Psalm 81: Open Your Mouth

​Key Verse
10 I am the Lord your God, who brought you up out of the land of Egypt. Open your mouth wide, and I will fill it.
 
Meditation
God’s word is sufficient. God desires for our souls to be satisfied with Scripture.
 
Asaph wrote today’s Psalm for the Feast of Trumpets (“new moon”- 3a) and the Feast of Tabernacles (“full moon” -3b), festivals celebrating harvest and history. Festivals and feasts were the fabric of ancient Israelite society. The Feast of Trumpets celebrated the new year, bringing in of harvest. The Feast of Tabernacles, or booths, celebrated God’s covenant faithfulness during Israel’s wilderness years. Both centered on public reading of Scripture (Deuteronomy 31:10-13). 
 
Asaph structured the psalm with praise (vv. 1-4) and prophetic word (vv. 5-16), satisfying both of his roles as priest and prophet (2 Chronicles 29:30). Beginning with a summons to praise God for His faithfulness, the prophetic portion concludes with the proclamation of God’s desire to satisfy His people with His word- “the finest of wheat” and “honey from the rock.” (v. 16) The wilderness generation “did not listen to (God’s) voice,” but now His people have a choice to “open wide our mouths” for God to fill it (v. 10).
 
God longs for His people to listen (v. 13). God knows His love is the key to open our hearts to hear. Jesus is a greater priest and prophet than Asaph, God’s word made flesh. Jesus represents His unhearing people by living on every word that proceeds from God, (Matthew 4:4; Deuteronomy 8:3) and substituting for us in His death to fulfill the word of God.  In response to God’s grace, we eat God’s word to sing God’s praise and share God’s faithfulness in Jesus.
 
Today’s Reading
Sing aloud to God our strength;
    shout for joy to the God of Jacob!
2 Raise a song; sound the tambourine,
    the sweet lyre with the harp.
3 Blow the trumpet at the new moon,
    at the full moon, on our feast day.
4 For it is a statute for Israel,
    a rule of the God of Jacob.
5 He made it a decree in Joseph
    when he went out over the land of Egypt.
I hear a language I had not known:
6 “I relieved your shoulder of the burden;
    your hands were freed from the basket.
7 In distress you called, and I delivered you;
    I answered you in the secret place of thunder;
    I tested you at the waters of Meribah. Selah

8 Hear, O my people, while I admonish you!
    O Israel, if you would but listen to me!
9 There shall be no strange god among you;
    you shall not bow down to a foreign god.
10 I am the Lord your God,
    who brought you up out of the land of Egypt.
    Open your mouth wide, and I will fill it.
 
11 “But my people did not listen to my voice;
    Israel would not submit to me.
12 So I gave them over to their stubborn hearts,
    to follow their own counsels.
13 Oh, that my people would listen to me,
    that Israel would walk in my ways!
14 I would soon subdue their enemies
    and turn my hand against their foes.
15 Those who hate the Lord would cringe toward him,
    and their fate would last forever.
16 But he would feed you with the finest of the wheat,
    and with honey from the rock I would satisfy you.”
 
Richly Dwelling
-What stands out to you from today’s reading, especially God’s desire to fill the mouths and hearts of His people with His word?
 
-I have a snacking problem and eat a bunch of things between meals. What do you snack on that diminishes your appetite for God’s word? Entertainment? Social media? Over-scheduling social engagements? Acquiring the latest and best must have ________? Be specific.
 
-How does the work of Jesus open your heart with God’s love and empower you to open wide your mouth to feed on God’s word? What, specifically, does this look like for you?
 
Key Verse
10 I am the Lord your God, who brought you up out of the land of Egypt. Open your mouth wide, and I will fill it.