Background for the Background:
In Numbers 16 the Bible records an event in the life of a man named Korah. He was of the tribe of Levi and therefore set apart to be a member of the priesthood in Israel. He rebuked Moses, saying:"You have gone too far! The whole community is holy, every one of them, and the LORD is with them. Why then do you set yourselves above the LORD's assembly?"
-Numbers 16:3
He resented Moses' and Aaron's authority, and felt that he and his supporters could lead the Israelites more effectively. Later in the chapter, the earth opens underneath him and swallows him along with the others in his rebellion. He did not recognize the sovereignty of God and would not humble himself.
-Psalm 42:7
Background for Psalm 42:
This Psalm includes the title: "A Maschil of David for the sons of Korah." A maschil (MAS-keel) is an instructive song, meant to teach us something about how to live, and the sons of Korah (many scholars believe) are the descendants of this Korah in Numbers 16 who rebelled against the Lord and was swallowed up. Having the story of the wrath of God so attached to your family name must have shaped the very core of who these men were. They were Levites, serving in and around the temple with their lives, singing praises to the God who destroyed their ancestor when he rebelled. These men must have been desperately wanting to be closer to God with a true "fear of the Lord."Digging Deeper:
"Deep calls to deep in the roar of your waterspouts; all your waves and breakers have swept over me."-Psalm 42:7
We don't have waterspouts around here. But David had likely seen one off the coast of Syria, and it helped him to put into words the cry of a heart desperately longing for God. A waterspout is basically a tornado in the ocean. These are often extremely large and amazingly violent, pulling up tons of ocean water and gushing it out into the clouds.
Can you relate to this sort of deep sin in your heritage that you may not even have been alive for? Is there a generational curse in your life that is so attached to you it's like part of your name? We all have the deep sin nature inherited from Adam in ourselves, but most of us have sins that hit particularly close to home in our family history. This imagery of a violent tornado sucking up the deepest, most hidden waters of my soul from down on the ocean floor and shooting them at amazing velocity into the immeasurable depths of God are what singing Praise to God is really about. His depths are so much bigger than our depths that they can cleanse all that muck from the depths of our ocean and turn it into a cleansing rain.
With this Psalm, David is teaching all of us that our Deep needs to call out to the Deep in God. It was true for the sons of Korah, and it is just as true for us today.
Can you relate to this sort of deep sin in your heritage that you may not even have been alive for? Is there a generational curse in your life that is so attached to you it's like part of your name? We all have the deep sin nature inherited from Adam in ourselves, but most of us have sins that hit particularly close to home in our family history. This imagery of a violent tornado sucking up the deepest, most hidden waters of my soul from down on the ocean floor and shooting them at amazing velocity into the immeasurable depths of God are what singing Praise to God is really about. His depths are so much bigger than our depths that they can cleanse all that muck from the depths of our ocean and turn it into a cleansing rain.
With this Psalm, David is teaching all of us that our Deep needs to call out to the Deep in God. It was true for the sons of Korah, and it is just as true for us today.
Deep Cries Out with Gabriel Allred and Christ For The Nation Worship
Lyrics
And I've got a river of living water
A fountain that never will run dry
It's an open heaven You're releasing
And we will never be denied
'Cause we're stirring up deep, deep wells
We're stirring up deep, deep waters
We're gonna dance in the river, dance in the river
'Cause we're stirring up deep, deep wells
We're stirring up deep, deep waters
We're gonna jump in the river, jump in the river
The deep cries out, the deep cries out to You
The deep cries out, the deep cries out to You
We cry out, and we cry out to You, You, Jesus
And I've got a river of living water
A fountain that never will run dry
It's an open heaven You're releasing
And we will never be denied
'Cause we're stirring up deep, deep wells
We're stirring up deep, deep waters
We're gonna dance in the river, dance in the river
'Cause we're stirring up deep, deep wells
We're stirring up deep, deep waters
We're gonna jump in the river, jump in the river
The deep cries out, the deep cries out to You
The deep cries out, the deep cries out to You
We cry out, and we cry out to You, You, Jesus
The deep cries out, the deep cries out to You
The deep cries out, the deep cries out to You
We cry out, and we cry out to You, You, Jesus
We're falling into deeper waters, calling out to You
We're walking into deeper waters, going after You
And if He goes to the left then we'll go to the left
And if He goes to the right then we'll go to the right
We're gonna jump-jump, jump-jump, in the river
Jump-jump, jump-jump everybody
If He goes to the left then we'll go to the left
And if He goes to the right then we'll go to the right
We're gonna dance-dance, dance-dance, in the river
Dance-dance, dance-dance everybody
If He goes to the left then we'll go to the left
And if He goes to the right then we'll go to the right
We're gonna jump-jump, jump-jump, in the river
Jump-jump, jump-jump everybody
If He goes to the left then we'll go to the left
And if He goes to the right then we'll go to the right
We're gonna shout-shout, shout-shout, in the river
Shout-shout, shout-shout! Yeah!
