84:1,4The writer longed to get away from the bustling world to meet God inside his dwelling piace, his holy Temple. We can meet God anywhere, at any time. But we know that going into a church building can help us step aside from the busy mainstream of life so we can quietly meditate and pray. We find joy and strength not only in the prayers, music, lessons, and sermons but also in feilowshiping with other believers in a special place.
Life Application Study BiblePsalmsChapter 84
Psalm 84
New Living Translation · Life Application Study Bible · Original pages: 933, 934
A few verse numbers on this page were hard to read in the scan and are marked with a dotted underline — compare with the original page image if in doubt.
84Psalm 84
1For the choir director: A psalm of the descendants of Korah, to be accompanied bya stringed instrument.*How lovely is your dwelling place,O LORD of Heaven’s Armies.
2T long, yes, I faint with longingto enter the courts of the LORD.With my whole being, body and soul,I will shout joyfully to the living God.
3Even the sparrow finds a home,and the swallow builds her nest and raises her youngat a place near your altar,O LORD of Heaven's Armies, my King and my God!
4What joy for those who can live in your house,always singing your praises.84:TITLE Hebrew according to the gittith.
5What joy for those whose strength comes from the LORD,who have set their minds on a pilgrimage to Jerusalem.
6When they walk through the Valley of Weeping *it will become a place of refreshing springs.The autumn rains will clothe it with blessings.
7They will continue to grow stronger,and each of them will appear before God in Jerusalem.*
8O LORD God of Heaven's Armies, hear my prayer.Listen, O God of Jacob.
9Q God, look with favor upon the king, our shield!Show favor to the one you have anointed.
10A single day in your courtsis better than a thousand anywhere else!I would rather be a gatekeeper in the house of my Godthan live the good life in the homes of the wicked.
11For the LORD God is our sun and our shield.He gives us grace and glory.The LORD will withhold no good thingfrom those who do what is right.
12O LORD of Heaven's Armies, what joy for those who trust in you. Theme: From reverence to restoration. Reverence leads to forgiveness, restoring our love and joy for God. Author: The sons of Korah (Temple assistants)
Textual footnotes
- 84:6 Or Vajlley of Poplars; Hebrew reads valley of Baca. on 44:4.
Life Application Notes 3 notes
84:5-7The pilgrimage to the Temple passed through the barren Valley of Weeping. No specific valley has been identified. The “weeping” may have been a symbolic reference to the times of struggles and tears through which people must pass on their way to meet God. Growing strong in God’s presence is often preceded by a journey through barren places in our lives. The person who loves to spend time with God will see his or her adversity as an opportunity to experience God's faithfulness even more deeply. If you are walking through your own Valley of Weeping today, be sure your pilgrimage leads toward God, not away from him.
84:11God does not promise to give us everything we think is good, but he will not withhold what is permanently good. He will give us the means to walk along his paths, but we must do the walking. When we obey him, he will not hold anything back that will help us serve him.
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Study feature · page 934
Interlude
Study feature · page 934
Interlude
Study feature · page 934
84:7 Hebrew Zion.