Psalm 29 Commentary
This psalm is addressed to the heavenly beings. They must regard glory and strength as belonging to the Creator God. They must, therefore, worship Him. He belongs to a class of His own.
The LORD speaks through the many majestic and wondrous elements of nature: the mystery of the flood waters thought to hang above the planetary surface; the thunder; the flashes of lightning; the earth quakes; the strong winds; and the storms. The LORD speaks or takes residence even in the barrenness of the desert.
The LORD is not confined within the limited scope of the saint’s imaginations. Nor is the LORD only present in spaces defined by our knowledge. The LORD is actively present in nature. The material world perfectly answers to the commands of the LORD.
The desert may refer to the apparent thought of barrenness and the consequent thought of the absence of God from such nothingness. Yes, God is there, even in places of apparent obscurity.
Let the heavenly beings ascribe glory and strength due to God’s name. Down here and from God’s temple, all cry, “Glory!” Heavenly and invisible, and earthly and visible; let all creation ascribe glory and strength to the LORD, exclusively.
David has talked about two worship spaces. One is covered by the heavenly beings while the other one is covered by mortals. Worship is based on the knowledge that glory and strength belong to the LORD.
The chapter conveys the LORD’s authority, power, and control over elements of nature. Interestingly, the psalmist only highlights the natural elements that have the appearance of disorder, unchecked and random character and a sense of negative energy on creation. The thought here could be that the LORD sits above this confusion rather than under it. The saint can therefore draw encouragement from the thought that the raging wave of evil is still under the ultimate authority of the Creator God. At one point, it will all come to an end in obedience to the will and purposes of the LORD of Creation.
Interestingly, the psalmist closes with the statement that the LORD gives strength to His people; the LORD blesses His people with peace – peace being a component of the glory of God. Worship may therefore be described as the process of being Christ-like – in a manner that is consistent with the will of the Father. It is a call to righteousness and holy living.
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