The Trees Will Sing of Peace
Scripture — Psalm 96:11-13a (NRSV)
Let the heavens be glad, and let the earth rejoice;
let the sea roar and all that fills it;
let the field exult and everything in it.
Then shall all the trees of the forest sing for joy
before the Lord, for he is coming,
for he is coming to judge the earth.
He will judge the world with righteousness
and the peoples with his truth.
Focus
Psalm 96 is a psalm of thanksgiving attributed to King David when they brought the arc of the covenant into Jerusalem in 1 Chr. 16:7. My heart is drawn to the ordinary quietness of a peace-filled creation in these verses. When there is peace, it means the sky is free of warplanes. When there is peace, the seas roar with the creatures in it. When there is peace, the fields exalt and crickets, birds, grasshoppers, and bunnies are free to run around. And when there is peace, even the trees of the forest sing their song of joy.
Devotion
I am not unfamiliar with the sounds of war. I survived a civil war when I was only one year old in my native country of Nicaragua. When you survive an actual revolution, you know the sounds of airplanes above your home, the unsafety of stepping outside on the streets where AK-47s dominate and gunshots pierce the peace of your childhood. When bombs fall all around they keep you from hearing the silence of trees. There is no peace.
Psalm 96 is a psalm of thanksgiving attributed to King David when they brought the arc of the covenant into Jerusalem in 1 Chr. 16:7. My heart is drawn to the ordinary quietness of a peace-filled creation in these verses. When there is peace, it means the sky is free of warplanes. When there is peace, the seas roar with the creatures in it. When there is peace, the fields exult and crickets, birds, grasshoppers, and bunnies are free to run around. And when there is peace, even the trees of the forest sing their song of joy.
Inside the psalm, the humans and the heavens, seas, and fields, and even trees rejoice in anticipation of the Prince of Peace, “for he is coming.” This long-awaited Messiah and his reign is the one we have been waiting for years. The psalm indicates that we still long for his faithfulness and ache for his justice. They did then and we do now.
Our world is in need of this messianic peace. Our homes are in need of this peace. Our workplaces are in need of this peace. My heart is in need of this peace. My prayer is that the dissonance of violence will quiet down so much that we can actually hear the trees sing. This will be a sign of peace when you can actually hear the benediction of trees. God, we are longing for this peace again and anew.
Reflect
Have you ever considered the invitation of trees as a sacred space for prayer?
Act
Find a tree and sit under it for 5 minutes. Close your eyes or look up at the branches, unclench your jaw, feel the breeze. Breathe the benediction and may this be a prayer of peace for you and those places in your life/world that need a messianic peace.
Pray
God of peace, we ask that you would capture our hearts with your presence and bring about peace. Peace in our bodies, in our lungs, in our wills, in our heartaches. Jesus our Prince of Peace, may you animate our work that we would make for peace in our words, our policies, our efforts, our collaborations. May your peace that surpasses all mis-understanding reconcile our broken relationships. Grant us peace. Amén.
Find all Life for Leaders devotions here. Explore what the Bible has to say about work at the High Calling archive, hosted by the unique website of our partners, the Theology of Work Project. Reflection on today’s Life for Leaders theme can be found here: Advent Reflection: Why Do We Praise the Lord?.
Inés Velásquez-McBryde
Chaplain at Fuller Theological Seminary & Pastor, Preacher, Speaker
Inés Velásquez-McBryde is a pastor, preacher, reconciler and mujerista theologian. She is the lead pastor and co-founder of The Church We Hope For. She is originally from Nicaragua, a third generation pastor, and the first pastora in her family. Inés earned her MDiv at Fuller Theolo...