depend upon God and His strength in all that you do.
Psa 105:4: Depend upon God and His strength in all that you do.
Psa 105:4 (KJV) Seek the LORD, and his strength: seek his face
evermore.
Psa 105:4 (NIV) Look to the LORD and his strength; seek his
face always.
Psa 105:4 (NRSV) Seek the LORD and his strength; seek his
presence continually.
Psa 105:4 (NCV) Depend on the LORD and his strength; always go
to him for help.
Psa 105:4 (AMP) Seek, inquire of and for the Lord, and crave
Him and His strength (His might and inflexibility to temptation);
seek and require His face and His presence [continually] evermore.
CONTEXT
Psalms 105 and 106 are companion pieces in that history is
searched in both. In the former, God's acts are emphasized; in the
latter, Israel's acts of disobedience are recited. Both poems show
affinity with Psalm 78, in which the two themes are interwoven. [Wycliffe
Bible Commentary]
Psalms 105: God's Love for Israel
Psalms 105: God's Faithfulness to Israel
Psalms 105: Tell of All His Wonderful Works
Vss. 1-6 The Call for Thanksgiving. Give thanks ... call ...
sing ... talk ... glory ... rejoice ... seek ... remember. The
psalmist's detailed instructions reveal what it means to praise the Lord.
It is clear that the hymn was designed for congregational use.
[Wycliffe Bible Commentary]
Vss. 1-6 The call to praise the Lord consists of six verses. The
first five contain imperatives whose frequency decreases from three
verbs (vv. 1-2), to two verbs (vv. 3-4), to one verb (v. 5); v. 6 has
no verb. Each verb is different and adds its own connotation to the
harmonious blending of synonyms for praise. Verses 1-2 stress the act of
verbal communication: "Give thanks ... call on his name; make known"
(cf. Isa 12:4), "Sing ... sing praise ... tell." The following five
verbs connote the reflective element. The heart of the devotees is
filled with the Lord and his acts: "Glory ... let ... rejoice.... Look
[lit., 'seek' (d-r-sh) as in v. 3] ... seek [b-q-sh].... remember." The
variety of verbs for "praise" adds an important dimension to the
aesthetic wholeness of worship.
The psalmist also interweaves several other motifs: the object
of worship, the subjects of worship, and the goal of worship. The
Lord is the object of worship (cf. 1 Tim 6:16). From the phraseology
we learn about "what he has done" (v. 1, lit., "his deeds"), "all
his wonderful acts" (v. 2), his holiness and "strength" (vv. 3-4),
and "the wonders ... his miracles, and the judgments" (v. 5). The
reference to "holy" and "strength" must not be divorced from the acts of
God. In other words, for the psalmist the acts of God reveal his
being.... The goal of praise is threefold. First, praise magnifies the
Lord. When the people of God reflect on him and what he has done, they
ascribe power, holiness, and glory to his name. His perfections and
mighty acts are so closely interrelated that no separation can be made
between praise and thanksgiving. Second, praise intensifies an
appreciation of the history of redemption as it affects God's people in the
present. They receive consolation and encouragement, reflecting on what
he has done in the past. Third, praise also witnesses to those
outside the covenant community. [Expositors Bible Commentary]
Vss. 1-4 The exhortation to worship and trust. [NIV SB]
CROSS REFERENCES
Amos 5:6 (KJV) Seek the Lord, and ye shall live; lest he break
out like fire in the house of Joseph, and devour it, and there be
none to quench it in Bethel.
Jer 29:13 (KJV) And ye shall seek me, and find me, when ye
shall search for me with all your heart.
Zeph. 2:3 (KJV) Seek ye the Lord, all ye meek of the earth,
which have wrought his judgment; seek righteousness, seek meekness: it
may be ye shall be hid in the day of the Lord's anger.
2 Cor. 12:9 And he said unto me, My grace is sufficient for
thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness. Most gladly
therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ
may rest upon me.
Isa 30:15 (NIV) This is what the Sovereign LORD, the Holy One
of Israel, says: "In repentance and rest is your salvation, in
quietness and trust is your strength, but you would have none of it.
