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Many translations interpret Psalm 84:1 like this …
How lovely is your dwelling place, O Lord of hosts! (v. 1, ESV)
The correct translation is found in other versions …
How lovely is your dwelling place, O Lord of Heaven’s Armies (v. 1, NLT).
What a beautiful home, God-of-the-Angel-Armies! (v. 1, MSG)
Since I’ve spent many years reading versions of the Bible that use the “Lord of hosts” translation, I’ve thought, “Lord of angels, cherubs, and perhaps saints living together in worshipful bliss.”
The Hebrew phrase translated as “Lord of hosts” should be translated “Lord of Heaven’s Armies,” as it is in the New Living Translation (NLT). I also like how the Message Bible interprets the phrase as “God of the Angel Armies.”
The historical context of the Psalms and most of the Old Testament is warfare. Constant threats from enemies surrounding Israel with a fortress on a high place as the safest place to live. The “dwelling place” of this Psalm is not a Mar-a-Lago-style luxury resort by the seaside, but a fortress built on a mountain for security.
Psalm 84 uses the imagery of a fortress and a “God of the Angel Armies” (the phrase is used four times); it’s not of an American suburb with nary an enemy army in sight. In Israel, the House of the Lord (think active enemies and constant battles) was the Fortress of the Lord surrounded by His armies.
A safe place; peace through strength from God.
The Apostle Paul teaches that we should consider our spiritual walk with Jesus in the same context. As the Message paraphrases Ephesians 6:12 …
This is no weekend war that we’ll walk away from and forget about in a couple of hours. This is for keeps, a life-or-death fight to the finish against the Devil and all his angels.
There is a figurative element in Psalm 84 as it does imply (using warfare imagery) that the safest place for all our battles (both physical and spiritual, both in ancient Israel and in your city today) remains the presence of God.
I long, yes, I faint with longing to enter the courts of the Lord. With my whole being, body and soul, I will shout joyfully to the living God (v. 2, NLT).
A single day in your courts is better than a thousand anywhere else! (v. 10)
Those who follow Jesus will find themselves in battles. A brother once told me that we need to live with “bold humility,” understanding our need for God while standing for truth, justice, and God’s Kingdom. We aren’t passive; our commission must take the message of Jesus to the entire world.
To succeed in our battles, Psalm 84 gives two insights. First, in verse 4, “What joy for those who can live in your house.” And second, in verse 8, “O Lord God of Heaven’s Armies, hear my prayer.”
Let’s remember these two secrets of spiritual warfare — living in God’s presence and learning to intercede with victorious prayers from His courts, realizing that Heaven’s throne room, where the Lord of Heaven’s Armies resides, is both a place of worship and warfare.
Again, realize that worship and warfare belong on opposite sides of the same coin. We can’t praise a God of righteousness without battling evil! As we see in the Book of Revelation …
When the Lamb broke the fifth seal, I saw under the altar the souls of all who had been martyred for the word of God and for being faithful in their testimony. They shouted to the Lord and said, “O Sovereign Lord, holy and true, how long before you judge the people who belong to this world and avenge our blood for what they have done to us?” (Revelation 6:9-10).
Through endurance, we find that …
The Lord God is our sun and our shield. He gives us grace and glory. The Lord will withhold no good thing from those who do what is right. O Lord of Heaven’s Armies, what joy for those who trust in you (Psalm 84:11-12).
Amen. Peace out!
*Note that this Interruption should be #1666. But I dislike something about that number, so I numbered this 1667!