Psalm 121:1–2 Context
Psalm 121 is the second of the fifteen Songs of Ascents, which tradition suggests were sung by pilgrims as they journeyed up to Jerusalem to keep the annual feasts.
And possibly by worshipers at Mount Zion as they ascended the steps of the temple.
This encouraging psalm details God’s caretaking and preservation throughout their lifetime, comforting not only travelers but all his people.
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Psalm 121:1–2 Meaning
To face difficulties with confidence, we must know not only the source of our help but the quality and authority of it as well. And there is no better help to be found than that provided by our Creator.
The psalmist indicates that when he is in trouble, he looks up and away from his besetting problems (“I lift up my eyes”) toward the mountains.
Why the mountains? Because the hills of Jerusalem—and Mount Zion in particular, as the site of David’s Tabernacle and then the temple—represent the dwelling place of God on earth.
The psalmist looks to God to rescue or assist him and continues with a question and answer that clarifies and emphasizes exactly who provides his help: the Lord.
This is followed by more clarity and more emphasis with his description as “the Maker of heaven and earth.”
With the help of the Maker at hand, is there really a problem?
Psalm 121:1–2 Application
When we are tempted to worry about a troubling situation, twisting ourselves into knots, trying to solve this issue or fix that one.
We must choose to take our focus off the presenting problem and the created world, and turn our gaze toward God, our unseen Creator who nevertheless.
Instead of approaching problem solving as a horizontal endeavor, moving inward to ourselves or reaching outward to those people and resources on the same created plane we are, we can employ our vertical relationship with our Maker.
Releasing our cares and troubles upward in the form of prayers and petitions, breaking the plane as well as an often-frustrating cycle of anxiety and striving.
In turn, when the Lord, whom no foe can withstand, moves in a situation, he is doing so from the vantage point of one who sees the end from the beginning and who knows the inner workings as well as the outer.
After all, no one can troubleshoot like the Manufacturer.
“So then, since we have a great High Priest who has entered heaven, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold firmly to what we believe.
This High Priest of ours understands our weaknesses, for he faced all of the same testings we do, yet he did not sin. So let us come boldly to the throne of our gracious God.
There we will receive his mercy, and we will find grace to help us when we need it most.”