Prov 3:5, 6 (KJV) Trust in the LORD with all thine heart; and
lean not unto thine own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge
him, and he shall direct thy paths.
Heb 12:2 (KJV) Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of
our faith; who for the joy that was set before him endured the
cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the
throne of God.
1 Thes. 5:17 Pray without ceasing.
Hebrews 11:6 But without faith it is impossible to please him:
for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a
rewarder of them that diligently seek him.
COMMENTARY / APPLICATION
If God seems far away, persist in your search for him. God
rewards those who sincerely look for him (Hebrews 11:6). Jesus promised,
"Seek and you will find" (Matthew 7:7). The psalmist suggested a
valuable way to find God--become familiar with the way he has helped his
people in the past. The Bible records the history of God's people. In
searching its pages we will discover a loving God who is waiting for us to
find him. [Life Application SB]
Seek his strength; that is, his grace; the strength of his
Spirit to work in us that which is good, which we cannot do but by
strength derived from him, for which he will be sought. Seek to have his
favour to eternity, therefore continue seeking it while living in this
world; for he will not only be found, but he will reward those that
diligently seek him. [Matthew Henry Commentary]
When Jesus was upon the earth, He taught His disciples how to
pray. He directed them to present their daily needs before God, and to
cast all their care upon Him. And the assurance He gave them that
their petitions should be heard, is assurance also to us. Have a
place for secret prayer. Jesus had select places for communion with
God, and so should we. We need often to retire to some spot, however
humble, where we can be alone with God. . . In the secret place of
prayer, where no eye but God's can see, no ear but His can hear, we may
pour out our most hidden desires and longings to the Father of
infinite pity, and in the hush and silence of the soul that voice which
never fails to answer the cry of human need will speak to our hearts.
. As we make Christ our daily companion we shall feel that the
powers of an unseen world are all around us; and by looking unto Jesus
we shall become assimilated to His image. By beholding we become
changed. The character is softened, refined, and ennobled for the
heavenly kingdom. The sure result of our intercourse and fellowship with
our Lord will be to increase piety, purity, and fervor. There will
be a growing intelligence in prayer. We are receiving a divine
education, and this is illustrated in a life of diligence and zeal. The
soul that turns to God for its help, its support, its power, by
daily, earnest prayer, will have noble aspirations, clear perceptions
of truth and duty, lofty purposes of action, and a continual
hungering and thirsting after righteousness. By maintaining a connection
with God, we shall be enabled to diffuse to others, through our
association with them, the light, the peace, the serenity, that rule in our
hearts. The strength acquired in prayer to God, united with persevering
effort in training the mind in thoughtfulness and care-taking, prepares
one for daily duties and keeps the spirit in peace under all
circumstances. Religion must begin with emptying and purifying the heart, and
must be nurtured by daily prayer. {AG 290}
"You must have a good heart," one man said to his child, "if you
are going to act right in this world." And then to illustrate his
point he continued, "Suppose my watch was not keeping time very well.
Would it do any good if I went to the town clock, and made the hands
of my watch point exactly the same as those of the larger clock in
the square? No, of course not! Soon my watch would be just as
inaccurate as before. Rather, I should take my watch to a watchmaker, or to
a jewelry store that repairs watches. It is only when my watch has
been cleaned and repaired that its hands will be able to keep time
accurately all day long." When we spend time in prayer, we are, in like
manner, going to the Heart Maker, asking Him to "clean and repair" our
hearts from the damage caused by sins we have committed. We are asking
Him to put us right again on the inside, so that we can act right on
the outside. When our children see us doing this, they are much more
likely to go to the Heart Maker when they feel their own lives are in
disarray or "out of sync"--rather than turn to the world and reset their
souls according to its standards and priorities. Have you visited the
Heart Maker today? [God's Little Devotional Bible]
Now just now is our opportunity to open the windows of the soul
heavenward and to close the windows earthward. Now is the time for every
church member to say, I will close my heart to everything that would
hinder my communion with Christ; I will open the windows of my soul
heavenward that I may understand spiritual things. {TDG 75.1}
As a people and as individuals our success depends, not on
numbers, on standing, nor on intellectual attainments, but on walking and
working with Christ. {HP 328.4}
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