Psalms 28

Psalms 28:1

Day and Night

After questions about the beginning of creation, the next topic on which God questions Job is the beginning of the day. Has Job, since he was alive, ever caused the day to dawn, that the morning began to shine, and the dawn to be seen (Job 38:12)? Has he been able to influence the alternation between day and night? Has he determined when and where that would happen? Also this question is not answered. God does not expect an answer either. All questions must lead Job to the only correct answer and that is that he no longer has any rebuttal to God’s government in his life. If he acknowledges God’s guidance, he doesn’t need answers.

Job and we too would never have come to that question. The rising and setting of the sun is so mundane, so self-evident, that we don’t even think about Who is behind it. Nor do we dwell on the fact that this process has been going on since creation, when God said: “Let there be light” (Genesis 1:3). No man can make it day, and no man can break through that daily recurring wonder. Day and night belong to God (Psalms 74:16).

The dawn of the day also has an effect on the wicked (Job 38:13). When it becomes light, it is to “to take hold of the ends of the earth”. When the sun rises, the whole horizon is suddenly illuminated. This gives the picture that it is as if the light is taking hold of the earth like a tablecloth to shake the crumbs off. The wicked are then seen here as the crumbs being shaken off the earth.

Here we see the effect of light on those who love the works of darkness. They hate the light (John 3:19-20), for it reveals their evil works (Ephesians 5:13). As soon as it becomes light, they flee the light; they fear the light and are driven away by it (cf. Job 24:17). God asks Job if he has commanded them to do so at dawn.

Another consequence of the dawning of the day after night is that the form of all things becomes visible again (Job 38:14). In the night everything is dark and the outlines fade away. The earth then seems to be a shapeless and colorless piece of “clay”. But just as the impression of a seal in the soft clay changes the shape of the clay into something recognizable, so the dawn of the day changes the shape of the earth into something recognizable. The “garment” of the earth, where we can think, for example, of the trees and flowers that we do not see at night, is seen. In the morning light we see the whole structure and beauty of the earth.

Opposite the recognizability of God’s creation works in the light is the disappearance of the wicked (Job 38:15). The daylight breaks through, but they do not benefit from it. On the contrary, they do not want the light and crawl away from it. Because they do not want to see the light, but prefer darkness, they will never see the light. Their “uplifted arm”, a picture of their rebellion against God, will be broken forever (cf. Numbers 15:30; Psalms 10:15; Psalms 37:17). In the realm of peace, when Christ has risen as the Sun of righteousness, He will wipe out all the wicked from the land every morning (Malachi 4:2-3; Psalms 101:8).

Psalms 28:2

Day and Night

After questions about the beginning of creation, the next topic on which God questions Job is the beginning of the day. Has Job, since he was alive, ever caused the day to dawn, that the morning began to shine, and the dawn to be seen (Job 38:12)? Has he been able to influence the alternation between day and night? Has he determined when and where that would happen? Also this question is not answered. God does not expect an answer either. All questions must lead Job to the only correct answer and that is that he no longer has any rebuttal to God’s government in his life. If he acknowledges God’s guidance, he doesn’t need answers.

Job and we too would never have come to that question. The rising and setting of the sun is so mundane, so self-evident, that we don’t even think about Who is behind it. Nor do we dwell on the fact that this process has been going on since creation, when God said: “Let there be light” (Genesis 1:3). No man can make it day, and no man can break through that daily recurring wonder. Day and night belong to God (Psalms 74:16).

The dawn of the day also has an effect on the wicked (Job 38:13). When it becomes light, it is to “to take hold of the ends of the earth”. When the sun rises, the whole horizon is suddenly illuminated. This gives the picture that it is as if the light is taking hold of the earth like a tablecloth to shake the crumbs off. The wicked are then seen here as the crumbs being shaken off the earth.

