Psalm 115 Commentary
Idols Are Lifeless
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KEY THOUGHT: Their idols are silver and gold, the work of men’s hands. [Psalm 115:4 NKJV]
Kindly read your Bible before going through the commentary!
Psalm 115 NKJV
The Futility of Idols and the Trustworthiness of God
115 Not unto us, O Lord, not unto us,
But to Your name give glory,
Because of Your mercy,
Because of Your truth.
2 Why should the [a]Gentiles say,
“So where is their God?”
3 But our God is in heaven;
He does whatever He pleases.
4 Their idols are silver and gold,
The work of men’s hands.
5 They have mouths, but they do not speak;
Eyes they have, but they do not see;
6 They have ears, but they do not hear;
Noses they have, but they do not smell;
7 They have hands, but they do not handle;
Feet they have, but they do not walk;
Nor do they mutter through their throat.
8 Those who make them are like them;
So is everyone who trusts in them.
9 O Israel, trust in the Lord;
He is their help and their shield.
10 O house of Aaron, trust in the Lord;
He is their help and their shield.
11 You who fear the Lord, trust in the Lord;
He is their help and their shield.
12 The Lord [b]has been mindful of us;
He will bless us;
He will bless the house of Israel;
He will bless the house of Aaron.
13 He will bless those who fear the Lord,
Both small and great.
14 May the Lord give you increase more and more,
You and your children.
15 May you be blessed by the Lord,
Who made heaven and earth.
16 The heaven, even the heavens, are the Lord’s;
But the earth He has given to the children of men.
17 The dead do not praise the Lord,
Nor any who go down into silence.
18 But we will bless the Lord
From this time forth and forevermore.
Praise the Lord!
Footnotes
a. Psalm 115:2 nations
b. Psalm 115:12 has remembered us
New King James Version (NKJV)
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Psalm 115 Commentary
Our God is in heaven; he does whatever pleases him. Verse 3.
The psalmist presents a hugely important subject, especially during a time of countless temples, gods, and shrines.
Yahweh doesn’t reside in human structures. Yes, the LORD God is in Heaven.
“But will God really dwell on earth? The heavens, even the highest heaven, cannot contain you. How much less this temple I have built!” 1 Kings 8:27.
The LORD is not like an idol. The LORD is sovereign.
The god that is created in a workshop is not God. The god that man creates using tools of logic, imagination, and observation is not the LORD God. They cannot speak; they cannot see; they cannot smell; they cannot feel; they cannot walk.
Those who make them will be like them – dead. But Israel should be different.
“It is not the dead who praise the Lord, those who go down to the place of silence; it is we who extol the Lord, both now and forevermore.” Verses 17 and 18.
The LORD cannot be praised by the dead – those who are dead because they have made their own gods. Killed by idolatry. On the contrary, the opposite is true: the LORD is praised by the living – those made alive by their exclusive trust in the LORD God.
They praise God now and forevermore. Could this mean they will never die? Probably yes. “The one who believes in me will live, even though they die; and whoever lives by believing in me will never die.” Said the LORD Jesus Christ as recorded in John 11.
This psalm beautifully highlights the difference between life and death. Death is manufactured in the individual’s workshop as he makes idols. He becomes what he makes – lifeless.
Life, on the other hand, is the gift the LORD gives to the individual as they put their trust in the LORD God.
The New Testament has expanded the definition of idols or gods. Money, the stomach, appetites, and demonic hosts, among many others. Some are dumb and lifeless.
Others are not exactly lifeless. They can act and talk. They mislead whoever they can mislead. There is a god for just about every possible appetite. Many more new ones are on the production line.
This psalm, however, implores the saint to trust in the LORD God.
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