Psalm 29

Psalms 29:1-4 (ESV)

A Psalm of David.

[29:1] Ascribe to the LORD, O heavenly beings,

ascribe to the LORD glory and strength.

[2] Ascribe to the LORD the glory due his name;

worship the LORD in the splendor of holiness.

[3] The voice of the LORD is over the waters;

the God of glory thunders,

the LORD, over many waters.

[4] The voice of the LORD is powerful;

the voice of the LORD is full of majesty.

Psalm 29 is a song of pure worship. There is not a single request in the psalm until the last two lines, “May the LORD give strength to his people! May the LORD bless his people with peace!” (Ps 29:11). The request flows naturally out of twenty-one lines expressing the greatness of God, the majesty of God, the power and authority of God.

Throughout the psalm, a central idea is the voice of the Lord. YHWH, the covenant keeping God speaks and things happen. He is powerful. He speaks and a storm shakes the forests and mountains of Lebanon that strips the trees bare and snaps the cedars in two.

To “ascribe” literally means to give. But we do not give glory and strength to the Lord. We acknowledge his glory and strength. To ascribe to the LORD glory and strength is to recognize and acknowledge it. It is to give voice to his power. That is what worship is. It is giving voice to the greatness of God.

Worship often stimulates emotion. The problem is that we then begin to equate the emotion with worship. Soon, rather than worshipping we are chasing an emotion. Emotion usually requires a certain setting or certain conditions. Worship requires only that we acknowledge through voice or action the glory of God. Worship should never be evaluated on the basis of how it made me feel, but the extent to which we appropriately expressed and responded to the greatness and glory of God. True worship leads to strength and peace. “May the LORD give strength to his people! May the LORD bless his people with peace!” (Ps 29:11). Do you want to know the strength and peace of God? Stop chasing after strength and peace, and learn to worship the LORD.