Just looking for my home

Psalm 120:1-7

“In my distress I called to the Lord, and he answered me.  Deliver me, O Lord,
from lying lips, from a deceitful tongue.  What shall be given to you, and what more shall be done to you, you deceitful tongue?  A warrior's sharp arrows, with glowing coals of the broom tree!  Woe to me, that I sojourn in Meshech, that I dwell among the tents of Kedar!  Too long have I had my dwelling among those who hate peace.  I am for peace, but when I speak, they are for war!”

I looked in the foot notes on page1002 in the ESV and it informs us about Psalm 120 and the 14 Psallms that follow it.  It is the first of 15 psalms of ascents, 120-134.  These psalms were designed for the pilgrimage processions to celebrate seasonal feasts in Jerusalem.

We are told in Scripture not to put our trust in men, look at Psalm 118:8, “It is better to take refuge in the LORD than to trust in man.”  What about Psalm 146:3, “Put not your trust in princes, in a son of man, in whom there is no salvation.”  What about truth and lies; every man and every woman has lied and if they say they haven’t, then they’ve just told another one. Only God cannot lie because He is Holy and it’s against His nature to lie (Titus 1:2) for it is written “God is not man, that he should lie, or a son of man, that he should change his mind” (Num 23:19a) and the fact is its “impossible for God to lie” (Heb 6:18).  Taken from, “What Christians Want to Know.”

It seems some of the people were speaking lies while swearing by God that they were telling the truth –they would face severe judgment.  The bloom tree was a hard-stemmed plant and was used to make charcoal.  Meshech was located southeast of the Black Sea and was inhabited by Arab tribes.  When an Israelite lived there only as aliens, he was far from home.

We are told in Scripture that this earth is not our home, we are aliens and strangers, and we should have a desire to be seeking our real home. (Hebrews 11:13-16) I’m fearful that to many of us are like the Jews who left Egypt, they chose slavery over seeking home.  But you have a promise that this is not home, and Jesus our amazing Lord has gone to prepare a place for all who put their trust in Him.  Jesus gave us this insight in John14:1-3, “Let not your hearts be troubled. Believe in God; believe also in me.  In my Father's house are many rooms. If it were not so, would I have told you that I go to prepare a place for you?  And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and will take you to myself, that where I am you may be also.”

Just looking for my home,

From the Back Porch,

Bob Rice