Psalm 126:1-6 Fortunes Restored
A psalm of great joy and surprise. Our psalmist sings of God’s great mercy in restoring Israel’s fortunes with jaw dropping abundance.
I have a feeling that this psalm is where the song, Bringing in the Sheaves comes from. I don’t recall singing it as a child in church but I’ve heard it sung many times on television, especially on the Little House on the Prairie. They sang it in their worship services.
When reading this psalm I got a mental image of the people as they watched the hand of the Lord at work. We aren’t told exactly when the events referenced in this psalm belong to but I can think of an account that fits wonderfully. The last time we were together I referenced godly kings from Judah who had ‘rest’ during their reigns. The event I’m thinking of are recorded in 2 Chronicles 20 and occurred under the reign of King Jehoshaphat.
Judah was about to be overrun by an alliance between three kingdoms; the Moabites, Ammonites and some Meunites. Instead of falling down in fear, King Jehoshaphat brought the matter before the Lord. Long story short, GOD fought this battle for Judah and it took them THREE DAYS to gather all the spoils. The only thing Judah had to raise in this battle was their voices, in praise. God did the rest and gave them AMAZING fortunes for trusting in Him.
Israel, as a nation, has had other jaw dropping restorations in recent history too. The simple fact that they are again a nation is jaw dropping. The Promised Land, through years of conquests, had been stripped away from Israel. Others had claimed, and in some cases reclaimed, the land. But God worked in the hearts of man and brought about a return of these lands and the nation of Israel was once again reestablished. Something unheard of before that day. I’m certain a LOT of jaws dropped over this, on both sides of the isle. Israel now had a home again. God had restored her fortunes.
No. She wasn’t a full representation of the people left Egypt but she was once again a people with a homeland. And the reassembling began. From all the corners of the globe, those of the line of Israel began pouring in to take possession again of the Promised Land.
My parents have a story of God restoring their ‘fortunes’ when they didn’t even know they had lost them. They were at church one day and a message was given to them that said the Lord would restore what was taken. Unknown at the time, their storage shed had been broken into and a lot of items were stolen. They were confused by the message but did as Mary had done with the angels words to her; they stored them in their hearts.
The next day, while preparing for a camping trip, they went to retrieve needed equipment from their storage shed. They found a strange lock on the door. Once it was removed they opened the door and found multiple items stacked in front of the door as though someone was readying these too for removal. They quickly looked over the remaining content and found that the items they needed for this trip were gone. They filed a police report and then went to town to replace the items they needed immediately.
While shopping in the local stores they located THEIR items on the store shelves. They were easily identifiable because of different markings my father had put on several of them. The managers of these stores were immediately informed as well as the police. It turns out that the thieves had taken the items stolen from my parents and returned them to the stores in an attempt to get cash. The stores were gracious and returned the stolen items to my parents. The thieves were identified by the stores where they had returned the merchandise and were apprehended. Some things had already passed beyond their reach but the value of those items were returned to my parents later by the people who stole them, thanks to the court system. My parents ‘fortunes’ were restored and then some by the Lord in a jaw dropping fashion.
Something else about this psalm is that in the bad times the people didn’t sit down and cry about their circumstances. They went on working with what they had left. “Those who sow in tears shall reap with shouts of joy! He who goes out weeping, bearing the seed for sowing, shall come home with shouts of joy, bringing his sheaves with him” (verses 5-6). When my parents discovered their losses, they weren’t even thinking about the promise given to them the day before. They went out seeking replacements on their own; taking their own ‘seed’ to sow for the replacement items. I have no doubt that their hearts were heavy when they started out. But God honored their willingness to forge on and rewarded it. IF they had cancelled their trip and refused to look to replace what they had lost they would never have found their own items in the stores.
We never know what good God can do when we refuse to give in to despair. There WILL be trouble in this life. But God is BIGGER that this world and He is the one who is taking care of us.
One last thought I want to share with you is one I had several days ago but I think it goes well with this psalm. For some reason I was thinking about the end times when those who refuse the mark of the beast won’t be able to buy or sell. I was thinking about what they would eat. Then I was reminded of the manna the children of Israel ate in the wilderness. If the storehouses of Heaven could sustain Israel for 40 years while they wandered, imagine how easily He could supply those who turn to Him in the end.
“Therefore I tell you, do not be anxious about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink, nor about your body, what you will put on. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing? Look at the birds of the air: they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they? And which of you by being anxious can add a single hour to his span of life? And why are you anxious about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin, yet I tell you, even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. But if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is alive and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith? Therefore do not be anxious, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ For the Gentiles seek after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them all. But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you” (Matthew 6:25-33).
Father God, THANK YOU for all the times You have restored my ‘fortunes’ too. And there have been many! Thank You that You care about my needs and my wants. I don’t need to worry about my life because You have it in Your hands. I trust You with all I have. Forgive me for the days I do take up worrying. Those too have been many. I’m praying that they will be absent or at least a LOT fewer going forward. I WILL work with what You have given me and be amazed at what it returns. For NOTHING You do comes back void or empty. This is NOT a prosperity prayer but a prayer of thanks giving for ALL You have done and continue to do in my life. It too is jaw dropping!
