#886 May the Lord

Come, bless the Lord, all you servants of the Lord,

who stand by night in the house of the Lord!

2 Lift up your hands to the holy place

and bless the Lord!

3 May the Lord bless you from Zion,

he who made heaven and earth! Psalm 134 ESV

A song of Ascents, bless the Lord. The last of the songs of degrees, the departure.

Come, bless the Lord, all you servants of the Lord - They have made the long journey, have refreshed their vows to the Creator, have learned from the scribes and priests, have enjoyed such grand fellowship, and this is the morning of their departure. "You there, His servants, bless the One Who has blessed you."

- Their departing brethren arouse them with the shrill cry of "Behold!" Behold! --see, take care, be on the watch, diligently mind your work, and incessantly adore and bless Jehovah's name. Bless ye the LORD. Think well of Jehovah, and speak well of him. Adore him with reverence, draw near to him with love, delight in him with exultation. Be not content with praise, such as all his works render to him; but, as his saints, see that ye "bless" him. He blesses you; therefore, be zealous to bless him. The word "bless" is the characteristic word of the Psalm. The first two verses stir us up to bless Jehovah, and in the last verse Jehovah's blessing is invoked upon the people. Oh to abound in blessing! May blessed and blessing be the two words which describe our lives. Let others flatter their fellows, or bless their stars, or praise themselves; as for us, we will bless Jehovah, from whom all blessings flow. C. H. Spurgeon

Who stand by night in the house of the Lord - You are the honored watchmen, do not fail to keep watch, to point toward heaven, to tell us of His glory. Please take care of your calling, keep fast to the word of God, do not tell us what we want to hear, but only what God has said. Guard the truth from those who would sell this place, who would pervert it's meaning, do not let them catch you sleeping on your watch.

Lift up your hands to the Holy place and bless the Lord - We should pray for those who God has appointed as ministers to us, and encourage them, stir them up to their duty, directing them to direct us to our first love. 

- As the angels praise God day without night, so must the angels of the churches be instant in season and out of season. And bless the LORD. This is their main business. They are to bless men by their teaching, but they must yet more bless Jehovah with their worship. Too often men look at public worship only from the side of its usefulness to the people; but the other matter is of even higher importance: we must see to it that the Lord God is adored, extolled, and had in reverence. C. H. Spurgeon

…31 Now judgment is upon this world; now the prince of this world will be cast out. 32 And I, when I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all men to Myself.” 33 He said this to indicate the kind of death He was going to die.… John 12: 31-33

May the Lord bless you from Zion, He Who made heaven and earth - The priests return the blessing, not "I bless you child", but rather, "May the Lord bless you", that is the greater blessing, the best to be desired. Those that call themselves ministers but point to themselves rather than God, they only stand in the way. Those that desire to be served rather than serve look nothing like Christ. He, who thinks his blessing is equal to or greater than the Lord's, is a fool and charlatan. He is no shepherd that does not desire his Lord to be glorified and his sheep blessed. Praise the name of Jesus.

…10 The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I have come that they may have life, and have it in all its fullness. 11 I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down His life for the sheep. 12 The hired hand is not the shepherd, and the sheep are not his own. When he sees the wolf coming, he abandons the sheep and runs away. Then the wolf pounces on them and scatters the flock.… John 10: 10-12

To the Angel

…3 Without growing weary, you have persevered and endured many things for the sake of My name. 4 But I have this against you: You have abandoned your first love. 5 Therefore, keep in mind how far you have fallen. Repent and perform the deeds you did at first. But if you do not repent, I will come to you and remove your lamp stand from its place.… Revelation 2: 3-5