The deep cries out, the deep cries out to You
The deep cries out, the deep cries out to You
We cry out, and we cry out to You, You, Jesus
The deep cries out, the deep cries out to You
The deep cries out, the deep cries out to You
We cry out, and we cry out to You, You, Jesus!
A fountain that never will run dry
It's an open heaven You're releasing
And we will never be denied
'Cause we're stirring up deep, deep wells
We're stirring up deep, deep waters
We're gonna dance in the river, dance in the river
'Cause we're stirring up deep, deep wells
We're stirring up deep, deep waters
We're gonna jump in the river, jump in the river
The deep cries out, the deep cries out to You
The deep cries out, the deep cries out to You
We cry out, and we cry out to You, You, Jesus
And I've got a river of living water
A fountain that never will run dry
It's an open heaven You're releasing
And we will never be denied
'Cause we're stirring up deep, deep wells
We're stirring up deep, deep waters
We're gonna dance in the river, dance in the river
'Cause we're stirring up deep, deep wells
We're stirring up deep, deep waters
We're gonna jump in the river, jump in the river
The deep cries out, the deep cries out to You
The deep cries out, the deep cries out to You
We cry out, and we cry out to You, You, Jesus
The deep cries out, the deep cries out to You
The deep cries out, the deep cries out to You
We cry out, and we cry out to You, You, Jesus
We're falling into deeper waters, calling out to You
We're walking into deeper waters, going after You
And if He goes to the left then we'll go to the left
And if He goes to the right then we'll go to the right
We're gonna jump-jump, jump-jump, in the river
Jump-jump, jump-jump everybody
If He goes to the left then we'll go to the left
And if He goes to the right then we'll go to the right
We're gonna dance-dance, dance-dance, in the river
Dance-dance, dance-dance everybody
If He goes to the left then we'll go to the left
And if He goes to the right then we'll go to the right
We're gonna jump-jump, jump-jump, in the river
Jump-jump, jump-jump everybody
If He goes to the left then we'll go to the left
And if He goes to the right then we'll go to the right
We're gonna shout-shout, shout-shout, in the river
Shout-shout, shout-shout! Yeah!
The deep cries out, the deep cries out to You
The deep cries out, the deep cries out to You
We cry out, and we cry out to You, You, Jesus
The deep cries out, the deep cries out to You
The deep cries out, the deep cries out to You
We cry out, and we cry out to You, You, Jesus!
Andy:
ReplyDeleteYour blog is a wonderful idea. You have an ability to explain things well, and God has given you the gift of a desire to help others see His significance. In that way, you magnify the Lord.
Where did you find the old drawing of the waterspouts at sea? Somehow, it just grabs me--such an unusual, intriguing sight. And it has pulled me right into the psalm about the "deep crying out to deep."
I had heard those words before, but I suppose I always pictured only the deep sorrows we know here on earth. Your description, however, of the Deep in God makes the meaning so much more powerful for me. And the image of the waterspouts makes perfect sense. To realize that God in His love can completely wash away the troubles of this life ... is amazing and humbling.
It so happens that our choir is rehearsing a song called "Deep, Deep Love"--quite different from the song your Worship Team will soon be sharing--but equally as moving. Some of the words: "Love never failing to hear my call demands my soul, my life, my all."
Keep singing, and writing, Andy.
-Paul
Thank you so much for your encouragement Paul,
ReplyDeleteI realize that this comment is from 9 years ago but I am finally getting around to taking my blog more seriously. I think that I had found that picture of a waterspout in a google image search but when I try to do it again now, the only thing that comes up is my blog post. I agree, it is such an intriguing picture and I have still never seen a waterspout personally. Thank you so much for your encouraging words and I have and will be continuing. I am now challenging myself to write for 30 days, every day. Wish me luck and God Speed.
Beautiful ❤️. - Rita
ReplyDelete