READ Psalm 68:32–35. 32 Sing to God, you kingdoms of the earth, sing praise to the Lord, 33 to him who rides across the highest heavens, the ancient heavens, who thunders with mighty voice. 34 Proclaim the power of God, whose majesty is over Israel, whose power is in the heavens. 35 You, God, are awesome in your sanctuary; the God of Israel gives power and strength to his people. Praise be to God!
GOD OF AWE AND INTIMACY. This final chorus of praise is characterized by almost uncontainable excitement, one of the marks of true worship. It also exhibits the two poles between which biblical worship incessantly moves—awe and intimacy. “While it reasserts the cosmic power of God (verses 33–34), it names him still the God of Israel (verse 35), no diffused and faceless deity. The psalm . . . bears witness to its grasp of this reality, this union of immense power and intense care, in the God whose majesty is over Israel [and] his power is in the skies.”56 If our prayer life discerns God only as lofty, it will be cold and fearful—if it discerns God only as a spirit of love, it will be sentimental.
Prayer: Lord, you are immeasurably high, intimidatingly great, and beyond my comprehension. Yet you became a human baby and offer me your friendship through Jesus Christ. I can only wonder at your glory and grace! Let my life be marked by both holy awe before you and glad intimacy with you. Amen.