Here we see the effect of light on those who love the works of darkness. They hate the light (John 3:19-20), for it reveals their evil works (Ephesians 5:13). As soon as it becomes light, they flee the light; they fear the light and are driven away by it (cf. Job 24:17). God asks Job if he has commanded them to do so at dawn.

Another consequence of the dawning of the day after night is that the form of all things becomes visible again (Job 38:14). In the night everything is dark and the outlines fade away. The earth then seems to be a shapeless and colorless piece of “clay”. But just as the impression of a seal in the soft clay changes the shape of the clay into something recognizable, so the dawn of the day changes the shape of the earth into something recognizable. The “garment” of the earth, where we can think, for example, of the trees and flowers that we do not see at night, is seen. In the morning light we see the whole structure and beauty of the earth.

Opposite the recognizability of God’s creation works in the light is the disappearance of the wicked (Job 38:15). The daylight breaks through, but they do not benefit from it. On the contrary, they do not want the light and crawl away from it. Because they do not want to see the light, but prefer darkness, they will never see the light. Their “uplifted arm”, a picture of their rebellion against God, will be broken forever (cf. Numbers 15:30; Psalms 10:15; Psalms 37:17). In the realm of peace, when Christ has risen as the Sun of righteousness, He will wipe out all the wicked from the land every morning (Malachi 4:2-3; Psalms 101:8).

Psalms 28:3

Day and Night

After questions about the beginning of creation, the next topic on which God questions Job is the beginning of the day. Has Job, since he was alive, ever caused the day to dawn, that the morning began to shine, and the dawn to be seen (Job 38:12)? Has he been able to influence the alternation between day and night? Has he determined when and where that would happen? Also this question is not answered. God does not expect an answer either. All questions must lead Job to the only correct answer and that is that he no longer has any rebuttal to God’s government in his life. If he acknowledges God’s guidance, he doesn’t need answers.

Job and we too would never have come to that question. The rising and setting of the sun is so mundane, so self-evident, that we don’t even think about Who is behind it. Nor do we dwell on the fact that this process has been going on since creation, when God said: “Let there be light” (Genesis 1:3). No man can make it day, and no man can break through that daily recurring wonder. Day and night belong to God (Psalms 74:16).

The dawn of the day also has an effect on the wicked (Job 38:13). When it becomes light, it is to “to take hold of the ends of the earth”. When the sun rises, the whole horizon is suddenly illuminated. This gives the picture that it is as if the light is taking hold of the earth like a tablecloth to shake the crumbs off. The wicked are then seen here as the crumbs being shaken off the earth.

Here we see the effect of light on those who love the works of darkness. They hate the light (John 3:19-20), for it reveals their evil works (Ephesians 5:13). As soon as it becomes light, they flee the light; they fear the light and are driven away by it (cf. Job 24:17). God asks Job if he has commanded them to do so at dawn.

Another consequence of the dawning of the day after night is that the form of all things becomes visible again (Job 38:14). In the night everything is dark and the outlines fade away. The earth then seems to be a shapeless and colorless piece of “clay”. But just as the impression of a seal in the soft clay changes the shape of the clay into something recognizable, so the dawn of the day changes the shape of the earth into something recognizable. The “garment” of the earth, where we can think, for example, of the trees and flowers that we do not see at night, is seen. In the morning light we see the whole structure and beauty of the earth.

Opposite the recognizability of God’s creation works in the light is the disappearance of the wicked (Job 38:15). The daylight breaks through, but they do not benefit from it. On the contrary, they do not want the light and crawl away from it. Because they do not want to see the light, but prefer darkness, they will never see the light. Their “uplifted arm”, a picture of their rebellion against God, will be broken forever (cf. Numbers 15:30; Psalms 10:15; Psalms 37:17). In the realm of peace, when Christ has risen as the Sun of righteousness, He will wipe out all the wicked from the land every morning (Malachi 4:2-3; Psalms 101:8).

