Psalms 31:1-4 and 145:1-3

My Shepherd met me in His green pastures and laid me down in Psalm 89, a psalm of Ethan the Ezrahite.*

The Mind of the Spirit engaged the spirit of my mind in verses 50-51:

Psalms 89:50 Remember, Lord, the reproach of thy servants; how I do bear in my bosom the reproach of all the mighty people;

Psalms 89:51 Wherewith thine enemies have reproached, O LORD; wherewith they have reproached the footsteps of thine anointed.

The word reproach stood out to me: it’s repeated four times in these two verses. Each use of reproach translates related Hebrew expressions all indicating what we mean by the word. In verse 50, the sense is to be put to shame, exposed, made naked to ones embarrassment and humiliation. The second use repeats this meaning by referring to that humiliation being carried in the bosom of the psalmist. In the next verse, the word used is in close affinity with the first, and expresses the idea of mockery.

Along the still waters, I pondered this Psalm, all of it written by the inspiration of the Holy Ghost (2 Timothy 3:16; 2 Peter 1:21). I noticed that the distinction between when the psalmist is speaking, and when he is relating to us what God is speaking is subtle in the opening passage (89:1-4). Reading verse 1 it is clear that Ethan is speaking from the first person. Verse 2 could be the LORD speaking in first person, or it could be Ethan’s testimony. But verses 3-4 is clearly a reference to God’s promise to David, however, it’s also written in first person. This only occurs in the opening of the Psalm (89:1-4). The next intersection is at verse 19, where Ethan shows the change from his Spirit given testimony to quoting God’s promises to David.

Ethan’s recitation of God’s covenant with David are in verses 3-4, and 19-37. I don’t know of any one place where we find a more complete compilation of God’s promises to David.**

After Ethan provided a fairly comprehensive record of God’s promises to David, he declares a condition that belies the promises (89:38-52). Ethan laments the apparent cancellation of God’s covenant with David (89:39), and cries: “How long, LORD? wilt thou hide thyself forever?” (89:46a). He pleads: “Lord, where are thy former loving kindnesses, which thou awarest unto David in thy truth?” (89:49). It appears that Ethan did not consider that part of God’s promises David given in 89:29-33, in which God specifically promised that David’s see would endure forever, even through seasons of chastisement under the rod, “nevertheless my lovingkindness will I not utterly take from him, nor suffer my faithfulness to fail” (89:33).

In verses 50-51, I hear the Spirit advocating for the reproached through the prayer of Ethan: “Remember, Lord, the reproach …” (89:50-51).

Ethan concludes by resolving to praise the Lord saying, in spite of his current circumstances apparently contradicting his expectation, “Blessed be the LORD for evermore. Amen, and Amen” (89:52).

In the valley, I knelt in the shadow of the Cross upon which the promised son of David died, suffering our “reproach” (Romans 15:3; Hebrews 13:13; see 11:26, then 10:33). We are called to bear His reproach, the shame He endured on Calvary at the hands of the raging heathen falls upon us (Psalm 2). My Shepherd called: “If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow me” (Luke 9:23). I followed Him to His table.

At the table, Jesus spoke to me of the reproach that shames us, and the reproach that saves us. We are reproached for our sins, He bore that reproach for our salvation. He made a way for us to approach Him even in our reproach. As He promised David, so He has promised us: “I am with thee alway, even unto the end of the world,” and “I will never leave thee, or forsake thee” (Matthew 28:20; Hebrews 13:5).

He anointed my head with His oil. He took my cup, filled it for the day, and took care to stir in a sufficient measure of His grace. I took my cup, bearing my cross, and followed Him into the harvest. Goodness and mercy followed close.

Praying for revival! 🙏

Going live later today. I’ll post the link when I get the chance.

[*Ezrahite literally means home born; one among those born in the land. The same word here translated Ezrahite is translated home born in Exodus 12:49. Here is it used as a proper noun to identify the family to which Ethan, and Heman (See Psalm 88:0). Some connect Ethan and Heman to the Levites appointed to serve in the music ministry of the Temple (1 Chronicles 6:33-44. Supporting this is the fact that Ethan and Heman are identified as “sons of Mahol” in I Kings 4:31. Mahol means dance, and no one is identified by that name anywhere else in Scripture. It is generally believed the expression, “sons of Mahol,” is used similarly to “sons of the prophets” (1 Kings 20:35; etc.), speaking of a guild, an association of persons identified with a particular profession. If this is the case, Ethan and Heman were members of the musical guild.

Others find Ethan and Heman connected to Judah’s son by Tamar (Genesis 38:30), Zerah, from whom came Zimri, Ethan, Heman, Calcol, and Dara (1 Chronicles 2:6).

I favor the Levitical connection since these men were serving in the ministry of music (Psalm 88:0; 89:0). But David, and Moses before him, and Solomon after him, also wrote Psalms. Ethan’s Psalm concentrates on the Davidic covenant, and, speaking humanly, that might indicate some personal connection to Judah.

I notice that Ethan’s Psalm recites God’s promises to David, and then presents a lamentation, describing then present, or prophesied conditions where it appears these promises failed: “But thou hast cast off and abhorred, thous hast been wroth with thine anointed. Thou has made void the covenant of thy servant: thou hast profaned his crown by casting it to the ground” (Psalm 89:38-39, and following). The description might respond to the period during which David fled Absalom, but there does not seem to be any other place during David’s life, or Solomon’s, that answers to Ethan’s description. Nothing in the Psalm suggests this passage is prophetic, rather it seems to be describing a then present condition. It is not unheard of for a prophetic passage to sound like a current description, but it is not the norm. The passage from 38-52 would apply very closely to the Babylonian captivity (Psalm 89:29-33)—where it is promised that even in chastisement, God does not remove His mercy from David’s seed.

The identity of Ethan and Heman cannot be determined with certainty. The arguments presented here are weak, and cannot be taken as anything more than a superficial basis for some reasonable speculation. One thing stands out, however: Solomon’s wisdom is compared to that of Ethan and Heman, the sons of Mahol (1 Kings 4:31).]

[**Here is a record of all the places I can find where God’s promises to David are recorded: 2 Samuel 7:4-17; 1 Chronicles 17:3-15; 22:6-13; 28:2-10; 2 Samuel 23:1-7 (David’s last words); the David Covenant reaffirmed by Solomon: 1 Kings 2:1-4; 6:11-13; 8:15-26; 9:1-9; 1 Chronicles 28:20-29:1; 2 Chronicles 6:4-17; 7:12-22; 13:5; 21:7; in other Psalms: 2:6-12; 18:50; 72:1-20; Psalm 89:3-4, 19-37; 110:1-7; 132:10-18; and in the Prophets: Isaiah 9:6-7; 11:1-10; 16:5; 55:3-4; Jeremiah 23:5-6; 30:9; 33:14-26; Ezekiel 34:23-24; 37:24-28; Hosea 3:4-5; Amos 9:22-12; Zechariah 12:7-13:1; this continues into the Gospels and the New Testament: Luke 1:30-33, 68-75; Acts 2:25-36; 13:22-37; Romans 1:3-4; Hebrews 1:5; Revelation 22:16).]