Seas Have a Voice

Seas Have a Voice

October 9, 2017

Psalm 93:3 "The seas have lifted up, Lord, the seas have lifted up their voice; the seas have lifted up their pounding waves."

Many of the Psalms were written to music, as in a ballad or celebration to what is going on in the psalmist's heart and life. Psalm 93 is a short, five verse song, comparing the Lord's magnitude and strength to that of the ocean. The psalmist sings that the seas have a voice, with their dangerous and pounding waves, declare how magnanimous is the Lord of Heaven. It is not known if this is the psalmist writing and singing from the safety of the shoreline, being afraid of the stormy ocean, or if this was written from a death defying experience on the open waters. Maybe this is a storm in the psalmist's heart and the ocean is an allegory for his problems that cannot be controlled or harnessed. Whatever the case may be, any of the above mentioned scenarios hold true. The ocean is vast and powerful, dangerous, but the Lord is bigger than it all and the ocean declares it so.

The psalmist may have written it to encourage his heart, reminding him no matter how big the situation, how powerful or scary or dangerous, the Lord is bigger and mightier than it all. The Lord made that which is feared, and the psalmist was suggesting one need have more respect for the Lord than the pounding waves, or dangerous situation. The pounding ocean waves, representing a formidable scenario to a weak human being, declared the Lord's greatness. Simply stated, the potential problem declared how strong the Lord was and is and will be in our lives. The psalmist wrote these words to encourage himself, to sing the words that lifted the Lord up above the scary scenario. If the psalmist wasn't afraid of the situation, he would not have used the words "pounding waves," "thunder of the great waters," and "breakers of the sea."

He writes that the Lord is above it all, stronger and mightier, secure enough to not be rocked by the pounding breakers. In the last verse he determines that the Lord is steadfast, resolute and unchanging. He was declaring the Lord, no many how many scary situations arise, the Lord will be bigger than all of them, for all eternity. You would not know how big your God is without a big and scary situation needing overcome. There are a million scenarios right now in this world to be feared: earthquakes, floods, terrorists, and rogue gunman, bill collectors, doctor reports, and loneliness. The Lord is bigger than them all, resolute and unchanging, mightier than whatever situation you fear right now. 

Whatever you are fearing, the Lord is bigger. It is the Lord you should fear, not your situation. He can calm the waters, move the mountains, heal the sick, and pay any debt. Make sure you are right with the one who can overcome your breaking waves. They will not overtake you.

Don't take my word for it; look it up: Psalm 93, Psalm 111:10, Mark 4:35-41, 1 Peter 5:7