Sons of Korah.

Psalm 84

A Psalm of the Sons of Korah.

How lovely are Your dwelling places, O Lord of hosts! My soul longed and even yearned for the courts of the Lord; my heart and my flesh sing for joy to the living God.

The bird also has found a house, and the swallow a nest for herself, where she may lay her young, even Your altars, O Lord of hosts, my King and my God. How blessed are those who dwell in Your house! They are ever praising You.

How blessed is the man whose strength is in You, in whose heart are the highways to Zion! Passing through the valley of Baca they make it a spring; the early rain also covers it with blessings.

They go from  strength to strength, everyone of them appears before God in Zion. O Lord God of hosts, hear my prayer; give ear, O God of Jacob! Behold our shield, O God, and look upon the face of your anointed.

For a day in Your courts is better than a thousand outside. I would rather stand at the threshold of the house of my God than dwell in the tents of the wickedness. For the Lord God is a sun and shield; the Lord gives grace and glory; no good thing does He withhold from those who walk uprightly.

O Lord of hosts, how blessed is the man who trusts in You!

This is a psalm written by the sons of Korah. It simply speaks of the blessing of being in God’s presence. It is an expression with a grateful heart knowing that God’s presence is our greatest joy. But there is a lot more to this psalm than meets the eye. See, the time this was written, Jesus had not been born yet, but the tabernacle did exist which is where God’s presence rested among His people. (Have them construct a sanctuary for Me, so that I may dwell among them. Exodus 25:8) I point to this fact, because in a recent study I found out who the sons of Korah actually are. (Not only the writers of this psalm.)

Numbers 16:1 states that the Korah was the son of Kohath. Yet, who is Kohath? The Kohath family was delegated by God to carry the altar on their shoulders using poles made for that purpose, since it was so holy it could not be touched. (Exodus 25:14, Numbers 7:9) “This is the service of the sons of Kohath in the tent of meeting: the most holy things.” Numbers 4:4. Numbers 4:4-14 lays out their role in much more detail.

Then Numbers 16 happens and we see the fall of the Kohath family and their accomplices. In short, the Kohathites rose up against Moses and Aaron, Korah being their leader. Korah instigated his own mini rebellion and recruited others as his grievance committee. He believed Moses and Aaron exalted themselves above them, so he confronted them. Korah believed Moses and Aaron wanted priesthood for themselves, trying to make it some kind of political machine for gain, which he wanted in on. Korah expressed their disdain for their current role (as moving men) and wanted priesthood. They ended up resenting Moses and Aaron due to their own motivation for power.

This did not end well for the Kohathites. Korah assembled the congregation against them at the doorway of the tent of meeting and the Lord was not pleased (to say the least) with Korah, Dathan and Abiram. So, what happened? The earth opened up and swallowed them whole, them and all their possessions.  

Dathan and Abiram’s families were swallowed up, but the most interesting and merciful part comes in Numbers 26:11, when it says: “Nevertheless, the children of Korah did not die.” The Lord instead banned the sons of Korah forever for serving in the tabernacle again. These sons then, they became quiet worshippers.

Knowing the story of the one who wrote this psalm, brings me to tears. It gives much more meaning of one who is grateful to be in the presence of God, something that was not enough for their ancestors. Passing through a valley of Baca, they make it a spring. Going from strength to strength in God. Then the verse that really hits a lot harder, verse 10, “For a day in your courts is better than a thousand elsewhere; I would rather stand as a doorkeeper at the threshold of the house of my God than live at ease in the tents of wickedness.”

Written from the one’s who know what it is like to be banned from His presence, and they know the worthiness of simply standing at a doorway, as close as they can get.  They knew that was the best place to be than anywhere else.

I’m just going to leave this as that.

Prayer:

Lord, I thank you that you truly are a sun and shield. I thank you for this day and for each person reading this. I ask that you bless their eyes to see and ears to hear. Bless their mind and heart and health. Make known to us the joy of your presence and how to live in unending joy. May the truth that you dwell in us be our delight, and source of joy. Help us let go of any motivations that are not for us and do not serve us as children of God. Help us speak out words of encouragement and kindness to one another with honest, humble hearts. Help us to accept where You have placed and purposed us with great joy. May you bless your righteous and those who trust in You. Thank you, Lord. Amen.