Psalms 28:4

Unprecedented Depths and Widths

God asks Job if he knows anything of “the springs of the sea” and “the recesses of the deep” (Job 38:16). Has he seen and searched the recesses of the deep, so that he has discovered the springs from which the sea springs? And is he so at home at the recesses of the deep that he has walked there? The sea contains unprecedented depths where it is completely dark, where man cannot come, and if he could come there he could see nothing.

But to God these inaccessible depths hold no secrets. He walks there in perfectly familiar territory (Psalms 77:19). Man lacks the knowledge of those depths, because he cannot get there. If he doesn’t know the natural depths, what does he know about God’s way in his life with the depths He sometimes leads him through? It may be enough that God knows his path of life and purpose, right through the sea and great waters of trials.

In Job 38:17 God asks Job about an even greater and darker depth than that of the sea, the depths of the realm of the dead. As long as someone is in the land of the living, it remains a mystery what exactly “the gates of death” are, how he should imagine them. He has no view or insight into them. By also speaking of “the gates of deep darkness” God adds to the state of death the aspect of darkness.

To be able to answer these questions, a person must first experience it. But once he has experienced it, he cannot go back to tell about it because he is dead. Man doesn’t know from experience what death is or how he leaves life and how it feels. For God, however, death knows no secrets (Job 26:6). He knows exactly how death works.

The New Testament believer also does not know exactly how death works. What he is allowed to know is that death no longer has authority over him. It can happen that he dies. He doesn’t know how it goes, but he does know where he is going, namely to his Lord and Savior in paradise (Luke 23:43; Philippians 1:23). The believer belongs to the church of which the Lord Jesus said, “and the gates of Hades will not overpower it” (Matthew 16:18b).

After the depths it is about the widths. God asks Job whether he has “understood the expanse of the earth” (Job 38:18). The meaning of the question is whether Job gave special attention to the widths of the earth, i.e. the surface of the earth (as opposed to the sea), so that as a result he gained a thorough and extensive knowledge of them. Job had no knowledge of the fact that the earth is a globe and that the widest place on earth is the equator. For him the widths of the earth were what he saw around him. It should bring Job to understand that man’s field of vision is limited to the horizon, but that God oversees everything.

God concludes this series of questions with an invitation, or perhaps more of a challenge, to Job to make it known to Him if he knows “all this”. To Him it is not about the concrete answer to the individual questions, but about the answer to all questions, about their coherence, for all questions are interrelated. Job is silent and does not answer. In the light of what God asks of him, it begins to dawn on him that he has spoken “words without knowledge” (Job 38:2).

Psalms 28:5

Unprecedented Depths and Widths

God asks Job if he knows anything of “the springs of the sea” and “the recesses of the deep” (Job 38:16). Has he seen and searched the recesses of the deep, so that he has discovered the springs from which the sea springs? And is he so at home at the recesses of the deep that he has walked there? The sea contains unprecedented depths where it is completely dark, where man cannot come, and if he could come there he could see nothing.

But to God these inaccessible depths hold no secrets. He walks there in perfectly familiar territory (Psalms 77:19). Man lacks the knowledge of those depths, because he cannot get there. If he doesn’t know the natural depths, what does he know about God’s way in his life with the depths He sometimes leads him through? It may be enough that God knows his path of life and purpose, right through the sea and great waters of trials.

In Job 38:17 God asks Job about an even greater and darker depth than that of the sea, the depths of the realm of the dead. As long as someone is in the land of the living, it remains a mystery what exactly “the gates of death” are, how he should imagine them. He has no view or insight into them. By also speaking of “the gates of deep darkness” God adds to the state of death the aspect of darkness.

To be able to answer these questions, a person must first experience it. But once he has experienced it, he cannot go back to tell about it because he is dead. Man doesn’t know from experience what death is or how he leaves life and how it feels. For God, however, death knows no secrets (Job 26:6). He knows exactly how death works.

