Psalm 23:6 – Pursued
Surely goodness and lovingkindness will pursue me all the days of my life,
and I will love in the LORD’s house forever.
Well, this is the last verse of Psalm 23. It’s a bit shorter than Psalm 119!
So which is better? A lot more people quote Psalm 23, and with good reason, but there is value both in something comprehensive and something compact and evocative. That’s why we have different kinds of literature in the Bible. It’s also why we all love different kinds of literature ourselves.
So what is the impact of the ending of this Psalm? For me, it comes in the second half of the verse. I’ll live in God’s house forever. But I chose the first half to provide my title. I am pursued by God’s goodness and lovingkindness. It reminds me of Psalm 119:176. I may have gone astray like a lost sheep, but I cry out for God to seek me. When I do, I discover that God has been pursuing me all the time.
Many times, the result of prayer is not a change in circumstances, but rather a change in perspective.
After crying out to God in my trouble, I hear a voice that says, “Look the other way.” When I do, there God is. God has been there all the time. I can’t get away from God’s mercy and love.
But the second half of the verse gives me another perspective. I’m going to live in God’s house forever. There are a number of view of this, each of which can help us understand God’s love for us.
I’m going to look at three.
First, we can think of this as the privilege of being in God’s presence in a place and time of worship. There is pleasure and comfort in being in God’s presence in such a place at such a time. Often this involves the enjoyment of our relationship to other people as well as our relationship to God. Conceive of a time of peace and joy and then think of that never ending.
There’s a saying that we can’t live our lives in a spiritual retreat, and that we can’t stay forever on a spiritual high. Psalm 23:6 suggests that this is going to change down the road.
Second, we can think of this eschatologically, meaning at the end. Yesterday, in writing about the heavenly banquet, I looked at some passages from Revelation. But if you look carefully you’ll see that Revelation is built with sanctuary imagery. In the Israelite temple you had a courtyard, then the holy place, and finally the most holy place, in which the ark of the covenant was kept. It represented God’s presence.
That presence was separated from the people by that courtyard and earlier room, the holy place. Access was more limited the closer one got to the throne. But in Revelation, starting with chapter 4 and the command to John to “come up here,” we start to see sanctuary imagery all around, and the center of the action is around the throne of God, right in the Most Holy Place.
Access was limited. Access will be unlimited. We will dwell in God’s house forever.
But there is a third. If we jump just one verse to the next Psalm, we can learn what it is:
To the LORD belongs the world and everything in it;
Psalm 24:1-2, my translation
The inhabited land and everyone living in it.
For He established it upon the seas,
Upon the streams he made it firm.
You may think you have to wait, but God’s house is here now. You’re living in it. Your house is in God’s house. All your stuff? That’s God’s stuff. You? You’re God’s person.
Now.
What we all need is a change of perspective, a new understanding of what belongs to God. I frequently note what I believe is Jesus’ humor when he says, “Render to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s and to God the things that are God’s.” Just what is it that actually belongs to Caesar? There’s some practical advice for life in the saying, but there’s also a pointer to something greater.
Just as you can turn, look, and find that God is already there seeking you, and was doing so before you called, so you can turn any direction, look, and see God’s house all around you. The change is in you. God was there all the time and will be there forever.
You live in God’s house, because God owns all the houses and all the stuff.
Live in God’s house today!
