Your Hope Pleases the Lord

Scripture — Psalm 147:10-11

His delight is not in the strength of the horse,
     nor his pleasure in the speed of a runner;
but the LORD takes pleasure in those who fear him,
     in those who hope in his steadfast love.

Devotion

When I was a boy, I was transfixed by the televised displays of the armies of the Soviet Union as they paraded through the streets of Moscow. I was impressed by the columns of tanks traveling in precise formation. But the most striking of all the armaments in those parades were the nuclear missiles. They looked powerful and deadly. Indeed, they were both of these.

I watched those televised parades with a mixture of fascination and fear. Perhaps my least favorite part, however, was seeing the fur-coated leaders of the Soviet Union glowing as they celebrated their military might. It was easy to see just how much they delighted in the power of their weapons and warriors.

According to Psalm 147, God is not like the leaders of the Soviet Union. God does not delight in military power. Now, we might easily miss this point since the images in Psalm 147 are not of tanks and missiles. Rather, the author of Psalm 147 uses military images appropriate for his day. Thus, we read in verse 10: “[The LORD’s] delight is not in the strength of the horse, nor his pleasure in the speed of a runner.” Whereas we might think of sports when we read this verse, the ancient Israelites would have envisioned warfare. Consider, for example, Miriam’s song after God destroyed the armies of Egypt, “Sing to the LORD, for he has triumphed gloriously; horse and rider he has thrown into the sea” (Exodus 15:21). Horses and riders were for warfare. Runners were for armed combat. According to Psalm 147, God delights in neither.

Rather, “the LORD takes pleasure in those who fear him, in those who hope in his steadfast love” (Psalm 147:11). Fear, in this case, is something like awestruck reverence and respectful submission. It doesn’t drive us away from God. Rather, it resides in our hearts alongside our hope in God’s steadfast love. Previously in this series on Advent in Psalms we have seen a close connection between fear of the Lord and hoping in his love. As you may recall, Psalm 33:18 reads, “Truly the eye of the LORD is on those who fear him, on those who hope in his steadfast love.” Psalm 147 makes it clear that God’s eye is filled with delight when watching those who hope in God, rather like a parent’s sparkling eye when receiving homemade birthday cards from their children.

I’ve been a fan of Advent for almost half my life. I’ve given plenty of thought to how our Advent hope in the Lord makes a difference in our relationship with God. But, until this reflection on Psalm 147, I don’t think I ever considered the fact that our hope in God might actually give pleasure to God. I find this truth to be deeply moving. I truly want to give God pleasure and I find it astonishing that God has made this possible. The joys of Advent include far, far more than I had previously imagined.
In this season of Advent, as you nurture your hope in God, hold on to this amazing truth: Hoping in God not only blesses you, but it blesses God as well. When you hope in God, God is truly pleased. Wow!

Find all Life for Leaders devotions here. Explore what the Bible has to say about work at the unique website of our partners, the Theology of Work Project’s online commentary. Reflection on today’s Life for Leaders theme can be found here: God’s Glory in All of Creation: Psalm 147.

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