Psalm 36 – Four beautiful attributes

Psalm 36 begins and ends with the wicked, those who have ‘no fear of God before their eyes’ (v1). David’s description of them is a description of each of us before the grace and mercy of God invaded: When surrounded by such people who are committed to the pursuit and promotion of evil it is […]

Psalm 117 – The Hallel (Part 5)

Psalms 113-118 are a collection of six psalms known as the Hallel which are recited at key Jewish festivals, including that of Passover. In this series of posts I will take a brief look at each of them in turn as we move through Lent. As I reflect on the Hallel I will have in […]

Sayings from the Cross #3: Grace

‘Truly, I say to you, today you will be with Me in Paradise’ (Luke 23:43) Grace is outrageous. As we have already seen, Jesus was crucified between two criminals.  These two men deserved punishment.  Described as robbers by Matthew and Mark, and criminals by Luke, we don’t know the details of their crimes, only that […]

Sayings from the Cross #2: Tenderness

‘Woman, behold your son!’…. ‘Behold your mother!’ (John 19:26,27) I cannot imagine the pain and heartache of Mary at this moment.  Stood nearby as her son was viciously nailed to the cross, then hoisted up and clearly dying in agony, what must she have been thinking?  Yes, there was the small comfort of her companions […]

Psalm 91 – When fear lurks

Psalm 91 is a masterpiece.  Before reading on, you really must make sure that you have slowly read the whole psalm – maybe a couple of times! In the light of the unfolding situation related to the Coronavirus, COVID-19, I have been struck by the poignancy of this magnificent psalm.  It is a psalm of […]

Psalm 117 – Two reasons to praise!

Psalm 117 is the shortest of all the psalms but packs a punch far more powerful than its brevity would indicate. The first thing to note is that it is addressed to ‘all nations’ and ‘all peoples’. Wow – so this tiny psalm has a global audience! The whole of the world is told to […]

Gomer: The Prostitute who was Loved (Hosea 1-3)

The book of Hosea is extremely challenging.  The message of the book shines like a powerful beam of light highlighting the unrelenting faithfulness of God’s love in stark contrast to the persistent faithless rebellion of His people.  It is set in Old Testament time where, despite the covenant relationship between God and His people, the […]

Psalm 136 – The Refrain of History

Psalm 136 is so simple and yet so profound.  Even the briefest reading of it will enable you to capture the central thought: ‘His steadfast love endures forever’.  Repeated as the second half of every single one of the 26 verses, it is clear what the Psalmist’s key theme is! At one level the refrain […]

Psalm 5 – Contrasting abundance

Psalm 5 opens with David imploring God to listen to his cries, ‘Give ear to my words…consider my groaning.  Give attention to the sound of my prayer…to You do I pray’ (vv1,2).  He then reminds God of the fact that the wicked, evil, boasters, evildoers, liars, bloodthirsty and deceitful do not delight Him (vv4-6).  He points […]