The New Testament believer also does not know exactly how death works. What he is allowed to know is that death no longer has authority over him. It can happen that he dies. He doesn’t know how it goes, but he does know where he is going, namely to his Lord and Savior in paradise (Luke 23:43; Philippians 1:23). The believer belongs to the church of which the Lord Jesus said, “and the gates of Hades will not overpower it” (Matthew 16:18b).

After the depths it is about the widths. God asks Job whether he has “understood the expanse of the earth” (Job 38:18). The meaning of the question is whether Job gave special attention to the widths of the earth, i.e. the surface of the earth (as opposed to the sea), so that as a result he gained a thorough and extensive knowledge of them. Job had no knowledge of the fact that the earth is a globe and that the widest place on earth is the equator. For him the widths of the earth were what he saw around him. It should bring Job to understand that man’s field of vision is limited to the horizon, but that God oversees everything.

God concludes this series of questions with an invitation, or perhaps more of a challenge, to Job to make it known to Him if he knows “all this”. To Him it is not about the concrete answer to the individual questions, but about the answer to all questions, about their coherence, for all questions are interrelated. Job is silent and does not answer. In the light of what God asks of him, it begins to dawn on him that he has spoken “words without knowledge” (Job 38:2).

Psalms 28:6

Unprecedented Depths and Widths

God asks Job if he knows anything of “the springs of the sea” and “the recesses of the deep” (Job 38:16). Has he seen and searched the recesses of the deep, so that he has discovered the springs from which the sea springs? And is he so at home at the recesses of the deep that he has walked there? The sea contains unprecedented depths where it is completely dark, where man cannot come, and if he could come there he could see nothing.

But to God these inaccessible depths hold no secrets. He walks there in perfectly familiar territory (Psalms 77:19). Man lacks the knowledge of those depths, because he cannot get there. If he doesn’t know the natural depths, what does he know about God’s way in his life with the depths He sometimes leads him through? It may be enough that God knows his path of life and purpose, right through the sea and great waters of trials.

In Job 38:17 God asks Job about an even greater and darker depth than that of the sea, the depths of the realm of the dead. As long as someone is in the land of the living, it remains a mystery what exactly “the gates of death” are, how he should imagine them. He has no view or insight into them. By also speaking of “the gates of deep darkness” God adds to the state of death the aspect of darkness.

To be able to answer these questions, a person must first experience it. But once he has experienced it, he cannot go back to tell about it because he is dead. Man doesn’t know from experience what death is or how he leaves life and how it feels. For God, however, death knows no secrets (Job 26:6). He knows exactly how death works.

The New Testament believer also does not know exactly how death works. What he is allowed to know is that death no longer has authority over him. It can happen that he dies. He doesn’t know how it goes, but he does know where he is going, namely to his Lord and Savior in paradise (Luke 23:43; Philippians 1:23). The believer belongs to the church of which the Lord Jesus said, “and the gates of Hades will not overpower it” (Matthew 16:18b).

After the depths it is about the widths. God asks Job whether he has “understood the expanse of the earth” (Job 38:18). The meaning of the question is whether Job gave special attention to the widths of the earth, i.e. the surface of the earth (as opposed to the sea), so that as a result he gained a thorough and extensive knowledge of them. Job had no knowledge of the fact that the earth is a globe and that the widest place on earth is the equator. For him the widths of the earth were what he saw around him. It should bring Job to understand that man’s field of vision is limited to the horizon, but that God oversees everything.

God concludes this series of questions with an invitation, or perhaps more of a challenge, to Job to make it known to Him if he knows “all this”. To Him it is not about the concrete answer to the individual questions, but about the answer to all questions, about their coherence, for all questions are interrelated. Job is silent and does not answer. In the light of what God asks of him, it begins to dawn on him that he has spoken “words without knowledge” (Job 38:2).

Psalms 28:7

Where Does the Light Come From?

