psalm 89 chiastic structure

Read Psalm 89 at Bible Gateway.

I must admit this psalm, the final psalm in the third book of psalms, was difficult to unpack … the chiastic structure that follows is my best sense of it. The psalm is clearly messianic in nature, part of the psalmist’s perplexity comes from the dichotomy that exists between the promises made to Messiah of David’s line, and the reality that happened to the earthly kings of David’s line. There is only one interlinear paragraph division in the entire psalm, midway through vs. 19, which is marked in the structure:

introduction) Psa 89:1-4, The mercy and faithfulness of the Lord:
Psa 89:1, I will sing of the mercies of the Lord forever; With my mouth will I make known Your faithfulness to all generations;
Psa 89:2, For I have said, “Mercy shall be built up forever; Your faithfulness You shall establish in the very heavens;”
Psa 89:3, “I have made a covenant with My chosen, I have sworn to My servant David:
Psa 89:4, ‘Your seed I will establish forever, And build up your throne to all generations.’” Selah

1a) Psa 89:5-13, The glory and greatness of God:

1) Psa 89:5-7, God’s greatness in the heavens:

1a) Psa 89:5a, And the heavens will praise Your wonders, O Lord;
1b) Psa 89:5b, Your faithfulness also in the assembly of the saints;
central axis) Psa 89:6, For who in the heavens can be compared to the Lord? Who among the sons of the mighty can be likened to the Lord?
2b) Psa 89:7a, God is greatly to be feared in the assembly of the saints;
2a) Psa 89:7b, And to be held in reverence by all those around Him.

2) Psa 89:8-13, God’s greatness on the earth:

1a) Psa 89:8-10, The supreme might of the Lord:

1a) Psa 89:8a, O Lord God of hosts, Who is mighty like You, O Lord?
1b) Psa 89:8b, Your faithfulness also surrounds You;
central axis) Psa 89:9, You rule the raging of the sea; When its waves rise, You still them;
2b) Psa 89:10a, You have broken Rahab [Egypt] in pieces, as one who is slain;
2a) Psa 89:10b, You have scattered Your enemies with Your mighty arm;

1b) Psa 89:11a, The heavens are Yours, the earth also is Yours;
1c) Psa 89:11b, The world and all its fullness, You have founded them;
2c) Psa 89:12a, The north and the south, You have created them;
2b) Psa 89:12b, Tabor and Hermon rejoice in Your name;
2a) Psa 89:13, You have a mighty arm; Strong is Your hand, and high is Your right hand.

1b) Psa 89:15-28, God anoints + establishes His king:

1a) Psa 89:15-17, The exaltation of God’s people:

Psa 89:15, Blessed are the people who know the joyful sound! They walk, O Lord, in the light of Your countenance;
Psa 89:16, In Your name they rejoice all day long, And in Your righteousness they are exalted;
Psa 89:17, For You are the glory of their strength, And in Your favor our horn is exalted;

1b) Psa 89:18, For our shield + our king belongs to the Lord, the Holy One of Israel;

1c) Psa 89:19a, Then You spoke in a vision to Your holy one, And said: “I have given help to one who is mighty; {n}
2c) Psa 89:19b, I have exalted one chosen from the people;

2b) Psa 89:20-23, The king chosen + anointed by God:

Psa 89:20, I have found My servant David; With My holy oil I have anointed him;
Psa 89:21, With whom My hand shall be established; Also My arm shall strengthen him;
Psa 89:22, The enemy shall not outwit him, Nor the son of wickedness afflict him;
Psa 89:23, I will beat down his foes before his face, And plague those who hate him.

2a) Psa 89:24-28, The exaltation of God’s King:

1a) Psa 89:24, “But My faithfulness and My mercy shall be with him, And in My name his horn shall be exalted;
1b) Psa 89:25, Also I will set his hand over the sea, And his right hand over the rivers;
central axis) Psa 89:26, He shall cry to Me, ‘You are my Father, My God, and the rock of my salvation;’
2b) Psa 89:27, Also I will make him My firstborn, The highest of the kings of the earth;
2a) Psa 89:28, My mercy I will keep for him forever, And My covenant shall stand firm with him.

central axis) Psa 89:29-37, God’s eternal covenant with David:

1a) Psa 89:29, His seed also I will make to endure forever, And his throne as the days of heaven;
1b) Psa 89:30-31, “If his sons forsake My law And do not walk in My judgments / If they break My statutes And do not keep My commandments;
central axis) Psa 89:32-33, Then I will punish their transgression with the rod, And their iniquity with stripes / Nevertheless My lovingkindness I will not utterly take from him, Nor allow My faithfulness to fail;
2b) Psa 89:34-35, My covenant I will not break, Nor alter the word that has gone out of My lips / Once I have sworn by My holiness; I will not lie to David;
2a) Psa 89:36-37, His seed shall endure forever, And his throne as the sun before Me / It shall be established forever like the moon, Even like the faithful witness in the sky.” Selah

2b) Psa 89:38-45, God’s king brought down:

1a) Psa 89:38, But You have cast off and abhorred, You have been furious with Your anointed;
1b) Psa 89:39, You have renounced the covenant of Your servant; You have profaned his crown by casting it to the ground;
1c) Psa 89:40, You have broken down all his hedges; You have brought his strongholds to ruin;
1d) Psa 89:41, All who pass by the way plunder him; He is a reproach to his neighbors;
2d) Psa 89:42, You have exalted the right hand of his adversaries; You have made all his enemies rejoice;
2c) Psa 89:43, You have also turned back the edge of his sword, And have not sustained him in the battle;
2b) Psa 89:44, You have made his glory cease, And cast his throne down to the ground;
2a) Psa 89:45, The days of his youth You have shortened; You have covered him with shame. Selah

2a) Psa 89:46-51, An appeal to God’s mercy and faithfulness:

1a) Psa 89:46-47, How long Lord? Remember, Lord?

1) Psa 89:46, How long, Lord? Will You hide Yourself forever? Will Your wrath burn like fire?
2) Psa 89:47, Remember how short my time is; For what futility have You created all the children of men?

central axis) Psa 89:48, What man can live and not see death? Can he deliver his life from the power of the grave? Selah

2a) Psa 89:49-51, Where, Lord? Remember, Lord?

1) Psa 89:49, Lord, where are Your former lovingkindnesses, Which You swore to David in Your truth?
2) Psa 89:50-51, Remember, Lord, the reproach of Your servants— How I bear in my bosom the reproach of all the many peoples / With which Your enemies have reproached, O Lord, With which they have reproached the footsteps of Your anointed.

conclusion / doxology of psalms book three) Psa 89:52, Blessed be the Lord forevermore! Amen and Amen. {p}

Psa 89:14, Righteousness and justice are the foundation of Your throne; Mercy and truth go before Your face; was out of place in this structure, but it could be the conclusion of the section extolling the greatness and glory of God, or it could pair with the introduction, making the entire section from Psa 89:1-14 the 1A pair.

I just want to encourage the psalmist that it is very true that God will not break His covenant, nor alter the word that has come out of His lips. If what you see with your eyes does not line up with God’s promise, it is because God is not yet finished bringing His promise about! The end of the story is not yet. If we ascribe unfaithfulness to God, it is because we have established our own timetable and expectations on how and when His promise is to play out. Our judgment of God’s unfaithfulness is never just! ♥