After an earlier question about the light (Job 38:12) God now asks Job if he knows where the light is when it retreats because of the incursion of darkness (Job 38:19). Where does the light dwell? Can he show the way that leads to that dwelling place? And can he also show the dwelling place of darkness? When it becomes light again, darkness retreats. If Job knows the abode, then he can guide the light to his area (Job 38:20).

God uses beautiful imagery here. He presents the light as on a journey. Light is always in motion and has no fixed abode, but is on its way. In contrast, darkness, the absence of light, is limited to one place, “its place”. By the way God speaks about this, it becomes clear how impossible it is for man to point out where light abides when it is night and where darkness abides when it is day.

“But”, God says ironically to Job, “of course you know, for you were there when they were created (Job 38:21). After all, you have been on earth for so long that you remember that light and darkness were separated” (Genesis 1:4). God thus says in a gentle and at the same time clear way that Job knows nothing about it at all. Here too we hear no reaction from Job. His silence tells a lot.

We know by faith that God is the source of light and that He created light and darkness (Genesis 1:3-5). We know the difference between light and darkness through experience, through the laws we observe every day. But how one replaces the other, the cause of it, we do not know. That cause is God Himself, and He is unfathomable. That awareness leads us to adoration (Romans 11:33-36).

Psalms 28:8

Where Does the Light Come From?

After an earlier question about the light (Job 38:12) God now asks Job if he knows where the light is when it retreats because of the incursion of darkness (Job 38:19). Where does the light dwell? Can he show the way that leads to that dwelling place? And can he also show the dwelling place of darkness? When it becomes light again, darkness retreats. If Job knows the abode, then he can guide the light to his area (Job 38:20).

God uses beautiful imagery here. He presents the light as on a journey. Light is always in motion and has no fixed abode, but is on its way. In contrast, darkness, the absence of light, is limited to one place, “its place”. By the way God speaks about this, it becomes clear how impossible it is for man to point out where light abides when it is night and where darkness abides when it is day.

“But”, God says ironically to Job, “of course you know, for you were there when they were created (Job 38:21). After all, you have been on earth for so long that you remember that light and darkness were separated” (Genesis 1:4). God thus says in a gentle and at the same time clear way that Job knows nothing about it at all. Here too we hear no reaction from Job. His silence tells a lot.

We know by faith that God is the source of light and that He created light and darkness (Genesis 1:3-5). We know the difference between light and darkness through experience, through the laws we observe every day. But how one replaces the other, the cause of it, we do not know. That cause is God Himself, and He is unfathomable. That awareness leads us to adoration (Romans 11:33-36).

Psalms 28:9

Where Does the Light Come From?

After an earlier question about the light (Job 38:12) God now asks Job if he knows where the light is when it retreats because of the incursion of darkness (Job 38:19). Where does the light dwell? Can he show the way that leads to that dwelling place? And can he also show the dwelling place of darkness? When it becomes light again, darkness retreats. If Job knows the abode, then he can guide the light to his area (Job 38:20).

God uses beautiful imagery here. He presents the light as on a journey. Light is always in motion and has no fixed abode, but is on its way. In contrast, darkness, the absence of light, is limited to one place, “its place”. By the way God speaks about this, it becomes clear how impossible it is for man to point out where light abides when it is night and where darkness abides when it is day.

“But”, God says ironically to Job, “of course you know, for you were there when they were created (Job 38:21). After all, you have been on earth for so long that you remember that light and darkness were separated” (Genesis 1:4). God thus says in a gentle and at the same time clear way that Job knows nothing about it at all. Here too we hear no reaction from Job. His silence tells a lot.

We know by faith that God is the source of light and that He created light and darkness (Genesis 1:3-5). We know the difference between light and darkness through experience, through the laws we observe every day. But how one replaces the other, the cause of it, we do not know. That cause is God Himself, and He is unfathomable. That awareness leads us to adoration (Romans 11:33-36).